My Response to How to Mark A Book

            

    Mortimer Adler’s essay, “How to Mark a Book”, (1940) defines a clear and logical way of marking up a book that will help a person not only have a book to read but have a book they respect and understand inside-out. Adler’s essay is merely made up of self-examined ideas and the thought process of humans while reading. The sole purpose of this essay was to not only inform his audiences but to also teach them in order to later have a new found respect for whatever they may read in the future. The intended audiences of the essay are people who are in a more mature stage of studies.

            I automatically connected with Alder’s idea because I’m one of the many college students who try to find a variety of ways to better understand any material I may be studying. The way he explained the art of marking a book helped me see the passion and pure knowledge of how much help this could provide a person. I was personally drawn towards this because it gave me a general idea on how to study to where I will not only just read over the context but I will have a full knowledge of whatever I’m studying. Although people may use different study methods, I do believe that they all fall back to Adler’s idea of marking the book and seeing its true soul.

            They way Mortimer Adler brought this essay together was ingenious. Every explanation not only helps one understand it but it will stick with them after reading. Like most people, I’m one who reads and, in the end, has to go back and read again to gain any kind of knowledge. Adler states in paragraph four, “I am arguing that book, too, must be absorbed in your bloodstream to do you any good.” What Adler clearly means is, until one takes the literature and really makes it a part of themselves, they will never fully acknowledge the true meaning behind it.

That's How I Roll

      "That's How I Roll" was written by Ginny Donaldson for her English 1101 class in 2009. This informative essay describes how and why slang is created and used. Many phrases, such as "That's How I Roll", are used throughout the United States. This kind of slang is widespread and is mutually understood by most Americans. Donaldson poses a question. Why and how is slang created?

      Donaldson uses sources, such as the Urban Dictionary, Google, and Buzzle, to describe her thoughts on this subject. Slang seems to develop everyday. Once new slang is created, most of the old slang becomes obsolete and forgotten. Some slang stays longer than others because they are "sticky" or well-remembered. Radical, hip, and gnarly are examples of slang words that are rarely used now but were commonly used years ago. New slang pops up from many places, such as the Internet or everyday conversation.

      This essay reminds me how I use slang everyday and don't even realize it. Most people feel the same way. Slang phrases are used so often that they receive a spot in the official dictionaries. Throughout any regular day, people like me will use slang words and phrases so much that it becomes part of everyday language. Each day, new slang is added to our repertoire.

My Thoughts on "Why Leaves Turn Color in the Fall'

                              
  "Why Leaves Turn Coloe in the Fall," (1990), is a poetic, scientific essay written by Diane Ackerman, which explains why leaves turn color in the fall.  Ackerman develops the essay by gradually explainig the process  of what causes leaves to change color in the fall.  Ackerman's purpose is to explain the scientific process of  leaves changing colors in a poetic fashion, in order to teach others why the process happens.  Her intended audience is individuals, who although might not be interested in science, are probably fans of poetry.

      I had a hard time reading Ackerman's essay for a long period of time.  Perhaps, the writing style is simply Ackerman's way of writing poetry, it sometimes felt as if Ackerman was doing a little too much in the form of her writing.  For a poem, the essay did not seem to flow gracefully.  Maybe an essay such as this is intended more towards people who enjoy life sciences and can identify more with the subject matter.  As someone who enjoys reading pretty much anything, it was strange to come across a text that had me mentally exhausted after the first two paragraphs.

     The text just did not seem to flow, it seems that when I tried to immerse myself in the essay, I would come across something that made me do a double-take.  Instead of being able to read along and follow the essay, I found myself having to stop and look up the definition of a word in the text.  Even though, I can see how Ackerman used her poetic and scientific knowlede while writing this essay,  I am not so sure that the two blend together very well in her poem.

My Thoughts on "Spanglish"

"Spanglish," (1998) is an article written in TIME magazine by Janice Castro, Don Cook, and Christina Garcia.  The three authors explore on the fact that Spanish is increasingly being used in American society. Castro, Cook, and Garcia develop the essay by using a mixture of both English and Spanish to help the reader understand not only what Spanglish is, but why someone might speak Spanglish instead of English. The writer's purpose is to show others how both the Spanish and English languages have been influenced by each other in America.


Castro, Cook, and Garcia write on a phenomenon that has only increased since 1998.  There are now currently more Spanish speakers in the United States than speakers of Chinese, French, Italian, Hawaiian, and the all of the Native American languages combined.  There are about 35,000,000 people in the United States who speak Spanish as their primary language at home. The influence of English on American Spanish is also very important. In many areas where there is a influx of Spanish immigrants, it is common to mix Spanish and English, thereby producing Spanglish. The new generation of American Hispanics want to preserve knowing and Spanish as equal to knowing English.


The authors of "Spanglish," were not trying to give an opinion on the matter of whether or not one should only speak English when one immigrates to America.  They were simply stating that when you have an influx of foreign speakers, it is almost impossible to expect everyone of them to simply forget their language and culture that preceded their immigration.  Both languages, Spanish and English seem to be expanding off of the other in America.  I believe this was the authors intent, to show how both cultures are trying to learn and cultivate a connection with each other.

"A Man in the Woods" and My Thoughts

      "A Man in the Woods" is a narrative written by Andrew White for his English 1101 class in 2010. White tells his story of how he delivered food and water to needy people in Bankhead Village, Georgia. The men that lived in the village had livelihoods unlike anything most of us would experience. They live in the woods and survive on donations or food that they hunt for themselves. When it gets cold during the winter season, they burn logs and trash to keep themselves warm. When White enters the village with food and water, a man named James greets him and guides him through the village. James dropped off food and water from White at every hut that was inhabited. While White walks through the village, he notices the horrible odor that was coming from the trash that was piled everywhere. White realizes what horrible conditions they are living in and feels grateful for the things that he has.

      This story reminds me of the time I visited Vietnam with my family. Instead of one village, there were several poor villages. There are millions of people in the world who do not live in comfort and prosperity like us. They live harsh lives and are faced with difficult challenges that we have never experienced. This narrative reminds me of how blessed I am and how I need to support these needy people when I have the financial means to do so.

      White probably wrote this narrative to show his experience and uses it as a way to persuade people to not take their lives for granted and to show that there are people out there who are not as lucky as us. We should be thankful for our fortunes and do not forget about the people who are less-fortunate.

  

"The Battle Will Not Be Lost" and My Thoughts

     

      "The Battle Will Not Be Lost" is a compelling narrative written by Sandi Millwood for her English 1101 class in 2008. It retells the story of Millwood and her daughter, Aubrie, and their troubling beginnings. When her daughter was still young, Aubrie was found on her bed with blue lips and was having difficulty breathing. The emergency paramedics rushed Aubrie to the hospital where they found a tumor in her lung. After six hours of grueling surgery, the doctors diagnosed her with a rare form of cancer. Millwood was suddenly struck with a formidable obstacle. After four years, Aubrie won the battle and was cancer-free.

      This story touched me deeply and none of my horrible experiences can even compare to Millwood's heart-breaking battle. Millwood was a young mother that had her life thrown into confusion and depression because of her daughter's disease. This event scarred them for life and will affect them forever.

      Despite the few grammar errors and typos, Millwood wrote this narrative in a riveting way. Her use of words and the way she described her emotions captivates the reader. This emotional story could be easily picked up by any person, especially mothers. The story reminds us of how spontaneous life can be and the obstacles that block our paths.

My Thoughts on "A Lasting Impression"

“A Lasting Impression,” (Oct. 5, 2010), a narrative written by Debra Anderson, explores  Anderson’s memories of her mother’s struggle with alcoholism that ultimately lead to her death.  Anderson  develops the narrative by telling the reader of her mother’s difficult childhood and adulthood, which she thinks lead to her mother’ s addiction to alcohol.  Anderson’s purpose is to show how earlier issues not dealt with could lead one to develop an addiction. Her hope is that others may listen to her story, in order to stop themselves or someone they know from following in her mother’s footsteps.  Anderson addresses those who may be struggling with an addiction or those who may be dealing with someone with an addiction.

My heart goes out to Anderson.  Even though the story only gives the reader a few examples of what her mother had to endure because of her alcoholism, I can only imagine what Anderson had to go through.  Alcoholism does not only affect the life of the person who is an alcoholic, but also the entire family, especially the children.  Hearing the stories of Anderson’s mother is a little depressing, but it helps the reader to understand the steps that more than likely lead to her addiction to alcohol.

Anderson’s view of her mother is not only as an alcoholic, but also as someone who made an extremely strong impression on her life. Instead of thinking less of her mother because of her addiction, she shows the reader two sides of her mother’s life.  She was once a beautiful and successful woman who ultimately falls to the dreadful disease of alcoholism.  Anderson reminds the reader that her mother was more than just an alcoholic, her, ‘’amazing strength, generosity and love,” as Anderson remembers, “gives me the courage to proceed forward in whatever life has in store for me.”