We started class today with a quick exercise. We all wrote down a small description of things that we saw, touched, tasted, heard, and smelled over the Thanksgiving break. We then went around the room and each person shared one response and the class identified what sense the description appealed to. Next, Ms. Flournoy handed out a sheet of paper containing the Scarlet Letter paper topics to each of us and we went over it as a class. We took a few minutes to review the topics individually to see which one interested us. Then, we looked in our actual book to get ideas about possible topics. Next, we were instructed to make a diagram type structure to form more ideas. After, we opened our laptops and wrote down thoughts that came to mind about our topics. All of these exercises helped our minds start flowing and helped us get an idea of what we want to write about. At one point in class, we discussed scope and sequence and depth over breadth. Ms. Flournoy explained to us that it is important to focus in on one area of the book and go into great depth analyzing it. Also, a few important things were written on the board. For the thesis, focus on the subject matter and what you will argue. And, a few questions to think about: Which concrete elements of the text will you examine?, Which literary devices will you explore?, and What is your overarching point?/What ties everything together?. Our homework for tonight is to create a thesis for our paper.
I thought the different methods we used today to get our minds thinking about what topic we would like to do were very helpful. I especially liked free writing on our laptops. I think this is a really great way to get all your thoughts onto a page. Then, you can you those thoughts and ideas to move forward with your paper.
A quote that I think is very relevant to the process of picking a good topic is as follows, “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.” I think it is very important to pick a topic that really interests you. If you are interested in and excited about a certain topic, you will easily go into depth with the topic. And, it might be enjoyable to write the paper because you can use your creativity to come up with a totally original idea about the subject matter and think of great ways to argue your thoughts.
The vocab word for today is “ruminate”. Ruminate means to think deeply about something, to reflect on, or to ponder. Sample sentence: We need to ruminate before starting our papers by looking over each topic and refreshing our minds about the main ideas in the novel.
I really liked the quote that you picked and think that it really relates to what we did in class. I also believe that picking a topic you're interested in will make writing the paper more exciting, but I also believe this quote can be applied to everyday life. If we spend life doing things that don't really do anything for us, what is the point? Life is too short, and it's important to find something you really like and pursue it.
ReplyDeleteThis quote was perfect. It was the appropriate idea for what we did that in class. I completely agree that writing a paper must be interesting to the author. Without interest in your subject, it is difficult to have the will to analyze into the subtleties of a novel. The vocab word was also appropriate. The vocab word basically summed up what we did that day in class.
ReplyDeleteI think the questions about subject matter rephrased here ended up being quite relevant to writing the paper. I agree with the statements about choosing an interesting topic too; writing a thesis is one of the most important steps in a paper. Trying to write an essay all at once with no organized thoughts or topic statement is a pretty bad idea.
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