Dammit!! I really wanted to see that Ken Burns film about Mark Twain and I fell asleep right in the middle! I am so tired from both this cold I have and the fact that I only got about two hours sleep. I ended working on my paper until 2 am and then getting up at 5 in order to finish it.
Well, I've made it through two days of classes without seriously f'ing up...I hope. My big worry at the moment is the paper I turned into my ENGL 1010 (That's english comp for those who don't speak college catalog -ese) paper that I struggled with. I can't say that I struggled all weekend on it ~ Friday was spent winding down and not getting any sicker than I had to and half the day Saturday was sent in an impromptu visit with my mom. Half of Sunday was spent driving around and collecting the various materials I need for my art classes. Still, I think about 8 hours were put into this *&$%#@*&%^$ paper.
I hope it doesn't get me shot or thrown out of class.
What is the purpose of this class?
January 14, 2002
I'll admit it. I thought that writing this paper would be easy. What is the purpose of this class? It should be an easy question, shouldn't it? However, every time I sit down at the computer, my mind goes conveniently blank as if I have forgotten the entire English language. As I sit staring at the screen and trying to put my thoughts on the purpose of this class into words, the most effective word of the lot turns out to be 'duuuuhhhh'. So with that in mind, let me quote the course catalog. It states that the goals for this class are 'writing expository compositions based primarily on analysis of essays and literary works; emphasis on rhetorical modes, documentation skills and revision.' That sounds interesting, with the big words and all, but what about the purpose of the class?
If I had been asked this question the first time I was in college, my answer would be that the sole purpose of such classes was to sadistically torture students under the guise of fulfilling course requirements. Granted, I was a bit na�ve. My idealistic vision of college was one of spending the day in the drawing studio, blissfully surrounded by the tools of my trade as I created renditions of craggy bovine skulls and twisted driftwood while going to every concert I could at night. I just could not envision myself sitting in a small room, trying to think of five different ways to say 'habit' without actually using the word as well as setting myself up for extreme embarrassment by reading my essays in front of other students.
Today, I suppose my answers are a little different although I still wonder about the embarrassment and torture. I don't know why I worry so, since I set myself up for it often enough.
I am one of those people that others love to hate. I keep an online journal. I also occasionally try to write essays on things that are important to me (the operative word here being try) as if I could possibly aspire to be one tenth of erudite as Samuel Clemens or clever as Poe.
That's right: I am one of those annoying people responsible for cramming the internet with utterly useless stuff, thereby making it nearly impossible to find anything of consequence. While I hope that my writing goes a little beyond "Oh my god! Did you see what so-and-so did today? He is so incredible!" I can't always guarantee it because I do have my moments. Still, I would like to improve my use of my own native language.
It is my hope that one purpose of this class is that I will learn how to use more precision and clarity in my writing, thereby avoiding the embarrassment of rambling more than tumbleweed. This would be especially helpful while I'm trying to explain some arcane (or should I say inane?) subjects such as why Bruce Campbell is better than Ted Raimi; why chocolate could be considered the manna of the gods or why Martha Stewart is possibly evil. It would also be helpful if I have to explain the meaning behind a painting, even if it is nothing more than a portrait of one of my cats. Some folks just can't understand that sometimes a cat is just a cat and not a deep, meaningful metaphor for the vanity of life.
Another hope of purpose is rather simple since the focus of said hope appears several times in both the syllabus and the current assignment sheet. I hope to remember what the word 'thesis' means. I am reasonably certain that it is not a species of small primates made somewhat famous by various movies and television shows in the 1990's but other than that small fact, the true meaning of the word has slipped my mind. Therefore, I have no possible way of displaying how exactly one would use a thesis.
It is also my hope that the instructor will be reasonably gentle as he grabs my collar to throw me into the hallway so I can shamefully enter the DSP classes.
I'm sure that I have forgotten some obvious points about the purpose of this class except perhaps one could say that another purpose is to stretch our minds and learn something new about the English language, regardless of fulfilling any course requirements. While I realize that I will probably never be anywhere near the same lofty level as Clemens or Poe, I hope that my writing can rise above the level of, say, an earthworm. I shudder at the thought of fragments of my own writing somehow surviving into the distant future and being thought of as a frivolous piece of fluff, based simply on my inept use of language. It'll be my luck, however, that my writings would instead be mistaken as something out of a H.P. Lovecraft story because they would be considered so dreadful, based solely on content, that only a minion of Chthulu and the Elder Ones could dream them up.
Oh and by the way, in case you're interested, five synonyms for the word habit are practice; usage, custom, use and wont.
Page Copyright 2002 D. Firewolf
