As junior year English was somewhat
of a sudden awakening, the changes I needed to make were drastic. For example, at the start of the year I wrote
my first in-class essay on the (rhetorical) devices that Laura Hillenbrand used
in Unbroken. I remember thinking
to myself, What does that even mean? I stared at the blank lined paper for five
minutes with everything about the book going through my head, yet not knowing
how to express it while also answering the question. And of course, being the scared AP Language
and Composition student I was, I raised my hand (a bad habit I never broke) and
asked Ms. McMahon “How long should this essay be?” The simple response I got
was “However long you want it to be.”
Although many would see this as a great way to write as much as they
would like, I saw this as a problem. What was a going to do without my beloved cookie-cutter structure? I
didn’t exactly know how to answer the question (as this was my very first
rhetorical analysis), let alone not be given a limit on how many paragraphs/pages
to write. So, I did what any scared AP
Language and Composition student would do: word vomit all over the paper. I simply wrote whatever I knew about the
book, while also trying to answer the question…trying is the key word. This rhetorical analysis evaded the question,
was not direct, and most of all, included myself and my first-person opinion on
the novel. I received a five (which, fun
fact, is the lowest grade I have ever received on any in-class essay this year). Over time and through practice, I had to
adapt to change in order to receive a better grade. I'm not one to change my ways very easily, as it requires a lot for me to understand something and therefore apply those changes. So when I received that grade, was mortified. It was an okay grade to start out with, but I was scared that I wouldn't be able to improve as fast as anyone else, or even improve at all.
One Monday, I walked into class and picked up an agenda, like usual. Little did everyone know, Ms. McMahon had surprised us with a week's worth of rhetorical analysis for homework! And they were to be graded by our peers, which made it even more stressful. (Little did past Margarita know at the time, future Margarita would be capable of whipping up a quality rhetorical analysis in less than 45 minutes.) I remember that week being so brutal, but it was what truly made my rhetorical analysis writing solid. I learned to love that there is no cookie-cutter structure to follow in a rhetorical analysis, or in any writing. That is what makes writing so freeing and flexible, as I can write what ever I needed to get my point across. That week was providing me practice every night, along with constructive criticism from Ms. McMahon and my peers. I learned that it was okay for me to not get things right away, because with practice came progress. I proved to myself that I could get better, even if it was at my own pace, and even if it was something new I was learning. I then believed what Ms. McMahon had told me all this time: "You can only get better". I then had a better outlook on the rest of what the year had to offer in that class, and I felt more confident in my writing. Even if I got a bad grade every now and then throughout the year, I knew that things could only get better if I accepted what had to change.
The evolution of my rhetorical analysis writing: from the 5 of Unbroken, to the 7/8 of "I am a Cripple" and to the 7/8 of the Paret rhetorical analysis
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