Carol varon

1. Which assignment do you feel was most successful and why? For me, the assignment where I was most successful was Essay 3, because we also had to create a flyer. That allowed me to show a bit of what I love, which is art. I really enjoyed the idea of choosing our own poem.I also have to mention Essay 4, which was about fairy tales. I connected a lot with that topic because I’ve loved fairy tales since I was a child, especially the Brothers Grimm stories. In Colombia, they used to show them on TV in the mornings, and I always watched them. I believe that when you really enjoy or are interested in a topic, you’re more likely to do a better job,  which is exactly what happened to me with these two assignments. 2. On what work do you feel you could have done better and how? I think I would have done better in the discussions if I had followed the instructions from the beginning, because I completely forgot that we also had to reply to a classmate. That really affected my grade. Next time, I need to work on following the instructions more carefully, since they were actually very clear. 3. If there was one thing you learned this semester, what was it? One thing I learned this semester is how important it is to pay close attention to instructions and deadlines. I realized that even small details, like replying to a classmate in a discussion, can have a big impact on your grade. I also learned that when I’m interested in a topic, I put in more effort and enjoy the process more

I think Raymond Carver’s idea of using “commonplace but precise language” really shows in Gwendolyn Brooks’s poem “We Real Cool”  The words are super simple and easy to understand, but it still tells a deeper story. The poem is short, direct, and full of an attitude that sticks with you. You can feel the rebellious vibe just by how it’s written. Even though the poem doesn’t go into a lot of detail, it gets the point across in a strong way. The way Brooks breaks the lines, like ending each with “We,” makes it feel like these teens are trying to prove something, but also unsure of themselves. And then the line “We Die soon” really hits, it’s so short, but powerful. It shows how fast their lives could end, and it leaves you thinking. I get what Carver means now: you don’t need big words to create big emotions. Simple words can still be deep if they’re used the right way.

I believe that literary texts should be kept as they were written, even if they include offensive terms. It is important for readers to understand the context and history behind them, as that allows for reflection on the past. Even if the language may be hard or harmful, removing it could reduce the impact of the text and weaken its message about the harmfulness of racism. These words, as uncomfortable as they may be, serve as a reminder of the injustices that have existed and continue to exist. Preserving the authenticity of the text helps us learn from history and not repeat the same mistakes. Although I understand why many people think otherwise, as it is a very hard and painful thing to do, confronting such language can be deeply unsettling, especially for those directly affected by its history. However, rather than erasing these words, we should use them as an opportunity for discussion, education, and awareness.

Reading poetry over the past two weeks has helped me get used to paying closer attention to language, which I think will be really useful for reading Oedipus the King. Poetry isn’t like regular writing, I have to slow down and think about how each word is chosen and how the structure affects the meaning. One of my favorite poems from the past two weeks was “First Poem for You” by Kim Addonizio. This poem helped me notice how small details in language can carry a lot of meaning. The way she describes tattoos as something permanent and untouched by time made me realize how poets use simple, everyday things to express bigger emotions. It also made me pay more attention to how words are placed in a poem and how that affects the way we experience it. This has helped me with Oedipus the King because Sophocles also uses poetic language to create impact. Just like Addonizio carefully chooses her words to create a strong emotional connection, Sophocles does the same in his writing. Reading poetry has made me more aware of how language shapes a story, and that has helped me understand the way Oedipus expresses himself and why the people trust him so much.

Writing Essay 1 was a difficult experience, but it helped me a lot. One of the most important things I realized was the need to clearly identify the student’s thesis before evaluating their argument. Initially, I had trouble with this, which made it difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of their arguments. Another key lesson was the importance of formatting. I overlooked both the student’s formatting problems and errors in my own work, such as overspacing. Which is quite important and I need to keep in mind in the future for the following essays. Overall, this assignment has helped me recognize gaps in my analytical approach and has reinforced the need for clarity, accuracy, and proper structure in my writing. I will apply these lessons to future assignments to improve both my critiques and my own writing.  

As I read The Lesson, I didn’t immediately think about the deeper meaning of the toys or the store; I focused more on Sylvia’s attitude and the way she spoke. i realized that the things in the store were not just expensive, but meant something else. The store, the sailboat and the price tags were not just details of the story, but symbols that made me think about how the world is divided. The toy store seemed like a whole other world, almost like a museum where the children didn’t belong. The glass windows made it clear that they were outside, not just physically, but in life. It was like an invisible barrier reminding them that some things were not meant for them, not because they didn’t want them, but because they couldn’t have them. The sailboat was what stuck with me the most. It was supposed to represent freedom and fun, but for Sylvia, it seemed to represent everything she couldn’t control. The price was even worse: how could something so simple cost so much? It wasn’t just a toy; it was a symbol of power, privilege and access. What I liked most was that Ms. Moore never told the kids what to think, she just let them see for themselves. The price tags were like little hidden messages, forcing them to ask themselves questions they might not have asked before. I would call my essay “Hidden Messages.”

What I understood from the prewriting assignment for week 1, activity 10, is that a sample literary essay written by a student will be analyzed and it consists of several steps. First we should read “The Most Handsome Drowned Man” by Gabriel Marquez along with the analysis by Dean Rader, to get a better understanding of what themes he addresses and to analyze the story a little more. Then we should review activities 5-8 to have a guide on how we should write the essay in the right way. and last but not least we will read the student’s instructions for the essay and their final essay. this with the purpose of having a clear idea at the beginning and to better organize our ideas in order to have a more prepared final essay.