Writing
Classifications
Exposition
Narration
Persuasion (or
argument)
Description
Not all writing is
exclusionary. Most essays are a combination of at least two.
For example, an
expository essay on Zen Buddhism may include a description of a monastery, a
narrative of the writer's visit to the monastery, and an argument may include
the relevance of Zen to us.
A brief overview:
Expository
- Seeks only to explain or to
expose what's what
- From the Latin exponere, "to put forth"
- One might write, "how to
grow an avacado"
Narration
- Telling a story
- Not just fictional
(biography, autobiography)
- Concerned with action with a
swift pace
Persuasion
- To win over or convince
- To convince, we must persuade
by presenting evidence and reasonable arguments
- Present a thesis, but support
with details
Description
- Represents in words our
sensory impressions caught in a moment of time
- Visual imagery dominates
- Patient observation of
details
- Finding exactly the right
words
- Chaos to organization (right
to left, top to bottom, from general to particular or from near to far)
Notice this
structure, from near to far, as Walt Whitman uses it in his poem, "A Farm
Picture."
Through the ample
open door of the peaceful country barn,
A sunlit pasture
field with the cattle and horses feeding,
And haze and vista,
and the far horizon fading away.
Your turn:
In one paragraph,
describe what you see from your window. Choose a particular time of day and
describe what you see (or might see) or otherwise sense within a moment or two.
Move from either far to near or near to far. Think first. Use your mind's eye
to see the view.
Great. Share your
work with the person beside you.
Now…journaling.
Journals deal with the fascination with the
- Self
- Emotions
- The situation
"the
senses, being the explorers of the world,
open
the way to knowledge"
-Maria
Montessori
Thought…
If
the forest has the appearance of disorder, why do we feel so peaceful there?
There is no order, no rows and is not created by humans.
Your
turn:
Sit
down in the middle of your Wild Mind. Let your thoughts flow through you. The
best way to write is to lose control. Remember your rules of writing. Reread them.
Go
to the computer lab in the library and write your first journal entry. Reflect
about your first couple of weeks. Here are some guiding questions to help
direct your writing:
What
have you felt so far?
How
do you feel about your situation?
Describe
a situation that you have experienced. Where were you?
What
did you feel?
If
you have trouble starting, start with this:
Thinking
back to my first day, I feel…
