PORTFOLIO REFLECTION 1 - FIRST SEMESTER
First semester has come and gone, and with it I have seen great improvement in not only my reading and analysis abilities, but also my writing structure and format. In my summer essay on Tuesdays With Morrie, I structured the majority of my paragraph on what I recalled from the eighth grade, which was not a very sturdy basis. I had no clear transition from topic to topic, and I tried to encompass too large of a range of ideas, making it unclear where I was leading the reader with each point. Since that time, I have learned the proper format of both an argumentative and informative paragraph, and have been able to merge both forms into a hybrid, or textual analysis, paper. Now able to apply a proper structure to my essay on To Kill A Mockingbird, there is noted a dramatic differentiation between the focus of the two aforementioned essays. My Tuesdays With Morrie essay, which held a very choppy theme of, “[Living] a meaningful life is to live with harmony, appreciation, and love” (Martonchik Morrie 1) has evolved into the clearer and more focused theme expressed in my To Kill A Mockingbird essay, that “...oppression has the power to transform” (Martonchik Mockingbird 1). Throughout the span of first semester there was not only substantial growth in my reading and analysis abilities, but also in the structure of my writing.
Although there are numerous areas of my writing abilities that have dramatically improved throughout first semester, there is one area of growth that I find particularly satisfying; my evidence and the explanation of such. In my summer essay on Tuesdays With Morrie, the evidence I quoted was bland and very easily deciphered. I rarely actually evaluated the quote, I simply restated it. For example, in a paragraph focusing on harmony, I quoted: “Be compassionate, and take responsibility for each other. If we only learned these lessons, the world would be so much better a place (Albom 288).” I further went on to say: “We must look after and support each other if we are to get anywhere in this world” (Martonchik Morrie 1). There is no originality of idea in my explanation of said quote. But, in the gradual process of learning both evaluation and organization of ideas, I made a huge leap from little to lots of evaluation. In my essay on To Kill A Mockingbird, it can be seen in this following excerpt: “‘Atticus said no, it wasn’t that sort of thing, that there are other ways of turning people into ghosts’ (Lee 14). The diction employed in using the term ‘ghost’ unveils how Boo’s persecution had left him feeling hollow and worthless, to the point that he would not show his face, disappearing from public life. His isolation changed him – metaphorically – into a ghost, to both others and himself” (Martonchik Mockingbird 2). Here we see how I analyzed what I thought was an important part of Harper Lee’s novel and extracted my own meaning from it. The ability to derive meaning from and explain evidence is, in my opinion, the area I have most improved upon.
In learning how to properly structure a literary analysis essay, I find that there are both simplifying and challenging areas. The overall organization of a paragraph of either informative or argumentative topic is a very sturdy guideline and leaves little room for error, making simple organization less of a challenge. However, when complex ideas are added to the equation, the simple five-sentence structure may not be adequate. For example, in my To Kill A Mockingbird essay, I never had a body paragraph less that ten sentences. It is in this area that I find a challenge; incorporating excess evidence and explanation into an acceptable structure. Following a very similar guideline, I made sure to include an explanation with every piece of evidence regardless of whether it was one sentence or two, evidence first or evidence last. As long as the fundamental elements of the proper organization is evident, the format should flow smoothly and achieve the same goal as the five-sentence paragraph structure. This still proves a challenge for me, because incorporating more into a smaller structure varies depending on the subject of the paragraph and essay as a whole. Thusly, as there are difficult elements to writing an essay in proper format, simple guidelines can often make the task easier.
I have improved greatly throughout this first semester of Honors English, but there are some other goals I have in place. Improving my writing and reading has been an arduous but worth-while task, and I have seen growth in my reading technique, analysis skills, writing organization, finding and explaining evidence, argumentative and informative structure, combining the two for a literary analysis essay, and critiquing that which I may be embarrassed to admit was not good enough. From here, there are multiple lanes down which I can travel. To further improve my writing skills, I wish to take the next step in analysis and the finding of evidence, including archetypes. I found it a challenge to find pieces of evidence that could be used to support a common theme, and learning more about it could prove beneficial. I would also like to take a step up in improving my organization for the aforementioned “excess evidence”. Finding better ways to incorporate said evidence could solidify my understanding of extended formats. Improvement in both of the above areas is crucial, and will prove highly useful. In accomplishing these goals I can hope to make the leap forward into second semester and the Honors/AP block.
Although there are numerous areas of my writing abilities that have dramatically improved throughout first semester, there is one area of growth that I find particularly satisfying; my evidence and the explanation of such. In my summer essay on Tuesdays With Morrie, the evidence I quoted was bland and very easily deciphered. I rarely actually evaluated the quote, I simply restated it. For example, in a paragraph focusing on harmony, I quoted: “Be compassionate, and take responsibility for each other. If we only learned these lessons, the world would be so much better a place (Albom 288).” I further went on to say: “We must look after and support each other if we are to get anywhere in this world” (Martonchik Morrie 1). There is no originality of idea in my explanation of said quote. But, in the gradual process of learning both evaluation and organization of ideas, I made a huge leap from little to lots of evaluation. In my essay on To Kill A Mockingbird, it can be seen in this following excerpt: “‘Atticus said no, it wasn’t that sort of thing, that there are other ways of turning people into ghosts’ (Lee 14). The diction employed in using the term ‘ghost’ unveils how Boo’s persecution had left him feeling hollow and worthless, to the point that he would not show his face, disappearing from public life. His isolation changed him – metaphorically – into a ghost, to both others and himself” (Martonchik Mockingbird 2). Here we see how I analyzed what I thought was an important part of Harper Lee’s novel and extracted my own meaning from it. The ability to derive meaning from and explain evidence is, in my opinion, the area I have most improved upon.
In learning how to properly structure a literary analysis essay, I find that there are both simplifying and challenging areas. The overall organization of a paragraph of either informative or argumentative topic is a very sturdy guideline and leaves little room for error, making simple organization less of a challenge. However, when complex ideas are added to the equation, the simple five-sentence structure may not be adequate. For example, in my To Kill A Mockingbird essay, I never had a body paragraph less that ten sentences. It is in this area that I find a challenge; incorporating excess evidence and explanation into an acceptable structure. Following a very similar guideline, I made sure to include an explanation with every piece of evidence regardless of whether it was one sentence or two, evidence first or evidence last. As long as the fundamental elements of the proper organization is evident, the format should flow smoothly and achieve the same goal as the five-sentence paragraph structure. This still proves a challenge for me, because incorporating more into a smaller structure varies depending on the subject of the paragraph and essay as a whole. Thusly, as there are difficult elements to writing an essay in proper format, simple guidelines can often make the task easier.
I have improved greatly throughout this first semester of Honors English, but there are some other goals I have in place. Improving my writing and reading has been an arduous but worth-while task, and I have seen growth in my reading technique, analysis skills, writing organization, finding and explaining evidence, argumentative and informative structure, combining the two for a literary analysis essay, and critiquing that which I may be embarrassed to admit was not good enough. From here, there are multiple lanes down which I can travel. To further improve my writing skills, I wish to take the next step in analysis and the finding of evidence, including archetypes. I found it a challenge to find pieces of evidence that could be used to support a common theme, and learning more about it could prove beneficial. I would also like to take a step up in improving my organization for the aforementioned “excess evidence”. Finding better ways to incorporate said evidence could solidify my understanding of extended formats. Improvement in both of the above areas is crucial, and will prove highly useful. In accomplishing these goals I can hope to make the leap forward into second semester and the Honors/AP block.