Zinnisser Pg. 129

Clutter in any form is simply unacceptable. And according to William Zinisser, it is totally unacceptable in writing, just like everywhere else. He says that to be a well versed writer, one must be able to break down their writing to its bare minimum. Zinisser actually cites many specific examples, especially those from Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

He says that though the reader of any particular writing piece has an attention span of approximately thirty seconds, and though they have many distractions of every day life. The writer has a responsibility to help keep their attention and make sure that they can hold their attention throughout the entire piece. Zinisser says that a writer must be careful and ensure that the reader of any particular piece does not get lost.

At first a reader feels that it may be their fault that they get lost outside of the piece of writng. But after further examination, it was the writer’s failure that is shown. They lost the attention of the reader and that is very crucial. He says that the writer needs to constantly ask themselves, what is it that I need to ask the reader to do. He also believes that the writer must ensure the reader’s attention by flowing through any particular piece.

Hairston Pg. 99

As a person who dislikes the writing process as a whole, I totally understand what Maxine Hairston is trying to explain in this article. She writes about how different professional writers can be from amateurs, which has actually proven to be a common theme.

Successful writers begin the process just about the same way every time. Always writing where they fell comfortable, and usually at the same location each time. They just about always make sure that they allow time for them to begin their writing far before the deadline. Professional writers are also very observant and know what, when and how their environment can change from time to time. This is also a useful key in any sort of field. Just like everyone else, they also need deadlines.

Personally, I always tend to encounter writers block. But if some one allows themselves enough time in preparation, a writers block is usually expected and doesn’t change certain ramifications when it comes to the writing process. Procrastination is actually another issue that experienced writers tend to expect, and even most amateur ones as well, but then a writer does not have enough time to fully revise what it is that they are trying to say.

Hairston also goes into detail on two specific types of writing, explanatory and exploratory. When it comes to explanatory writing, a writer knows a majority of what they are talking about. Such as any type of historical writing, some political developments or even a biography. In all of these instances, the writer has an extensive knowledge of their topic and can write about this topic with ease. Exploratory, however, is mainly thus. It is a piece of writing meant to go further in depth and learn more about any particular topic. These usually involve a lot of work, meaning lots of notes and outlines.

Collins and Wyatt. Pg. 333

Anytime you walk into the deep south of the united states, you are bound to find someone who has an accent quite unlike your own. Constant “y’all”s can often be heard basically no matter where you are, with the exception of Erica Tobloski’s class at the University Of South Carolina. Her class curriculum consists of ways to get rid of accents, not of ways to encourage them like some people do.

Others say that accents and different dialects show the change and evolution in the English language. Many believe that even though some believe that it is possible to wipe the southern accent out of the English language completely, others like Bill Kretzschmar say that it will never be erased completely. He says “The one constant about language is, its always changing” I personally believe that this is true mainly because of the simple fact that no dialect or accent can be completely erased, there will always be someone speaking in one form or another of that language.

Kretzschmar also argues that the accent isn’t necessarily disappearing, but that it is just evolving to suit the circumstances in which people live in. I believe that this is this way simply because of the fact that the world is actually becoming much more professional, and it isn’t always possible to appear professional when it sounds like you’re coming straight out of a field in the deep south.

Most accents, like those of southern people from the united states can be canvassed, such as the University of South Carolina’s Erica Tobloski, works with particular politicians to hide their accents to make them seem more approachable, and still professional. It is not necessary to eliminate the whole vernacular, but to make a person sound more proper and professional, as well as make them able to relate to multiple people, it needs to be turned down.

Chang Rae Lee Pg. 337

Chang Rae Lee was born in Korea in 1965 and he immigrated to the United States three years later. Throughout his life, he was plagued by the scary fact that he was in a country that his own parents knew very little to nothing about. They actually resided in Palisades Park, New Jersey. This was a place that was mainly populated by Korean families as well as his, so most of the signs and details of the city were actually just Korean, not English. The town then made a law to have any commercial signs be comprised of at least half English writing.

Chang Rae Lee and his sister always went shopping for their mother, and this was a task that he always tried to avoid at all costs. This was mostly because he was your typical kid, and he wanted nothing but to play outside with his friends. He also learned the English language at a very young age, and adapted to the united states very well. However, his mother did not. She actually used to scold him because of his behavior and the way he used the English language.

It wasn’t until the day his mother visited the butcher shop, that she truly felt like an outsider. She double parked their car in hopes to get in and out of the butcher shop, but soon found herself waiting in a long line of people. Then, when her number was called the butcher asked her what she wanted from the meat case. Knowing very little to no English, she uttered the Korean word for oxtail “soggori” at which the butcher looked at her as if she was out of her mind, then he called the next number.

That situation frustrated Chang Rae Lee’s mother because she could not communicate what she wanted to the English speaking butcher. He thought this was justified, just because he felt that she needed to learn the language sooner rather than later. After his mother died Chang Rae Lee believed that society actually tended to be to harsh on his mother because no one saw how much she struggled with her English

Donald Murray Pg 117

In Donald Murray’s writing he discusses the process of writing and when writing a first draft and how often it is usually the only draft for most writers. He says that this makes them inexperienced and no where near the professional ability of those who write for a living and are very experienced at it. The main difference is that professional writers usually consider their first draft in the writing process just beginning, and amateurs usually consider it the end.

In Murray’s writing, he cites a quote from novelist, Nancy Hale. She says that writers “should be critical of everything that seems to him most delightful in his style. He should excise what he most admires, because he wouldn’t thus admire it if he weren’t.. in a sense protecting it from criticism.” By stating this, Nancy Hale probably means that when a writer reads over their work, it does not appear that there are any mistakes, because they do not want to see fault in their work.

Many experienced writers write and rewrite their works multiple times. Donald Murray cites popular children’s writer, Roald Dahl. He says that “By the time I’m nearing the end of a story, the first part will have been read and corrected at least 150 times.” I do not think that this is to show that writing is a daunting task, but to rather explain how much work goes into writing any particular piece. A student should not only have rewrote their work, but revise it as well because after only one or two rewrites, the work has only begun.

After reading this article, I realize how much more time I need to put into my work, as far as my writings and essays go just because the few revisions I make are not enough to create a well written and well produced piece. Personally, I thank Donald Murray for shedding some light on that subject, that’s for sure.

Observations for Paper two.

Robinson McDonalds:

• Most people who purchased food at the Robinson McDonalds were in larger groups.
• The groups of three or more usually bought actual meals.
• The majority of those who purchased meals actually made their fries and drinks larger than the given size.
• There were a lot more families.
• Primarily a lot of people used the Drive-Thru, and from what I could see they were usually groups of larger sizes with what I assume are smaller children in the back seat.
• A lot of people got their food and left.
• The same typical demographic visited this location. A lot of caucasian people, and a few african americans, but other than that very little others.

Pittsburgh McDonalds:

• A lot more younger people were seen at this location.
• More single groups of people.
• Smaller purchases.
• Not really any cash was used, a lot of people paid with debit cards.
• Quite a few of the people sat and ate their food.
• More people were seen at this location.
• Most people stayed there for about a half hour.
• This was a lot more diverse than the other mcdonalds, very few similarities between the few.