Criteria for essay....

Today we discussed what we thought should be the criteria for being graded on our first essay for this class. I thought maybe we should have talked about this before turning in the first draft. But I guess it was a good idea to have us write a draft, we could see each others' writing styles. After hearing that five-paragraph essays were overdone and not acceptable anymore in an advanced class like this, I thought to myself that I have to re-write my paper. The only time I wrote an essay that was not in a five-paragraph form was actually in my English class during my Junior year of high school. I'm used to writing the whole intro, three-paragraph body, and conclusion type of essay. But I guess this class will help me and others learn how to NOT write five-paragraph essays...that'd be something new.

Host

“Host” by David Foster Wallace is one of the most interesting and challenging pieces of literature that I have come to read. The text was difficult to come by, how there were multiple boxes that were in the middle of sentences and paragraphs. Sometimes, there were even boxes within boxes. The essay is about John Ziegler and his life as a radio talk show host, with Wallace including his editorial comments in the boxes. Ziegler is a very outspoken person, which is quite controversial since he happens to be a radio host. It is revealed that Ziegler was fired from many of his jobs for being too profane and disrespectful. Moreover, Ziegler seems to be extra concerned with controversial topics including the stories of Kobe Bryant and particularly OJ Simpson. This brings about the question, “is Ziegler racist?” He seems unafraid and unsympathetic of using the “n” word all over the radio. It is interesting to see all the side notes that Wallace incorporates into the essay. Wallace helps the reader to develop varying opinions of Ziegler.

Melville's Bartleby the Scrivener

I'm still not exactly sure as to what Melville is trying to convey in this piece. It is difficult to decide the kind of person the narrator is, whether or not he speaks of truths, or if he just mentions the things that make him seem a better person. Whether or not he may be lying, no one (except Melville, of course) could know. I think it's interesting how Bartleby just appeared out of thin air. It gives a kind of eerie feel to the story. I am also fascinated of how the character of Bartleby is, in general, how he always utters, "I prefer not to.", as if it is his catch phrase. Turkey and Nippers have quirky personalities as well, which adds to the humor of the story. It's funny how they seem to function at opposite times of the day. I think I enjoyed it most reading about the two. I believe Melville wrote this work in a way that would allow each reader to have many different interpretations of the story. But like we discussed in class, I think that it probably has more of a connection with the concept 0f change.