I’m typing this very late LOL. I’m traveling to Boston in the morning but thought I’d write some thoughts out before I forget them. Spring term classes are beginning in four days! That’s one more term until I’m officially done with my first year of college.
On the topic of spring term classes, I signed up for Professor Godley’s 24S seminar with two friends, so socially I won’t be bereft. I also ended my last essay on a good note, though I think I still have some problems with articulating my exact ideas and explaining them further. A lot of the comments, not just on my research essay but throughout the term from my classmates and Professor Godley, were along the lines of “Explain this further” or “How does this connect?” I think I just need to work on the essay earlier in chunks rather than doing it all in one go, and then let it sit for a while before rereading it (no duh! But it’s harder to do than say with the ten week term). If I had to choose from the writing we’ve done this term, I liked the first paper the most because I really like analyzing literature. I enjoyed the process of writing the first essay the most because I could choose from a wide variety of readings and really focus on a few key passages or words from one work. While I also had a lot of creative freedom with the second essay, it was much more difficult because it was so theoretical and complex. I found myself procrastinating on this essay the most, and it received the most critical comments from Professor Godley out of everything I wrote. The third essay (research paper) didn’t even register on my priorities because it arrived during finals season and the timeline was so tight that I didn’t have time to step back and look at my final product. I was just writing draft after draft until eventually I produced something workable, I think. I remember staying up until 4 AM once just writing out all of the points I needed to make in a table to organize!
This Writing 5 isn’t easy, but Professor Godley makes it enjoyable and the readings are clearer once you get to know your classmates and you can have more discussion. I also think I learned more than I would’ve if I had taken a different Writing 5 that I knew was easier or had less complicated work, and that I developed a lot as a writer, especially in planning out my writing and formulating original ideas.
Research paper grade: 95/100