Month: August 2016
Daily Write Mon 8/29
There are many similarities between Adichie’s talk and the stories in “Ten Little Indians”. Both discuss stereotypes that americans put on different ethnicities such as black people or asians. Everything we have read or watched so far have all been about racial stereotypes and how it effects these different people. I can personally connect in a different way. Stereotypes for white, blonde, females are that all blondes are stupid and only know how to drink Starbucks or that all of them are stuck up and snobby. No one should ever label another person by how they look. There are many successful blonde white women who beyond succeed in life. Women are capable of doing anything a man can do.
Weekly Write #1 8/26/16
My first week of college has definitely been a reality check. I have already done more in a week than I did in the first semester of high school. So much of the work is independent and your teachers expect a lot of you. I sort of expected college to be this hard, but it is still much different than I had originally thought. There is so much freedom and time to get things done on your own. I really love all of my teachers so far along with the people in my classes. Students at Ole Miss are much more concerned with their grades and actually care about their education. My first week was pretty hardcore but I really enjoyed it at the same time.
Reading Response 8/25
Eric Liu’s “Notes from a Native Speaker” and Sherman Alexie’s “Lawyer’s League” from the book “Ten Little Indians” have a lot in common about race and social acceptance. In “Notes from a Native Speaker” Liu discusses the stereotypes that are “normal” for foreign people. He also explains how society has made it okay to label a person by their ethnicity and how they are supposed to act or talk. The passage talks about how he breaks the stereotypes and can be anyone he wants to be. “Ten Little Indians” is also very similar. Alexie tells this story about a man who also broke many stereotypes and has dreams and goals much larger than how people label him.
I definitely agree with these passages. I do not think it is okay how most americans automatically stereotype people because that is what they are comfortable. Many people say how they want equality for all races and genders, but they never actually follow through because that is outside of their comfort zone. I believe that everyone, no matter race, gender, religion, or stereotype, should be able to be anything they want to be.
Eric Liu discusses how many people looked at him much differently because he got along with white people and “acted white”. “Some are born white, others achieve whiteness, still others have whiteness thrust upon them.” When Liu says this he is talking about how people of other ethnicities can be accepted by the white community by acting and talking a certain way.
People of different ethnicities are being stereotyped because of their culture and heritage, and this is important if that is who they want to be, but if they want to do or be something else, they should be whoever they want to.
Reading Response 8/23
In Anne Lamott’s “Perfectionism” and “Shitty First Drafts” Lamott states that all great writings begin with awful rough drafts. Thoughts have to be worked through in order to eventually figure out what a person wants to write about. Lamott also states that it is okay to write something that seems stupid at the time because it can eventually lead to something greater. Based on these passages, I believe that it is okay to not have everything perfect. For instance, when a person makes a mistake usually it teaches them something in the long run that they could have never known if they would not have messed up.
Lamott states in “Perfectionism” that “Perfectionism means that you try desperately not to leave so much mess to clean up. But clutter and mess show us that life is being lived.” This quote means that worrying about the messes a person makes in life on the way keeps the person from enjoying it. If someone is so distracted by their failures then they will not be able to see their accomplishments.
She also writes in “Shitty First Drafts” that “The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later.” It is okay to be messy at first if it helps a person get their thoughts aligned. A person should write like a child speaks. Children do not know any better so they say whatever comes to mind. Therefore, a person should be free with their writing and let it run rampant.
Both passages explain that writing is most effective when the writer is not worried about perfection in the first or even second draft. Great writing is a process that takes a lot of time and possibly multiple tries. Although writing seems very tedious at first and is a process of trial and error, it can be a beautiful way to express one’s feelings or concerns.
Daily Write 8/22
I am at the University of Mississippi because I want to be successful, continue my education, and eventually become a teacher. Ole Miss has always been my dream school and I always imagined myself going here and being in the band. I had my doubts about attend the University of Mississippi because I felt like I was not good enough or smart enough but I finally gathered up enough courage to apply. I was happily surprised to find out I was accepted and now I could achieve my goals.
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