Blog 1

Hairston: It was interesting to think about concepts that we know as the norm at one time being revolutionary or even controversial, especially after I noticed the 1982 copyright date. The new paradigm described, which emphasizes process rather than product, has been in place for as long as I can remember being a student, especially in elementary school. I think the higher the grade level, the more the teacher placed an emphasis on the final product, in terms of proofreading and presentation, as another important part of the writing process. It was also interesting to think about what writing would have been like before the '70s, when the idea of audience and purpose affecting every stage of the writing process was considered a new approach.

Murphy: The reason for writing that I gave on the first day of class was to tell people's stories, so I obviously agreed with the idea of stories being an important representation of knowledge. I think some of the best stories are those that focus on one moment yet represent a bigger picture, such as an entire childhood or entire life. The story about the little boy who kept wanting to look at the articles he'd found at the library while writing his report reminded me of a technique I learned in a journalism class and continue to use today. It's so easy to get bogged down by notes and not know where to begin, but if you just close your notebook and start writing, what you remember without looking is often the most important, and the most memorable, information.

Chapter 2: We've already discussed many different reasons to write, but this chapter made several points that I hadn't considered before. For example, writing gives a reader greater control of rate and sequence and allows readers to experience events they cannot, or would not want to, experience in reality. Also, writing is its own form of language, not simply spoken language written down. Finally, while there are many uses for writing, alternatives always exist and can be more efficient. In my experiences with journalism, sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words.