Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Comp Theory

I am a member of Composition Theory 501 in order to fulfill the requirement of a master’s degree in English as CSUP; however, this is only one of the reasons why I am in this class. The more encompassing purpose is because I am passionate about literature and its composition. I am so passionate that I was willing to forgo several more lucrative careers in order to share the experience of the English language with young people, which brings me back to the subject of composition theory. Without a solid foundation of common ideas and theories, nothing meaningful can be shared, least of all something as complicated as written expression. All of the positive feeling, however, does not make me a master teacher, nor does it make me feel as comfortable as a teacher of writing as I ought to feel. So, how does one decide the parameters to judge good writing? How does one articulate these ideas into a language that can be processed by the adolescent brain?

Within my own classroom, my major focus has always been on the theory that good writing is rigidly structured with a concise purpose. While I’m sure this is both unoriginal and in direct conflict with my personality, I believe that each word in a sentence should have a purpose beyond the fact that it sounds pretty or “feels right.” I believe in a building block method that logically links thesis to topic, topic to detail, and detail to support. Creative writers will hate this I’m sure, but then again I am applying these ideas to the writing of the essay, not the short story or poem. Playful language has its place in well written composition, but I feel that our amusement to create a clever turn of phrase may detract from the focus of the piece and end up becoming the star attraction.

Through this class I hope to gain a more substantial grasp of the theories being discussed by the leaders in the academic field, as well a chance to hone my own theories for the benefit of my students. The opportunity to discuss others' ideas, as well as my own, with competent peers is also a major draw for the class; as I’ve stated before, I love to work with my students, but there comes a time when one feels the needs to discourse with others of a similar educational background. I hope this will be a positive learning experience, but I know it will be a necessary experience.

If I can sound any less interesting or more pompous, let me know.
Posted by at

1 comment:

  1. Ms. BadovinacJanuary 21, 2009 at 4:12 PM

    I agree with most of what you've said, but on one thing I do not agree. I can only speak for myself, but I believe that creativity is actually easier within a structure. There are some published works that will go unmentioned that fail to adhere to the very principals of writing, which both you and I believe are so useful, and it drives me absolutely bonkers!

    I believe that, even in fiction, every word, sentence and detail should have a purpose. Sometimes I read a very adverby story and I want to chuck it against the wall, because I was taught that the only time a writer should need an adverb is if there is not a stronger verb to use alone. Along those same lines, every detail of a story should be used to either further plot or character, and, to me, characters and plot are the theses of fiction. Fiction is a way to tell a story, and I believe that composition is also a way to tell a story, and a composition can either be very dull or it can be very interesting, and flowery words and ideas should not be necessary to make a paper/thesis/etc. interesting. On the contrary, I feel that ostentatious language can hurt the cause of a writer more than help it. I feel that a fiction writer could benefit from this class just as much as any other kind of writer, especially if the writer is cloaking her cause in her fiction (like the Wicked series).

    So, if nothing else, this creative writer does not hate you, but I'm a literature snob (but still believe that Harry Potter is awesome).

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)