After reading Shelly Reid’s “Ten Ways To Think About Writing: Metaphoric Musings for College Students”, I have chosen five of the metaphors in Reid’s essay that resonated with myself.
The first metaphor I chose was called A Thousand Rules And Three Principles. This metaphor explains that when writing an essay or a research paper as a college student, writing is made harder than it has when trying to follow too many rules for writing. Grammar, thesis’s, persuasiveness, and incorporating sources are all categories in which many rules apply when writing. I can relate because writing has always been my least favorite thing to do coming into college and it seems like a chore instead of a living process that connects people and moves the world forward. “1. Write about what you know about, are curious about, are passionate about (or what you can find a way to be curious about or interested in). 2. Show, don’t just tell. 3. Adapt to the audience and purpose you’re writing for.” (Reid 4). These three principles let us, as college students, write rhetorically and pay attention to the needs of the author and the needs of the reader, rather than the needs of the professor.
The second metaphor I chose was called The Little Green Ball And Some People: Doing Details Right. This metaphor explains that not every reader reads like you do. And what I mean by this is that when writing a paper, a person knows exactly what they are writing about no matter how vague it can be. Now when a reader reads your paper, some questions they ask themselves sometimes is “Huhh?” or “Wha-a-a?”. This means that you as a writer needs to explain things in such detail that the reader does not have to ask themselves questions about the text. I can relate because in class when we peer review essays in groups, sometimes the person who is reading my essay asks about what this sentence means or what this paragraph infers. This is a sign that I need to incorporate more facts, statistics, comparisons, sensory description examples, expert testimony, and personal experience into my essays and research papers I write. What I took from this article is that a reader can not read the writers mind because it is simply impossible, so a writer should consider being specific in the details that are shared.
The third metaphor I chose was called Lost Money And Thank You Notes: What’s In An Audience. This metaphor explains that as a writer, you have to consider who your audience is. And what I mean by this is as writer has different writing styles depending on who the audience is. The metaphor also explains that you have to identify your primary audience and your secondary audience. Primary audiences are those who receive the communication directly and are also known as the target audience and secondary audiences include anyone who may indirectly receive a copy of the communication. These include anyone who will receive a copy, need to approve, will hear about, or be affected by your message. A secondary audience is something that I have learned and should take into consideration. When I get a writing assignment from a professor, in my mind I think that my professor is the only person that I am writing to and I feel that I should think about other audiences when I write.
The fourth metaphor I chose was called Pink Houses & Choruses: Keeping The Reader With You. This metaphor explains that when writing, you need to ensure your target audience and put down all the detail you can think of to help show your ideas to those readers, needing to focus not on losing them. And what I mean by this is when writing, we need to use the same key words as an anchor for all the complex ideas and examples we connect and needing the audience to recognize the main idea. I can relate because when I write an essay or a research paper, sometimes I do not mention those key words or main ideas here and there because I feel it is being repeated one too many times. As a writer, I have to consider the readers perspective and understand that they do not see my main ideas and key words repeated, they see them as being re-ensured because they are key words and main ideas.
The fifth and final metaphor I chose is called Wash-And-Wear Paragraphs. This metaphor explains the purpose in writing short and lengthy paragraphs. And what I mean by this is a writer should want to write paragraphs that your target audience can handle without overwhelming them. “Writers need to remember that paragraphs help readers focus and manage their analytical energies. It’s good to have some variance in size and shape but not to overtax your readers with too much variation; it’s useful to write each paragraph with a clear beginning and ending to direct readers’ attention; and it’s helpful if paragraphs come with a blend of information and analysis to help readers “see what you mean” about your subpoints and see how they relate to the overall point of your essay” (Reid 15).
Works Cited
Reid, E. Shelley. “Ten Ways To Think About Writing: Metaphoric Musings for College Writing Students.” Ed. Charles Lowe and Pavel Zemliansky. Vol. 2. West Lafayette, IN: Parlor P, 2011. 3-23. Writing Spaces. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
