Hits and Misses
Hits:
Mint Snowball Reading Response
One of the personal narratives was Mint Snowball by Naomi Shihab Nye. This narrative focused on something she felt was the missing piece in her life, her great-grandfather's mint snowball recipe. She is so descriptive with her background information and focus on the mint snowball that it feels as if the reader is experiencing the moments firsthand. To do this, she uses complex word choice such as "flamboyant elixir" and "lasting solace" which draws the reader in and makes the essay richer. The author also uses short, expressive fragments to illustrate the scenery of the diner and the taste of the mint snowball.
Symbolism
As Annie looks into the mirror, past her bruises and scars, she admires her neck. Her neck, the one place that holds the last memories of true freedom. Annie stares into the gold eagle charm dangling, imagining the eagle flying freely. She remembers when her mother gave it to her when was just a young girl. Annie immediately fills with remorse for her mother and what she went through, Annie now living it.
My blog post titled Symbolism was another hit of mine. I used vivid detail, which I find essential to portray symbolism. The writing included dialogue and was a small specific moment in time, but it left the reader with an understanding of the intense life the main character lived.
Political Post
This past week, Judge Reinhardt died at the age of 87. He was a longtime liberal on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The Ninth Circuit has been difficult for conservatives to deal with due to its influence of liberals such as Judge Reinhardt. However, with this vacancy on the court, along with eight others, President Trump has an opportunity to change the court to his advantage by choosing who will take the openings. He has put forth two nominees, Mark Bennett and Ryan Bounds. Bennett has support from the two democratic senators, however Bounds does not. Despite efforts made by Senator Dianne Feinstein, the senior democrat on the Judiciary Committee, President Trump will choose a nominee much different than Judge Reinhardt.
After reading this article, I find it interesting to see the split between the Democrats and Republicans when it comes to the courts and replacements. Even though the Democrats will oppose the nominees President Trump picks, I believe the chosen nominee will bear almost no resemblance to Judge Reinhardt no matter how hard the Democrats try. However, this one step in changing The Ninth Circuit will not change the history of The Ninth Circuit and its reputation for being more liberal. I chose this article while scrolling through the New York Times' politics section, a known, reliable source. I chose this particular article because it seemed to be a relatively simple topic that I could understand. I do not keep up with politics nor do I have much understanding of them. After reading this article, it interested me and introduced me to the courts, especially the Ninth Circuit.
The New York Times
Judge’s Death Gives Trump a Chance to Remake a Vexing Court
My Political Post was very intimidating to write but it became one of my hits due to how well it was written. I took on a mental challenge writing this piece, pushing myself because it was out of my comfort zone. It ended up being a successful piece with lots of detail and analysis about what I took away from the article. I am proud of this blog post because it is not like anything I have written before, especially since it is dealing with politics, which I am unfamiliar with.
Misses:
Free Post
While looking through my blog posts, I came across free posts that were definite misses. A specific example of this is my Free Post, in which I describe how I spent my weekend. This post is very short in length, barely meeting the minimum requirement. Also, it is just a summary of how I spent my weekend, which is a boring topic and doesn't require much effort.
Reading Response
My Reading Response to ATDPTI was a miss due to how far I analyzed the book. This response was meant to go in depth about specific aspects I noticed about the book. Instead, I wrote a fairly short summary of the book. My response was very general and did not mention any specific aspects about the novel.
Violent Ends
My final miss is my reading response blog post titled, Violent Ends. Like some of my other reading responses, I did not do a great job going into detail or analyzing the book. I provided a general summary about the book and did not go in depth about anything I noticed particularly. This was one of my first reading responses so I do not expect it to be my best work, but it was a good example of a miss.
Mint Snowball Reading Response
One of the personal narratives was Mint Snowball by Naomi Shihab Nye. This narrative focused on something she felt was the missing piece in her life, her great-grandfather's mint snowball recipe. She is so descriptive with her background information and focus on the mint snowball that it feels as if the reader is experiencing the moments firsthand. To do this, she uses complex word choice such as "flamboyant elixir" and "lasting solace" which draws the reader in and makes the essay richer. The author also uses short, expressive fragments to illustrate the scenery of the diner and the taste of the mint snowball.
The essay has an abrupt pause after the last sentence in the third paragraph; "Now she has lost the paper." After that pause, the narrative moves from the past to present day and specifically the author's personality. She reveals how she feels lost and that a part of her is missing. She credits the mint snowball to be this missing part of her. She explains she is "...wistful for something she has never tasted or seen." To complete the essay, she leaves the reader with personal, thought-provoking questions such as, "Can we follow the long river of the word refreshment back to it's spring?"
I find my Mint Snowball Reading Response to be a hit due to the amount of specific detail I included in the response. I analyzed the piece well and focused on a few important aspects of the book, avoiding summarization. Finally, I used specific quotes from the narrative for evidence of my analysis.Symbolism
As Annie looks into the mirror, past her bruises and scars, she admires her neck. Her neck, the one place that holds the last memories of true freedom. Annie stares into the gold eagle charm dangling, imagining the eagle flying freely. She remembers when her mother gave it to her when was just a young girl. Annie immediately fills with remorse for her mother and what she went through, Annie now living it.
Annie hears a loud shout from across the house, snapping her back into reality. She steps out from the bathroom and comes face to face with him. She scans his body hoping none of the usual weapons are in sight. Their eyes meet, locked with a stone cold glare. Suddenly, Annie feels a pull on her neck, as he rips the eagle from her. "Dad!", she yells, feeling that last bit of freedom ripped right from her.
Symbolism: Her eagle necklace, given to her from her deceased mother, represents freedom from her abusive father.
My blog post titled Symbolism was another hit of mine. I used vivid detail, which I find essential to portray symbolism. The writing included dialogue and was a small specific moment in time, but it left the reader with an understanding of the intense life the main character lived.
Political Post
This past week, Judge Reinhardt died at the age of 87. He was a longtime liberal on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The Ninth Circuit has been difficult for conservatives to deal with due to its influence of liberals such as Judge Reinhardt. However, with this vacancy on the court, along with eight others, President Trump has an opportunity to change the court to his advantage by choosing who will take the openings. He has put forth two nominees, Mark Bennett and Ryan Bounds. Bennett has support from the two democratic senators, however Bounds does not. Despite efforts made by Senator Dianne Feinstein, the senior democrat on the Judiciary Committee, President Trump will choose a nominee much different than Judge Reinhardt.
After reading this article, I find it interesting to see the split between the Democrats and Republicans when it comes to the courts and replacements. Even though the Democrats will oppose the nominees President Trump picks, I believe the chosen nominee will bear almost no resemblance to Judge Reinhardt no matter how hard the Democrats try. However, this one step in changing The Ninth Circuit will not change the history of The Ninth Circuit and its reputation for being more liberal. I chose this article while scrolling through the New York Times' politics section, a known, reliable source. I chose this particular article because it seemed to be a relatively simple topic that I could understand. I do not keep up with politics nor do I have much understanding of them. After reading this article, it interested me and introduced me to the courts, especially the Ninth Circuit.
The New York Times
Judge’s Death Gives Trump a Chance to Remake a Vexing Court
By Carl Hulse
My Political Post was very intimidating to write but it became one of my hits due to how well it was written. I took on a mental challenge writing this piece, pushing myself because it was out of my comfort zone. It ended up being a successful piece with lots of detail and analysis about what I took away from the article. I am proud of this blog post because it is not like anything I have written before, especially since it is dealing with politics, which I am unfamiliar with.
Misses:
Free Post
While looking through my blog posts, I came across free posts that were definite misses. A specific example of this is my Free Post, in which I describe how I spent my weekend. This post is very short in length, barely meeting the minimum requirement. Also, it is just a summary of how I spent my weekend, which is a boring topic and doesn't require much effort.
Reading Response
My Reading Response to ATDPTI was a miss due to how far I analyzed the book. This response was meant to go in depth about specific aspects I noticed about the book. Instead, I wrote a fairly short summary of the book. My response was very general and did not mention any specific aspects about the novel.
Violent Ends
My final miss is my reading response blog post titled, Violent Ends. Like some of my other reading responses, I did not do a great job going into detail or analyzing the book. I provided a general summary about the book and did not go in depth about anything I noticed particularly. This was one of my first reading responses so I do not expect it to be my best work, but it was a good example of a miss.
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