Lydia's Story: Thinking about the Text

1. Brideau's main point, in my opinion, is to help the reader understand the effects Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita had on their victims. It helps us by sharing details from one individual, whose life was personally influenced by the storms. It explains the hardships this victim had to face, including losing her home and all her possessions, and being stranded in her closet for nearly a week, while her house was literally underwater. In this essay, it is indicated that the author's main point of the story is to help the reader understand the effects that the storms had on its victims, on page 131, "But it's Lydia's story that stays with me most, probably because it represents the essence of hope and determination in the face of terrible adversity."

2. The primary point of view from which Brideau narrarates from is a first person point of view. This point of view impacts the reader, letting them know that the author witnessed and experienced the consequences and outcomes of these storms first hand.

3. Brideau makes her narrative come alive by using words such as; slender, chemical, toxic, cackle, soaking, rushing, bulky, heavy, spurted, cramped, swollen, and enormity. These words appeal to the readers' emotions, by describing the situation and leaving vivid images in the readers' mind.

4. The audience for this piece would be anyone interested in how these storms personally affected it's victims. Brideau's tone suits these readers, by giving descriptive and graphic details from Lydia's story, such as; "cramped on the top shelf", "rushing like the Colorado River", "table started moving, then rocking-".

Chapter 2 Page 23

Writing I've Done in the Last Week:

• Psychology critical thinking short essay
• Variety of blog posts for English
• Various emails to teachers
• Text messages
• Tweets and other posts on social media

1. One example of writing I did in the past week is a critical thinking short essay for my Psychology class. My intended audience was my Psychology professor. The purpose of my essay was to inform my professor on my opinion of whether I think certain breeds of dogs should be banned, or not. My stance was no breed of dog should be banned, and I went into the details of my reasoning. My medium was a typed essay, which was digitally submitted. I used a serious tone, and kept my design serious and mostly formal.

2. Another example of writing I did in the past week is the text messages I have sent. My intended audience was my family, friends, colleagues, and coworkers. The purpose of the text messages I sent was to communicate ideas or feelings that I had to others. The tone I used while typing most of my messages was rather informal, considering the recipients and I are close, but it really depended on the context of the conversation.

3. An additional example of writing I have done in the past week are the blog posts I have published for my English class. My intended audience was my English professor, and my peers. The purposes of publishing the posts vary, including a short list of facts about myself, responses to literature, and work I have done with my peers. My medium was typed and digitally submitted. The tone of my posts vary, depending on the prompt.

English 101 In Class Lab

Holly Snider, Bela Burns, and Leah Nieman

We agree that our posts are more similar than different. All of us agree on what defines writers and authors, and we all mentioned the internet and how it affects society. But, some of us disagreed on the topic of if everyone is an author or not.

Writers:                                                  Authors:

Expresses thought	Publishes
Writes to him/herself or closed audience	Writes to an audience
Writers use images, sound, video, etc.	Researches their work
Their work is part of a larger conversation	They produce their own product

Type of Writing:                                         Why you Enjoy / Despise it:

Narrative	It’s creative, and relates to life
Poems	It’s expressive
Persuasive	It’s hard to figure out an argument

Holly: Shopping list

Shannon,

PARTY THIS WEEKEND

·         Pay for gas

·         Go to Party City and get: balloons, confetti, forks, and ribbons

·         Take them to my house at 5:00 PM

·         Buy the supplies for now, but I’ll re-inverse you when I can.

Bela: Directions

Shannon,

I need some supplies for the party this weekend. Please go to my house at 290 Holly St. in Poulsbo and on the porch will be some money for your gas. Then please turn left from there to Bela St., then right on Leah St. and keep straight till you reach Party City. Once there get balloons, confetti, forks, and ribbons. Then take the supplies to my work by 5:00 PM at 31 English St. Buy the supplies for now, and I’ll re-inverse you when I can. 

Leah: Memo

Hey Shannon,

The party this weekend is coming up, and I need your help. I can’t pay for gas at the moment, socould you drive? Please get balloons, confetti, forks, and ribbon. Then please bring them to my house and I’ll need you to purchase them at the moment as I’m low on funds.

Thank you!

"Is Everyone an Author?"

            In our English 101 class we are asked to respond to the question, "Is everyone an author?" If you ask me, I believe that everyone has the ability to be an author but not everyone publishes their writing for an audience, therefore they are just writers.  

Another question you may have is the difference between a writer and an author. My opinion is that a writer is anyone that documents their thoughts or feelings in writing. I believe an author is someone who writes a piece to be published, and shared with an audience. An author writes knowing their work is going to be seen and critiqued by others, whereas a writer could be writing for themselves. I feel everyone, at some point in their lives has written something. I mean, in elementary school we are taught to write, recording special past events from our lives, writing a story, or whatnot. So, anyone is really a writer. But to be an author you would need to publish or share your writing with others. 

In conclusion, I feel that everyone is a writer, but not everyone is an author. Anyone has the capability to become an author. It's more of a decision whether the writer wants to publish their work for the world to see, making their thoughts or ideas public, or whether the writer does not feel the need to share their writing.

Collaborative writing on writing

Collaborative writing on writing

Collaborative Writing on Writing

1.) Writing is a way to express your thoughts and feelings on paper. It can also be helpful to work out thoughts that would otherwise be harder to explain.

2.) Expository and persuasive writing are prompts formally given in high school, however we typically would agree, that it is easiest to write in the first person, about past personal experiences. Journalism and recording events on paper or on the computer are previously used forms of writing.

3.) Our tone changes depending on our audience, such as if we are writing to friends, or if we are writing a formal English 101 essay. For example, if you are reading an essay or paper to friends, you are very casual. If you are reading an essay or paper to a class or teacher, you are a bit more formal.


Holly Snider, Grace deMeurisse, Leah Nieman, Isabela Burns  :)

My Personal Bio

My name is Bela.
I am a junior at Chimacum High School.
I have blue eyes and darker blonde hair.
This is my first time taking classes at a college.
I work at a restaurant.
My name only has one L.