Reading Response #7

Summary:

     In Peter Elbow's article, "Voice in Writing Again: Embracing Contraries," Elbow discusses the importance of voice in writing and all of the misconceptions about it. Voice is a reflection of our personal selves. However, some skeptics have believed that voice can be used by skillful people to trick others to think they are a certain way, when really they are not. Elbow tries to point out his belief that one approach should not be used; you should pay attention to voice, but on the contrary, also "push away" voice. Elbow tries to get the audience to understand that voice--not only spoken, but written--should be heard. 
     This article compares to past articles we have read because of its strong focus on rhetoric and student writing. The majority, if not all, of the articles we read have been based on academic writing and trying to give college students a better grasp on writing skills and concepts. Elbow's article is no different. He wants students to get hold of the concept of voice and use it in a positive way, as well as a contrasting point of view.



Pre-reading:

2. Teachers from my past have seemed to outlaw the use of writing "I" to make a paper as impersonal and as "factual" as possible. My writings would be much different if I were able to use "I." They would  be much more personal. I feel like my writings would be better because I would really be able to put myself into the paper and give it more meaning, instead of it simply being about facts and the "truth." Using first person would certainly be a different approach, but I personally think it would be a better approach. I could use my own experience and thoughts to add to the paper and make it much more interesting.



Questions for Discussion and Journaling:

1. I define "voice" as bringing personality into writing and expressing yourself through words, even through completely different perspectives. For example, you could write about almost anything, and still have a voice. You are still expressing a somewhat personal side of yourself, even if it is unintentional. Elbow seems to have various definitions for voice. He delves far into the term and analyzes the different meanings it could have. The way I define voice is certainly similar to one of the ways he views voice, but he views it in many other ways as well.

3. When Elbow is discussing his own writing as well as the larger conversation on voice, he seems to begin contrasting his previous ideas about voice. However, as he says in his article, it is important to pay attention to voice, while also expressing a contrasting view. He discusses his own writing and metaphors and shows what he disagrees on.




Applying and Exploring Ideas:

1. Sincerity: a single voice that gives meaning and personality to a piece of writing and is an expression/reflection of oneself
    Resonance: an addition to a piece of writing that gives it a little extra "something" and makes it more special and more enjoyable

2. When you listen to a passage rather than read it silently, you get a better understanding of it. Whoever is reading the passage can give it that certain tone or voice that makes you really listen and take in its meaning. Reading silently can make it hard to understand a passage because it is hard to associate each word with a voice. It has a sort of monotone, which makes an especially long piece drag on, and lose its meaning. I think that longer, more complicated pieces should be listened to so that a tone can be established.




Meta Moment:

     It's initially hard to understand Elbow's contrasting views on voice while he has a disagreement when it comes to compromise. However, when he says, "it's a method of letting each side lose as little as possible," (50) his point makes a little more sense.
     When contrasting views on voice, it is important to allow a lot of breathing room. A compromise doesn't allow much breathing room at all. Compromising is a means of excusing two different sides for what they are. It's like saying "it's okay" that two opposite views are "this" or "that" way, without really explaining or analyzing it further. Contrasting should give each side reasons as to why it is viewed that way and leave more room for agreement/disagreement. Each side should be seen as a sort of "truth." Not literally, but metaphorically. It should be viewed as the "winning" side, in a sense. If you expressed two different views, and then began to compromise on those views, both sides would lose a lot of their resonance and meaning. Conflict is actually crucial.


My thoughts:

     I thought that the article was well-written. I liked the subject matter, but it was kind of hard to really "get into it" because of the length. It seemed to go on and on about the same thing, and the point Elbow was trying to make came about quite slowly. He tends to jump around between different ideas and concepts, which confused me. It wasn't always easy to understand what he wanted to get across to readers. However, I liked the times when he used music and musical terms as metaphors and ways to describe voice.