November 13th, 2023 – November 19th, 2023
Before I get into my thoughts about class, I’d just like to say how much of a whirlwind this week has been! It feels like I’ve done so little and yet so much. I said I would get the basic first drafts of both of my final essays done… and it’s Thursday as I write this… and I have an introductory paragraph for this class… which I think I’m going to change my topic… I just want to finish everything before Thanksgiving! Alas, I think this is stressing me out more than it is helping me. I’ll reassess at the end…
Anyways, I really enjoyed today’s class looking at epistolary works in entertaining formats! I guess you kind of don’t really think about how much letters have value in fiction. They’re a great way to tell a story, convey different information, and keep you grounded in the world. Letters just have that tangible feeling, you know? So many letters are so successful in conveying the voice of the author, and I think that’s where they have great value in fiction. If you can write a letter in the voice of a character, it’s kind of like acting, I guess. Putting yourself into the shoes of someone else for a little bit, seeing how they would phrase sentences or what they would include in a letter or leave out. I think it’s a really interesting way to explore a character.
I actually really liked reading the children’s books today. It made me feel peaceful after a stressful morning of registration, and thinking back on it later in the day, it kind of puts me at peace. They were so silly and so interactive. It was also enjoyable to hear everybody else read aloud the books. I think we all had a lot of fun with that activity. I hadn’t ever heard of the postman book before, and I really liked how interactive it is. Great for older kids! Within each envelope contained a different piece of mail, and they were all so varied and different for each character in the story, which were classic fairytale characters. Today was a lot of fun, and hopefully it will bring me some more peace throughout my day.
Tuesday’s class was useful, particularly as someone who likes writing. I found the open-letter compilation to be charming, and succinct in the right ways. It’s easy to read and catch a bit of advice from.
Anyway, I’d really like to change my topic. I’m having a hard time diving into it, even after all the research. I’m questioning what I analyze and what my thesis should even be with my current topic of whaling. There aren’t many remaining letters for me to go off of. I guess that’s the difficulty of non-famous letters and letters relating to watery jobs. Non-famous means they’re less likely to be kept around, and watery jobs lead to more destruction. It’s an interesting topic, I’m just having a really hard time approaching it. Maybe I can talk about letters in romcoms, and the purpose they serve. I’d have to watch a lot of romcoms though… But the list in class of movies did open me up to that idea. I have already watched To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, and I’ve read the book, so maybe I can also look at it in a time period setting. You know, one from the 90’s, one from the 2000’s, and one from the 2010’s. I’ve already got one covered. I think it would be a good idea to narrow it to a few movies, not a lot, since that’s way too broad. Three is always a good number. Easy to layout, too, when you’re discussing a small number. Each movie gets its own paragraph, then come together really tight in the last paragraph before the conclusion. God, I’m so smart. It’s not like I’m in college or anything! Perhaps that is what I’ll do. I must get started then, and maybe a rewatch of TATBILB is in order…
