In this class you will read a variety of essays on different topics and from different academic and personal points of view. You will also read short stories.
Essays differ from stories; they are usually written to inform or to get the reader to take action. Sometimes essays, like some stories, are written to create a mood or feeling in the reader. We look for the main ideas and supporting details in essays.
Stories are called "narratives" and usually written in a sequence of events. Stories can have a moral, a message. They are often written simply to entertain. They follow plot lines--sometime predictable, and sometimes not. Often short stories have surprise endings.
All writing has a purpose--to inform, entertain, or to get the reader to take action. Each piece of writing also has an intended audience. Who were these pieces written for and why were they written?
We will also be reading out of texts, so not all essays or stories for the class are here.