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Liars' Club: Lindsey Suprenant

7/16/2014

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Hello All--

Lindsey had trouble posting so I'm just posting a new comment to include her reflection:

In looking at the memoir from Lopate’s perspective, I’m kind of conflicted about whether or not I, or he, would think Karrr was successful in her writing. In The State of Nonfiction Today, Lopate discusses effective nonfiction as allowing the reader to work through an intricate problem, or even a frivolous one made to seem complex by the writer. I do believe Karr has done this. I think that we have to work through a lot of her problems to determine which have the greatest impact on her life. In class we discussed a number of times where we were left wondering why a certain memory of hers was included, and while that can be frustrating, I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing.

However, Lopate goes on to say later in that same essay that writers shouldn’t be doing the work for readers, that they should be drawing conclusions on their own. He questions that method, asking why that seems to be the only one taught to students and that it should not be the exclusive one. In this instance, I don’t think Lopate would necessarily be a fan of Karr’s work. I think that too much is left for the reader to decipher. While I wouldn’t expect each memory or story to be followed up with a reflection, as some are pretty self-explanatory in significance, I often felt a disconnect between Karr and her work. I felt almost as if she was telling someone else’s story because there was so little reflection.

When reading Kephart, a quote from the very first two pages jumped out at me. She quotes Ander Monson as saying, “I guess I want awareness, a sense that the writer has reckoned with the self, the material, as well as what it means to reveal it, and how secrets are revealed, and how stories are told, that’s it’s not just simply being told.” This, for me, is where Karr was unsuccessful.

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  • Home
  • ENGL 226 policies
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  • Previously Taught Classes
    • ENGL 301 >
      • ENGL 301 SYLLABUS >
        • PARTNER INTERVIEW ENGL 301
      • ENGL 301 Discussion Board When We Need it
      • ENGL 301 PORTFOLIOS
      • ENGL 301 READING JOURNALS (assignment)
      • ENGL 301 INTERVIEW WITH A TEACHER (assignment)
      • ENGL 301 BOOK CLUB (assignment)
      • ENGL 301 FLASH MENTOR TEXT MEMOIR (assignment)
      • ENGL 301 RESEARCH IN TEACHING DIVERSE POPULATIONS (assignment) >
        • ENGL 301 RESEARCH IN TEACHING DIVERSE POPULATIONS (instructions & sample annotations)
      • ENGL 301 ASSIGNMENT DESIGN (assignment)
    • ENGL102 >
      • ENGL 102 Class Discussion Board
      • ENGL102SYLLABUS
      • ENGL102 PORTFOLIOS/Research Notebook
      • ENGL102 ASSIGNMENT: Class Profile Page
      • ENGL102 ASSIGNMENTS: Reading Journals
      • ENGL102 ASSIGNMENT: OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH PROJECT >
        • ENGL102 ASSIGNMENT: POSITIONING YOURSELF
        • ENGL102 ASSIGNMENT: Locating & Evaluating part I
    • ENGL 202 BIZ Com >
      • ENGL 202 Business Writing SYLLABUS
    • ENGL 227 INTRO TO CNF WORKSHOP
    • ENGL 298 Second Year Seminar: This Bridgewater Life
    • ENGL406 RESEARCH IN WRITING STUDIES
    • ENGL 493 THE PERSONAL ESSAY
    • ENGL 493 Seminar in Writing & Writing Studies: The History of First Year Composition >
      • ENGL 493 Assignments: Annotated Bibliography & Presentation
    • ENGL 511 Reading & Writing Memoir
    • DURFEE Engl101
  • BSU Homepage