What’s so important about this literary analysis paragraph thing? Maybe you won’t be spending your life analyzing literature. Maybe this is some academic exercise that is ultimately no big deal in the greater scheme of your life.
Or maybe it is…
You will always be measured, remembered and assessed for the clarity of your thoughts, for your ability to cut through the clutter and discern the truest essence of truth, and for the magnitude, breadth, and depth of your thoughts when conveying this truth. Your way with words is the yardstick that measures the weight of you who you are and ultimately defines how you are perceived and evaluated. Writing and speaking well is not a dream to be toyed with; it is an action that is perfected by sustained action embedded in the power of language—the only real and memorable way we communicate with each other.
I am simply a teacher, albeit, an annoying demagogue who is insisting on your grasping at something that is no doubt just beyond your reach, and frankly, just beyond my reach as well. I am sure it frustrates you as much as it frustrates me. You are so close to reaching it as much as I feel I am teaching it, so we have to keep playing this game of cat and mouse and trust that some moment of epiphany is just around the corner, that your work and mine is not in vain or an exercise in vanity.
This literary analysis business is a lot like a baseball game: if you even manage a hit every three times at bat, you are considered a star; if you manage to hit a homer once—just once—every ten times at bat, you are proclaimed a hero, destined to be celebrated and remembered through succeeding ages, but no one is impressed by batters who are content to only swing in a batting cage, or by players who wait for walks or for easy lob balls dribbled remorsefully into the infield. Your game right now is on the line; the bases are loaded; there are two outs and you are down by three, and now it is all up to you.
So swing, dammit, swing. The ball is straight down the pike. It is your moment and there is no tomorrow.
I will swing, and have swung. I am inspired.
Great comment
Wow. I agree with this completely, and the comparison is right on. If we only practice writing, and never truly write, then we will never hit a home run. We need to cut through the ‘clutter of truth’ with our shots, but most importantly, we need to take shots.
Oops, I didn’t see a spot to put my name at first… This is my comment.
While reading this, I felt metaphorical. There were so many metaphors, some I picked up, some I didn’t. I will swing, and do my best to put in the most effort as possible.
This makes me feel better about myself as a writer. It made me feel like I can do this even though it is hard and I don’t feel like I can do it. I am still enlightened by this wonderfully crafted piece of writing and it will drive me to work harder.
I totally agree with this comparison. Writing is like a baseball game, you don’t hit a homer un everyday. Writing is the small, you can’t write a star essay on your first try. The famous writers took many essays to publish the one that they are famous for. I will swing and take my chances and I will always swing.
Seems legit
Damn a give!
Wow. Intriguing.
Flashbacks to my days writing weebly blogs in our eight grade class. The baseball metaphor fits the theme of knocking the ball out of the park. This semester I want to work better with different partners. Working almost exclusively with Cam Fries the first term, I want to diversify my writing portfolio with different students. So I’m ready for this next term.
I definitely agree with this. Baseball is very similar to writing, one day you can hit homers, but the next day you can strike out.
Sometimes you have to wait for the next pitch to swing, the ball might be too low or too high, but it might be the last pitch and you have to swing with all you got. I need to swing more because I am always waiting for the perfect pitch, yet if I just run with what comes my I can change the most boring topic into something meaningful. I will try to swing harder and more often.
Well, this entry used a great big metaphor. Using baseball as the inspiration was very nice. I have swung and will continue to swing a lot more.
Nice
I limes this and it madre me think. Hopefully I can swing even more. Very inspirational.
I loved this reading. I love how the author could use this topic and incorporate baseball. This is a great way to get kids who love baseball and other things than writing, into writing.
I really liked to read this. The metaphor was amazing, and it really made me think about how I can swing more.
I really liked to read this. The metaphor was amazing and it really made me think about how I can swing more