When you write a paper that needs to be researched, you are making an agrument.  You are trying to fight and prove that the way you look at it and beleive it is right.  When you are agreeing on a topic you should think of one from your own readings.  However, a couple ideas to write about would be a comparison and contrast or a reading from a political perspective.  You may want to start researching your topic on the internet and then build it with information from the library.  All research papers use the MLA format. When you start writing your draft freewrite for a few minutes first just about whatever comes to your head about your literature.  After freewriting, review and research.  Last, evaluate what information in your draft is good that you can use  Don't forget to underline titles of books, works published, and plays.  Put quotations around titles of poems and short stories.  After writing your draft you should close read your paper to find any hidden meanings or mistakes you don't want.  Use a highlighter and make notes in the margin. Make sure you select a topic that you are interested in and make your thesis specific.

Poetry

I used to only want to read and understand the kind of poetry that rhymed and just told you exactly what the meaning was. However, after these couple days of learning how to read a poem, reading different kinds of poetry and especially hearing the poetry slam guys I realize that I am really starting to like poetry. I like to try and figure out what the meaning is. It's like a game to me. Now hopefully I will get better and better at breaking the poems down, asking questions, and understanding poetry even more.

How to read a poem

I thought I knew how to read a poem. However after reading this article I learned I wasn’t even close. You have to have a good attitude about the poem and also good technique. This article says not to make assumptions such as that you will understand the poem the first time you read it, that the poem is a kind of code, that each detail corresponds to one, and only one, thing, and that the poem can mean anything readers want it to mean. I learned after reading this that poetry is difficult and that the poets depend on the effort of the reader to somehow “complete” what the poem has begun.  I also learned that you can learn a lot from a poem just by how it looks. The title, shape, and noticing if it is a familiar poem are just a few factors you may notice. I liked how the writing explained how encountering a somewhat difficult poem may sometimes seem like a game or a sport, some are easy some take more time and effort.  I learned a lot from this article about how to read and actually understand poems.

Where I lived, and What I lived for.

 I wasn’t sure about this piece at first. It seemed really confusing to me and just all over the place. However I kept trying to read it and make sense of it and I finally started to understand. I really liked a few things this author said like, “But I would say to my fellows, once for all, As long as possible live free and uncommitted. It makes but little difference whether you are committed to a farm or a county jail.” I really liked this and totally agree with it.  I also liked when the author was describing a place he had owned  and said “as the sun arose, I saw it throwing off its nightly clothing of mist, and here and there, by degrees, its soft ripples or its smooth reflecting surface was revealed, while the mists, like ghosts, were stealthily withdrawing in every direction into the woods, as at the breaking up of some nocturnal conventicler. I really enjoyed reading this description and saw it very clearly in my head. I really liked when the author said, “to be awake is to be alive. I have never yet met a man who was quite awake. How could I have looked him in the face? We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake.” This really hit me and all of a sudden I felt like I needed to be more awake or more alive and live for the moment. After reading the whole article I understood more clearly. I ended up really liking this writing and actually looking back to it.

The Ranger, The Cook, and a Hole in the Sky

Norman Maclean is an awesome writer. He uses details very well to describe many different things and places to where you have an exact image in your head of what he is talking about. For example, he did a fantastic job of describing the mountains and the different areas within them. Even better he used good details to describe the people in the story which I really liked because I love to be able to picture each character in my head. Bill Bell, for example was described as a big man who fits his hands. Even though the beginning of the book was kind of slow and a little bit boring, it got a lot better as you read on. It made you want to keep reading to find out what would happen next. The author also has a good sence of humor which I think is needed to write a book, to keep the audience drawn in and interested. It was interesting for me to see what the USFS was like in the 1900's, and how much it has changed over the years. Back then you pretty much didn't have to have any education to do the job and now degrees are required. He also described the rangers as being these huge buff guys and now a days thats not necessarily the case. The ending of this story was interesting to me, and I couldn't decide right away if I liked it or not. However, thinking about it I decided that it made sense because in the end everybody was a hero in their own way and in their own exciting story.