I found Bartholomae’s essay, Inventing the University, to be quite interesting and full of insight on academic writing. I suppose, at some level, that I have always known that the writing I do for school is tailored to who will be reading the assignment. However, I have never known whether this is the correct way to go about constructing my academic writing. I often feel as though I’m trying to impress the professor or write outside my true voice by attempting to recreate the language, attitudes, and terminology used in the classroom setting.
The most interesting observation I had reading Bartholomae’s writing is that he placed more value on the writer that took some chances and tried to write a little beyond his ability, as opposed to the writer that wrote technically well but not imaginatively or in a challenging manner. This was a nice thing to learn since I feel that, as a student, most teachers do not provide this type of feedback. This is not to say that most professors do not value good writing or do not provide valuable feedback on writing assignments, but in my many (way too many!) years of college, and I think particularly as an Environmental Studies major, I don’t think that I have ever had a professor in my major stress the importance of challenging yourself as a writer and stepping beyond your area of comfort when writing.
For me, writing is more enjoyable when I’m trying something new or if I’m not quite sure if what I’m writing, or the way I’m writing it, is exactly how it’s supposed to be. In that sense it was interesting and informative to read that Bartholomae’s views on this topic. Although I’m not sure it will benefit my grades in the future I will certainly remember this lesson and will continue to challenge myself and try to expand my writing capabilities.
