What is Style NOW!?

As I reflect on what I have learned in this course, and how my definition of style has changed throughout the course I come up with only one answer...

Style, although it has some clear guidlines and structural borders, is very much an opinoin factor. Depending on the reader and the writer, style may need to be changed differently to meet different needs. Another big reason style would need to be changed is to accomodate changing purposes of works.

If one purpose is to inform and another is to persuade there may be different ways to go about getting these purposes across to the reader. But on the same token, the reader may be looking for something different than the writer is providing to accomplish the same purpose. This is a good example of how style is an opinion based idea that varies based on audience, writer, and purpose.

McCloud Part #2: Blog Comparison

The blog I chose to look at was Beth's: http://beths0103.blogspot.com/
The comic she looked at was called "Ninety-Five". Link to "Ninety-Five": http://www.scottmccloud.com/comics/ball/95/95p1.html. This comic talks about a father's distance from his family and the effect that it has on them, particularly his daughter. The idea that one thing can represent something else is discussed in McCloud's book. He talks about how, on page 66, the image of someone being chased in one frame and a blood curdling scream in the next means that they have died in between, in the gutter.
In "Ninety-Five" the gutter shows the daughter's constant longing for her father, and how the phone has represented her father for so long in the past by having one frame be a book where the daughter is guessing the picture as "Daddy" and in the next frame it is revealed that it is actually a telephone.

McCloud Post #1: "Mim's Last Coffee"

Below is the link to the comic I used for this blog entry:
http://www.scottmccloud.com/comics/mi/mi-26/mi-26.html

I wasn't sure what to expect when looking at a comic online rather than in the traditional ink and paper format, but I was pleasantly surprised! The comic I chose was called "Mimi's Last Coffee". It went through the the morning in which a lady, Mimi, would serve her last cup of coffee. Mimi is a waitress in the coffee shop and her primary customer is a lady named Leslie, who is married to Mimi's brother, Marcel. This comic is unique in that it provides numerous (6 I believe to be exact) sort of spin-offs with alternate endings.
1. Mimi gets no tip from Leslie!
2. Mimi learns that Leslie is to give up coffee because her husband Marcel has asked, or demanded, (the reader infers as they read on about Marcel and his numerous good qualities!) even though Marcel is not giving up his one vice-hard liquor.
3. This set of panels goes through an extravegant display to show how ridiculous Marcel's expectations can be. It seems that everything that can go wrong for poor Leslie does-from it raining on her to her almost being sexually assaulted.
4. Here we see another man in the coffee shop, as the reader I assume he is a regular. He can shed some light for Leslie on how relationships are hard.
5. These panels show how jealous Marcel gets over Leslie having a platonic relationship with the boy from the Deli down the street.
6. Mimi offers to have Leslie stay with her and her children if she decides to leave her husband--who by this point is clearly abusive.
The actual straight through reading ending results in Marcel being shot (over a dispute without another girl). Leslie, as she leaves in a rush to by her husbands side, leaves her purse behind. Mimi notices and rushes out the door into the street to catch Leslie before she is too far away. When in the middle of the street, Mimi gets hit by a car. Mimi dies.

This relates to certain things McCloud refers to in his book. One main concept from his book is Closure. This is really seen in some spots in "Mimi's Last Coffee". There is a panel that says "Hey, what's that falling out of the sky?" followed by the panel that just has a city scape engulfed in the word "BOOM!" Another good example is at the end, the last few panels. After the reader fills in their own crash and how that happened, they get to infer for themselves whether or not Mimi dies.
Also this comic exemplifies the inexact science of categorization of panels. There is a showing of moment-to-moment, action-to-action, subject-to-subject, and scene-to-scene just as McCloud says there would be!
In the end, you get to choose what Mimi's fate will be, although as the title alludes Mimi perhaps is destined to serve her last cup of coffee that morning.
Another thing I noticed was that this comic exemplifies the idea that serious issues can be tackled or even merely discussed in a comic. "Mimi's Last Coffee" deals with things like abuse and sexual assault--both serious issues that may not even be discussed in some other venues of writing.

Revising with Williams...

As I read the blog assignment and saw that we were using the EMU Catalog, I immediately remembered some material offered by Williams. "From time to time, some of us have to write for an audience able to understand the simplest of prose. Or more often, we have to write on a matter so complex that even a competent reader will understand it only if we take special care to make it clear," (57).

As I browsed through the Catalog website I ended on a short paragraph under the Extended Programs.

Below is the passage I chose to revise:

Through Eastern’s Extended Programs units, it is now possible for individual adult students, businesses, government and social agencies to access the tremendous resources of one of Michigan’s leading universities. Using alternative formats and teaching technologies, we deliver education, applied research, training and consultation services. Ongoing research initiatives and collaborations ensure that our programs respond to changing needs in a changing environment.

Below is the passage as I revised it:

Individual adult students, businesses, government, and social agencies are able to access the resources of Eastern Michigan University through the Extended Programs units. EMU delivers education, applied research, training and consultation services by using alternative formats and teaching technologies. EMU ensures that programs respond to changing needs in the environment through ongoing research initiatives and collaborations.

I think that the slight movements of words and the elimination of unnecessary and/or repetitive words are the small things that Williams would say help with clarity, cohesion, and emphasis. I am not saying I agree with all of William's critique, but I do feel that it does this section of text good.
In the first sentence, I feel that although "Extended Programs" is the subject of the sentence, placing it at the end of the sentence creates more emphasis on what you want the reader to walk away remembering.
The second and third sentence both follow a very common "formula" for how a basic sentence looks. "Subject"+"Action(s)"+"How the action was completed"=SENTENCE! These formula was only completed upon revision of the section of text I chose to revise.

The original text can be found at: http://catalog.emich.edu/content.php?catoid=1&navoid=34.

Strunk and White

I should start by letting you know that I have the Third Edition of Strunk and White.

My first impressions of this book, was that I couldn't believe I paid money for it. On the book shelf at my apartment I already have two or three other books that are about formatting and grammatical particulars. Strunk and White even say, "This book has been concerned with what is correct, or acceptable, in the use of English,"(66). This is an upper-level English course, I already know those things. I was very disappointed.

The element, or section, of the book that helped me the most, I suppose was, "An Approach to Style" as I felt this was the only section that could be considered new material for me. I have always had an appreciation for the idea that an author can be detected by his style alone. I agree that Faulkner and Hemingway sound very different and there is no grammatical or formatting difference to cause this as Strunk and White discuss on page 68. However, I have never seen my own writing having a style all to it's own.
For me though, this has always been okay. I never needed to have my own style. I am not trying to become famous. I am not trying to be distinguishable from the greats by how my writing sounds when read aloud, or even silently for that matter. My writings aren't that good.

Within this section the one that stuck out with me the most was #11, "Do not explain too much." I am someone who, because of my stream of consciousness writing, some times writes things that when read by someone out of context they don't understand. This is why revision is such an important step for me. I am firm believer in explaining things as far as you can because very often readers are not reading what they read daily. They are reading something out of context for there life-that is why they are reading it. Perhaps to escape from their daily life or perhaps to just experience something knew while keeping the risk minimal.
This section was more so referring to dialogue, but I feel that is transferable to many different types of writings. "It is seldom advisable to tell all...Let the conversation itself disclose the speaker's manner or condition," (75). These ideas can be transfered to almost any kind of writing.

The material I found most unhelpful would be found in the "Elementary Rules of Usage" and the "Words and Expressions Commonly Misused". To start with the "Rules", immediately I was put off by the word "elementary"-in a 300-level online writing course the word elementary should not be used to describe anything. I think most people in this course would feel there writing is beyond an "elementary" level. I, as a writer, don't need a reminder about how to form the plural of a word, how to properly write the date, or how to write a series out.
Also, as stated before, since I already own a few books with this material in it, this list of "Words and Expressions Commonly Misused" was nothing but repetitive for me. This was about 26 pages of words that just ends. There are a few comments at the beginning about how writers who mess these words up are careless and not to blame the writers style for using these words. "The Elements of Style" and this whole section has nothing to do with style, but rather laziness and the writer who is in need of another editor.

"Inventing" A Writing Technology

This was a painstaking project...and from reading the other threads in the emu online website I am sure others would agree. And although I didn't like the concept of this project at the beginning, it opened my eyes to how dependent on technology we are.

As I created my writing technology used berries and wrote on cement (the sidewalk outside of my apartment building). It took a few tries, and it sucked. But now that I have done it and have also written (and posted) my essay, I feel that I have discovered new things about the relationship between writing and technology, and how that relationship is weighted toward technology.

I have some pictures that are not posted right now because I went out of town for Mother's Day weekend. The assignment is clearly completed because I have written my essay and been able to describe was I used to complete this project. I will post the pictures when I get back in town early next week.

Steve, I guess I have one piece of advice for you about this project. I really like and appreciate the concept for this project, however I would suggest giving the students more time to complete it. Or introducing the project more in advance than when it is due. Does that make sense? I like, looking back, that you didn't provide us with examples- I know I would have just copied the example you gave.

Manguel and Baron Articles

These two authors both begin to look at writing in a much more linear sense for me. Manguel looks at the development of what I would guess is the most common medium for writing today-the book. Baron looks at the development of writing from early stages-just pencils, all the way to the computer. I think for each of these authors the development of a certain aspect of the art form over time is a defining characteristic in the relationship it plays with us today.
Something that had never occurred to me before was that books were not always written, and published therefore, in a matter that made them easy to carry around with themselves. Manguel talks about how the shape a book was produced in has a direct effect on how it was meant to be read. Even today we still see this sort of thing I think. Imagine cozying up in bed with a good romance novel, then imagine yourself cozying up in bed with the latest edition of the OED. Not quite the same. This was a very historical look at the development of the physical book.
Baron, on the other hand talked more about the evolution of technology in writing that Manguel I think. The modern conveniences that we rely on to do any type of writing now are far different from the "technologies" relied on even 20 years ago. At work this past week, I had to ask someone else how to use a typewriter-that was a technology for writing that I never needed to know how to use. And as a matter of fact, now that I know how to use it for a requisition at work, I will probably only use it there. The idea that there is another reason for writing besides communication is just crazy to me. Even Baron states that "each new literacy technology begins with a restricted communication function..." (Baron 71). Think about it, why would we invent new things if they didn't create easier access to communication than the old?