Reading Response #3

Andrea Casassa’s “The Coffee Shop” and Matthew Dudley’s “The Dope on Head Shops” both follow Ballenger’s idea of an ethnography. Both of these essays are focused on close observations made over time. Casassa did not just walk into this coffee house, sit down, order a coffee, and decide to write about the place. It was a place that she had worked in and spent much of her time in. She had been there for a long period of time which she proves as she has customer’s orders memorized and ready for them when they arrive such as Martha’s order on page B33. She comments, “When one expected patron fails to visit, the equilibrium of the store wavers, not dramatically but noticeably” (B35). This is something that one could only notice if they spent enough time in there to even expect the “regulars”. Furthemore, Dudley also had to have spent a good amount of time in this “head shop” in order to describe it in such detail. He is very precise about the layout of the store and recalls exact details. Dudley states, “The first case, which is quickly seen as one enters the store, holds small jewelry, pins, rings, and earrings—all of which are socially and legally acceptable items” (B42). He then goes on to tell us that the pipes and bongs are “somewhat hidden from plain view and can only be discovered by one who walks around the store” proving that he has many times walked around this store in order to come across this conclusion (B42). In addition, Ballenger’s form for an ethnography requires that most of the research be done in the actual setting. In Casassa’s essay, all of her research is done in the coffee shop. She observes and writes. She takes everything from that one setting. Dudley’s essay, on the other hand, does have some research from outside sources. While the majority of the information does come from witnessing first hand this “head shop”, he also brings in other resources in order to give the reader a background on head shops. On page B39, he quotes from “The Haight-Ashbury” in order to offer extra information to the reader. This gives his essay a feel somewhat similar to that of a discovery essay or a research paper. Both writers also follow the form of an ethnography by looking closely at just a few in order to learn about the whole. Casassa focuses on many different individuals in order to explain the coffee shop as a whole. She gives details about each customer. Dudley also uses this technique. He focuses in on a few customers at the shop in order to create a feel for what the overall experience is like. He even goes so far as to get quotes from shoppers such as Peter Wetherbee on page B41. By giving the reader a deeper look into a few people’s lives and perspectives, he is able to offer a sense of what the entirety of the shop feels and looks like.

I hope to be able to form an essay following Ballenger’s rules as these two authors have done. By reading their writing, I am able to see what I need to look for when preparing to write my ethnography. I am not sure yet what I will be writing about; however, I know it needs to be a subject that completely has my attention. It needs to be something that causes me to consider every little detail in order to form the whole. I think it is important to get most of my research from the setting I choose and to not do too much outside researching. I do not want my paper to end up sounding like a discovery essay, so I must be careful in keeping it in line with Ballenger’s form for the ethnography.

Discovery Essay Topic

For my essay topic I plan to do something relating to sleeping. The question I intend to answer will be “How does the lack of sleep affect one’s mood and behavior?” This is a topic that is very relatable to me and probably most other college students. I know that for me, I typically only end up with a few hours of sleep each night. My mom and everyone else always tell me that I need more sleep, but what really are the long-term affects of lacking sleep?

Reading Response #2

Both Amy Garrett-Brown’s essay “Why Do People Tan?” and Jay Holmquist’s essay “An Experience in Acronyms” are considered discovery essays rather than traditional research papers. According to Ballenger, “Academic research is driven by questions, not answers.” Both essays begin because the author is curious about a subject. They are not geniuses in these fields; however, they do have a desire to know more because of a question in their mind. For example, Garrett-Brown states, “This started as a simple question spurred by one of my occasional “people are so stupid” rants” (459). She simply has a desire to learn more about the topic of tanning and why people are so prone to do so. Because of this interest, she writes an essay. Holmquist’s essay is also a question he wants answered. Because he has experienced with drugs in the past and because one of his close friends almost died from them, he wants to answer how dangerous drugs really are for someone. Furthermore, for a discovery essay the question is stated. This is the case in both essays. Holmquist asks, “Is something that the government finds harmful, yet so many people say is harmless, really that bad for you?” (B24). He plainly states the question that he will answer throughout his essay. Also, in discovery essays, source material is used; however, it is used differently than in a research paper. In a research paper, the writer would quote their source and not really give their thoughts on it as well. It is strictly hard evidence. On the other hand, in a discovery essay, the writer incorporates the information that they find in their sources into their own essay. They take the facts and then give their own original thoughts and their own take on the matter. For example, Holmquist comments, “The sense of time also is affected (Pechnick & Ungerleider, 1997)” (B25). He first states a fact from one of his sources and then cites it. He then continues, “For me everything associated with time doesn’t exist, including speed (as in miles per hour)” (B26). While he does state facts he then adds on his own experience and his own thought about the fact. Also as I just demonstrated, sources are formally given credit when they help with a writer’s thinking process. They are both cited within the work and also at the end in a works cited. There is a whole page attached at the end giving credited to all those that helped form the essay. Also as Ballenger stated, these essays usually draw from four sources of information. They draw from “memory or experience, observation, interviews, and reading” (433). While the personal essay that we previously wrote relies almost entirely on memory, a research paper relies mostly on facts and readings. The discovery essay can take information from all of these sources. It is able to state facts clearly as proof while also giving personal experiences in order to draw the reader in and help them relate to the essay. It allows for the reader to desire to know more about the subject of the essay. For example, Holmquist could have just stated facts about different drugs and made it a research paper; however, he chooses to bring the reader into his life. He tells the reader all about his first time using drugs and his journey as he continued to use until when he completely stopped. He tells us about his friend’s near death experience and how it affected him. It caused him to quit using drugs and ultimately even quit going to raves at all. He also tells of the addictions to drugs in the fact that his friend, even after almost dying, still continues to do drugs. This ties his essay together and is almost the greatest fact and statistic that he can give us for proving an addiction to drugs. Earlier in the essay he talked about how many people believe these drugs to be non-addictive, but if that is the case then why would his friend be doing them again? This is the greatest evidence he gives us—his personal testimony about drugs. Garrett-Brown does not use as much personal experience or memory in her paper as Holmquist, but she still talks about a very real and relatable topic that is able to entice her readers. They both follow Ballenger’s form for discovery essays very well and in doing so, stray from a research paper of just facts and in turn make a connection with their readers.

Reading Response #1

Both Hogg and Black demonstrate the features of the form that Ballenger talks about on page 94. Both essays use first person, which demonstrates how connected the writer is with the work. Using first person forces the writer to write with “openness and honesty” (93). Also, the “reader can’t hide” from his or her feelings that are being addressed (93). For example, Hogg could have been completely embarrassed by her obsession with Davy Jones that even led her to a random hotel at the age of twenty-seven just to see him and hear him again. This is not typically something that someone would want to openly confess; however, in a personal essay one is able to be honest and share his or her innermost feelings without humiliation. Also in Black’s essay “The Joy of Mud”, she is asked at the end if she will be joining them every week to do this work and she responds, “Vince, I aspire to be ready for this every week. But for now I’ll have to admit that I’m only at the beginning of a path I never expected to travel” (B15). She gives an honest answer and does not try to fake it saying that she will be there at the same time every week. Furthermore, both essays are written about commonplace subjects. Hogg writes about her infatuation with a musician. It is not some deep topic, but just something simple and important to her. Black writes about her experience in Hawaii as she is working her way through the lo’i in order to get food. This is not some great topic that she has searched out and studied, instead it is just a special experience to her that she wants the reader to understand. In addition, both of these personal essays relied mostly on observations. Although Hogg’s “I’m a Believer” did give some concrete facts concerning the Monkees and their background, most of her account came from her memory. She relied heavily on her own experiences and her own thoughts. Hogg confesses, “I listened to the Monkees Greatest Hits album nearly every day, playing the songs where Davy sings lead, pulling the record needle again and again to the beginning of “Daydream Believer” where he speaks with his British accent” (B1). She reminisces on the past as she paints a picture for the reader of this young girl sitting by her record player constantly replaying her favorite song. Black relies very much on detail and her memory and very little on actual facts. She comments, “Several hours pass, and I am still bent over among silky, heart-shaped leaves that nod pleasantly at me in the breeze, marveling at the mud as it slips smooth between my toes, the long hidden weeds straining against my foot soles” (B12). Black utilizes her recollection of events and scenery in order to convey to the reader what is taking place. She wants the reader to fully comprehend the situation and to feel as if he or she was originally there. Moreover, Hogg’s essay demonstrates the form of shifting back and forth from the then and the now. Hogg starts off in the past as she describes a scene from 1977. She continues to speak of the past; however, she then abruptly moves to the present. She then later returns to the past as she shifts back and forth. She ends her essay in the past as she states, “He reaches up and puts his arm around me, and we both play our roles, smiling for the camera” (B10). This technique of changing from the past to the present allows for the reader to be completely involved. The reader is able to follow her thought process and obtain every detail in doing so. Black, on the other hand, tells her story as she looks back on the past. She does not really shift back and forth, but instead she picks the past and sticks with it. Lastly, the thesis in these two essays is not stated up front, but it is later developed as the essay is written. The realization in both of these essays cannot be stated at the beginning because the writer has not even made this discovery yet. In personal essays, it is more common for the thesis to be stated at a later point once the writer figures out the point that they are trying to make. The “so what” is this final realization. Hogg realizes that her dream of Davy Jones is so much greater than the reality. She says, “I realize I could probably drink and gamble with Davy all night long if I tried to. But of course I already know that would ruin what magic remains” (B9). She then continues, “I accept, finally, that this person I know so well I don’t really know at all, and I, the daydream believer, am just a fan” (B10). Hogg realizes that everything she felt and believed as a child is not the truth and she finally sees that she is just another fan to Davy. She does not really know him and she never really will.

About Me

I am from Houston. I am a Junior this year. I plan on being an English major with a minor in Post-Colonial British Studies.