So what is the difference between academic writing and all of the connotations that come with it and writing for pleasure? And why is it such a big deal?
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Thursday, October 30, 2014
I Am Writer - Comp Tales Response 7
I think, as writers, we often run into people thinking we have an easy job or they question our motives in conversation--or as Lubarsky puts it in tale 83, they have "a fear that I will critique each word they utter for the rest of the evening. I, for one, was tired of getting asked, "Oh... What are you going to do with that?" with a sympathetic facial expression, like my pet had just died, when stating I was studying for a degree in Creative Writing. I still get that question consistently. While I realize the job market sucks and it's hard to find exactly what we are looking for, I'm not sure why people deem it necessary to condemn us for choosing to work in a field that we love--I mean, I love what I do, I'm assuming most others do as well. So why do professors in other disciplines denounce composition and why do people in other fields think we're stupid for studying English, because there just has to be something better out there? This whole idea of "the public," and how they see us, as writers and academics in English, is frustrating, because everyone knows the importance of communication, but when it comes to studying writing it suddenly loses it's appeal. Do you not communicate by writing every single f#@&ing day?! Anyone--and by anyone, I mean people that can afford the technology which promotes said interactions, but even then, notebooks and pencils are a cheap form to write--who says otherwise is a liar.
So what is the difference between academic writing and all of the connotations that come with it and writing for pleasure? And why is it such a big deal?
So what is the difference between academic writing and all of the connotations that come with it and writing for pleasure? And why is it such a big deal?
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Society generally enforces careers that pay well and offer stability, and superstars. This mindset generally directs people in the direction encouraged by well-meaning parents and guidance counselors, thus people often end up in jobs that don't suit them. When they hear about us doing what we love with the possibility of trying for years to get a stable job that still might not pay well, it goes against society's thoughts of success, but I think it the 'doing what we love' part that really gets under some peoples skin, and make them critique our choices negatively, for we did/do what we love, and perhaps that makes some people jealous, so they strive to tear down our line of work in attempt to rationalize their decisions. It also happens to those in philosophy, sociology, psychology, etc., but their work isn't any less valuable. Who knows, maybe that's my way of rationalizing my choice?
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