Monday, February 7, 2011
On Shen
I'm curious as to the validity of Shen's claims of composition teachers' encouragement to use the word "I." "Acting upon my professor's suggestion, I intentionally tried... using as many "Is" as possible - 'I think,' 'I believe,' 'I see' " (p. 460). Really? I wonder what school(s) Shen went to and what professor(s) allowed such self expression for a composition class, since, from my understanding, self expression while avoiding the word "I" is the holy grail in English composition - certainly from high school, as I've heard most high school teachers say they frown upon the use of the word, and definitely in beginning composition courses. I mean, I'm not sure as to whether Shen is exaggerating the liberty with which he has used to word I simply to promote it or if it was really something encouraged in his English studies. Whatever the case, I'm glad Shen gives attention to the adjustments non-Westerners must go through to fit the boundaries of American academic discourse. Perhaps the process of fusion is the best way to describe Shen's writing experience - mixing (but keeping) one's culture with a foreign one.
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I have had numerous courses in my college life where the I was acceptable. It is also acceptable in some regards when teh assignment is of the creative one or in a journal type. It is easier to ask a student to use the word I in a paper and them illustrate to them how by removing the "I" the text still holds value. Doing this I also believe helps tech students to be comfortable with writing and allows them to see it as a private and intimate thing, especially since writing demands that the writer take a stance and deliver it ie. expressing oneself and one's views.
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