Post your reading response to Dinty Moore's “A Closer Look: ‘Ah Wilderness!’ and “Of Conflict” below.
Here are the guidelines:
- Reading responses must be AT LEAST 250 words.
- Include your full name at the end of your comments. Unnamed comments will be deleted.
- From the "Comment As" drop-down menu, choose Anonymous, then click "Publish."
- Reading responses are due by 10pm on the day PRIOR to our discussion of the required reading
Response 3
ReplyDeleteI, personally, love adding some conflict into my essays. Especially last semester when i wrote a memoir for the first time, being that it was my first creative writing class, it was a bit challenging for me to be able to put this conflict into words. Well actually, describing the conflict was not the challenge, the challenge for me was resolving it. I feel like if in my last memoir, i spent most of my time describing the plot, just throwing the reader the worst events that i had experienced and then at the end, i had no idea how to resolve them. Moore also talks about a different type of conflict in chapter 9, he speaks of conflict that is going on in the world but that is viewed by different people’s point of view.
As i read Moore’s “Ah, Wilderness!” i begin to notice how much detail he puts into every scene. He describes everything so well to the point that the reader can picture it in their head. An example is on page 117 when he says “mud colored water, sky is glossy blue, the air is sweet smelling.” He also mentions ways on how to keep the reader entertained, like having a sense of humor. With this short story, i now have a more clear picture of what a nature essay should look like, it is a story but somehow focusing on nature or traveling.. Like being very descriptive of nature and connecting it to something else. Well not connecting, actually relating it to a bigger and broader theme. To also make it more interesting Moore adds conflict.
Jennifer Millan
Word Count 272
Dinty W. Moore holds up to his claim of exploring a subject in the “personal” essay in “Ah Wilderness! Humans, Hawks, and Environmental Correctness on the Muddy Rio Grande”, yet he does not balance well in his exploration of mental rabbits and staying within the invisible gravitational pull (Moore 5; Moore 76; Moore 84). In his essay “Ah Wilderness” Dinty W. Moore is trying to balance three different genres: argument, travel, and nature. Whether the essay may be defined as “personal” is to debate and a matter of perspective, therefore it will not be mention in my critique. The argument is driven in Dinty W. Moore’s dissent on environmental activist’s tactics and ideologies, in particular at Rebecca Solnit, who Dinty W. Moore claims as his “foil (Moore 113).” Traveling is done as Dinty W. Moore is taken up the Rio Grande. Nature is seen in the observations Dinty W. Moore shares such as with the wasp tarantula hawk (Moore 122). One can only allude to what the purpose behind the essay was for Dinty W. Moore, to identify what he was searching as the word essay defines. However, he does state his intent: “I am essentially writing an essay of conflict and being a bit of provocateur…I use one writer, the respected essayist Rebecca Solnit (Moore 113). The claim Dinty W. Moore makes in regards to his writing is redundant. As he cited Philip Lopate’s essay, conflict is the driving engine of literature (Moore 100). Regardless, the conflict in Dinty W. Moore’s essay derives slightly from his allusions to Solnit. This could have served as the grounding gravity to hold the essay’s leaps in line, yet what the essay became was a cluster.
ReplyDeleteAlejandro Sánchez
What I love to read more than anything are comic books. The great thing about comic books is that the biggest conflict of the story is not the conflict between good and evil, but the inner conflict that the hero has to deal with when it comes to understanding who he is. Superman is a god among men. His conflict in the stories is “am I doing the right thing? What is the right thing to do?” He is an idea of what humanity can become if we were to actually choose to do the right thing. For the Hulk is about control. How much control do you have within yourself before all emotions become released and your inner demons come out? These are the only examples I know about conflict and I think that’s what Dinty Moore was talking about. A conflict that can give your story a more defining edge than the normal writing that people write about. There’s a paragraph where he talks about an essay that was written differently than other essays. Most essays that he read were about how the students missed a grandparent that passed away. There was one writer in particular that was actually sadder about a dog passing away than her own grandparent. Even to me that is one conflicting statement. In my head I was asking myself questions. Was her grandparent evil? Did he do something to her? Was he cruel? I wanted to know more about that statement. Of course Dinty explained the whole essay that writer wrote and in a way I happen to agree with the writer. If there was never any real emotional connection than what is the point of feeling anything for the same individual when they pass away? It’s true conflicting writing. Others will definitely not agree with the writer’s opinion, but at least she said what she really wanted to say. In Dinty’s short essay about his disagreement with one of his favorite writer’s he tries to understand the two very different experiences that they had about the Rio Grande. Solnit wrote an article about the Rio Grande and how basically the people living there are destroying the environment. When Dinty takes the same trip he has a strong connection with nature and feels one with nature. He can’t believe that his favorite writer truly hated her experience in the river. His same experience. To me I can see the conflict that he has. The conflict that his favorite writer has opposite opinions about the experience of the Rio Grande. He later gives his opinions as too what is destroying the environment and what is enjoying the environment. I could feel the conflict that was presented in the story. I also happen to agree more with Solnit than Dinty in this one case. The Rio Grande is a place that is being affected by the people living there and she probably wrote that article so that less people can go and if less people go than that would be less people hurting the environment. She probably loves the Rio Grande so much that she was hoping that people would stop going there from destroying it. That’s one idea. Maybe she really didn’t like it. The Rio Grande gets hot. Really hot. I don’t like that. I can live with it, but I don’t like it. That’s just my opinion.
ReplyDeleteJuan Garcia Jr
Word Count: 565
I really enjoyed a closer look on chapter 10 not only because of the conflict between Annie and the writer, but it was a great story in general. Just visualizing them rafting down the Rio Grande, made me realize that there are actually people out there who want to get in that dirty water. In addition to all of those conflicts throughout the story I really enjoyed the quick instructions here and there. I like hearing The Author Moore tell us writers that the readers need to feel as if they're seeing hearing smelling tasting and touching the experience. I also enjoyed how the author distinguishes the two doctors Named Dave between the tall one and the bearded one because you can see people out on the street exactly the same. The way the author talks about dropping his gatorade bottle in the water causing Conflict for Annie and her steering and paddling was really entertaining for me because I can see her freaking out and struggling with the steering. The author also introduces the internal conflict that isn't shared with the others in his group but on his own with the fear of getting broken bone or drowning through those Rapids was also very real. I know that's when I go kayaking I am deathly afraid of flipping over my kayak but I'm not very vocal about my fears to try to keep calm and catch the most fish possible. The way the author describes these Canyons it's very intense because I can see them visually in my head compared to some pictures at my friend post on Facebook because she is a game warden up in Fort Stockton. These pictures are amazing and clear and you can see this raging water running through the Rio Grande and just imagine the fossils that they could possibly find if they were all still there.
ReplyDeleteCemantha
Dinty Moore really hits home when she states "I didn't visit the river in a bulldozer, after all. I came by canoe." During the time of making this statement, Moore seems to be standing up to the notion that she is just like one of us. A student of the game, almost as if she's saying that she wants to be religious about her actions and do her part to continue the tradition of expressing one's ideas through writing. She claims herself to be a "regular member" to the "ecosystem" which I understand in a way that she has the desire to be featured amongst us all as one. As I was reading through "Ah, Wilderness!" I got this sense that the author was trying to come across as a motivator. This author did not to see the reader's essays' plateau. They gave insight such as giving the story that one is writing a deep level of conflict in order to keep the reader glued onto your material. In order to keep the reader locked, we as writer must do our part to control the feelings of our audience through drama, suspense, anxiety, whatever the case may be. It is just a matter of producing a piece that will alter feelings and tap into the subconscious mind to create a real scenario for the reader. I too believed a huge motivating factor to incorporate into successful essays is to use the method of utilizing the five senses. That huge in the sense of really placing the reader into the shoes of the characters in the story. The essayist is the master puppeteer. It is our job as the writer to confront the notion of not being about to put certain events into words. Things like, "ah man, you'd have to be there to know what I mean." A reader can get very little to nothing out of that. Our job is to stare this notion in the face and really expose it for what is. To uncover something that is difficult to comprehend only speaks volumes about the essayist and his capabilities as a writer to show his talents of expressing the idea they are trying to get across with words, and not actions. That is the case we face. We have to believe that the words we're putting out will be received in a way that the reader can produce mental films.
ReplyDelete-Ruben Loa Jr
I feel that conflict is a major part of any essay and especially films. Whenever I go watch a good movie there is always a major issue going on. We start to watch and grow into the movie and start to get worried or scared depending on what the movie is about. That is what makes the whole movie good. This can also be implemented into books as it has been done since books were written. A big thing I can think of out of the top of my head is the sad action that happened Sept. 11, 2001. Many people will argue about the conspiracy theories being true and some not being true. I personally cannot take sides since I have no idea what exactly happened that day besides the attacks themselves. Dinty has a conflict with one of his favorite writers in a part of his book. The other writer had a not so good experience in the Rio Grande river. Dinty himself went and had a connection with nature and really enjoyed his day there. This is considered conflict. Of course everyone has their own opinions with everything. Me and my friends go to some restaurants for a meal and we all order different things at times. This just means that we can all eat the same thing but some will like it more than others and some might greatly dislike it.
ReplyDeleteLucio Vasquez
When I read Moore’s A Closer Look at Nature: Ah Wilderness! I was very intrigued by Moore’s ideals on how to write a nature essay. In our previous post, I wrote that I am somewhat nervous to take on a nature essay but after reading Moore’s piece I feel a lot less intimidated. I thought writing a nature essay had to be nothing but pure sights, sounds, smells, etc. but I really liked the fact that Moore included dialogue into his essay. The rocky relationship between he and his paddle partner Annie was too funny! I think a nature essay can really benefit from some human interaction. One thing I would want to avoid in my essay would be to sound like an environmentalist writing a journal for bird watchers weekly. I was really glad to see some humor involved in his essay.
ReplyDeleteOf Conflict was interesting to read because of the way it started out. When Moore said one of his students did not miss her grandfather my jaw literally dropped. I could not understand why someone would even write that but as Moore began to explain her stance, the conflict aspect started to make perfect sense. This is something I personally struggle with when writing essays. I am not one to handle conflict well, so I don’t particularly like to transfer it into my writing. Although it isn’t something I enjoy doing, I can see why it works well in an essay. I feel like there is a stronger connection between author and essay if you can dig deep and challenge yourself outside of your comfort zone.
Karina Saldivar
Moore talks about not being afraid to fully express yourself in Of conflict. Many people write but they’re too scared to go all out and truly speak their mind. He elaborates in this chapter on how that makes for a very compelling story that will grab the attention of the reader. Its interesting to see how he talks about the way we feel about certain things and how we all have to be polite in a social environment regardless of how much hate we may feel because at the end of the day were all human and we have these thoughts one in the same. This grabbed my immediate attention because many times I have felt such hate towards certain things that I stop and think “should I really have these thoughts” and it leaves me startled at my way of thinking but he’s absolutely right, we all have thoughts like these regardless if we choose to deny it, were all humans and are slaves to our emotions. Next up in “Ah Wilderness”, he puts all that he spoke about in the previous chapter into full effect. It’s an entertaining read from beginning to end and outstandingly describes the scenery as these people traverse a river. I grew up all my life wondering how it would be like to just be near it and this paints a picture clearly in your head. Although I do believe some things should be left untold it does make sense how writing about how you truly feel makes for an even more compelling read as it not only shows emotion but given how we all have similar feelings, the reader would have no choice but to compare his thoughts to yours.
ReplyDeleteAmaury Cabrera
word count 287
In every story written, whether it be truth or fiction, has a conflict in them. Take the author Stephen King, he is most famous for his suspenseful and often times eerie novels; and while these novels are fiction they are riddled with conflict. The purpose of this in his writings is to create something that people will want to read. The same goes for non-fiction writings, in memoires, travel pieces and nature essays, this can be seen more prominently. In memoires we see the conflict in their lives. This is because of the fact that often times in memoires people write in conflict to keep the reader’s attention. In travel and nature essays, the conflict can be a bit more subtle but is also used to keep the reader’s attention. For example in Moore’s essay “A Closer Look: Ah Wilderness!” he describes a place as having “mud colored water, sky is glossy blue, the air is sweet smelling.” Now, while this may not seem terribly contradicting, if you look closely enough, you will notice that the water just does not match the rest of the beautiful description. Now just from this small excerpt, you can picture the water, the sky and can practically smell the air. All of this how authors keep the readers interested in travel, nature and fiction pieces. However, these subtle hooks are also a way for authors to connect and give clues to a larger picture that will reveal itself at the end of the story.
ReplyDeleteKarina Gonzalez
In the chapter “Of Conflict” Moore suggests that a key element in making your piece more than another generic story is the use of conflict. He uses the example of a young girl facing an internal conflict when her grandfather and dog both die. She feels as if it is morally wrong to miss her dog more than her grandpa but she later realized that her dog showed her more affection and she is no longer afraid to admit she misses her dog more. Moore states that conflict is a great place to start a story. It’s important to allow the reader to empathize with you. This particular example is perfect because it makes the reader ask themselves who they would miss more in that situation. In the next chapter Dinty Moore examines his piece “Ah Wilderness!,” a nature/travel essay. I really enjoyed this piece because Moore describes everything around him so effortlessly. I am terrible when it comes to description. I either go on for two pages or leave my reader wondering. I believe the perfect balance comes when you can examine your work and find significance in the detail. I really enjoyed this piece not only because it was an exciting story but also because I love reading about the beauties of the Rio Grande. I also realized how important it is to keep the senses in mind when describing a certain setting. When Moore explains that he is trying to make the setting more exciting by describing the dramatic motions of Annie’s arms while paddling. These are subtle ways to hook your audience.
ReplyDeleteOlivia Hinojosa
Conflict is a great driver in a story. Conflict has a way of drawing the reader’s attention and keeping it. Whether it is internal or external it drives the story forward and helps avoid “static mode.” Part of this can be talking about some topics that are difficult to deal with or topics that other people would have a different opinion over. An example of this is the Kate’s essay, which Moore mentions at the beginning of chapter nine. Kate has a difficult time feeling anything for her grandfather who passed away because he was distant. She felt more for the passing of her pet Snowball because the dog showed her more love. Moore said this essay stood out to him and for good reason, which was the conflict involved. Everyone else wrote about positive memories and lacked any sort of conflict. This lack of conflict led to the “static mode” in the other essays in comparison to Kate’s. Moore shows in the next chapter how conflict drives interest. In this essay there is a conflict in the form of Annie who has some strong opinions about the environment. In the essay multiple ideas are juggled and like Moore said in the previous chapter “the test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two or three opposing ideas” while still writing eloquently.
ReplyDelete-Jesus Prado
The great thing about life, great meaning terrible for us but probably great for others to enjoy from afar, conflict is everywhere. It's one of those essential elements the world is destined for us to always get dragged around in the mud with. It's your greatest material, ask any comedian, their best material is the shitty events of conflict they had to withstand and laugh off. The way Dinty Moore creates a picture of rafting through the Rio Grande so scenic and descriptive, you can only imagine why someone else would write such terrible descriptions about it in the first place. You connect into the nature in all sorts of different ways, the beauty of conflict. We all see the world differently from one another and sometimes you don't expect people you admire to throw another idea out at you, you begin to wonder if they really should we admired. We are human, what can you expect from people anyway? In regards to writing a nature piece I wasn't quite sure how to approach anything besides thinking of being out in the woods chasing deer. But since now I have read an actual piece on what a nature writing should be I am ready to go in full force with, well about any event in my life that can candidate something as meaningful and detailed as his writing. Because believe me, I thought the entire time I was in a canoe about to die from the lack of survival skill I don't have but also embrace the world around me and absorb the life that exists in a way only I can.
ReplyDelete-Victoria Benavidez
Reading “A closer look: Ah Wilderness!” was interesting because Moore is really descriptive of not only his surrounds, but the people he is with. Description and detail is something that I’ve always struggled with in my writing. I have yet to master the ability to paint my stories in color, some would say. Moore’s nature writing of canoeing on the Rio grande made me smile because one of my favorite things to do is read things about this region and then have him describe things so vividly, such as the water and the cacti, it made me appreciative of his work. Because he highlighted the beauty of things. unlike Solnit, who he mentions a lot in contrast to his own work who seemed to only highlight the negative aspects of the region making it seem uninviting and not safe for travelers. Whereas Moore makes the river sound inviting and beautiful and worth the visit. Reading “Of conflict” Moore talks about spicing up your work by adding conflict to your pieces because it makes it more interesting. Conflict leads to empathy and empathy leads to resonance with the reader. As a reader, I prefer reading memoirs because more often than not, there is always conflict. And sometimes the conflict never gets resolved but that is okay. I find myself more engaged and interested in books/pieces that carry conflict because I can either relate, or it's just too good to put down because I want to find out what happens next.
ReplyDeleteAmanda Victoria Ramirez~
In the chapter “Of Conflict”, Moore talks about how conflict is something that should always be part of a story. While I do agree that conflict is what makes a story more interesting and entertaining, it did make me a bit nervous about my own writing. It’s easy to simply say to include conflict into the story, but for some, like myself, it’s rather difficult to thrust a problem and wrap a story around it. I have a hard time getting my story from point A to point B, let alone including a whole new letter in between. But, the example he included of his student Kate and her dilemma with her deceased grandfather and dog, made me realize that maybe I need to adapt. I need to get out of my comfort zone and think in a different way when it comes to my writing. I feel like this might be the time for me to put Moore’s advice into effect. Maybe if I began to include conflict, instead of only droning on like he mentioned, I will get better at keeping the reader interested in my writing. I liked the story “A Closer Look: Ah Wilderness!” because Moore packed in so much detail that I believe it would be impossible for someone not to imagine everything he was writing. The vivid descriptions of the scenery were like a picture he was painting just for the readers. I feel this essay really gave me a glimpse of how a nature essay should look as opposed to what I originally had in mind.
ReplyDeleteIn the chapter “Of Conflict”, Moore talks about how conflict is something that should always be part of a story. While I do agree that conflict is what makes a story more interesting and entertaining, it did make me a bit nervous about my own writing. It’s easy to simply say to include conflict into the story, but for some, like myself, it’s rather difficult to thrust a problem and wrap a story around it. I have a hard time getting my story from point A to point B, let alone including a whole new letter in between. But, the example he included of his student Kate and her dilemma with her deceased grandfather and dog, made me realize that maybe I need to adapt. I need to get out of my comfort zone and think in a different way when it comes to my writing. I feel like this might be the time for me to put Moore’s advice into effect. Maybe if I began to include conflict, instead of only droning on like he mentioned, I will get better at keeping the reader interested in my writing. I liked the story “A Closer Look: Ah Wilderness!” because Moore packed in so much detail that I believe it would be impossible for someone not to imagine everything he was writing. The vivid descriptions of the scenery were like a picture he was painting just for the readers. I feel this essay really gave me a glimpse of how a nature essay should look as opposed to what I originally had in mind.
ReplyDelete-Jennifer Gutierrez (forgot to add my name in the other post, sorry prof!)
My favorite kind of conflict in books and movies is when the antagonist and protagonist are both created in a rather appealing light so that the reader has a choice to either choose between the “good” or “bad” guy. Conflict has a lot to do with perspective. If the reader is in touch with the protagonist’s emotions and views then he will choose to take their side, but if the reader is not amused or entertained by the protagonist’s conflict they will usually take the side of the antagonist (why do you think so many people are obsessed with The Joker?) or simply not be interested in the story. For example, I read some of Didion’s “In Bed” essay and it honestly didn’t interest me. I’ve never experienced that type of pain so it was hard for me to identify with the writer, her conflict didn’t matter to me. But like Phillip Lopate said, “…humans are conflicted animals, so there is no shortage of tensions that won’t go away.” There are different kinds of conflict, because conflict is constantly evolving. Sometimes writers can use all the imagery available to them, attempting to get in touch with the reader’s seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching but if the key conflict is not intense enough the essay will drift into a type of static mode. When you have dynamism and a problem that is not only difficult to solve but interesting to the reader, you can really take your audience for a ride.
ReplyDeleteSarah Sanchez
I really liked how Dinty Moore closely analyzed Rebecca Solnit’s article and pointed out how she was basically so immersed in her concerns for the environment, that she wasn’t even able to enjoy her trip. I agree at some level about how we as humans maybe do not take as good care of the environment as we should, and of course, it has a negative impact on the planet we live on but instead of worrying so much about it, we should try to enjoy it. We should learn what it’s like in order to appreciate it. I also agree with “Bearded Doctor Dave” on how eventually, because of the dis-balance, “…nature cleans itself.” (p.130) I also relate with Moore in the sense that we shouldn’t feel guilty about existing and living on this planet. Like he said, “…I object to the implication that we somehow don’t belong, that our every step is unnatural and unwelcome.” (p.131) I also agreed with what he discussed in “Of Conflict” about how Kate, being “…conflicted, confused, and entirely surprised by her own reaction.” (p.100) about her not really feeling sad about her grandfather’s death is a good place to start writing. This is something that would definitely keep a reader engaged because one wants to know, why? Why doesn’t she feel as devastated about the death of her grandfather in comparison to her pet? In addition, another quote in the reading that I really liked and thought as true was “…hatred must be hidden in polite society, but it remains inside of us all the same…” (p.105) We all hate something whether we admit to it or not. We don’t say it because we are either trying to spare someone’s feelings or because we don’t want to give someone the idea that we are bad people for hating something. Because hate is seen as bad. Hate is an ugly word.
ReplyDeleteMonica Casanova