Journal 4

This semester, I have gained many skills in my writing. I have learned how to take a close reading and relate it to the "bigger picture" of the novel/literary work, like we did in Inquiry 1. This was the first time I've had to tie a close reading back to a central theme in a formal paper. This skill will definitely come in use in my future, especially in my writing, because it is important to have textual support to prove the analysis. Another important skill I feel I have improved this semester is being able to focus in on a single theme of a literary work, specifically, Fight Club, in Inquiry 2B. This is an extremely complex novel, especially because of its random events and numerous themes. It was difficult for me at first to choose a single theme because of the many overlapping aspects in the novel and because I was unsure what was actually happening at certain points in the novel.

However, I have much to improve on for the remaining weeks. I feel as if my writing is unclear at times and I want to improve my clarity. Also, I want to work on the organization of my papers because the way a paper is organized greatly affects the quality of the paper, and I usually don't know what way will be most efficient in getting my ideas across to the reader.