LITR 4231 Early American Literature 2012 Student Midterm Samples 3. Web Highlights: Review at least 3 posts from course website's Model Assignments (4-6 paragraphs)

Diego A. Gutierrez

March 8, 2012

In their own Words

          Looking around the course site and reviewing several of the previous students’ submissions I was pulled in by three particular pieces of writing. In the search for three different postings that would interest me I bumped into Nicole Bippen’s (2010) research post, Gaps in Creation: The Search for Truth, Jessica Gaul’s (2010) midterm paper, Hooked by Creation and Utopias, and Bethany Ellis’ (2010) midterm paper, Our Origin Stories Matter. The three being well put together and with a vast amount of information, helped me understand the topics of creation and origin with more clarity. Even though the topic was discussed in class, these postings did their job in communication the message and helping the reader, me, understand this part of American literature.

             In Bippen’s (2010) research post, she embarks on a journey to answer a question posed by her professor. “Admittedly, it was Dr. Day who posed the question and laid out the first evidence. He told us "that almost every religion struggles with creationism; even Christianity,” wrote Nicole. Personally this was my favorite part of her composition. She takes on the task to find out why is it that creationism is a struggle for everyone. Nicole taught me that learning does not stop in the classroom; learning continues on your own. The only way to grow in our learning is if we extend the search for answers beyond the lectures our professors give us. Her essay was full of information, which allowed me to understand that the origin or creationism discussions never end. This topic will be in the mouths of many for years to come. The only way one can finally conclude the idea of how humans got here and where did God come from is perfectly explained by her, “it relies on faith.”

          Secondly, Jessica Gaul’s (2010), Hooked by Creation and Utopias, did a wonderful job in explaining the idea of creation and origin just as Bippen’s paper did. This midterm paper caught my eye because this will be the main focus of my research post later on during the semester. From Jessica’s analysis of the three pieces of literature on creation, I was able to see a clear picture of the topic. Her word usage and examples paint the perfect picture for the reader. “In Genesis, before sin, the world was perfect. This perfect world is a concept we have been studying in American Literature known as a utopia; utopias are perfect worlds,” wrote Jessica (2010); this is the perfect way to explain what a utopia is. Gaul’s examples are clear and to the point.

          Lastly, after going through several other postings in the course site, I bumped into Bethany Ellis’ midterm paper. In Bethany’s writing piece, Our Origin Stories Matter, I was pulled in by her personal touch at the beginning of the essay. I really liked how she gave a personal experience about the origin of America while she was in grade school. This helped bring back memories of how I learned the stories of how our country started. She made the reading easy and entertaining. She gave plenty of information in her essay, but never lost me as the reader. While reading her post, I also realized that just like her, I “always thought that the forefathers separated church and state out of political correctness,”(Ellis, 2010), but after reading her essay I realized that it was to keep unity.

          After reading the previous students’ posts, I have realized that there is always more to learn. We cannot learn just in the classroom, but from each other as well. After reading the three essays, I gained a substantial amount of information that I know will later benefit me in future classes. I was able to learn things that even though we hear about them in the classroom we don’t fully understand them until a peer explains it to us in their own words.            

Works Cited

Bippen, N. “Gaps in Creation: The Search for Truth.” 2010. LITR 4231 Early American Literature. Document. 8 March 2012.

Ellis, B. “Our Origin Stories Matter.” 2010. LITR 4231 Early American Literature. Document. 8 March 2012.

Gaul, J. “Hooked by Creation and Utopias.” 2010. LITR 4231 Early American Literature. Document. 8 March 2012.