The Deer at Providencia

The Deer at Providencia (1982) is an essay by Annie Dillard. In this essay, she purposes that throughout our lives there is just time where we will not be able to imagine the suffering that other people go through. Dillard supports this by conversations with fellow peers, after they all witnessed an emotional event. I feel the author’s purpose was to inform the reader of her feelings and experiences, without being biased towards one side or the other, though saying this, Dillard makes a very emotional concern with the audience due to the sensitive subject matter.

            Reading this essay I automatically put myself in Dillard’s shoes. If I myself were to witness the event she went through, the struggling of a captured and injured deer, just waiting for its own death, then I too would have the same reaction. Dillard could have done something, but stood in unemotional silence. So as I thought about it, I felt I would do the same, as in reality, what is there you can really do for a deer captured by a tribe about to eat it? They are not going to just let it go. Dillard the goes on to speak about burns victims, and how because of their intense suffering many go on to commit suicide. This culminates in the story of Alan MacDonald, who was badly burned at 13 and again in later life. Dillard links the stories of the two, almost comparing the struggles of the captured deer to the non-ending saga of Alan MacDonald’s life, how they are both suffering indefinitely.

            I enjoyed reading this essay, I like the way it was written and how it linked two very different situations together through a single common theme, how different things suffer. The last impression it has left on me is that I will refrain from using the phrase “I know how you feel”, unless it really is applicable.

Rhys Jukes

Wife's RULE

In Judy Brady’s personal essay, “Why I want a Wife”, (1972) She informs the readers’ what the role of a wife is for her family.  She shows us how by liberating and giving real life reason on how exactly a wife provides for her family by specific household and personal duties. This essay was to show how a wife carries the most important position in order to release the reasoning why many families want and need one. I believe Brady’s was writing this essay to the general public and also mostly directed to men’ in the world today that depends on a woman/wife on household and personal duties.

Overall I felt like Judy Brady opened many wives’ eyes by writing this. It let women all over the world know that they could go back to school and establish their dreams while given support at home from their spouse.  It gave an image of a wife with the description of all what she is required to do. I for one took this essay as a motivation, that lets female, wives; women know that they are appreciated. It also open my eyes that men to can carry on a position that wives do. In the end men wouldn't be able to survive with all the wives responsibility and duties; that's why I believe WIFES' RULE. 

            By: Marlene B.

The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society

The Human Cost of an Illiterate Society by Jonathan Kozol points out the hardships that people go through on a daily basis because they are functionally illiterate. I feel the essay had a very specific purpose, to inform people would not know about illiteracy, a subject Kozol obvious feels is strongly affecting society. With this in mind, the audience is a general one, applying to anyone. The style is formal, and it is arranged in a typical essay format, with a solid introduction, with points in the introduction expanded in the main, and then concluded with thoughts expanded from the main.

Kozol defines illiteracy through quotes from the people who are illiterate; using examples to support his claim that illiteracy not only affects the individual, but the country as a whole. “If even one-third of all illiterates could vote, and read enough and do sufficient math to vote in their self-interest, Ronald Reagan would not likely have been chosen president” (93), is a good example that Kozol gives to show how these illiterate people affect the whole nation. Kozol then goes on lay blame on the United States government, stating, “This is the nation that we live in. This is a society that most of us did not create but which our President and the other leaders have been willing to sustain by virtue of malign neglect” (95).

From a personal perspective, I enjoyed reading this paper. I gives an insight into illiteracy that many literate people wont ever see, with a lot of good points in regards to the United States government, as it is true what Kozol is saying, that the fact that over 60 million people are illiterate. To put that in perspective, that is the same population as Great Britain, a whole country of illiterate people.