Read “All Writing Is Autobiography” by Donald Murray. Write a response to the questions below by commenting on this post.
- What did you think of this text? Explain!
- What is it mostly about? Write a 2-4 sentence summary. Be specific. Refer to the text itself. Use quotes even!
- What is the genre of the text? What is the tone?
- According to Murray, what makes writing autobiographical? Is all writing autobiographical? Explain.
- Did the author successfully convince you to change your mind or think in a particular way? How? What did you find particularly effective? Or, if he did not change your mind, why not? What could the author have added to help persuade you more?
- Do you find that you incorporate autobiographical aspects into your writing? Explain.
In Class Assignment (Finish for HW if you have not completed in class!)
Reading and Writing QuestionnaireÂ
Reading and Writing Questionnaire
Module 2 - Week 2 Monday - In Class Assignment
1) I think this text is very powerful. Each experience, moment and story being told holds so much value and deeper meanings to each. This text is so personal to the writer because he talks about his life and what led him to write the way he does.
2) This text is mostly about how Donald Murray views his perspective in writing an autobiography. He believes each individual has their own personal experiences and that is shown and affects your writing ways. Donald Murray writes the way he does because of his personal experiences and everything he’s been through. He believes in any type of writing piece either its a poem, fiction, or an essay it has some type of personal connection that is influenced by it. In the text he states, “Writing autobiography is my way of making meaning of the life I have led and am leading and may lead.” This means that our writing presents a. part of who we are and what we have been through.
3) I think the genre of this text is persuasive writing or academic writing. I say these two options because, Donald Murray is trying to persuade the audience to believe that all writings are autobiography by providing examples and different points on why he thinks that. He also provides his personal knowledge in writing in the text and uses formal language which can also prove that this is an academic writing genre. The tone of this text is very informative, straight forward and formal.
4) According to Murray, what makes a writing an autobiography is how the writer puts in their personal experiences and voice into their writing piece. The format of the writing and the style depends on how the writer connects to the words they are putting in. He believes the writers perspective, language, life experiences and way of communication is what makes a writing an autobiography. I personally agree with Murray that in some way all writings are autobiography because any type of writing has a deeper meaning to it that is hidden by the writer and the writer has some type of connection with the hidden message which is why they leave it to the audience to unwrap the meaningful message.
5) The author definitely made me see writings in a new perspective, I always thought that every writing piece falls in different category’s and not every writing piece is the same. After reading this text, I have understood that deep down the writer doesn’t just write anything, in some way or form it holds some value or power in their life.
6) I feel like I don’t really include autobiography in my writings because I felt like I didn’t know what I can include or how I can connect my life experiences to the topic I am writing about, but after reading this text and understood Murray’s point of view o writing, I hav realized that imagination. I’ve learned your personal life experiences hold much value than we think they do and including that to a writing piece only makes your writing stronger and builds a connection between the readers and yourself.
Dear Tehmina,
Good job! I love how you include quotes and support your thinking with examples. I also really liked your summary of the text.I would love to hear more about what Murray believes makes our writing autobiographical– how does Murray see all writing as autobiographical and then explain why you disagree.
Good job!
Warmly,
RC
What did you think of this text? Explain!
I think this text is mainly based off of how the author perceives writing, he believes that all writing Is autobiographical but others opinion about that may vary.
What is it mostly about? Write a 2-4 sentence summary. Be specific. Refer to the text itself. Use quotes even!
In the Story “All Writing Is Autobiographical” By Donald Murray the Author believes that the memories and experiences that you have in this world influences you’re writing no matter what you are writing. Most of the writings thats he presented to the audience in this story include memories of his own even if the genre differs. The text quotes” My history of smell: bicycle oil, leather catcher’s mitt, the sweet sickening perfume of soldiers”. This quote is saying that memories don’t only consist of people it can definitely consist of smells which can trigger a certain feeling or nostalgia.
What is the genre of the text? What is the tone?
The genre of this text is a Personal Essay I say this because the author is sharing why overtime he started to realize that every wiring is autobiographical and uses his own life and experiences to convey that message. The tone of this would be informal because the author is trying to prove a point and share ideas.
According to Murray, what makes writing autobiographical? Is all writing autobiographical? Explain.
In the Story “All Writing Is Autobiographical” By Donald Murray the Author believes that the memories and experiences that you have in this world influences you’re writing no matter what you are writing. When the author states “Those of us who write have only a few topics. My poems, the novel I’m writing, and some of my newspaper columns keep returning to my family and my childhood, where I seek understanding and hope for a compassion that has not yet arrived.” he tells us that even when writing different genres they all tend to reconnect back to past childhood experiences and memories with family which I why he believes that every writing piece is considered a autobiography. He says that your unique way of writing is what makes it autobiographical, whether you came from a background of creativity within your childhood so most of your pieces tend to be more creative instead of informal or whether you came from a childhood experience of love in your household so in your writing the readers have a strong feeling of warmth connection. Not all people experience what you do so thats what makes your writing unique which is why its considered an autobiography, this is what the author is trying to convey in this story.
Did the author successfully convince you to change your mind or think in a particular way? How? What did you find particularly effective? Or, if he did not change your mind, why not? What could the author have added to help persuade you more? The author did make me think in a particular way because now that I think about it most of the stories or informational essays I have written are defientley unique to my writing style and my perception which also ties into my identity as a person which can consist of beliefs. memories, style and etc. I feel as if it all connects with who you are and what you have experienced. When he introduced his stories and poems to me I noticed in everyone of those pieces he had a memory of his own or of someone else.
Do you find that you incorporate autobiographical aspects into your writing? Explain. Yes I incorporate autobiographical aspects in my writing because whenever I write a personal story I include memories and feelings of my own in order to make the story more unique to me.
Dear Travion,
Excellent job! I really liked your summary of the piece and how you used quotes to support your thinking. I like how you focus on how taste a can spur memories. I also like how you discuss / take a close look at how your writing is in part autobiographical. Please make sure to really explain everything and provide text evidence to support your thinking.
Excellent job!
Warmly,
RC
1- The text was enjoyable to read. I admire the way the author would use words in his published writings to form an image and theme.
2- The text “All Writing is Biography” is mainly about Donald Murphy showing his published writing pieces that reflect back to his past. Page 67 states “The
childhood memories were real once I remembered them by writing. I realized
I was mirrored by daughters when the line arrived on the page. My other
daughter would have been 32 on the day the poem was written.” Donald used writing as a way to remember his childhood years. He used writing as a way to see how time passes from when his daughters were born to them now being in there 30’s. When he writes, he writes down what goes through his mind and this was his way of escaping reality. When Donald wrote he would include different theme’s in his writings such as illness, religion, death and war. “still remember my first dead German soldier and my shock as I read that his belt buckle proclaimed God was on his side. My pages reveal my obsession with war.” This quote shows how he mixed this line with the death of his solder connecting it to God.
3- I say the genre of the text is narrative. Narrative is a written piece in an order of events and experience’s. Throughout the article Donald Murphy informs us about his past and what he’s gone through by the art of poems. The tone I feel he writes in is informal. I feel his tone being informal because he’s telling us how he believes all writing pieces are autobiographical.
4- According to Donald Murray he says autobiographical writing is your voice and thinking style. Page 67 states “saying, “Your thinking style, your voice.” Of course. We are autobiographical in the way we write; my autobiography exists in the examples of writing I use in this piece and in the text I weave around them.” This quote states how Donald believes the way we write and tone we write in is autobiographical. He says this because according to his previous writing pieces his voice is what makes the product if his successful articles and poems. I understand what Donald Murray tries to say about how our voice is the main key in writing but at the end it depends if I’m writing about myself or not. I don’t think all writing pieces are autobiography because it’s about whether you write about yourself or not.
5 – After reading the article “All Writing is Autobiography” has changed my mind and will definitely be shown in my future writing assignments. Donald Murray touched on great point when we write. He stated that when we write it’s all about how we put words together to be different from another persons writing style. When we write he says we should write in a way that we are talking physically to the reader. Communication is important. I wish Donald Murray would have added more writing pieces that weren’t poems so I could take note of his format and how we would write.
6- When I write, I do see how I add autobiographical aspects. If I write about an article or story I always define the characters that are present throughout. When I write I make sure to give a thorough summary in timeline order.
Dear Abdul,
Great job. I love the quotes you chose to support your thinking. I also really like how you explain your position. I would love to talk more about the genre.
Great job!
Warmly,
RC
– I liked that this text had an idea that normally would have gotten some immediate reactions and something most probably would not have thought about. It a simple idea to get behind and when explained it makes more sense but is often overlooked. Its one of the topics that you know inherently but need some one to point it out for it to click in your head.
– Donald Murry the author believes that all writing is an autobiography of the one who wrote it. He believes that all past experience from the first two decades of life affects the way someone writes. “For writers it always said that the first 20 years of life contain the whole experience.” His writing is based to some extent to his own life and he choices to add more details like in the boy ice skating or leave out them when telling of his dying brother in law.
– The text is a Personal Essay as the author talks about his personal opinions and why he thinks the way he does. The tone would be persuasive as he tried to explain why he thinks what he does and in turn sounding convincing.
– Murry thinks that all writing is autobiographical and that the experience through life shape the way people write. The memories and past experiences all come together to form subconsciously the way we do certain things and that includes writing.
– The author did open my eyes into seeing that and know I manly agree with him. The past experiences and memories I carry have influenced what I am now and how I write. What clicked for me was ” He now only sees himself but begins to make himself or remake himself.” Personal essays I could understand right way but when I read that line I realized that authors have based characters of themselves or tried tinkering with other traits.
– I have written some fiction manly and have remade myself or others without fully realizing. Traits that would have been the good of mine and then add in opposites to make something different and go exploring with the idea.
Dear Geraldo,
Great job. I really like the quotes you use to support your thinking and how you looked closely at your writing experience to notice how its often autobiographical. I would love to see you add even more explanation at times, to support your argument / position.
Great job!
Warmly,
RC
1. i thought that this text was a real eye opener for most writers who have read it. it brings a new way of thinking to people who may not have realized that with whatever they may write could in someway it can circle back to them whether in experience, a certain custom or desire.
2. i believe that the text was mostly about Murray sharing how his experiences changed and influenced how he wrote and also how he was able to use his writing as a way to coop with the world around him and how he handled things. that people when writing are doing it as an autobiography, because influences in their life such as past events or certain memories, or their views on certain topics of life could be seen in their pieces. a quote from the text “i have my own peculiar way of looking at the world and my own way of using language to communicate what is see”, the shows we can bring our own beliefs in while writing or using language in certain way that makes sense to us when we are writing.
3. the genre of this text would be a personal essay, in how he brought in his idea, his belief that all writing is autobiography and relates his real life experiences back to points he made. example the he explains how in the poem black ice certain events were influenced by events in his life like visiting the fish shop and gaining interests in certain fish saw. the tone of the it would be informal because this piece was the author sharing his experiences and beliefs not really trying to hold a formal style, wasnt trying bring outside data into this piece.
4. Murray thinks all writing is autobiographical simply because people influence ttheir writing one way or another by relating the piece back to them. certain experiences a person may have had can influence his words on a poem or story that the memory can or could tie to. Or when writing the structure of sentences or wording could be influenced by the authors own use of language like the way characters were intend speak vs how they actually sound in the poems or stories can be influenced by the authors use of grammar. All writing in a sense can be autobiographical. because people can see the beliefs or values an author has based on their writing or story telling, all writings in a way could tie back to the author in different ways that we may not even pick up on. an author can relate certain passages or pages of works back certain life experiences they had without even realizing that it was written that way.
5. Murray did make me think a different way about how autobiographical writing, poem writing, song writing and etc helps builds a person character. i started to think this way after seeing a quote from another in the text, “Working at sentences and rhythms is probably the most satisfying thing I do as a writer. I think after a while a writer can begin to know himself through his language. He sees someone or something reflected back at him from these constructions.” Tom LeClair and Larry McCaffery, this quote made we think if autobiographical writing can really change and build a persons character, it was an interesting question to ask myself
6.yes, when i am writing about a certain topic i often times think about my experiences and see if i can relate anything back to the topic
Dear Shariffe,
Excellent job! I really like your thoughtful response to this piece. I particularly like your summary and use of the quote to support your thinking. I also like how the piece make you think about your own writing and the experiences that influenced it.
Excellent job!
Warmly,
RC
– What did you think of this text? Explain!
This text is really powerful for both the author and readers because it explains everything the author has experienced and made him the person he is today and why he writes the way he writes. But it will also impact the reader because it is something that you’re not expecting, and is different from any other autobiography because it is about his life and his personal experiences being written in words. Each story has so much meaning and feelings behind it that you really have to read it carefully in order to understand and visualize what it means to the author.
– What is it mostly about? Write a 2-4 sentence summary. Be specific. Refer to the text itself. Use quotes even!
In this text by Donald Murray, he explains or tells us a little about how in each writing he has some of his personal experiences, memories, beliefs and even experiences of other people to give life to the characters of his writings. For example when he says “We become what we write. That is one of the great magics of writing” on page 71. In this sentence he’s referring to whether writers can mold themselves to use their own past experiences or create a fictional part that will make the character more interesting. it’s all about the imagination that the writer has. For this reason, he believes that in all writing there is some kind of autobiography in it because their are past and present memories within the writing, but it also has a bit of fictional, because he will create a more interesting scenario that will go with the theme and the memories to make the writing more interesting and unique. This also mean that in every story, poem, essay he writes will be personal to him because their are memories within those writing.
– What is the genre of the text? What is the tone?
The genre of this text is a personal essay because the author is referring to his personal life and is explaining a bit of how his life has impacted the way he express in his writings. The tone of this text is informal because his explaining that each of his writhing is and autobiography, because they contains memories, experiences within it.
-According to Murray, what makes writing autobiographical? Is all writing autobiographical? Explain.
According to Murray, what makes a writing an autobiography is the way author will be connected to their writing because they added a piece of their personal experiences to their writing. Most stories can be autobiographical because most author will include a piece of something that has happen to them either if it happen in their childhood or it happen in the morning but their will always be a piece of memory within the writhing. That will differentiate the authors from each other and make their writhing unique in it’s own way.
– Did the author successfully convince you to change your mind or think in a particular way? How? What did you find particularly effective? Or, if he did not change your mind, why not? What could the author have added to help persuade you more?
Murray has changed my mindset in some way because it encourages me to add more of my experiences in my writing because those memories are what define me today. So that my writings are more innovative and different from the others, in that way each writhing will have a value to me and not just write something because you have to do it, but instead write something that has a great meaning to you and will reflect it.
-Do you find that you incorporate autobiographical aspects into your writing? Explain.
I do find that I incorporate autobiographical aspects in my writing because whenever I write a personal essay or just create a character for an essay I will include some of my memories and personal experience into those writings to make the writing more interesting and valuable to me and it adds some uniqueness to it.
Dear Raveena,
Excellent job! I love your thoughtful response to this piece. I really like your summary and how you connect what you learned about this piece to your own writing. I would love for you to include evidence from the text (examples / quotes) to support your thinking.
Warmly,
RC
1) I say this text opens up possibilities that are unheard of or were missed by a lot of us as writers. It shows a different perspective from a writer on how many text written by them can in a way be autobiographical when in the literal form, it is an entire different genre.
2) This text shows a point of view from the author and throughout the years of writing, many of his writing incorporates writing styles, plots, and details in a way that was written through his experience but in the literal sense, isn’t an actual autobiography. The author defines this through this quote, “…my autobiography exists in the examples of writing I use in this piece and in the text I weave around them. I have my own peculiar way of looking at the world and my own way of using language to communicate what I see.” It summarizes what I think this text is about: an autobiography is present in an article or a writing piece that is otherwise not considered an autobiography by default.
3) This writing piece falls under a personal essay since it explores the style and toning of writing using wordings and experience to interpret the presence of an autobiographical piece. The tone is rather informational since it clearly expresses the informational “voice” of the author as they describe their writings.
4) According to Murray, what makes a writing autobiographical is if the basis of writing stems from the writer’s experience during their early years in their life, as stated exactly through this quote, “…our autobiography grows from a few deep taproots that are set down in our past in childhood.” This quote also explains the notion that all writing is autobiographical in a way if the basis of the writing, again, stems from the writer’s experience.
5 and 6) I wouldn’t say the writing convinced me to change my way of writing in a way the concept of autobiographies in many part of writings is already there to begin with when I start writing a certain text or novel, so really the writing only opens up something that was overlooked while I write my piece as explained in my thoughts of question 1.
Dear Rudrajit,
Excellent job! I love your thoughtful responses to the questions and the quote you chose to support your thinking. I would love for you to use evidence (quotes / examples) even more!
Excellent job!
Warmly,
RC
What did you think of this text?
I thought it was very moving and enlightening. Murray made really good points and defended them well.
What is it mostly about? Write a 2-4 sentence summary. Be specific. Refer to the text itself. Use quotes even!
It is mostly about writing being autobiographical no matter the genre. He illustrates how specific themes that are recurring in your early life come out in your writing.
What is the genre of the text? What is the tone?
The genre of the text is a personal essay. The tone is academic, informational and autobiographical.
According to Murray, what makes writing autobiographical? Is all writing autobiographical? Explain.
All writing is autobiographical because it is all derived from your personal life experiences and each individual has his or her unique style.
Did the author successfully convince you to change your mind or think in a particular way? How? What did you find particularly effective? Or, if he did not change your mind, why not? What could the author have added to help persuade you more?
He successfully convinced me because he used numerous examples and cited other sources such as Willa Cather, a famous author.
Do you find that you incorporate autobiographical aspects into your writing? Explain
I do incorporate autobiographical aspects in my writing because even in essays I decide what the theme is based on the text along with my own knowledge, and I can sometimes use examples that are specific to my life and my experiences.
Dear Xenia,
Great job! I love your response to how you incorporate autobiographical aspects into your writing. I also like your description of the genre / tone. I would love for you to add quotes / examples from the text to support your thinking!
Great job!
Warmly,
RC
In my opinion this text is trying to tell us that he thinks all writing is autobiography. He showed many examples of this in the text.He is a writer and educator with an obsession for writing and a concern with the teaching of writing shows how all writing in different ways is autobiographical and that they are brought about to him from the memories of his past.One example of it “Those of us who write have only a few topics. My poems, the novel I’m writing, and some of my newspaper columns keep returning to my family and my childhood, where I seek understanding and hope for a compassion that has not yet arrived”. I believe the genre of the text is an opinion paper because he is stating his opinion.I believe that he said the way an individual makes meaning out of his or her past, present, and future life is what makes it autobiographical .
He didn’t make me change my mind but he gave a good explanation why. He didn’t change my mind because not all writing is like that. I think incorporating autobiography aspects can help my writing because it will give me a better connection to the reader.
Dear Christopher,
Great job ! I like how you use quotes and examples to support your thinking in the summary. I also like your discussion of genre and tone. I would love an example of what writing you see and not being autobiographical–to support your argument.
Great job!
Warmly,
RC
1) I think the text is about his experiences and his opinions about writing. Donald Murray tells the readers all about autobiography based on his experiences and what shaped him into believing that all writing is autobiography.
2) It is mostly about his experiences and opinions on autobiography. He shares really good points on why he believes that all writing is autobiography such as when he talks about language and how someone’s language in writing makes it an autobiography because you’re putting part of yourself and the way you talk and connect with others into your writing making it mean more about yourself. For example Donald Murray states in the text, “I have my own peculiar way of looking at the world and my own way of using language to communicate what I see.” This means how he sees language as something we communicate with in personal matter, language has deeper meaning to how we are shaped in our writing.
3)The genre of the text is Academic writing because in the text he shares many of his experiences in writing of what shaped him for his opinions and he shares his life of writing with the audience. The tone of the text is Formal because it is very thorough and direct.
4)Donald Murray thinks all writing is autobiography because he talks about how the way we think shapes our writing as well as language and our past experiences. All writing is autobiography because you’re putting part of you and the way you write in your writing which is why I agree with Donald Murray. He states in the text “That is the terrible, wonderful power of reading: the texts we create in our minds while we read- or just after we read-become part of life we believed we lived.” This shows how our writing is based on what we create in our minds making it part of you which is why all writing would be autobiography.
5)The author did change my perspective that all writing would be autobiography because after reading the text I noticed how every writing we create we are creating it by our minds and the way we think and speak it is part of us and our experiences and opinions. I found it the most effective when he talked about language because it is true language is part of us, it is how we communicate and connect with others.
6)Yes because whenever i’m writing an essay or argumentative essays i always see it from my opinion first and based on my experiences.
Dear Saida,
Excellent! This is a great response to the reading. I am glad that it made you rethink / deeply think about autobiographies. I really like how you use quotes and examples to support your thinking.
Excellent job!
Warmly,
RC
I think that his thinking is interesting in the way that he talks about autobiographical work but this text is long.This is mostly about how you are a part of everything you write. You are in everything you write so all the work you write is autobiographical. This text is a personal essay and the tone is informal because he’s explaining his writing and how they contain his experiences in them.According to Murray all writing is autobiographical because it all contains you in a way even if it doesn’t have your experiences included in them. As he says, it’s the way that you yourself write the makes it autobiographical. The author did convince my to change my mind because I never thought of writing in that way because it always felt when I was writing an essay like just school work but not mine in anyway but after reading this I know all of my work has a part of me and is mine.
I think I do incorporate autobiographical aspects into your writing because I include my own experiences.
Dear Darleny,
Excellent job! I really like your summary of the main idea and how you explain his thinking. I also really like how you look at your own writing and make connections to the piece. I would love to see you use evidence from the text (examples, quotes).
Excellent job!
Warmly,
RC
I feel like this passage stated many important facts and it was helpful to read. Donald Murray explains that one’s experiences can determine how unique their autobiography can be. I found this interesting because not everyone will have the same experiences and learn the same way. Here they can express what they have learned in their way so that the reader can get a feel and step into their shoes.
This is mostly about getting a feel of how someone is and how that one experience in their life made them the way they are. That one experience made them see things in a way that they didn’t imagine. Here he shared something personal to him and wanted the readers to get a feel of how that shaped his life.
The genre of this passage would be a personal essay since Donal Murray is explaining his personal experience.
Donald Murray says that in order for a reading piece to be autobiographical it has to have an experience that shaped who the person is today. It can also include how that made them have a different perception of the world.
I agree with what Donald Murray has said throughout the passage. It makes sense that the writer wants the reader to get a feel of how that story changed their life and how they grew and came to be.
1. I think this text is very tells what he went through and will help me have an idea how to write an autobiography because his autobiography was very strong.
2. It’s basically on what he went through and the language his writes in. The different types of writing styles or the different type of language he speaks in. He tells us how or gives us types to write an autobiography.
3. The genre is academic writing because he is telling us information and what he had to go through to write his autobiography and explains to us what he had to do. The tone is teaching us or formal and has information on how to write one and gives us tips.
4. According to Murray, what makes writing autobiographical is putting what you went through and I guess your way of writing. I agree with him saying all writings are autobiography because we usually write about people and write your experience and your opinion about it which makes its autobiography.
5. The author changed the way I think about it by saying put your experience in it I usually didn’t think about it that way but that really opened my eyes about autobiography. I was scared about the way I write in and because of the text this is the way you write your autobiography from your experience and you way of writing abut yourself. Like I said the author helped me to be more confutable about writing about me and from my experiences.
6. I don’t like the idea of autobiography in my writings because it takes time for me to think about my experiences and if I would write about it or not.