I just read this article by Steve Salerno, and I have to say, I found the whole thing pretty terrifying. The thing about me is that anything involving "the future" or "the real world" or "a career" will pretty much send me spiraling into panic. Or it'll make me throw up. So I normally deal with these anxiety-producing-but-necessary topics by a) taking a nap and b) continuing to nap after pressing snooze on my alarm. Unfortunately, Salerno's essay forced me to actually confront the little academic bubble I am in and made me question what I'll do when that bubble pops.
The section that scared me the most was probably section number ten: "We don't call it a thesis statement." With the rest of the piece, everything made sense. I either figured the information out for myself, or it fit neatly with what I knew already anyway. But what he said in that that last section—"If you just emerged from a college writing curriculum, you probably haven't a clue as to what I just said." Oh my goodness. I really don't have any idea what he just said. I read it over a few times and I can figure some stuff out, but it really made me realize that I have no idea about any real-world applications of what I'm doing. I've only got a few creative writing courses and a good GPA and no real world experience and no published works and—oh, there's the panic. Can't take a nap now. Well, Salerno's probably right. I better learn what I'm talking about.
The section that scared me the most was probably section number ten: "We don't call it a thesis statement." With the rest of the piece, everything made sense. I either figured the information out for myself, or it fit neatly with what I knew already anyway. But what he said in that that last section—"If you just emerged from a college writing curriculum, you probably haven't a clue as to what I just said." Oh my goodness. I really don't have any idea what he just said. I read it over a few times and I can figure some stuff out, but it really made me realize that I have no idea about any real-world applications of what I'm doing. I've only got a few creative writing courses and a good GPA and no real world experience and no published works and—oh, there's the panic. Can't take a nap now. Well, Salerno's probably right. I better learn what I'm talking about.