Week 1 Calling Home, American Childhood, Being a Real Westerner

Calling Home: I really liked this story. It kept me interested throughout its entirety. It is a well told story because it has a good beginning and middle. The end is not so great because it does not explain the significance of the memory. It only ends off with the idea that she learned her lesson and her parents did not punish her for what she did. In the short story is there good usage of dialogue, it is not a lot but it is sufficient for the comprehension of the story. Brandt does a good job of using vivid presentation especially when she describes the Christmas shopping. She describes the people in the store looking for presents and them chattering and the laughter.

American Childhood: This story had a good beginning. It started off as a story about football and how she use to play with the other boys on her street. But as we read on, we found out it was about her and her football buddies throwing snowballs at passing cars and finally getting caught and being chased down by a man in the car. there is good description of the snow and how she felt while she was being chased. There is not much dialogue but it does not seem necessary to the story. The significance of the story is briefly mentioned.

On Being a Real Westerner: This story is not as clear as the other two. In the middle of the story Wolff explains his experience of being in Vietnam and then goes back to explaining his childhood story about handling a gun. It is not very cohesive throughout. But it does have vivid presentation and enough dialogue. The significance is also not stated very clearly. It just ends with the idea that he was trying to find his true identity. He talks about how he was nervous to go back to his apartment because he did not want to think about the squirrel he shot and killed.

In my own remembrance essay I tried to incorporate some of the things these writers used. I wanted to give a clear description of what I felt when I was leaving the country and coming to a brand new place. I wanted to express the emotions of not only myself but my friends and family. I also wanted to use enough dialogue which would help the reader understand what I felt. Lastly, I wanted to include the significance of my memory.