Michael Zhu June 9, 2007
Cover Letter
This is Michael’s Writing Portfolio. I am Michael, a sophomore majoring in World Economics at Fudan University. In this semester, I enroll in the course “Advanced Writing Class” taught by Ron Corio. We have an assignment of creating a writing portfolio as a blog on the website which is comprised of our writing articles during the course. With great pleasure, I will briefly introduce each part of my writing portfolio to you.
The first part is my essay portfolio which includes three drafts of the same essay I have wrote. You can see how I got started on this assignment and can trace the various stages of thinking and writing and rewriting I went through to produce my final essay. To me, this is a totally new method I have ever used to write an English article. But during this process I find it both interesting and rewarding.
When I initiated conceiving the first draft, I choosed to write about my favourite story in the book—The Necklace, written by Guy de Maupassant. I focused on the relationship between the necklace and the heroine’s character and fate. My thesis is that the necklace causes the heroine’s hard life but it contibutes to build up her own dignity. Then Ron asked us to form a study group of 2~3 students to do some peer review works. We read essays of other students in each group and gave each other advises. My partner told me that I should arrange my essay in a clear order and try to dig up a deeper meaning of the symbolism of the necklace. So in the second draft, I rearranged my essay by using some guiding sentences in the paragraphs. I also elevated the sgnificance of the heroine’s dignity up to the potential merits of the whole lower-class people. At last, Ron gave me some revising comments in words, quotations and paraphrasing. With a further revision by myself, I eventually produced the final draft of my essay.
The second part is the “Final Time-writing”, which is written about a given topic in a limited 45 minutes during our class. We have this practice for three times this semester and I believe it to be a precious opportunity to proof-test our writing skills.
The final part is a reading log about a story I have read, “The Americanization of Shadrach Cohen”. We have wrote four reading logs in all and I choose this one because it best represents my feelings about the story.
In the end, I want to thank my teacher, Ron Corio, who has spared great patience and a lot of time and energy to give us instructive comments in our process of writing and learning. I also appreciate my peer classmates very much because they have offered valuable suggestions to me and help me complete my final essay. I am sure I have gained a lot from this course and I will continue to practise writing industriously so as to achieve a greater improvement.
Michael Zhu June 1, 2007 The Necklace and Dignity
The Necklace, written by Guy de Maupassant, tells a story of a clerk’s wife, Mathilde, who loves vanity and pomp. She borrowed a diamoand necklace from her rich friend in order to show off on a ball. Unfortunately she lost the necklace on her way home, and had no choice but to take up ruinous obligations to buy a new one. She and her husband spent ten years to pay off all the debts, but eventually were astonished by the fact that the original necklace was a fake.
The ending was a surprise and evoked compassion for Mathilde. However, after pondering through the story for several times, I have a deeper understanding of it. I admire the heroine’s uprightness and candidness about life. In my opinion, Mathilde is peacocky but not false, in lack of fortune but not in lack of dignity.
On the one hand, Matilde is a woman in pursuit of vanity. At the beginning the author presents us with the psychological discription of Mathilde: She is unsatified with her current life and she wants to live as a noblewoman; She feels herself “born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries”(38). Mathilde is peacocky for sure, and that may contribute to her latter harsh life. But in my eyes, the psychology precisely proves her candidness. Living in a society overwhelmed by bourgeois mercenaries and aristocratic snobbery, no one would escape from the idea of leading a noblest life. Born with beauty and elegance, Mathilde should by no means be blamed for her desire for fancy clothes and jewelries. Because it is the human nature to be in sought of a better-off life. We should understand such behavior of her which precisely reflects her true mind and thoughts.
On the other hand, Mathilde is an upright woman who can maintain her dignity through hardships. When the calamity of losing the necklace happened, she did not flee away or cheat on her friend. However, she faced up to it by undertaking the heavy burden caused only by an accident. “She washed dishes, using her rosy nails on the greasy pots and pans. She washed the dirty linen, the shirts, and the dishcloths which she dried upon a line……”(43) All the hard works deprived her of beauty and youth in the cruelty of realism.
Why didn’t she tell her friend about the truth and ask for forgiveness? I consider it the key point that shows her courage to shoulder responsibilities and adamancy to get through the hardships. She is willing to do all the heavy housework and odious cares of the kitchen. She lived in an impoverished life for ten years, which is not easy for ordinary people. The hardships of life not only changed her appearance, but also strengthened her mind. With “frowsy hair, skirt askew, and red hands”(43), she is even not recognized by her friend. But she is not a totally loser. She gains the dignity at the cost of her youth. At this moment, I could not help applauding for her.
To view the story as a whole, I think the necklace is a symbol which typifies the ecstasy about luxuries, the impractical mind of parvenu and the worship of splendor. Therefore the loss of the necklace actually stands for the loss of vanity. It serves as a trigger that awakes Mathilde's sense of responsibility, self-reliance and pragmatism. At the end of the story, when Mathilde met with her old friend, “she smiled with a joy which was proud and naive”(44). It was a feeling from the bottom of her heart which suggested Mathilde's pride of self-renascence. To some extent, I think Maupassant is conveying a deeper significance to us: Mathilde and her husband embody the dignity of the whole lower-class people living in French society whose potential virtues cannot be eclipsed by the foppish ethos of the aristocrat.
In conclusion, the loss of necklace and the ruinous debts bring Mathilde a harsh life which in turn inspire her potential virtues: the courage to shoulder responsibilities and the adamancy to get through all the hardships eventually win the dignity for herself. Mathilde is unfortunate for she lost an important necklace which brings her with the life of hardships; But she is also fortunate because she finds the true meaning of life and gain her dignity through her great endeavor.
Work CitedGuy de Maupassant. “The Necklace.” 1884. Rpt. in The International Story: An Anthology with Guidelines for Reading and writing about Fiction. Ruth Spack. New York: St. Martin’s, 1994. 38-44.
Michael Zhu May 18, 2007 Draft Two The Necklace and Dignity
The Necklace, written by Maupassant, tells a story of a clerk’s wife, Mathilde, who loves vanity and pomp. She borrowed a diamoand necklace from her rich friend in order to show off on a ball. Unfortunately she lost the necklace on her way home, and had no choice but to take up ruinous obligations to buy a new one. She and her husband spent ten years to pay off all the debts, but eventually shocked by the fact that the original necklace was a fake.
At first, I was amazed by the surprised ending and felt a sense of compassion for Mathilde’s poor experience. However, after pondering through the story for several times, I have a deeper understanding of it. I admire the heroine’s uprightness and candidness about life. In my opinion, Mathilde is peacocky but not false, in lack of fortune but not in lack of dignity.
On the one hand, Matilde is a woman in pursuit of vanity. At the beginning the author presents us with the psychological discription of Mathilde: She is unsatified with her current life and she wants to live as a noblewoman; She feels herself “born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries”. Mathilde is peacocky for sure, and that may contribute to her latter harsh life. But in my eyes, the psychology precisely proves her candidness. Living in a society overwhelmed by bourgeois mercenaries and aristocratic snobbery, no one would escape from the idea of leading a noblest life. Born with beauty and elegance, Mathilde should by no means be blamed for her desire for fancy clothes and jewelries. Because it is the human nature to be in sought of a better-off life. We should understand such behavior of her which precisely reflects her true mind and thoughts.
On the other hand, Mathilde is an upright woman who can maintain her dignity through hardships. When the calamity of losing the necklace happened, she did not flee away or cheat on her friend. However, she faced up to it by undertaking the heavy burden caused only by an accident. “She washed dishes, using her rosy nails on the greasy pots and pans. She washed the dirty linen, the shirts, and the dishcloths which she dried upon a line……” All the hard works deprived her of beauty and youth in the cruelty of realism.
Many times I wonder, why didn’t she tell her friend about the truth and ask for forgiveness? I consider it the key point that shows her courage to shoulder responsibilities and adamancy to get through the hardships. She is willing to do all the heavy housework and odious cares of the kitchen. She lived in an impoverished life for ten years, which is not easy for ordinary people. The hardships of life not only changed her appearance, but also strengthened her mind. With “frowsy hair, skirt askew, and red hands”, she is even not recognized by her friend. But she is not a totally looser. She gains the dignity at the cost of her youth. At this moment, I could not help applauding for her.
To view the story as a whole, I think the necklace is a symbol which typifies the ecstasy about luxuries, the impractical mind of parvenu and the worship of splendor. Therefore the loss of the necklace stands for the abstain from vanity. It serves as a trigger that awakes Mathilde's sense of responsibility, self-reliance and pragmatism. At the end of the story, when Mathilde met with her old friend, “she smiled with a joy which was proud and naive”. It was a feeling from the bottom of her heart which suggested Mathilde's pride of self-renascence. To some extent, I think Maupassant is conveying a deeper significance to us: Mathilde and her husband embody the dignity of the whole lower-class people living in French society whose potential virtues cannot be eclipsed by the foppish ethos of the aristocrat.
In conclusion, the loss of necklace and the ruinous debts bring Mathilde a harsh life which in turn inspire her potential virtues: The courage to shoulder responsibilities and the adamancy to get through all the hardships win the dignity for herself. Mathilde is unfortunate for she lost an important necklace which brings her with the life of hardships; But she is also fortunate because she finds the true meaning of life and gain her dignity through her great endeavor.
Michael Zhu May 4, 2007 Draft One The Necklace and Dignity
The Necklace, written by Maupassant, tells a story of a clerk’s wife, Mathilde, who loves vanity and pomp. She borrowed a diamoand necklace from her rich friend in order to show off on a ball. Unfortunately she lost the necklace on her way home, and had no choice but to take up ruinous obligations to buy a new one. She and her husband spent ten years to pay off all the debts, but eventually shocked by the fact that the original necklace was a fake.
Actually the story is not unacquainted with me. I have read it in my high school in Chinese version. At that time, I was amazed by the surprised ending and felt a sense of sympathy for Mathilde’s poor experience.
However, after pursuing the story for this very time, I have a deeper understanding and pondering through it. I admire the heroine’s uprightness and candidness about life. In my opinion, Mathilde is peacocky but not false, in lack of fortune but not in lack of dignity.
There is no doubt that Mathilde is a woman in pursuit of vanity. At the beginning the author presents us with the psychological discription of Mathilde: She is unsatified with her current life and she wants to live as a noblewoman; She feels herself “born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries”. Mathilde is peacocky for sure, and that may even be the cause of her latter harsh life. But in my eyes, the psychology precisely proves her candidness. Living in a society overwhelmed by bourgeois mercenaries and aristocratic snobbery, no one would escape from the idea of leading a noblest life. Born with beauty and elegance, Mathilde should by no means be blamed for her desire for fancy clothes and jewelries. Because it is the human nature to be in sought of a better-off life. We should understand such behavior of her which precisely reflects her true mind and thoughts.
What I appreciate her most is her courage to shoulder responsibilities and adamancy to get through the hardships. I think she is an upright person for she spares all her effort to maintain her dignity. When the calamity of losing the necklace happened, she did not flee away or cheat on her friend. However, she faced up to it by undertaking the heavy burden caused only by an accident. “She washed dishes, using her rosy nails on the greasy pots and pans. She washed the dirty linen, the shirts, and the dishcloths which she dried upon a line……”
Many times I wonder, why didn’t she tell her friend about the truth and ask for forgiveness? I consider it the key point that shows her uprightness and adamancy. She is willing to do all the heavy housework and odious cares of the kitchen. She lived in an impoverished life for ten years, which is not easy for ordinary people. The hardships of life not only changed her appearance, but also strengthened her mind. With “frowsy hair, skirt askew, and red hands”, she is even not recognized by her friend. But she is not a totally looser. She gains the dignity at the cost of her youth.
I think the necklace is a symbol which typifies the ecstasy about luxuries, the impractical mind of parvenu and the worship of splendor. The loss of the necklace is a metaphor for the abstain from vanity. It serves as a trigger that awakes Mathilde's sense of responsibility, self-reliance and pragmatism. At the end of the story, when Mathilde met with her old friend, “she smiled with a joy which was proud and naive”. I think it was a feeling from the bottom of her heart which suggested Mathilde's pride of self-dependence. Now she feels comfortble and proud, because she owes nothing to her friend.
In conclusion, the loss of necklace and the ruinous debts bring Mathilde a harsh life which in turn inspire her potential virtues. The courage to shoulder responsibilities and the adamancy to get through all the hardships win the dignity for herself. I think Mathilde is unfortunate for she lost an important necklace which brings her with the life of hardships; But I also think she is fortunate because she finds the true meaning of life and gain her dignity through her great endeavor.
Michael Zhu June 21, 2007 Timed-writing Three Directions: In Dead Men’s Path the priest says “let the hawk perch and let the eagle perch.” Discuss what you think he means and what this saying reveals about him.
In Dead Men’s Path, when the new headmaster Michael Obi decided to close an ancestral footpath across the school, he was confronted with the opposition of the local people. The first person coming to talk with him was the old priest. He conveyed his opposition about the closure of the path and left with this saying “let the hawk perch and let the eagle perch.”
I think by this saying this, the priest wanted to warn Obi to stop closing the path. As a prestigious priest in the local area, the priest aimed to preserve the holy footpath which connected the village shrine with their place of burial. In my opinion, the priest had two meanings of his saying. On the one hand, he wanted to educate the newcomer with their religion and tradition. He asked Obi to reopen the path so as to let their ancestors perch. While on the other hand, he hinted that if Obi did not open the path which means a disturbance and irreverence to their ancestors, they would assault and hurt Obi and his school as the nature of hawk and eagle.
What this saying reveals about the priest is both his adamancy to preserve his religion and his kind benevolence to warn the newcomer. He rejected to the closure of dead men’s path sturdily because he was the representative of the local people. It was his duty to eliminate any possible challenge to impair their religions. But he also warned Obi with this saying for the consequence of his decision. The beautiful hedges were torn up and even a school building was pull down in the end. This was a correspondence to the priest’s alarm. The local people revolted to Obi’s closure of their ancestors’ path just as the hawk and eagle revenged on their enemy.
In conclusion, the priest conveyed his objection and alarm to Obi in a smart way. He not only explained the reason why he should reopen the path, but also warned Obi with the bad consequence if he did not do so.
Michael Zhu March 25, 2007
Reading log on “The Americanization of Shadrach Cohen”
It is an interesting story with a happy ending. After poring over it for three times, I finally discover the truth derived from the vivid depiction of Jewish life in New York, that is the true essence of Americanization.
I admire Shadrach Cohen because he has the faculty of adaptibility that his two sons don’t have. Although his sons arrived at New York five years before him and they had already dressed like Americans, they had not learned the essence of American culture. I have read many books about American life, and I know this country is like a melting pot for various cultures. I think Americans admire diversity and they adore those who own the true ability and wisdom. Abel and Gottlieb may have adapted to American life in their dress and behavior, but they don't possess the true ability which is key to business success.
In my eyes, Shadrach Cohen is an excellent businessman. He has successful business experience in Russia, and has the most important character of a businessman—the faculty of adaptibility. It seems hard for a worm to turn over, but when it happens, it is significant. At first Shadrach clung to his habits and customs with tenacity. However, when he decided to change, he did it to everyone’s surprise. He run the business in person and taught his sons the recipe for success. He became broader-minded, more tolerant and more flexible in his tenets. His Americanization is not superficial and the process even affects his two sons. Not only does their business begin to prosper where respect is shown to their father from American business men, who have never evinced such respect to them, but they also come to realize the important function of the religion serving as an unique and peaceful consolation to their souls. I think Shadrach Cohen has demonstrated the true essence of Americanzation.
The story gives me a revelation that the true essence of Americanization lies upon its true spirits and characteristics rather than superficial imitation. Adapting to the new environment does not necessarily mean a scornful attitude toward the original culture, just as shown in the case of Shadrach Cohen. The true essence of Americanization is the faculty of adaptibility to adjust to a new environment while upholding your own cultural virtues.