In “Reading and Writing without Authority” by Penrose and Geisler, it explores how complex academic discourse is and how much confidence comes into play. From this reading, I personally found myself relating what was discussed to my own writing experiences. Janet and Roger are two people who have different approaches to writing with or without authority. Roger has more education under his belt and challenges theories confidently within his field. Unlike Roger, Janet, a novice writer whose journey has just begun, struggles to find her voice among the voices of the authors she is reading. She fights with imposter syndrome and feels she is not equipped to speak on certain matters.
My journey with writing with authority has elements from both Janet and Roger. I often feel like Janet, experience moments of self doubt and feel inadequate to add my voice to the conversation. When I am confident with the material given, I take on more of an approach like Roger, assert my thoughts and ideas and challenge established ideas. The main difference between Janet and Roger is in their confidence levels. Janet’s poor confidence hinders her ability to fully engage in academic discourse. On the contrary, Roger exudes confidence and does not timidly but assertively challenge established knowledge.
As my journey with scholarly writing continues, I strive to echo Roger’s confidence and address my times of self doubt. Penrose and Geisler’s piece gives insight, explores authority in writing and reminds me how powerful confidence plays in communicating within writing. It makes me want to challenge myself and actively challenge ideas in my writing.
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