Writing is a subjective task. Viewpoints of esteemed authors exist that address personalities lent to bodies of work, including “Find Your Style and Voice” by Sister Molly Heine, and “I Need You to Say I: Why First Person is Important in College Writing.” What these articles discuss are two opposing sides pertaining to using first person viewpoints in the writing process. One firmly discusses other ways to personalize a writing piece other than using first person viewpoints. Its emphasis is finding a voice in writing without using this as the only tactic to take attention from the reader. Another stresses its importance and lack of personification if the works of writing fail using their perspective in writing.
My thinking for Find Your Style and Voice is that I agree with such viewpoints to an extent. I had an English professor two semesters ago tell the class to find their footing (voice) in their writing and to lean into that. Actively, he sought out papers that did just that and a discussion was able to happen from that point. What is ironic is he had all of the class take specific note of words to bar from future papers. The word I was on the list. In that regard, I agree that voices can still be found, and confidently so, without using this kind of perspective. While I acknowledge this, I also recognize the flow of writing and how it takes the author places so that readers can understand the author’s position. In that instance, I know that using first person can send clearer messages all the same.
Regarding I Need You to Say I: Why First Person is Important in College Writing, I agree with Maddalena’s viewpoint. College is the place where many of us scope out our life’s road, basically. Each person is on an intricate journey in and of itself regardless of the institution they share. No two roads may intertwine like how they do in the middle of high school. In all of that, stories are told and college students recount their own stories in knowledge while exploring other factors, like a history report, or why an event is important to them.
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