Ruiz 1

Jamie Ruiz
English 113B
Professor Ditch
7 May 2015
An Insightful Journey Leading to Insightful Theses
Going into college, I believed that my writing skills were sufficient. I knew that there was
always room for improvement, but it wasn't until this semester that I realized the significant leap
I have made as a writer from the beginning of fall semester to now. During the first semester of
freshman composition, I improved in areas such as word choice, comma placement, etc.
Grammar and Mechanics are both very important aspects of writing, but during the course of
second semester I learned something that I believe contributed most to my progression as a
writer. What I learned was the skill of creating a insightful thesis. My writing has improved
because in my theses, I have not only made an effort to answer the prompt, but to also provide
the reader with a thesis that is thought-provoking. This is demonstrated in both of my Project
Text and Project Space final drafts.
Firstly, my improvement in theses construction is demonstrated in the final draft of my
Project Space assignment. The prompt asks to use personal experience and research to analyze
our identity and how it is reflected in a particular culture or cultures; while also considering how
the spaces we occupy may or may not affect the way that we communicate with others. My
thesis for this essay was that being a part of both the feminist and catholic community causes me
to feel "torn between two cultural worlds as I find myself shifting my cultural identity to fit the
social norm of the space I am occupying". This is an example of my improvement as a writer
because I could have merely answered the prompt by saying something that describes the

Ruiz 2
cultures I am apart of and how that shapes my identity, but instead I talk about two cultures, and
how each have aspects that challenge one another. I am talking about two cultures that share
different opinions in regards to sexual and reproductive freedom, and how I consider myself to
be a part of both these cultures. My thesis is thought-provoking because it allows the reader to
think about the differences of opinion within the feminist and catholic community, and it also
allows them to acknowledge the fact that an individual is capable of being both a feminist and a
catholic, although they maybe challenge in navigating between the two, much like I discuss
throughout my essay.
My thesis in the Project Text argumentative essay is also one that highlights my growth
as a writer. Project Text is an argumentative essay in which I read and analyzed The Guernsey
Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. I was able to
find evidence within the text that demonstrates the characters' ability to find happiness within
books during the German Occupation, and how reading as form of therapy is implemented
throughout the novel. I argued that "due to the restrictions of World War II, the members of the
Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society turn to books as a source of happiness because
they allow the members to escape from the harsh realities of war and connect with one another
on a human level." My argument is insightful because it delves into the book and I do not lose
track of what the prompt is asking of me as a writer. My argument demonstrates critical thinking
by going deeper into the characters' survival and how books contributed to that. There is also an
awareness of a complex issue which is how an individual may not assume that something such as
books could be used as a form of therapy, especially during WWII when many people suffered
from the dehumanizing effects of the German occupation.

Ruiz 3
When writing an essay in high school, it seemed as though achieving a solid thesis was as
simple as answering the prompt and sticking to the always encouraged "three point" thesis.
During the fall semester of freshman composition, I was challenged by both Professor Ditch and
my SI Leader, Allie, to navigate away from using "three point" theses. This was challenging at
first because I was comfortable with this method of theses constructing, and this is something
that I used throughout the course of my high school career. During the spring semester, I wanted
to enhance the content of my theses instead of focusing in the structure. I did not want my theses
to simp,y answer the prompt, but to achieve everything that Professor Ditch expected of us. She
constantly reminded us to consider the "and" and "so" of our theses. This was something that I
constantly asked myself during the construction of my theses. I asked myself "why does this
matter?" Or "is this still an issue today?" and believe that has not only allowed me to construct a
more thought-provoking thesis, but to also feel more passionate about writing essays. I found
myself writing about a greater issue at hand instead of writing to complete the assignment. My
writing has improved because in my theses, I have not only made an effort to answer the prompt,
but to also provide the reader with a thesis that is thought-provoking. Writing is recursive, and in
order to improve as a writer, we have to reread our old work and think about what we could have
done differently. After constantly revising, rereading, and rewriting theses, I have learned what
my weak points are and corrected that this semester in order to create works that acknowledged
complex concepts.