Writing Well

Last night, I witnessed the culminating session of the Senior Seminar for the English Department. It was a great event. Each student prepared a short (4-7 page) statement of what they believe. They read the statements aloud. The essays were personal, poignant, and revealing. It was an honor to be an audience member and hear the truths they were describing. It also reminded me of how hard it is to write well. The essays charmed me because they dug deep to reveal truths about their authors. The writing was personal but universal, always revelling in the messiness of what it means to be human. It really struck me that writers, both students and scholars, take the easy road and substitute cliches and canards for truth. To write well, one must be willing to look at oneself and one's world in unsentimental way. These young writers helped give me a bit more faith in the possibility of writing to reveal and improve truths about humanity and ourselves.