The academic research paper is not the only form of writing
that uses research. Personal essays also
use research to set a tone or provide background information.
For an effective example of this, read Molly Minturn's
"Knight of the Swan," and notice how she incorporates material from
conversations/interviews along with an article from Discover Magazine, a fairy
tale, and song out of pop culture.
For your blog post, explain (in a few sentences) how one of
these references/sources contributes to the overall theme of Minturn's essay.
"Traumatic experiences in our past, or in our recent ancestors’ past, leave molecular scars adhering to our DNA, I read in Discover magazine."
ReplyDeleteThis source is included to strengthen the support of the speaker’s paragraph relating it to Bobby and how he has left an impact on him and his family. It has left the speaker to explore physical characteristics in him that are in Bobby. Also, to reconsider his place in his family and to find a solution of whether this man he calls father, is actually his father, or if that man has fooled him all along. This quote allows the reader to see the importance of the speakers tone and to have a deeper insight of how past experiences in ancestors can be seen through physical characteristics within ourselves.
"At first, it made me scared, because if my dad wasn't related to me, then I was living with someone who wasn't a part of my family, like a stranger. I want him always to be my real dad. Because if he's not my dad, then who is he?" This reference of the nine year old girl relates to the theme of the story because at some point she felt the same way. Looking through Bobby Putnams photos,she felt as if he were not a stranger because of all the characteristics he shared with her father and her as well. She questioned whether the stranger was Bobby or her grandfather. This ties to the whole story overall whether her father was the illegitimate son. The references and sources made the essay interesting because it felt as if we were looking through the photos ourselves along with the characters. It was mysterious at first, then at the end it made sense.
ReplyDelete“It’s me. And it isn’t me. It’s the nose. And the eyes. And the mouth. And shape of the face. His face! His whole face!” This quotations helps to draw the reader more closely into the essay. Throughout the essay Miniturn is telling a story of her father and the she believed was his true father. This subject was a big deal for the author and her siblings as well as her father, but they were always too afraid to truly find out the truth. This quote and the others help to make the reader feel like they are in the story and become part of the tale that is being weaved. Without the quotations and references to conversations the essay would still be great, but the closeness and glimpses in to the families mind would be gone.
ReplyDelete“It was like being in the self-checkout aisle at the supermarket, repeatedly scanning an item across the red light but getting no beep.” This reference to herself as she observed the same physical characteristics of herself and her fathers compared to her grandfather face in the photos she found. This source contribute to the overall theme because the author mentions how her grandfather lived and wanted to know her ancestry tied to her present generation but doubted a little by investigated that maybe her grandfather wasn’t who he appeared to be. She wanted to know who Bobby Putman was in reality, was it coincidence that her father’s godfather has strong similarities physical characteristics just like her father did. Could she have not grown up with her real grandfather? Can her father be the illegitimate son? The references made the essay interesting because it was like a jigsaw puzzle that needed to get solved in order to see the clear image it represented.
ReplyDelete“And I prai you on my peril and my will to take the children and goo kyll them or caste them into some river, in suche wise that never be tidinges of them” The writer of this story used this reference of a fairytale because she felt like these characters that were being abandon and getting their life taken away. The author feels like she has been abandon and now she is struggling to find her identity. Though her life wasn’t actually taken away she feels like she is missing pieces to her life that she needs to find in order to move on with her life.
ReplyDelete-Faviola Gurrola
“Do you think everyone in town knew and were laughing about it? How could they not know when I looked just liked him? What a fucking joke.” This quote from the conversation the author had with her father after showing him a picture of Bobby Putnam is significant, because it reveals his true feelings about his situation of being an illegitimate child. The father’s reaction expresses feelings of embarrassment and concern which add to the overall tone of the essay, resulting from the mystery behind Bobby Putnam and his relation to the author’s father. The father’s situation is a difficult topic for the family to discuss, because it reminds them of the undenying truth: the author’s actual grandfather is Bobby Putman. This is further emphasized when the author describes that after her conversation with her father she tried avoiding discussing the same topic with him again. The pain expressed through the father’s reaction to Bobby Putman’s picture allows the reader to gain insight on the emotional impact that his relation to Bobby Putnam has had in his life. The father feels there is no way of hiding the truth about Bobby Putnam, because he acknowledges that he looks just like Bobby Putnam and thinks it is apparent to other community members as well. Ultimately, these quotes serve their purpose as a reminder to the reader that the decisions people make, in this case the grandmother and Bobby Putnam, can greatly affect others as well.
ReplyDeleteIsabel Mireles
"They become a part of us, a molecular residue holding fast to our genetic scaffolding. The DNA remains the same, but psychological and behavioral tendencies are inherited." When reading the article in the Discover magazine, the author tells us that there are physical traits and behaviors that are inherited through DNA and can't be changed. She sees the differences between her grandfather and Bobby Putnam's attitude toward's life. Bobby was a well accomplished man. Her grandfather, didn't have confidence in himself. Her father's resemblance to Bobby is undeniable not only physically but behaviorally as well. Her father,as she sees it, has Bobby's confidence and determination. She is able make comparisons throughout the essay that help the reader see the similarities between the two. She also sees the similarities in her and her brother.
ReplyDelete“At first, it made me scared, because if my dad wasn’t related to me, then I was living with someone who wasn’t a part of my family, like a stranger. I want him always to be my real dad. Because if he’s not my dad, then who is he?” This reference help support the confusion that the author was going through. The author realizes that the man she thought was her grandfather is a complete stranger to her, her brother, and her father. Realizing that she had been living with a stranger leaves the author wondering who she really is. The author then focuses on learning more from her biological grandfather, Bobby Putnam, in hopes of understanding the truth behind her family ancestry.
ReplyDeleteDo you think they all knew. Do you think everyone in town knew and were laughing about it? How could they not know when I looked just liked him? What a fucking joke.”
ReplyDeleteThe father’s reaction to the comparison of himself and Bobby Putnam was an emotional response. The father never realized how similar he looked to Bobby, but because he looked very similar to him he did not doubt that perhaps Bobby was his biological father. It is a significant comparison because a man who he thought was his father could possibly not be his father. It can make him feel as if his life was a lie and why he was never told about his biological father. By placing this source into the essay it provided realistic emotions and strengthens the author’s thought that Bobby is her grandfather. The source also provides the fathers views when he is told that Bobby looks very similar to him. The source produces a viewpoint that strengthens the author’s claim, which allows for the reader to conclude that Bobby is the author’s grandfather.
Christina Orozco
Molly Minturn's article about her family heritage is one of great emotion. Minturn explains the discovery of a family secret and details the events of its unraveling. Minturn uses different sources and quotes to help her tell her story. Using these sources serves the same purpose as it would in a formal essay. It provides evidence for her claims. It solidifies what she is stating by comparing and relating it to real statistics or events that have already occurred. In other words, it validates her points, making them even more concrete. Minturn's reference to the song "Thrift Shop" presents both irony and emphasis on her discovery that the grandpa she knew and grew up with, wasn't actually her grandpa. Overall, Molly Minturn enhanced her personal account by using these outside sources.
ReplyDelete"The hunt for more photos of Bobby became a constant pastime and soon, an obsession. I read the fragments of his obituary available online. I found photos of his son through Facebook and saw my brother’s face in his." The writer shares her experience of need for an answer. She become obsessed to find the truth and through Bobby's son she see her brother. This furthers her need to discover the truth of her family tree. This relates to the entire essay because the writer is consistently comparing Bobby's traits to her father's and brother's physical traits.
ReplyDeleteThrough the use of sources, the author is validating her emotional and mental journey through her thoughts. The fairy tale, the article, and the song lyrics all help reader get a feel for the turmoil she's going through as she obsesses over this mystery and then tries to forget it and thinks about it again. She can't get a straight answer as to whether who her grandfather really is. The article supports the similarities between her father and Bobby Putnam but she can't know for sure without a DNA test, which she doesn't push. The song lyrics are kind of like a slap in the face, she doesn't know who her grandpa is and couldn't ask him if she wanted to. There is a sense of tug and pull with wanting to know but wanting to leave it alone.
ReplyDeleteThe quote referenced from a nine year old girl explaining how her non biological dad is someone she considers to be her father besides the fact he is not blood related. This quote I feel helps with the overall theme of the essay. It explains how regardless of biological factors, someone who obtains a spot or position in a family will hold that title regardless if they aren't blood related. Whether its llegitimate children or adopted individuals, those who have played a significant role in your life and who have become a part of your family will always hold an important place. Biological factors don't necessarily have to hold great importance regarding the creation of a family or being part of one, what really matters is who that person was to you and what it ment having them around and what role you felt they were able to fufill.
ReplyDeleteMaria Zamarripa
The references/sources that Molly Minturn’s uses in the “Knight of the Swan” helps to further her perspective to the story. Such as “Thrift Shop” by Macklemore, “I’mma take your grandpa style, I’mma take your grandpa style, no for real, ask your grandpa. Can I have his hand-me-downs?” this comes down to that it does not matter what you wear because the clothes does not make the person and in this case, her grandfather may not be her real grandfather, but he has been there for her so that makes him her grandfather.
ReplyDelete“The DNA remains the same, but psychological and behavioral tendencies are inherited”. This source supports the information of the speaker’s regarding her family. It has left the speaker to explore the differences between her father, them and her grandfather. She comments that her dad is total opposite to her grandfather. She wonders if they have any relationship with Bobby Putnam because they have similar features.
ReplyDeleteDiana Montoya
In Minturn’s essay one quote used was “I remember staring at him in those photos, waiting for the same chill you get when “someone walks over your grave,” that moment when you see yourself in an ancestor- the eyes, the eyebrows, the lips, the shape of the head. With my grandfather, it was like being in the self-check out aisle…” the source used within this quote helps descried and gives the reader a better picture into how identical they look like each other. This also helps the reader know how the author is feeling about their similarities, he recently discovered; the author gives enough detail.
ReplyDeleteRuby Montes
"They become a part of us, a molecular residue holding fast to our genetic scaffolding. The DNA remains the same, but psychological and behavioral tendencies are inherited." DNA never changes, but we inherit the psychological and behavioral tendencies one has. The psychological and behavioral tendencies are a part of someone: it is traits one grows up with. Although her grandfather and Bobby Putnam’s attitude was the complete opposite, in comparison with Bobby Putnam and her father were very similar. The similarities between the two raise questions for the author to find out if Bobby Putnam is her real grandfather. This source contributes to the author in making questions about her family tree. Bobby Putnam was seen as a stranger, but discovering that he had similar psychological and behavioral tendencies as did the author’s father, he wasn’t so much a stranger.
ReplyDelete-Andreina Rendon
Molly Minturn’s personal essay un-sugarcoats a family secret. The theme of Minturn’s personal essay reveals that her grandfather that she may consider her grandfather is not her biological grandfather. The character Bobby Putman, the godfather of her father, was having an affair with her grandmother. Minturn incorporates an article that she “…read about the Knight of the Swan, a medieval tale about a mysterious stranger who travels through a forest in a swan-drawn boat to defend a damsel. His sole condition was that he must never be asked his name.” As a source to make Minturn’s personal essay stronger, the old fable story expressed the same feelings Minturn was experiencing in her personal life. The technique of incorporating outside sources into personal essays is a great way to write a paper because it becomes a three-dimensional way of feeling emotion towards a particular theme. In this case, the old fable story and Minturn’s personal essay share the same concept and emotional withdrawal of how it may feel to keep a secret.
ReplyDeleteMolly Minturn in “Knight of the Swan: A Longread” is a personal essay that unravels a family secret. Bobby Putnam was mentioned at family gatherings as an inside joke between the family saying, “we all know about Bobby Putman”. This is an interview quote that Minturn added to her personal essay to demonstrate that as a child she did not comprehend what her aunt was referring to. Putman was hidden under the shadows, but it was until Minturn came across a family photo when she starts to decode his true identity. Putnam had very similar characteristics to Minturn and her father. She was in utterly in disbelief that the Grandfather she had known about was not her biological grandfather. It turned out that her grandmother had an affair with Putnam. In order to help her reveal her story she uses outside sources. The sources make her personal essay more tangible. Minturn shared a mutual emotion of a nine-year old girl who “At first, it made [them] scared, because if [the] dad[‘s weren’t] related to [the females], then [they were] living with someone who wasn’t a part of […] family, like a stranger…” The emotional discovery of the nine-year old girl was the same emotional discovery of Minturn’s.
ReplyDelete"At first, it made me scared, because if my dad wasn’t related to me, then I was living with someone who wasn’t a part of my family, like a stranger. I want him always to be my real dad. Because if he’s not my dad, then who is he?" This quote ties to the theme of the story because the author is not the only one who has experienced that situation. The readers can further relate to the author. Even though the author knows her grandfather, they could not be related. That thought scared the author because her life feels like she has been living with strangers rather than her family. It shows how she was lost.
ReplyDeleteJasmin Vega
The overall theme of Molly Minturn's "Knight of the Swan" is that she is looking for her biological grandfather. Her grandmother had an affair with a man named Bobby Putnam. This made the author feel uncertain about who she was. She felt the need to research who her real grandfather was. The quote, "At first, it made me scared, because if my dad wasn’t related to me, then I was living with someone who wasn’t a part of my family, like a stranger. I want him always to be my real dad. Because if he’s not my dad, then who is he?" ties directly to the theme. She felt like her grandmother's husband was like an impostor because he was not her biological grandfather. Therefore, she searches for clues and hints that lead her to her real grandfather.
ReplyDeleteLaura Gudino
ReplyDeleteIn “Knight of the Swan” Molly Minturn incorporates different materials to help the readers understand the overall theme of the essay, which is mysterious. Minturn tells about the secret being contained within her family about how her grandfather is not her biological grandfather. She did not understand this at a young age, but as she got older she started to piece things together and she uses conversations and other sources to tell her story. “He was always a shadowy figure in my life, my father said of his godfather, his “Uncle Bobby.” In this portion it can be understood that her grandfather was not present because she says “shadowy”, almost like a blur, not many memories were created. The song “Thrift shop” is incorporated when looking over old photos of her grandpa who was not actually her grandpa. The song represents the fact that he is not actually her biological grandfather, but she did grow up with him. “ Traumatic experiences in our past, or in our recent ancestors’ past, leave molecular scars adhering to our DNA”. This source of information came from the Discover Magazine, and in this story it helps explain how Molly is sincerely confused and having a difficult time understanding what traits were and were not passed down. She refers back to images again trying to see similarities that are contained within herself and Bobby.
“At first, it made me scared, because if my dad wasn’t related to me, then I was living with someone who wasn’t a part of my family, like a stranger. I want him always to be my real dad. Because if he’s not my dad, then who is he?”
ReplyDeleteThe author found this quote from a New York Times article, which is about a 9 year old girl finding out that her father isn’t actually related to her. This quote contributes to the theme of the story since the author has finally solved a mystery involving her father’s “god father” who actually may be her biological grandfather. The story of Bobby Putnam was a touchy subject, because if he was the biological father, then the author’s father would have felt deceived and embarrassed knowing that he grew up with someone who actually wasn’t related to him. The reference mirrors the author’s predicament because knowing this early on would cause major problems with his mother and supposed father, which in turn may affect the family as a whole.
Stefano Subia
In "Knight of the Swan" by Molly Minturn, Minturn shares a personal story of how she found out the truth about her family's history. Throughout the story, Minturn incorporates different sources and parts of personal conversations to create a tone and provide background information into her story. Towards the end of the story, after finding out who Bobby Putnam is to her, she refers to a quote stated by a nine year old girl. The quote states, "At first, it made me scared, because if my dad wasn't related to me, then I was living with someone who wasn't a part of my family, like a stranger. […] if he's not my dad, who is he?" The quote gives the reader a sense of how lost she felt. She realizes her father and brother has lived their life not knowing who their father/grandfather truly was.
ReplyDeleteEmily Chim