(Thought-Random)
When you read words written on the sand, you normally would
want to know who wrote them, wouldn't you? You'll have to agree with
me that it's kind of a natural human response to language to seek out
the source... the someone who created it. And one reason could be is
that the feeling of someone talking to you brings a great satisfaction
out of reading. You get to think and feel like the one who is
communicating to you and you tend to see things from his perspective.
And this sense of being one with the writer somehow makes you want to
read further what he has written.
To take the other side of the coin now, let me invite you to
consider the task of the writer in choosing how best to engage his
audience in terms of point of view. Writers normally adopt a Persona, - a self
for the purpose of addressing particular people in particular
situations. And this speaker or character would take one of three
points of view: - the First Person 'I' , the Second Person 'You', and
the Third Person 'He, She, They'.
The narrator or persona is not necessarily identified
with author or speaker, nor is the listener necessarily the reader of
the piece of writing. But the 'I' speaker either plays a role in the
events narrated or speaks directly to his audience and commands some
credibility. When the writer addresses his audience as 'You', it is
an invitation to a relationship with him, at least for the duration of
the essay. And the Third Person point of view would refer to what are
known in the trade as omniscient narrators who know everything
that happens and know what all the characters are thinking and
feeling. Now if you might just ask me, - my personal favorite in trying
to engage my reader is the use of the 'You' persona. And why?
Because I, myself, am automatically magnetized to a written work that
invites me to share the author's thoughts and sensibilities. I find it
effectively grabs my attention... I find it enthralling to be allowed
to look into another person's mind.
Aside from Point of View, one other significant aspect in writing would be Voice - also sometimes called, Tone, or Style, or Diction. Human attitudes towards people, subject matter, or even to one's own self are conveyed with Tone.
Among these attitudes could be included the following: - sincere,
enthusiastic, angry, amused, ironic, pleading... and the list could go
on. What is of interest here, however, is the fact that the ordinary
meaning of words does not always indicate speakers' attitudes because a
speaker, or a writer for that matter, may say one thing but mean
another. Or meanings may be inferred either from context or from
relationships of power and solidarity. Simple statements like 'Shut the
door!' or 'It's raining!', for instance, may be given diverse meanings
depending on the situations they were said, and who said which and to
whom it was said. Would you care to play around with interpretations
to those two utterances?
Both persona and tone are critical in writing.
From your readings, you certainly come upon diverse versions of writings
that convey same or similar contents; but certainly, as well, you get
to recognize differences that make you decide which would be more
interesting. In terms of persona, this, of course, rests on what
particular subject matter it is or to what particular audience the
text was meant for. But with these and your considering the use of tone,
you surely will find that one is more arresting and compelling - which,
in turn, could just give you a head start in being that engaging
writer!
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