Here are the guidelines:
- Reading responses must be AT LEAST 250 words.
- Include your full name at the end of your comments. Unnamed comments will be deleted.
- From the "Comment As" drop-down menu, choose Anonymous, then click "Publish."
- Reading responses are due by midnight on the night PRIOR to our discussion of the required reading.
This was so hard and horrible to read. The author tries to be funny and complains the entire time. If I was the ship captain I would of abandoned her at the nearest island. She makes jokes, but it’s followed by an unnecessary comment. I feel like she’s trying too hard to make it funny so she ruins the story. The first three pages are just complaining and complaining. This chick has no life. Drop your electronics for once in your life and actually enjoy life! Make it into an adventure not “there are no freighters that haul vats of sushi” or “the boat contains… and tools for fishing but no Netflix”. And what the hell is she doing with 1,000 packages of Splenda?! It’s not as if she can even survive off Splenda. Did not like the reading at all.
ReplyDeleteOn Moore’s essay I actually like it this time. He made several points that Marx should read. You shouldn’t push something that isn’t funny to be funny. It just makes it weird and awkward like her entire story. Moore make three points that I think are important when it comes to writing about something funny. Need a story not jokes, don’t take cheap shots on people you’re writing about, and “nothing kills a joke more than the joke teller slamming a bony elbow, winking and shouting “ was that funny, or what?” cause no, it’s not funny. Another thing Moore gives an example of is “Do you have a dog? What has your dog seen you do that no human has ever witnesses?”. So many funny interesting things a lot of people can actually talk about. I don’t have a dog but my cat has seen me fall and hit myself so many times in the same place from not watching where I step.
Stephanie Cisneros
ReplyDelete“A Tale of a Tub” was full of so many details I felt overwhelmed trying to organize the strain of details while trying to remember what she was trying to describe. I did appreciate the ways she inserted humor into the piece. I did feel like she could have told the story without the excessive details. I did like it. It just felt like the amount of detail was the equivalent to 3 inches of cool whip on a slither of pumpkin pie. Too much. Maybe it was more a "filler" way to take up page, I'm not sure. The elements of conflict weren’t as engaging for my personal taste. At several points, I wished she had paid to go on the discount cruise so something eventful would happen. The lack of events, I suppose, were the direct cause of the details. I’m one of those people who think more is always good. The is one of the first times I find myself at odds with myself on that position.
"Writing The Humorous Essay" was so fun to read. I liked the Howie story but I also like how it helped transition the chapter into reflective writing scenarios. The tips were direct and easy to comprehend. I found that the writing prompts that followed, were great starts to short stories that could be both fiction and non fiction. I did think the introduction story about Howie to be successful in it's humorous attempt because it was a relatable subject. Even if the reader had never had to buy furniture, I think it's safe to say we have all been in a position were we have ended up making a large purchase because the sales person was so impressionable. Also, Howie is a character that is likeable because of the choice of dialogue the writer shares with the reader. He is not abrasive, but passive and likable.
-Amanda Gonzales
I didn’t particularly enjoy Marx’s “A Tale of Tub,” and I’m not sure if it’s because I didn’t process all of the information she threw at me correctly, or if it’s simply just because I don’t particularly care for boats. Maybe the length of the essay was part of the reason as to why it felt like she was shooting information at us one right after the other, but it still felt like there was too much she was telling us about ships in general rather than telling us about her actual trip. Also, this might just me being clueless about ship metaphors, but she only mentions a tub once (the tub in the hospital.) One of the things I did like, however, was how Marx described and portrayed the personalities of the crew and her fellow passengers.
ReplyDeleteWhile short, Moore’s “Writing the Humorous Essay” was quick and to the point. I liked Moore’s blunt explanation, because it’s the truth. You can’t necessarily force humor, and I feel like it can be easily seen when a writer is trying too hard to be funny. This is mostly visible in authors who write in the young adult genre as they’re trying hard to make it “relatable” for their audience, however, the young adult audience shouldn’t be generalized, and would probably react more to a bad dad joke than at an attempt to mock the lingo of today’s youth. The different “exercises” he let for us to practice writing humorous essays are all really good topics, so I feel like it’s a good way to ease into this type of writing without the humor sounding forced.
Ayesha Crutchfield
“A Tale of a Tub” did not really grasp my attention to read it, as much as the other essays we have read. I feel like it had too many details, not well portrayed. It was more of a list than a fluent essay. There was this lack of detail that helps the reader can feel as part of the story. The essay that Marx wrote, felt like it was seen through another point of view rather than her own. The paragraph that caught my eye was when she was comparing the boat trip to that of her grandfather. I found it interesting the piece of story her grandfather told her when he says that her grandfather’s younger brother wasn’t there because he had fallen off the train. Makes me wonder if that was true, or it was just something to catch the reader’s attention. There were some good details that helped turned the essay into a good one for at least that one paragraph. For example, when the rocking of the ship is being described, that made me imagine how sleeping on a ship must be. In Moore’s’ essay, he helps us see how we should write a humorous essay. How somethings should be fluent, especially when one is trying to incorporate humor in the essay. We as writers must sound convincing to the reader, we should sound confident on the jokes we are making. Also, I feel that we must read our humor sentences several times just to make sure we sound funny as opposed to sounding annoying.
ReplyDeleteCelica Chavez
This is my response
ReplyDeleteIn “Writing the Humorous Essay”, I found it funny how the first thing I read was the Quote “It took me fifteen years to discover I had not talent for writing, but I couldn’t give it up because by that time I was too famous”. I don’t know why I found that to be funny. Sometimes I think like that as well, although I am not slightly famous. The story he said about the sales man wasn’t all that funny to me to be honest. It had some humor here and there but didn’t quit catch my attention. I liked that it gave us some good advice on how to write a humorous essay. There has been times were some essays I have read are too much that the humor fades away. I also liked how that we need to make a story out of it not just being up noxious in our essays.
In “A Tale of a Tub” wasn’t my type of reading. I thought all the characters she had were great and she gave good detail. I mean it was funny here and there. Maybe there are different types of humor, but I didn’t smile or laugh as much. I also had to read more than once. The second time around I found it a lot more pleasing. I guess you can say her comic was just right not too much or too little. For me it was just quite boring. When I read both readings I could understand what her intentions were for the essay. For example in “writing the humorous essay” it mentions about making it about a story etc.
Lizette Garcia
ReplyDeleteOn Moore’s essay “Writing the Humorous Essay” I enjoyed how he started it off. Thankfully there wasn’t any interruptions during his story. His advice was at the end of it which I enjoyed. He gives you tips about how writing about someone who may be funny shouldn’t be written in the way that you’re mimicking them in a mean way. He also gives you ideas on what to write. The way he described Howie’s personality made me want to be his friend. He made me enjoy the reading and I liked the way he was determined to find them a chair which they would not only like but find comfortable. I didn’t like that the narrator was so picky but I can’t blame him we all are on certain things. I liked that when Howie told them he wasn’t going to make them buy something they didn’t like. Most sale persons wouldn’t do that they would see want you to buy something for the money instead of the customers liking.
ReplyDeleteIn “A Tale of a Tub” I didn’t like the introduction it didn’t really catch my attention plus she was complaining about not having any social media just human contact. The description of the characters was good for me to picture. As well as giving a vivid description of the setting. The rest of the essay felt like a drag for me sometimes I would have to reread a certain page because I would wonder off and forget what I had just read.
Monika Gonzalez
A whole day without watching the Daily Show or Colbert…Nope! Moore and his chapter of “Creating a Humorous Essay” just gives tips about how to write funny and compelling non-fiction pieces. From reading Marx’s “Tales of the Tub,” exaggeration was used, such as the part where having walk on the ship like “…drunk wearing reading glasses while descending a staircase during an earthquake.” (161) I pause for a moment thinking about it and make me chuckle. Another is mentioning a family moment of her grandfather’s brother being pushed off the train and not telling his mother where he went (159). Moore’s chapter was pretty short and just a few good tips and a “not-so-funny” introduction to the chapter, yet I see where he’s getting at. Having the observant eye of watching friends (not stalking) and enjoying the time with them and making a comical short story. I recall last week that during our first workshop, a sentence in my travel essay made my reviewer laugh a little. I wrote about how you would know that you are still on the road in the outskirts of Mission and McCook at night and if you’re not, then you’re stuck in a ditch or lost and panicking. From my friends, I am considered funny because of my jokes or silly comments. From my fiction writing, there were some dialogue that made stories funny and adds flavor to my character’s persona. Yet this is slightly different and a bit tricky, since this about me and my personal view of whatever I am writing. For example, how this chair is slowly numbing my bum while typing this down with a partial stomach ache. Who the heck makes a Philly cheesesteak pizza and serves to people? But you know what, I would be part of the club who complains about pineapple on pizza. I might as well put cherries and strawberries on my burger and see who would start ranting.
ReplyDeleteHector Dimas
I did not enjoy reading “A Tale of the Tub” by Patricia Marx, having to go as far as to look up the actual article on the New Yorker’s website in order to understand what the concept. It had way too much detail, difficult enough to process without the added struggle of not being interested at any point. I do not know anything about boats, nor do I have the intention of going out of way to have to learn such things. Marx went out of her way to list off details that only confused me further. The only thing that gave it any interest to me was the humor; there were time here and there where I found that she was funny, I guess. There were also times when her description made it easier for me to visualize the people she spoke of. It is my opinion that her over use of detail was to pad an essay that did not have much of a conflict or story beyond her trip on a cruise. I did not enjoy reading this, as I have said, having to come back multiple times just so I can finish it. By doing this, it made it difficult for me to specific details from the hour, night or day before.
ReplyDeleteThe opposite could be said about Moore’s “Writing a Humorous Essay”, a very informative piece that helped me better understand what is needed for humor to be properly used in an essay. Like the salesmen, the writer must not force the joke, but allow the reader, or in the case of the salesman, the buyer to make the decision on their own to buy into it. Humor cannot be forced and therefore, it is audience that decides whether or not it is not funny, not you.
- Patrick Diehl -
I really enjoyed reading A Tale of a Tub travel-writing story. I liked the detailed descriptions from her memory, especially in the beginning of a trip. I love her sense of humor in her writing. I thought it was really funny especially how she set up her humorous writing. It was fun reading her experience. Her description of her room and the smell was funny. I also liked the analogies she used to help the reader understand her experience better. Analogies are something I should write more in my essays. I think analogies helps understand the reader more in our writings. Like when she talks about her experience at night and the rocking of the ship. I could imagined it especially when she writes in detail describing her adventure. I really enjoy reading this piece. What a great experience. I love how she compared this trip to a vacation cruise. Her story was written with much detail that made it easier and fun to read. It’s like going in an adventure without leaving your seat.
ReplyDeleteIn “Writing The Humorous Essay”, I liked the way Dinty W. Moore starts his writing. He describes the salesman really well and his “jokes.” He uses his experience with the salesman to explain that humor has to be honest. One cannot force a joke and or pretend to be funny. A person needs to be a genuine.
-Luis Rodriguez
Marx has overwhelming detail in "A Tale of a Tub". She seems to require an over amount of detail to relay her humor and tone. Her detail was appreciated but might have been too much for her essay. I am not sure if it was just extra fluff on her part or if she really felt like she needed all of her details included. Marx's writing is a bit uncomfortable and awkward to read from start to finish. Her personal conflict her didn't really dive her essay anywhere, she kind of just stayed afloat. Maybe that was just the gist of her conflict and travel, but what if she just couldn't make it out. I don't know I just found it had to move one with, a bit meaningless as a reader. She might have another connection, or maybe it was just as uneventful as she wrote it.
ReplyDeleteThe helpful tips given in "Writing The Humorous Essay" were appreciated. The character that Moore gives is someone I can personally relate to as a salesperson myself. I feel as though I myself can vouch for him in his scenarios. What Moore says about not forcing humor is true. You often find pieces where you know where they are going with it but it just doesn't work. Or they start with good humor but it is over used. I know I have some trouble in translating literal humor in writing because it sometimes doesn't make sense. When Moore say's one should sound convincing in their humor, I think of Marx's piece and how it's not.
-Elizabeth Diaz
In Marx’s essay, “A Tale of a Tub” I would have honestly liked to hear her voice and learn her humor. It sounded like all she did was complaining but it’s hard to tell if she was just nagging and complaining, or trying to be funny while complaining. I think it hard to tell because no ones humor is the same just like no ones personality is the same. I guess I wish that she was just more positive in the writing I felt like everything I read was so negative, and I just felt like there had to be something about the experience that she liked.
ReplyDeleteI really found Moore’s essay, “Creating a Humorous Essay” really enjoyable and funny. I really like the detail he gives about the furniture guy and honestly it seems like Moore doesn’t try to be funny it just sort of happens in his essay. Which I believe is the best way to have humor in an essay, I think its really easy for humor to sound forced in an essay. I feel like you have to remember that people can’t hear your voice so therefore you have to be careful with what you say, and with who your intended audience. I found Moore’s 3 quick tips to writing humor in essays is very helpful, especially when he said not to be mean or spiteful because that will effect people differently and you will definitely offend some people but some people will understand you.
Jessica Young
“A Tale of the Tub” by Patricia Marx, not Karl, okay. Marx travels the Atlantic Ocean in a cargo ship is pretty much get go of this essay. To be completely honest, I didn’t particularly enjoy this one. I felt like it dragged on, it was slow. Though for the most part descriptive writing is a good thing, and it’s something that I can respect, I felt like Marx really, really overdoes it on this essay, it makes the tone of it extremely slow, and most of the time I felt the details where irrelevant. I took a creative writing class a couple of semesters ago, and one of the lectures had to do with details, my professor said, instead of going into detail in explaining, for example a house in bad conditions, “The house was old, with the grass overgrown, and the smell of dog piss in the air…” Sometimes it’s just better to say, “The house was a piece of shit.”
ReplyDeleteIn Moore’s essay he explains that humor isn’t something that can be forced upon the reader. Having humor in writing, is much like having charm. You can’t really do anything to get it, rather, you just kind of have it. At least in my opinion. I really enjoyed Moore’s piece though, the advice is good, and as we continue to read Moore I like his prose a lot more. His writing, itself is quite humorous, which I guess is funny now that we’re on the topic.
Jesus Garcia