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Sunday, November 15, 2009
Week 13
What amazing sentence, phrase, moment pops out? Since you know the writer well — I hope — try to find something new. Wow us with your selection and tell us why you think your selection is wow inducing — good, bad or ugly.
"Nuns need to be even more sepia-toned for the über-conservative pope, who was christened “God’s Rottweiler” for his enforcement of orthodoxy."
I love this sentence because of Dowd's descriptive words. Her use of "sepia-toned" allows the reader to really visualize what she's talking about. Also the way she called the pope "God's Rottweiler" is not only hilarious, but is a very accurate description of an "uber-conservative" religious figure.
"Now big-picture thinkers, within the industry and outside it, are re-examining every stage of drug development — from molecule to market — in an effort to foster faster innovation.
I chose this sentence just because I thought that it was a really quality sentence. Everything from it's use of the dash to the alliteration "foster faster" really stood out to me as an example of great writing. Also i just really liked "from molecule to market"... kinda catchy.
" I mean, why do we produce books of daily affirmations, vote in droves for a "Yes we can" candidate and fly on airlines whose ebullient flight attendants wear short pants and tell canned jokes before takeoff? "
The sentence builds tension by starting off small and ending big. It's able to make simple descriptions with examples we know and love such as "Yes we Can." It builds to a frustrated finale with it's example of flight attendants.
"Having said all that, please repeat after me: Don't conclude anything about the NBA until a team has played 20-25 games."
I have never seen this phrase/ sentence in the writer im following. this moment just popped out at me because it's speaking to the audience by literally engaging with them. I think this is a creative, and good way to veer you audience back to your paper;even when they're tired with it.
"Out of mind for most surfers, though, has been the rather toxic business of making surfboards and the tons of waste generated from broken boards, old wetsuits and other cast-offs from the nature-boy lifestyle."
I really like the whole idea behind this article and this sentence really stood out to me because of thep hrase "nature-boy" lifestyle. I find this an interesting and effective term to describe a surfing lifestyle. It puts an innovative term to a familiar term, "hippy".
I actually didn't really enjoy this weeks article, but i guess the pop-out sentence would be:
"Watching or reading about him is pretty much the equivalent of (sorry to be so graphic, but there's really no better example) popping an enormous pimple on your chin."
The most memorable sentence of the article, I can't decide if I actually think it's wow-ing. She puts the apology in there, gives it some personality, but it still just seems to be a gratuitous analogy. Made me interested in why, though, so I guess it worked.
"What your citizens imagine now matters more than ever because they can act on their own imaginations farther, faster, deeper and cheaper than ever before – as individuals."
I LOVE this sentence because it achieves a perfect sense of balance. It begins with a longer, more complex idea, then adds a punch with the clever use of alliteration ("farther, faster") and rhyme ("deeper and cheaper"), and finally ends with a BIG dash and a short phrase. Usually only shorter sentences make this kind of impact on me, but I was really impressed that Friedman was able to with a longer sentence.
And one more thing (I really liked his last article):
"Remember what Grandma used to say: Never cede a century to a country that censors Google."
I thought this sentence (which became somewhat of a theme in the article) was hilarious - since when does stereotypical Grandma talk about international power struggles and media censorship?!
"There is something charmingly old-world-meets-new about an 83-year-old man who turns on his modem, signs in, then has time to browse the newspaper and have a cup of tea before his home page loads."
I was kind of obsessed with this week's article. It was full of witty zingers that I could have put here. But for the sake of conciseness i chose this moment. I love the wording of "old-world-meets-new" just as much as I love the idea and the image of an old man reading the newspaper in front of his computer. I just though that all in all this little moment of juxtaposition of modern and traditional was a great snapshot of the funny ways in which generations mesh.
"The woman had filled Kidder's uterus with Lysol."
This sentence came after a graphic description of an illegal abortion and it struck me as being both gruesome and powerful. After the emotional impact of story beforehand, this sentence was a gut-punch. The sentence style is atypical for Flanagan because it has no tricky style. It is just...there. Flanagan often writes complex sentences, but the simplicity here in contrast with the rest of the essay made it all the more potent.
"My 84-year-old mother was full of venomous indignation at dinner last night over the great mammogram take-back"
This was the first sentence in Wolf's piece about the beginning of the "health-care wars", as he calls it. I really liked this sentence, because it drew me in without being an obvious hook. Any essay that starts with "My 84-year-old mother was full of venomous indignation" has got my attention. I also like that, by dubbing it "the great mammogram take-back", he does not lose the dramatic story-like quality of the sentence when he gets to his real point: the mammogram issue.
"Who wants to discuss legislative procedure when there's so much fun and profit in psychoanalyzing Sarah Palin?"
I was so surprised at this bit of very funny real talk that Dionne threw in this week. Usually, his "op-ed" articles read as cut and dry news articles about politics. This biting wit was an unfamiliar side of Dionne that I wish to see more of.
"Why, people ask, would I want to compare us to Belgium and Italy? Both countries are a mess! Um, guys, that’s the point."
This article wasn't that great, therefore this isn't amazing but I love the personality in this, especially the last sentence. The last sentence had "that's the point" italicized. I could hear his tone and his stress on "that's the point". I loved how the sentence came alive in my head as if he was talking. Totally drew me in and caught me off guard because the charts that were in the article made me question why he was comparing Italy and Belgium. Then this sentence came up and I felt kinda stupid for wondering why . The way he writes sets up a certain response from the reader, then he catches it, and responds to as if he is a mind reader.
"It's all I can do not to imagine the mountains of waste these ungodly leviathans produce on your average oceanic journey: The heaps of garbage, sewage, toilet paper, plastic, chemicals and leftover food from the gluttonous buffets, all that clammy shrimp, rotting lettuce and industrial prime rib uneaten by 6,000 largely unhealthy people agreeing to be trapped aboard a floating ring of Dante's inferno for two solid weeks."
I love the use of vocabulary in this sentence. I had no idea what "leviathans" were until I looked it up and found that they are basically sea monsters. I also love the use of "gluttonous" and how it looks on the page as well as "oceanic" and the way it sounds and the colloquial reference to "Dante's inferno." Overall, I think the extended metaphor was used skillfully and effectively.
(I don't know why I can only remember to do this on Monday!)
"Such a method doesn’t befit my father’s memory, but he is the fugitive that I have been searching for all my life, and it is the only chance I have left to see his face."
I thought this was a provoking concluding sentence. The piece details a woman's search for any image of her late father, and this sentence really drills home the feelings of the author. In the previous sentence she mentions sketch artists of wanted posters, and I enjoy the use of the word fugitive in the sentence I chose. I also think the phrase "see his face" is powerful in this context because the natural connotation is of meeting someone face to face, which the author cannot do. However, for her seeing a picture is just as important.
"There they are, when they are not texting their friends, our personal linguistic guides. They stand ready to introduce their elders to the wonders of new slang, as long as it won't get them in trouble. The studious adult can learn a lot, and not just about the words."
This whole article is just absolutely fantastic......Talking about slang that we teenagers use today and how it is affecting our parents.....i loved this article and so far think it might be my favorite. Brotman's mix of truth and sarcasm make her writing so funny and strong and she is constantly pulling me in. This article made me want to know more. I guess i chose the quote above because it is her thesis and from what she says simply and without too much fancy decoration, i understand how the rest of the article will be; especially because her tone is a little sarcastic. Love it!
By the way, I feel Sarah. Sunday is really hard to remember....
"As I scanned through the questions about cancer and heart disease and diabetes, and did a mental inventory of his relatives and their medical imperfections, I felt a rising sense of guilt — these were the genes I had passed along to this perfect baby boy?"
I really like this sentence a lot. I think that it serves as a good launching pad for the rest of the entry on the blog and it helps set up the plot for the story as well. It pops out to me because it's such an interesting concept and the author uses it to her advantage. She makes the reader think about what exactly she's getting at.
16 comments:
"Nuns need to be even more sepia-toned for the über-conservative pope, who was christened “God’s Rottweiler” for his enforcement of orthodoxy."
I love this sentence because of Dowd's descriptive words. Her use of "sepia-toned" allows the reader to really visualize what she's talking about. Also the way she called the pope "God's Rottweiler" is not only hilarious, but is a very accurate description of an "uber-conservative" religious figure.
"Now big-picture thinkers, within the industry and outside it, are re-examining every stage of drug development — from molecule to market — in an effort to foster faster innovation.
I chose this sentence just because I thought that it was a really quality sentence. Everything from it's use of the dash to the alliteration "foster faster" really stood out to me as an example of great writing. Also i just really liked "from molecule to market"... kinda catchy.
" I mean, why do we produce books of daily affirmations, vote in droves for a "Yes we can" candidate and fly on airlines whose ebullient flight attendants wear short pants and tell canned jokes before takeoff? "
The sentence builds tension by starting off small and ending big. It's able to make simple descriptions with examples we know and love such as "Yes we Can." It builds to a frustrated finale with it's example of flight attendants.
"Having said all that, please repeat after me: Don't conclude anything about the NBA until a team has played 20-25 games."
I have never seen this phrase/ sentence in the writer im following. this moment just popped out at me because it's speaking to the audience by literally engaging with them. I think this is a creative, and good way to veer you audience back to your paper;even when they're tired with it.
"Out of mind for most surfers, though, has been the rather toxic business of making surfboards and the tons of waste generated from broken boards, old wetsuits and other cast-offs from the nature-boy lifestyle."
I really like the whole idea behind this article and this sentence really stood out to me because of thep hrase "nature-boy" lifestyle. I find this an interesting and effective term to describe a surfing lifestyle. It puts an innovative term to a familiar term, "hippy".
I actually didn't really enjoy this weeks article, but i guess the pop-out sentence would be:
"Watching or reading about him is pretty much the equivalent of (sorry to be so graphic, but there's really no better example) popping an enormous pimple on your chin."
The most memorable sentence of the article, I can't decide if I actually think it's wow-ing. She puts the apology in there, gives it some personality, but it still just seems to be a gratuitous analogy. Made me interested in why, though, so I guess it worked.
"What your citizens imagine now matters more than ever because they can act on their own imaginations farther, faster, deeper and cheaper than ever before – as individuals."
I LOVE this sentence because it achieves a perfect sense of balance. It begins with a longer, more complex idea, then adds a punch with the clever use of alliteration ("farther, faster") and rhyme ("deeper and cheaper"), and finally ends with a BIG dash and a short phrase. Usually only shorter sentences make this kind of impact on me, but I was really impressed that Friedman was able to with a longer sentence.
And one more thing (I really liked his last article):
"Remember what Grandma used to say: Never cede a century to a country that censors Google."
I thought this sentence (which became somewhat of a theme in the article) was hilarious - since when does stereotypical Grandma talk about international power struggles and media censorship?!
"There is something charmingly old-world-meets-new about an 83-year-old man who turns on his modem, signs in, then has time to browse the newspaper and have a cup of tea before his home page loads."
I was kind of obsessed with this week's article. It was full of witty zingers that I could have put here. But for the sake of conciseness i chose this moment. I love the wording of "old-world-meets-new" just as much as I love the idea and the image of an old man reading the newspaper in front of his computer. I just though that all in all this little moment of juxtaposition of modern and traditional was a great snapshot of the funny ways in which generations mesh.
"The woman had filled Kidder's uterus with Lysol."
This sentence came after a graphic description of an illegal abortion and it struck me as being both gruesome and powerful. After the emotional impact of story beforehand, this sentence was a gut-punch. The sentence style is atypical for Flanagan because it has no tricky style. It is just...there. Flanagan often writes complex sentences, but the simplicity here in contrast with the rest of the essay made it all the more potent.
"My 84-year-old mother was full of venomous indignation at dinner last night over the great mammogram take-back"
This was the first sentence in Wolf's piece about the beginning of the "health-care wars", as he calls it. I really liked this sentence, because it drew me in without being an obvious hook. Any essay that starts with "My 84-year-old mother was full of venomous indignation" has got my attention. I also like that, by dubbing it "the great mammogram take-back", he does not lose the dramatic story-like quality of the sentence when he gets to his real point: the mammogram issue.
"Who wants to discuss legislative procedure when there's so much fun and profit in psychoanalyzing Sarah Palin?"
I was so surprised at this bit of very funny real talk that Dionne threw in this week. Usually, his "op-ed" articles read as cut and dry news articles about politics. This biting wit was an unfamiliar side of Dionne that I wish to see more of.
"Why, people ask, would I want to compare us to Belgium and Italy? Both countries are a mess!
Um, guys, that’s the point."
This article wasn't that great, therefore this isn't amazing but I love the personality in this, especially the last sentence. The last sentence had "that's the point" italicized. I could hear his tone and his stress on "that's the point". I loved how the sentence came alive in my head as if he was talking. Totally drew me in and caught me off guard because the charts that were in the article made me question why he was comparing Italy and Belgium. Then this sentence came up and I felt kinda stupid for wondering why .
The way he writes sets up a certain response from the reader, then he catches it, and responds to as if he is a mind reader.
"It's all I can do not to imagine the mountains of waste these ungodly leviathans produce on your average oceanic journey: The heaps of garbage, sewage, toilet paper, plastic, chemicals and leftover food from the gluttonous buffets, all that clammy shrimp, rotting lettuce and industrial prime rib uneaten by 6,000 largely unhealthy people agreeing to be trapped aboard a floating ring of Dante's inferno for two solid weeks."
I love the use of vocabulary in this sentence. I had no idea what "leviathans" were until I looked it up and found that they are basically sea monsters. I also love the use of "gluttonous" and how it looks on the page as well as "oceanic" and the way it sounds and the colloquial reference to "Dante's inferno." Overall, I think the extended metaphor was used skillfully and effectively.
(I don't know why I can only remember to do this on Monday!)
"Such a method doesn’t befit my father’s memory, but he is the fugitive that I have been searching for all my life, and it is the only chance I have left to see his face."
I thought this was a provoking concluding sentence. The piece details a woman's search for any image of her late father, and this sentence really drills home the feelings of the author. In the previous sentence she mentions sketch artists of wanted posters, and I enjoy the use of the word fugitive in the sentence I chose. I also think the phrase "see his face" is powerful in this context because the natural connotation is of meeting someone face to face, which the author cannot do. However, for her seeing a picture is just as important.
"There they are, when they are not texting their friends, our personal linguistic guides. They stand ready to introduce their elders to the wonders of new slang, as long as it won't get them in trouble. The studious adult can learn a lot, and not just about the words."
This whole article is just absolutely fantastic......Talking about slang that we teenagers use today and how it is affecting our parents.....i loved this article and so far think it might be my favorite. Brotman's mix of truth and sarcasm make her writing so funny and strong and she is constantly pulling me in. This article made me want to know more. I guess i chose the quote above because it is her thesis and from what she says simply and without too much fancy decoration, i understand how the rest of the article will be; especially because her tone is a little sarcastic. Love it!
By the way, I feel Sarah. Sunday is really hard to remember....
"As I scanned through the questions about cancer and heart disease and diabetes, and did a mental inventory of his relatives and their medical imperfections, I felt a rising sense of guilt — these were the genes I had passed along to this perfect baby boy?"
I really like this sentence a lot. I think that it serves as a good launching pad for the rest of the entry on the blog and it helps set up the plot for the story as well. It pops out to me because it's such an interesting concept and the author uses it to her advantage. She makes the reader think about what exactly she's getting at.
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