Murder Without Text Amanda Cross an Example of the Topic Literature Essays by

Murder Without Text Amanda Cross "Murder Without a Text" is written by Amanda Cross, the pseudonym or pen name used by a mystery novel writer named Carolyn Gold Heibrun. Carolyn Gold Heibrun was an American academic and is well known to be a feminist writer. She was born on January 13, 1926 and died in October 9, 2003 after committing suicide, thinking that her life had already been completed. Need essay sample on ""Murder Without Text" Amanda Cross" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed In the short story, Murder Without Text, a murder case was filed against a seasoned feminist scholar. Allegedly, she bludgeoned a student to death. The murder in the story occurred during a highly controversial regarding women's studies senior thesis seminar. Debatable conversation occurred in the seminar wherein a certain early Christian history specialist named Professor Beatrice Sterling, was having a hard time in persuading the students or at least make them understand that researches, especially those which are academic, and canonical texts are very crucial and relevant. The attitudes of the students during the seminar were a bit amusing, especially because it was quite similar, in some extent, to real life situations. It was a bit funny for a decent teacher, specializing in canonical texts, to lose her temper during the seminar, thinking that the students were rude and that it was comparable to rape (Cross, 1992). The method used in solving the crime in this murder case was really amusing and quite intriguing. Solving crimes was possible and was done through the use of dialectics, or personal interviews with other characters, teachers and students. It is something unique as compared to the other murder novels written because the typically adventurous antics which involve a lot of movements and physical actions are not the main tool for solving the crimes or mysteries. It adds to a certain "reality" in the short story. Similarly, interrogations in real life situations are actually a good source of information as to solve a certain mystery, especially about a murder in a public place. As Nichols and Thompson states, the method of solving crimes in the novel includes detection with a curious mixture or certain combinations of intuition and a lot of logic (1998). Carolyn Gold Heibrun, famously known as Amanda Cross, really did a great job in putting or forging a lot of literary links and creativit y in the dialogues and interviews conducted to solve the murder mystery. The short story, Murder Without Text, feminism is a topic which cannot be missed. Amanda Cross' feminism creates a certain foreground of a tension that comes into view between the critiques of one generation to the other, of young students and older teachers or professors. Especially in the aspect of patriarchal masculinism like when the students would constantly talk about real sex-workers or even the real victims of botched abortions and homeless women. The students talking more about these topics seem to cause or give readers a feeling of creepiness. Teenagers nowadays often talk about computers or computer games. Things or topics which are somewhat serious or too technical especially politics and social issues are sometimes neglected. Furthermore, there is a certain difference or clash of opinions between the two generations or between the students and the teachers, especially in the aspect of self-reflexive articulation of the differences among women. The short story provides or shows these differences in forms such as generational, disciplinary and may also include methodological. This occurs not only between the students and the teachers but among the teachers as well. The mystery and intriguing plot, as to how the murder was committed was well told by the author. It is also interesting to imagine that teachers could resort to violence in dealing with their students. When Sterling mentioned that the young, or the students, were generally rude, I somewhat felt like arguing. True, the youth today seem to be a bit radical and really enthusiastic about things, but that's simply it and really rude. Sometimes, students or the youth could be insensitive or a bit selfish, but it is a fallacy to generalize that the youth are rude. The writer, Carolyn Gold Heibrun or Amanda Cross, is able to show that in life, influences of privilege plays an important role. Through the short story, a reader may somewhat realize that world could be unfair and that there may also be dangers even at school. Recapitulating the murder case filed against the teacher, it is a bit humorous to think that teachers, in real life, do kill their students, only figuratively. In some parts of the short story, the author tends to be fond of using quotations. As such, there are some instances wherein the author, Amanda Cross, would seem to force her be dragged in almost each and every scholarly citations (Paul, 1991). The short story is good, for it presents a new kind of solving mysteries. If I would be recommending a short story, then I would recommend Amanda Cross's "Murder Without Text", especially to those who love murder stories and fans of Sherlock. Furthermore, it would be really interesting if this short story, or the collection of Amanda Cross' short stories would be put or made to film. After reading the short story, I am convinced that mystery indeed is fascinating. Works Cited Cross, Amanda. Murder without Text. A Woman's Eye. Ed. Sara Paretsky. New York: Dell Publishing Incorporated, 1992. Nichols, Victoria, and Susan Thompson. Silk Stalkings: More Women Write of Murder. Lanham, Maryland, USA: Scarecrow Press, 2000. Paul, Robert S. Whatever Happened to Sherlock Holmes? Detective Fiction, Popular Theology, and Society. Carbondale, Illinois, USA: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991.

8 Writing Tips for Beginners

8 Writing Tips for Beginners 8 Writing Tips for Beginners 8 Writing Tips for Beginners By Ali Hale Welcome to the wonderful world of writing! However young or old you are, writing can be so rewarding. For some writers, it’s a fun hobby and a creative outlet; for others, it’s a dream career. When you’re just getting started, you might feel excited but also a little daunted – where should you begin? What do you need to know and learn? The great thing about writing is that whatever stage you’re at, you can keep growing your skills and honing your craft. This applies whether you’re a total beginner or a best-selling author: there’s always something new to learn or try. In your early months (or even years) as a writer, these eight tips should help you on your way Tip #1: Try Lots of Different Types of Writing When you’re just starting out, you might not know what you want to write – you just want to write! Or, you might have a firm idea of the type of writing you’d like to do (maybe you want to be a novelist or a poet, for instance). As a beginner, you’re in a great position to try out lots of different types of writing, without needing to commit to one in particular: no-one’s (yet!) demanding your next book. So have a go at a wide range of genres and styles – you might surprise yourself with what you enjoy. I never set out to be a freelancer (my writing dreams were all about being a novelist) †¦ but ten years into freelancing, I still love it, and I’ve written and published three novels too. Tip #2: Read Some Good Writing Blogs or Books †¦ But Not Too Many There are some brilliant books and blogs out there that’ll teach you the basics of writing (and much more): Daily Writing Tips is a great place to begin, of course! For fiction-writers, I always recommend K.M. Weiland’s blog Helping Writers Become Authors, and Nigel Watts’ book Get Started in †¦ Writing a Novel; for non-fiction writers, the Copyblogger blog is a great read, as is Joanna Penn’s book How to Write Non-Fiction. One trap that beginner writers sometimes fall into, though, is that they read and read, trying to learn everything there is to know about writing – but they don’t actually write! So don’t get too caught up in reading: make sure you’re also setting aside time to try out writing exercises, or to develop your own ideas. Tip #3: Start With Small Projects, Not Book-Length Works If you’ve never written much before, launching straight into a novel probably won’t work: either you’ll run out of steam within a few chapters, or you’ll keep writing but you’ll end up with a story that needs an awful lot of work to make it publishable. It’s better to hone your skills on smaller projects first: think short stories if you’re a fiction-writer, or short articles or blog posts if you’re a non-fiction writer. These can be a great way to explore potential ideas and topics without committing to a book-length work straight away. Tip #4: Write Regularly So You Don’t Lose Momentum Some writers think you should write every day: personally, I don’t think that’s very good advice. Maybe your weekdays are very busy, because you work long hours, but your weekends are clear. Or perhaps it’s the other way round: you have some time during the week while your kids are at school, but your weekends are packed with activities. It’s fine to set a writing schedule that suits you and your life †¦ but do make sure you’re allowing yourself time to write on a regular basis. If weeks go by without you writing anything, you’ll inevitably lose momentum. Writing at least once a week works for most people. For those who need extra help fighting procrastination, this post has many tips to beat writers block. Tip #5: Use Clear, Straightforward Words While I’m a huge fan of words, and love the sound of some more unusual ones (eclectic is one of my favourites!) †¦ I think that as a writer, it’s normally best to keep things simple. Even if, in school, you got extra marks for showing off your impressive vocabulary, readers frankly don’t care! You should, of course, use the word that best fits what you mean: sometimes a precise, technical word is the best choice, even if it isn’t the simplest. But in general, keep George Orwell’s advice in mind: â€Å"Never use a long word where a short one will do,† and â€Å"Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.† Needless to say that you should use clear, correct English as well. Using a spellchecker is not enough. Proofreading and editing is essential to produce quality prose. Tip #6: (Fiction Writers) Don’t Mix Past and Present Tense This can sometimes be tricky to get to grips with when you’re new to writing: but if you’re writing piece of fiction, you need to choose between past and present tense. You can tell the story as though it’s already happened: John hurried down the street. Sue ran after him, furious. â€Å"John!† she shouted. â€Å"Come back here!† Alternatively, you can tell the story as if it’s currently happening: John hurries down the street. Sue runs after him, furious. â€Å"John!† she shouts. â€Å"Come back here!† What you can’t do is mix past and present: John hurried down the street. Sue runs after him, furious†¦ Sometimes, there’s a place for switching from past to present tense or vice versa – but be careful that you don’t switch accidentally. Tip #7: (Fiction Writers) Don’t Use the Same Word Too Often If you use the same word repeatedly within a short space of time, it can start to stand out for the reader and become a distraction from your writing. This is particularly true of unusual words (I read a novel recently by an author with a particular liking for the word â€Å"stolid†). Here’s an example: John locked the door before opening the letter. He could hear Sue moving around in the kitchen, just outside the door. As he drew the letter from the envelope, there was a knock on the door. â€Å"John? What are you doing in there? Open the door!† The word â€Å"door† appears four times in that paragraph, and there’s a danger of it having a slightly comic effect. Some words are fine to repeat as often as you like, however: little ones like â€Å"a†, â€Å"the†, â€Å"and†, â€Å"he†, â€Å"she and so on. With character names, too, it’s best to just pick something to call them and stick with it. So don’t try to remove all repeated words – but do keep an eye out for words or phrases that you tend to over-use. Tip #8: (Fiction Writers) Stick to One Character’s Perspective at a Time Even if you’re writing in the third-person rather than the first-person, it’s a good idea to stick to just one character’s perspective in any given scene or passage – this is called â€Å"third-person limited† or sometimes â€Å"deep POV† and contrasts with the â€Å"third-person omniscient† viewpoint that’s typical of classic 19th century literature. Readers expect this close third-person perspective, and it allows you to give the thoughts and viewpoint of one character at a time – helping the reader to identify with that person and to really understand them. Beyond all these tips, though, there’s one thing I want to leave you with: the fact that no-one is born able to write. You may not yet have the skills you want as a writer †¦ but you can develop those skills. A year or so ago, my five-year-old daughter could only write a few words (and often got her letters backwards); now, it’s fascinating to watch her fledgling attempts at writing stories, messages, and even puzzles. Just like her, you could look back a year from now and be surprised at how far you’ve come. Wherever you are right now with your writing, keep on working at it, keep enjoying it, and keep finding new things to learn as you go along. Good luck! Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Writing Basics category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:When to Capitalize Animal and Plant NamesThe Writing Process20 Names of Body Parts and Elements and Their Figurative Meanings

The Medium And Its Impact On The Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Medium And Its Impact On The Society - Essay Example There are a lot of serious defenders and critics of McLuhan’s ideas, and, in my opinion, all of them are right to a greater or lesser extent, although, after my reading of McLuhan’s works and of some discussions around it, I should confess that I could agree with his aphorism: â€Å"The Medium Is the Message†. In this essay, I give several points to explain my opinion. First of all, I would not adjoin those people who understand the meaning of the McLuhan’s work too literally, focusing mostly on the conventional significance of term â€Å"medium† in relation to mass-media communications and the meaning of â€Å"message† only as information. Such understanding, in my opinion, leads to misapprehension or, at least, to a superficial comprehension of McLuhan’s ideas – it does not allow to go beyond simple conclusions that communication technologies are more important (in some miraculous way) than information or content, which technologies transmit, and hence information can be disregarded. In this sense I agree with McLuhan who expresses his harsh opinion as follows: I consider, that according to McLuhan, the â€Å"media† should be understood in more broad, complex meaning – as â€Å"extension of man†, as any phenomenon (social or technological) that can cause structural changes influencing man’s mode of existence. Fishman (2006) also emphasizes that McLuhan treats media as â€Å"extensions of an individuals capabilities and attributes †¦ [and] extension of the mind. These media create perceptual environments, and these environments influence what kind of facts are privileged as important, and what type of stimuli are ignored or overlooked† (p.2). McLuhan (2003) corroborates it: All human inventions, innovations, and ideas are media, according to McLuhan.