Getting Ready To Write

This week I will gather all that I have read and begin composing the literature review for my prospectus. It's amazing how I can start writing and immediately get picky with each sentence I write and each paragraph that I design. In some way or other, I am an architect when I write. I am laying out the landscape. I have to be very strategic with the flow of ideas. My ultimate aim is to present a strong claim and counter any arguments that oppose my claim. During the last semester or so, I have written and re-written so I have pages and pages of fragments that I need to pull together and write...and re-write...and write some more. This is quite a recursive process.

In my previous post, I announced that I am in the stages of creating a new blog in order to feature bits and pieces of my research so that I can concentrate on my research about the works of Douglass and Anzaldua within the context of rhetoric and history during the nineteenth century and twentieth century. Also, I am currently researching all information about Caleb Bingham's "The Columbian Orator," which was profoundly influential in Douglass' life as an orator.

I'm also reading and researching articles about the history of the U.S.-Mexico War, reading up on the life of Jose Vasconcelos, re-visiting my notes on Anzaldua's "Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza"--all to prepare for my presentation at this annual's Rhetoric Society of America Conference. I'll post parts of that research in the new blog very soon.

While I'm on the subject of conferences, my good friend and compatriota, Gary L. Kieffner, a doctoral student in History, e-mailed and shared some great news. He is presenting his paper titled "The Bending of Gender Role Constructs in Riding Communities of the Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century U.S.-Mexican Borderlands" at this annual's conference hosted by the Popular Culture Association and American Culture Association (PCA/ACA).

Congratulations, Gary! It was great hearing from you buddy! Thanks for sharing the great news!

Okay, back to reading and oward with writing.....

Dissertation Prospectus & The Philosophy of Memory

I’m currently putting together my dissertation proposal and I’m being quite strategic with every component of it with regard to each word, every paragraph and the shifting of substantial evidence to support my argument. I’m thinking about its structure in an architectural sense where the literature review is the foundation for the minor parts that rise at different moments to signify the critical components of the proposal.

I’m putting a lot of faith in this project since I’ve had goosebumps just reading a vast amount of critical inquiry related to history, memory, rhetoric and autobiography during the preparation phase of this prospectus.

The works of John Frederick Reynolds, Sharon Crowley, and Frances Yates have been influential, of course. Connecting all of these ideas from all of these inquiries is truly the exciting aspect of composing this proposal!

Along the lines of research and compiling sources, John Sutton, a Philosophy scholar at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia, features an interesting bibliography and index page titled “Memory,” with “Philosophy of Memory” as a list of key sources for extensive research in memory such as kinestethic and skill memory.

Also, check out “Writing and Remembering: Why We Remember What We Write,” an article that I found through John Walter's blog Machina Memorialis, who posted it from Clay Spinuzzi’s blog. Muy interesante!

I’ll give my thoughts on this article next time!

Hasta la proxima!


Currently Listening To:




PJ Harvey, "White Chalk"

The Dissertation Proposal!

I’m currently writing the initial part of my dissertation proposal (by hand, believe it or not). Even before beginning to write about all of the scholarship on memory, I have been seriously thinking about the way in which writing from memory—or remembrance—is an act of pain. I think this is true for the place of memory in poetics. However, in rhetoric, memory is most often associated with the art of memory. Nevertheless, this act of writing is, without a doubt, painful and quite the opposite of having the desire to heal. Writing is torturous. To remember is to feel pain and to write about it is to create the wound.

I’ve also been thinking about why I’m so interested in memory. I guess the important question I always ask: What is there aside from memory? Everything revolves around memory. Many people take herbs and minerals in order to improve their memory. Others buy books and try to improve their memory. Some accept the decline in memory because of age. Others, have excellent memory and disregard it like if it were yesterday’s newspaper.

The art of memory is significant for me because I am in awe of the extraordinary abilities that the Greek and Romans had in order to use the art of memory in order to recall arguments and information needed in the instruction of rhetoric. The art of memory appeals to me because it involves space, time, language and imagination. I am so thankful that Frances Yates recorded all of this history. I am also thankful to Mary Carruthers for writing memory as a way for us to look back and examine how much the mind was elevated to record so much information, which, sadly, is gone with the use and privileging of technology.

I have seriously been thinking about what contribution my scholarship will make to the field. How will I compare with important people like Frances Yates and Mary Carruthers?

Hmmmmm…..until next time…..