Accordion to 12AP

"Careful boys: a symbol need not be a cymbal" As I read this line from the X-raying Gatsby passage on my cozy couch, I suddenly remembered an article I read about a month that dealt with the overanalysis of books. The article was about a novelist called Kevin Jackson whose books were criticized for using certain adjectives as "a phallic symbol for his deep, primal Oedipal desire to have sex with his mom." Honestly, this type of analysis is pretty common in modern schools where teachers and students make observations on specific words in a book that reflects the author's attitudes towards things. And a lot of times, the evidence is really obvious and was intentionally added in by the author to show his/her thoughts, but also a lot of times, the "evidence" we find is not very solid. For example, I remember some teachers taking a children's book and analyzing how the author used words symbolized ancient myths and the bible. Yeah, I am sure the author

      Throughout my school life, I have tried multiple times to write a vivid and meaningful story and failed miserably. I still remember crying when my teacher back in China pretty much roasted me about my bland descriptions. To this day, I still think I have not grasped the way to write a compelling story. But after the heavy emphasis placed on our voice in storytelling, I think I finally stepped in the right direction to a great storyteller. For example, my first college essay draft I wrote was the same as my other attempts, bland and unenjoyable. However, after learning about this importance of voice, I realized that before I was too focused on how I need to follow a set of rules to write a professional essay, but the story I was writing in the college draft is supposed to be a reflection of myself and my growth. I allowed my mind to flow and just write what comes to my mind. As a result, the newer draft is way more inter esting to read than the old and I was able to find my voice