Everyone is born with a mind of their own, and everyone has the ability to think and feel the

way that they desire. Are you someone that uses that ability to set your opinions apart from everyone elses? Do you focus on what you like and what you are interested in when reading and writing? Some of us learn to have certain preconceptions of writing, and are taught to have a certain view on what good writing is. However, others consider what good writing is based on their own opinions and their enjoyment of certain types of writing. Good writing can depend on what discourse community one may be apart of, and based on the publics ideas, clarifying the meaning of good writing can be one tough task. A discourse community is a group of individuals bound by a common interest who communicate through approved channels and whose discourse is regulated (Porter, 91). In other words, it is a group of writers that choose to write about a common interest or subject, or even a group of people that study the same things. These communities share assumptions about what objects are appropriate for examination and discussion...and what conventions are followed (Porter, 92). Discourse communities all follow certain regulations, and depending on which community it is, good writing is defined based on a certain outline and criteria. Some discourse communities such as, the scientific community, the medical profession, and justice community are firmly established. In these communities, the system establishes limits and regularities...who may speak, what may be spoken, and how it is to be spoken...what is true and false, what is reasonable and what foolish, what is meant and what is not (Leitch, 145). One must follow these regulations in order for their writing to be considered good writing. In a community, one must agree with what should be said, what it should mean, and what is correct. Discourse communities dont always agree with each other. The rules differentiate in more ways than one. Good writing in a chemistry discourse community can be considered bad to an english discourse community. This ties into the belief that everyones view of good writing is affected by those that you follow, and those that you are writing for. Each community is writing for a certain audience and have to focus their good writing on those people. Being in a discourse community, one doesnt necessarily have to worry about their writing and how its going to effect people outside of their community. This is because people stick to their own community and to what they are interested in reading and writing. A Discourse is a sort of identity kit which comes complete with the appropriate costume and instructions on how to act, talk, and often write, they take on a particular role that others will recognize (Gee, 484) . In a discourse community everyone has to make their own identity. All members of a community follow the same rules. They are made to all talk and write in a way that is recognizable in their specific field of writing or study. Limits lie within every community. Good writing doesnt always depend on what discourse community one is in. Most of the time, the reader isnt even in a community and is just reading for pleasure or for a certain task. They dont have certain guidelines that they pay attention to, or have to follow specific rules when writing. They are free-lancers. Their judgement lies in their opinions and what they believe to be correct. This statement goes back to the belief that everyone has the ability to have their own opinions and likings of things in life. This includes writing. Everyone is entitled to like a type of writing and hate another. The world would be a huge, boring place if everyone thought and viewed things the same exact way. Being different and thinking for oneself makes one who they are. Writing isnt any different. We all write for different reasons, and we all like certain types of writing. Disagreements involving writing happen all the time. For instance, Johnny is a senior in high school, and he loves poetry. It is a way for him to put all of his thoughts and feelings onto a page in a way where he can be creative and in control. A lot of people can be confused and lost when reading poetry because authors sometimes make up their own style and put their thoughts together in a way where one may not understand. Poetry can be one huge jig-saw

Comment [T1]: Strong intro paragraph Comment [T2]: I would introduce why you were mentioning discourse communities before you define it.

Formatted: Highlight

Comment [T3]: I really like this paragraph, it is strong and shows your main point

Comment [T4]: Im not sure if you really need this sentence Formatted: Highlight

Formatted: Highlight

Comment [T5]: Very good points here, supports your main point Formatted: Highlight

puzzle. One must figure out a way to put the puzzle pieces from their heart together and form an easily readable and understandable piece of writing. That is not an easy task, so some people wouldnt consider poetry to be good writing. It takes someone who enjoys poetry to consider it good. Johnnys friend Paul is obsessed with chemistry. He loves everything about it. All of the elements, all of the experiments, and the interesting, new things he learns every day. Paul reads books and articles filled with information and fun facts all about chemistry. Never does he come across a sappy, heart-felt poem. He considers factual and informative writing good writing. See? Everyone has their own taste in writing. Its sad to say, but a lot of people are followers. They follow what people say and believe instead of coming up with their own thoughts. One may have an opinion about something, but then when they find out about what someone else thinks, their mind completely changes. This is a reason why people should reconsider their views on good writing. It is possible to disagree with a form of writing and the way it was written, but that doesnt mean that it shouldnt be considered good. There is no reason why any writing should be judged against. No one can help it if a person thinks putting a bunch of random letters on a page good writing. Maybe they want their readers to be able to decipher it and put it into their own words. There are many clever ways people can write, and if they come up with a new and creative way to write, then they deserve a pat on the back. People will always disagree with other people and discourse communities will always disagree with other discourse communities. But what would you rather want, a world where no one expressed their own interests, or a world where everyone acted and thought the same? No matter what changes in the world, a discourse community will always follow their own rules and maybe sometimes a writer will go out of the box and find their own identity. We have to realize we can all have common interests and goals, but in some way or another we are all going to think differently. Good writing is based on what you enjoy, what you believe to be good. One may have a check-list of what makes writing good, and others may just go with their heart. It is not always based on the literary elements. Writers can surpass the levels of literary elements and still produce good writing. However, there are many people that in their minds, the literary elements are all that counts. The point is, is that good writing can be a few jumbled up words along a blank page or a long, thought out, informative essay, but its what you feel in your heart and what you aspire to read and write that makes it good.

Formatted: Highlight Comment [T6]: I like the example you gave here Formatted: Highlight Formatted: Highlight

Comment [T7]: This sounds confusing, maybe use different words Formatted: Highlight

Formatted: Highlight

Comment [T8]: Very strong conclusion paragraph. It supports your main point and gets the point across. Good job! Formatted: Highlight

Works Cited Gee, James Paul. Writing about Writing: A College Reader Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. Leitch, Vincent B. Deconstructive Criticism. New York: Cornell UP, 1983 Porter, James E. Writing about Writing: A College Reader, Intertextuality and the Discourse Community. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011. Wardle, Elizabeth, and Doug Downs. Writing about Writing: A College Reader. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2011.