Project Week 1 10/28/2020

Writing about Place.html

Writing about Place

In the introduction to his book, LifePlace: Bioregional Thought and Practice, Robert L. Thayer Jr. writes:

“Somewhere in the swirl of life, each of us ponders three essential questions: ‘Who am I?’ ‘Where am I?’ and ‘What am I supposed to do?’ We often consider the first question in isolation, as if it were the true key to our existence—as if the matter of who we are could be resolved independently of the two remaining questions. But all three of these questions must be answered in [concert], as together they articulate the totality of the human condition…. Questions of our existence and action are separable neither from each other nor from place—but it is place that we have most often ignored” (Thayer, 2003, p. 1).

What is “writing about place”? The term place can mean many things—you live in places, shop in places, and seek recreation in certain places and peace and quiet in others. Your place in the world is where you physically live and work, but these places are much more than the background for your life. Who you are is defined largely by the places you have been, the place you call home, the place you work, the places you love—the places that, for many reasons, shape your relationships to others.

For the purposes of this course, place is a location where meaningful interaction occurs between individuals and the spaces that they inhabit. Within this definition of place are cultural, political, and economic issues that evolve and are changed by the people who inhabit various places.

Places are rich subjects to explore and write about. Yet you may find it hard to imagine that the places you inhabit deserve serious attention. Who cares about your hometown, school, or neighborhood? And doesn’t it require truly gifted artists to make audiences appreciate special locales? Sometimes it does. But almost anyone can learn to respond powerfully to the neighborhoods of the world. All it takes is identifying those elements that make a place important and special. Sometimes we grow attached to places because they are described to us so intensely and powerfully that they carve out a permanent spot in our imaginations.

In Week 1 of this course, you will write about place through the lens of your own personal experience and history. In Weeks 2-5 you will identify an issue that concerns, defines, and/or divides the place you have described and, using your own perspective as well as outside research, construct a persuasive essay about that issue.