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Dinty Moore speaks about the contemplative essay and how it pertains to writing as a whole. As stated on pg. 52 "Accomplished authors often comment on the idea that they have little or no sureness of what they want to say until they've actually put it down on the page."
ReplyDeleteThe reason for this is because to write is to explore the depths of our own minds a translation of the abstract conceived in our minds into text. This is especially true with the contemplative essay. Farley's work "Ashes to Ashes" is a very well done contemplative essay. It contains enough exposition to justify Farley's expedition to the city of Varanasi, India and also delves into the attitudes towards death. The very first sentence already sets the tone of the essay and how death is perceived by different cultures. In all Farley follows the model of the contemplative essay as described by Moore which makes for a compelling, thoughtful read.
Eutimio Longoria
“Ashes to Ashes” details the journey of its author David Farley to Varanasi, a place in India of great spiritual importance to many people. He describes the intricacies of what daily life is like for the people living there such as the spiritual significance they have in this land and duties the Dom Rajas and doms must perform as well as the hectic hustle and bustle of city life in this region of the world. Overall, this article felt like it was similar to the last two that we read in that the author is an alien foreigner in this land or situation, but on a much more grander scale and one that seems to have had a much more profound impact on his life. Moore’s “Writing the Spiritual Essay” deals with asking ourselves the big questions when it comes to our existence such as why we are here and if there is indeed a Higher Power at play. He states that when writing about your personal beliefs (spiritual or lack thereof), you don’t have to answer everything all at once and instead start out small and look to your past for examples. Overall, Farley’s article opened up a new world for me regarding how another culture sees death while Moore’s chapter showed me what questions to ask myself when writing my essay.
ReplyDeleteNarciso Garcia
In Moore’s “ Writing the Contemplative Essay”, he says that, “...the happy byproduct of arranging the perfect sentences in the exact order necessary, of capturing in language those moments that most people simply dismiss as being “too hard to put into words” is that one has a richer life. Knowing what we think see, feel, and what it all may mean to us beyond the current moment leads inevitably to a deeper appreciation of all that surrounds us, both the joys and the challenges.” I carried this with me through the reading and because of this, I think “ Writing the Contemplative Essay” has been my favorite chapter to read so far. Moore lets us know that writing a contemplative essay is about you, the author, finding words within yourself to get the audience thinking, contemplating. Moore also said, “ When I try to explain a complex thought process to my friends at the dinner table, I usually stamber, stumble, contradict myself, lose my way, and follow numerous inefficient paths back to my main point.” He continues to tell us how writing an essay is different (and better) from actually speaking because we have the luxury of editing and rethinking. I could relate to this because I have always been better at explaining my own thoughts on paper. I took the things Moore mentioned with me while reading Farley’s “Ashes to Ashes”. The article was well written, as a contemplative essay should be. All I could think about is, I probably could not speak or tell a story like this by just speaking because I would probably wander and get off topic, which brings me back to what Moore said about writing down your contemplative thoughts being a luxury because you get to write and re-write them as much as you want to get your point as clear as possible for the audience.
ReplyDelete-Starleen Rendon
Within Moore’s “Writing the Contemplative Essay” and David Farley’s “Varanasi: India’s Soul City”, we are given the perfect example of how an essay should provide topics that will make the reader contemplate after reading. In Farley’s work, the question is about the presence of death. Farley travels to Varanasi, one of India’s holiest cities. He observes how they deal with death a staple in the cycle of living, and how different that is from the West and their views on death. This moment of internal contemplating is what makes Farley’s work a true contemplative essay. As Moore wrote, “So the contemplative essay combines the sense of freedom thinking with careful editing to create the artifice of good conversation. Of course, you can’t have actual conversation, unless you are coauthoring with another person, so it falls upon you to hold up both ends” (pg. 53). This examples to authors that if they are looking to contemplate a subject in their writing, it is up to them to both support and tear down both points of view. This is what makes a contemplative essay truly contemplative. If the author can both support and fight against his topic, it allows the reader to truly grasp what is being contemplated, and thus for them to understand what you yourself have discovered.
ReplyDeleteDavid Leal
In “Ashes to Ashes” by David Farley we see him traveling to Varanasi in northeastern India in hopes of finding peace, accepting death, and clarity for all the chaos of his life back in the states. I really enjoyed the essay. I have always wanted to visit India and Farley holds our hand and takes us with him on his trip to Varanasi where “the dead arrive to have their bodies burned to ashes on a pile of banyan or sandalwood at one of two cremation grounds.” My favorite part from the excerpt was when Farley thought that Dom Raja Nehna would have some deep explanation as to why he find pleasure in being in the cremation grounds yet Dom Raja Nehna said, “because I can see all the money I’m making.” Farley goes on to show the difference between Americans deal with death and how India’s deal with death. In the end, Farley achieves the peace and clarity he was in search for by simply letting go and meditating on himself. I find that Hinduism is a very peaceful religion and I liked that Farley described smells, and people he meet and described their beautiful culture.
ReplyDelete-Joy Perez
“Ashes to Ashes” was a great essay I loved it entirely. In the beginning, Farley states, “India’s holiest city embraces the cycle of life” I wasn’t necessarily prepared to read what was coming. I didn’t know what to expect from the reading. Farley goes to India to see how Varanasi is practiced. Varanasi is to achieve Moksha a reprieve from the cycle of life and death. As westerners, we view death differently, some people are scared of death and don’t like to talk about it or even that even be around it. Farley mentions whenever you go through an experience of losing a loved one because they die you begin to lose friends also because they don’t know how to deal with loss or being there for someone. In Ashes to Ashes, we are taken in a journey and it is described in great detail, but the detail flows in such way that I felt like I was there as well. The experience didn’t feel uncomfortable it felt like a privilege being able to hear what Farley had to say. In Moore’s essay he states, suggest alternative ways of looking into things. That’s what the contemplative essay is all about (53). Farley plays around with this method a lot because he introduces Dom Raja and how he viewed his job and how he felt about it. Also, he introduces us to S.B Patel and how he views and felt about this and Patel States” Yes,” he said “but I can’t show it. It’s bad karma for the soul of the dead in mourners show grief during the cremation”, Patel respected his sisters wishes. Farley gave us different views which made the essay real strong in my opinion. We all view death differently and it was great reading how Varanasi saw death as something different something of no fear and they embraced death.
ReplyDelete- Abigail Vasquez
“The rewards of publication are fleeting, while the rewards of a regular writing practice are countless” (Moore, 51). Moore explains the contemplative essay just as it is a free-form way of thought. Just as when are speaking to yourself in thought the words that flow through. This is how your contemplative essay should be. Yet, often get lost thought where this in then can become a problem. Either way this form of essay can be very interesting if you get lost in thought so will the reader and depending of the article you read it can be a very interesting one. In “Ashes to Ashes” by Farley, we read about a traveler whom researches of the dead in a way where he visits Varanasi where the living and dead go to be spend the rest of eternity. Some people have their bodies sent to Varanasi and be burnt hence the name of the article Ashes to Ashes. Farley shows an example of a contemplative essay where is flows naturally, and is from pure memory.
ReplyDelete-Christina Velasquez
Contemplative is defined as expressing a prolonged thought. So a contemplative essay is just that, expressing your thoughts on maybe a certain subject or a question you might have. I like how Moore says that when he’s in front of people he talks about a certain subject and seems to lose it because of the complexity of that thought but when he writes it down it become better because you can edit it and explain fully what one means. I mean for me its like when I get excited about a new idea for a story I might have and explain to my friends. It makes so much sense to me but when I talk it out I miss things and my friends are like, what? Then they read what I write and their like, oh! I like this! So it’s similar. Now the essay we read was about David Farley’s thought on death and how death is viewed differently in India as opposed to the American view. Live as if you were to die tomorrow and yet no one wants to die. Death is scary; I know that, I too am afraid of death. Before I read this I knew about their views on death because my father is a spiritual person who reads all types of books. He’s told me about these things before, he’s even told me he does not fear death, what he fears the most is leaving us behind without the tools to survive. These tools he calls are books. Spiritual books. I have yet to read one though. I probably should, I would learn what many have yet to learn.
ReplyDeleteAlejandra Rodriguez
Moore’s “Writing the contemplative essay” was very informative and interesting for me because I mean I have never been much to write journals/diaries. That is basically how I see contemplative essays, diaries of some kind but just more advanced. On page 51, Joan Didion’s quote: “I write to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at, what I see, and what it means.” This quote helped me understand what a contemplative essay really is. We go into deeper meaning as to who we are as a person and what type of writer we could become or are as of right now. Sometimes, like Moore, I mumble, stagger, stutter, contradict myself and go off topic. So much in fact that I get made fun of by family, friends and loved ones I am made fun of. However, when It comes to my writing I get my points across and become understandable. Sure, lots of that is thanks to my ability to revise and correct myself, but it is better. That is how I see contemplative essays… us speaking to someone or an audience of people using our writing rather than our speaking skills.
ReplyDelete-Marco Garza
By reading, “Writing a Contemplative Essay” by Dinty Moore, I gathered that the goal is to attempt to answer what you do not know. I mean the meaning of contemplate is for one to think so it makes sense that he would suggest that we focus on what we don’t know. His point earlier is that if you have your mind made up on something, then you won’t be thinking for long. If your answer it unsure, then that means you’re going to need to think, contemplate, on the answer to the question you’re asking. You have to think more than if you knew to answer to that question to become certain that is the conclusion that you seek. I enjoyed the reading so much that I took notes on his tips in my journal. “Ashes to Ashes” by David Farley was an insightful essay in the topic of death. David Farley’s essay was focused on spiritual enlightenment in the city of Varanasi. I don’t always look into other culture’s beliefs, but I respect them. After reading it, it made me question several things that I avoid answering. What is life after death and am I ready for it? After I finished reading the essay, I gained interest in wanting to see Varanasi for myself one day.
ReplyDelete-Benito Reyes
“Writing The Contemplative Essay” was a good read. I could really relate when Moore says “When I try to explain a complex thought process to my friends at the dinner table, I usually stamber, stumble, contradict myself, lose my way, and follow numerous inefficient paths back to my main point.” A lot of the times I have a hard time trying to explain my thoughts, or ideas to my friends or family and it always just seems better and easier when its on paper. Moore also mentions that as writers we have the luxury to edit our papers. I really like that he compared it to the ballet dancer, that behind the perfect leap was hard work and lots of practice. “Ashes to Ashes” was a great read as well I really liked that he went in to great detail through out his story. I feel like it really helped me engage in the reading and imagine all that was happening through out his trip in Varanasi. Before reading David Farly’s Essay, I had no knowledge on the city of Varansi, so I thought it was interesting to have an insight on the city and the culture itself.
ReplyDeleteLeslie Luna
I really enjoyed “Ashes to Ashes” by David Farley, because we can picture him traveling to Varanasi in northeastern India, in which he goes in hopes to find peace, to accept death and clarity after all the chaos that he has had in his family back home. He observes how people in India deal with different things and sees the different views on death and how they are different from the West. He explains to us how death is seen in different cultures, which in this case, bodies are sent to Varanasi to be burnt, leading to the title of the essay, “Ashes to Ashes”. This essay can be compared to a meditative essay, because you are in a way thinking out loud and in thoughts letting words flow. In “Writing the Contemplative Essay” by Moore, he explains to us that in order to go in depth with what you write, you must go in depth with your own thoughts. I liked when Moore said that when he is in front of others he talks about a certain topic, but then goes off topic, which often happens to me, but when you’re writing you can edit it and explain things one by one, and get back on track.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed what Moore had to say in this chapter. For me at least, I think I make a lot more sense with written words as opposed to spoken ones. Don’t get me wrong, I love to talk, but I feel the most honest and comfortable with myself when I write my thoughts down. Usually, I write a poem. It’s my preferred writing style, but lately, I’ve been dwelling in the world of short stories. Like most of us, I use my writing to figure things out. Sometimes it works and sometimes I end up with even more questions. As for Farley’s piece, I can’t say that I’d ever heard of this city. I They’re extremely comfortable with death and hold public cremation ceremonies. think that’s pretty fascinating, but it does freak me out a little. Mexican culture has Dia de Los Muertos where our deceased are celebrated. There are parties, picnics in cemeteries, altars built for the stars of the show, but it’s not something that I’ve ever experienced. This is for two reasons mainly. One, my family doesn’t celebrate Dia de Los Muertos so most of my info is second hand. Second, I’m happy to say that I haven’t experienced the death of a family (close or not) member or a close friend. To me, it’s something really foreign and I’ve never had to deal with that. Because of this, it’s a little hard for me to relate to Farley’s essay with anything other than curiosity.
ReplyDelete-Angie Acuña
"Writing the Contemplative Essay" discusses putting your thoughts down on paper. You have all these thoughts you want to express, yet you find a hard time doing so because your thoughts are speaking much faster than your words. Then you don't get the exact point you were trying to get across because you hadn't truly contemplated your thoughts. Moore shows here how writing your thoughts down can allow you to express your points differently than what you may say in a regular conversation. I feel I can relate to this due to me feeling I express myself better in writing than in words. I've noticed that I never truly state the right points I want to make in a conversation as opposed when I have the chance to really visualize them and express enough to write about them. Writing your thoughts down is also a great way to improve your overall writing skills (not just in essay writing).
ReplyDelete"Ashes To Ashes" is a travel essay where David Farley describes his experiences in the city of Varansiri. Based on experiences that I've heard from people, traveling to a foreign city with a strongly different is one of the last things I'm interested in. But it's clear that Farley contemplated the thoughts he wanted to write about Varansiri with how detailed and precise his explanations are. It doesn't necessarily make me interested in visiting Varansiri, but I can at least truly imagine what the city is like. That right there is Farley's main purpose of a writer.
Michael McCormick
In Moore’s Writing the Contemplative Essay, he discusses ideas and what the writers may bring. I enjoyed this essay more than I should. Moore talks about putting the writers idea down and setting a nice narrow path for the reader. I like putting my ideas down on paper because it helps me understand what it is I’m thinking. Everyone has an idea or a fascination with something. It’s the writers job, whether they want to put out there or not, to set up a clear path that leads the reader “down the rabbit hole.”
ReplyDeleteIn David Farley’s essay Varanasi: India’s Soul City, he discusses his travel to India, while understanding death. Many years ago, Farley lost a friend, and his family and friends didn’t want to talk about it. The idea of death is not a topic expressed or acknowledged in Farley’s world. Farley talks about his brief stint at a retirement home, for me, it meant that people didn’t want to see people dying of old age and placed the elderly in retirement homes. When Farley goes to India he’s taken back, with the people of India and how open they are about death. Death is welcomed in Varanasi. Farley goes in weary of what is going on but embraces everything. I believe this essay was important because it talks about death, a subject people don’t want to talk about even though we are all going to die.
mathew betancourt