Brown and Holmquist both chose a personal topic to research that they were curious about. Brown wondered why people tan and realized that everyone feels healthier with a golden tint. She explored the idea of tanning beds and voiced her opinion about how beds cheat you from the natural way of tanning. Holmquist explored the topic of drugs and was once a drug user. He already understood why people take these dangerous drugs, but soon discovered that these drugs are deadly. He states that "I have my whole life ahead of me still and I don't want to end up as another statistic or have one of my friends write a paper like this because of me." (Holmquist B29) Both essays gave facts while showing personal thought at the same time.
At the beginning of Brown's essay, she wonders why anyone would tan and have results of wrinkles or even skin cancer. Then she realized that she had a tan from the summer and not from a tanning bed. She was satisfied with feeling tan and knowing that it was from "the old fashioned way, playing in the sun." (Brown 458) Whatever happened to enjoying the outdoors? Who would want to pay for a tan when they could just go outside? "2/3 of the teens say they look better with a tan and feel better with a tan and feel healthier, more sophisticated and 50% said they look more athletic." (Brown 460) Teens feel the need to be tan, and as a result, tanning beds are making money and giving people cancer. I have a friend who recently had skin cancer removed from her leg as a result of fake tanning, so I take this topic very seriously. I think that Brown does a good job of saying that tanning may not be the greatest thing for the body, but at least enjoy the outdoors while doing so. Her four sources give facts about tanning and really helps her show her thoughts on the sun, tanning salons, and whether or not the sun is really a bad thing. She showed me how a research paper can be used to explore a topic that is interesting to the writer. In my essay I want to choose my topic on something that I am really curious about like Brown.
Holmquist had a very interesting topic and one that was obviously very important to him. Being a drug user and exploring the danger of drugs must have brought back some memories for him, but he was able to focus on how the three party drugs affect the mind and the body. "Most users view party drugs as being safe." (Holmquist B26) He discovered how he was putting himself in danger and was able to tie personal experience in with his research. His sources help him show how these drugs make you feel and how they have bad affects. For instance, ecstasy also known as MDMA " has become popular because of its ability to create companionship and attachment for young people who are seeking, but feel weak to ties to society." (Holmquist B26; Pederson 1704) Who wouldn't want to love and be more open to people? Maybe if people knew that it is possible to "get overheated and if not treated immediately death is possible," (Holmquist B28; Boot 2000) they would think twice before using it. He also explores the use of LSD and GHB and their affects. A lot of personal experience led to the topic of this essay. "What would make these people feel so passionately about their pro- or anti-drug views? Is something that the government finds harmful, yet so many people say is harmless, really that bad for you?" (Holmquist B24) I think that these questions sparked Holmquist's discovery essay. In my essay I hope that I can relate personal experience to my sources as well as Holmquist and I think his writing style will influence how I write my paper. I like how he starts with a personal experience of using drugs and then dove into the topic of why people use these drugs and how they are bad for you. He used many sources, more than the usual four.
Both essays use many of Ballenger's suggestions and have shown me how a research paper can be used to explain personal curiosity.
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I agree that Holmquist's use of a personal story in the introduction of his essay really hooked the reader. He develops this personal connection with his subject right away, which I think keeps the reader interested. I also want my paper to follow this idea. However, I am having difficulties finding a possible topic. There are a lot of things I am interested in, but I do not have personal experiences with all of them. Though I could possibly develop my essay out of them, I want to find a subject I can connect to like Holmquist does, because I think it will make my research more interesting and my paper entertaining for readers.
I really like when you said that "She showed me how a research paper can be used to explore a topic that is interesting to the writer". Typically, I think of a research paper as something dreadful to write about—a topic that I have no desire to explore. These discovery essays were very different, however, in the fact that they were about interesting topics that are worth learning more about and discovering. This definitely showed me that I can actually write a paper that is interesting to both me and the reader. I also want to relate personal experiences in my essay as you said that you hope to do. I feel that it really draws the reader in, making the discovery essay more relatable. Also like you, I feel that Holmquist will shape my writing style too.
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