English+E+Question+14

Please read the text below. It was written by Mark Twain in 1883. In it Twain compares the different ways in which he had seen the Mississippi River, as a young and innocent boat apprentice, to the way he came to understand (or see) the river after he had acquired some experience as a steamboat pilot. He writes that in learning his trade he had 'made a valuable acquisition' but had 'lost something' too. Note that in the first paragraph he describes the river as he had previously seen it; in the second paragraph he recounts how he sees it later. He ends the short essay by comparing his experiences in his own occupation with that of a doctor. When reading please pay attention to the different ways that he describes the Mississippi between the first two paragraphs.

Two Ways of Seeing a River

I would like you to write a similarly descriptive piece of 300-words, two paragraphs in more or less the same manner (don't worry so much about the third paragraph). Consider: what thing in your life have you learned through age, learning, experience to see differently- please make sure that the 'thing' is something that is sensory, something that one (or more) of the five sense can perceive. How did you use to 'see' it for example, compared to the way you do now... How are these two ways different or similar? Be descriptive... that is the key... use your senses to show us the changes you feel.

The response must be completed by 3pm on 11th February, 2011. Thanks.