Life+Path+Essay

= Life Path Essay: 40 points, due Monday, March 3. (May hand in up until Wed. 3/5 for full credit.) =

Poem by Countee Cullen


===Your writing assignment for //Mountains Beyond Mountains// will be an essay of 2-3 pages in which you explore the notion of a "life path" -- a trajectory of experiences that lead a person to become the adult he or she becomes. This can involve the person's career(s), hobby(ies), family decisions, beliefs, and other key choices or actions.===

===The essay should be divided into multiple paragraphs, each of which explores a different example of an individual whose life path you are able to trace. One must be about Dr. Paul Farmer, and one must be about an adult family member or family friend. The others may be from any other people you've read about, in the summer reading book, the articles we read together in class, Anderson Sa from "Favela Rising," or other people whose stories you know -- either personally or from reading about them.===

===Each paragraph needs to include several SPECIFIC DETAILS about the person's life. In the paragraph about Paul Farmer, you must include at least 1 QUOTE from the book, of anything describing Dr. Farmer or something he said. In the paragraph about your adult family member or family friend, you also need to include at least 1 QUOTE from this person.===

===Your essay should begin with a short paragraph that introduces the idea of a "life path" -- or the role that cause/effect plays in our lives. The essay should end with a short paragraph about your OWN life path and where you believe it may take you.===

To earn the following grades, see the standards below:
=== C: The paper should 1-1/2 to 2 pages long and contain 3 body paragraphs as specified above. The paper must contain at least 2 quotes and be clear, factual, and somewhat thoughtful in the introduction and conclusion. ===

=== B: The paper should be 2 - 2/12 pages long and contain 4 body paragraphs as specified above, focused upon Dr. Farmer, a family member, and 2 other individuals of your choosing. The paper must contain at least 3 quotes and show some depth and insight beyond the factual. The transitions must work to skillfully tie main ideas together. ===

=== A: The paper should be 3-4 pages long and contain 4-5 body paragraphs, covering at least 4 subjects but organized in any way the author chooses. The paper must contain at least 4 quotes and be written with stylistic sophistication and depth, including main themes and transitional commentary. ===

===As a young man just out of the U. S. Navy, my father had no idea what his life path would be. He’d thought he’d dedicate his life to the service, and a superior in the Navy even offered him a chance at becoming an officer. But then my grandfather died suddenly of a stroke, and Dad found himself back in Iowa, helping his mother sell the farm and move into the small town nearby. “I had no idea what I wanted to do,” my dad says. “I figured that if my brother Ed enjoyed teaching history, I probably would, too.” So Dad followed his brother’s footsteps for a while and studied education, until a few things happened that helped him find his own path. First, he met my mother and got married. After working as a teacher for two years in a small Iowa town, the principal of his school suggested my dad commute to the University of Iowa and get a master’s degree. The principal and my dad had some long talks about the benefits of getting a master’s in Guidance Counseling, since schools were beginning to develop counseling departments, and my dad showed good skills in listening and understanding kids. That degree brought him to Illinois, where he was hired by a junior high in Glenview to start a counseling department. Dad ended up staying at that school for 32 years. When my mother got sick, Dad found that he was having a hard time with his counseling role, though. “I had a dying wife and four small children at home,” Dad remembers. “It was really hard for me to counsel adolescents about their own personal problems when I was so overwhelmed by my own.” So he went back into the classroom, teaching history and English. His love of reading and history has never waned. Even now, living in a retirement home near where he raised us, Dad spends most of his time sitting in his recliner reading huge books about U. S. Presidents and key moments in world history. He is content with the life he’s lived and enjoys being a life-long student of the world.===