Analyzing Otoshi

In their study regarding the implications behind letting students commit to their own controlled peer review sessions, Otoshi discovered the justification for peer review and analyzed the justifications for oral presentation as the ideal form of revising.  

            One of the positive aspects of having students develop their own criteria of grading is that they will naturally be better at applying “the method of evaluation to their own learning styles, and thereby to their own benefit as learners.” Reducing any biases that teachers may impose upon them allows the students not only to learn how to revise in a way that benefits the editor and the person being reviewed but also to approach the method of revision with a more open mind that could allow them to spot errors that could go unnoticed for a teacher. Previous studies we’ve read show that some comments provided by teachers can be contradicting or too interchangeable to provide any real assistance. Peer review can help this process out of its rut by bringing in a fresh perspective to analyze a colleague’s writing. Among the other benefits that students will gain from peer review are developing skills useful in academic life and enhancing interpersonal relationships among learners.

            When conducting the study on the effectiveness of oral presentations, three factors were found to be more apparent than others: The clarity of speech and voice quality, correctness of language, and audience interaction. These three traits of oral presentation were found to be present in descriptions that students attributed to a more effective showcasing of oral rhetoric. These things are without a doubt all part of proper speech and should come in handy when we do our presentations next week.   

Otoshi, Junko & Neil Heffernan. (2008). “Factors Predicting Effective Oral Presentations in EFL Classrooms.” Asian EFL Journal 10.1 (2008). [no pagination]. Web. 

Analyzing Diaz

“So this is what everybody’s talking about! Diablo! I only I’d known. The beauty! The beauty!” The positive affirmation of Oscar’s life well-spent concludes the novel. Fittingly encompassing his optimism in the wake of event that transpired throughout the novel. Curse or not, Oscar ultimately achieves what he had yearned for the entire novel, despite the violence and misfortune of decades spent in his family. He finally earned himself not only a woman to have sex with but one to be intimate to, and Diaz leaves us to conclude whether his fate was Fuku or Zafa, “You’ll have to decide for yourself.” It’s the open-ended finale that reinforces Yunior’s purpose of creating his own Zafa with this story.

As for the reader’s part, though not everything resolves itself, there is no happy ending in the traditional sense after all (not even Oscar’s self-proclaimed “cure to what ails us” is able to reach Lola), there is no denying the efficiency with which the story was weaved together. Oscar ultimately represents another one of the faceless victims that show the repercussions of Trujillo’s dictatorship generations away from their origin. And Diaz brilliantly shows these consequences through a creative blend of magic realism and the more harsh truths that are present in the real world. In a way that best reflects how family and tradition can both protect and harm an individual.     

I enjoyed the novel, though its endless allusions to less conventional works of literature may do it more harm than good. By possibly alienating a group of reader’s Diaz only risks losing Yunior’s Zafa to an audience that isn’t there.  

Díaz, Junot. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. NY: Riverhead Books. 2007. Print. 

Responding to Diaz

Beli’s story culminates with a chance encounter on an airplane on its way to New York.  There she meets the future father of Oscar and Lola. Her segment of the story also marks the most obvious symbolism of Dominican mythology provided by Diaz yet; the beating she takes, and her eventual rescue are ripe with the Haitian imagery seen before in Krik? Krak! An adequate choice, considering Beli’s part of the tale marks the first instances of Fuku laid against the family (and her first instance challenging that curse).

Obviously, Diaz intended for this to be a primary intro to the story, it is here that we see the circumstances under which Oscar and Lola were conceived. Seeing Beli suffer brings into context her relationship with both of her offspring and further cements he family’s beliefs in the Fuku curse. Most importantly, providing Beli’s backstory humanizes her more and helps the reader sympathize with her plight. Which leads to the framing device that Diaz chooses to employ in the novel. Rather than take a linear approach or a flashback narrative, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao develops in an almost twisted timeline. This keeps things interesting by showing us developments that occur over time, then going back and providing the details hat lead to those developments, giving the novel a noir-like quality.

As the book’s narrative continues to encompass more characters, I look forward to seeing how they intertwine with Oscar’s demise. 

Díaz, Junot. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. NY: Riverhead Books. 2007. Print. 

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Pt 1

On "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao", Junot Diaz examines the contemporary upbringing of Oscar and his sister Lola in a Dominican household. Both characters struggle to identify themselves in society. Oscar, despite his initial display of promiscuity, fails to succeed in any sexual encounters throughout his youth and adolescence; eventually becoming afraid that he is going to “die a virgin.” His appreciation of science fiction and appearance hide the innate feelings of love he wants to share with someone. It all reaches an inherent sadness when Oscar becomes friendzoned by Ana in a teasing display of affection.

Though all these traits are exclusive to Oscar, they nonetheless manifest into an equal display of social withdrawal that he shares with his sister. Lola is strong and outspoken, impassioned by youthful rebellion and a real hatred for her culture. The two siblings are an accurate portrayal of a family’s fractured bonds and the shared paternal history that all teenagers choose to disown. Diaz includes a narrative on their mother that reads like a retroactive reflection of Lola’s shaved head and more violent aggression. Though her mother is more subdued. She nonetheless displays similar characteristics when rebelling against La Inca.  

The novel eagerly foreshadows Oscar’s demise and intrigues with the possibility of social comeuppance. Based on her creation of these three layered and complex characters, one can only hope that Diaz resumes to approach his narrative from the alternate perspectives.

Díaz, Junot. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. NY: Riverhead Books. 2007. Print.