Vagueness can be described by many uncertainties in life and it is based upon a persons’ natural selection of thinking. In the modern world, we tend to be guided by the fact that law creates order and subsequently through order we get common ways in understanding concepts which are simple to understand. Writing is a great example to which we can relate to through this concept. From a young age, we all have been taught the fundamental laws of writing which we have been following throughout our lifetime. There are many tools in writing. but a key tool which is used more often than not, is the tool of repetition to make the ideas of writing more clear. Donald Murray is the author of ‘One Writers Philosophy of Composition’ where he in great effect showed us the very essence of writing. In this essay, he allows readers to think outside the box on the concept of writing and he revealed his ideology through the main question which was: What makes a great writer? I really liked the way in which he targets the main concept and mechanics of writing and has helped me in my point of view of writing as well. It can also be a way for some people to be in a state of shock being the fact that the laws in what they were taught, often brought clarity to their work but after they had read this essay, the sense of vagueness came into their lives. The way in which Donald Murray portrayed his visions in the story was by repeating two quotes throughout the story where these quotes are the epicenter of the events occurring in this essay and through the concept of repetition it is a much easier way for the writer to convey his message to the reader on the crisis of laws suppressing individualism in the field of literature.

Murray states that “A writer is an individual who uses language to discover meaning in experience and communicate it” (The Carolina Reader, pg. 26,27,28). This is the first of two quotes in which this essay was featured around. Essentially through this case, Donald Murray creates an argument between himself and the reader on what they both think is the best skill set a writer should have. Through his use of repetition to create an argument with a reader and the text, the author can tap into the mind of a reader. Murray presents this ideology by creating an argument with the reader that there is no correct structure of writing when he states, “I have certainly read, and unfortunately purchased, most of the bad books about how to write by writers published in the last quarter century...and what I have read in those books has been reinforced to the testimony of writers I have known” (The Carolina Reader, pg 25). I don’t think he meant that the testimony has affected the people he knew but essentially every single person around the world who has gone through the education system in the field of English literacy. I find this profoundly true and a counterargument to this statement is that it creates a feeling of discontent within the reader’s head of what they were learning their whole lives of whether they were taught the right manner in writing or the wrong manner in writing.

The first major quote was an essential asset for the first half of the essay and after giving his point of view in the lack of flexibility in the world of English literacy. Murray gave his opinion half way through his essay relating to the first major quote in the story which was stated in the last paragraph which was, “if the writer does not feel that through writing he will discover something which is uniquely his he may soon concentrate on craft rather than content and speak with tricks rather than truth” (The Carolina Reader, pg 26). This quote tells us that individualism comes within ones’ self and point of view, and through this concept of individualism the writer will have self-satisfaction and comfort in his own work whereas if writers concentrate more in the laws of writing which are not integrated into their style of writing they tend to get lost in words and lose the main intent in the content of the story. I am in favor of this argument as writing is a way of translating thoughts into words and its contents should be shown through the writer’s intuition not be dictated by the fundamental laws of writing.

At the end of his stint of using the first quote as a reference to convey his ideas, he wrote “the writer uses verb and noun, phrase and sentence, paragraph and page, to explore his world” (27). This states that not only is writing a way to entertain the whole reading community, but it is also a path to self-discovery and it is one of the many positive aspects in being a writer. As stated, every single aspect of writing whether it be sentences or paragraphs can be a way of reflecting the writer's image onto himself. This quote justifies his side of the argument where he sees that writers who follow his theorem tend to be more pleased and more aware of their world.

The second and last major quotation in this essay states “A student writer is an individual who is learning to use language to discover meaning in experience and communicate it” (The Carolina Reader, pg 29). It is clear to see Murray, in this quotation, is not targeting the general population of writers, but rather he is speaking to students of writing group. Students are people who are in the process of learning. Through this quotation, he is now creating an argument between the content of this story and specifically the student writers. In the beginning of his argument, he states “There is no one way to write and there is no way for the reader to learn to write. We must accept the individual and appreciate his individualness” (The Carolina Reader, pg 29). This quote conveys a powerful message and it greatly supports the second main point. Where Donald tells us that in order to showcase ones’ talent we must accept and try to understand their point of individualistic ideas. I agree with this statement, as we try to understand and go along with the ideas of the individual, we can truly gain a new perspective of the world we live in. However, an opposing view to this is that there are people who tend to see change as a step backwards in the current progress of literature which is a false perspective in how people should view this world. It is false due to the fact that field of the knowledge of literature is not static but it is always evolving as our understanding of the world brings out more clarity in our lives.

As we approach the end of this essay Donald Murray up with the quote “The student should discover language is fun because it is a sturdy tool for the exploration of experience” (The Carolina Reader, pg 30). In this quote, Donald is trying to tell us that writing can be a tool to be free and a medium of having fun as students are usually more keen to learn new things and they do not appreciate the act of following methods which suppresses their thoughts and experiences. I think that this quote applies to all readers and they should embrace their imaginations and run wild through the action of writing words.

In the introduction, it was stated that law brings order and clears the vagueness in everyday life, and many other people agree with that concept. Writers break laws in writing the create ambiguity for the reader which makes it harder for them to understand the concept. But it is safe to say, only a small selected population thinks this way. I would look to answer the question stated in the introduction which was ‘What makes a good writer?’. By assessing all the arguments that Donald had portrayed through his essay, a writer is a person who conveys their individual characteristics into words and reflects their own experience onto himself and onto his readers without the suppression of the laws which are against them. Coincidentally a student writer should embrace their own individualism to explore their own world to understand and to help them in tackling the challenges in the world to enhance their growth process.