Writing Journal-Assignment 8

What are the implications of designing a piece which joins the imaginary (characterization) and the real (current event)?
Instinctively, I don’t really like the idea of combining the imaginary and the real. The implications are that an author can write something real without having ever experienced. For me, there seems to be lacking a certain ethos or authorial credibility. Then, again I’m sure that I’ve read many works that do just that, and it seems to work just fine; nothing too fishy about it.

Have you read any authors who do this regularly in their writing? If so, which authors?
I can’t think of any at this time.

As a reader, how can one determine how reliable the depictions are in a piece of literature which presents itself as autobiographical?
I honestly don’t know for sure. This is something I’m still trying to work out my own beliefs about. However, one way might be to use a very specific person as inspiration, as to try to conform somewhat to a real person’s experiences.

Are there more “reliable” forms for depicting/communicating real historical events, especially to future generations, than the personal account? If so, what might they be? If not, why not?
I don’t think so. I think personal accounts/memoirs/autobiographies are generally going to be the most realiable. I think someone who actually has experience in such events will be the best equipped to give reliable accounts of the historical events.

What impression did the writings on the walls of the Museo Storico della Liberazione di Roma have on you?
I thought the walls were astonishing. They made me feel like a was getting a real glimpse into the human elements of what happened to the people who were held there.

Why did you choose to write about the event you did for this piece?
I think the reason why I chose to write about this even is because I wanted to write about something I have been present for in my lifetime. September 11th would have been my first choice for the event, but I couldn’t think up a character situation that I wanted to elaborate on. So I chose the War in Iraq because it’s something that is present in my life all the time. You can't hang at all these days without it coming up in discussion. And I have seen the hostage videos on CNN, when journalists or reporters are captured. I found this to be a very interesting concept for a story, so I went with it.