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Writing Program at New College

Assignments - "This I Believe"

(Nanette's version. Courtesy also of NPR. A great choice for any of our courses).

For thousands of years communities of faith have identified themselves with short, carefully worded statements of belief, or creedsEven today, when someone claims to follow a set of beliefs or principles, we often identify these as a credo, literally Latin for “I believe.” In the history of religion, creeds have both united and divided believers through statements that sometimes differed only by a few words. Muslims have gathered daily to confess, “There(

For thousands of years communities of faith have identified themselves with short, carefully worded statements of belief, or creedsEven today, when someone claims to follow a set of beliefs or principles, we often identify these as a credo, literally Latin for “I believe.” In the history of religion, creeds have both united and divided believers through statements that sometimes differed only by a few words. Muslims have gathered daily to confess, “There

is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet” even as Jews have repeated, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord.” The Christian creeds taught the mystery of “one God” in three persons before Protestant reformers questioned all human creeds, turning to “scripture alone” as the last word. 

In the 1950s, journalist Edward R. Murrow hosted a weekly radio series inviting listeners “to write about the core beliefs that guide your daily life.” At a time of political and cultural anxiety, the show asked Nobel laureates and everyday citizens to articulate their personal articles of faith even as it called them to listen carefully to the beliefs of others. In 2005 This I Believe was revived for NPR as a way “to encourage people to begin the . . . difficult task of developing respect for beliefs different from their own.” Tens of thousandsof Americans have written in to join Colin Powell, Gloria Steinem, and TonyHawk in returning the dialogue of beliefs to American broadcasting. 

You will write a 3–4 page personal essay describing an idea or a principle you believe in. Remember, personal essays often include elements of personal narrative [focused on a significant event in the writer’s life] and/or personal memoir [focused on a significant relationship between the writer and a person, place or object]. Yet, the personal essay builds upon these events and relationships to share a belief or insight about life. We have read one example of this so far in the This I Believe essay, “Greetings.” As you enter your own invention process, you will have the opportunity to examine the way other authors employ elements of narrative and memoir to express their beliefs and practice your own hand at it when composing this essay.

A Successful Response Will:

  • Share a guiding belief from the student’s life
  • Utilize elements of personal narrative and/or personal memoir to share this belief
  • Exhibit authentic voice, narrative coherence, and communal relevance
  • Encourage/persuade the reader to respect this belief
  • Be well edited for grammar, spelling, and usage
  • Be 3-4 pages and adhere to MLA conventions (Times New Roman 12pt font, double spaced, 1-inch margins, heading, etc.)
  • Be submitted by the start of class on Tuesday September 27th  

What You Will Turn In on Tuesday September 27th     

  • Final Draft of TIB Essay– hard copy and digital copy
  • Rough Draft with Peer Review Worksheet – hard copy
  • Writing Workshop Invention Work from September 20th  – hard copy 

Note: The final draft and rough draft MUST be typed in Times New Roman 12 pt. font, double spaced. Please see the syllabus for further formatting details.

Writing Program