10 Rules of Writing

When reading the article "Margaret Atwood's 10 Rules of Writing" I found it extremely interesting to see the mechanics of an author's brain. It is very seldom that a reader takes the time to understand just how much time and thought goes into constructing a novel, whether it is a "best seller" or not. What I enjoyed about this article was the fact that Atwood discusses the difficulties of writing a piece that grabs the attention of all readers; I never truly thought about how many different lenses a writer must look through. For instance, as Atwood describes in rule six, " What fascinates A will bore the pants off B." In my own writing, I do not often think about this, I always feel that the topic I write about would interest others. This tool of perspective is something Atwood has raised awareness toward for me, especially if I want others to believe that my own "story" could relate to him or her.
I also enjoyed learning that Atwood uses a thesaurus, a grammar book, and a "grip on reality." When she says "Writing is work" I can now appreciate all of the precise details that go into crafting the perfect novel. I often thought that when writing a novel, for most authors the cleverness of the novel came naturally. Reading this tip seven, made me realize that even famous writers uses the tools that are accessible to better there writing.
Lastly, my third favorite rule was number 10, "Prayer might work. Or reading something else." I find this rule the most relatable to myself when writing. I do not believe that I could construct a piece of writing without reading other materials. Other materials, in my opinion, show a future writer how to capture your own voice, and how to write a narrative or analytical paper that is intriguing to an audience. I find that for myself, the knowledge that I have gained, including specific words and phrases, has helped me to build my writing style. Without understand a word in context of a book or novel, I might never have learned what the word even means. I also believe that reading other works can help inspire a writer to think of obscure topics that they might not have written about. For instance, in a novel that introduces a utopian society a reader may be inspired to think about what his or her own utopian society would look like. Without understand other novels that have this similar idea, they might not have been able to think of a topic to write about.

Ruth's Recognition Of Loneliness

“Her son had never been a person to her, a separate real person. He had always been a passion.” (131)

When reading Toni Morrison’s, Song of Solomon, I have carried the passage restated above with me when analyzing the relationship/encounters between Milkman and Ruth. I find it interesting Ruth internalizes the significance of her son’s life, just at the point in time when Milkman’s ex-girlfriend attempts to kill him from breaking up with her after twelve years. Morrison uses an entire page to carefully weave in the thoughts of Ruth and what he son truly means to her. During this time in the novel, Ruth faces the fact that Milkman indeed has “never been a person to her” because he stands as a physical representation of a larger concept. To Ruth, he represents the last hope that she had to rekindle the relationship between herself and her husband, Macon Dead. Macon, because he had been so clearly mortified by his wife and her odd relationship with her father, can never look at Ruth the same. There fiery relationship that once linked them together had shattered to pieces the moment he saw his wife being more intimate than normal with the Dead doctor. Ultimately luring Macon to have sex with her, Ruth got pregnant with Milkman. Because this was her last attempt to fix this loneliness and brokenness, Milkman stood as “a passion” in hopes that a human creation that both Ruth and Macon made, would inevitably fix all of their problems. Unfortunately and to her dismay Milkman did just the opposite. In fact Morrison even explains how Macon wished to kill Milkman. His attitude both reflects the idea that he wanted to both kill the romance that Ruth had thought existed and to kill the actual human that formed because of there interaction. I believe that Ruth remains close to Milkman because he symbolizes this last hope that she desired. At this moment in time, Ruth needed comfort but in turn she received nothing but loneliness. It is interesting choice that for so many years Milkman is blind to how much his presence has affected his family when he was in her womb. I believe that Ruth nurtures Milkman differently than the rest of the children because he is the last standing human that could have potentially drawn Macon back to Ruth.

Pilate vs. Ruth

It is quite interesting how Toni Morrison portrays two central women in Milkman's life  -- Pilate and Ruth -- in two completely different lights. Ruth, a quite and more reserved character in Song of Solomon confides in very few people in her lifetime. Throughout her life, she was always dependent on someone else: first her father, then Milkman. As a woman who felt misplaced in her own home, she needs this deep-seeded connection in order to act as herself. Ruth struggles to feel the importance that she believes that should earn. She confides in Pilate, the complete opposite of herself, in order to receive support for herself during her pregnancy with Milkman because she would not have the ability to be a strong and independent woman when facing the anger and frustration of her not-so-loving partner, Macon Dead. Pilate's character represents the outgoing qualities that Ruth never had. She is the exact opposite character that Ruth never was: arrogant, independent, confident, and "free". Pilate exudes confidence while Ruth struggles to find it. I believe that Toni Morrison develops this contrast in order to reflect the insecurities of Ruth and point out the carelessness/freedom of a woman once so close to Macon Dead. I believe that Morrison uses Pilate and Ruth to reflect the path of these two women and the different ways they have strayed/ dealt with the man with a superiority complex, Macon Dead. She uses Ruth's character to represent the life of a black woman who struggles to reveal herself to the world because she is suppressed by a husband who has a superiority complex. In contrast, Pilate defies the odds of a woman during the middle twentieth century, as she journeys throughout the United States, trying to find her own soul -- something rarely seen in that day and age. Pilate respect's her brother's wishes to never step foot in his house again, though she does not see this as a setback, it further allows herself to become for engrossed in herself: finding the power of song to heal and finding joy in her daughter and granddaughter. Overall, Morrison uses Ruth and Pilate to represent the different roles of woman in a society that often suppressed them during this time.