Choose the readings “Can you teach compassion and “Breast cancer, power vs. prothesis” from the Robert Coles book, A LIFE IN MEDICINE.

In an essay of three to five pages, plus works cited, tell the story of your relationship to the readings. Think about our 4 questions (Who is speaking? In what body? In what culture? Telling what stories of relationship?). Speak as yourself, identifying that self and the body and culture(s) you inhabit.

Questions to ponder but not necessarily answer:
• Which pieces stuck out for me and why?
• Where are the examples of powerful language?
• How do these pieces and their powerful quotes intersect with my lived experience of illness, healing, etc. (Your own or someone else’s)?
Your rough draft might simply start: “Let me tell you about….” And then “Let me tell you about….” Etc.
You can go back to my usual strategy:
For any essay you write, the larger purpose is this:
To write an essay in a natural, real voice, on your own informed authority, with the conviction and confidence that arises from attentive reading, creative thinking, and personal engagement with the texts.

PROCEDURE
1. Begin by reading the quote over and over again, several times. Then, putting the quote aside, spend 5 minutes responding to the quote. (What strikes you about it? What other texts come to mind when you think about it? What other things/people/events come to mind?)
2. Skim through and note passages that strike you. Find five or six of these. Maybe you already have some of these in your notes. Check back through your reading notes to see what struck you the first time through.
2. Choose three from among the five or six you have.
3. Copy one at the top of a sheet of paper. Read it over as many times as you feel you need to, then write for 5 to 7 minutes on that quote. (E.g., How would you describe the passage? What strikes you? What else comes to mind? What feelings does it bring up in you? What else does it remind you of?)
4. Choose another quote and repeat # 3.
5. Choose a third and repeat # 3.
6. Look back over the three pieces of writing and decide what the three have in common. Try to write down what theme or themes you see running through what you have written.
7. What assertion do you want to make about the text, based on your three writings? Try a “Center of Gravity” statement:
• WHAT I SEEM TO BE SAYING HERE IS THAT_________
8. Re-arrange the parts this way:
a. Themes/things in common
b. quote discussions in any order that works
c. assertion/ center of gravity
9. Edit by adding transitions, smoothing it out, knitting the parts together to make an essay. Please don’t skip this part. Remember, you’re making an essay here.
Length: 3-5 pages, plus Works Cited