Koziarski 1

Alyssa Koziarski
MidTerm
Dr. Hall
14 March 2016
Mid-Term In-Class Essay: Process and Automediality
1) As I reflected on my orientation week at Wofford College, three very distinct memories
came to mind. When I though about how to portray these memories two modes came to
mind, a picture of the setting and ways to write the memories out. My process in
developing my visual narrative about a memorable orientation experience began with
creating the setting on paper then finding ways to portray my mood and what I was going
through, internally, in my external expressions. The photographical series was the most
challenging mode for me to work in. Due to the lack of props, correct scenery, and
original people that played a role in each orientation memory, I felt challenged and faced
with a very difficult task. The storyboard comic was the best representation of the
orientation experience. With the storyboard comic, I was able to show the correct setting,
place the correct number of contributing characters, and portray the emotion that was
expressed from the original memory on the faces of the comic characters. All of these
factors paired together expressed a good element of visual representation that is important
for the overall exercise. The mode of written reflection best allowed me to express the
emotional truth of each experience. Through the use of adjectives, metaphors, and
similes, I was able to express the exact emotions that I was feeling during each
memorable experience during that week of orientation that was otherwise difficult to
portray in a comic or photograph. The key difference in the story board comic being the

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best representation of the experience and the written reflection being the best way to
express emotional truth would be the elements used such as visuals and words that could
portray very separate feelings during a single experience. For example, the storyboard
comic could show the audience that my kayaking experience looked adventurous and fun
but the written reflection could explain my exact thoughts and feelings during the
experience that could portray a different mood or reveal new feelings to show how that
experience influenced my orientation experience. This process of discovering different
modes to portray certain experiences helped me to realize that there are various outlets
that can affect an audiences perception of a particular experience or story.
2) To me, automediality is using various media outlets, beyond traditional literary ways, to
portray an experience to an audience. In applying this term to my project, I am now able
to understand the purpose of utilizing visual outlets in an English course. The term
automediality also helps me to express the materiality of the orientation experience in
other ways that can expand the meaning of my experiences. I personally believe it was a
great exercise in allowing me to expand my literary creativity.
3) This project does make me reflect differently on the text I chose for Essay #1. It helps me
to now interpret visuals in different ways. For example, I can recall many new meanings
in the usage of books in Fun Home and the pictures of war demonstrations in Persepolis.
I now know how the media tools such as comics, which were used in both books, can
be applied to the interiority of the subject and help me to understand the life writing in
more analytical ways.
4) Now that we are at the midterm point of the semester, I believe I have grown as a writer
and analytical reader. Each day I learn more and more about how I can interpret text to
discover new meaning which also makes me turn to the Smith and Watson text to find
clarity in each of the books we read in class. For the remainder of the semester, I plan to

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reference Smith and Watson more often and analyze the text more with my new
knowledge.