Myung Joon Choi
Janet Allwork
English 1130 036
Oct. 9, 2020
Similarities in Essay Writing and Taekwondo
I have practiced taekwondo, a type of martial arts, as a hobby since I was nine
years old. The learning experience not only taught me numerous life lessons, the
acquired skill helped me in other areas. Writing a paper is like practicing taekwondo:
both require thorough preparation, practice, and revision.
Just as warming up before performing taekwondo is essential, carefully planning
before writing is also important. Every athlete stretches and relaxes their muscles
before putting any mechanical pressure on themselves. Especially when practicing
martial arts, one must not skip warm up exercise as it is proven that simple stretching
can reduce chances of injury immensely. Similarly when writing, without any warm up,
in this case, a brainstorming, one may start writing an essay but soon realizes flawed
structure in the first or second paragraph. Organizing themes, statements, evidence and
conclusions chronologically can reduce confusion for the author when writing, but also
for audiences when reading. Writers commonly come up with new and better ideas as
they write and are often forced to rewrite from scratch; therefore, brainstorming as much
as possible prior to writing would set up a rigid framework and reduce redundant
processes. Unless one is intentionally writing an impromptu piece or to reflect a current
idea or mood without any revision, spending adequate time to plan ahead can be
beneficial.
Writing papers and mastering Taekwondo require repeated practices.
Taekwondo is well known for its precise kicks. In the first few training sessions, a
trainee would be unable to keep the legs straight when kicking and have feet at ninety
degrees instead keeping them straight. Balancing with only one leg is another obstacle
when mastering kicks. Roundhouse kicking straight in the air could become effortless
with years of diligent practicing. Similarly, writing an essay may seem overwhelming at
first especially when one explores a new field and attempts to expand writing skills, but
repeated practices will help. For example, prior to having an essay exam with limited
time, a student may write countless essays as practice. This will not only help the
student to get used to writing, but it also allows the student to brainstorm themes and
set up structure much faster, therefore significantly increasing the speed in writing.
Practicing in writing is not limited to its own definition. Reading other’s pieces and
absorbing their knowledge and skills then integrating them in one’s own writing could be
rewarding. However, this does not refer to copying word choices or even plagiarism, but
rather gaining tips, and as a result, strengthening one's own voice. Expanding the
vocabulary pool is another practice. Phrases that are redundant or cliche should be
avoided.
In “Simplicity,” William Zinsser provides a great tip in removing cluttered writing.
The secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components.
Every word that serves no function, every long word that could be a short word,
every adverb that carries the same meaning that is already in the verb, every
passive construction that leaves the reader [confused]. (Zinsser 85)
Taekwondo cannot be mastered; even masters and instructors are not perfect,
which means that one will need to improve their kicks, punches and patterns
indefinitely. Authenticity is essential in both Taekwondo and writing. When doing a
roundhouse kick, there is no set speed or angle at which a person should kick at; as
long as it follows general rules, one’s kick can be unique and legitimate. Similarly, in
writing, there are no right or wrong answers, just some guidelines such as grammar;
therefore, an author can be creative and distinct from other authors. As Paul Roberts
suggested in his essay, obvious contents must be avoided, and supporting opposing
opinions resulting in losing one’s own voice must also be prevented (24). Writing to
express an author’s perspective to a specific target would be acceptable; however, if an
author is changing his own stance just to attract and satisfy readers and losing his own
voice in the process, the finished piece would be biased.
When learning taekwondo and writing, one must be open-minded for revision. In
the previous paragraph, expressing one’s own unique voice is emphasized. However,
this does not mean that the author should set up a barricade between himself and
others. Self-editing own writing is a limiting experience as writers are often unaware of
their own mistakes and also reluctant to change the whole structure even if it is
obviously flawed from the reader's view. According to Donald Murray in “Internal
revision,” even professional writers become proficient of what they have explored
previously, but lack discovery (84). They tend to stay in their comfort zone instead of
trying to make a radical change. To prevent these, feedback from peer editors,
professors or readers would be an effective solution. When a trainee practices
taekwondo, he cannot learn alone; sabumnin, a master, will need to guide and provide
feedback if the trainee is heading towards the wrong direction. Similarly, writers will
need to develop their own ideas, but also be open to suggestions and adapt to
necessary changes.
Although writing an essay and practicing taekwondo seem unrelated, there are
several similarities. In order to become successful, they both require preparation,
practice and revision.
English 1130 Assignment 1 - Works Cited Citation
Murray, Donald. “Internal Revision.” Essays on
Writing, edited by Lizbeth A. Bryant and
Heather M. Clark, Longman, 2009, pp.
74-84.
Roberts, Paul McHenry. “How to Say Nothing in
500 Words.” English 1130 Assignment
Readings, compiled by Janet Allwork,
Douglas College, 2016.
Zinsser, William. “Simplicity.” Essays on Writing,
edited by Lizbeth A. Bryant and Heather M.
Clark, Longman, 2009, pp. 85-89.