May 6th 2015
Jodi L. Simmons
English Department, Sonoma State University
Rohnert Park Ca
94928
Dear Mrs. Simmons,
This cover letter is a reflective document on the most recent work done in the
English class that I am enrolled in. This Portfolio consists of my best work possible.
And demonstrates me as a writer, student, and critical thinker. Consisting of three
essays: current event, “Immigration”, Ad analysis The Perfect Body”, and a research
paper, “Obesity”. Each essay took time and a lot of revisions. But in the end each
essay was at its best and is clearly written. Within them, I gave my personal
opinions and the opinions of others from my research. This portfolio demonstrates
my growth throughout the year and my best work possible.
The essay that is about immigration is a personal essay. I told a brief summary of
when my mom was an immigrant and traveled to this country. Also it is very
informative on how President Obama is trying to fix immigration for all. That essay
is one of my favorites because everyone can relate to having an immigrant in their
family because our ancestors all migrated here somehow; no one is a true citizen.
My second essay is an ad analysis about Victoria’s Secret. I picked two ads that
address the sexuality of women and how Victoria’s Secret uses that to catch the
shopper’s attention. This was very interesting to write about because I could relate
to the feelings other women felt when they would see the pictures of the models for
Victoria’s Secret. Also it showed how a lot of Victoria’s Secret is false advertising, but
by reading that essay you will be able to realize that and feel emotion. My last essay
is very informative and also makes the reader want to change the world. I wrote
about obesity and how it is a growing epidemic. It is very sad to see this disease take
over ones life and shut it down. All three of my essays are very interesting and will
catch your attention instantly.
My essays contained both strengths and weaknesses. Everything in the end was
fixed so there would be less weaknesses and mistakes as possible. For example my
introduction paragraphs are very strong. I am very good with my hooks and I catch
the reader’s attention easily. I make the thesis clear enough for the reader to know
exactly what I am going to be talking about. Lastly, I incorporate personal stories in
my essays. This is to make the reader feel connected to me and what I am writing
about. Also I try my best to use the best vocabulary possible within my essays and
that helps a lot with transitioning from paragraphs. But strengths are not always
what I have included in my essays.
First drafts are always very difficult for me and that is when my weaknesses are
pointed out. Some of my weaknesses when I first started my essays was that I get
too descriptive on one topic and not focused as much on the others. Because of this
it could seem like I am bias towards certain points in my essay. Also, before I fixed
that about my writing it seemed to the reader as if I was more into one topic then
the other. Another weakness of mine are my conclusions. I often do not know how
to end an essay without ruining the context of it. Before I have always just restated
my thesis and I feel like as a college student I should write something more complex
that leaves the reader in love with my essays. Overall to fix my weaknesses I took
my time with my essays and had other students read over them so I could get their
feed back.
Immigration is a huge topic spoken about in politics and education. This is one of my
best entries because I felt connected to it and I know a lot of information on it. My
family consist of a lot of immigrants or family members that have recently received
their citizenship. I put a lot of emotion and time into this essay and that is why it is
one of my best. Before writing this essay I thought that all politics did not want
immigration to be something that was easy and possible for others. But after writing
and researching I learned that President Obama and many other politicians wanted
this bill to be passed in order to help those that are trying to live the American
dream. My second essay that I felt confident in was the ad analysis. This essay was
very interesting and in my opinion very emotional as well. I depicted the ads and
stated how Victoria’s Secret does not do a good job when advertising. This is
because they try to make society feel as if women have to look a certain way.
Victoria’s Secret is a very pleasant store to shop at but when it compares their
models to perfect it makes the rest of the word feel like outsiders. Lastly, was my
research paper. One of my favorites because I knew a lot of information on Obesity
because I had to do a senior project on it. I want to become a nurse when older and
this essay helped me research information on nurses and how they help their obese
patients. I also reflected a personal story in this essay because I have family
members and friends who struggle with this disease. Overall my essays are very
informative and I am happy with the quality and style of all my essays.
I appreciate you taking time out of your day to read over my cover letter and essays.
I hope you enjoy them as much as my peers and I did. Also I hope the information
provided in my essays inform you and you learn new things as the reader. Enjoy!