Why I want to teach writing

...and why I write, really.

"We share the powers of language to express emotions, to inspire creative thought, and to change perceptions of the self and others. We share the power of language to transform thought and being." (Murphy 16)

Writing is so much more than a means of communication. Writing is the medium by which we grow to understand ourselves and our history. From reading the past and reading the present, we are able to understand where we come from and where we are. Writing stops time in its permanence.

In its permanence, writing also changes people. One piece of paper can change the entire trajectory of history. Martin Luther's 95 theses changed Christianity forever. The American Declaration of Independence started a war that eventually led to the creation of the most powerful country in the world.

With one paper and one idea (or many ideas, in some cases), the world as we know it changes.