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Essay Instructions: Writer: hophead

Composition Project 2: Compare and Contrast, Where is Your History in all of This?
In the beginning of the term I am going to ask you to propose a film for the class to watch that speaks to some aspect of your history. Are you of Chinese ancestry? Greek ancestry? Nordic, Celtic or Russian ancestry? For this project we will use the skills we have developed around close readings to compare and contrast two texts, one from the course and one that grows out of your own heritage. As with project 1, you will be expected to perform a close reading and utilize outside texts in order to gather a greater understanding of the texts. The difference is that you will need to make an argument around how history has influenced these texts to be either similar or different. Some questions I thought of are: How is the poetry of Elizabeth Bishop different from that of Jennifer Chang or Gwendolyn Brooks. How is the poetry of Seamus Heaney different than that of Charles Simic? How does Nabokov deal with history differently than Chris Rock or Spike Lee? What is similar between Paul Auster and Persepolis?
Project Components:
1. Project Proposal: your plan in writing and who you plan to write the text to.
a. A rationale for why you’ve chosen the original text, and why you want to compare it to a ?text from our class.
b. Who is your intended audience?
2. Form
??1200-1400 words
??At least 4 sources in addition to the two primary sources (the texts you are comparing) ?Important note: As your creative genius works on your adaptation, remember to save some of your energy for analysis; you will be evaluated on both the creative project and the rhetorical analysis.


My Family History
My mother’s ancestors were Spanish Jews who were expelled from Spain in 1492
because of refusing to convert to Christianity. Previously, they were under Muslim and Christian rule in Spain. Later, King Ferdinand who took over the government forced both the Muslims and the Jews of Spain to convert to Catholicism. So, they faced with the choice of converting to Christianity or leaving Spain. The Spanish Jews who chose to leave Spain mostly dispersed to other European countries as well as Ottoman Empire. My mother’s ancestors were the fortunate ones who managed in escaping to Ottoman Empire. Ottoman Sultan welcomed friendly the Spanish Jews who ended up in Turkey. The Jewish community who were compelled to leave in 1492’s Inquisition known as Sefarad, which is the Hebrew name for Spain.

My father’s part of the family came from Yugoslavia in the early 1920s. Before the World War I, Yugoslavia was under the reign of the Ottoman Empire. The weakening of the Ottoman Empire and the national movements in Europe accelerated restoring the independence of Yugoslavia. However, the pressure on the Muslim population to convert their religion to Christianity led them to immigrate to Turkey. The weakening of communism and the rise of nationalism after the death of President Tito in 1980 triggered the ethnic tension in Yugoslavia. The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred during the early 1990s. Today, my grandfather’s birthplace is within the boundaries of Kosovo.

NOTES: This is what I know all about my family history but there are many sources in Google about Jews expelled from Spain, which will help you to extend my family history to compare and to contrast with one of the texts given below according to the explanations, which is given in the first paragraph.

Texts we worked on this semester:

Auster, Paul. “Invention of Solitude”. New York: Penguin Books, 2007. ISBN: 2228
Nabokov, Vladamir. “Speak, Memory”. New York: First Vintage International Edition, August 1989. ISBN: 5532
Bishop, Elizabeth. “Geography III”. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008. ISBN: 0655
Simic, Charles. “New and Selected Poems {1962-2012}”. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013. ISBN: 8289

Essay Instructions: I need a 6 page Self-Awareness Paper. This is a two part paper consisting of 4 pages in part A and 2 pages for part B. All information and details of the paper are listed below. This paper should be written in first person.


Part A:

Type a 4 page paper describing your strengths and weaknesses that may hinder or help you in your counseling and future burnout vulnerability.
Include the following areas:

 Listening Skills
 Empathy Skills
 Values
 TFA (Hutchen?s Model)
 Family Issues:
? Roles & Scripts
? Rules for conflict
? Rules about value of work
? Patterns of over functioning & under functioning
? Differentiation
? Need for appreciation & admiration
 Balancing your life

The following questions and answers can help the writer generate thought for the paper:

What are your strengths in counseling?

My strengths include my ability to be very empathetic to others; my ability to put myself in other peoples shoes; my ability to be as unbiased as possible which includes respecting others cultural beliefs; and my ability to help others feel comfortable in a counseling environment. A lot of my strengths have grown due to years in the counseling profession.

What are your weaknesses in counseling?

My weaknesses involve my inability to stay focused as long as I should. This includes losing concentration during counseling sessions because I tend to start searching for answers or solutions before my clients are through telling their stories. Another weakness of mine is that I tend to be a perfectionist. I find myself trying to ?save the world? and hold on to issues or problems that cannot completely be fixed. Finally, I also struggle with being a little too introverted than I would like to be. Sometimes I wish I would be more open in order to be a more effective counselor. This includes having a hard time confronting clients because I am worried about hurting their feelings.

Why are you attracted to the help giving/counseling profession?

My conscious attraction to the counseling profession began in college. I started my college career in the business field and found myself faultering due to lack of interest. I then reevaluated my interests and decided that I had to find something that would keep me interested, focused and motivated. I came to the conclusion that majoring in psychology would be my best fit. Ultimately, this would turn out to be the right choice.

What was your role in your family when you were growing up, and what impact does it have on this attraction?

My family history may also have played an unconscious role in my interest in the counseling profession. I was the youngest child of two boys in the family. I was considered the rebellious child that got into trouble all of the time. We would find out later that I was just the one that got caught all of the time. I turned out to be the athletic child that entertained the family in sports throughout our childhood. This aspect would be the only reason why me and my father would have any kind of positive relationship at all. My brother would be the one thought of as the academically gifted one following in my fathers footsteps as a defense attorney. Their relationship would turn out to be very good due to my fathers values of prestige and academic excellence. I definitely believe that this and the following aspects drove me unconsciously in the direction of the counseling profession. My father has been an alcoholic all of his life but you would never know unless you were in the family or very close to the family. We tended to keep things quiet and have never let much outside of the families household nor would any problems or issues within the family be addressed ever. My fathers alcoholism never effected his ability to practice law and he was and is still considered a very prominent attorney. Most of our family values were taught through him but not always followed. For example, he believed you had to go to a large ncaa division I school to succeed in life. Both me and my brother would prove him wrong here. He also stressed the importance of obtaining a prestigious job and making a lot of money. I also believe that this may be playin an unconscious role in me getting my masters degree and my recent decision to get my Phd. This actually will likely be a positive value due to the fact that I love my job and am very interested in this field. A Phd would definitely be in order for him to consider my career aspirations an accomplishment by his standards. I do believe that my family dynamics have driven my desire to be in the counseling profession but not forced my decision making.

Who are you as a person?

Over the years I have made some changes for the better as a person I have become very goal oriented, motivated and self-aware over the past 5 years. Through 10 + years in the counseling profession I have become less judgemental and much more self understanding. My profession, my studies and my calling to this particular university has made me a much better person.

What wounds or unfinished business do you carry with you into the counseling room?

Some wounds and unfinished business that I may carry into the counseling room is my relationship with my father. Me and my father have never really gotten along ad he has a really good relationship with my brother. He has always looked down on my profession as a counselor due to it?s lack of prestige and has been very proud of my brothers accomplishments of becoming a successful attorney.

In what way are you healing these wounds?

It is hard to heal these wounds because it would not be the proper thing to do within the family dynamics to address something like this. My work, education and support systems from friends and other family members help me cope. I do understand that counseling is an option that I will take in the near future.

What do you notice or what do you think your work with clients will (does) trigger in you?

It helps me find ways to help others see things about themselves that I didn?t see in myself until later in life. Knowing that I have helped a client work through issues that I have had yet never understood gives me the strength to continue and gratification that I have made a difference in somebodys life.

Do you honestly believe you need to be a counselor or you want to become a counselor?

Yes, there was a time when I was unsure, but through years of experience I have come to realize that I was pulled in this direction for a reason.

Whom do you have unfinished business with?

My father.

How do you handle being in conflict? Being confronted? Being evaluated? What defenses do you use in these situations?

It?s funny because it?s different with my father than with others. With my father I become arguementative, upset and sometimes irrational. With friends and clients I am just the opposite. I am able to see others point of view, compromise and work through problems and conflicts fairly easily. With clients and friends I understand why I am being confronted or evaluated and it has very little affect on my emotions and feelings, with my father it is a totally different story.

What are repetitive or chronic issues for you? How might these affect your work with clients?

My issues with my father, his beliefs and my need to be appreciated and admired by him. I have a good understanding of counter-transference and am usually able to catch myself when my own issues get involved in a counseling session.

What do you see in other people that you consistently do not like? See whether you can find these same qualities in yourself and ?own? them as also belonging to you.

Judgemental and controlling people is some qualities that I dislike in others. This may be an issue for me because I see these qualities in my father. I used to see these qualities in myself growing up because it was a learned behavior. My education, occupation and maturity has helped me overcome these negative qualities.

Part B:

Provide a 2 page professional development plan which will explain what you plan to do in order to prevent counselor burnout. Come up with a plan to work through your weaknesses listed above. Look at your strength and weaknesses and tell what your going to do to make weaknesses into strengths. For example, one way to prevent counselor burnout can be seeking counseling yourself as a counselor; another way can be through support systems such as your supervisor. The writer can use these two plans among others to complete part B.

*Please double-space and use 1 inch margins for your paper. You may use first person format (?I?).