2-3 pages double-spaced ONLY! Do not exceed. MLA format, Times New Roman, Size 12, 1-inch margins Who we are is shaped by a variety of factors, and one way to understand ourselves is to reflect on our past experiences and consider how they impact the present. A memoir gives you a chance to create a written snapshot of specific moments in your life, and to make meaning from them in a way that appeals to readers. You will rely on your memory and personal experience as the source of ideas. Sensory detail, description, dialogue, narration, and organization will translate your memories into an interesting and cohesive story for the reader. For this essay, you will write about an event in your life that shaped your individual identity. It could be something that happened to you or that you observed, an encounter with a person who greatly influenced you, a decision that you made
, or a challenge or obstacle that you faced, etc. Identity normally encompasses what we believe, how we act, who we are, how we see the world, how we define our purposeand it could be related to various aspects of our life (ethnicity/culture, traditions/ rituals, talents/ interests, family, religion, education, personality). Think of your audience as others who will understand you a bit better after reading your memoir. If you are too inward-focused, then your memoir will seem like a diary entry; therefore, you want to keep your audience interested and make your story worth reading. Dont just talk about identity or the topic, and dont just tell us what you thought. Make the reader feel that he or she is re-living the experience(s) with youfocus on one specific moment or a couple of moments in time and what they reveal. Memoirs usually rely on conventions such as