Smooth runs the water where the brook is deep.  (William Shakespeare: 2 Henry VI. act iii. sc. i.)

~~~~~~~~~

A writer's problem does not change.  He changes and the world he lives in changes but his problem remains the same.  It is always how to write truly, and having found what is true, to project it in such a way that it becomes part of the experience of the person who reads it.  (Ernest Hemingway, The Problems of a Writer in War Time) 

~~~~~~~~~

Depth and truth.  Smoothness and projection.  Serious student writers expend tremendous amounts of their precious time, sweat, insight and love capturing these elements in the prose they create for their classes.  But for the true artisans of the craft, love is the most important thing--the love of sharing their own explorations, perspectives, experiences, emotions, revelations and philosophy with their readers in such a way that the singular acts of writing and reading almost meld into one entity.  We write for ourselves, but we also write for our readers.  As we express our love of the written word, we create an individual path beside that smooth, deep brook of possibility, hoping that our readers will follow our trail of words to see the same sights we saw on our own journey there, and perchance find something for themselves along the way to take back with them: a pebble of truth, a sprig of insight, or even just the memory of a glance into a watery, fluid mirror that reflected their own image back to them in a way they'd never seen before.  Such is the wish of every writer. 

Hello, and welcome to the combined 1998/1999 virtual edition of Watermarks, Armstrong Atlantic State University's essay journal, designed to showcase our own student writers.  Contained within these webpages are the winners of the 1998 and 1999 Student Essay Contests--judged best each year by a panel of faculty from the Department of Languages, Literature and Philosophy.  These essays exhibit a wide variety of styles, genres and ideas, expressed in strong, individual voices which demonstrate the solid skills in critical inquiry, technical expertise and creative thinking promoted by the faculty of AASU.

It is fitting that the winners of each division and contest be honored here, for each has excelled in their craft. They come from many walks of life, and have widely-varied goals at AASU and beyond, but the thing joining them together is their artistry with the written word.   Collectively, they have created a wealth of paths for us to walk down as readers.  

Care to take a stroll by the brook with me?  I'm sure we'll enjoy the experience.

                                                                                                                     Elaine A. Hakala, Editor    

1998

English 101

• Third Place--Creativity Born from Boredom By Karen Estep
• Second Place--I Heard That! By James Charles
• First Place--Ebonics: Black English or Bad English By Raymond Govero

English 102

• Third Place--Hamlet & Horatio: The Many Faces of Love By Michael I. Kaplan
• Second Place--Language and Control in the Dehumanization Process By Christina Grass
• First Place--What's In It For You By Karen Estep

English 201

• Third Place--The Best is Yet to Come By Dawn Simmons
• Second Place--Christian Misogyny and the Rising Power of the Religious Right: Portents of the Monotheocracy in The Handmaid's Tale By Patti Phillips
• First Place--A Warning to the Contented by Nancy Anderson (currently unavailable for publication)

Upper-Level English

• Honorable Mention--Reading, Writing, and Rational Thought: From Comic Books to College Texts By Elaine A. Hakala
• Second Place (tie)--Changing Roles of Men and Women In the Workplace: A Character Analysis of Murphy Brown By Susan Thompson
• Second Place (tie)--Tag! You're It! A study of how television commercials directly target the female shopper By Kimberlee King
• First Place--Breaking Heaven Into Dust: How Science Weakens Faith In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "In Memoriam A. H. H." By Daphne Bazemore

1999

English 1101

• First Place--Folks-Marching By Mary Thornton

English 1102

• Third Place--Jack's Quest for Maturity By Jeff Cook
• Second Place--Different Ranks Experiencing the Reality of War By Heather Collins
• First Place--Marlin's Memories on Reading Louise Erdrich's "Indian Boarding School: The Runaways" By Marlin L. Rodriguez

English 2100

• First Place (tie)--The Bridge between Two Selves By Ming-Tam Quan
• First Place (tie)--Freedom Writers By Marty Belles

Upper-Level English

• Third Place--Moth and Love's Labor's Lost By David Seckinger
• Second Place--The Internet and Education: Viability and Reliability By Elaine Hakala
• First Place--Voices From the Homefront: America's Shame By Diane Coppage

The Editor wishes to thank the Core English Committee for their continued support of Watermarks, especially for having the long-range vision to see it as another way to incorporate technology into the classroom.  Also to be commended are the judges of the Student Essay Contests in 1998 and 1999 for lending their time and expertise to the task of deciding the winners from among so many submissions. It could not have been an easy job.  In addition, the editor would like to recognize Dr. Robert Parham, Dr. Carol Jamison, and Peggy Witherow, in particular, for their assistance with this publication, along with the entire LLP faculty and staff for their continued support of excellence in student writing.  And last, but certainly not least, thanks goes to the students of AASU, whose creative minds express themselves so well.

Watermarks Staff

Elaine A. Hakala, Editor in Chief

Seth Riley, Layout Editor

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