Free-Writing Classwork 9/12/11

John Trimble makes the case that all writers are like warriors, defending claims and fortifying arguments. How do you respond to this trope, this figurative turn?

While people may say fight with words, not weapons, or the pen is mightier than the sword, I feel John Trimble’s claim, “that all writers are like warriors,” is a bit excessive. I have great respect for writers that defend their work to the word. However, I define a warrior as a person that puts his or her life on the line for their country, sacrificing themselves without hesitation. In my opinion, warriors are police officers, firefighters, Marines, people in the Army, Air Force, Navy, etc. These heroes are the true warriors that are fighting for all our freedoms, including those of the writers. It’s only through the strength of our Constitution that writers may publish their works without being imprisoned for voicing controversial issues and opinions. While some may argue that writers are warrior-like in the sense of defending their claims, and fortifying their arguments, it is a completely different situation and I feel we owe it to those risking their lives here and overseas, not to compare their sacrifices to those of a writer. Writers defending their claims, to me, are more like the “mother bear protecting her cub(s),” which, in my opinion, is a nice compliment. You do not try to harm a cub if the mother is present, or else you will be in for a rude awakening.