David Bartholomae- "Inventing the University"

In“Inventing the University” by David Bartholomae, the author talks about how a beginner writer becomes an expert writer. Bartholomae is saying the a writer needs to learn how to communicate with his audience effectively and learn to speak their language and learn to change their language depending on who the audience is when he states that the author has to “invent the university”. Batholomae talks about what it takes to become an expert writer and what writers do wrong to make them perceived as a beginner. He ways that beginner writers tend to slip in their language. Expert writers write as if they are equal to the person who is reading it and continue that language thorough the writing. Whereas, beginners can start off that way but tend to switch and make it seem as a student writing to a teacher or someone superior. An expert writer knows what kind of language to use and when to use. They also know how to keep the same language going throughout a piece. Beginning writers may not be aware that they are supposed to use a specific language therefore, they tend to slip throughout. Bartholomae also says that beginning writers don’t know much about “common places” or how they are used in writing. A “common place” is our opinion which we must always elaborate on and defend when we are writing something. 

Bartholomae says that if teachers were to let their students write as if they were their colleagues instead of their students more often, then students would believe that they were equal rather that just students writing to a teacher who is obviously more educated on a subject that they are. 

I have to agree with Bartholomae because as a student, I would consider myself a beginner writer and when I write, I don’t take into consideration who my audience is all the time. I just write because I have to write. I also think that if us, students, were taught more that our ideas mattered and that out teachers valued our knowledge we’d be able to write more scholarly papers. Bartholomae has valid points in his papers such as knowing our “common places” and knowing our audience as well. 

Bartholomae, David. “Inventing the University.” 1986. Web. http://www4.ncsu.edu/~catonell/documents/D.Bartholomae.pdf