The 9 Absolute Best Books on Writing by the Pros - Freewrite Store

The 9 Absolute Best Books on Writing by the Pros - Freewrite Store Today’s guest post is by  Matt Grant.  Matt is a Brooklyn-based writer and editor.  His  work has appeared in  Literary Hub,  Book Riot,  HuffPost, and  BookBrowse.  Find Matt  online, or follow him on  Twitter  and  Facebook. As a writer, as with any form of art, you need to constantly hone your craft. Education plays a big role in self-improvement, but you don’t have to be an MFA candidate to keep learning. You can pay for classes (which often cost and arm and an leg), or try to find free options online. One great way to find free (or at least cheap!) advice you can learn at your own pace is to read books on writing. Many prominent writers, publishers, English professors, and grammarians have written books on their craft intended to help writers improve their craft. And who better is there to learn from than the experts? Below are nine books to add to your shelf today that will help you in all phases of your writing journey. Reading Like a Writer,Francine Prose Technically a book on reading, Prose’s book is written with writers in mind. Her entire argument is that before there was such a thing as creative writing instruction, the only way writers learned their craft was from reading other writers. Prose’s practical and straightforward book will give you a deeper appreciation for good literature in general, and what it takes to write good literature specifically. She has sections on sentences, paragraphs, narration, character, dialogue, and more. Along the way, she stocks her advice with examples from literary titans, even including an entire section at the end called â€Å"Books to be Read Immediately.†    How to Read Literature Like a Professor,Thomas C. Foster Have you ever read a â€Å"great† novel and felt like you’re missing out on a hidden layer of meaning? If subtext often goes over your head and you have a hard time deciphering metaphors, this book may be for you. Foster, a professor of English at University of Michigan-Flint, has provided a fun and easygoing guide to â€Å"reading between the lines.† With chapter titles like â€Å"Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires,† and â€Å"It’s My Symbol and I’ll Cry if I Want to,† Foster’s book is a fun, lighthearted take on literary analysis. It’s a helpful guide for how to deconstruct motifs, themes, images and other symbols in great novels, which you can turn around and apply to your own work.      The Elements of Style, William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White No writer’s library is complete without a stylebook, and The Elements of Stylehas been thestandard stylebook since 1918. You probably recognize E.B. White as the author of beloved children’s classics Charlotte’s Weband Stuart Little.William Strunk, Jr. was his English professor at Cornell University. Strunk wrote the original version, which White later expanded. This is an extremely practical book to carry around, just over 100 pages, and it easily fits in your pocket. It focuses on usage, form, and even lists commonly misspelled words.    Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life, Anne Lamott Lamott’s wonderful book is both a memoir and writing advice guide. Her emotional and honest take on the writing life is refreshing. In it, she tells a story from her childhood about her ten-year-old brother freaking out over a huge report on birds that he’d had three months to complete. Overwhelmed by the task and unsure of where to begin, Lamott recalls her father putting his arm around her brother and telling him to just take it â€Å"bird by bird.† The same advice applies to writing, Lamott says, as writers take their work one word, sentence, and book at a time. What’s more, Bird by Birdwill disabuse you of any notions of overnight success in literature.    Several Short Sentences About Writing,Verlyn Klinkenborg Klinkenborg is a creative writing professor at Yale University, and his short, breezy book is one of best books on writing I’ve ever read. Written in short, snappy sentences laid out like poetry, Several Short Sentences About Writing aims to have writers focus on writing good, clear sentences. And that’s it. Klinkenborg argues that great sentences will lead to great writing, and that good sentences can make even the most boring and mundane subject seem fascinating. He encourages writers to think of each sentence as its own entity on the page, separate from everything that comes before and after it. At the end, he includes a section of bad sentence examples, culled from his years as a writing professor. I’m just glad he wasn’t mine!    On Writing Well, William Zinsser Zinsser’s On Writing Wellis a pretty classic college textbook for writing classes, so if you slept through English, now might be a good time to revisit it. As a former reporter for the New York Herald Tribuneand the author of 17 nonfiction books, Zinsser’s area of expertise is nonfiction. The first two sections of his book are a more narrative version of The Elements of Style,but the third focuses on different forms nonfiction writing can take. Zinsser shows what goes into good interviews, memoir writing, sports reporting, and travel writing. This volume is essential reading for anyone wishing to write good, compelling nonfiction.    On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King If you think Stephen King is enjoying a renaissance right now with the film versions of The Dark Towerand Itin theaters, you don’t know his work very well. King is one of the most influential and iconic authors of the 20th century. His stamp is everywhere you look and has been for a long time. In this acclaimed book that is â€Å"part memoir, part master class, by one of the bestselling authors of all time,† King shares the habits and practices that have solidified his place in American literary history. King’s prose is personable and reads like you’re talking to a good friend in person. On Writingis great for King fans and aspiring writers alike.    Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting, Robert McKee Now wait a minute, you might be asking, how is a book on screenwriting helpful for prose writers? Well, read McKee’s brilliant Storyand you’ll see why. This is not just a book about screenwriting, but how all great stories are structured. After an introduction that takes you through the principlesof good storytelling – why do people find certain story elements compelling? – McKee breaks down, using examples from some of the most influential films in cinematic history, essential story elements. There’s the Inciting Incident, Three-Act story design, and the crisis, climax, and final resolution. If none of this sounds familiar, pick up this essential guide for writers of any genre who want to tell well-structured, compelling stories.    Bonus: What We See When We Read, Peter Mendelsund Another book on reading? Absolutely! All writers are good readers. This delightful book, told mostly through pictures, is all about the phenomenologyof reading – how words, which have no concrete images attached to them, can nevertheless conjure images in a reader’s brain. It’s an essential reminder that the writer’s work is bringing images to life with our words.    When in doubt, a writer’s first stop should always be books. While we don’t all have personal, constant access to writing experts to ask their advice and opinions, we do have the next best thing: their books. Not to mention all the literary classics throughout history that you can learn a lot from just by reading. So don’t hesitate - head to your local library or bookstore today and pick out some of these titles!    There you have it, the books by the pros to get you writing like a pro. Which books on writing are your favorites? Which books did we miss? Let us know in the comments!    Matt Grant  loves to write about writing, business, and all forms of popular  culture – books, film, and television. Matt started writing DVD reviews for  Pop Matters  in 2012, and in 2016, he followed through on a life-long dream by launching a part-time writing business at  www.mattgrantwriter.com. Since then, Matt’s work has appeared in  Literary Hub,  Book Riot,  HuffPost, and  BookBrowse,  and he has several ongoing clients.  His first personal essay,  Swimming Lessons,  is being published in LongReads at the end of August. Matt is also currently hard at work on his first novel, a comedic take on fantasy tropes for young adults. When not writing or reading, Matt works in youth development as an after-school program director  for one of the largest middle schools in Manhattan. Matt lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Katelyn.

How to plan successful events and meetings -The JobNetwork

How to plan successful events and meetings -The JobNetwork Whether you’re an admin or an engineer, there are some skills that will come in handy no matter what. Being able to organize events and meetings effectively is one of those skills- good organizational skills and tools will help you in virtually any field. If you’re in an administrative role and need to take the lead on planning a meeting or event but don’t know where to start- we’ve got you covered! Let’s look at the basics you’ll need.Pre-organize your meeting or event.Before you get started, make sure you understand everything you’ll need to have in place. Take notes so you remember all the elements. (Nothing fancy- this is for your own reference.)For meetings, that means making sure you know†¦What’s the topic?What’s the goal (desired outcome) of the meeting?Who needs to be there?Is it happening in your office, or somewhere else?Will people outside of your company be attending?Should you arrange for food or drinks to be available (like coffee, breakfast foods, sandwiches)?What kind of tech or tools will the attendees need (like access to presentation software, a projector screen, a white board, etc.)?For events like conferences or parties, that means making sure you know†¦Who should be attending?Do speakers’ schedules need to be coordinated?Is there a tentative schedule for the event, or will you need to figure out the timing?Does a location or facility need to be booked? If so, how many rooms are necessary?Will people be traveling to attend this event?Will attendees need to have any travel arrangements made?Is there a social component (lunch, dinner, drinks)?What are the catering needs?What kind of technology will presenters and attendees need?Does the event require programs, handouts, or anything else that needs to be designed or printed?If you’re being asked to organize the event, make sure you have all of the details from your boss or whomever is requesting the event. D on’t be shy about asking questions- you don’t want to miss something, and have to scramble later.Choose an organizational tool for your event.Ask yourself: how do you best stay organized? Do you function best when you have information physically in front of you? Or do you function best when you have all the information you need at your fingertips on your phone or tablet? The great thing is that you can go as technological as you want here- there are a number of helpful business event planning apps out there, like Sched or Planning Pod.Create specific folders on your computer, so you can store any documents, emails, and notes. If you prefer a more old-school method, try using a binder, which you can divide into relevant sections:Vendor informationSchedulesReceipts and invoicesAttendee informationOrganizational planners with calendars (like the kind you get at your local office supply store) can also be helpful, especially if you have a long lead time and specific deadli nes you need to meet along the way. The most important thing is to pick a method that works best for you and  stick with it.Set a timeline for your event planning.Before you move ahead with inviting people or booking a space for your meeting or event, sit down and plan a timeline.When is the event taking place?What milestones will you need to hit before then?How much time will each of those steps take?Once you know your own planning schedule, set reminders along the way to make sure you’re checking everything off from your to-do list. Again, whatever format works best for you is good. You can build reminders in via your work email platform (like Outlook or Gmail) or set them on your phone or tablet. The most important part is that the reminders aren’t easily missed or ignored.Master your meeting plan.If you’re planning more of an everyday meeting, many of these principles still apply. Being organized is the key; even if it’s a budget summit with five pe ople or a basic sales meeting, you want it to run just as smoothly as if you’re planning a conference. The timeline for meeting setup is likely more condensed; you or your boss may need to set up a meeting in the near future, so your timeline is even more important, even if you have fewer to-dos.Get your meeting on everyone’s calendar.One of the first things you should do for your meeting (after answering the questions outlined earlier) is make sure that everyone who needs to be there is available. Juggling multiple calendars can be tricky, especially if your company doesn’t have a synced calendar system (like Outlook) where you can see if another employee is booked during a particular time, or if you’re including people from outside of your company. One way to get the ball rolling is to send out an email to the necessary attendees, offer them blocks of time for potential meeting slots, and let them weigh in on what works best. For example:Hi all,  Iâ⠂¬â„¢m setting up a one-hour meeting to talk about the year-end results, and wanted to confirm what time works best for the group. Can you please let me know if any of the times below do not work for you?  Monday 12/1, between 2:00 and 4:00Wednesday, 12/3, between 10:00 and 11:30Thursday, 12/4, between 9:30 and 11:30Thanks!Ideally, everyone in the group can make one (or more) of the times you give them. If they can’t, well, then you have to start playing a bit of meeting Jenga, finding a time that works for the most people (while making sure that you’re not excluding someone who absolutely needs to be there). But at least you have a starting point for everyone’s availability.Set your meeting agenda.One of the biggest meeting pet peeves is that the meetings aren’t focused enough or don’t have a set agenda of discussion points, and waste time on things that might not be necessary. The best way to counteract this is to send a detailed agenda ahead o f time, making sure that everyone involved knows what will be discussed. That way, Bill can prepare his notes on the project status and Susan can be ready to talk about her recent trip to corporate headquarters to talk about quarterly earnings. If you’re running the meeting yourself, the agenda gives you a ready outline to keep things moving. And if you’re not the one running the meeting but are organizing on someone else’s behalf, you can ask him or her for the agenda points they’d like to discuss. That not only helps keep you on track for organizing everything well, but also helps your boss prepare as well. It also gives you a ready-made template for notes after the meeting because then you can just add bullet points and next stepsWhen you send out the agenda, be clear about the expectations of the meeting. Is it just an informational meeting? Will there be a presentation? Are participants expected to brainstorm? If everyone knows what’s expected of them, then it will be a more productive meeting (and if someone isn’t prepared after you did all this advance work, that’s not on you as the organizer!).Be ready to follow up on your meeting.This is especially important if you’re running the meeting yourself. Make sure you take notes during the meeting, keeping track of the main points, conclusions, or action items that people will need to do next. Afterward, send out those notes to the group. I find that these notes don’t need to be super-detailed- an outline with bullet points and clearly identified sections is usually welcome. People tend to skim or glaze over large chunks of narrative text and may miss some crucial information. If there are any next steps that are required from any meeting attendees, make sure those are presented clearly so that everyone understands what’s expected of them.If you’re organizing the meeting for a boss or someone else and you won’t be attending t he meeting yourself, be sure to ask if that person wants you to send out any notes or follow-up correspondence to the group. And if a follow-up meeting is necessary, restart this whole process as soon as possible so that it’s still fresh in everyone’s mind.Organizational skills are a resume winner for just about every field. And if you’re going into an administrative job, being able to wrangle every kind of event- from small meetings to big to-dos- will make you extremely valuable. These are skills everyone can develop with a bit of practice, diligence, and help from organizational tools that can save you from your own human forgetfulness. Before long, you’ll be impressing your bosses with how smoothly your events go and earning much deserved credit for getting and keeping everything organized and running well.

8th Grade History Observation

I was very excited about this assignment. I enjoy going into the classroom and being able to observe what is going on and how everyone interacts with each other. I decided to attend a classroom at an expulsion school that has 4th- 12th grade students. Every student has a different story of why they are they at this school, some students made a mistake and want to earn their way back to their school site and some do not care about school and to not try to work towards anything positive. The staff explained that working there is a challenge and takes a special type of person that can adjust to a variety of challenging students and still try to accomplish a positive learning environment. I decided to observe the 8th grade history class for an entire chapter. I wanted to get the full experience from the start of the lesson to testing and see how the whole lesson is presented, delivered and received from start to finish. The text book used is United States History: Independence to 1914. I sat in when the students were learning about the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The book seemed difficult for some students to read and comprehend. There was an aide in the classroom at all times. I sat in a class with 31 students in it and 12 of them had an IEP, 504 plan or BSP. The teacher and aide were constantly walking around and helping the students with a diverse set of challenges. Some students I could see clearly could not read the book. The level of reading was considerably lower that what the textbook was. I could see there were students with a 2nd grade reading level trying to read a 8th grade textbook. There was also one student who caught my eye because he had a one on one aide. The first day of class the teacher passes out a page that is front and back. This has a few vocabulary words that are in the text and has sentences from the text with blanks within the sentences. The student is to read through the text and fill in the blanks and define the vocabulary words. Most students are able to complete this task without help. It took them to look in the glossary or dictionary and copy the definition. The student with a one on one aide did not have the skills to find the words alphabetically. He needed assistance finding the words and then was able to copy the words down on the page. The teacher and aide continued to walk around with the class and that kept everyone on task. I thought this was a good idea and the students seemed to know what to do and got right to work. They are allowed to work in a group of two or independently. The students that seemed serious about getting the work done worked independently. The students who worked â€Å"smarter not harder† split to front and back pages and then copied so that they could finish and have free time. The second day of class was for the students to finish their sheet of work. The students that already finished earned free time. I saw this was a distraction for the students who were still working. They were constantly looing at the students that had free time and could not focus on the job they needed to complete. A few students rushed through their work to earn free time. I did not notice anyone checking their completed work. After this class knowing that all the students were finished I asked the teacher if I could see the answer key and review the students work. He gladly granted my request. Out of 30 students, only 5 students did a great job and it showed in their work that they cared about getting a good grade and had little to no incorrect answers. More than half of the students clearly did not care and wrote in bogus answers. The few that were left copied each other’s work and clearly did not care about what was written. The third day of class the students traded papers and corrected their work with the teacher. He went through every question and had them write in the correct answer if they got it wrong. This was the first time I saw interaction between the teacher and the students. There was no conversation about the information and how this may apply to the students today. The correction of the two sided paper took the whole hour period, mainly because the students were uninterested and wasted a lot of time talking. It was almost like the students did not know how to behave when the teacher was in front of the class. After the students were done correcting their work the teacher collected the papers and recorded their grades. The next day, which was day 4 and the 4th hour of instruction on this lesson, the teacher passed out their work with the correct answers and a similar paper that read â€Å"test†. This format was the same as the assignment and had sentences from the text with blanks for the student to write the correct answer completing the sentence. I reviewed the test and see that the answer or black portion for the student to fill in was the question in the assignment. The question in the assignment was the answer or blank portion in the test. The whole concept seemed a little easy for this age and to be honest very boring and redundant. The next day the teacher had the students watch a history movie on the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The movie had more interest to the kids than the assignment that week. I was disappointed with the teaching aspect of this class. The teacher said he feels this â€Å"packet method† gets through the material and is repetitious for the kids to learn the material. I felt the kids were bored and had no desire to read the material. These kids especially strive for attention and most of the times do not have positive interactions with adults. The Constitution and Bill of Rights is a LARGE part of our history and after this week these kids did not have a better understanding or respect for our country and the rights they take for granted. The teacher and the children were not involved with each other at all with exception to correcting the assignment together. There are many things I would do differently. I would first, to get their attention, had out a blank piece of paper and ask them to make their own rights and make their own Constitution. I would have them do this to grab their interest in the lesson. These kids are more interested in what they think and what they want than anything else so I would use that and ask them what they want. I would then let them speak to the class about what they feel like they should have as right and why. This would teach the kids to respect the student speaking and also teach the kids courage to get up and speak in front of a group of their peers without using foul language. I would want to spark up a conversation about right and how important they are to each and every person. After that I would use the study guide the teacher created and read and answer the study guide as a class. I would also relate the lesson to what the students wrote in their own Bill of Rights. This was a great learning experience for me as an aspiring teacher. I would want more interaction within my classroom and my students. The students were very diverse in the aspect of some wanting to work, some not caring about the work, some unable to do work and some tweeners. I think having control of the classroom is the key in this environment. Being in front of the students and showing them you care about this and they should too, this is the philosophy I would do every day in class. I would have very little time in this environment where the student has the option when they are finished they would have free time. The only incentive there is the quicker you finish the quicker you can do whatever you want. I would have different incentives and a more positive environment that the kids could participate in with me, the teacher, the leader and their peers. In this type of school I feel with the curriculum you are also teaching life skills that they have not had the privilege of learning in their home environment. I cannot wait to have my own classroom and see the outcome of constant interaction and having the students give their personality to the lesson and assignments.

Transgender Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Transgender - Research Paper Example Most states have not developed hate crime laws related to gender identity. It has been estimated that one transgender is killed in the united state per month as a result of hate crime. Transgender people also face sexual discrimination in their day to day activities. This is because many people in the society have not accepted them. As a result, employees and housing agents tend to shy away from them. Most states have laws that ban discrimination based on ones sexual orientation. However, few have laws banning discrimination based on gender identity. In some states in the United States do not have laws that cover couples of the same sex. This is a delicate issue among the transgender community where couples of the same sex, also known as gays are a subset of this community. This are couples of the same sex. They miss out on the privileges of being in a marriage. These privileges include: the right to inherit the partner’s property, the right to enjoy tax deductions related to properties and income and the right to share property after divorce (Currah et al. 15). In several states in the United States there is a restriction in the foster care and adaption sector. There are restrictions on who can adapt children. In most cases, adoption is not allowed to couples of the same sex marriage. There is also a ban in several states on adoption of children by couples of the same sex. Couples experience discrimination from the adoption agencies based on the religious or the moral background. The disorder leads to unhappiness and depression because there is that feeling of not belonging in the society. This is because the society is yet to fully accept transgender in the society. In most cases, these individuals are rejected by their families, friends and even the church for what they believe. This is because transgender is seen it as being against the religion, especially by the church (Valentine and David 35). This

WORLD WAR II WAS A WAR OF UNPRECEDENT DEATH AND DESTRUCTION, MUCH OF Essay

WORLD WAR II WAS A WAR OF UNPRECEDENT DEATH AND DESTRUCTION, MUCH OF IT FOCUSED ON CIVILIANS, WHY - Essay Example The major control of Germany was in the hand of Adolf Hitler. He was the leader of Nazi party. He conquered the lands of Germany and defeated Poland. This proved to break out war against Germany and slowly nearly whole world indulged into it. In world war 2 more than 63 million people of allied and axis powers were died. This death figure included 24 million soldiers and 38 million civilians in which 90% civilians were from allied nations. Allied nations defeated the axis powers and this was the end of war. The major destruction in this war caused to Allied nation people. Death figure of civilians are given which shows the deadliness of world war 2.Around 11.7 million civilian died in Soviet Union, 7 million in China, 5.2 million in Poland, 2 million in Germany and 0.6 million in Japan. 5 million European Jews died due to genocide. In world war two many new weapons like atomic bombs, missiles, fighter planes, biochemical bombs were invented which caused to mass destruction and genetic disorders.

Eliminating the Home Mortgage Tax Deduction Essay

Eliminating the Home Mortgage Tax Deduction - Essay Example White argue that taxpayers were now allowed to deduct interest they pay on secured loan by qualified homes, either their main home or a second home. The loans in this case include first and second mortgages, credit’s home equity line and home equity loans. White (1) argues that recreational vehicles and even boats may also qualify as home in case they have cooking sleeping and toilet facilities. White notes that millions of US homeowners depend on the Mortgage Interest Tax Deduction as a way of reducing their true cost of homeownership and have more disposable income. This interest is filed on form 1040 of schedule A accompanied with other itemized deductions such as medical expenses, real estate property tax and donations. In this case, taxpayers are expected to fill in Schedule A, to determine if their itemized deductions exceed the standard. If this is proved so, then taxpayers will save more money based on their taxes by itemizing. Over the past years, many issues and cont roversies surrounding Home Mortgage Tax Deduction have arisen as to whether or not it should be scraped. Many economists consider it a waste of money due to concern about the federal budget deficit (Perez 1). They argue that Home Mortgage Tax Deduction does very little to assist in lowering income homeowners make the changeover from renters to owners. These economists say that Home Mortgage Tax Deduction only encourage upper income buyers to buy big homes to take bigger mortgages a view which I also concur with. This paper will discuss why Home Mortgage Tax Deduction should be scraped as a way of cutting the budget. History of the residential housing market Muth and Goodman (1) argue that housing is the most precious and unique commodity. In US for instance, about one-seventh of all personal consumption expenditures are on housing exclusive of other household operations and furnishing. They notes that residential real estate accounts for more than half of the US fixed capital stock and about one-quarter of the country’s gross lending investments are made up of construction of residential estates. Mortgage lending has however varied for one-quarter to one-fifth of all funds raised by Americas credit markets. United States is one country that has faced economic housing bubbles over the past few years affecting many parts of the countries housing market. For instance, the prices of housing peaked at the beginning of 2006 with a decline towards 2007 reaching its low recently in this year. For instance, at around December 2008, the home price index of Case-Shiller reported the largest drop in prices in America’s history. It is argued that increased rates of foreclosure between 2006 and 2007 among homeowners in US is what led to the crisis that hit the country in August 2008 for credit, subprime, mortgage, hedge funds. Leader of the realty and mortgage industries Economy Watch (1) notes that real estate industry emerged as one of the major industries i n the united states over the past few years. It argues that the housing bubble witnessed in Florida, California, and Michigan, and New York brought with it major changes in real estate in US. The housing bubble was the result of an increase in valuation of real estate in the US domestic territory. Economy Watch reports that mortgage lenders, commercial banks and other financial

Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 6

Philosophy - Essay Example e worry that this world might too be a dream was famously expressed by the French philosopher Rene Descartes in the seventeenth century in his Meditations. In fact, he specifically sought to doubt whatever could be doubted in order to lay the foundations for true knowledge through reasoning. After pointing out what happens during sleep, he makes his ‘dreaming argument’ when he writes, â€Å"In dwelling carefully on this reflection, I see so manifestly that there are no certain indications by which we may clearly distinguish wakefulness from sleep that I am lost in astonishment. And my astonishment is such that it is almost capable of persuading me that I now dream† (Descartes, 2009: 12). Put simply, the reasoning of his argument is that perceptions during both states are similar, and given that there are no ways to distinguish between them, therefore this raises the possibility that even during ‘waking’ one may be dreaming such that the perceptions du ring ‘waking’ may turn out to be ‘false’ as in dreams. An outline of this argument is presented below. Thus, Descartes doubts both; being presently awake and being ever awake. He refers to the particulars (i.e. what we do) during sleep as false delusions, and the things represented to us in dreams, as â€Å"painted representations which can only have been formed as the counterparts of something real and true †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (ibid). Incidentally, this shows that the non-dream world does have a greater originality than the dream world because what is painted in dreams is not created ex nihilo, but he continues to suggest that all the thoughts he has â€Å"are no more true than the phantasies† of his dreams (ibid: 49). Furthermore, Descartes’ obsessively skeptical approach is rather dubious because in places, it does not make sense, and some of his ideas like the demon are hypothetical. Moreover, it is ironic that after much doubting and casting aside the trustworthiness of the senses, he never once doubts his own