Bertell Ollman

Bertell Ollman's writing "Excerpts from How to Take an Exam...and Remake the World" was very interesting. One part that really interested me was the "Rules For Writing" by Steven Rubin. I like how the rules show an example rule of how to not follow the rule. It was interesting to see how many rules I break. The rule that interested me the most was the one on prepositions. It was interesting see how easily it is to end a sentence with words such as with or from.

Another interesting part was the part about alienation. It was interesting to see how much people isolate themselves from society. Whether it is my neighborhoods, work places, wages, race, etc., people are alienating themselves from others all the time. It seems something that is inevitable. I believe that people will always alienate themselves from others to a degree whether they realize it is not.

Lastly, the part on money and grades interested me. By Ollman saying "Both money and grades serve our society Procrustean beds. Money enables us to compare very different things on the basis of their price. Grades enable us to compare very different people on the basis of a letter." (Ollman 4). This struck me because it shows how the impact that money and grades have on society. They are a tool that allows us to judge people. It reiterates the fact that people can be alienated depending on their grades and money. It shows that every characteristic someone has can impact their isolation from others.