Jessica Sanchez

STACC English 1A CRN #32475

Professor Adler
Due 3 March 2015
The Power in Writing
There are many different styles within writing it usually depends within the writer. Mary
Pipher demonstrates the power writing has and the importance of writing in her book, Writing to
Change the World. Writing can be written as in a story like Jimmy Santiago Baca did in his A
Place to Stand book. Or it can be done as in a letter like Dr. Martin Luther King. The meaning of
the writing or purpose usually depends on them as well because it is of their own creation. Bacas
purpose of his writing was for others to read and learn from his mistakes. Dr. Martin Luther King
writing was written so that people would be aware of the injustice being held in the environment
and changes could be made. The tones used in these two writing are very different. Dr. Martin
Luther King tone was formal and calm on the other side Baca was much more aggressive and
less formal but it soon starts to change near the end.
In the book Writing to Change the World Piphers concept is strong and very realistic. In
this book Writing symbolizes power and strength and makes you realize and think about writing
in a sense you have never had before. What Pipher is trying to outstand is that by writing out
your experiences you can prevent someone from making mistakes or maybe even write any
achievements to share techniques that others can follow. Pipher stated A true piece of writing is
a dangerous thing. It can change your life (Pipher 27). This quote is powerful and emphasizes
the power of writing and how it can make changes. Another statement Pipher has presented is

All writing is designed to change the world, at least a small part of the world, or in some small
way perhaps a change in a readers mood or in his appreciation of a certain kind of beauty
(Pipher 35). Her concept of writing is very strong and delicate and passionate. Piphers style
within her writing was formal and more like a lecture book teaching you on why and how to
appreciate writing. King and Baca are great examples on this concept of the importance and
changes writing can do.
Our great leader Dr. Martin Luther Kings wrote in a letter form. In his letter named
Letters from Birmingham Jail states strong descriptions of his emotions and thoughts in behalf
on the inequality he is going through as well as all the African American people. In this letter he
states ways on how we can improve and make this country a peaceful place and leave
segregation out. Dr. Martin Luther King also uses examples that are touching and emotional.
That is a good tactic to persuade people to be on your side. Like the example he used of yourself
imaging you had a daughter and she asks you why cant she do things like other white people do.
That is very sad because a young girl at that age shouldn't be thinking or worrying about that but
instead enjoying their childhood. Kings style in his letter was sensitive, emotional, and formal.
His diction is also elevated and shows a high level of education. The start of the letter pretty
much explains it all when he starts with My Dear Fellow Clergymen that shows respects
towards the reader and shows lots of respect. When he states To a degree, academic freedom is
a reality today because Socrates practiced civil disobedience. In our own nation, the Boston Tea
Party represented a massive act of civil disobedience (King 4). In this statement he uses his
diction in a higher educational level and the topics he is elaborating on make him sound like a
person with knowledge because he is presenting ideas and uses history incidents as evidence or
as to support his claim. The use of formality also helps people to take him seriously and with

much more respect and looked upon. Baca and King both write for a good cause in help of
society but they are both very distinct from each other.
Jimmy Santiago Baca wrote a book called A Place to Stand which is written in memoir
style he greatly lets out his emotions throughout the book. Just like Martin Luther they both used
their time wisely while being in prison. Writing to him was a way to let out his emotions and as a
therapy. His writing was created with the idea that by other people reading his bad experience
they would eventually learn and tend not to make the same mistakes he made. Baca uses his
writing to persuade people to not make the same mistakes he went through and guide them to a
better change. His writing style was less formal the diction used wasnt as elevated in
comparison to Kings. The lack of formality sometimes makes the reader lose the interest or
consider it serious, it just depends what the level of informality is. Bacas writing was toned as
aggressive, frustrated, or upset at times due to the situations he was facing. Nearly the end of the
book the tone of the book changes to a much more calm and pacify which indicates the selfreflection he has faced and shows the reader that even though he went to rough situations it was
time for a change. The change of the tone in his writing from aggressive to calm does show us
the reader that he has changed and realized what he has done in his past was bad and that he
shouldnt be held back and should continue to move forward. Baca uses his own personal
suffrages to make others feel what he went through that is a good way to persuade.
Dr. Martin Luther King feels anger or something against the society that is being unfair
and that is being discriminatory but he does tend to be calm and present his ideas for a better
change without the use of violence or bad behavior. The only difference between Baca and King
is their ethnicity type and the style within their writing but they both face hard discriminatory
situations that shaped them into the person they are and to reach for better life and try to make a

change in the world because they are tired of seeing their people suffer for a ridiculous reason
like unfairness. Writing can be used for many different reasons it just depends on the author.
There are also many different styles that a writer can choose it all mostly depends on the authors
mood or topic. Writing is a powerful tool that can be used to make changes in the world, like
Mary Pipher once said.