Bartholomae: Inventing the University

In this work, Bartholomae is writing to the audience about students writing at the university level and is trying to show his audience the difference between an advanced writer and a beginning writer. Bartholomae mentions how a student must "invent the university." This statement may be interpreted as a student should be comfortable with that they are writing, not just what he or she believes the professor wants see on paper. The author also mentions how students must "learn to speak our language." What Bartholomae means by this statement is that beginning college students must learn to write effectively with the correct vocabulary rather than writing what is believed to be desired. Bartholomae mentions an interesting metaphor when he uses "carry the bluff." What he means by this is that the students must be brave or daring in their writing. As in, if they have not yet mastered the language, then they should be brave enough to try. However, these two concepts contradict each other and later on cause problems, according to Bartholomae. In this essay, Bartholomae brings up a term, "commonplaces." The context of this term in writing implies that commonplaces are "interpretive schemes," according to Bartholomae. This means that there is a certain vocabulary that can be used to describe most things in a more advanced or descriptive vocabulary. With all of these different terms that Bartholomae uses, he shows the audience the difference between an expert writer and a beginning writer. The difference, based on this essay, is the vocabulary (or language) used in their writings.