Question

curious, when im given a short story, poem, etc, to read and am asked to write a personal response on it, can my response just be about the given TOPIC? or must i only directly talk about /or make something similar to the given piece ?

also is it fine if i was to go against the view of the given topic?

Answer 1

Sometimes (and the instructions will be explicit about this, usually) on standardized tests or whatnot, they simply want to see if you can respond and analyze the given piece.

However, generally, if you're asked to write a personal response, I've been taught that you should write about the topic - and in fact, you should draw upon your outside knowledge and combine it with the source knowledge. That would, ideally, be the best response.

Going against the view is acceptable as well (unless of course it's explicitly forbidden ...that would be kind of rare though..) as long as you support your point of view strongly. Don't be on the fence about the issue.

Answer 2

alright that makes sense, do you think its also a good idea to use "italisized" sentences from the given piece in my response?

Answer 3

Do you mean direct quotes? If so - definitely!

Answer 4

great thankyou!