Bartholomae-Inventing the University

From the essay, Inventing the University, David Bartholomae discusses the concept of reinventing voice to fit the needs of the audience. Bartholomae makes some very valuable points about the discourse community. He notes that writers, especially students, must learn to speak the language of the different discourse communities in which they are trying to relate to. The writer must first establish authority in their writing. The next step is to establish a relationship with the audience by forming the right subject and language. Another way in which Bartholomae addresses how writers reinvent themselves is through imitations. Students refer to imitations in their writing to relate to the various universal audiences. I can relate to this point because I see it in my own writing. I write using various styles or tone to appeal to my audience. For example, in school I try to use the more academic, formulaic, or formal writing but on my own time I choose to use the less formal approach by using slang or internet speech such as "lol" or "idk." I know that as a writer the intended purpose of my writing must adapt to the readers needs. Bartholomae did an excellent job in trying to explain and defend this argument.