I think the most powerful and effective use of genre in Tom Siedlecki’s student essay is his personal letter written to his parents. Though his parents never saw the letter, it gave us extreme insight not only into Tom’s personal feelings toward his homosexuality, but also into the relationship he strived to have with his parents. The letter, I feel, does more for the story than the journal entry. While writing in his journal provides us personal insight into his situation as well, the letter does more for the story by creating a tone that any person could relate to. Making our parents proud is something we all strive to do. “I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.” That’s always the worst thing that could come out of my mom’s mouth.
But the letter also reflects his struggle, and a desire to be understood. Sometimes addressing your thoughts and intentions in letter form is an easier and surer way of being heard, rather than a heated argument where you’re put on the spot. And you can certainly tell that Tom put a lot of thought and effort into his letter with the intention to be heard, understood, and accepted.
However, I feel Tom’s telling of his “coming out” lacked the intensity the beginning of the story had. A genre that may have been helpful was showing a conversation between Tom and his friends. We are simply told that they reacted well and were for the most part unsurprised, but showing an actual conversation between Tom and a close friend may have lead to answers of questions left untouched. How exactly did his “coming out” come about? What did he say? Did he confide in anyone about his feelings towards his parents? Was anyone not accepting of his homosexuality? When looking at the relationships between people, just like in the letter to Tom’s parents, it helps make a stronger connection and better understanding for the situation as a whole.
