(written on 9/19 + drafted and reviewed on 9/20)

Charlize Parra

ENGL 201W

09/19/2023

Stockstory and Counterstory Shitty Draft

Introduction

Stock stories and counterstories. Both are the most simplistic and generalized perception of how we see one person, a group of people, specific places, and things. Think of it like a stereotype booked in a story for all to see, of how we assumed distinctive things, people, and places to be in this standard, but it isn’t always true when we find out that it is way more dissimilar than we initially thought it to be.

Because many young teens and adults wanted to fit into a specific group and role standpoint, we must understand that it left behind an impact in their lives and how it affected and changed them as a person today. What would be a suitable example of a stock and counter story for me? I can remember it in clear detail. Most would know the common feeling of students wanting to fit in their academic environment, and this is an all-around type of feeling many can say they have related to. I felt this big time when I was younger, time traveling back to the days of middle school.

1st Paragraph (Stock Story)

Let’s start back in the center of elementary and middle school. I was known as the quiet kid who didn’t feel “in one place in the others” to put it frankly. Of course, I’ve had my few best friends which helped me not to feel alone, which helped boost my emotional esteem considerably. But this didn’t mean I was not subject to being judged due to how “meek, soft, quiet, and crybabyish” I appeared, especially to the boys in my class back in the day. It wasn’t easy being the butt of the joke to them, especially since the athletic bunch of guys were not the nicest to me as you may expect. But try as I may, I wanted to radiate that exact level of energy they radiated when they played sports, such as basketball which is their favorite. I was and am to this day, a tomboy, which I liked having with slight playful roughhousing and “boyish” sports. I was a bit more sporty than most of the girls in my class, showing I wasn’t as “girly/weak” or any further derogatory synonyms the guys assumed girls were, to which they sometimes allowed me to play in their basketball games at recess.

A quote I can relate to from Martinez Aja’s “Alejandra Writes a Book: A Critical Race Counterstory about Writing, Identity, and Being Chicanx in the Academy.” is “So she knew the few toys she did have would probably not be very impressive to the others, and she also couldn’t think of a single toy she owned that truly qualified as special and something only she had.” Martinez, Aja. “Alejandra Writes a Book: A Critical Race Counterstory about Writing, Identity, and Being Chicanx in the Academy.” Praxis: A Writing Center Journal, vol.14, no. 1, 2016, http://www.praxisuwc.com/martinez-141. To which to put it in my own words, the “toys”, were the past personality traits I abided by and how I also didn’t feel like it would be impressive to others around me back in the day, which took a slight jab at my self-esteem for a little while.

2nd Paragraph (Counterstory)

For a counterstory, as a counteractive part to my story here, I want to point to the moment I got jabbed at for being a tomboyish girl who loves playing occasional sports and wanted to be seen as someone of the opposite gender who can be just as good too. Through these times, I’ve learned to tolerate negative verbal comments and do what I like to do to have fun. With my friends’ support, I learned to embrace that other half of me, of being a person with a fondness for one activity most would not favor, and that is okay. I’ve garnered the most recognition from most of my past classmates whenever we played in gym class, especially in kickball competitions, to which I showed my agile running and good kicking skills. Some of my past peers admired my sportiness, others gawked at me strangely for showing them that a girl like myself is more than what they presumed to be in their eyes. Another quote from Martinez Aja’s “Alejandra Writes a Book: A Critical Race Counterstory about Writing, Identity, and Being Chicanx in the Academy.” is “So,” Dr. Kent continued, “I’m well aware that not all of my students are equipped to handle the language, and with your own ESL background—”

Alejandra blinked and shook her head. Did she hear him correctly? Did he just say she was an ESL student? Did he just say her writing was not at the A level because he assumed English was her second language (Flores and Rosa)? ESL.”Martinez, Aja. “Alejandra Writes a Book: A Critical Race Counterstory about Writing, Identity, and Being Chicanx in the Academy.” Praxis: A Writing Center Journal, vol.14, no. 1, 2016, http://www.praxisuwc.com/martinez-141. With this quote relating to this matter, I’ve taken the banter with a grain of salt and learned to endure the assumptions with gradual patience and growth.

Conclusion 

In conclusion, this stock story and counterstory about my past struggle of wanting to fit in, and eventually learning through the advice of my close ones that you are yourself and you do what makes you happy minus what others stereotyped you to be, have helped me grow as a person today. It doesn’t matter who or what gender you are, and if you like this specific type of activity that one group favors, you should go for it no matter the gawks and negative verbal comments you get. This is a life lesson I’ve learned to do with support on the way, but also to myself as I grow in the present time. Finally, don’t feel the need to be only one half of yourself just to fit in one specific group, be yourself and that is all that counts because you, yourself, are one in a million.