What is Composition?

The idea of what composition is has been one that has caused many scholarly debates over the centuries.  Not only what it is, but also how it is applied sparked debates between fellow academics.  For this blog post, however, I wanted to steer away from what the scholars have said and give a more off the cuff idea of what composition is to me.  Composition is the study of writing well, which I realize is a broad definition but one that I feel encompasses the true application of composition in real world settings.  It is learning to write well through use of specific training ideals, such as a clear thesis/argument, organization/structure of the argument, and a convincing ethos, which can be applied directly to scholarly articles of English but also to any field which requires good writing skills in order to better convey an idea or thought.  This is the reason for such a broad definition of what composition is because it should be able to apply to all fields of study.  Composition is not something that is unique to English students alone, but something that is learned in English that is applied in all reaches of study and employment opportunities.  So, in teaching composition I do not teach strict essay only composition ideas, but the far reaching ideas that can be applied to all writing to make ideas concise and clear for anyone that reads it.  I’m sure as the semester goes on I will change or refine my thinking of composition, but in the spirit of this post I wanted to keep it to an off the top of my head definition which I can later add some scholarship to.