Purposeful Documentation

* This is a scheduled post of an essay I wrote for English class*

Purposeful Documentation

Diaries, journals, and letters have been a means of communication, reflection, and record keeping for ages. There have been many historical facts and information obtained from old diaries, letter and journals. They are greatly valued. Today, people still keep diaries, and perhaps journals.
Letters are a way of communicating privately with a person that has been in use for more than centuries. Letters have also given insight into historical times and events, and are perhaps more descriptive of a particular event than diaries. Though letters are personal, they are not entirely private.
A diary is a more personal record of life, and always from a 1st person view, and full of opinion. This is a very important thing to remember when reading another’s diary. Usually, diaries are not intended for publication, but historical diaries are published after the death of the writer. It can be useful to keep a diary for several reasons. The writer will be able to read it and look back on special moments with a detailed or relative description. Diaries can also be passed down through the family, and are very often useful historical documents.
Journals are slightly different from diaries because they usually present information in a fact based, unbiased, informative way. Journals, therefore, are more for the benefit of informing others about an important event or time, rather than for personal reflection. This makes journals very valuable, perhaps even more than diaries are, when it concerns historians or people interested in learning about a time or place.
Though keeping a diary or journal may seem insignificant, you never know if it may be useful or informative for future readers. You may also derive much personal benefit from it, as well. Whether it be a personal diary of your thoughts, or an informative documentation of events, it will still give a glimpse into your life, your time, and the world that you live in.