drafting the acknowledgments
I drafted the acknowledgments tonight. As I struggled to figure out how to strike a tone of gratefulness without sounding sappy or obsequious, I, of course, did a google search, and found this fascinating article on dissertation acknowledgments. The author, Ken Hyland, observes, “Acknowledgements are much more than a simple catalogue of indebtedness. They offer insights into the persona of the writer, the patterns of engagement that define collaboration and interdependence among scholars, and the practices of expectation and etiquette that are involved.”
Having read acknowledgments in about ten dissertations, I would agree with Hyland about the rhetorical roles of dissertation acknowledgments. I also have to admit that reading Hyland’s article made me extremely self-conscious about what I was writing.
I also re-read New Kid's entry on acknowledgments, in which she observes that there are basically two kinds of acknowledgments: the kind that thank everyone who ever had anything influence whatsoever on the dissertator and the kind that thanks the committee, a few friends, immediate family, and that's it. What I've drafted so far is closer to the short and sweet kind, but I keep thinking of more and more people I should thank, so perhaps by the time I'm done, I'll have the neverending kind.
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