afterword

Dodson's afterward is the typical wrap up for a book like this. He restates what he's said in the book, which I think is always important for a conclusion. I think this is one part that we can model our conclusions after. Reminding readers of all the things they've just read is important, especially in long pieces that readers may read over an extended period of time, like we did with Dodson's book. In contrast with what we're thinking about for our conclusions, Dodson doesn't really reflect or remember any of the stories in his book, he instead just gives us more information to take in. I feel like this could've been the perfect time for Dodson to tell us why he did this overwhelming amount of research on China. He could've taken us back to one of the little stories in the book and told us why those experiences were so personal to him. That shows me that it's definitely something that I want to remember in my conclusion. I think it's important for my readers to know why I spent three months trying to define a topic that is ultimately indefinable.