My Time In Mr. Robert Pirsig's English Composition Class Fall 1959. By James Ostby.

...I have been invited to comment here about my time in Mr. Robert Pirsig's English Composition class as a freshman in the fall quarter of 1959 at Montana State College, as it was called then. I was a tall, skinny, green, 5th-generation Norwegian, farm kid from NE Montana, and I would have been a good Norman Rockwell subject.

...Mr. Pirsig was a fine, decent man who did his best to instill in us not the mechanics of writing, but the underlying aspects. On the surface I recall some of the obvious efforts he made, such as imitating those in India walking on hot coals by gingerly high-stepping across the front of the classroom with his eyes bugging out, etc. I can't remember his point, but of course there always was one. There were other such interesting methods.

...Once he had us all give a class presentation, and mine was on chess. He then went beyond the norm by having each of us come to his office to receive his thoughts on our substance (if any at that age).

...Now here's the thing. We so young, and lacking in intellectual substance, that Mr. Pirsig spent most of his time dealing in "substance." He had to. (Perhaps that evolved into his "quality." In me it evolved into "reality.")

...I won't dwell on him personally, but later--after I had finished his class--I would meet him walking around town, and he always had a friendly greeting.

...Years later I corresponded with Mr. Pirsig for a while, and he kindly gave me some tips on writing, etc. I had sent him samples of my work, and he replied "Your writing is excellent, and you can quote me on that anytime." (And yes, I still have the correspondence.) Of course that meant a lot to me, even if my writing then was not up to what it now is.

...To be clear, I write as an avocation only; I think (as with most higher endeavors) excellent writers are born, not made; and that given the state of writing today my chances of writing the next "Zen ..." are about like those of the snowball in hell. And, I am not trying to write the next "Zen ..." Mr. Pirsig and I are (were) philosophically different.

...I may say though, that Mr. Pirsig and I likely shared some conditions and characteristics (that I will never get into); some good, many not so good. But no whining. On the good side, we both had motorcycles, and we both had bluewater double-ender (canoe stern) sailboats.

...I've been asked about more class memories, and memories of other students, faculty, and the campus environment back then.

...My main take on the class was that, as mentioned above, we students were so young that Mr. Pirsig devoted much time attempting to instill in us curiosity and the desire to learn more about what I think of as higher knowledge. Not just facts, science, etc., but an interest in--trite as it may sound--the meaning of life, if any, and so on. In fact I remember him saying, "Sooner or later something--perhaps the death of a parent, or some other significant event--will lead you to wonder what it's all about." I, in my young, shallow, naive life, was thunderstruck by that simple comment. And that was what he was teaching us; not grammar, syntax, and other mechanics, but the desire to look for "more."

...As to the class, there isn't much to tell. There were two football players, and the only other one who stood out was a girl usually two rows in front of me whom he mentioned in Zen ... as pressing him for answers, and I'm not even sure about that. And him telling us to write about our thumbs, and likewise I'm not so sure of that either, but I think he did.

...Campus environment. From what I hear from my college grandchildren, it's pretty much like now, without the women's curfews, mandatory listing of religious preferences, having to live in a dorm the first year, and other personal intrusions of the time. Most of the professors were nice, though there were some tyrants and drunks who would not be tolerated nowadays.

...Strangely, I have no recollection whatsoever of Sarah Vinke. Apparently my loss. I do remember very well my next composition class there in Montana Hall, and it is a bitter memory of Vern Dusenberry. And the quarter after that wasn't much better, though I can't remember the guy's name. I think he had a drinking problem.

...I have some other correspondence from Mr. Pirsig, but I'll keep it private, and as to any opinions on his writing, I prefer not to comment on that either.

...So, back I go, working on my latest, A Modest Exposition of the Rise and Fall of Humanity.

...Here's hoping that literary writing will continue to rise above the slush.

James Ostby Emails Adds These As Closing Thoughts =>
BTW, and probably unimportant or irrelevant, he and I are completely
opposites as to world views, but I did of course appreciate his work.
Hilsen, Jim Ostby
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Henry,
… I had no interest [as Pirsig suggested] in writing about the local Indian reservation. 😉 Cheers, Jim Ostby
*********
https://www.jimostby.com/ << {Has a good photo of him, and a brief bio.]
All the best from the barren plain of NE Montana,
Jim
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James Ostby Emails Attached 4 Letters From Robert Pirsig, =>
April 23 1987
… Robert Pirsig Reply To Former MSC Student James Ostby on Post Card that has photo of Wentworth-Gardner House in Portsmouth, NH … A good photo is here
https://savingplaces.org/distinctive-destinations/wentworth-gardner-house
June 1 1992
… Robert Pirsig Reply To Former MSC Student James Ostby assuring Ostby that his writing is excellent.
Dec 12 1995
… Robert Pirsig Reply To Former MSC Student James Ostby telling how to choose writing topics that readers would like, and how to find a book Publisher.
Feb 5 1997
… Robert Pirsig Reply To Former MSC Student James Ostby telling him of his father's Maynard Pirsig health and how to see writings of ZMM & LILA commentator Bo Skutvik.
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NOTE: Images Of The Above 4 Letters, Due To Technical Problems, Can Not Be Seen On This Webpage. Please Click Here And AFTER This Flickr.com Comes Up, ClickOn The < > Arrows To See All 4 Pirsig Letters.

Original Writing By James Ostby May 13 2023, with posting by Henry Gurr ~May 14 2023, and Letters added May 31 2023.
File = James Ostby MyTimeInMr.RobertPirsigEnglishCompositionClassF1959.Rev2