Self Sufficient

Self sufficiency is important.  It allows one to get stuff done; to take care of business.  Getting tasks done is  important in life for very obvious reasons.  If we do not finish what we need to finish, we can get into trouble from our superiors.  For the readers who have never done anything wrong or who really have never left the house, trouble is bad.  Self sufficient also refers to providing for ones self.  For example, a self sufficient farmer grows his own food. Self sufficiency is usually good thing.  When we can provide for ourselves, there is no need to depend on others.  It could be considered moral or virtuous to be self sufficient.  This moral is that of not being dependent upon others, to not be sloth and lazy.  Self sufficiency is clearly beneficial to the individual, but it can have harmful effects on both global and macro economics.  If we do not need to get supplies from the local store, the store may not have enough business to survive.  If that business is not purchasing from the manufacturer, the manufacturer could meet the same fate for the same reason.  Self sufficiency is wonderful on small scale and personal levels, but in large communities and world wide, it could be disastrous. However, now that I reflect on the matter, what would global economy matter, if nobody needed to provide for others?  Self sufficiency was a staple value of transcendentalism.  We see an experiment in self sufficiency in Henry David Thoreau's Walden. Thoreau ventures to Walden Pond and builds his own house.  He lives off of the land and only eats the food he grows.  It is a very interesting experiment which I suggest you read.

Emerson quote

I am to reflect on a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson. The quote I will be reflecting on is:

There is a time in every man's education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better, for worse, as his portion; that though the wide universe is full of good, no kernel of nourishing corn can come to him but through his toil bestowed on that plot of ground which is given to him to till.

I truly like this quote.  I believe whole-heartedly in this statement.  I adore the first part of this statement: from the beginning to the word "suicide".  I have experienced this revelation in my life.  I have no clue as to why anyone would ever have the apathy to resign themselves to the "suicide" that is imitation.  To imitate others throughout  life is to give up the individuality that defines the legacy of an individual.  To lose this legacy is to be lost in history, without this legacy, there is no accomplishment.  I feel as Achilles does in the movie Troy.  Life is not worth living if I do not carry on in legend.  Personally it is my ultimatum to be remembered for my achievements in life. One of the thing I hope to accomplish is to revolutionize science or social thought.  I like to believe that my thoughts and ideas are individual and sensible enough to be comprehended by the masses. I believe that my own philosophies and thoughts could truly change the world.  I want to be remembered.  Imitation is suicide.  To only copy the work of others, is to forfeit the chance to be remembered: to have the legacy that will carry your name through history.  Emerson is absolutely correct, and this quote is beautiful.

Snow

Snow is white and falls from the sky.  It can only exist when it is less than 0 C outside.  Snow is frozen water, ice, formations that fall from the sky when precipitation occurs. I like snow it is fun to play in because you can ball it up and make snowballs to throw at friends. You can also go sledding on snow.  Snow in physical form is enjoyable.  However, in literature, I hate snow.  Snow is always being used as a metaphor for something.  It is never just snow. In Elie Weisel's Night it represents the oppression of war.  Snow blankets the town.  This blanket is also a feeling of comfort because the Mayor says he likes the scent of snow.  Snow acts as so many different metaphors; it is ridiculous.  Snow can be a blanket, comforting and warm; a shadow of cold, like in Night; happiness and youth, when playing in the snow; or rebirth, with spring after winter. The sea is like this too the ocean usually refers to some emotional vastness, like sadness; or perhaps like a vastness of opportunity.  I like seeing metaphors in literature; it adds a wonderful depth to the effect of the story.  Anyhow, back to snow.  recently in class we read a poem where snow dusting a grave, putting resolution to the death of the deceased. I think the snow also put a shroud on the matter, allowing the narrator to forget the matter. Snow is a very versatile metaphor. I really believe it can do anything.

A Poem

Upon a dreary winter day I slept.
I rose at dawn and coaxed my sleep away.
I dressed myself and prepared for the day.
I put on my shoes and put on my hat.
Out doors I left to leave my troubles behind.

Sensing the Cycle of Life.

Supposedly one can sense the cycle of life. The first sense that comes to mind is a sweet taste.  Life is sweet because it can be full of joy. It is good to be young, then you enjoy freedoms in your 20s and 30s, then you enjoy the sweetness of family.  When we are young, we know the excitement of running through the summer grass and rolling around in the fluffy white snow.  As a teenager we get a taste of what having liberties is like. In our 20s and 30s, we fully experience these liberties and the new opportunities opened to us when we are adults.  When we are 30 or 40, most people choose to start a family.  We can find happiness in the patter of feet and the sound of kids or grand-kids playing on the lawn until we are older.  Life can also be bitter.  It is bitter when someone we are fond of dies. It is not fun knowing the pain of losing a loved one.  There are other hardships in life that make it bitter.  Life can be stressful.  When we are given our liberties at age 20 we are also expected to conform to society and get a house and a job, both of which can be stressful to the person trying to accomplish these. But what do I know. I am sixteen.  I don't know what the rest of my life will be like. I don't know how I will reflect on my early child hood in 20 years from now. I don't know what I will think about this blog post in 20 years. Life also has that taste of something you can't quite place. That is the uncertainty of the future.

Journal 18

As I pondered the multitude of eyes beaming at me from the magnificent creature, I could not help but notice the faint smell of blood. The smell of ferrous and pain came from the beast.  It is difficult to understand the smell of pain.  It is a recognition that an unfortunate soul makes once they have witnessed much pain.  It is the smell of fear and courage, of defeat and glory. I think the scent is from pheromones released by the body. That would make sense.  The body chose to alert others that this creature is injured, risky, but potentially good.  I wonder as to why this reaction was evolved. Yes, it helps friendly creatures identify that they need to help, but it could alert enemies to the weakness.  As I was pondering this, the creature stepped from behind the shadows.  Bloodied, but largely able to function.  It seemed that it had just won a fight that was well matched.  This animal would survive, but I assumed the worst for the other.  The beast, still ripe with adrenaline from its fight growled menacingly.  As I had mentioned, this creature had a multitude of eyes, all of which were focused on me.  They, it, the beast, glared at me.  It had just finished battle and was ready to start again. Obviously, in a choice of fight or flight, this creature chose fight.  I had to admire the nobility of it.  Courage is a difficult trait to develop and should be admired.  But was this courage of stupidity? I knew what I was capable of, and knew I would lose in this conflict.  However, it did not know what I had or what I was capable of.  I pondered the evolution this creature, and I must have been inactive enough in my thought because the animal growled and left.  I was not worth its time. I never saw the creature again in my life. I wish I knew the origin of the creature.

The Fuzz

As the light blue fuzz feathered through the warm current of air purring from the heat vent, I saw before me a revelation. We are much like the light blue fuzz which feathered through the warm air of the heat vent.  This little blue fuzz drifts along with no true control over where it goes, the warm air controls it, and the air is controlled by the vent.  We are the fuzz. We are light blue in modesty and freedom. Light blue in suffocation. We feather and drift through the air, semi-conscious that we have no control, but we still enjoy the freedoms allowed to us by the air and by our constant motion.  However uplifting this may be, we are suffocated. Suffocated by the lack of any control. Suffocated of the one true freedom. We lack power and asphyxiate on the hypocrisy that we feed ourselves when we say we are free. This fuzz is piteous. It has no power, no control, and no sense of emotion.  We are the fuzz, pushed along by the warm air current that is societies expectations.  The heat vent that is authority creates the warm air that is expectations, and the heat is a mutual hatred of all who have ever met.  These expectations are put upon us.  Once we have entered the air current, there is no turning back. We are swept away by the flow and change of expectations. The fuzz follows the current for a time, and then drifts out and lands on the floor beside me. After its monumental journey the fuzz is free of the draft. The expectations are too gentle to affect us. The heat is still present, but not as extreme or as forceful as it was in the fuzz's early life. We think about the time before we entered this air current from the heat vent, and reflect on how is the same as we currently exist.  We are this fuzz, and the fuzz is free.

Journal 16

A long time from now, in a galaxy far, far away, our story takes place. The setting is the Nombulus System in the Goromb galaxy. The Goromb Galaxy is a peaceful place as the Imperials had kept a stable rule for many centuries. The Nombulus System was a smallish system toward the middle of the galaxy. It too, was very peaceful.  Well, one day young Zaxbar comes to school dressed differently from everyone else.  The usual attire for boys his age was cut off bredano pants, Stellar Brand zephyr shoes, and a frotir shirt.  It was very unusual for people to show up dressed differently from this as this was the style of the time.  However, Zaxbar wore something different. He came to school with a grenthar cap, a full sleeve botnam tunic, yicur pantaloons, and sandals.  The other kids did not know what to think of Zaxbar because he was dressed in a manner that they did not understand.  This attire was very weird because his shirt was one reserved for formal dances, his hat from the military, and his pants had been used since the colonization of the system.  People asked Zaxbar what he was wearing and why he was wearing it, but he would not answer.  There were speculations that he was trying to start a new trend, or that he had gone mad. Zaxbar denied all propositions and never told anyone what he was wearing.  However, many of the kids, who were easily impressionable, acted as total jerks.  They were molded by the sardonic media of the galaxy known as the Internet.  These kids began to make fun of him by calling him very offensive names such as Beeble Bobler, and Nerf Herder.  Strangely enough, Zaxbar was un-phased.  Such names were very insulting, and if said to the wrong person would result in several days of detention.  Although Zaxbar took no heed to the bad things said about him, he never wore it again, and everyone was very confused.  We will never know the mystery behind the day Zaxbar came to school in unusual garb.

Whom Do I Miss Greatly?

I have to admit I don't miss many people. I have a good friend who moved to Alabama a few years back, but he and I keep in touch a few times a week, and he comes up during summer and winter break.  Sometimes, right after the end of summer, I think to myself, "I should go to Wade's house." However, Wade isn't there, and I'm OK with it.  The one person I could say I legitimately miss is my cousin Cameron.  Cameron was and still is a very smart guy. He knew all kinds of stuff about biology and wildlife and he was a really good artist. He is my older cousin, so when I was a kid I looked up to him. I only got to see him at family occasions such as family dinners at Christmas and Thanksgiving.  He graduated highschool and joined the Marines.  I don't get to see him now at family holidays because he is still training to be a helicopter mechanic.  He really likes the armed services, and I am happy for him.  But I don't get to see my cousin and I hope he stays safe.

Poe: Transcendentalism

"The Pit and the Pendulum" is an excellent work by Poe showing the writing style of the Romanticism era, specifically that of transcendentalism.   The transcendental writing style focuses on the concept of metaphysical experience.  Poe experiences and conveys the feelings that one would get if one experienced the Inquisition first hand.  

This work is generally romantic.  Poe is eloquent and aloof with his wording with such descriptions as: "the sound of the inquisitorial voices seemed merged in one dreamy indeterminate hum." (Poe).  This is notably romantic because many people today would view this a very wordy and not concise enough to be used in literature. However, this is what helps Poe to make his superbly finite description of the infinite.  This is one of the first references that Poe makes to the transitional state of consciousness and fear experienced by the narrator.  This story belongs in the Romanticism category of Transcendentalism because it focuses on the metaphysical.  The narrator does not focus so much on his surroundings as he does trying to make sense of his internal experiences (Poe).  

Poe also demonstrates transcendentalism very well.  The majority of the story is the narrator trying to figure out what state of mind he is experiencing (Poe). At one point the narrator states, "What of it there remained I will not attempt to define, or even to describe; yet all was not lost. In the deepest slumber -- no! In delirium -- no! In a swoon -- no! In death -- no! Even in the grave all was not lost." This is the narrator attempting to identify his state of mind.  The entire story weaves in and out of dream and reality, where the two collide often enough that, if it seems like one, it is probably the other.  On the table beneath the pendulum, when the are climbing over him, Poe slips in and out of reality (May).  Another example of this transitioning in and out of consciousness is a the beginning.  The trial seems vague, like a dream, but the narration of being transferred by the guards seems like the narrator is gaining consciousness (Poe).  Poe references this in his work and talks about awaking from sleep and "breaking a gossamer web" but should the web be unbroken, one experiences such fantasy that it can not be put into coherent thought without a work of great length (Poe).  

"The Pit and the Pendulum" is a remarkable work by Poe.  It uses transcendentalism to identify with the the metaphysical experience of fear and intermediate consciousness (May). This transitional state of reality truly makes this story transcendental because it does not even necessarily focus on the familiar.  The unfamiliar is embraced by the narrator and analyzed with little success.  The narrator makes the identifications of new experience common to transcendentalism writing.  Poe's "Pit and the Pendulum" is literally a textbook example of romanticism.

May, Charles E. "Alternate Realms of Reality." In Edgar Allan Poe: A Study of Short Fiction. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1991, pp. 96–97. Quoted as "Dreams and Reality in the Story" in Harold Bloom, ed. Edgar Allan Poe, Bloom's Major Short Story Writers. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishing, 1998. (Updated 2007.)Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= BMSSEP39&SingleRecord=True (accessed November 4, 2012).

Poe, Edgar Allen. "The Pit and the Pendulum." American Literature. Columbus, Ohio: Glencoe, 2009. 263-73. Print.

Journal 14: Scared

The time when I was most scared was when I was 14.  I was at a summer camp with the Boy Scouts in Camp Bunn, Illinois.  Summer Camp was going well, but as always, the weather became rainy.  However, this time it got bad.  The sky turned green and the thunder was very close.  The camp's tornado sirens began to wail.  At the beginning of camp, all of the scout leaders were given instruction on where to take shelter in case of bad weather because tornadoes are not that uncommon in southern Illinois.  Our troop was supposed to take shelter in a runoff ditch in the woods behind our camp.  Great.  The sirens go off and we are guided a few hundred feet to the ditch.  We are instructed to lie down and cover our heads; we do so. I am on the bottom of the pile of young men and am face-down on my stomach at the bottom of the ditch.  The rain is coming down in buckets, the wind is, well, tornado-like.  A stream is swallowing the lower half of my body, trees are blowing over and landing across the ditch, and lightning strikes only 200 yards away at the climbing tower.  This was terrifying.  I was drenched, muddy, under a pile of bodies, trees are nearly landing on me, lightning is very close and I can feel it through the ground, and I was 14.  I seriously thought I would die. I didn't.  I'm pretty sure it's blatantly obvious why this was scary, but in case it wasn't: I am not usually afraid of storms, I haven't been since I was five.  However, I do have a fear of suffocating, drowning, and getting smashed by a tree.  Its a bit irrational, I know.  This is the time when I was most scarred.  I think it was a fairly acceptable time to be afraid.  Summer camp that year was exciting to say the least.

Franklin Project review

I thought this project was menial and boring.  I understand the importance of learning how to work with others and learning how to communicate with people you haven't met, but the material of the topic became repetitive.  Perhaps this was more beneficial for the English 331 students than it was for me.  I felt as though I kept regurgitating the same material for two weeks, just wording it differently in each repetition.  This project did teach me about how to use the youtube video editor, which was neat to know how to do.  Learning how to use different kinds of communication systems while still accomplishing goals focused on progressing my knowledge and understanding of the English language and literature would be nice, and this did half of that.  I did learn how to communicate efficiently in a different way than I had previously explored, but this project did not further my understanding of Franklin or English literature.  This project is one that would be acceptable perhaps in the speech class offered by my school, but I believe, especially for the accelerated classes, this is repetitive.  During these weeks we could have been looking at other authors as opposed to skimming over a few works criticizing a 7 page excerpt from Franklin's Autobiography.  To make this project better for an English course, I think we should be linking Franklin's work to works of other authors of the time.  An interesting idea would be to relate American literature to British literature by comparing and contrasting Franklin with Locke.  That would be cool.  Something like that would be appropriate for an English course. We could also compare Franklin to someone from a later literary era.  Like comparing Franklin with Hemingway.  I understand that this could create conflicts with the teacher's lesson plans, but i feel this should be beneficial.  I like the potential of using different communication forms, but if that is all the project will be it should be used in the speech class or regular English, as opposed to the honors English course.

Franklin's Character Success

Ben Franklin was successful in altering his character with his thirteen virtues.  After observing Franklin's virtues and a criticism by Henry Tuckerman, it is determined that he succeed in improving his character.  Franklin was beginning to fall into a pit of vulgarity when he created his list of virtues.  His system and his appropriate selection of virtues allowed him to better his character.  He followed his virtues, gained self discipline, and absorbed his virtues into his personality.

Franklin's virtues were:

Temperance. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.
Silence. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.
Order. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.
Resolution. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.
Frugality. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.
Industry. Lose no time; be always employ'd in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.
Sincerity. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.
Justice. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.
Moderation. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.
Cleanliness. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.
Tranquillity. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.
Chastity. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.
Humility. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

(Franklin 82-84)

Franklin's success comes from the perfection of the list of virtues he chose.  Each and every one of these virtues can be applied to individual points of life.  As well, all can be applied to every point of life.  For instance Order, industry, and resolution would appear to be very business oriented, but they could also be applied to events such as speaking with friends.  In business these virtues are obvious, do work on time and when and be be done when it supposed to be done.  When talking to friends, these virtues instruct not to bring up non sequiturs and to be concise but resolute.  The wonder of these virtues lies in that they all have their own applications, but belong in every application.

Franklin's system also taught him discipline.  Franklin would focus on improving one virtue per week in a thirteen week cycle.  The commitment required to fulfill a nonessential request over such a long time period demands tremendous discipline.  We see Franklin's devotion in this quote by Tuckerman, "The pervading trait of Franklin's character was allegiance to the Practical. Few devotees of knowledge have so consistently manifested this instinct, the more remarkable because united to speculative tendencies which quickened his intelligence and occupied his leisure to the very close of his existence." (Tuckerman 1).  Franklin was a man of his time.  The current societal movement was that of the Enlightenment era.  This era was defined by experimentation to reveal the workings of God's universe.  A time period revolving around the Practical.

Franklin's virtues eventually absorbed into his personality.  Franklin was now a virtuous man governed by personal laws, empowered by self discipline.  We see many of Franklin's virtues come though in his science.  Franklin becomes obsessed with advancing science and began conducting experiments with electricity.  His most famous experiment with the kite and the key in the storm led to the creation of the lightning rod.  Franklin invented many other useful inventions that are still used today.  This list includes; bifocals, a type of stove still common today, and the creation of the first fire department.  These inventions required insight and focus to be created.  To have these Franklin needed to master several of his virtues.  Franklin's politics also reflects his self improvement. He was often trusted to preside over the first Congressional conventions and to keep peace when there was disagreement, something he was not apt to do without his virtues.

Franklin was creating a work of genius when he wrote his thirteen virtues. The virtues apply to all aspects of life. To be mastered, Franklin's virtues require self discipline, a major bonus to the list of virtues.  Lastly, we see Franklin take on all qualities of these virtues in his later life experiments and politics.






Bloom, Harold, ed. "The Character of Franklin." Benjamin Franklin, Classic Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CCVBF019&SingleRecord=True (accessed October 30, 2012).

Franklin, Benjamin. Autobiography. Philidelphia: Ben Franklin, n.d. 81-92. Print.

American Dream

The American dream has changed a lot since the founding of the colonies.  At the beginning of the colonies, the Dream was that of owning land and having freedoms. The colonists left England because they were being oppressed during the protestant movement in Europe. The Church of England had broken up and recreated itself a few times, and in an attempt to establish itself, the Church of England antagonized people of other religions such as the Calvinists and Quakers.  These groups hired and signed up to take boats to the "New Land" to start new lives away from oppression.  Some people traveled over believing that they would soon face poverty in England and needed to escape. Not until the creation of Georgia under George III and James Oglethorpe were there colonies specifically for debtors.  The original dream was that of a new life with less religious torment.  The current american dream is to strike it big.  Everyone wants to have the next big idea that will make millions of dollars.  Americans now dream of money and power.  People today describe success as who has the most money.  Today, money buys happiness.  Success is money and money is happiness, so it makes sense that this would qualify for success.  Money can not buy everything, like love and respect, but for most people it will do the job.  The dream for me is somewhat similar to this, but also very different.  I wish to become rich and famous and powerful like many do, but for me, I would like to change the world.  I want to make a revolution, an uprising, a surge of new thought.  I would most like to advance systems of transportation, but I also would like to change how the world views politics. Perhaps I will talk about this in another blog.  A friend of mine also aims to change the world of deep space propulsion.  As I have not asked permission, I will not reveal his name, but he is the co-founder of his own "rocket science" company.  His work is not patented so I do not know exactly what he is working on, but if successful it should cut costs of space travel significantly.  To do something like this is my dream.

Ben Franklin's Autobigraphy

Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography is brilliant. He embodies the school of thought of the Enlightenment.  Good old Benji and I seem to agree on most everything.  His views on church and theology are exactly mine.  He acknowledges his God, but feels church sends the wrong messages on what you should believe and why (Franklin 82).  He also sets out a list of virtues which I agree with and lays out a decent plan to achieve them (Franklin 84-85).

Benjamin Franklin's views on church verily agree with the mindset of the time.  Franklin believes there is a God. One that is able to punish and help, and redeem and condemn (Franklin 81). However, Franklin does not visit the church often.  This is characteristic of that time period because the Great Awakening has just ended and the Enlightenment era is beginning.  People are starting to visit church less than they used to.  This is because the people are moving past a time when you would be ostracized if you did not go to church.  The Great Awakening is most noted for it's fire and brimstone sermons.  It is understandable that people would want to get away from that. The Enlightenment period is known for its rational thought.  A rational thought of Ben's is that we should strive to better ourselves and society, which is also characteristic of Enlightenment.  Ben believes that church teaches you to assimilate rather than better yourself (Franklin 82).  I totally understand this. I get a somewhat uneasy feeling in church when we all chant our prayers and songs. It seems cultist. I like that the church teaches to respect others and yourself, but both Ben and I agree that the church seems to want you to act as they do because they tell you to, not because it is good for you (Franklin 82).  

Franklin also sets out a very good list of virtues he wishes to achieve. As I said in my last blog, a virtue is basically a moral or belief you hold dear.  Ben's virtues are: temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity, and humility (Franklin 84-85).  Ben's virtues are based around how he believes people should act and how he believes society should act.  These virtues can be summarized by: do not speak without purpose, do not act to harm others, be productive, not wasteful, and show restraint.  Ben says he would like to attempt to tackle one on these virtues per week in a thirteen week cycle (Franklin 87).  I admire Franklin's drive to accomplish these goals. He sets out weekly lists of the virtues he has achieves, and reflects on them to better himself (Franklin 87).  I agree with most virtues on here and admire the ability of anyone who can control all of these.  I know I have trouble with it sometimes.  

Franklin's Autobiography is an insight to one of the greatest minds of the Enlightenment era.  Franklin shows traits that define this era. He lays out the morals of the time and even goes so far as to outline his progression toward virtuous perfection.  This is a very good example of the rationalist thoughts that were characteristic of the Enlightenment.

Franklin, Benjamin. Autobiography. Philidelphia: Ben Franklin, n.d. 81-92. Print.

Virtues

Virtues are like a code of life. Something you believe in and strive for in your life.  Everyone has some virtues. Me? I believe in hard work, a dedication to education, and independence from emotion.  I believe in hard work.  I work hard at everything I do. I give my best when I carry out tasks, especially homework.  I do well in school, and that is something else I believe in. This is one of my virtues that I think everyone should believe in.  School is the key to success. You don't need to go to an Ivy League college to be successful, but you should try to learn what you are taught in school.  I hate when people don't listen to the teacher because they think that they will never have any use for that knowledge later in life.  I dislike this so much that I often consider becoming a mass murderer who will kill anyone who can't answer basic trivia.  I hate when people don't try to understand what they are taught.    That said, one of my virtues that I hold, I sometimes have trouble sticking to. That virtue is to be emotionless.  I allow myself to be happy and laugh, and to be angry or frustrated.  However, I don't like to let myself be sad.  Sad and depressed are the worst, and they never offer anything productive. Being sad and depressed will not let me better myself.  Sadness happens and I cannot let it affect me too much.  Sadness affects my ability to function properly, and I go nuts if I cannot function properly.  Sometimes I am sad, but in the words of Neil Patrick Harris, "Do you know what I do when I get sad? I stop being sad and start being awesome."

Declaration of Independence

We are supposed to analyse the use of propaganda in the United States Declaration of Independence. The only fault I find in the Declaration is that is states opinions as facts, often in means to gain sympathy for the states.  

One instance of this is the line "Such has been the patient suffering of the colonies." (Jefferson 122).  Thomas Jefferson is talking about how the colonists have been getting bullied and abused by the British soldiers and the King.  I am certain that the colonists were mistreated, and it was the fault of the soldiers and king.  However, the term "patient suffering" is an opinion.  I don't believe the British thought the colonists were being patient when they started a war.  This statement may oversell the "suffering" too.  Most of the suffering done at the time was in the bank.  The British had been enacting heaving taxes which the colonists had to endure and pay, but the statement made by Jefferson makes it sound as though the British physically abused all colonists.  There are reports and documents of these British soldiers hurting innocent colonists, but it was not wide spread and very rare.  

The other notable time this happens, Jefferson says that the British "have been deaf to the voice of justice and consanguinity" (Jefferson 124).  The British thought they were being just when they enacted the taxes on the Americans.  The British needed a means to collect revenue to get themselves out of debt from the end of the Seven Years War. Taxes against the Americans, who the British put all of their money into protecting, seemed logical.  The British had justice in mind when the began what the colonists saw as offences against their humanity.  In all honesty, the taxes were steep, and most seemed reasonable to the Crown.  Some acts were enforced to punish the Americans when they refused to pay the taxes though, which could be seen as cruel.  However,  Shortly before the Americans wrote the Declaration of Independence, the British offered to revert the laws back to before 1763 when the taxes began. The Americans rejected this offer because independence was in sight, but would not be recognized for another 5 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

Jefferson wrote a very good Declaration, and it is no surprise to me that it is used as a basis for independence by many other countries.  The only possible propaganda I found was the use of opinion as fact with the intent to gain sympathy.


Jefferson, Thomas. The Declaration of Independence. American Literature. Columbus, Ohio: Glencoe, 2009. 122-24. Print.

Mint

So. You should bring in Brach's Star Brites mints to next class. You're probably wondering why you should do this. Is there any gain?  Yes, there is.  I believe that Star Brite mints would cause the classroom to be a happier place.  Star  Brites would make us, the students, happy.  We all like mints.  It would be considered as a pleasant gesture by all of us should Star Brites be brought in.  In return I am sure that we would all be grateful, and we would all act accordingly so.  I am also certain that would would be happier if we, the students, acted more tolerably.  Star Brites make for happy students, make for a happy classroom, which in turn makes for a happy teacher.  If we look at the associative property, Star Brights means a happy teacher. You are our teacher; we are your students.  Help us to help you.

Another reason to bring in Star Brite mints is that they help students focus.  The mint gives our mouths something to do so the rest of our heads can focus on the task at hand.  In middle school we were always given mints during the ISATs to help us focus on our tests.  From personal experience, I can also tell you that the freshness of the mints gives a clarity of mind. This clarity of mind is what allows for more focus. If we focus the room is quiet which makes for a better environment, which you the teacher will be able to enjoy. Also if we focus, we will get our work done and be happy about that.  Happy environment makes for happy teacher; happy students make for a happy teacher. Help us to help you.

Help us to help you. Bring mints in to class. The mints will make life considerably more enjoyable for everyone.

On Autumn

Autumn. I like it. Autumn is when the air turns cool after the long, hot summer.  It is the entrance of many new colors to the foliage and trees.  The time for cook outs and foot ball games. I love it when everything around me dies. The cold creeps in,  the ice draws near, and disease is a serious concern.  The leaves fall of of the trees, the grass turns yellow and brown, and suddenly grandma has pneumonia.  Lastly, I'm colorblind and I can't even see the leaves turn to pretty colors.  Don't get me wrong, I like Autumn.  I like the break from the hot steamy summers.  I like the cool rain and the fresh air after the rain.  I like cookouts, bonfires, and wearing sweaters.  I even have a special place in my heart where I enjoy the death.  Go ahead, send me to an institute. But I like it.  Its refreshing. Its change.  Change is one word that I would use to describe Autumn.  Everything changes, at least in Illinois. The weather goes from hot to frigid and from dry to rainy and later snowy.  The trees and crops go from being ripe with life to being dead and lifeless, probably unfortunately just like many people. However, the reason the crops die is because they get harvested. Autumn is also a season of plenty.  We have cookouts and bonfires with all of our friends. During these we cook and serve feasts of food, grilled meats and veggies.  The fruit has just been picked and is ripe and juicy.    Autumn is a season of death and disease, but it is also a time of plenty, where we gather around fires for warmth and comaraderie and couches to watch football games.  Autumn can have mixed feelings about it, but personally, I like it.

Logic vs. Emotion

Today's journal is about using logic instead of emotion. So here is a thoroughly exciting tale about the time i went to history class and actually thought. In my AP US History class, we discuss current events going on in society at the time.  We have these discussions for a few minutes at the beginning of every class.  Last class, we discussed the Mohammad video that was recently released.  This video is viewed by many, especially Muslims, as being scandalous.  I have not seen it, but I have heard it depicts Muhammad as a womanizer.  The Muslims do not believe they should portray Muhammad at all, let alone, in a bad manner.  The Muslims began to riot in other countries at the US embassies.  Rioting escalated and people, government officials, actually died in Libya. The ambassador offered an apology before his death.  Mit Romney criticized the Obama administration for the apology.  In class we discussed weather it was right of Mit Romney to say we should not have apologized.  Many people in class said that it hurt the feelings of the other people, but I looked at it in another manner.  I said that I believed Romney was correct in that we should not have apologized.  This is a rather notable action for me as I usually follow a more leftist style.  I, however, am a firm believer in the First Amendment.  I believe that for us to apologize over this is the same as apologizing for letting citizens have the freedom of speech.  The video was made in the States and therefore should be protected by American Government as it is a right given to our citizens by law.  The simple idea that we should care more about the opinions of others more than our own seems nice, but it is also morally illogical.  In life I feel that I ought to care about my own feelings and beliefs before those of others. By all means, tend to the happiness of others, but I believe that we should put ourselves first.

Crucible 4

Jonathan Edwards Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God can be related to Arthur Miller's The Crucible, but they also have their differences.

These two pieces of literature are different for a couple of reasons.  Jonathan Edwards sermon was written in the 1700's in the Puritan era of the colonies.  It depicts Puritan writing qualities.   Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God is an example of a Puritan fire and brimstone sermon.  These sermons were meant to scare and motivate people into going to church.  However, Arthur Miller's The Crucible is a play written hundreds of years later and only imitates Puritan values.  The Crucible is an historical fiction about a real event in Salem, Massachusetts.  The major difference between the two is that Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God is a example of Puritan beliefs at that time in history.  The Crucible questions the absurdity of those beliefs from the point of view of the a more modern day audience.  To us, these Puritan beliefs seem extremist and ridiculous.  Today we believe in acceptance and tolerance, but back then it was more "their way or the highway."  Another contradiction is that Edwards speaks more of the wrath of God whereas Miller speaks more of the wrath of men punishing men.

These two works are also comparable.  Jonathan Edwards gave a fire and brimstone speech much like Reverend Parris does in The Crucible (Miller 28-29).  Reverend Parris is not liked by people in the village of Salem because of his sermons (Miller 29-30).  These speeches were about as effective as a repellent as they were drawing people to church because some people were scared and others were just annoyed.  Jonathan Edwards talks a lot about how to condemn yourself to the fires of hell, but he does not talk about how to un-condemn yourself and avoid the wrath of God.  The people of Salem in The Crucible feel this way as well.  In Salem, it is very easy for someone

to be condemned as a witch, but it is impossible to be un-condemned. John Proctor is accused of wizardry and finds himself in jail trying to prove that he is not a wizard, but no one will believe him (Miller Act IV); he is eventually hanged (Miller 145). These works also share a likeness in how they describe confrontation with the devil. Both speak of being possessed, flying under satanic powers, and signing the devil's black book. (Edwards) (Miller 19, 121-123).


Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, New York: Penguin Plays, 1982. Print.

Edwards, Jonathan. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Pub., 1992. Print.

Bullying

Bullying is bad. So say they who claim goodness.  Bullying can be very damaging to a person. The person it effects is not the bully, but the victim (duh).  Bullying is intimidating and abusing people who are lesser or weaker.  I don't know why bullying happens, but it has been going on for a very long time.

Bullying has been going on for a long time.  The Egyptian Pharaohs tormented other Egyptians and the Jews. In relation to what we are learning in classes right now, colonists tormented the Indians.  Here the Indians were. Just playing nicely by themselves and here comes England and knocks over their sandcastle.  That last statement could be taken very close to literally.  The English came to American and told the natives to leave. Why should they leave? Because. My king, who you've never heard of, said I now get this land.  Pretty unfair right? Well, at least the English weren't the Spanish.  The Spanish did not even tell the natives to leave, they just killed the natives or forced them into slavery.

I have no idea why bullying exists other than that it is a way for the bully to feel good about themselves.  It feels good to be better than someone at some thing.  If you have ever played sports, it feels good to win, but no one likes to lose.  It also feels good to know something someone else doesn't.  To be good at something gives one the sense of self worth, as it rightly should. However I don't believe that we should hurt people who do not deserve it. We should not detriment their intelligence unless they deserve it either.  Why would this feel good? This is rhetorical, of course, but I really don't know.  I don't feel good when I hurt someones feelings; I feel bad.  I do not instigate fights unless I believe the other person needs to learn their place, and even then I tell them to knock it off first.  I can not imagine how broken one's life must be to only be able to get a sense of self worth by tormenting the innocent.

Crucible 3

The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, shows human nature in its characters.  Dictionary.com defines human nature as "the character of human conduct, generally regarded as produced by living in primary groups." The site also defines it as "... less than perfect."  This is important to the rest of my blog because I would like to focus on the flaws of each.  The characters each have their own personalities as I have discussed in my last blog and they all follow human nature in the manner in which they solve their difficulties.

Human nature is important to analyse in Puritan writing.  Puritans believed in God, and their lives were based around his teachings.  They would strive to follow in his footsteps.  Their lives were supposed to be sinless and as close to the bible as possible.  This is why human nature and error is important to analyse in Puritan life.

The Crucible demonstrates human life in the way the characters are curious.  Curiosity is part of human nature.  Abigail was curious to try witch craft and see what it was, so she tried it (Miller 18). In fact many of the girls were curious to try witchcraft (Miller 18-22).  Parris was curious of what Abby and Betty were doing dancing in the woods with Tituba, so he decided to investigate (Miller 10).  Lastly throughout the book, there are many people curious if witchcraft is actually occurring (Miller Act III).

Another aspect of human nature is flaws and the want to cover them up.  In The Crucible, Abigail makes the mistake of trying witchcraft (Miller 18).  She tries to cover this by blaming others and saying they made her do it. One such person was Tituba (Miller 42).  Another flawed person is John Proctor.  John used to sleep with Abigail even though he was married to Elizabeth Proctor (Miller 21-24).  He admits this to his wife (Miller 49-55), and then tries to not have word get out past that. This shows two of the ways people deal with their flaws. They can admit them or try to cover them up.

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, New York: Penguin Plays, 1982. Print.

Crucible Colors

In class last class we discussed the "colors of personality".  The colors of personality are blue, green, gold, and orange.  Green defines thinkers, like me, gold is a planner, Blue is artistic and emotional, and orange defines outgoing-ness.

The characters from the book The Crucible each fit into one or two of these colors.  The character Abigail is one of these characters.  Abigail is a orange personality.  She acts impulsively and does not think her actions through.  She acts as she pleases and this comes back to bite her.  For instance, when she attempts witchcraft in the woods is a good example of impulsiveness (Miller 18-19).  She did not think about how this might be dangerous to her if, and she was, found out.  Another fine example is that she slept with Proctor (Miller 21).  Back then sleeping with an already married man was even more scandalous than it is now.  People who belong to a different color would not be so morally Abigail was a very hypocritical girl.  She says she defies the devil, then tries to worship him, and then she says she adheres to the bible, but she slept with a married man.

Another easily identifiable character is Reverend Hale.  Hale has a green personality.  He thinks his actions through.  He was called to examine Parris's daughter, Betty (Miller 9).  He tells them that he will look at her, but he will only say she is is witch if she truly is a witch (Miller 38).  I like this about him.  All of the others seem like zealots who just want people to be witches and will accuse them with or without proof one of these people is Parris.

Parris seems to be of almost no group.  He is unpredictable.  In the beginning, he seemed thoughtful, like green personality, when he first found his daughter sick (Miller 9).  However, in the courtroom, he was like a small child trying to defend themselves.  He kept telling the judge that everyone else was wrong, and he accused the others of trying to unstable the court (Miller 83-120).  I believe that Parris is experiencing denial. He declines Betty's witchery, then denies any idea that he is wrong in court (Miller 9, 83-120).  I suppose I will need to finish reading to know more about him.

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, New York: Penguin Plays, 1982. Print.

Blame

There is a lot of blaming people for other things going on in the book we are currently reading, The Crucible.  Blaming others can be very dangerous depending on what you blame them for.  This is because of the possible punishments like I discussed in my last open blog.  For instance it is not such a big deal to blame someone for taking the last cookie in the jar, but it could be very dangerous if you blamed someone for witching someone else, like in The Crucible.  The punishment for taking the last cookie might be a mild scolding, but if you are accused of witchcraft in the 1600s, it is very likely that you would die in a hanging. Or roasting. Or drowning.  Really, it would be terrible. Worse than that would be if the accused were innocent.  This happens in The Crucible.  Many people are accused of witchcraft, but if they deny it then they are more severely punished.  Their only choice is to confess because denial surely indicated a witch.  This happens because it was considered rock solid evidence if the accused hadn't gone to church a couple of times.  I really don't like that this happens.  It still happens today that opinions of ones actions not related to the trial can still affect the out come of the trial.  I can't think of any times when this has happened recently, but I'm sure it has. I have almost no faith in most peoples humanity, so I am positive it has happened.  Feel free to leave evidence to back me up on this in the comments if you have any.  I feel like a jerk without any evidence to back me up, but that's why I'm asking for evidence help. So anyhow, the moral of the story is DON"T BLAME OTHER PEOPLE FOR THINGS THEY DIDN"T DO. It can be dangerous to their health.

Punishment

Punishment is a consequence of a wrong doing.  A just punishment should be in direct variation with the severity of the offense.  An effective punishment should not only match the severity of the offense, but also be appropriate and related to the offense.  The video we watched today in class tried to discuss this.  The video was a clip from the Today Show on NBC.  The reporter was interviewing two "professionals" on 21st century punishment.  The reporter asked what is an appropriate punishment for today's kids.   The "professionals" say that kids are so linked in to their technology that this is a good punishment. They offer ideas about taking away phones and texting.   They also discuss blocking or deleting their kid's Facebook accounts.  Sure these things are punishments, but I question the "professionals".  They never offer any sort of offense that could be worthy of such a punishment.  The possibilities are almost endless.  Is this a punishment if your kid comes home five minutes late from a friends house? What if it were two hours ?  How should kids be punished if they do something truly dastardly, like a felony or gets arrested?  This video does not discuss the severity levels of their punishments.  I believe an appropriate punishment for a child being home late would probably be something like an extra chore for being just a little late, to something more like home arrest if the child commits something dastardly like a felony.  I believe blocking a Facebook account might be appropriate if you could determine that too much technology was the source of the problem.  A common problem that Facebook could cause is the child not completing their homework.  Obviously, this may not be the only problem, but with most kids, Facebook is a place to waste time.  Facebook will do just that too.  However, I do not feel that blocking Facebook or taking the kid's phone should be the punishment every time.  After a while this will just get dull to the child, and they will not pay attention. Truly I don't think the "professionals" had any credibility in their field.  To me, they sounded like a bunch of phonies who only pretended to know what they were doing.  I am almost certain that they considered themselves the "cool" parents in the neighborhood because they did not delete the kid's account, they only blocked it for a while.  Really the report just made me upset, that these ladies only offered ideas about technology and didn't even acknowledge any other form of punishment shows that they do the same repetitive things every time their child misbehaves.

Crucible 1

The Crucible is a play by Arthur Miller.  The play was written hundreds of years after the time period it is set in.  The play is about the Salem Witch Trials.  The Crucible demonstrates Puritan writing styles to imitate the setting of the play.  The characters all talk about God openly and frequently. They also jump to religious conclusions very quickly.  The girls involved in the witching are: Betty, Abigail, Mary Warren, Ruth, Mercy Lewis, and a servant named Tituba.  Tituba is from Barbados and probably did not know what was going on.  She just sung the songs of her native land upon the girls' requests; the rest the girls did themselves (Miller 43-47).  The adults trying to figure out what happened are: Reverend Parris, Mr. and Mrs. Putnam, Mr. and Mrs. Proctor, Rebecca Nurse, Giles Corey, and Reverend Hale.

The characters of The Crucible all talk about God very often.  God is brought up very often.  The character Parris is a reverend in the local parish (Miller 8).  Parris talks about how the girls' scandal will ruin his reputation in the church (Miller 10).  Another example of Paris alone focusing on God is that the first thing he does is to send for Reverend Hale from Beverly (Miller 9).  The focus on God alone without breaching my next topic is difficult, so lets move on.

More noticeable than frequent talk of God, is how quickly they jump to ecclesiastic conclusions.  With practically no investigation, it is just assumed the girls were partaking in witchcraft.  People not even involved just assumed witchcraft without a second thought (Miller 9-10).  The father of the girl who was "witched" also assumes it was witchcraft very quickly; we know this because he asks his niece, Abigail about it (Miller 10)  Witchcraft back then was taken to mean devil worship and soul summoning, unlike today's views which have been swayed by other works of literature like Harry Potter and So You Want to be a Wizard and television shows like Sabrina the Teenage Witch.  Today witching and witchcraft is just viewed as fantasy and fictional, but back in the 1600s witchcraft was related with associating with Lucifer and Satan; being charged as a witch usually meant the loss of ones life.  The girls father, Reverend Parris, is not the only one to assume witchcraft.  Other characters assume this too.  Such characters include Mrs. Putnam, who accuses the girls of flying (Miller 13).  This sounds like a silly accusation, but it used to be thought that heathen wickens would summon the devil to allow them to fly.  Another character, Thomas Putnam, husband of Mrs. Putnam, at least puts two and two together.  He know that Parris sent for Reverend Hale of Beverly, and this is why he thinks that the scandal may involve witchcraft (Miller 13-14).

For these reasons, frequent talk of God, and the hasty ecclesiastic conclusions, we can determine that The Crucible is good at reflecting the Puritan writing styles in the 1600s.

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, New York: Penguin Plays, 1982. Print.

Travels

My travels take me far and wide. Once I went to the far jungles of India.  Another of my travels took me to some of the highest points of the Andes.  On my travels through India I had an extraordinary time. I boated to China from Los Angeles.  The trip was long. The fishing rig was cramped, and the beds were just flat metal surfaces with a pillow projecting from the wall.  I was going to explore the jungle meeting the tribes of out-landers, but now I was stuck on this rig traveling through what seemed like an endless ocean.  We arrived in China a few days before we expected to.  This was an unusual experience.  The natives all looked at me with dirty glares. It was obvious that I was unwanted.  I could not communicate with the Chinese. I had planned to only be there a few hours, but we arrived early so the guides had not showed up yet.  I only know Indian and its dialects, so communication with the Chinese was difficult; like a very constant game of charades.  After 2 days of struggling my guides showed up and we headed for India on a train.  We arrived in Delhi. The city was a blur of lives.  Thousands of people in sight at any moment. This was not like the little villages I was expecting.  My guides led me across the city to a bus stop.  We took bus four and I was told we were going to the end of the line.  The bus took us to the edge of town where we had a car and driver waiting.  Upon seeing the car I could tell the terrain we would cross would be rough.  It was a jeep with quite large tires upon which the entire frame of the car was 2 feet above.  We spent the night at the edge of Delhi knowing that we would leave early the next day.  The city never slept.  There were noises all through the night. Sirens, people, cars, all of it.  We left early the next morning and traveled 6 hours across all sorts of land: flat farms, river valleys, hills and jungle.  We arrived at the small village of Ro'dai. The people were friendly and the elders were welcoming. It was very different here from China.

Bradford Puritanism

William Bradford is a major name in Puritan writings. Bradford was the second governor of Massachusetts. On his journey to the New World, he kept a diary called History of Plymouth Plantation.  Bradford was a hardcore Puritan, as were most during that time (especially in Massachusetts), and this shows in his writing.  Bradford talks very frequently of God.  It could be said that he always talks about God.  He is very simple in his writing, as is Puritan style.  With the evidence provided by looking at these subjects it is easily determined that Bradford is a Puritan at heart and in writing.

William Bradford is a Puritan and you can tell this from his writing. One way this can be determined is by looking at just how much he talks of God and the Bible.  From the get-go we see this approach from Bradford.  The first page alone references the godly, the gospel, the Lord [God], Satan, speaks of Christians, and the churches of God (Bradford 1).  In fact, all of chapter 1 is about the founding of Puritan beliefs, and the founding of Massachusetts (Bradford 1-11). In this chapter, the Bible is quoted several different times.  Quoted verses are: Zach: 2.13, Rev. 19. 1,2, and Mat: 15.13 (Bradford 6-7).  Another good example of the many God references comes from page 12 when Bradford states, "But these things did not dismay them... for their eyes were set on the ways of God."  So, as we can see from these numerous holy references, Bible quotes, and ever Godly views, Bradford thought very highly of his god and talked very, very much about him.  

Another way we can tell that Bradford is a Puritan is by looking at his descriptions of things.  Now, I must say that chapter one gets wordy with how he describes events in the Bible, but this can get overlooked.  Bradford's writing is what is usually considered dull, but this is how the Puritans wrote and expected writing to be.  This is because the Puritans did not want anything to seem better than God, so they kept descriptions bland unless they were talking about God, like in the first few pages of chapter 1 (Bradford 1-3).  Bradford keeps his stories fairly bland, not wanting his writing to seem better than that of God.  An example of a story being told in this manner is when he tells the story of the men attempting to get a vessel to travel to the new world (Bradford 12).  He basically just says that they were stopped and robbed by the guards, and then many of them were thrown in debtors prison before they could even leave (Bradford 12).  It takes him about a page to tell this story because he, like many other Puritans, seemed to be extremely fond of run on sentences.  Bradford also takes about a page to tell the story because he tells of everyone who robbed them and how they got reported (Bradford 12).  Essentially the way they got reported as debtors is that the guards who robbed them to the rulers that they had no money (Bradford 12).  While they may tell of everyone who was there and how they acted, there are no eloquent details about behavior; no "and wind tousled his hair as the cold hard air rushed by in the snowy winters night."  like you might get from more modern authors.  

I actually like Bradford more than other authors like Rowlandson and Bradstreet.  Maybe this is because I'm finally starting to see what their writing is about, or just because I would rather hear about a journey across the ocean than a story about this woman's house burning down.  I can't tell yet. However, it is very obvious by his writing style that Bradford is a Puritan. He talks frequently of God and his stories are more bland than some.


Bradford, William. History of Plymouth Plantation. Ed. Charles Deane. Boston: n.p., 1861. Online.

Journal 3: Hostage

This journal is prompted by the question: what would you do if you were taken hostage?  Really?  Well, its a good thing this is what I think about every morning in the shower. I needed an excuse to tell this.

I always think about how I would disarm my assailants with my awesome kung-fu skills.  Which would come naturally to me because I have never taken a kung-fu class or anything.  Then I would totally show  them what for.  They would be tied up in a corner with broken bones when I was done with them.  Then I'd turn them over to the authorities.  Gosh, I'm such a good citizen.  But in all reality I would probably just sit back and wait for it to be over.  I'm really not that brave.  I mean really. With the weapons we have today, I would stand no chance.  Sure its sweet to think how I would dodge their bullets,  but more likely than not, I would just trip over my shoelaces and break my nose on the floor.  Honestly, any rebellion by me would just wind up with another dead body, mine.  In all reality I would follow all orders given to me.  I feel like that would be my best chance for survival.  This is what Rowlandson experienced in her life when she was captured by the Indians.  She thought of escaping the Indians like I did, but she did not do it (Rowlandson 84).  Rowlandson also does what ever she has to to keep alive.  She works for the Indians making new clothes, and she asks them to cook her food too (Rowlandson 82-85).  So. In all reality, I, like most people, would just try to survive and stay out of the way.  There is no need to stick my neck out and look like a threat, I would just become a target.  Remember, everyone, keep low. Its safer that way.  So now you know how I would respond to a hostage situation.

Rowlandson, Mary. "A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Ms. Mary Rowlandson." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 80-86. Print.

On Puritan Writings

Both of these novels reflect Puritan writing in their own ways. A Narrative of Captivity and Restoration Of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson showed Puritan writing more than "Upon the Burning of Our House" in my opinion.  Puritans were very religious people. According to Beginnings of 1800, "The Puritan society placed God at the center of their point of society, and their literature works which were primary diaries and histories expressed as God as the central theme, or as having a strong presence. The Puritan writing is very strict and simple..." It also states that some of its characteristics include God is the central aspect, the Bible provides a model for Puritan writing, and used writing to find God in their lives.  Mrs. Mary Rowlandson seemed like a very religious woman. Everything she did, she somehow related it to her religion. Even when she was in a dark place, she still strongly believed in her religion and used it to her benefit. For example, when she was worrying about her daughter and about how she did not even know if she was alive or dead, she went to the Bible. The story states that "...And the scripture came to my hand, Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee" (Rowlandson 85). She was going through a horrible time at this point. I cannot even imagine what she was feeling and how depressed she was. To show how depressed she was, she even said that "I did not use wicked and violent means end my own miserable life" (Rowlandson 83). This relates to Puritan writing because she used her religion to stay strong and continue living her life, even though it was miserable at the time. This story also resembles Puritan writing by all the other references to the bible. For example, she claims that "O the wonderful power of God I have seen, and the experiences I have had!" (Rowlandson 85). She also talks about praying throughout the story. For example, "I pray God he may remember these things, now he is returned to safety" (Rowlandson 84) and mentioned how "No Christian friend was near him to do any office of love for him, either for soul or body" (Rowlandson 84). 
"Upon the Burning of Our House" also reflected Puritan writing. Anne Bradstreet references the Puritan religion multiple times throughout this poem. Even though it is a short poem, it still reflects the writing just as well as the previous story did. For example, she writes "And to my God my heart did cry/ to strengthen me in distress/ and to not leave me succorless" (Bradstreet 91). Once again, the author uses religion to get someone out of a hard situation. When the character is feeling miserable and depressed, he/she turns to religion to get him/her out of her problem. In this situation, the character wakes up to a fire. "In silent night when rest I took/ For sorrow near did I not look/ I wakened was with a thund'ring noise/ and piteous shrieks of dreadful voice..." (Bradstreet 91). She was in a very tough, intense position in her life, and she turned to God. This definitely resembles the Puritan writing style. Another example that the author uses is "Yet by His gift is made thine own;/ there's wealth enough, I need no more.." (Bradstreet 91). In this passage, "His" refers to God. This also greatly resembles the style of Puritan writing.  Puritan writing is very religious and apparently about the authors own life.  I truly did not like these. They sounded whiny and drab.  I appreciate their religiousness, but they both seemed to whiny too me.  However, they both provided a good contrast to Elie Wiesel's Night.  In Night, Elie goes through a similar experience as Rowland in a concentration camp, and he loses his faith in his God (Wiesel).  This shows that a foundation in religion is essential to the Puritan beliefs. 

Bradstreet, Anne. "Upon the Burning of Our House." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 89-91. Print.

Rowlandson, Mary. "A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Ms. Mary Rowlandson." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 80-86. Print.

Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York, New York: Hill and Wang, 2006. Print.

Journal 2: Fable

In a place along way away, and in a time long ago, there was a monkey.  Actually there were many monkeys, but it is illogical to tell all of their stories. So we will just hear about this one monkey.  This monkey was well known among other monkeys.  He was the monkey prince, and he was a little mongrel.  Every thing he did got him into trouble.  Debauchery was his profession.  The little monkey prince would run around the monkey town and cause trouble.  He would run through peoples homes and upturn their monkey tables and break their monkey plates.  Nobody liked the young monkey prince and all feared for the future of the monkey kingdom.

One day the monkey prince was playing in the deepest parts of the jungle, and he decided to run through an abandoned hut that he came across.  He went and played in the hut that he believed to be empty, but it was not.  An old monkey sorcerer came out from behind a bookcase.  The monkey price was terrified.

"I see you run through town and cause trouble every day.  And now you come into my house and decide to break my stuff! I have had enough of this! If you cause trouble or break anymore things for fun, I will turn you into a flea!"  said the monkey sorcerer.

The young monkey prince was terrified. He told the sorcerer that he would cause no more trouble, and he ran away in a hurry.  The monkey prince acted good for many days, and caused no trouble .  However, one day, the monkey prince was in a bad mood because he lost his toy.  The price ran through the town and broke many plates and overturned many tables.  He threw rocks through windows and smashed fine china.  Suddenly, POOF!!

The monkey sorcerer appeared with a flash. He shouted, "I HAVE WARNED YOU ALREADY! TODAY YOU BECOME A FLEA!" and he turned the monkey prince into a flea.  The flea felt bad and wished he had not broken so many plates.

Journal 1: Creation Story of Water

In the beginning of time, there was only light, dark, earth, and sky.  The light and dark would battle, gaining and losing ground as they battled across the sky.  The sky and earth got along.  The sky kept the battles of light and dark off of the earth, and the earth hugged the sky in thanks.  The royal crow flew, traversing all of these.  He was dark as night, he flew under the sun, spent his time in the sky, and used the earth as his bed.  The sky and earth got along and did not bother the crow. The crow was happy with both, but the light and dark got on his nerves.  The light was ruled by the sun, and the night by the moon.  The sun and the moon battled everyday, and the crow did not like this.  Crow likes peace and serenity. When the sun and moon fought, they tried to involve crow.

"Well, he is the color of night and therefore works for me." said the moon

"But he flies in the day and belongs to me." said the sun.

Crow did not like being brought into fights, and the fighting made him sad.  After ages of dealing with the two, crow began to cry.  He cried for 40 days and 40 nights.  The earth flooded, the sky was forced back, the sun and moon realized what they had done.  The two stopped fighting.  They agreed that they would share the time. The sun would rule at day, and the moon would rule at night.  A new element was introduced to the world; it was known as water.  It was born from the tears of Crow.  Water now covers most of the planet, but it is no longer of sadness. It is essential to life.  This shows that even good things can come from bad events.

Final Summer Blog

Now that this whole ordeal about these blogs is over, I feel it necessary to make a post that is not at least 325 words long. Instead, it will be short, sweet, and to the point. Catcher in the Rye was a great book. I liked his attitude; we agreed a lot.  The Old Man and the Sea honestly was short but pretty boring. Basically, this guy went out to sea to catch a fish, found one, struggled with it for, like, three days, reeled it in, then lost all the meat on it to sharks on the way back to shore. :( A pretty simple plot turns into a hundred-page novel. The Moon is Down was a pretty good book. I'll just leave it at that. Fahrenheit 451 was probably my favorite of the three, well really only two were options, books that I read this summer. It was about this Guy who searched the city for himself, only to self-destruct in the end and be forced to rebuild. This is a different kind of story, one that I do not ever remember seeing in any other book. Thank you, someone, that these blogs are over. This was probably the longest project I have ever completed. Someone told me this would be about the same length as something like a 30-page normal paper. That is so much writing, it isn't even funny. But, I'm glad I finished, and I'm glad I don't have to think about it anymore. I wish you farewell. :D

Old Man and the Sea: Unseen Characters

There are three main characters in The Old Man and the Sea who are never even physically present in the story. These characters are Joe DiMaggio, the famous New York Yankees' center fielder, Perico, a friendly store owner in the village, and Martin, another nice man who works in the village. Although they never speak or show themselves, all three play important parts in the plot in each of their own unique ways. Joe DiMaggio, for example, is hundreds of miles away in New York, but he is still not only Santiago's favorite baseball player, but also a major role model. When Santiago feels weak or down, he thinks of the "great Joe DiMaggio" and of what he might do in the same situation. DiMaggio comes up multiple times in The Old Man and the Sea as an inspiration for Santiago. One notable occurance is when Santiago's left hand, being under too much stress, cramps and becomes useless. He thinks of the "great Joe DiMaggio" and how he played through a bone spur, and he set his mind to getting over the cramp and forcing it to release. DiMaggio is worshiped as a character of amazing strength and commitment. Perico is the owner of a shop in town. He is only mentioned a few times in the book, but he seems to be a friendly character. His role in The Old Man and the Sea is to provide the daily newspaper to Santiago, so he can read through it and mainly check the baseball box scores. It is not stated, but as I understand, Perico gives this service for no charge. This says a lot about the values of him as a human; he must be a very generous and caring man. Martin serves about the same purpose as Perico, but he gives Santiago food instead of the paper from the cafe he runs in the village. Manolin goes and fetches the food most days from the restaurant and brings it back to the man for him.

Hemingway, Ernest. Old Man and the Sea. New York, New York: Scribner, 2003. Print.

Old Man and the Sea: Manolin

Manolin is a young fellow with fishing in his blood. His father, presumably, is or was at one time a fisherman because Manolin is a fisherman at such a young age. His father most likely pushed Manolin into fishing when he was a young lad, and since his father stopped fishing or could not fish anymore, the boy had to pick up the "family business." Although his physical presence is only in the beginning and end of Hemingway's classic novella, the thought of the boy on the shore inspired Santiago to continue his fight with the beast of a fish. Manolin goes to the old man's house every morning to bring him a cup of coffee and the day's newspaper. The old man reads through the baseball scores as he drinks his coffee and talks with Manolin. Together , they gather up necessities for the day and head down to the beach with the small boat's mast and sail. Manolin wishes the old man good day and walks to the boat he is part of as Santiago heads out to sea. The book never mentions what Manolin's day is like, but he is always there when Santiago returns to the dock. The young boy helps the old man take apart the boat again and carry the mast back up to the house where they talk a little more. Manolin gets the man some blankets and food and makes sure he gets to sleep well, then returns home to repeat everything the next day. Manolin is also an undeniable lover. He never once fades from the old man, but instead, he helps him and is entirely devoted to being a great friend to Santiago. By doing so, the two fishermen remain close friends, almost like father and son. Manolin's dedication to Santiago is unfailing and all-inclusive even through the epic fight between the old man and the marlin. Although his father practically forced him into fishing, he is very happy with it, that is, until his father does not let him fish with Santiago after such a long time of coming into shore empty-handed. Instead, he goes to work for another ship, relatively unhappily.

Hemingway, Ernest. Old Man and the Sea. New York, New York: Scribner, 2003. Print. 

Fahrenheit 451: Religion

So, first of all, I am really hating these blogs more and more with every one I do. It sucks because they are so long, and there are so many of them. I am almost to the breaking point, but, luckily, I am also almost done, sort of. Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 contains numerous religious references. Professor Faber promotes a Christian sense of forgiveness for Montag. After Montag's turn against society, Faber reminds Montag that, since he was once a member of the following faithful, he should have a feeling of pity toward the people instead of being so angry at them. Faber believes this because the people really do not know as much as he or Montag know, and that should eventually lead to their downfall. They are going to be ignorant and left in the dark about what is actually going on around them, and Montag should feel sorry for them instead of being angry at them. The novel also references Jesus Christ's miracle at Canaa where he transformed regular water into fabulous wine. Faber makes two correlations: one is comparing himself to water, and the other is comparing Montag to fire. Montag is fire because of his job and the anger within him, and Faber is water because of his more mellow tendencies. Faber also tells that if the two were to merge into one, the fire and water would combine to make wine, sort of like in the biblical story. Jesus Christ's transformation of water into wine was one of the miracles he allegedly produced to instill his powers and prove his identity as the son of the Christian god. This miracle also proved his role as savior as a gift from the Christian god. Montag wishes to confirm his own self through such a process, but he is clearly unable to because of his lack of "god powers." Montag wishes to have a meaning to his life, but he is unsure of where he needs to start his search. He longs for a way out of the real life, so he starts in on books and a hopeful identity.

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2012. Print.

Old Man and the Sea: Lions

In Ernest Hemingway's novella, The Old Man and the Sea, the main character, Santiago, has a recurring dream of a pride of lions playing together on the beach of Africa, a memory he has from a fishing trip along the coast of Africa. He apparently remembers the lions crawling over each other and just having fun, but he was not in any danger, for he was still out on the fishing vessel. Santiago dreams of this memory three times during the five-day story, and he also mentions that he had had the dream repeatedly for quite a long time before he goes on the fishing trip to find the marlin. The first time he has the dream is the night before he ventures far out, and he still had no idea of what is to come, so he is able to rest peacefully. The second occurs during his fight with the marlin when he is able to sleep briefly in the night and still hold onto the grand fish. The final time he dreams of the lions on the beach is when he is once again at home in his own bed and can sleep soundly knowing his friend, Manolin, is still there. The last viewing of the dream is the most comforting and heartwarming because the old man had just gone through three days of battle with hardly any rest to take his mind away from it all. It is such a fitting end to the book because it shows Santiago is happy with everything that happened as a whole, despite all the difficulties and troubles along the way. Since Santiago associates the lions on the beach with his childhood of fishing, the lions are symbols of the circle of life where such ferocious predators always have the side of compassion and adorability. Also because of that, the dream shows the harmony between life and death. The predators (death) are, in this case, playing and so full of life that I cannot help but notice the grace and beauty of the line between life and death.

Hemingway, Ernest. Old Man and the Sea. New York, New York: Scribner, 2003. Print.

Christianity in The Old Man and the Sea

Ernest Hemingway portrays his fictional character, Santiago in The Old Man and the Sea, as a seeming and obvious connection to Christianity's biggest name, Jesus Christ. Hemingway puts Santiago through a few challenges to make correlations to Christ during crucifixion. Among these scenes are Christ's walk to Calvary with his own future death, the cross, on his back, the ways in which Christ was tortured, including his hands being nailed onto the cross and the lashes he received from so many whips, and the result of an epic battle of time and wits between his own strength and gravity pulling life out of him, inch by inch. At the start of the day, Christ was forced to travel on foot over numerous miles of unforgiving terrain in bare feet with two heavy pieces of wood held together in an awkward position on his back. Hemingway includes this in the novella by having Santiago carry his ship's mast across his shoulders down to the dock to assemble his ship. He must struggle every morning to get the mast down and back before and after the day's fishing trip. Next, just as Christ was given scars from the lines scraping across his body, Santiago receives the same kinds of scars from the fishing line running through his hands and across his back. The marlin is so strong that it is able to drag the boat, held only by Santiago himself, across the ocean. Such a force caused extreme amounts of stress on the old man's body, turning into cuts and deep gashes. Finally, as Christ did, Santiago endured and was able to win the battle, even having lost all strength. He reeled in his catch of a lifetime, and headed in for shore. Along the way, death came in and stole the flesh of the fish, like the life of Christ, but perserverence came through and glorified Santiago through the marvel of even the skeletal remains of the catch and glorified Christ by rewarding the hardships he faced during that fateful day.

Hemingway, Ernest. Old Man and the Sea. New York, New York: Scribner, 2003. Print.

Use of Exaggeration in Catcher in the Rye

In Catcher in the Rye, Holden goes to the Wicker Bar in New York. Salinger writes, “It’s one of those places that are supposed to be very sophisticated and all, and the phonies are coming in the window.” Seems like an interesting enough place.  After discussing how two girls would come out and play the piano and sing, he mentioned how it drove all the “phonies” crazy. If everyone who went there was a phony, why would he be there? Once again, I do not see how he is honestly different from everyone else. He thinks he is above them or something when he is not. Holden said that everyone in the place was a phony, even the bartender. I do not understand why he goes to places when he thinks that everyone sucks. I am betting that he sucks, too. At least in the way he thinks. Holden met up with an old “friend” who he had indifferent feelings about. Apparently this guy can tell whenever anyone is a “flit,” anyone at all. Holden thinks that he may be a little bit of a “Flit” himself. Holden thinks, “He was a pretty intelligent guy, though. He really was.” This makes me think that he may have respected the gays. I figured with his view on life, he would hate them like he hates everything else. Holden always surprises me with his different opinions.  At the table with him, Holden said, “I bored him a lot. I really did. He amused me, though. He was one of those guys that sort of amuse me a lot”. But later on, he says, “He could be pretty boring himself sometimes”. It was on the same page, and only had a paragraph in between. I was amazed, once again, about how Holden can change his opinion so fast. I do not even think he really ever felt like he was “amused a lot.” He was probably just amused a little. When he started discussing school, I think Holden just felt a little bored for a minute. I think he just exaggerates.

Salinger, J. D. Catcher in the Rye. New York, NY: Little, Brown, 1991. Print.

Fahrenheit 451: Tone

The tone of this book was really quite dark, that is, when I think of my general impression of it. Maybe it is just that reading of dark events gives me the impression that the tone is dark, when it really might not be. I shall now endeavor to prove myself wrong, although this is really the kind of thing one should be proven right on. I am tired and threatening to start a rant, so I am just going to start writing.  After much consideration and random page flipping, I have decided my original premise is right, and this is in fact a gloomy book. It is more that gloomy, and there is also a certain tension in the writing. “The perspiration gathered with the silence and the subaudible trembling around and about and in the women who were burning with tension. Any moment they might hiss a long sputtering hiss and explode.” I think the sentences feel so tense because they are building toward something about to happen. Just a few pages later: “The room was blazing hot, he was all fire, he was all coldness; they sat in the middle of an empty desert with three chairs and him standing, swaying, and him waiting.” I think this sounds tense because of all hotness references.  The tone is really sort of sad when the author is describing Montag or Millie. “He felt his smile slide away, melt, fold over and down on itself like a tallow skin, like the stuff of a fantastic candle burning too long and now collapsing and now blown out.” That really is sad, talking about how he no longer felt like smiling. “Her face was like a snow-covered island upon which rain might fall, but it felt no rain; over which clouds might pass their moving shadows, but she felt no shadow.” Also sad, being so disconnected from everything. Most of the time the tone is just as sad.

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2012. Print.