Words

The recognition and usage rate for the f-word is unbelievable. A four-year-old will hear it, use it, be punished, and learn it's a "bad word", a teacher will walk by two students talking about their f-ing great weekend plans and understand their overwhelming excitement, and maybe even you've used it in a moment of distress. But, in all of these situations, the word is never used to describe "plowing, as in a field" (Germanic origins)- just like how the word niger (Latin root) was never meant to evolve into a derogatory term for African Americans.

However, why do some pejoratives deliver a stronger impact than others? In A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansbury, Mrs. Johnson exclaims, "Why if we left it up to these here crackers, the poor niggers wouldn't have nothing- (She clasps her hand over her mouth.)- Oh, I always forgets you (Mama) don't 'low that word in your house." Mama solemnly replies, "No- I don't 'low it." But, crackers... Mrs. Johnson uses the word "crackers" with the word "nigger". Crackers is a negative slang term for white people, though fairly uncommon now, but why isn't it also banned in her home? It originates from a white man cracking a whip on his animals, his slaves; a man who slashed new, disgusting scars on humanity's history; someone who has corrupted the God given order of love among his people. Why is that word allowed?

Because society as a whole gives power to it's language and has deemed that only a certain set of words are "bad". We can connote anything to any word, but it's easier if we just embrace what we've been handed. So, we can fall into three categories: those who use the words freely, those who abstain out of respect to the public, or those who abstain because they believe it is the "right" thing to do. Whatever category you fall into though,  it's possible to collectively negate the unsavory associations of such powerful words: stop using swears as a slam and stop reacting harshly to unpleasant words. As a group, we have a language, but as an individual we can change what it all means.

My City: Troy

James Weldon Johnson captures my beliefs in his sonnet "My City". His use of rhetorical devices creatively conveys his point that the city life is far superior to the beauties of nature. Even though he questions whether he'll miss the "smell of flowers" or "singing birds", he decisively chooses the city's "sights and sounds" when he has to "sleep death's endless night".

Troy has a population of approximately 81, 500 people and it seems rather dismal when compared to Manhattan's staggering population of 1,602,000. Even though the size of a party doesn't determine how fun it will be, a large amount of people in one place ensures that you are never alone, albeit maybe still lonely even surrounded by people like in "The Weary Blues" when the singer croons "ain't got nobody in all this world... but ma self". Also, it promises the atmosphere is always charged with possibilities. For instance, everything in Troy is closed by 8 pm and the suburban houses have been locked, with their porch lights on, by 9 pm. It's boring. But at 10 pm in Manhattan, the night life is just waking up. True, our cute little city does have more nice city-maintained parks and pretty nature trails, but I would gladly give it up for "the thrill that comes from being of her (Manhattan) a part".

Times have changed since Johnson, but city life is just as rambunctious and beautiful!

 <- Manhattan!

<- ... Troy...

Outside/Inside

Instead of calling the 20's a Jazz Age, I think it would be more fitting if we called it the "Extended Gilded Age". On surface level, Jordan is a talented young woman in a male dominated sport, wealthy, young, and pretty, but underneath it all, she has the personality of a stick and the morality of a naughty child.

Her rise to fame in golfing only came about because she deliberately cheated in a match, illegally moving the ball. As she continues her career, her immoral decision doesn't seem to bother her. Fitzgerald also shows us her particular mindset by Nick commenting on her bad driving. Since she believes it takes two to cause an accident, she is fine with being dangerous and unfair. The high social status she carries should show that she is more refined than that, that she is educated enough to make "good" choices for society's benefit. However, like most of the East-Eggers, she takes her money for granted and doesn't care much for  life or others. Her quick engagement at the end of the novel shows her inability to think ahead as she currently coasts from party to party.

Her inner emptiness reminds me of the students whose lives are falling apart internally. Yes, they look great on paper. 4.0 GPA, president of two clubs, varsity sports..., but they have to cope with mental stipulations, too. They might be socially awkward, or completely bipolar, or filled with rage problems.  Their wonderful exterior shell conceals the roughness beneath.

The good-on-outside-bad-on-inside cliche can be found throughout history, from the 20's to now, and probably even before.


By the way...
personality= 

Author to Protagonist

It is a common habit for most great writers to impart part of their life into their works. They weave it into the already complicated structure of a story and wait for their readers to recognize the connections.

In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald bases his protagonist off himself. Nick Carraway's high education and temperament mimics that of Fitzgerald. Also using characters based off real people, Fitzgerald creates a world of possibilities he wished to be immersed in. Through the interactions of each romantically involved couple, like Tom and Daisy or Nick and Jordan, he could exemplify his real life relationship with Zelda. He could show their abnormalities: the lying, the blatant disregard of infidelity, the love that continued through hardships. Through writing a realistic fiction novel, he left his life story in the pages.

Like in The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien, though through metafiction, crafted a novel that probed the innermost thoughts of his readers through his "personal narrative". He uses himself as the main character, but it isn't an autobiography. He changes his story to influence the reader in the way he wants, much like Fitzgerald- much like any successful writer, actually. Also like Fitzgerald though, he relies on personal experiences to piece together his story.

All great writers, including O'Brien and Fitzgerald, draw from personal memories and feelings. With them, their stories are more relate-able, more popular. Without them, well, we might find ourselves reading pretentious, cliche novels.

Extra Cred Post... (that is actually about extra credit)

Oh, most joyous gift! Blessed is my soul. I praise thy appearance and scorn thee's enemies! Oh, Extra Credit.

There is nothing better than an extra credit opportunity flying in to save your precariously borderline grade, and, for that, I'm adding it to my "Thankful for..." list this holiday.

I am positive nearly every Troy High student has wavered between a "B" and an "A" during the close of a marking period before. Sitting at the edge of a chair, the nervous student anxiously fears opening Edline, praying to see their GPA intact. And, thankfully, some teachers only put in extra credit in the final report card update, relieving many students of their stressful worries.

Though teachers (and some exceptional students) argue that extra credit is detrimental to the learning environment because high marks would still be awarded to a slacker, I believe that it is essential to the mental well-being of a student. Without it, that almost-A test would remain a B- even though the only mistake was minute and careless. One mistake on a test that was intensely studied for; Hours of being annoyed at not catching that one mistake. It just doesn't seem like a fair trade-off. Extra credit is a little wiggle room to accommodate these small accidents throughout a semester.

Thank you to all teachers who offer this opportunity!

Interpretations

John simply states, "We should hang out tonight." and Jane goes off into her internal-distressed mode. What does he mean? Is this like a date? Does he just want to go to the movies as friends? Or is he just really bored? "I'd love to! You can pick the movie," Jane replies as she picks up her books and leaves John wondering, why is she letting me pick the movie?

Everyone unconsciously and constantly interprets things around them, picking out conclusions and inferring facts on their own. Like in "Sanctuary: For Harry Potter the Movie", Nikki Giovanni asserts her belief that Harry Potter is merely an average person and not a tremendous hero of hope, but just part of an allegory for slavery. Contrary to popular interpretations of the theme JK Rowling sets forth (good prevails over evil, a mother's love is strong, you can overcome anything...), Giovanni takes a different and innovative approach to Harry Potter. The confusion this piece brought to 2nd hour reveals how nearly everyone missed the purpose because it was so creative and different from the normal interpretations. However, yes, the diction in the second paragraph, like "auction blocks", "middle passage", "enforced hopelessness", should have set off bells in our heads to alert us to her purpose for writing, but it didn't click. Most students have been accustomed  to finding the common overriding theme, something that can be easily drawn from with multiple examples, something simple, but "deep" at the same time, something that an English teacher would want to read instead of personal opinionated interpretations.

I think we should all be like Giovanni; we should think completely out of the box and tie in as many odd, abstract ideas as possible to everything we read, see, or do. I support John's and Jane's stupid worry over the words of each other. I happen to like making ridiculous connections to everything- but that's just me.

(Also, this picture is an example of how someone can draw a symbolic meaning without it necessarily ever been created. Please excuse the slight informality of the caption.)

Status and Punishment

Last year, there was a cheating scandal in an AP class among a group of five students. The planning to access the teacher's computer wasn't simple. Trying to find out when the teacher isn't in the room, but has his computer logged in? Following the teacher's schedule for a few days? Tough to pull off sneakily- it required a multiple cheaters to brainstorm, but only one idiot in the group to carry out the plans.

Reverend Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne are both partners in an infamous crime, one that would merit murder if a nobody of the town committed it. However, since Hester's husband is assumed deceased, her punishment is lightened to an "A". After her sentence, she carries more than just the embroidered letter around. She has the town's scorn, pity, and anger on her shoulders; she has the obnoxious wrath of children to deal with and disrespect from the poor she helps; she has to be isolated completely because she is an adulterer. Contrasted to how the village reacts to Dimmesdale's revelation, Hester's chastisement is unfair.  Some claim that when he revealed his chest, there was nothing there- that it was symbolic for those who have sinned. Had he not willed himself to die, the townspeople would've granted him leniency because he is so respected, saving and helping and encouraging his congregation for years.

The teacher walked in as one student was printing off test answers. He was mad. However, the teacher  didn't report him to administration because the student had so much going for himself, high marks, talented athlete, and compassionate volunteer, that he felt he deserved only a harsh reprimand, like Dimmedale would've gotten. And the other members? They weren't punished at all because "clearly" only that one student was to blame- like Hester.

Scarlet Letter Levels

The townspeople of The Scarlet Letter exaggerate Reverend Dimmesdale's goodness when they compare his sin to their own. "Oh, if Dimmesdale thinks his sin is bad- mine must be a thousand times worse!" But, if Hester, with the glory and shame of her "A", revealed another sin, they would have her hanged without a second thought, believing that the town whore deserves nothing better.

The religious head and the other extreme, the adulteress, are being judged by two different standards. Dimmesdale is praised for being a priest, for having that "other worldly, holy connection"; Hester is shunned, ignored, abandoned- even with all the good works she has done. Their mutual sin links them together forever- secretly, of course, in the privacy of their hearts. I think when Dimmesdale reveals his secret, though, the people will snatch away his prestige and lower him to Hester's social status, ripped away from his pulpit and spat upon by the village poor, also. Just because there is a preconceived notion about a man from his vocation, it does not mean he is, in actuality, any better than anyone else, or above the laws everyone else abides by.

In a community theater, the actor who constantly gets the lead will probably get the next center stage position again- unless he messes up so completely, so destructively that his abilities are questioned as "unstable?". He will then slowly be valued less in the director's eyes and reduced to support or even a chorus position. I can't wait to find out how Dimmesdale is treated once he reveals his secret.

Romanticism!

I wish I lived back in the age of transcendental writing. The emphasis on life, death, nature, and all of the emotions in the writings- paired along with aphorism filled poems- enticed me from the start. How could I not want to exist in a time with such romantic literature?

In "The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls", the rhythmic pattern and simple refrain enforces the lesson that life moves on, like the waves and the skyline and the never ending water cycle. From "A Psalm of Life", encouragement is spewed from stanza to stanza, dripping advice on how to live meaningfully in the now. Both of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's works stresses ideals that our modern society still upholds. When teenagers tell each other to "get over it", it's really a more direct (and rude) way of expressing "The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls"'s theme: move on. Or when "You only live once!" is shouted before an incredibly exciting action, the speaker is trying to partake in a "live fast, die young" attitude, one that has been more and more common since the transcendental age. Though the romantic writers (and even the colonial writers) are now long gone, their works live on inspire future generations. 

However, I believe Longfellow would turn over in his grave if he found out how we've been using his aphorisms. Proclaiming "Life is real! Life is earnest!" is no excuse for ridiculous behavior, like intense weekend partying or experimental drug usage. Each generation takes the works of the previous and twists them, mixing and playing with them until they fit their needs- but, there are still those who love and devour romantic works for their intended purposes.

Manipulation

Teenagers and parents don't always see eye to eye, especially about curfew or material goods. How does one convince his parents for an extension or an early gift? He uses manipulation, a more extreme form of persuasion.
Like in Thomas Paine's "The Crisis",we teenagers also formulate our thoughts into a format that convinces our listener to agree with us. Paine's ethical appeal, "if there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace", forces the reader into considering there is a right and wrong choice: to stand against the rebellion or to let the fight fall to his children. This parallels the teenagers' attempt when we ask to stay out later because "all the other kids are" or to have something because "all the other kids have it". We try to guilt our parents into thinking they're doing something wrong, that their decision is misinformed and that the way "all the other kids" parents are doing it is right.


Most children have asked for sweets and, like this picture, have appealed to their parents' emotions. How could they say no if their darling angel is so sad without it? Thomas Paine appeals to his fellow Continental Army men by saying their children will "curse his cowardice" because a successful fight would have made them "happy", free from British rule. By playing on the heartstrings of both parents and guilt of the soldiers, both listeners are agree.

Persuasive rhetoric isn't only found in literature. If we look around- or even examine ourselves- we'll see we take persuasion to the next level in our lives: manipulation for what we want.

Proctor's End

When reading the tragic end of John Proctor's life, I see the same behaviors in our school.

He confesses to "binding himself to the Devil's services", when he clearly hasn't because witchcraft doesn't even exist, to appease his captors and to earn his freedom back. When he rips up his statement, he defies authorities by silently declaring his refusal to be publicly acknowledged as a male-witch. Like an accused victim in Salem, a gossiper in school has the same options: to spread malicious talk or to take a stand against it. The option to deny witchcraft charges parallel the chance to hinder a rumor about a harmless fellow classmate. In both cases, the person involved would be punished for whatever they choose: either labeled a witch or gossip, or punished with death or social exclusion.

I, also, related to Elizabeth Proctor. She watched Proctor admit the truth, and practically sign his death warrant. I hear girls share terrible secrets about others, and I see the instigator cold-shoulder her friend if she doesn't agree. Both Elizabeth and these courageous girls bear witness to the injustices of their society.

John Proctor was browbeaten to admit to a lie, but he found his moral center again. As students, standing up for the right thing doesn't even create major punishments- maybe just a little awkwardness between friends. If it's even easier to stop the flow of rumors than the ocean of accusations, why do we still let it happen?

The Crucible

Seldom do we find ourselves with the power to control whether someone lives or dies. Much less the lives of thirty-nine innocent women. Abigail William's witch accusations nearly condemned these women to an unjust death sentence. This shows her crazy-teenager-in-delusional-love side, but also why she becomes a personal favorite character of mine.

Her unrequited love- or, actually, lust- for Proctor motivates her to new extremes of evilness: the death of gentle townswomen. Only prompted with a cause- hope to replace Elizabeth- does she fabricate intricate explanations for each woman's connection to witchcraft. Most critics hate Abigail, however, I feel for her. She was young and impressionable, the two cliches necessary to fall completely head-over-heels for a man twice her age. Consumed with her craving for Proctor, her only desire was to be HIS desire- only remotely possible through the execution of Elizabeth.

Yes, I'm making a case for her, not against her. She wasn't surrounded by loving parents growing up; she didn't experience what a traditional family should be like. She only had her warped sense of romantic love derived from Proctor's lusty advancements. As of Act Three, her power over those lives create for her a false sense of security- because she can't possibly be hanged as a witch if she confesses, and the chance of sleeping with Proctor instantly skyrockets. I believe Abigail is highly manipulative (a trait I highly admire, actually) and intelligent, but also a lost young girl who aches for attention and love after being bereft in her childhood.

Stereotypes and Colonial Lit

Magnified with the instant internet connection we have today, mass media has thrown countless inaccurate stereotypes into our database for life. The quiet, African- American kid in the back of the room? He's obviously a drug dealing gangster. The girl who wears a shirt two sizes too tight and shorts two inches too short? She definitely is blonde. Stereotypes reaches farther beyond entertainment and into how we interact with others.

However, the concept of stereotypes isn't modern. Anne Bradstreet was supposed to be a timid writer of Christian poetry with no passion for anything or anyone, but God. Her expression to her spouse in To My Dear and Loving Husband shocked her society and caused her to be put in disgrace- even though her works were wonderfully pieced and still read today. The Native American's William Bradford describes are merely "savage". Though they helped his colony through the harsh winters and offered food, they were viewed like animals. In addition to these writers, Olaudah Equiano coined the hypocrisy of the the white, Christian man during his captivity on a slave ship. These three great writers broke, created, or recognized stereotypes, but they weren't the only ones.

After an assembly with Mykee Fowlin, many students were forced to reevaluate how they viewed others. Except for the 5% of the student body who views everything with rose-colored vision, most noticed the walls they put between themselves and those they stereotyped. Though most won't admit it, everyone has certain degrees of racism, sexism, and agism. Currently not a historical event, maybe in the future everyone can recall the time teenagers across the United States surpassed expectations of being careless party animals and became a generation of open acceptance and reformers of social acceptances. Wouldn't it be great if everyone stopped assuming "facts" about each other and shared his life and ideas instead?

Native American Lit

The feminist theory is a collection of many theories to try to understand the relationship of women to men and they way they are portrayed throughout history. Through the Native American stories we've read, the role of a women is always considered less or inferior to a man's.

In the Coyote and the Buffalo trickster tale, the women offers to cook his meal because "why should you (Coyote) do a woman's work?". As Coyote blindly falls for her trap and loses his food, a deeper interaction occurs. The woman, aware of how the men of her time view her, is taking advantage of her situation- not only showing her more cunning side, but also that she's used to being stepped on. She tricks Coyote with her skillful knowledge on her "social role" for being the "head of the kitchen". Men throughout the ages, and especially in this story, believe women belong in the kitchen and out of political, medical, and economical events. Though always lessened to the level of an object, women, overall, are strong enough to not only participate in such events, but can also bring brilliant insight to any situation. Coyote should have degraded the women like he did.

The suffrage movement of the 1920's proved that women had the capability  to influence the world and, also, gave the them the right to vote- a major step towards gender equality. Without the movement there would be a biased democracy with laws, acts, and bills only passed with the approval of the males who vote. Also, banding together, females showed that they could stand as strong as any male dominated union and achieve a common goal. In the recent years, the new fight has been to get equal pay between the genders because a women only makes 80 cents to a man's dollar.

party post

this will be the easiest post of the school year.
...
:)