Final Reflective essay

Colin Forbes
5/24/11
Mr. Sutherland
2nd period

Final Reflective Essay

I think that my favorite post of this semester was my Vignette  project in which i wrote about small, yet important events from my life. These events included my parents divorcing, my neck surgery, the effects of the surgery, and going to a new school. I think that this is my favorite post because it is the one that I spent the most time on. On this essay, I was the most descriptive I have ever been in my writing on a blog. For example, when talking about coming home from the hospital, I was descriptive about a burrito.

“One push and I could just fall over. When I had the burrito, it felt like a gourmet dish. The nasty food from the hospital did not compare to even a mediocre burrito. The beans, rice and cheese, placed perfectly in to the burrito felt like heaven on my taste buds.”

Out of all of the vignettes, the above was my most descriptive. In others, I used different styles of writing such as writing with short sentences and showing, not telling. The inspiration for this assignment came from these events in my life that have significance. From this assignment, there is little behind the scenes, except from the actual events that happened. It was an assignment for everyone in the class that stemmed from the book “The House on Mango Street”, by Sandra Cisneros. To write this essay, I had to do a lot of brainstorming to remember important events in my life. For me, this is kind of difficult because many  events blend and relate to others. For example, when I wrote about my neck surgery, I also wrote about how it felt to return home from the hospital.

This year, I also enjoyed writing response posts.I feel like writing these posts helped me become a better thinker by seeing the other sides in topics and looking for areas where their argument or point they are trying to make is flawed. I think that the many response posts that I have written over the year have made me a much  better writer and reader. To respond to people’s posts, I have to read their post thoroughly to see what they are talking about. In December, I responded to Sam about the book “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime.”

“I agree with Sam that Christopher has grown over the course of the book. In the beginning, he would just groan to drown his problems out but as the book progressed, he started to become more and more adaptive to new challenges. When he has to find the train station, he breaks out of his comfort zone and asks a lady how to get there. Also, when he is at the train station, he gets his ticket and it is yellow. No matter how much he detests yellow, he has to deal with it to find his mother.” Here is the link to this post.

This post here shows that I read and added on to Sam’s claim that Chris grew over the course of the novel. I provided examples of times when he needed to overcome his disability to complete tasks, such as finding his mother. To respond to this post, I had  to read it, analyze it,, and write what I think and either agree or disagree with his claim.
In my opinion, response posts are the most entertaining to write. Over the year, I got to see how other people felt about many various topics, from controversial issues such as marijuana to smaller issues such as which city is better. For me, I find these as entertaining and fun to read as well as respond to. One of my favorite posts or batch of responses were the responses about Justin Beiber. Many people chose to enter this never ending battle on whether he is really beneficial for America and its youth. This excerpt from one of my responses shows how we were not only allowed to have fun with our blogs but also write about issues or topics that interested us or at least were entertaining to us at that time.

“Justin beiber sings songs abut "true" love. I dont see the reason why boys are obsessed with him. Also girls. His voice is higher than most of the population and he doesn't even sing well. His voice is just pitch corrected. When Justin Beiber's voice changes, his career will  change. Also, you say you would have a job if you were trying to be like him. i Don't get this.”

I think that from response posts, I learned a lot about seeing arguments from two different sides, even if they are about topics such as Justin Beiber.

I enjoy having a blog. It has allowed me to express what I feel, even if it is a mandatory assignment. Having a blog gives me a way to share my thoughts with the world. For example, it has allowed me to post what I think about a college debate and see what other people said about it. This excerpt shows what I thought about an article. After I posted it, I looked at what others said.

“In his article, he uses studies and numbers to back up his viewpoints. He also writes professionally and does not try to say "you're wrong" to people who disagree with him. I also think this is the most persuasive because he provides reasonable arguments. For example, he said at a selective institution, a student is surrounded by talented and high achieving peers.”

This response was a response to a 7-way debate about elite colleges. To respond to it, I chose which was the most persuasive and which one I agreed with.

Overall, I think that having a blog has been a great experience for me. Not only has it allowed me to share and defend my feelings and views, but it has also allowed me to become interconnected with the whole world. I am glad that this year I got to make a blog because it has been a great experience.

A Child Called IT book review

“A Child Called It”

"A Child called It", by Dave Pelzer, depicts Dave Pelzer's tragic childhood where he was constantly and relentlessly abused by his mother, for almost no reason. Still today, Dave does not know why he was singled out. When David was a young child, he was respected by his mother. But when he got around the age of 1st grade, her devilish "games" began. She would constantly be beaten for no reason, to the amusement of his mother. Throughout the book, Pelzer describes many of the bad things that have happened to him. At one point, she tells him to lay on a burning stove. I think that this book successfully depicts what happened to him and how he reacted.

In this book, Dave Pelzer writes from the viewpoint of himself as a child going through these horrific events. He also greatly emphasizes the fact that food is scarce for him and not so much for others in his family. In many parts of the book, he describes how much he would like to eat, and be accepted as a member of the family. Soon, as time goes on, he realizes that he will never be accepted by his mother or even his brothers and begins to curse their names.

"Sitting there on my hands, I could hear my brothers opening the refrigerator to get their desserts, and I hated it. I looked at myself. My skin had a yellowish tint., and my muscles were thin and stringy. Whenever I heard one of my brothers laugh at a television show, I cursed their names."

Throughout the book, he has many of these occurences. He is sitting in the garage in the prisoner of war position, listening to his family eat. To make matters worse, he had to clean up after their messes. I have noticed in Pelzer's style of writing that he does not show that his mother does bad things, but that his father and brothers also lack compassion for him. I liked his style of writing. not only did it show that his mother did horrible things to him, but his father did not show any sign of helping him, and he just left the family, leaving David to fight for himself. Also, his brothers were extremely rude to him. This leaves less room for wonder in the plot.
What surprises me in this book is that his brothers also are brainwashed by their mother to do mean things to their brother. They kick him and help their mother with her devilish games. I realize that some may not know better but they should be able to distinguish right from wrong.
I think that Dave Pelzer wrote this book very well. Barely any questions remained in my mind when I finished. Also, I like that the ending was put at the beginning so there was hope in the book.

The author of "The Child Called It", Dave Pelzer, actually experienced these horrible events described in great detail. He had to endure his mother's crazy, messed up, satanic games. I am glad that he wrote this book because he seemed to have a clear purpose in mind. To educate the reader about the horrors of child abuse and gain national attention on the subject. Throughout the book, he is hurt and abused and goes through many cruel and unusual punishments for things that he was pushed to do by his crazy mother. For most of the book, he relies on his father, who is fully aware of what happens, to save him from his mother. Filled with false promises, David's father does little to fight for David. "Father stood lifeless as mother fed me another dose of ammonia. But this time, I fought back. She had to pry my mouth open, and by thrashing my head from side to side, I was able to make her spill most of the cleaner on to the floor. But not enough." (76) As the book progresses, David begins to realize that his father will not help him. He has to fight back himself. This quote makes people realize that even if they do not know much about child abuse, horrible things happen to children every day. I think Dave Pelzer is very successful in his purpose in this book. This bestseller depicts in great detail what happens to kids who are abused.  What is extremely sad is that throughout the book, people knew and did little to prevent it. I think he also achieves his purpose by showing that there was no justification for the abuse. For example, multiple times in the book, when the Mother is punishing David, she says that he is a bad boy, and nothing more. "And she never beats you? The lady asked. No...uh... I mean, only when I get punished... when I'm a bad boy, I said trying to cover up the truth." Here, he is talking to a social services worker. After this, his mother beats him because she does not want to get in trouble. Also, she claims that he is a bad boy and should be beaten and never gives any other reasons. It is because of her beatings and her starving him that he steals food. It is for stealing food that she beats him. It is a never ending cycle.

After Dave was rescued, he went through a series of foster homes. At age 18, he elisted in the Air Force. Since then, his inspirational work and experiences have shown people that they need to deal with their own problems and also help those in need who cannot help themselves.

“A Child Called It”, in my opinion, successfully educates readers on the horrors of domestic child abuse. I believe that Dave Pelzer definitely achieved his purpose. Also, I like his first-person style of writing and I like the description he uses to paint a picture. I would recommend this book for anyone I know. His inspirational words show the problems of child abuse and how we should fight it.

Comments

for Vic
I feel like all you do here is explain the plot, which is not actually a question. i think that you need to pick more specific questions or tell which ones they are in the essay. Also, is this 1000 words? If not, choose another question and write about it.

For mercedes
as you mentioned earlier, you do need to add more words and quotes. one suggestion for  this is to either write about another question or choose a relevant quote with a lot of words. another question i feel thhat you could write about is the question asking if you have read any other books by the author. i think that you are educated on this series and it would be easy to write about.

For Elton
i liked your essay but i have a few reccomendations. First, is it long enough? If not, choose another question to add in and beef up the quotes. second, the quotes do not seem very relevant. Third, I feel like you are a little too casual in your language. you say things like "bad ass super human" and that makes your essay less professional. Other than those few recs, it was good.

For Aleah

1. Monday, May 02, 2011  
   I feel like your essay did not make that much sense. i think you need to fix the spelling and grammar. Also, you explain the plot too much. i think you should pick another question to write about or add on with another one.

Post a Comment

Basic book review rough draft

“A Child Called It”

"A Child called It", by Dave Pelzer, depicts his tragic childhood where he was constantly and relentlessly abused by his mother, for almost no reason. When David was a young child, he was respected by his mother. But when he got around the age of 1st grade, he devilish "games" began. She would constantly be beaten for no reason, to the amusement of his mother. Throughout the book, Pelzer describes many of the bad things that have happened to him. At one point, she tells him to lay on a burning stove. I think that this book successfully depicts what happened to him and how he  reacted.

In this book, Dave Pelzer writes from the viewpoint of himself as a child going through these horrific events. He also emphasizes the fact that food is scarce for him and not so much for others in his family. In many parts of the book, he describes how much he would like to eat, and be accepted as a member of the family.

"Sitting there on my hands, I could hear my brothers opening the refrigerator to get their desserts, and I hated it. I looked at myself. My skin had a yellowish tint., and my muscles were thin and stringy. Whenever I heard one of my brothers laugh at a television show, I cursed their names."

Throughout the book, he has many of these occurences. He is sitting in the garage in the prisoner of war position, listening to his family eat. I have noticed in Pelzer's style of writing that he does not show that his mother does bad things, but that his father and brothers also lack compassion for him. I liked his style of writing. not only did it show that his mother did horrible things to him, but his father did not show any sign of helping him, and he just left. Also, his brothers were pretty rude to him. This leaves less room for wonder in the plot.
What surprises me in this book is that his brothers also are brainwashed by their mother to do mean things to their brother. They kick him and help their mother with her devilish games. I realize that some may not know better but they should be able to distinguish right from wrong.
I think that Dave Pelzer wrote this book very well. Barely any questions remained in my mind when I finished. Also, I like that the ending was put at the beginning so there was hope in the book.

The author of "The Child Called It", Dave Pelzer, actually experienced these horrible events described in great detail. He had to endure his mother's crazy, messed up, satanic games. I am glad that he wrote this book because he seemed to have a clear purpose in mind. To educate the reader about the horrors of child abuse and gain national attention on the subject. Throughout the book, he is hurt and abused and goes through many cruel and unusual punishments for things that he was pushed to do by his crazy mother. For most of the book, he relies on his father, who is fully aware of what happens, to save him from his mother. Filled with false promises, David's father does little to fight for David. "Father stood lifeless as mother fed me another dose of ammonia. But this time, I fought back. She had to pry my mouth open, and by thrashing my head from side to side, I was able to make her spill most of the cleaner on to the floor. But not enough." (76) As the book progresses, David begins to realize that his father will not help him. He has to fight back himself. This quote makes people realize that even if they do not know much about child abuse, horrible things happen to children every day. I think Dave Pelzer is very successful in his purpose in this book. This bestseller depicts in great detail what happens to kids who are abused.  What is extremely sad is that throughout the book, people knew and did little to prevent it. I think he also achieves his purpose by showing that there was no justification for the abuse. For example, multiple times in the book, when the Mother is punishing David, she says that he is a bad boy, and nothing more. "And she never beats you? The lady asked. No...uh... I mean, only when I get punished... when I'm a bad boy, I said trying to cover up the truth." Here, he is talking to a social services worker. After this, his mother beats him because she does not want to get in trouble. Also, she claims that he is a bad boy and should be beaten and never gives any other reasons. It is because of her beatings and her starving him that he steals food. It is for stealing food that she beats him. It is a never ending cycle.

“A Child Called It”, in my opinion, successfully educates readers on the horrors of domestic child abuse. I believe that Dave Pelzer definitely achieved his purpose. Also, I like his first-person style of writing and I like the description he uses to paint a picture.

Book Review #2

"A Child called It", by Dave Pelzer, depicts his tragic childhood where he was constantly and relentlessly abused by his mother, for almost no reason. When David was a young child, he was respected by his mother. But when he got around the age of 1st grade, he devilish "games" began.

In this book, Dave Pelzer writes from the viewpoint of himself as a child going through these horrific events. He also emphasizes the fact that food is scarce for him and not so much for others in his family. In many parts of the book, he describes how much he would like to eat, and be accepted as a member of the family. 

"Sitting there on my hands, I could hear my brothers opening the refrigerator to get their desserts, and I hated it. I looked at myself. My skin had a yellowish tint., and my muscles were thin and stringy. Whenever I heard one of my brothers laugh at a television show, I cursed their names."

Throughout the book, he has many of these occurences. He is sitting in the garage in the prisoner of war position, listening to his family eat. I have noticed in Pelzer's style of writing that he does not show that his mother does bad things, but that his father and brothers also lack compassion for him. I liked his style of writing. not only did it show that his mother did horrible things to him, but his father did not show any sign of helping him, and he just left. Also, his brothers were pretty rude to him. This leaves less room for wonder in the plot.
What surprises me in this book is that his brothers also are brainwashed by their mother to do mean things to their brother. They kick him and help their mother with her devilish games. I realize that some may not know better but they should be able to distinguish right from wrong.
I think that Dave Pelzer wrote this book very well. Barely any questions remained in my mind when I finished. Also, I like that the ending was put at the beginning so there was hope in the book.

The author of "The Child Called It", Dave Pelzer, actually experienced these horrible events described in great detail. He had to endure his mother's crazy, messed up, satanic games. I am glad that he wrote this book because he seemed to have a clear purpose in mind. To educate the reader about the horrors f child abuse and gain national attention on the subject. Throughout the book, he is hurt and abused and goes through many cruel and unusual punishments for things that he was pushed to do by his crazy mother. For most of the book, he relies on his father, who is fully aware of what happens, to save him from his mother. Filled with false promises, David's father does little to fight for David. "Father stood lifeless as mother fed me another dose of ammonia. But this time, I fought back. She had to pry my mouth open, and by thrashing my head from side to side, I was able to make her spill most of the cleaner on to the floor. But not enough." (76) As the book progresses, David begins to realize that his father will not help him. He has to fight back himself. This quote makes people realize that even if they do not know much about child abuse, horrible things happen to children every day. I think Dave Pelzer is very successful in his purpose in this book. This bestseller depicts in great detail what happens to kids who are abused.  What is extremely sad is that throughout the book, people knew and did little to prevent it. I think he also achieves his purpose by showing that there was no justification for the abuse. For example, multiple times in the book, when the Mother is punishing David, she says that he is a bad boy, and nothing more. "And she never beats you? The lady asked. No...uh... I mean, only when I get punished... when I'm a bad boy, I said trying to cover up the truth." Here, he is talking to a social services worker. After this, his mother beats him because she does not want to get in trouble.

Vignette response

In this post,  will respond to Vihn, and Victor's vignettes.
What I have noticed that is similar about these vignettes are that they talk about family. They talk about how they support them, who they consist of, or the learning experiences they are presented to by their families. Vihn, for example, had to move to a whole new country. Everything was confusing to him: The cars, the streets, and the layout of the parking lot. Vihn had to go through many societal changes and luckily his family was there to greet him and his mother and help them. He writes about them in a positive tone.

 By now, I can see who those people are. It is my cousin and his family. My cousin belongs to my mother’s side of the family branch. His mother and my mother are siblings. They are a family of four. First is the second child, Stroy, a fat and perhaps stubborn as well as spoil. Second is the third child, Kong. Kong is smaller and younger than Stroy and he is more obedient than Stroy when given orders. Kong is like a monkey while Stroy is like big fat fluffy cat.

In this quote, Vihn describes his family when he just got off the plane. He describes them in detail which shows he is excited to be in America. He also uses figurative language when he says "Kong is like a monkey while Stroy is like a big fluffy cat." I like this particular sentence the most because it shows that he had some humor when he got off the plane. He seems excited to be in America and definitely shows it in this quote.
In Victor's vignette, he writes about how seeing how his family acts is a learning experience for him.

Unlike the old generations of Liangs, my siblings, my cousins, and I all realize our parent's flaws and have learned to behave unlike them. The main reason I am positive and caring towards others is because my father, a lot of times, isn't like that towards me, which I know makes me unhappy and left out in the world.

Here, Victor explains how seeing how his dad acts shapes the way he acts. What I would expect is that he acts the same as his father, but it is exactly the opposite. In these vignettes, and in many others, family comes up.

Esperanza's Future

In the last four vignettes in The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, Cisneros shows that she could symbolize Esperanza. I think she could symbolize Esperanza because in the about the author section, she grew up in Chicago around the same time and seemed to have a similar life. I think that because of this symbolism, Esperanza will become a writer when she is older. I think she will come back for the ones she left by writing this book and showing that there are people out there that struggle in these situations.

I think that Esperanza, in her future, will come back for the ones she left behind, no matter how much she does not like Mango Street. Mango Street is Esperanza, and she will have to come to terms with who she really is. On page 105, Esperanza makes a wish to leave Mango street and the old lady is talking to her about it.

“When you leave you must remember to come back for the others. A circle, understand? You will always be Mango Street. You can’t erase what you know. You can’t forget who you are.”

Here, Esperanza is told by the old lady that she will always be Mango Street. I think this particular event decides whether she will come back for the ones she left behind. She feels a connection to Mango Street and to her they feel like family. Because of that, I feel that she will return for the ones she left behind.
Also, on page 107, Esperanza is saying how she never had a good house.

“You have a home, Alicia, and one day you’ll go there, to a town you remember, but me, I never had a house, not even a photograph...only one I dream of. No, Alicia says. Like it or not you are Mango Street, and one day you’ll come back too.”

Esperanza is sad she could could never be proud of her home.She always wished she could be something better. I think That this shows that she will have a good future. She has already been through this life and now as a result, I think that she will be motivated to create a better future for her and others.

Cisneros Teen raising

Cisneros obviously believes that parents do raise their teenage boys and girls differently. She indirectly mentions this in many of her vignettes. Throughout the book, this is clearly shown. On page 8, Esperanza is talking about her feelings about Nenny. "And since she comes right after me, she is my responsibility." Cisneros indirectly mentions here that girls need to be raised  to be able to babysit and raise a good family. She says that they should be able to keep order in the house and they should be raise this way because that is what the stereotype is. Also, Cisneros feels that if a mother figure should die, than the daughter should step in as the mother figure, instead of the father. On page 31, Esperanza is talking about Alicia. “Alicia, whose mama died, is sorry there is no one older to rise and make the lunchbox tortillas.” Since her mother died, Alicia had to step in as the mother figure. Cisneros implies here that girls should also be raised to be responsible should something bad and unexpected happen. As the mother figure, Alicia has to work much harder. In this vignette, Cisneros implies that girls should be raised to prepare for how society is, not to change the truth because if something unexpected happens, they may not be prepared for it.

Cisneros also shows that boys and girls should be raised to look at personality, not just looks. On page 27, in the vignette Marin, Marin is talking about attraction.

“What matters, Marin says, is for the boys to see us and for us to see them. And since Marin’s skirts are shorter and since her eyes are pretty [...]The boys who pass by say stupid things like I am in love with those two green apples you call eyes, give them to me why don’t you.”

Here, she talks about Marin’s physical attractiveness as a good thing to the guys, yet there is no positive outcome for the girls if they are attractive. Only boys will look at them and say stupid things. This shows how boys and girls are raised to look at looks and not personality. Since this thought is so widespread, it has become a part of American society. Cisneros thinks that people should raise their kids to look at others personality and not just base their decisions off of looks.

Just an Ordianry Life

Just an Ordinary Life

1. Splitting Up
2. New Family
3. Neck
4. Still Life

Splitting up

The day I thought was supposed to be normal was turned around. I walked in to the kitchen, to find breakfast waiting for me. Steaming pancakes and maple syrup, staring at me, beckoning to me. I quickly ate my breakfast and walked in to the living room to watch my Saturday cartoons. Later in the day, my parents walked in, ready to tell my sister and I. “We’re splitting up” my mom said. My sister and I looked at each other confused. “What?” I asked. “We aren’t going to be together anymore.” Naturally, like any kid would, I thought it might have been my fault. Though I was reassured that it was not, I still had my doubts.

I know I will have to move, commute between houses, and live with two new families. I am not ready for change. For change to happen so fast. Like a car moving at full speed. For a kid, an ideal situation is living with both parents, however, it would have been worse for everyone if they had stayed together. If i just close my eyes, I can imagine what it would have been like if they had stayed together. I am glad though, that even though they were not good for each other, they managed to raise me.

It happened so fast. First they split up, then they moved, then they remarried. I never thought I would be a part of two new families. Slightly the same, slightly different. At the time, I thought it was a bad thing to be split up among two completely different people. I did not like change. A normal life was perfect for me. I thought of all the changes that would happen. some good, some bad. Two Christmasses, switching from house to house, new family members, and others. Many new things come with a new family. Many more than I had expected.

Having a new family brings about new changes and experiences. They bring about two different viewpoints. The disagreements between families creates a more opinionated person.
Now new families also cause trouble, sometimes causing me to choose sides.  For example, I may have to choose between my mom’s opinion or my dad’s.
Neck

I walked into the waiting room at Children’s Hospital of Oakland dazed and tired. I glanced at the clock. 5:30 AM. I would want to be anywhere else right now. Asleep, at home, or even at school. Just not here. But my neck has to have problems. It has to be me with whatever scientific term they want to give it. But they have to fix it.

I walked in and got changed into a gown. they rolled me into the operating room and put the gas thing on my face. I proceeded to slowly fall asleep and the surgeon walked in. That is when I fell asleep.I woke up nine hours later, dazed and confused. “Is it tomorrow?” I asked. Not really talking to anyone. Just asking. I looked around the ICU, not even thinking about the excruciating pain like a nail driving into my neck. Thinking about everything that was going to suck about that week did not make that few minutes any better. I would have to do homework when I returned home. I would have to wear a neck brace for four months. I would have to also return to school soon. To me, nothing sounded good. Not even food. The drugs made me nauseous. Nauseous like I just stuck my head in a gas tank and inhaled. I refused food and was not able to finish the stuff I had. Everything around me seemed uninteresting. Even the TV. Nothing good was on. The TV seemed useless. Swinging around to go right in front my eyes. Volume so low that I have to lean forward. That just seemed like too much work.

Still Life

The day I left the hospital, I only cared about one thing, and that was getting a burrito. The hospital food never excited me, being jello, defrosted meat, and soggy fries. As soon as I got out of the hospital doors, I walked to the car and sat down. The drive only took a few minutes, and soon I was home. Except there was a difference. I could not turn my neck. I felt as still and straight as a lamp. One push and I could just fall over. When I had the burrito, it felt like a gourmet dish. The nasty food from the hospital did not compare to even a mediocre burrito. The beans, rice and cheese, placed perfectly in to the burrito felt like heaven on my taste buds.

For the next few weeks, I did not have to go to school. Even if that was the case, I still had to do homework.  New material I had not yet been exposed to. Such as Spanish. I had to do many worksheet pages and even take a quiz, on stuff I had not even seen in my life. I did not like this because I was not actually learning anything. Just copying out of the book.  

When I actually returned to school, it hit me that I had to do work. The easy days at home I had did not compare to eighth grade. Though eighth grade was not hard, compared to staying home it was as challenging as calculus.

New School

In the middle of eighth grade, I had no idea that I would be going to ASTI. I thought Alameda High was my only choice. Later, I found out about ASTI and thought that I may apply. My plan originally was to go to Alameda High, and I did not know what I would do if I was accepted to ASTI. I had been told it is a lot of work, by many people. I was conflicted between schools. I knew almost no one that was going there, except for a few people. Also, the amount of work seemed like it was enough to keep me working all night. As I soon found out, I was wrong about many things. First, I began to meet new people and make new friends. Also, I got used to the homework that was given. As the year progressed, I knew that I had made the right decision.

Cloud/sky symbolism

In the story, "The House on Mango Street", many symbols appear. In this story, sky symbolizes freedom and independence. On page 33, in the vignette, "Darius and the Clouds", she talks about they sky. "You can always fall asleep and wake up drunk on sky, and sky can keep you safe when you are sad. Here there is too much sadness and not enough sky... Still, we can take what we can get and make the best of it." She talks sky here as something that can help her through bad times. She knows that whenever she looks  at the sky, she can reach for the stars. To her sky is like a gateway to a better life. If she can look up  and imagine a good life, then she can get a good life. When she says there are too many clouds, she means  there are too many obstacles stopping her from achieving freedom. the clouds symbolize a barrier to a better life. An obstacle she has to get by to achieve the life she dreams of. On page 59, she talks about her sick aunt. " Maybe the sky didn't look the day she fell down. Maybe God was busy" This quote also shows how sky symbolizes freedom and independence. The day her aunt was disabled, the sky was not looking down. She was not free that day. Sandra Cisneros's use of symbols in this book definitely brings it to life. Her figurative language makes the characters and descriptions jump off of the page. On page 82, Esperanza talks about Sally. "And if you opened the little window latch and gave it a shove, all the windows would swing open, all the sky would come in" Before this quote, she is talking about Sally being sad and having people gossiping about her. The sky would come in symbolizes her finding freedom from the rumors and stories and bullying. Sally could be free by letting the sky flow in. Esperanza says after on page 83 that, "There'd be no nosy neighbors watching, no motorcycles and cars, no sheets and towels and laundry." There would be no one in her business and nothing to obstruct her view of freedom.

Windows symbolism

In "The House On Mango Street", I think that windows symbolize a barrier to the real world and its opportunities. In the vignette, "My name", Esperanza's great grandmother is taken from her vibrant and opportunity filled life into a life of boring sadness.

“I would’ve liked to have known her, a wild horse of a woman, so wild she wouldn’t marry. Until my great grandfather threw a sack over her head and carried her off…And the story goes on she never forgave him. She looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit on their sadness on an elbow.”

Here, she describes how her great grandmother lost the opportunity to great things in life. She got married and lost her charisma, and she regretted it ever since.

I also think that windows symbolize opportunity because in the vignette Rafaela, Rafaela looks out the window, locked inside because of her beauty. “Rafaela leans out the window and leans on her elbow and dreams of hair like Repunzel’s.” Her husband wants her to stay inside because of her stunning beauty, which he feels might cause other men to be tempted to take her.

In books, things can symbolize multiple things. Windows in “The House On Mango Street” is a perfect example. I think that this symbol also symbolizes discrimination. In parts of the book where windows are mentioned, there is always a pattern of discrimination. In the vignette “Sally”, Sally loses many friends.  “You don’t laugh, Sally. You look at your feet and walk fast to your house and you can’t come out from.” Soon after, she mentions windows and how she wishes they could be opened. In a way, this symbolizes both opportunity and discrimination. It symbolizes discrimination because when she lost all her friends, no one payed attention to her. She just walked with her head low, being shut out from the world. The windows symbolize opportunity because if they are opened, then she will have a better life. She can enjoy the outside world, and interact with people around her, when the window is open for her. 

The Color Purple Essay

Colin Forbes
2/24/11

Compare and contrast essay

“The Color Purple”, by Alice Walker, tells the story of a two African American sisters in the early 20th century. Celie deals with many problems throughout her life and writes to God about them. Also, it is about her sister Nettie, a missionary in Africa. “The Color Purple” is an epistolary novel, which means that the novel is written in letters. Though they start off being raised the same, Celie and Nettie go off very different ways. Celie gets married off to an abusive husband and Nettie goes to Africa with missionaries. They both encounter discrimination throughout their lives, and both try to overcome. Also, Celie deals with questioning religion and God, even though she has written to him most of her life.

Throughout the novel Celie and Nettie both deal with their religion and spirituality. Celie mostly goes with what people tell her. She accepts what is real and never educates herself about religion. Though she has faith and addresses God throughout the story, she begins to question the reality of God. All her past experiences and observations make Celie feel like she is not being treated equally. By men and women, she is recieving harsh insults for being stupid, ugly, or black. She writes to God, expecting help through her hard times, but fails to get any. She tells Nettie in a letter that she will not write to God anymore.

“She say, Celie! Like she shock. He gave you life, good health, and a good woman you love to death. Yeah, I say, and he give me a lynched daddy, a crazy mama, a lowdown dog of a step pa, and a sister I probably won’t ever see again.” (192)

Here, she begins to question how God benefits her. She reflects upon the bad things in life that she has to deal with and does not bother to think about the positive things. She also thinks that God may not be listening to her because she is colored.  “Let ‘im here me, I say. If he ever listened to poor colored women the world would be a different place, I can tell you.”  Here, she attempts to convince Shug Avery that God is not fair by saying that if he listened to poor colored women, the world would be equal for everyone, no matter the race or creed. Nettie, on the other hand, is educated about religion and decides to make it a career. She was taught by missionaries and knows more about religion than Celie. Nettie’s take on religion is slightly different from Celie’s.  She does not keep her knowledge to herself but instead teaches religion and equality to kids in Africa. Nettie’s firm belief in God helps her throughout the story by giving her the courage to stand up to gender inequality in Africa.

Sexism plays a big role in “The Color Purple”. Women are treated unfairly in both the American South and in Africa.  When Celie and Shug announce they are moving to Memphis, Celie breaks gender barriers between men and women. She speaks up and tells Mr_ how she feels.

“You a lowdown dog is what’s wrong, I say. It’s time to leave you and enter into the creation. And your dead body just the welcome mat I need. Say what? He ast. Shock. All round the table folkses mouths be dropping open. You took my sister Nettie away from me, I say. And she was the only person love me in the world.” (199)
She stands up to Mr_ and tells him all of her feelings that she has held in from the day they were married. She knows that Mr_ does not love her and she wants someone in the world to love her. Mr_ treats her with little respect throughout the book, and constantly fights Celie’s attempts at equality. Celie deals with sexism throughout her life. Her stepdad even removes her from school because he impregnated her.

“The first time I got big Pa took me out of school. He never care that I love it. Nettie stood there at the gate holding tight to my hand. I was all dress for the first day. You too dumb to keep going to school, Pa say. Nettie the clever one of the bunch.”

Her stepdad never cared about cared about how she loved school. He still took her out. He always thought Nettie was the smart one and completely gave up on Celie. He never tried to support her and he just gave her away. Nettie even tries to defend Celie, saying that she is smart, but her stepdad will not change his mind.

Nettie, however, does not achieve equality while she is living in Africa because of their culture. The village that Nettie lives in only educates the boys and treats the girls with little respect. The boys are given many privileges and rights and the women and girls of the tribe do not get much say in what happens. Nettie is not given the rights that the boys are given and the girls are not allowed the education that the boys are allowed. Nettie tries to fight for women’s rights in Africa but has little success.

“The world is changing, I said. It is no longer a world just for boys and men. Our women are respected here, said the father. We would never let them tramp the world as American women do. There is always someone to look after the Olinka woman. A father. An uncle. A brother or nephew.”

The father of Tashi does not think that women are equal in their village. He thinks that there will always be someone to look after them because they are not educated. He says that they respect their women by not letting them have the same freedoms as American women. He thinks that American women are tramps and they are not respected by their communities, yet they have equal rights as men in America.

            Though Celie and Nettie are similar in a few ways, their differences far outweigh their similarities. Celie has a far worse life than Nettie, but manages to overcome sexism. Nettie, on the other hand, is not able to overcome sexism, but is able to overcome racism.
           

Rebuttal to Adralyn

In her debate post, Adralyn says that teens should not be allowed to vote. She made many good points in her post. For example, she said that teens aren't responsible. She also said that they don't know politics as well as adults, and usually the only politics teens know are things their parents tell them. She also said that teens might just vote to look cool. I agree with these points but I think they could have been improved.
For example, she said that

In my opinion, I would say no teens should not have the right to vote..Because we are young and not mature enough to take upon a big responsibility.
Teen should not be able to vote because they might not be interested in politics but since they have to vote they will just chose anybody.
Teen should not be allowed to vote because they might do to just look cool. when you are given the right o vote that means you are responsible enough. But when you are doing it just to be cool then that not responsible.

She states her points here, and though they are good ones, they do not provide much detail. They just say her point. Throughout the post, their is not much to back up her points, just people saying that they felt that way as a teen.  I agree with her point that most teens do not know much about politics, but if she maybe included an article about how teens are not responsible or how they are more ignorant than adults, her point would have been stronger. It is true we do not want ignorant, stupid, or kids who think they know everything voting for the leader of our country.
The main thing that she needs to improve on is detail. If she added more to backup her point, or she gave places to read more, her argument would have been better. I think it was a good argument though and I agree with it. she makes strong points throughout that help back up her position. I think that if I originally thought teens should be able to vote, I would be persuaded otherwise.

Celie's relationship with God

After reading about 40 pages of "The Color Purple", Celie's letters to God explain her traits and her relationship with God. First of all, I think that Celie is very faithful. She confides in God in every letter and hopes that he will get her through her bad times. On page 3, she says, "I'm hoping he fine someone to marry. I see him looking at my little sister. She scared. But I say I'll take care of you. With God help." Here, she is saying that she wants her father to marry someone so he can stop abusing her. She also wants to protect her little sister from their abusive father. She puts her faith in God and thinks that he will help her every step of the way.  She wants to be protected from her abusive husband and therefore puts her faith in God that eventually, if she deals with it, she will end up in heaven and have a good after life.
I think that Celie  is also a very strong willed person. She knows what she stands for and she knows what is right and what is wrong. I think that Celie was unfairly treated and could have gone farther in life. Nettie knows that Celie is smart and should have been able to go to school. If she had not been married off at such a young age and did not have the responsibilities she did as a child, she could have gone far in life. I think that because of all the tragedies in her life is why she has so much faith in God. God is a way for her to have hope and for her to vent out everything she is angry about. God is also a way for her to feel like someone is watching over her, helping her every step of the way.
On page 7, she says, "Dear God, I ast him to take me instead of Nettie." She cares so much about her little sister that she would let her father give her off to an abusive man. This is admirable how much she cares for her sister. She is also very faithful which helps her a lot. She gets through everyday knowing that God will always be with her.

Wikileaks argument

I have chosen to debate that wikileaks is bad for our country. Every now and then, new secret documents are released to the public that could cause people to lose trust in their government. As a country, we have to stay united and all trust our government. The last time we distrusted the government and it led to war was the American revolution. We would not want that to happen again over some released documents. Also, these documents create tension between countries. If documents are released that say that bad things are happening in other countries, they would want to take action against the people who are commiting these crimes or doing bad things. Also, if the government wants to keep some things that they know the public will not like, they should have the right to keep it a secret. If they think that it could cause revolt in the United States, it is probably better kept a secret. The human public does not need to know what is happening in the war. That is for the people who work for the military and the Secretary of Defense to know.
I think that wikileaks should be taken off the internet quickly. Julian Assange should be put in prison for the documents he has released and the trouble he has caused. Some people may say that this is freedom of speech, but this is going to far. This is taking advantage of our unalienable rights and using it against the country. Here, the Iowa state daily explains why wikileaks is bad. http://www.iowastatedaily.com/opinion/article_af110864-ffec-11df-aca3-001cc4c03286.html

However, in the conduct of diplomacy and war, confidentiality is often vitally important because diplomacy is a lot like making chorizo sausages — it is not something you really want to see because it is messy and smelly. If WikiLeaks causes death or destroys the lives of people who are engaged in espionage, war or diplomacy and compromises security and aids rogue governments or terrorists, then that would clearly be bad.

 Here, they say that wikileaks is bad during a war, which we clearly are in. It can compromise security and puts people's lives in danger, all over the world. Even in the most secure countries. I believe that wikileaks is bad for the country and foreign relations.
To read more: http://chronicle.com/article/Why-WikiLeaks-Is-Bad-for/125628

Response to billy

I chose to respond to Billy's blog on global warming. In his post, Billy says that he believes that global warming was man made.  

So is global warming caused by humans or is it natural? I think that global warming is caused by humans. In the past there have been cold and warm weather periods and some scientists believe that it’s natural, but most scientists say that humans are the main cause. In recent graphs and scales CO2 levels seem to be rising up off the charts and the temperature seems to follow along meaning the more Co2 in the air the higher the temperature. We Americans live in a place were industries and companies are big in money and in pollution. 

I agree with Billy that global warming is caused by humans. I saw the movie "An Inconvenient Truth" last year and Billy is right about the Co2 levels. Also, temperatures in places that have humans are rising faster than in places such as Argentina. Yes, there are weather patterns but those usually can be proven by most scientists, not just 20%. I also think America should do more to help the environment since we contribute 25% of the world's pollution. We need to raise our standards and lead the way to a better environment. The problem is, it will be hard to transfer to alternative energy so quickly because we are so reliant on fossil fuels and natural gas. I think that while we should drive eco friendly cars that we should also reduce our carbon footprint at home. For example, instead of throwing things away that can be recycled, recycle them. People do not have to go all out to be super eco-friendly but that is their choice if they do. I also think that even though humans are a big cause of global warming, the Earth may be be in a slight warming period. (I have no evidence to back that up I am just saying that could be true.) In conclusion, I think everyone should at least do small things to reduce their carbon footprint and reduce the amount of pollution being put in to the air that we breathe.

Response to sam 1/14/10

I chose to respond to Sam's post on gay marriage and if a Church has the right to refuse service to people.
In his post he wrote that a church has the right to refuse to give a service to anyone. I agree with his point because I do not think that a church has to do something just because they were pressured into doing it. However, what they chose to do may make them less popular. I am all for gay marriage and I believe that they should have the same rights anyone else has in the country.

 I think that it should be possible for a gay couple to become legally married, but if a religion is against homosexuality, they should be allowed to deny the couple a religious ceremony under their church.  The couple is allowed to have a religious wedding ceremony; the church they use has to allow it though.  I don’t see how this would be a problem though because I have a strong feeling that a homosexual couple wouldn’t want to be married by an anti gay church.  Also even if they can’t be married by that church, they can choose another one.  The reason that I think people don’t think that same sex marriage should be allowed is that it started out as a religious based process.  They may feel that the government is interfering in there religion by allowing.

Here, he makes some good points on why churches should be allowed to deny service to anyone. The one I agree with them most is where he says that he does not think that denial of a ceremony would be such a bad thing because a gay couple would not probably want to be married be an anti-gay church anyway. The problem with this is is that some churches take it too far. For example, the Westboro Baptist Church protests funerals of straight and gay people saying that they deserve it. I find this appalling and horrible. For someone to go out of their way to protest something that barely affects them at all is just stupid and wrong. In conclusion, I agree with Sam's point that a church should be able to deny a ceremony but they should not be able to actively take action against homosexuals.

Elite Colleges

In my opinion, the most persuasive person in this debate was Richard D. Kahlenberg. He used numbers and studies to back up his evidence and he gave reasonable arguments. In his article, Kahlenberg said that the wages someone makes can be influenced from 5 to 20 percent just by attending a prestigious university. He also said the wage gap between public school graduates and private school graduates can grow over time.

Entry level earnings are 45 percent higher for graduates of the most selective institutions compared with the least selective, and the wage gap may grow over time. One study suggests almost all of the higher earnings can be attributed to the talent of incoming students (as opposed to the value added by the college) but most studies find the wage boost provided by selective institutions themselves to be between 5 percent and 20 percent. http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2010/11/29/does-it-matter-where-you-go-to-college/yes-college-choice-makes-a-difference

In his article, he uses studies and numbers to back up his viewpoints. He also writes professionally and does not try to say "you're wrong" to people who disagree with him. I also think this is the most persuasive because he provides reasonable arguments. For example, he said at a selective institution, a student is surrounded by talented and high achieving peers. I like the point he makes here because he is saying that if you go to a selective institution, you will be immersed in talent.
The article I found to be the least persuasive in my opinion was "Skip the Admissions Game" by Kevin Carey. I did not find this persuasive because he wrote unprofessionally and used sarcasm in his article.

They're nice places to hang out for four years and you'll probably learn a few things. Even if you don't, you'll still get a piece of paper signifying that you were smart enough to get in and rich enough to pay for it. People care about stuff like that. http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2010/11/29/does-it-matter-where-you-go-to-college/skip-the-admissions-game

In this excerpt, I found that he is just saying the rich can go to elite schools and they are a breeze to get through. First of all, colleges provide financial aid for those who qualify. Secondly, college is not a breeze for all people and you can not get through without learning something.