Argument essay

Banning a book can mean many things. It can be because some people think it is not appropriate for a certain age or that they believe it it is so full with profanity that it should be removed from all libraries. The book Lord of the Flies by William Golding is about a group of boys that landed on a mysterious island. They have to adapt to living by themselves which most of them ending failing in trying to do that. In fact, they even started to kill each other off in order to survive. This is a main reason why it is constantly challenged and later banned from schools. This text should be removed from middle school libraries because it corrupts teenagers which leads to them acting unjust to their families and teachers. 

Racism is a huge problem and is a main reason why this book should be banned. If you were to read this book thoroughly, you would find plenty of terms that put down different races and also the disabled. This has sparked a lot of anger and hate on William Golding which is why it is challenged so much. One of those terms is “nigger” and people despise that word so much. People are trying so hard for that word to be eliminated and it is constantly being brought up in this book so this book should be stripped from middle school libraries. I don't think that middle schoolers should be reading a book with that type of language, and you can't eliminate just the words, so this book ultimately should be taken away from middle school libraries.

Most of the Controversy around this book has been because of the explicit language used in this book. In this book, the author repeatedly refers to sex, which is a inappropriate topic for middle school children. It would be ok if it is only talked about once or twice but for it to come more than that is inexplicable and it needs to be taken away. Also, this book makes hateful comments towards women which has sparked anger around world. Talking about women that way is a very sensitive topic because if you go to far, you will have all types of criticism. This book definitely went to far because pretty much every chapter, there was a sexist remark about women.

The amount of violence is inexplicable and could stand as the only reason this book should be banned. All throughout the book, especially towards the end, the boys trapped on the island had been desperate. However, this book took it to another level because their desperation took control of them. They started to kill off one another until they were saved. We wouldn’t want middle schoolers being exposed to violence like this which is why it should be banned. Further more, they eventually started wild fires that could have burned forests down. Taking care of our environment is a big deal and this book totally abolished that idea. On page 188, it states,”Jack made a rush and stabbed at Ralph’s chest with a spear. Ralph sensed  the attack and made a rush and stabbed at Ralph’s chest with a spear. Ralph sensed  the position of the weapon from the glimpse he caught of Jack’s arm and put the thrust aside with his own butt.” This line is just a glimpse to how brutal this book is, because it shows how eventually they turn on each other in order to survive. 

Overall, this book contains so much explicit content that I believe it should be banned from all middle school libraries. If children read and follow what the boys did, it would be hectic because of all the terror that happened in the book. I believe that children should do the exact opposite of what happened in this book by staying calm and under control of their actions.

Social Awareness Picture

http://www.jamesnachtwey.com/jn/images/02-JN_WTC_3-34GA.jpg 

This very powerful image by James Nachtwey was taken during the fatal attack on nine eleven. This one day is believed to have been a moment that has changed America forever. This one picture captures the day where millions of lives were taken. It symbolizes both death, and the start of a new city. Building it self together again, while uniting all of its people together. 

This photo is one of my all favorite works of art. It captures exactly what is going on at the time and it also includes a piece of religion in it. This very deep photo is very compelling to me because of multiple reasons. One was that James Nachtwey was able to get close enough to the action to catch this great moment. On the other hand, it symbolizes a new start for this city that has since then grown from the incident. 

Social Awareness Poem

Ferguson 

Some say it was unfair,

Then others started to stare.

It became a big deal,

For the family could not heal.

It became extremely public,

The topic was making people sick.

They wanted justice,

because Michael Brown had been shot.

They went to court,

Because the town was all out of sort.

They made a decision, 

No one was guilty.

Now the town is in sorrow.

The topic I wrote this poem on was the Ferguson case involving Michael Brown. I chose to write about this because it was a really important trial that everyone in the country was paying attention to. While writing the poem, I rhymed sometimes on two lines and sometimes not at all. I chose to do this so that when I didn’t rhyme, those lines could stand out. Also, I capitalized the first letter in the first word to make sure that the sentence had a powerful start to it. So overall, I wrote about this topic to explain what was going on in Ferguson and I used specific structures to do so.

Social Awareness Response

You never want to do something so bad that you go from representing your country in front of the world to being hated for a disgraceful reason. In the article “ Role reversal” by Patricia Smith, Oscar Pistorius is in that exact situation. Pistorius is known for his performance in the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. He ran track despite having two prosthetic legs to replace the ones that were cut. After the games, he and his country celebrated his performance with plenty of partying and other activities. However, several days later, Pistorius had murdered his girlfriend. Of course he has to go through a court system, like all murder cases, and this time, he happened to have a black judge. This was a really rare occurrence for a black women to be judging  a white man. Around the 1900’s this would be unthinkable, but now it has become a reality. The author wants its readers to know that time has changed so we need to move on with the racial stereotypes and that the judge handled those stereotypes well. Also the author shows that you can go from the top to the bottom in a matter of days so you always have to watch what you do.

The author really does a good job with constructing her writing so that she can prove a point while getting good facts across. For example in the text, the author states, “ Despite the glare of live television and social media, legal experts say Judge Masipa guided the proceedings skillfully and gracefully.” This demonstrated to me and other readers that the author and many other people respected how courageous this judge is. This greater improves my respect for this judge because of the amount of pressure she had to deal with. I’m sure that the author wanted her readers to think the exact thing that i’m thinking. 

There is a reason that everyone always is saying watch what you are doing. This is a perfect example. Oscar Pistorius is the biggest thing in South Africa but one argument ends it all While explaining what happened with him and his girlfriend, the author is teaching a lesson to all of her readers that what he did is a horrible action to preform. The line, “ Pistorius could serve no jail or as much as 15 years behind bars for culpable homicide.” I think that Patricia Smith included that line to scare her readers to prove that you definitely wouldn’t want to murder someone. The author also emphasizes that Pistorius was a highly celebrated star and that one mistake has ruined his career and stripped him of his respect.

Overall, I believe that this is a really powerful article. It demonstrates a huge change in a world that has always been stereotypical. It teaches me that anything can happen so I should watch what I do and fight for anything that people don’t think I can succeed at and work toward that. I know now that I can stand up for people and fight for a change. This article widens my appreciation for Judge Masipa and what she does for a living. So in conclusion, the author did a really great job constructing this piece to get the information in but also at the same time stating her opinion.

Museum Response

During the trip to the NYC museum, I learned many things about the history of activists in NYC. There were some people who really stood out to me during the tour. Two of those groups of people were the bicyclists and the women who were pushing for their rights.

The bicyclists were pretty much the coolest activists. They understood that to get peoples attention, they needed to include humor into their protest. They definitely  got that job done. Some of them dressed like clowns, going up to people and informing them that they are in fact breaking the law. After a while, their message started to get through to people and they eventually got their way.

The woman on the other hand, took a different approach in getting their point across. They did something that could have gotten them in a whole lot of trouble. Being a woman in that time wasn’t the best thing. They had very limited rights which included them not being able to vote. That caused most of them to grow frustrated and start to protest. Back then, even going outside as a woman was risky. This action got them enough attention which allowed them to get their right to vote.

Lord of the Flies

Reading Response

Jeremiah Jeffries

Whenever someone takes a flight on a plane, they always wish that they do not crash. Ralph and the other boys just clearly weren’t lucky. In the book Lord of the Flies  by William Golding, A group of boys didn’t get the slightest bit of luck on their plane ride. They crash landed in a deserted island and they have to learn how to survive by themselves in the wilderness. They were surviving for a short time and they were looking acceptable however, a boy named Jack had a lot of disputes with Ralph and split apart there whole group. Through out the story Ralph was either liked or hated. When they started out on the island in the beginning he was well liked, however in the end, his group turned on him and they shunned him.

The death of all of the boys would have been guaranteed if it hadn’t been for the strength of Ralph. As soon as they touched ground on the island, Ralph immediately stepped up and led them through adversity. He set fires, made shelters and killed animals for food. He is a very intelligent character that was very compassionate to his peers. For example, on page 35 it says. “Ralph flushed, looking sideways at Piggy’s open admiration, and then to the other way at Jack who was smirking and showing that he too knew how to clap.” This paragraph suggests that Ralph brought joy to them. In addition, he brought them hope. It shows that they really believed in him and trusted him to get out of the island.

The action of Jack leaving Ralph’s command could have gotten all of the boys killed. After a while, the boys lost faith in Ralph. He clearly wasn’t getting them off the the island and they were running out of options. In fact, they didn’t even just leave him, they tried to kill him. They turned into complete savages. An example of this is on page 188 and it says, “Jack made a rush and stabbed at Ralph’s chest with a spear. Ralph sensed  the attack and made a rush and stabbed at Ralph’s chest with a spear. Ralph sensed  the position of the weapon from the glimpse he caught of Jack’s arm and put the thrust aside with his own butt.” This shows that they obviously aren’t friends anymore. Jack was so full of hatred that he attacked him. I believe that Jack only did that because he just really wanted to escape this vacant island. Ralph was really his only choice in doing this so when Ralph failed, Jack had blame Ralph. This passage also showed how the relationships between Ralph and the rest of the group was pretty much fake. It was fake because they were only working together to get off the island.

In conclusion, Ralph had a huge struggle in this book. First, he couldn’t quite lead the group off the island but then making it worse, Jack kept in trying to kill him because of his inability to get them off the island. To summarize that, he went from being cherished to being abhorred by the group. In the real world, I believe that this is a very interesting book. It can be both helpful and a bad influence for children. It can be good cause it teaches children to never give up but at the same time it can also teach children to blame others and lose hope easily.

Reading Synthesis Post

Archetype Synthesis page by Jeremiah Jeffries

The book that I am doing my blog post on is Inexcusable by Chris Lynch.

Reluctant Hero- The reluctant hero in this story is the main character Keir. I am naming him the reluctant hero because he doesn't want him to be known for “killer” as that was his nickname after a game where he made a really good play. At first he was just going to except that nickname but a really good friend of his told him not to. She told him that that wasn’t who he is and that he is a much nicer guy. Because of her, he went on a “journey” to try make a good name for himself and for him to be known for being a nice guy.

Quest for identity- Keir was a really good guy. He was nice to everyone and never was too aggressive. Except for that one day where he got a little out of hand on the football field. He hit a guy too hard and could have killed him. Now, Keir has to prove to others that he is better then that, and he can be back to the guy he once was. An example of this is on pages 34 and 35 and it says “I might have been able to stop it, at some point of that day. Stop it instead of blushing, as I did the first time, instead of nodding silently, as i did later, instead of laughing, as I did later still.” Of course, the “it” in that text is referring to the nickname, killer.

Mother Figure- The mother figure in this book is Gigi Boudakian, the girl the Keir really likes. she teaches him how to handle the situation with the nickname and makes Keir love her even more. She guides him through the rally tough times and she tells him all of the right things. Later in the book Keir gets out of the heat and she could gladly say that she was a part of that.

Shape Shifter- In this book, the shape shifter is Keir’s father, Ray. Ray is a very interesting father. In some parts of the book he would be very tough on him and make him a stronger person. However in other parts of the book, he understands and sympathizes with him and gives him the right idea. I think that this character really changed Keir because Keir could always rely on him to give valuable information to him that will help him later in life. Like for example when Keir was dealing with the nickname trouble, he went to Ray and asked for his input on the situation. He told them if you didn’t like the name then stand up for yourself and don’t be afraid of them judging you in any way. This makes me think that the dad has a lot of impact of Keir's life.

Scapegoat- The scapegoat of this story could be Keir because he was “discriminated” by the people at his school for almost killing a kid at one of his football games. Although he wasn’t trying to hurt the kid, he still did enough damage that made some people not like him. People were saying things like suspending him and other people were making the nickname which was making him feel uncomfortable. Overall, he was put in a bad position and his school peers only made it worst.


Overall, I think that this situation ended up helping him out a lot. People in the the real world should learn from this problem because they need to know that they need to stand up for things that they do not agree with.

The book 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher is a book about many social problems that eventually lead up to the death of Hannah Baker, one of Clay’s good friends. She explains 13 reasons why she killed herself, each reason being about a different person. This however makes her a very interesting character. In the beginning of the story she full of happiness and had all the hope in the world, but at the end each reason made her more and more depressed and full of despair.

In the first couple of chapters, she didn’t have a problem in life. She just started school, she had a lot of friends and no work to worry about. Everything would seem perfect right? Wrong. She trusted to people way too much, it came to a point where they started to take advantage of that. An example of this is on page 29 and it says, “I can still see Justin huddled among his friends at school. I remember Hannah walking by, and the whole group stopped talking. They averted their eyes. And when she passed, they started laughing.” Justin was the guy that gave Hannah her first kiss. After many rumors about the different stuff they did, he left her by herself, meaning he only kissed her because she liked him and he didn’t like her at all. He was just one person that lied to and betrayed her through out the book.

During the middle of the book, Hannah starts to get a picture of how bad she is getting treated by the other kids at her school. They are doing really weird things to her  because they think that she doesn’t have her own feelings so they can to anything to her. For example, she was touched by boys that had no reason to touch her like that. Afterwards, they would use a stupid excuse that was not even relevant to the situation at all. Another example is of this kid named Tyler. He did worse than touching her, he stalked her and he took pictures of her room. She was heavily scared from that and at that moment was when she finally realized that people are taking advantage of her and she needed to stop being so kind to everyone.

In the final parts of the book, Hannah just gave up on life. She had been treated so badly that she just had enough. And the worst thing that happened to her was that she was raped by one of the boys at her school. She didn’t even try to stop him because she knew their was no point. On page 253 it says, “I’m sorry. I guess thats an odd thing to say. Because isn’t what i’m doing? Giving up?” I think at this point, she didn't have the will to stop people anymore. Like she didn’t stop Tyler when she found out he was stalking her. She had given up, and after she got raped, she was done, that was the point when she just killed her self.

In conclusion, Hannah changed a lot in the story. She went from being exited about her new school to being full of despair and have no point in living anymore. This book is a good book for kids to read today to let them know that they should stand up to people who are bullying them or doing anything that makes them uncomfortable.

Summer Reading Response for A Long Way Gone

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah is about a strong boy who experiences a lot of war in such a short amount of time. He has to travel to different towns to try and escape the rebels who are on a hot route towards him. Through out the story, Ishmael showed tremendous courage, strength, and consistency and that is what makes him a good character.

In the situation that Ishmael was in, you have to keep courage and not to lose hope. That is exactly what he did. For example, on page ninety-six it says, “Some said it was Gasemu’s fault that we didn’t get to see our parents. Others said it wasn’t, and that if it hadn’t been for him, we would all be dead. I didn’t care. I wanted to see my parents, even if it meant dying with them.” He was never distracted by excuses. He never blamed anything on anyone because he thought that he wasn't going t live. He kept his head high and he never got down on himself. This is why Ishmael Beah is a courageous person and he teaches many people to keep your heads high and to not give up.

There is two different types strength, and Ishmael Beah is both types. You can be two types of strong, physically and mentally. In terms of physical attributes, Beah, was very strong. He was tortured and it only made him stronger. He went into the army and fought and shot at a lot of people. That takes a lot of strength. The other strength is the mental type. When you are in  any type of war or even argument you might lack in this. The fact that he kept strong and kept going is a great feature. An example of this is on page 109 and it says, “ ‘You are afraid of looking a man in the eye and holding a gun. Your hands tremble as if the gun is being pointed at your head.’” This is a important line because it teaches Ishmael to keep strong. It also teaches him that he can’t be afraid when his life on his line. That is what makes him strong.

The last trait of Ishmael Beah is his consistency through out the whole thing. He always stayed positive and always followed what he was told. He kept him self out of trouble and never killed anybody that he didn't need too. He was always good. He was a good person. A reason that he was so good is because of this, “It was during that attack in the village of Kamator that my friends and I separated. It was the last time i saw Junior, my older brother.” This explains that he has a reason to go all out and kill the rebels. But he doesn’t. Even when he loses his parents and his brother and friends, he still does’t want to kill anybody to prove a point. This is why he is consistent throughout his story.

In conclusion, Ismael Beah is a great character. He always keeps his cool and his head up. He does this consistently  and is a great teacher for people. I believe that a lot of children should know his story and learn from him because he is a truly great person.