Journal #26

Snow is crazy. Some people like snow very much and wish it would snow everyday. Some people like snow, but only because it is cold. They think that because it is so cold, that it might as well snow. Some people tolerate snow, while other people totally and completely hate snow. I like snow up to a point. I like snow on the very first day after it has snowed, when absolutely nothing has touched it and it looks so pristine, sparkling and beautiful. After there are footprints on the snow, it is not pretty anymore, and I do not enjoy the cold so I never want to go outside and play in it. I also hate the snow because of driving. It is fun when it does not stick to the ground and is only slightly snowing and it lightly blows across the road, but if there is a really strong wind I absolutely hate it. I also hate when snow has been on the ground for a few days and has been driven on for quite a while and it turns to slush or ice, because that can be very dangerous. I get nervous when I have to drive on it, because I am afraid of what could happen if the slightest thing went wrong. Snow can be fun if people want to play in it and do not mind all the cold. They can have snowball fights, make snowmen, or even go sledding if they can find a hill that is big enough here in Illinois. I have never been truly sledding, because there is not a hill big enough around my house except the one in Centennial Park. That hill is always busy though, so I never go there because there are so many people. Snowball fights can be fun if they are fair and against people that will actually have fun with it. Snowmen can also be fun to make, becuase they can be made anywhere with anyone. It is a very fun activity, but I haven't done any of it in a long time, and I normally do not have time for it unless it is a snow day. Snow can be fun, but it can also be a pain.

"The Minister's Black Veil"

The Minister's Black Veil is a dark story that is very upsetting to many people. Many people could think that the story was meant to be very dark and mysterious, but the author, Nathaniel Hawthorne, was trying to leave the ending up to the reader. In the story The Minister's Black Veil, a minister named Mr. Hooper, who was very much loved and adored, suddenly started wearing a black veil that covered his face down to his mouth (Hawthorne). Many people were very frightened by the veil, for they thought that the veil had partially come from the Devil (Hawthorne). The veil gave chills to many people, and they did not want to be anywhere near it (Hawthorne). They wanted Mr. Hooper to take the veil off, but they were all too afraid to ask him (Hawthorne). He was the kind of man that would have overthought any of his actions if anyone had said the least thing to him, but no one had the courage to talk to him about his black veil and how it frightened them all (Hawthorne). Finally, his intended wife, who was unafraid of the veil and did not feel anything at all when in its prescence, decided to talk to Mr. Hooper about it (Hawthorne). She was very straight forward in her approach, and she made it easier for both of them by doing so (Hawthorne). She asked why he wore the veil, because many people that were a part of his congregation were very scared of it and thought that he was trying to hide a sin that he had comitted (Hawthorne). He refused to take it off, though, because he said it was a symbol of the veil that every human wears because they have sinned, so he could not get rid of it (Hawthorne). She was very upset about it and began to feel the same terrors as the rest of the congregation had, and she was weeping because of it (Hawthorne). She actually broke off her engagement with him, because she was so afraid of it and because she would never be able to see his face again (Hawthorne). Mr. Hooper went around for the rest of his life wearing that black veil, and everyone else completely avoided him (Hawthorne). They either went out of their way to avoid him or they were very rude and ran in to him on purpose (Hawthorne). Children ran away when they saw him walking in the distance, women looked down their nose at him, and men just avoided him (Hawthorne). He lived in solitude, and he became very good at being a minister (Hawthorne). Soon, though, he was dying (Hawthorne). His ex-intended was the nurse that was by his bedside, and she had never let go of her feelings for him (Hawthorne). Soon, as he was taking his last breaths, the people around him asked him if they could take off the veil for him, and he refused them (Hawthorne). He held it on his face while he was dying, so they left it on while they were having his service and even buried him with it on (Hawthorne). People were still very freaked out about it after he died, and the story continues to be freaky (Hawthorne). The Minister's Black Veil shows many characteristics of Romanticism, and the main one is all of the details that Hawthorne puts in to the story. The people were very emotional and did not let reasoning take place in thier minds. The story was also a lot about the individual and what happened to Mr. Hooper, not anyone else. There were a ton of fears, mystery, emotions, and superstitions in the story, and people were mostly going crazy from fear. The Minister's Black Veil is a very mysterious, enjoyable story.

Hawthorne,, Nathaniel. "The Minister's Black Veil." Ibiblio - The Public's Library and Digital Archive. Web. 01 Dec. 2010. .

Journal #25

There are many times people wear masks. Everyone has worn a mask at some point in their life, and it could be for any number of reasons. Often, people wear masks to hide things that they do not want others to see. The most common time to wear a mask is when a person is upset and does not want others to see that they are upset. They will cover their true feelings and hide themselves by seeming to be happy when they are really not. Some people are extremely good at hiding their true feelings. Those are people that can seem incredibly happy no matter what. Some people never figure out that those people are not how they seem to be, and most often only the best friends of those people can ever tell that anything is wrong. There are also a number of people that can not hide anything from anyone. Everyone is able to tell that they are upset, and even though they may think that they are deceiving people by putting on a happy face, but many people are able to see through it. They really are not hiding their feelings from anyone, and though everyone can tell, most people will not do anything about it. Sometimes it is very bad that people do not do anything, because those people that are upset could have a psychological disorder that could be fixed if only someone would do something for the person that is upset. I have worn masks before to try to hide my true feelings, and though it always ends up well, I am still very upset at the time. I am a person that is not good at hiding my true feelings, but as I have gotten older I have either gotten mildly better or people just ignore it more and leave me alone. Many things can happen, good or bad, when people wear masks, and it is often hard to stop wearing masks once a person has started.

"The Pit and the Pendulum"

"The Pit and the Pendulum" is a very that has many characteristics of Edgar Allan Poe's works, and it also has many of the characteristics of Dark Romanticism. "The Pit and the Pendulum" is a story about the Spanish Inquisition (Poe). A man was captured and because he did not admit to his guilt, which made the Spaniards automatically assume he was guilty, he was sentenced to death (Poe). He immediately fainted, and when he woke up he was in the prison (Poe). While he was in the prison, he was nearly killed by falling into a well, but luckily he tripped right before he would have walked into it (Poe). Then, his guards gave him drugged food and water so he was knocked unconscious and strapped him to a bed (Poe). He could move his head and his left arm to his elbow, where there was some spiced meat (Poe). A man signifying Father Time was painted on the wall above him, and Father Time held a pendulum of steel that was sharpened at the point and kept swinging lower, trying to kill the man (Poe). The man escaped this as well by rubbing some of the spices of the meat onto his bonds and letting the rats that were everywhere in the prison chew through the bonds (Poe). He stood and the walls quickly started to close in on him (Poe). He had no idea what to do, because the only place he could go was into the well (Poe). He was dropping in at the last second when suddenly the French general of Napoleon's army caught him, saving his life, and proclaimed that Napoleon's army had gotten through the Spanish defenses and the prisoners that were in the prison had been freed (Poe). The story ends rather abruptly there, but it shows many characteristics of Romanticism and Dark Romanticism. "The Pit and the Pendulum" shows the characteristic of Romanticism that explains that people should use intuition and feeling over their thought and reasoning. The man in the story tried to take the measurements of the dungeon room that he was in, but he confused himself while he was trying to reason it out and made the room seem twice as big as it really was. Much of the story just tries to convey some of the emotions of the man, because he feels a number of emotions, and the greatest of all of these was the fear and the terror that were constantly on his mind. He was very imaginative in the way that he escaped all of his bonds, and he had to come up with many different ideas before he found those that worked. He was also very lucky in that he tripped right before he would have fallen into the well, and I'm sure that the Romanticists would view that as against science in some way, again making it Romanticist. Poe's work talks about the importance of the individual and the individual's mind, and how he would not have been able to escape without some sense of self-worth preserving him through all of his hardships endured in the prison. "The Pit and the Pendulum" definitely showed characteristics of Romanticism.

Poe, Edger Allan. “The Pit and the Pendulum” In American Literature. Willhelm, Jeffory, comp. McGraw Hill. Columbus, 2009. Print.

"The Raven" Criticism

"The Raven" is a poem that can be really enjoyable, but can also scare people or make them not want to read Poe anymore because of the themes he uses. "The Raven" can be interpreted a number of ways, and is often a start of controversies between literary critics (Edgar). "The Raven" talks about a man that wishes for his lost love Lenore, and has no way to do anything about it (Poe). Suddenly, a raven knocks on his window and flies in, and perches on a bust of Pallas Athena above the man's door (Poe). It sits there and stares at the man while the man is going crazy thinking about his lost love (Poe). He talks to himself and to the raven, and he thinks that the raven answers him by saying the word "Nevermore" over and over (Poe). The raven saying "Nevermore" made the man think he was crazy, and it also made the man very, very upset about the fact that the raven said he would never see Lenore again, which broke his heart even more than it had already been broken (Poe). He screamed at the raven to get out of his house, but the raven said that it would move "Nevermore", so the raven stayed on the bust of Pallas Athena for the rest of both of their lives (Poe). When "The Raven" was originally published, many of its readers really enjoyed reading it (Edgar). They loved the suspense, horror, and mystery that the poem brought, and they loved that it was such a new style of writing that they could read (Edgar). The literary critics, though, had mixed reviews of the poem (Edgar). They had many issues with some of the things that Edgar Allen Poe had written, and they declared that some of his lines were inconsistent with the others (Edgar). They thought that some of the literary ideas, such as internal rhyme and some of the more technical concerns that they had made the poem ineffective (Edgar). They also thought some of his lines did not make sense, and they thought that some of them should be gotten rid of. Critics also thought that Edgar Allen Poe had stolen some of his ideas for "The Raven" and possibly some of his other works from a number of other authors such as Charles Dickens (Edgar). They claimed that Poe based his poem off of a book that Dickens had written including a talking raven (Edgar). Though it is logical that they could be linked, the styles of writing would be very different and they would not have any relevancy to the other whatsoever. They argued with him and criticized him so much for it, he even wrote another work that explained how he come up with the idea for "The Raven", because he wanted to prove that it was an original work (Edgar). Many people still do not know what to make of "The Raven" and it is still considered a mildly controversial work, but it is still enjoyed by many. It was the beginning of a new genre of writing, and it changed writing all over the world forever.


"Edgar Allan Poe The Raven Criticism." ENotes - Literature Study Guides, Lesson Plans, and More. Web. 21 Nov. 2010. .


Poe, Edgar A. "The Raven : the Poem." Edgar Allan Poe's House of Usher (fan Site). Web. 23 Nov. 2010. .

"The Raven"

Literal Translation:
-Once at midnight while I was weak and thinking about a lot of forgotten lore, I was almost asleep when suddenly I hear rapping that sounded like someone gently knocking on my bedroom door.
-I said to myself, “It is only a visitor knocking on my door and nothing else.”
-I distinctly remember that it was the middle of December and every dying ember could be seen going out.
-I wished for tomorrow to come; I had vainly wished that my books would give me an end to my sorrow-sorrow for the lost Lenore, the beautiful girl the angels call Lenore, nameless here forever.
-And the rustling of the curtains thrilled me and filled me with terrors; so now, to calm my heart, I said to myself “It is only a late visitor who is knocking at my bedroom door and nothing else.”
-My heart grew strong; so I waited no longer, I said “Sir or Madam, please forgive me; but I was napping and you knocked so gently, I was not sure I heard you,” then I opened the door and nothing was there.
-I stood looking into the darkness for a long time, dreaming things no mortal had ever dreamed; but nothing happened, the only wound was my whispered “Lenore!” which was returned by an echo, “Lenore!” and nothing else.
-I turned around and my heart was pounding, soon I heard more knocking.
-“Surely that is something at my window,” I said; “Let me see what it is and explore this mystery, calm down, heart, and let me explore this mystery; it is only the wind.”
-Here I opened my shutter and a Raven from days past stepped in.
-He did not show respect; he did not stop or stay for a minute; but he perched on a bust above my bedroom door, a bust of Athena, just perched and sat and nothing else.
-The black bird twisted me into thinking it smiled, by the stern face it wore, I said “Though your feathers are gone you are not a coward, ghastly, ancient Raven, from the Nightly shore-tell me your lordly name on Pluto’s shore!”
-The Raven said “Nevermore.”
-I marveled at the clear conversation, though its answer had little meaning or relevancy; For we all agree that no human could see a bird above his bedroom door, bird or beast on the sculpture above his door with a name like “Nevermore”.
-But the Raven, sitting on the peaceful bust, said only that one word, as if that was his whole soul.
-He said nothing more and did not move until I said “He will leave tomorrow, like my other dreams.”
-Then it said “Nevermore.”
-Startled that it replied at such a time, I said “Surely this is only what the bird picked up from an unhappy master whom Disaster followed until his songs only talked about Never and Nevermore.”
-But the Raven, still tricking me into thinking he was smiling, I moved a cushioned seat to right in front of the bird, bust, and door; then, sitting down, I forced myself to start figuring out what the bird meant in saying “Nevermore”.
-This I sat pondering, not speaking to the bird who stared me down to my inmost core; I sat figuring out this and more, my head laid back, on the cushion the lamplight went over but that she would touch nevermore.
-Then, the air became more dense, perfumed with a hidden censer swung by Seraphim whose footsteps tinkled on the floor.
-I cried “Wretch! Your God lent you and sent you with these angels, give me respite and nepenthe to keep me from thinking of Lenore, drink this nepenthe and forget Lenore!”
-The Raven said “Nevermore.”
-I said “Prophet! Evil thing! Prophet, whether bird or devil! Whether sent by the devil or here because of storms, alone but not scared, stuck on this desert land, at this house, forever with horror, tell me truly, will I ever be relieved of my suffering? Tell me, I beg you!”
- The Raven said “Nevermore.”
- said “Prophet! Evil thing! Prophet, whether bird or devil! By Heaven above and the God we both adore, tell this sorrowful soul if in the coming Eden, I shall hold a girl the angels call Lenore, hold a beautiful girl the angels call Lenore.”
-The Raven said “Nevermore.”
-I said “Then let that word be the last, bird or devil! Get back into the storm and near Pluto! Leave no feathers signifying your speech! Leave me in my loneliness! Leave the bust above my door!”
-The Raven said “Nevermore.”
-And the Raven, never moving, still sitting there on the peaceful bust of Athena above my bedroom door; who has eyes that seem like a demon is dreaming, with the lamplight that casts your shadow on the floor; My soul shall never be lifted from that shadow floating on the floor.

Edgar Allen Poe uses a great deal of literary devices in his poem "The Raven", and quite a bit of it is symbolism. He repeats things a great deal for either emphasis or so he can paint the image a little bit differently in the mind of the reader. He also uses allusions a lot, leading to other things. He often alludes to the Bible and stories or passages in it. He also symbolizes many different things, because the Raven could symbolize his conscience, his unconcious mind, or things that he knows but refuses to come to terms with.

I think this poem is very dark and has a dark meaning, but it also may hide the true meaning from many of its readers. This poem talks about a man speaking with a Raven, who could symbolize his unconscious mind, and a lost lover that he longs for desperately. I think the man in the poem is imagining the whole thing and in reality is asleep, asking himself if he will ever see his lover again. He wants to hope for the best and get rid of his sorrows, but deep inside, he knows that he will never see his lover again, in this life or in the next, but he wrestles with himself over it. He does not want to believe that his hopes have been dashed, but he subconsciously knows that his hopes are dead. This is a very intriguing poem with many possible meanings and explanations.

Journal #24

There are many times when one's mind plays tricks on them. Often, the mind will play tricks on people when they are afraid of something or are paranoid. People are normally more wary when it is dark out, and that is more often when people see something that is not there. They also can not see everything clearly when it is dark out, and that adds on to their worry. I have been scared many times in the dark after I have seen scary movies or television shows, because I often go to bed right after them, and when I was younger I was afraid of the dark. I would think that the people or animals or beasts in the show that I had just watched would be in my room, so I would be very scared about what was in my room. I would want one of my parents to come and tuck me in, and I would always put my head right under the covers as soon as they left and the light was out. I also did that when I had nightmares, because those always freaked me out a lot. I would always hide completely under the covers with enough room open in my covers to have a breathing passageway. I would also get a stuffed rabbit that I called "Bunny" and I would put him right next to me on the pillow next to me. I always thought that he would protect me from any scary monsters and keep me safe, because when I was younger I thought he was the epitome of goodness, so he could keep any scary monsters that were in my room away. He always made me feel better when he was there, and he consistently helped me get back to sleep at night because I thought he would protect me. There are many times when people can have tricks played on their mind, and it often happens in the dark when people are already scared and wary anyway.

Thoreau's "Walden"

Henry David Thoreau's Walden is a very complex work. Walden describes a time in Thoreau's life where he went to the woods and lived by himself in a shack that he built, for two years, two months, and two days (Thoreau). He was trying to show everyone what it was like to live away from society and be in touch with nature constantly (Thoreau). Walden is a long work, that includes a number of different pieces that he wrote, which are all about different things, even if the topics are similar (Thoreau). He is trying to show his opinions on a number of things, including society, government, and nature, and their effects on people (Life). His book did not sell very well in the beginning, and there could be many reasons for that (Life). Many critics of that time did not really know what to do with the book, or what to think of it, so some were against the book, while others really enjoyed it (Life). Thoreau has been praised for his intelligence and his creativity, while he has also been frowned upon for the complexity of the his work when it was supposed to be about simplicity, and other hypocritical things that he had done while living in the wild and had written in his works (Life). A number of people also only look at a portion of his work, while completely ignoring the other parts, and it is generally based on the topics involved (Life). Some people only pay attention to the parts of Walden that are about the nature and the simplicity of it all and how it will help them check out from society and relax, while others only pay attention to the portions that involve society and government and his opinions on those things, which he did not get rid of while he was out in the wild (Life). Many people have noticed that Thoreau could not stick to one topic, and many people think he was hypocritical in the way that he did things (Life). He did not always stay in his cabin, and he often went to visit his sister and have supper with her. He went into town to get his groceries, so he did not really need to worry about killing things or collecting any food or supplies, so he was not necessarily completely living out by himself. Many people will not read his book or listen to his teachings because of the fact that he did not necessarily completely check out from society like he tries to say in his book (Life). He leaves some misconceptions in there and does not try to correct them, which make many people ignore his work and throw it all away completely. Thoreau made his work Walden stretch out and become incredibly long, so while many people do not like his book at all, it also makes people able to see different ideas about nature, society, and other things that may not be said today (Life). His work and his ideas are very intriguing, while they also are controversial and spark a lot of debate (Life). Thoreau was a good author, but many people do not agree with what he did in writing Walden or how he did it.

"Thoreau's Walden - an Annotated Edition." The Thoreau Reader. Web. 16 Nov. 2010. .

"Life in the Woods Henry David Thoreau Walden; or Criticism." ENotes - Literature Study Guides, Lesson Plans, and More. Web. 16 Nov. 2010. .

Journal #23

I think many people would find it difficult to go a week without any technology. I think it could be easy depending on who I am with. If I am with the people that I am constantly talking to, there would be no need for me to have my phone. I also would not need music or radios or television, because I would have other people to be with and talk to. I would probably do this somewhere in Europe, because I have always wanted to go to Europe. I could backpack the continent, because there are many different countries and places in certain countries that I want to go. It would also be very fun to take a camping trip in Australia, because Australia is a beautiful continent and country, that would have many exotic places for people to enjoy while they have no technology. I would enjoy camping in a number of places in the United States of America as well. I have always wanted to see Yellowstone, so there is a good chance that that would be a fun place to camp. The Grand Canyon is beautiful, but I think I would be more scared to camp there, because I have heard a number of stories of people who have gone in the Grand Canyon and run out of water, become delirious, and died or killed themselves because they did not know what they were doing. If I did go camping in the Grand Canyon, I would make sure to pack an excess of water so I would not need to worry about running out. I would not mind camping in Illinois, because if it was good weather, we have good woods to camp in, and while there are animals, if people are smart, they will be alright and not have to deal with it. I do not think I would like camping in Africa or the Amazon, because I would be too afraid of the animals that are there and what they could do, plus the weather is not always good, but I do not think I would really mind being without technology for a week if I had a few people with me to help me pass the time.

Thoreau and Gandhi

David Thoreau and Mahatma Gandhi were both people that wanted to persuade others to follow their causes, and they did so in different ways. While there are mainly differences, there are some similarities as well, so they are good things to compare and contrast. Thoreau wrote a small essay called "Civil Disobedience" which discussed his issues with the government and the night that he spent in jail because he refused to pay a poll tax (Thoreau). Gandhi gave a speech titled "On the Eve of the Historic Dandi March" which tried to persuade people to follow his point of view on getting rid of the salt issues that his country was having with Britain (Gandhi). They had similarities in their works in different ways. They both were going against their government, but trying to be peaceful about doing so (Thoreau) (Gandhi). They were both standing up to their government, and Thoreau was doing so by not paying a poll tax, while Gandhi was doing so by trying to get his own salt from the oceans instead of needing to buy it from Britain (Thoreau) (Gandhi). They were both against violence and did not want anyone to be hurt by their actions, but they both also wanted their opinions to come out into the open and be known by everyone around. They had more differences than they did similarities, though, and I think that is because they are from different time periods, so they had different styles of writing and speaking. Thoreau wrote his essay more as a story than as a persuasive essay, even though they had some of the same qualities (Thoreau). He was explaining a lot of the details of his time in jail and described many of the little, unimportant things that had been happening around him (Thoreau). He talked about the point that he was trying to make in the very beginning of his essay, but he quickly lost his point in the details (Thoreau). He was more worried about explaining how his night in jail was not terribly hard and how it was even pretty fun and not that difficult for him (Thoreau). He claimed that he might not have even had that hard of a time staying there for quite a long period of time (Thoreau). Gandhi was different in his speech, because was more inspirational to others than Thoreau's essay (Gandhi). Gandhi was trying to motivate other followers that shared his belief (Gandhi). He was trying to tell everyone else that the tax that the British were imposing on them was wrong and that it should be changed (Gandhi). Gandhi was explaining to the other followers that even if he and other people should get arrested while they were protesting the tax, the other people should keep going in their fight so that hopefully they could eventually get the tax lifted so that it will be gone (Gandhi). Thoreau only explained that he protested the United States being involved in wars and slavery, but he did not say that much about how he protested, which was by refusing to pay a poll tax, which seems to have very little relevance (Thoreau). Gandhi and Thoreau both wanted to protest something that their government was doing or was allowing others to do, but they did so in very different ways, and they also documented it very differently.

Thoreau, Henry D. "Civil Disobedience." The Transcendentalists--including Ralph Waldo Emerson--David Henry Thoreau--Others--Dial Magazine. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. http://www.transcendentalists.com/civil_disobedience.htm.

Gandhi. "Famous Speeches of Gandhiji: On the Eve of the Historic Dandi March." Mani Bhavan--Gandhi Sangrahalaya: Mahatma Gandhi Museum & Reference Library. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. http://www.gandhi-manibhavan.org/gandhicomesalive/speech4.htm.

Journal #22

Using some of the Romanticism qualities, there are quite a few instances that it would be okay to break the law. It was important to use intuition, so if one thought that they had a gut feeling that something bad would happen but they could stop it by breaking the law, then it would be their responsibility and duty to break the law, so in the end they would really be helping everyone else. It is also allowable to break the law when one's ethics or morals think the law does not matter or is irrelevant. Robin Hood and his Merry Men would be people that the Romanticists worshiped, because they broke the law, but they gave all of their earnings and everything that they got to the poor and to the people that needed it much more than they did. They stole from rich, wealthy people and killed some of the animals that had been deemed the King's to give that money and the meat of the animals to other people who had lost everything and could barely get enough. In fact, they did not get enough food for everyone, so the families had to eat smaller portions, but Robin Hood and his Merry Men helped by giving those people and those families the meat that they had killed. Robin Hood was an outlaw that everyone who followed the law wanted dead, but all of the poor people that were benefiting from his deeds loved him and wanted him to never leave them. Romanticists had a broad view of the law, and they interpreted it very loosely, which helped them get ahead against everyone else in the long run, but not everyone agreed with them and what they did or stood for. The Romanticists thought that the law was not always relevant, and they thought it appropriate to break the law if it was necessary or if their ethics and morals went against the law and prodded them to go against it to do what they thought was right.

"Emerson and the Work of Melancholia"

"Emerson and the Work of Melancholia" is very descriptive, not only of Emerson's works, but also of his personal life and the tragedies that he went through (Emerson). It speaks of his strggle to try to reach his place of peace (Emerson). He tried to go along with the Romanticists and Transcendentalists for quite a while, but eventually, later in his life, he went completely against everything he had believed in (Emerson). Earlier in his life, he had claimed that mourning and being upset would only hurt a person, and one should not do so. He had many tragedies in his life, though, and so he really needed to put into practice what he had said (Emerson). He actually did a pretty good job in following what he believed, even though it was hard for him. He went through life happy, and he relied on himself for a number of things. In fact, that is what he preached to others (Emerson). He wanted people to be self-reliant and to be able to get for themselves what they needed. He wanted them to figure things by using their intuition and not by using science or reason. He also thought being with nature and relaxing through getting away from society would really help other people. He was very into Romanticism and Trascendentalism early in his life, and he was very extreme in how much it influenced him and how much he tried to influence others by the way that he used them as well (Emerson). Soon, though, the pressures and tragedies of his life got to him, and he started to lose his original thinking and ideas (Emerson). He quickly turned away from everything he had known, and he walked away from Romanticism and Transcendentalism completely (Emerson). He turned in the total opposite direction, and he did things that went against everything he had preached in the early years of his life (Emerson). He mourned and was constantly upset, and he did not worry as much about nature or about relaxing (Emerson). He let everything that had happened to him finally catch up to him, and he mourned greatly over the losses of his young wife, early in their marriage, his brother, pretty soon after his wife died, and his young son, who was five years old when he passed away (Emerson). He realized that sometimes it is very important to mourn and realize the loss of a loved one can still be used for good. He recognized the fact that it is often good to celebrate the people for their lives as they were, not to dwell on the could have's, should have's, or would have's, because that will only make a person more upset than they would have been in the first place. Emerson learned many great lessons over the course of his life, and he realized that often, one must make a mistake or try a number of different things before a person can finally get at least somewhere close to right (Emerson). He learned that experience is very important in life, and so is remembering people as they were, not as what should have happened. Emerson was a great author and poet, even though he switched his style halfway through his life.

"Emerson and the Work of Melancholia." Raritan (Spring 1987). Quoted as "Emerson and the Work of Melancholia" in Bloom, Harold, ed. Ralph Waldo Emerson, Updated Edition, Bloom's Modern Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2006. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On Fild, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=1&iPin=MCVRWE007&SingleRecord=True (accessed November 7, 2010).

Journal #21

Ralph Waldo Emerson and Benjamin Franklin have differing views on self-reliance. Emerson thought that self-reliance was very important. He thought that everyone should rely on oneself. He also believed that each person should tell everyone else about their thoughts and ideas, because he thought that eventually the person's thoughts and ideas would get out anyway, so he figured that the person with the original idea might as well say it. He also thought that if one person did not tell their thoughts or ideas, someone else would, and the person with the original idea would be ashamed, because they had the idea in the first place but they were too cowardly to say anything, so they would be ashamed that they had not said the idea first. Benjamin Franklin had different ideas, because he thought that each person should work together for the greater good of the country or anything else they are involved in. He believed that people should not work for themselves, but that the person should be sacrificial and work toward the good of everyone else, not for themselves. If Benjamin Franklin and Ralph Waldo Emerson had discussions on self-reliance, they would have had very opposing views. They probably would have argued quite a bit, and I am not sure if they would have ever ended up agreeing. They may have just had to agree to disagree, but their views are so different that they would have had a very hard time finding any points to agree on. They probably would have agreed on the fact that people should all try to reach the good of everyone, but at the same time, they probably would have disagreed on how to do it. Franklin and Emerson may have been friends, but they would argue, or "discuss", they differing views and opinions often. Benjamin Franklin and Ralph Waldo Emerson were very different people with very different views, but they were both vital in the history of America and American writing.

Journal #20

It is very necessary to take a break from society sometimes and to relax. It is also important to reflect on oneself and one's actions. One should reflect on one's actions, so if a person made a mistake in the past, they would be able to realize it and possibly fix it in the future. They could realize what the circumstances were, and they could realize what decision they should have made. It is important, though, for them to not be too hard on themselves, because then they would only be thinking about the what ifs or the could haves, should haves, or would haves, and those will only hurt the person instead of helping them. It is important to get away from society sometimes, because that is a good way to release stress. It is important to release stress because that way people will be happier and less angry with each other. People would be nicer to each other and more patient, because they would not be stressed out to begin with, which is putting pressure on them and makes them upset and impatient. Stress is a very bad thing in life, and it is very important to get rid of stress in a good and healthy way. Stress can actually really hurt someone, because it can be a cause of anxiety and can eventually lead to depression, which could lead to suicide if it got bad enough. It is very important to get rid of stress, and getting away from society is a good way to lose stress. It is important to figure out how to get rid of stress in a good way, because that way no one will be harmed when one must get away. People can be very confusing, and stress can be bad, but it is good to get rid of it. Sometimes it is important to be alone and reflect on oneself and the decisions one has made in the past, so one can make better decisions in the future and can better their life.

Journal #19

The ideal United States would have some of the same qualities as the United States does now, but it would also have some different qualities. The ideal United States would still be democratic and allow people to vote for their leaders. There would be a difference in how candidates would run for their positions, though, because instead of spreading bad things about the other candidates on television or online or through any other means of communication, they would only be able to express the principles that they believed in and promote the things that they would do if they were in office. There would have to be an unlimited amount of land, so everyone that wanted to could come to the United States, and they would not have to go through such a rigorous system to try to enter. The people would be able to help decide where their tax money went, so we would not be in debt, and we would be a very prosperous country. We would have a good economy, and be self-sufficient, but we would still trade with other countries so that we could help their economy to make it as good as ours is. We would have politicians that do not lie, are not corrupt, and really speak what the people want to say. They would not just say one side of the story, either, but they would explain both sides of every story and figure out which was really better for the good of the country. They people whose side did not win would not be upset, for they would realize that it was true, and the government would help those that did not benefit from whatever law they had just passed. There would be more people that would be policemen, firemen, and doctors, so everyone could be okay if something bad happened, and everyone would know what to do if there was an emergency. Everyone in the country would be willing to help each other, and people would be a lot kinder to each other in the ideal United States of America.

"My Playmate" Analysis

I chose to analyze the poem "My Playmate", by John Greenleaf Whittier. The literal translation is as follows:
"The pine trees on Ramoth Hill were very dark, and blossoms were falling off the trees because of the May wind.
The blossoms fell at our feet, the birds from the orchard were singing clear, it was the sweetest yet saddest day of the year.
My playmate left her home, but it hurt me more than the animals, and took with her spring, music, and the bloom of flowers.
She kissed her family and acquaintances, and held my hand; what more could I ask, I who had fed her father's cows?
She left in May, years kept passing and May mornings llike the one she left happened, but she never returned.
I walk through the years, and every year I sow in spring and reap the ears of corn in autumn.
She lives where her summer roses blow all year long, and she sees the children of the sun come and go.
Perhaps there she smooths her silken gown with jewelled hands, which is no longer the lap with homespun clothes where I shook the walnuts.
Wild grapes are on the hill and nuts are on the hill, they wait for us, but still the woods of Follymill are made sweet by the May flowers.
Lilies blossom, birds build nests, and the dark pines on Ramoth Hill sing the slow song of the sea.
I wonder if she thinks of the trees and the old times, or if the pines of Ramoth Hill are in her dreams.
I see her face and hear her voice, does she remember mine?
What am I to her now, I that fed her father's cows?
Does she care that orioles build for other eyes than ours, that other hands are filled with nuts or other laps with flowers?
Oh playmate in the good old days!
Our mossy seat is still green, the violets bloom around it, and trees bend over it.
The winds which blow with the scent of birch and fern, also blow memories, and in spring the veeries sing of long ago.
The pines of Ramoth Wood are still moaning like the sea, the sea of change which has come between you and me."

Whittier used a number of poetic devices. He similes, and an example of one is when he says "...The blossoms in the sweet May wind were falling like the snow." He is using the simile "like the snow" to describe the blossoms. He brings up another mental picture of snow falling to show how the petals were falling. He also uses imagery in a number of ways. He paints beautiful pictures with his words. Some examples of this are "The blossoms drifted at our feet, The orchard birds sang clear;..." "The lilies blossom in the pond, the bird builds in the tree,..." "...Our mossy seat is green, Its fringing violets blossom yet, The old trees o'er it lean."

I think this poem is pretty straightforward, and it is talking about his playmate from when he was young. He worked on her father's farm and really looked up to her, and he probably had a crush on her. One day, when she became old enough, she left the farm on a beautiful May day, and she never came back. Whittier assumed that she had done well for herself, so he assumed that she was wearing beautiful clothes and had expensive material items. He still wants her to come back to him and it seems as if she was his first love, and that he spent many years of his life pining for her. The poem never explains, though, what happened to either of them, so the poem just seems very sad.

Journal #18

The dog went to the park so he could play.
He liked to go to the park ev'ry day.
His name was Boxer and he liked to bark,
Wherever he went he left a big mark.
He was an incredibly friendly pup,
He even had a very special cup.
Suddenly one day Boxer ran away,
To hide from everyone so he could lay
Down and give birth to a litter of pups,
And through all of his down and all his ups,
His owners found out that he was a she,
And from all of the things that they could see,
She was just as wonderful as a he,
But they had to go on a shopping spree.
The pups were wonderful to everyone,
But they were not given away, not one.

The End

"Thanatopsis"

The literal analysis of "Thanatopsis" is as follows:

• Nature talks to Nature Lovers and steals their thoughts.


• His last thoughts come like a bad dream over his spirit and make him sad which drives him to go listen to Nature because soon he will die and no one will care he is gone.


• He will be buried and the Earth will use his body for nourishment.


• Oak roots will use him to grow the tree.

• He is not dead yet and he will not die alone.


• He will be with the great and the rulers at a great meeting.


• Nature decorates man's tomb.


• The whole universe is shining on cemeteries.


• There are more dead people than living.


• The dead rule the Earth from within.


• What if you die and no one notices?


• All the living will end up dead.


• Everyone will go one when you are gone, but they will all die in the end.


• Eventually, everyone will be dead with you.

• When you die, go peacefully.

Poetic Devices:

Whitman uses many poetic devices, but he mostly uses similes and leaves the rest up to us to determine. An example of a simile in his poem "Thanatopsis" would be "Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams." Another example would be "...like the quarry-slave at night, Sourged to his dungeon,..."

There are many different things that Whitman could be trying to make us understand in his poem, and he could be saying many different things. I think he is mostly saying that there is a man that will die soon, but Nature has been very kind to him and will sooth him. I also think that he is trying to reassure this person, because he discusses how everyone on the Earth dies and will be dead at some point, so this person has nothing to worry about. He is saying that this person does not need to fight death becasue it will come as a relief, so this person can go peacefully.

Journal #17

There are many possible ways to bond with nature. Some people bond with nature through being around animals and other wildlife in their natural habitat. Others bond with nature through being outside during different weather conditions. Some people bond with nature by being around it, while others bond with nature by seeing it and looking at it.

I have bonded with nature by seeing sunsets. I absolutely love sunsets, and I try to see the sunset every day that I can. I enjoy seeing all the beautiful colors being painted across the sky. I enjoy the sunsets that are like rainbows in their colors, but those are not my favorite. My absolute favorite sunsets are the sunsets that are vibrant oranges, pinks, and purples. It is also the most beautiful when the colors are painted halfway across the sky so they can take up all of one's vision.

I enjoy laying outside and looking up into the sky. It feels great to have the sun shine down on me, and I absolutely just love looking into the sky. It is fun to look at the clouds moving and how they can be many different shapes.

I enjoy being around grass, and I enjoy feeling it tickle me. I like laying down in the grass and just relaxing by falling asleep, but I get nervous about all the animals. I get nervous about having bugs crawl all over me, because I do not like bugs. I get scared thinking about bugs and spiders and other insects crawling all over me and getting in my clothes, in my hair, or under my skin. I also get nervous about swallowing them or inhaling them while I breathe, so I do not lay down in the grass very often, even though I really enjoy it.

There are many ways that people can bond with nature, and while some people really enjoy being with and around nature, some people totally and completely hate it. It is all a matter of opinion, and I enjoy nature sometimes.

Puritan Exam

Many different opinions and people affected the Puritans and their writing style. The biggest influence was God, and it shows in everything that they did.

Journal #16

My favorite food is macaroni and cheese. Macaroni and cheese is delicious, because I love pasta and I love cheese, so when they are put together, it just makes my day. I could eat macaroni and cheese for days straight without anything else, becuase I love it so much. I prefer freshly made macaroni and cheese, though, becuase warmed up is just not the same. Sometimes if one must warm it up, it is better to warm it back up on the stove again, by adding more milk and just reheating it.

Speaking of pastas, I also love lasagna. Lasagna is delicious and I almost never get to eat it because it takes so long to make and not everyone in my family likes it, so when I do get lasagna, it is a great treat.

My favorite dessert is brownies. Brownies are incredibly delicious, and I love them the most when they come freshly out of the oven and are still very gooey and warm. I have a very hard time eating brownies without milk, though, becuase anything that delicious and chocolaty definitely needs something cold and refreshing to go with it.

If I had to pick a favorite breakfast, it would be french toast with scrambled eggs. I would also have some waffles, toast with grape jelly or butter, and some bacon. Breakfast is delicious, but my parents never get up and make it, so normally I must fend for myself. My favorite cereal is Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but on most days I just grab a Nutrigrain Bar.

My favorite supper is grilled or fried chicken, potatoes either mashed or fried in the grease from the fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, corn, and biscuits of some sort. I also like pot roast with mashed potatoes, because the two go hand in hand.

I am weird and I also like eating just the dough of the biscuits, even though most people think that is really weird. All in all, I love a ton of foods, and eating makes my day.

Journal #15

Logic and reason are two different things that should be used at all times. Many times logic is overruled by emotion and is not used when it should be, but sometimes, emotion is better than logic. It is often hard to differentiate between the times where logic should be used and the times where emotion should be used. Reason is a good thing, though, that should be consistently used in one's everyday life. Often people use deductive reasoning, like a multiple problem on a test as an example. If someone as any idea about a question they are trying to answer, they often use deductive reasoning to come up with the best possible answer, which is the most logical. One would start by immediately ruling out the answer or answers that have no possible chance of being correct. Often, there are at least two possible answers that make sense, so then one must guess between the two, and pick whichever one they think would be better. Often, though, one's instinct must also be given a voice, because more often then not, one's instinct is right. Instinct is a key part of everyday life, because often, when logic and reasoning tells a person to do something, that person's instinct tells them to do something completely different. There are times when one's instinct may be incorrect completely, times when one's instinct is close but still a little bit off target, and times when one's instinct is totally and completely correct. There are a ton of situations where logic should be used, emotion should be used, reasoning should be used, or instinct should be used. It is often hard to determine when each different thing should be used, but one normally knows whether or not each different thing should be used. They are all vital parts of life, and have been ingrained into human beings since birth. If one tries their best to live their lives how they should, they will learn to be able to tell the difference of when they should use each thing.

Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine was a very articulate man that knew what he was talking about. He did careful research about everything that he ever wanted to discuss in his works, and he was considerate of the fact that emotions should not necessarily be put into some literary works, because it could easily interfere with the message that one is trying to get across, or even taint the whole work with a certain emotion, so the work would not be plausible any longer. He used many different strategies to prove to his audience that the point he was trying to get across was a legitimate point that needed to be brought to their attention so they would be able to make well-informed decisions about the actions that needed to be taken to give the colonists the safety, freedom, and happiness that they deserved. Paine had a number of strategies that he employed, and one of them was to say quite a bit of information, then back it up with facts that he discovered from all of his researching. For example, he at one point talks about how Britain should not really be called the mother country of America for a number of reasons, some of which are that not all of the citizens of America are from Britain (Paine). In fact, quite a number of them were from many other countries, such as France, Germany, Holland, Sweden, and other countries in Europe (Paine). Another reason that he talks about which proves that Britain should not really be called the mother country of America is that the King of England, William, was from France, so Paine says that France has as much right to be called the mother country of America as Britain does (Paine). Paine also talks about a number of other things, such as how monarchies are not a good way to rule a country, because in Britain, chaos was happening, and some of their older kings had set up different people to help them rule, when those people would all do what the king wanted (Paine). Often the monarchies would have total and absolute power, even though the constitutions that Britain had set up tried to keep the kings from doing so. The constitutions that Britain had did not always work as they imagined they would, and Thomas Paine was trying to prove in as many ways as he could that America should not be like Britain and needed to try separate from Britain (Paine). There were a great number of things that Thomas Paine tried to use in his literary works to persuade the rest of America to break from Britain (Paine). He used techniques like stating his opinions, but backing them all up by fact (Paine). He also tried to keep as emotion as he could out of it, because he understood how vital it was to keep his works emotion-free (Paine). He realized that emotion in his works made them become not plausible anymore, and he became very persuasive in his writing (Paine). His works eventually led to many people becoming fired up to separate from Britain and the beginning of the American Revolution (Paine).

Paine, Thomas. Common Sense. Philadelphia: W. and T. Bradford, 1791.

Franklin: His Autobiography and the American Dream

Franklin wrote a very complex book, which most people take to be talking about the American Dream, although it can be taken in other ways as well (Lemay). There are quite a few people that consider Franklin a very boastful man after reading his book and do not like him anymore, but there are also people that are more open-minded and can read into the book to determine that he was not being boastful, he was only using his experiences to illustrate the points he was trying to communicate (Lemay). The criticism seemed very concentrated on the different aspects of the American Dream that could interpreted through the book, and the interpreter was trying to pick apart Franklin's motives for why he decided to write his autobiography. It was good for the author to write about Franklin's many abilities in writing style and his intelligent way of dealing with the problems that came to him. He explained how Franklin was an intelligent man that understood the complexities that came with writing his autobiography, that people would read into his book in many different ways, and that he needed to be careful in what he wrote, because his book may have directly or indirectly affected views on the United States and how people were changing from rags to riches (Lemay). It is also important that the author explained exactly how pivotal Franklin's book is, because it helps to paint the picture of how intelligent Franklin is. The author goes into detail about the many different ways Franklin's story of how he went from rags to riches could help people and how Franklin explained it. He told about how most of the writing flowed easily for Franklin, which is proven through the other things he had written and the many different writing styles that he had been known to write (Lemay). The author explains that many people read Franklin's book for many different reasons. Some read it because of how Franklin made fun of religions, some read it for the ethics he provided, and some read it for the lessons they could learn (Lemay). One of the most important ideas in the book, however, was the American Dream, and that was what this author chose to expand upon. The author also found it very important to show how much hope Benjamin Franklin had included in his autobiography. It was very important for everyone to understand how much hope was necessary and involved in going from rags to riches in one lifetime (Lemay). Without hope, it is impossible to make anything of oneself, because one does not think they can make it (Lemay). They will always doubt themselves, and will never be able to reach their full potential, because they do not hope and will not have faith in themselves, so they will have a hard time getting to riches. Many different things are relevant and important to Franklin's Autobiography and to the American Dream (Lemay). This author did a good job of hitting on the highlights of the two of them together and how they work well as a team. This critic did good at his job, and his criticism is a good and interesting work to consider.





Lemay, J. A. Leo. "Franklin's Autobiography and the American Dream." In The Renaissance Man in the Eighteenth Century. Los Angeles: William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, 1978. Quoted as "Franklin's Autobiography and the American Dream." in Bloom, Harold, ed. The American Dream, Bloom's Literary Themes. New York: Chelsea Publishing House, 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=1&iPin=BLTTAD005&SingleRecord=True (Accessed October 13, 2010).

Journal #14

This of my declaration of my faith. I believe in Christianity, but I am non-denominational, so I do not follow Lutheranism, Baptist, Methodist, or any other denomination of Christianity. I believe that God created the world and that he sent his son Jesus to die for everyone in the world on the cross to save them from their sins. I do not believe that one can go to Heaven just by good works alone, I believe that they must have faith in God and have Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Following God should change their lives for the better, though, and should make them want to do good things and make the world a better place. Many things are important to my faith, but Christianity is not just a set of rules and regulations. Christianity is a life-changing religion, and many people are very hypocritical about it. I try very hard not to be hypocritical, because it makes other people not want to become Christians and know the truth about Jesus Christ. Many people do not like Christians or Christianity because of the fact that so many people are hypocritical and make Christianity seem like a religion that has no real meaning and is only a set of rules and regulations that everyone needs to follow. Many Christians are also very close-minded and try to beat their religion over other peoples' heads. That is another reason that Christians may not be liked. Often, people see Christians in the wrong light or through preconceived notions, and they may be close-minded as well. There is a good chance that this will cause many problems between everyone, and this is part of the reason that so many people in America do not like each other. There are many close-minded people that can not tolerate real religious freedom, so they always try to force people to believe what the other people believe, and refuse to let it go until they have succeeded.

Journal #13

Many things come to mind when I think of spirit. Since this is homecoming week, we are supposed to have a lot of school spirit this week, which we show by dressing up every day, participating in the penny race, going to the homecoming parade, helping with the Cardinal Clean-up on Thursday, and participating in the activities on Friday. Some people have a lot of school spirit and go all out in their clothing every day and are very emphatic in their participation. Some people could care less and do not dress up at all. I personally think it is a lot more fun to at least dress up a little bit, so one can join the festivities and laugh at everyone else, because they are being laughed at too. It is very fun to participate in the activities on Friday, becuase some people look very funny, and many times it becomes very competitive between the classes. It is often mostly the juniors and the seniors that are so competitive, because the juniors always want to upset the seniors and get the win. That never happens though, becuase the whole contest is rigged, so the seniors always win and it is never really a fair competition, but it stays fun throughout the whole day.

There are many other things that come to mind when I think of spirit, such as people that have a good, kind spirit, compared to those that have cruel, mean spirits. I enjoy people with good spirits, because they are much kinder and more fun to be around. They are fun people that look out for others and worry more about other people than themselves, which does not happen very often. There are many people that come close to having a completely good spirit, but at some point, everyone thinks of themselves first, so no one can have a completely good spirit. People with bad spirits are not necessarily fun to be around, because they are selfish and don't think of anyone else. It is a lot easier to have a bad spirit because it is easier to think of oneself, but it is much better to have a good spirit and think of others.

Journal #12

Working with a partner can be very fun, or it can be very complicated. It is often enjoyable when the other person will work together with you and will help do some of the work. It is nice to have partners that are willing to take part of the workload in comparison to partners that will not. Partners that will not help take part of the work can be very annoying because it just means that one would have to do all of the work, and often one's partner gets the exact same grade, even though they did not do anything at all. That is annoying, because they did not earn their grade and it is not fair to the partner that did all the work. Sometimes it is fun to have a partner that is a friend, even if they do not do as much work as they should, because a person is more willing to forgive a friend for not doing as much in comparison to forgiving an enemy. Partners should be willing to help do work, even if they have the time to mess around, because it is better to just get all of the work done while the group can. That way, the group will not have to send the homework home with only one of the partners that will have to do everything that the group had not done in class. It is also fun to have a group of people work together while they are all doing the same thing, because they can divide all the work up and get it done faster. It is nice to do things that way, because that way people will still learn what they need to know, but they will also have the chance to finish their homework a lot faster. There are many good and bad things that can come from having partners on a project, worksheet, or packet, but it all depends on how the partners work together and how hard they work.

Journal #11

There are many different ethics that are practiced today. Sometimes ethics are necessary because of legal repercussions, such as lawyers or psychologists. Psychologists need to use ethics so that they will not physically, mentally, or emotionally hurt someone, which is one of their rules. They also must not lie to the extent that will hurt someone. They must lie to some extent so their experiment will not be compromised and so their people that they are doing the experiment on will not have self-fulfilling prophecy. Self-fulfilling prophecy is when one person thinks that they will experience something as a result, and since they believe it, it really happens. Lawyers must use some ethics, because if they tell other people what is going on in their case, because people could use it against them. The lawyers also can not tell others about their case because if their client is guilty and the lawyer tells someone else, then the client could go to jail because the other person could tell someone that would get the client thrown into jail. Private lawyers are able to have more ethics than public lawyers, because private lawyers can turn away cases of people that they do not want to represent. They have the ability to not represent someone such as a sex offender or a pedophile, becuase they may not want to give that person the chance to get out of jail becuase the lawyer may believe that that person should have to go to jail. Sometimes people have a hard time following their ethics because of the messages from the world. For example, the world says it is okay to have sex before one is married, but many people have ethics that are against that that they eventually ignore because of the pressure from everyone else. Many people have ethics that they want or feel the need to follow, but because of some of the messages the world tries to convey, sometimes it is very hard for people to actually end up following their ethics.

Journal #10

Science and religion are very controversial topics, and are the cause of many arguments. Some people believe that everything can be solved and explained by science, but many other people believe that religion is the answer to anything, no matter what. The main religion that is in the argument with Scientology is any form of Christianity. The people that practice Scientology believe that everything can be explained by science and if it can not, it must not be true. Many Christians argue against this using the things that have been written in the Bible, but since Scientologists do not believe in the Bible, this argument has no affect on them. It would be much more effective to show Scientologists situations where people have been miraculously healed from being close to death, and the doctors have absolutely no explanation for it. Scientologists would look and look for a possible explanation and solution, but it seems that there is not one to be found. Many Scientologists would argue that the Creation of the world by a God is not true either, because they could say that the Big Bang is a true theory and that it would scientifically explain anything happening. Many different things are involved in this argument, and many people are also involved. A lot of people that are Christian or Scientologists are involved in this debate, and there is a good chance that many of them just want to argue. Many people are very stubborn and need to have people believe in their point of view, so they will argue until either the other person believes them, or until the other person at least gives up. It will be hard for many people to let go of this argument, and this argument is not looking like it will be ended or forgotten for quite a long period of time. Nowhere in the near future will this discussion be let go, and people may eventually bring their children into this argument, which is highly unnecessary.

Journal #9

There are many different kinds of religion, and the majority of them are organized. There are many that are popular and well-known, but there are also many that are followed privately and are not widely broadcast throughout the world. Some of the more popular religions are Islam, Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestant, and many other varieties of Christianity such as Presbyterian, Baptist, Lutheran, or non-denominational. Some of the less popular religions that are not well-known throughout the world would be more like worshiping the Devil, black magic, and other things like that. I am a non-denominational Christian, which just means that I would not be considered Lutheran, Baptist, or anything like that. I am just Christian. There are many people that are completely against religion. Some people follow Scientology, where that do not believe that there is actually a creator, they just believe that science can explain absolutely everything that can be conceived in the mind of humans. There are also atheists, who say that there is not God or anyone else, and after this life, one is just dead. Even though they say that they are completely against religion, technically they are all following and believing in one thing, so that would be their religion. While many organized religions are beneficial for the followers, some do nothing for their followers and some actually hurt their followers. There was a religion a while ago that had a large group of people following a man who said he was from God and knew what was happening and so they had to follow him. He led them all to an isolated place, and people outside of their group started to be concerned and realized that this could be a bad thing. They talked to governments, and the governments decided to get involved. Before the government could get there, though, the man made everyone drink kool-aid infused with something poisonous, so everyone there died. The man had brainwashed the people to such an extent that they would do anything that he told them to, so many, many people died all because he said that they needed to. Organized religions can be good or bad to their followers.

Journal #8

Taylor Mali was right about the fact that it is very important to proofread. If you do not, there is a very good chance that something will slip by one and go into your work such as an extra word, a skipped word, or different letters that one may have wanted. He proves that if one does not proofread, one can have a very bad paper or writing assignment that is not only grammatically incorrect, but is also inappropriate for the class or person that one is writing for. People may come up with words that while may be spelled right, are not the correct word that one wanted to use, such as using thesis instead of this or something of that nature. Sometimes one's fingers get away from them and are trying to work as fast as their brain, which is impossible, but it is very common for people to leave out words that way. They could be going right along and they may have skipped a word, but because their brains are still going full speed, they may not even realize the word is missing. There is also a good chance that people will use a word twice in a context that it would not make sense for. They could be in the middle of a sentence when, say, their brother interrupts them and makes them pause for a moment, making them lose their train of thought. They may come back to their paper and reread the sentence, remembering their train of thought again, but they may not have realized they already have one of the words down, so they may type it again. Having another person proofread a paper can also be incredibly important, because they may find something that one has missed. There are quite a few possible reasons for people to type things wrong, and that just helps to prove that proofreading, possibly by more than one person, is necessary when writing something that could be important.

Journal #7

I do not follow any superstitions, but there are many out there that people do follow. One of the most popular is being very superstitious about the number thirteen. Many people are scared of the number thirteen, and will have nothing to do with it. They will refuse something if it has thirteen of it, and that is why there is no thirteenth row on an airplane, no thirteenth floor in a hotel, and no thirteenth rooms in hotels. Another popular superstition is that if one breaks a mirror, one will have seven years of bad luck. People will go to great extents to not break mirrors, and if they do, they will get rid of it immediately. Other superstitions are seeing black cats, walking under ladders, and spilling salt. If one spills salt, they must pour some salt in their hands and throw it over their shoulder. Most of these superstitions people follow just come from common sense that someone decided to scare people into following. If one breaks a mirror, it is obviously upsetting, and in the old days when this superstition came about, it probably took that long to receive a new one. If one walks under a ladder, there is a good chance that they will get hit with something. Someone was probably hit by something when they walked under a ladder once, and they decided to tell people about it and tell the others that they would have bad luck now which was shown when the person was hit by something. There are many things that people use to refute this bad luck, such as horseshoes, rabbits' feet, four leaf clovers, or a number of other things. While many people become scared of things such as these, there is also quite a big number of people that are not scared of superstitions such as these or a number of other superstitions that are not included in the list posted above.

Journal #6

There are many possible repercussions for blaming someone for something that they did not do. They obviously know that they did not do it, so they will be trying to prove that they are innocent of whatever they have been accused of. They will be fighting with everything that the accuser has said, and they will not go down, if they are blamed by everyone else, without a fight. They also may know that you did it, and they may try to put the blame back on you. They would try to prove that you were the one who did all the bad actions, and there is a chance that they may succeed. If they succeed, the whole town will blame you for the bad things that you did, and they may take many measures against you. They may kick you out of the town, put you in jail, put you on house arrest, or do a number of other things to you. Whatever they do, they will be extremely upset with you, and the repercussions could possibly be worse than if you had just told the truth to the community. While you may have been punished, there is a good chance that you will receive a lesser punishment than if you had lied and said someone else did it but the whole community found you out and uncovered the truth. If your lie pays off, though, you will get off completely free, while the poor person that you blamed will receive all of the punishment that you should have gotten. It is possible that one may feel guilty because of this, and they may eventually confess, but there is a very slim chance that that would happen. When most people blame someone else, they do it because they do not want to be found out, not because they are planning on confessing later. There are a ton of possible repercussions that could come from putting the blame on someone else, and the majority of them are very bad.

Journal #5

There are many things that could be good punishments during this time. Depending on the age, many different objects could be taken away or forced upon someone. If there was a person that was sixteen, it is pretty obvious that it would be best to take away their car if they had one. Many sixteen-year-olds have cars and they like to go many places with their friends, but it would be much harder to do so without a car. It would also be another good idea to ground them, which is often the case with teenagers. They would have to stay in their house with no contact from friends, no media access, and only time with their families and homework, board games, books, or games in the backyard. Many teenagers would be crushed if they could not talk to their friends all the time or get updates on people through facebook, twitter, or myspace, like they normally do. It would be huge for a teenager to have their phone taken away, because if they are like me, they are on it all the time. I am constantly talking to people either for fun or because I may need help with my homework. There are many reasons for keeping in contact throughout the day, and many teens take advantage of the fact that they are able to do so. Many teenage boys are lost without games and gaming systems, so it would be smart for their parents to take away their gaming systems. The boys would probably struggle to survive without their systems, but they would quickly learn their lesson. It is often hard to get a teenager's attention, but if they are punished they are more likely to listen. Many teenagers have a hard time learning their lesson, but after they have had something taken away that they have a hard time losing, they will be more quickly able to learn what they should and should not do.

Journal #4

Traveling and vacations are incredibly fun. My family takes vacations every summer. Normally we drive, and it is my dad, my mom, my two brothers, my mom's parents, and me. The seven of us fill the whole car, and there is barely any room left for putting all the luggage in. We've been to many different places. We've been to Canada, New York, Washington, D. C., Arizona, Nevada, Florida, California, South Dakota, and many places in between. We have flown to California, Florida, and Nevada, where we rented a car and drove through Arizona so we could see the Grand Canyon, which was breathtaking. We have been to Florida three times. We have driven twice and flown once, and the one time that we flew, we went with my family and a different family, not my grandparents. I love going to different places around the United States, because it is fun to see how people act and dress there. I like seeing the ocean and being able to learn more about history. I love history, and every time we go to a place with my grandparents, our days are always packed full of interesting things to do that are full of history or are just beautiful. We have seen the Grand Canyon, watched a show on Broadway, been in the Washington Monument, seen the changing of the guard, been to the San Diego zoo, been to Coney Island, and been to Disneyworld. I find many places interesting, and I enjoy seeing the rest of my family have fun as well. I like making them all laugh and watching them marvel at how amazing some of the places we have been are. The world is an incredible place and I love seeing how humans have learned to put amazing things in place to help us remember others. I love going on vacations with my family because I always have an incredibly fun time and really enjoy myself, even though it is often a huge pain to have to travel with them everywhere in cars.

Journal #3

I think it would be really hard to be held hostage, but it depends on who is holding me captive. If the captors were very kind to me, it would be a lot easier to be a hostage than if I was in a situation where the captors were very mean to me. If they were kind to me, gave me what I needed, and let me be, I don't think it would be all that hard to be a captive. It would be easy to follow their commands, because they are kind to me and I would want to be the same in return to show their kindness back to them and to prove to them that their kindness works very well. If the captors were mean to me, it would be a lot harder to be a hostage. I would still comply with their demands, but it would be because I was afraid of them and of what they would do to me more than because I wanted to. If they were rude to me, ignored all of my needs, and never left me alone because they were always taunting me or messing with me, I think it would be a lot harder to be held captive. I do not know how I would react to being held hostage. I would like to think that I would react very well, would handle all that they threw at me, and would only comply with the demands that I thought were right, but I honestly do not know. There is a good chance that I would have a hard time, would cry a lot, and would just follow along blindly with whatever they wanted me to do. I could try to look at other people that have been courageous in horrible situations and try to do what they did, but while I might be able to do it, I have the same chance of failing miserably. It is hard to know what one would do in a situation if one has not been put in it.

Journal #2

A long time ago, when animals had not been tainted by humans and ran rampant, there were a bear and a rabbit that were enemies. The bear and the rabbit had never gotten along, for the bear had eaten the rabbit's whole family. The rabbit was very scared of the bear, but at the same time, he was very angry at the fate of his family. One day, the bear needed somewhere to go, because humans had come and had driven him away from his home. The bear was afraid of humans, because humans had done to the bear what the bear had done to the rabbit. The bear quickly ran away, with the fear that the humans would follow and hunt him. The humans followed for a short time, but the bear soon had lost them. The bear had nowhere to go, because he knew if he went back to his house, the humans would be there waiting for him and would capture him like they had the rest of his family. The bear went to many people to try to find a place to stay, but since many of the animals were scared of him and his reputation of eating animals, many of the animals would not even answer his knock on their door. The bear finally made it to the rabbit's house. The bear was very slow to get there, because he had eaten the rabbit's family. The bear felt bad about it, but he knew that he had nowhere else to turn to. The rabbit answered his door, and when the bear very repentantly asked to stay with the rabbit, the rabbit immediately wanted to say no. He thought back to his family, and while he was thinking, he recalled his mother saying that he should always help others if he could, for that is what made a rabbit good. The rabbit consented and let the bear in. The bear almost did not fit, but the bear and the rabbit worked together to widen and deepen the rabbit's hole. They both eventually made it into the house, and they lived happily ever after in harmony as friends.

Journal #1

Native American Culture is very complex and complicated to understand. I do not comprehend very much of it at all, but what I do know is that they have many different ways that they believe that they are connected with animals. They have many different theories about how the world was formed, but they all involve nature, the sun and moon, or animals of some sort. They love storytelling, and they orally passed on their stories through many generations. They thought it was easier to remember them if they were passed on orally, so they had to tell the stories to each generation and make sure they had memorized them. They did this for hundreds and hundreds of years, because was they only way that they knew of that let them pass down their beliefs and culture for so long. They believed that one should only take what one needs from the earth, and to not kill or take from the planet any excess. They also thought that once one took something from the earth, they should use all of it and not waste anything. They used everything that they took, by making utensils from the bones, tents or clothing from the skins, and fires from the fat. Many of the Native Americans were nomadic, and they moved from place to place to follow the animals or to find grains and plants for food during the different seasons. They were a simple people, and while they played games and told many stories, they also worked incredibly hard for what they got. They were very giving, because they understood that when a person lends a hand to another person, they often will have that help returned when they need it. They were also trusting, because many of them had not met people that would play tricks on the Native Americans to get what they wanted. They were used to people that just asked for what they needed. The Native Americans were a very kind, trusting people, with a culture that is very complex and remains a mystery to many people to this day.

Symbolism Journal

There was quite a bit of symbolism in The Grapes of Wrath. Each character symbolized the rest of the world that was in the same situation as them. Ma and Pa were the parents around the United States, Rose of Sharon symbolized the young mothers everyone, and Ruthie and Winfield were the children. It symbolized what happens to people when they do not work together to do good for the world. It showed the chaos the ensued and the pandemonium that happened. The Grapes of Wrath had many symbols, and while some were not obvious, others were.

Gains of Conflict in "The Catcher in the Rye"

Once the conflict in The Catcher in the Rye had begun, it just kept on building and growing until it had almost become unbearable. In the book, conflict was gained in many different ways. Once Holden had started the ball rolling, it started more and more conflict to arise through many people and situations. Once Holden had left Pencey Prep boarding school, conflict was gained by just about everything that he did. Conflict was gained when he boarded the bus, because he could have easily been caught. The conflict grew even more when he interest the hotel, and when he left for the bar. There was much conflict as he was leaving the bar, because he was drunk and he started doing dumb things, such as calling Sally Hayes in the middle of the night. Since a lot of conflict had begun on Holden and Sally's date, there had to be a lot of conflict gained as well. Conflict was gained when they started to argue with each other about little things that did not really matter at all. They yelled and screamed, and even more conflict was gained when Holden told Sally that she was a real pain in his rear end. She got incredibly upset, and even started crying. Conflict had also been started when Holden had decided to leave New York, and also when he told Phoebe of his plans to hitchhike away. Conflict was gained when Phoebe decided that she would go with Holden. Holden did not take well to this idea, and he refused to let her even think about it. He said she needed to stay home with their family, but she would not let him leave without her. She had been crying, so to appease her, he declared that he would not leave New York and their family. There was much conflict in The Catcher in the Rye, and all of the starts and gains of the conflict centered around Holden Caulfield.

My Opinion on "The Old Man and the Sea"

The Old Man and the Sea is a very different book than both The Grapes of Wrath and The Catcher in the Rye. The Old Man and the Sea was a much shorter book, and I also enjoyed it a lot more than the other two. It made a lot of sense to me, and I really liked the lessons that could be learnt from it, such as patience, bravery, and heroism. The heroism was phenomenal in the book, and it made me wish that more people were like the Old Man. I thought it was very interesting how the Old Man knew all about the ocean, its patterns, the fish that swim in it, where those fish would be, the fishes' patterns, and weather patterns. He knew exactly what was going to happen, and the only thing that he could not know is whether or not the fish would bite his bait that day. He was a good man through conflict and trouble, and many people loved the Old Man because of how kind and gentle he was, no matter what happened to him. I did not like that the people in the story did not always like the Old Man, because he was obviously always nice and kind to them all, and he had never done anything against them. It made sense to me that they had not for a while, though, because if they had always liked him, then the lesson of perservering would not be so deeply ingrained into the story. It also made me upset that the Old Man could not bring the live fish in, because it only seemed fair that after he had done so much he would have been somehow rewarded. The Old Man was an incredible character, and I loved learning so much about him while I was reading the book. The Old Man and the Sea was a very good book that I really enjoyed reading, even if I did not like everything in it.

My Opinion on "The Grapes of Wrath"

The Grapes of Wrath was not a book that I enjoyed very much. I found it boring. I also thought it was odd that only half of the chapters were about the Joads, and that the other half were about other things. While the other chapters did tie in to the story, it would have made more sense to just explain what had happened to the Joads, and not the rest of America. The chapter about the turtle in the beginning threw me for a loop, because I was expecting the whole book to be about one family, like all of the rest of the books I have ever read. I also think that the characters should have all been developed equally, because some were developed more than others. The people that I was the most curious about were the ones that were not as developed. I would have liked to see their whole personality, not just how they act in one situation. It would have been more interesting to see Rose of Sharon while she was happy at one point instead of just always being upset. I also would have liked to know more about Ruthie and Winfield. There was not very much about them, because they always ran away. It seems like the author wanted to keep them away during the book because he did not want to have to explain them or write much about them. In my opinion, if the author did not want to include Ruthie and Winfield very much, then it may have just been easier to exclude them from the book. I did kind of enjoy The Grapes of Wrath, though. It showed how life was during the Great Depression and explained what the farmers and their families had to go through. It was also nice to see the individual struggles of everyone in the family. While The Grapes of Wrath was a decent book, I did not really enjoy it and I thought the ending was not satisfying at all.

My Opinion on "The Catcher in the Rye"

The Catcher in the Rye is not an incredibly long book, but it gets its message across just as well as a book that is twice its length. I thought the book was pretty good, and it was not something that I minded reading. The Catcher in the Rye did not have an obvious message, and it took me some time to try to dig deep and figure it out. It was a message that one must interpret, and it can be interpreted in many different ways. I took it as saying that people should stay in school and work hard to keep their grades up so they will do well later in life. The characters in the book were kind of flat, because there was not much explained about them. There was no information into their pasts, and one did not get to see many sides of their character. When one saw a character, one only saw a portion of how they act and how they react to different situations. The setting was also very different than most of the other stories that I am used to reading. I am not used to reding stories about boarding schools, and it would have been more interesting to me to read more about them. I also would have liked to know more about what the people liked to do then and how they lived. It would have been fun to read about New York back then and to find out if it was the bustling city that it is now. It was interesting to find out what a teenage boy thought about in those times, and it was funny to read about Sally. Sally was funny to me because she showed that people have been like that since the beginning of time and they will never stop being like that. The Catcher in the Rye was overall a decent book, but it did not go very deep into the character and the ending was very abrupt.

Losses of Conflict in "The Catcher in the Rye"

There was a lot of conflict in The Catcher in the Rye, and the majority of it came from Holden Caulfield. There was no conflict that Holden stumbled upon and had happen to him. Holden brought it all upon himself. Eventually all of the major conflict was resolved, but it took a lot of time and effort. Holden had a lot of conflict when he left Pencey Prep boarding school, but at the end of the book, he decides to go home, so everything is fixed on that account. There was conflict about Holden failing four of his five classes, but one can only assume that he was sent to a different school and gets a fresh start. There was conflict between Sally Hayes and Holden, and while the conflict was not resolved while they were together, it is resolved before the book is over. Holden called Sally and she answered and talked to him and they were friends again. There was conflict when Holden snuck into his house while his parents were not there, because they came home and could have found him. The problem was solved when Phoebe covered for him and he snuck back out of the house after his parents had fallen back asleep. There was also conflict between Holden and Phoebe after he had told her of his plan to leave New York. She really wanted to go with him, but he would not let her, and this upset her greatly, bringing her to tears. Holden fixed everything and appeased Phoebe by changing his mind and not leaving, and letting her skip school for the rest of the day and taking her to the zoo, which she loved greatly.While one does not find out exactly what happens to Holden Caulfield at the end of The Catcher in the Rye, one can still speculate and guess at what happens to him. All one knows is that all of the major conflict throughout the book had been resolved.

Causes of Conflict in "The Catcher in the Rye"

There was quite a bit of conflict in The Catcher of the Rye. It came in many different forms, but it was constantly there. The first main cause of conflict was Holden Caulfield leaving Pencey Prep boarding school. Nothing else in the rest of the story would have even happened if Holden had not left Pencey, so that is the main cause of all of the conflict in the book. Holden was a very curious boy, so he did not necessarily enjoy staying put. Holden would have been going home on Wedsnesday anyway, but he decided that he did not want to wait until then. He decided that he was going to leave Pencey Prep boarding school earlier than he was supposed to, becasue he thought it would bring him much more enjoyment. Holden Calufield always caused a lot of conflict when he left anywhere. When he left Pencey, he caused conflict as to where he would go, what he would do, how he would keep away from his parents, and how he would stay hidden from the people that should not know he had left school early. When he left the bar drunk, he caused conflict about having nowhere to go and trying to find somewhere to go while still being able to stay hidden. He caused conflict when he decided to leave New York, because when he told Phoebe that he was leaving, she decided to come with him. Holden was also another main cause of conflict. Everything that he did caused some chain of events to happen that brought quite a lot of conflict to everyone that was associated with him. Holden did many things without thinking about anyone but himself, and because he did not think about anyone else, quite often those other people were joined into the conflict he brought to his everyday life. Many people do not have very good luck, but not many do bad things to themselves and the others around them. Holden Caulfield brought conflict to everyone and everything around him, and J. D. Salinger chronicled that in The Catcher in the Rye.

History Reflection in "The Catcher in the Rye"

The Catcher in the Rye reflects history very well. It explains how boarding schools were and how boys reacted to them. The book exposed the life of boys living in boarding schools everywhere. The Catcher in the Rye showed how miserable it can be in boarding schools and how some people really can not handle being alone with all of those boys. This book also describes the activities that were enjoyed during the time period. People went to shows and movies, but the movies were very short, and the shows were of an older time period. It talks about ice skating and how women could rent shorter skirts because they would not have had a skirt short enough for ice skating at home. At the same time, women still enjoyed being fashion forward and having the best, newest things, just as they do today. It is easy to see that this book reflects history in the way that it explains the boarding schools. At the boarding schools, they enjoyed going to town for fun and just being with girls. The faculty did not worry or think about where the children went, they were more worried about themselves and what they had to do, which is historically accurate. They also were out and about and more social. Another reason that you can tell that The Catcher in the Rye is historically accurate is because they did not care much about the drinking age. If one looked old enough and the bartender was in a good mood, they would give them the drink. Now, bartenders are more cautious and check for ID more often, because they do not want to be sent to jail for serving alcohol to a minor. 289 It is made obvious by this book that while some things are still the same, time has changed many things, and for the most part has left them better. The Catcher in the Rye is an incredible glance into the past.