Journal #24: Finals preparation

There are many ways that one can prepare for finals.  First of all, you need to gather all materials needed in an organized matter.  You must organize it by class and by importance of information.  For example,  you can organize it according to date, importance, or the order on your study guide.  After all of the information is organized, you must get to work!  You should work on definitions, important facts, and answer example questions from previous homework or tests.  This will help a lot because your final exam will most likely be composed of previous test questions and homework questions.  Some other tips are writing definitions over and over until you remember them perfectly, you can make note cards, or you can make a silly song out of the information you need to know in order to remember it.  Another tip is writing out information in different colored pen or highlighting over your information. This will most likely help you remember information due to the many colors.  Color coated things help trigger the memory and also help the recording of information.  Another way to study for exams is asking your teacher what you should study more and what you do not need to study for your exam.  This will narrow down the topics of the semester and it should help with managing your time on what is most important to know.  You can learn about what you need help with.  Also, you should come before school or stay after school if you have any questions guarding the materials.  This will help you so much in preparation for your final exam.  You will learn all that is necessary and I am sure your teacher will tell you much of the information needed to do well on the exam.  I know that I will do all of these things when preparing for my final because I would love to have straight A's forever and ever.  I would really like to be an awesome student until I graduate with many honors.

Journal #23: Self- Sufficient

It is important to be self-sufficient, especially in high school.  You need to be able to take responsibility for your classes, homework, and other responsibilities.  In class, you must pay attention and learn the lessons you must know in order to complete latter homework.  This is a self- sufficient time in your life.  You must rely on yourself, and only yourself, to learn and school and make yourself pay attention.  You also must rely on yourself to do your homework as well.  You must first learn, then you must look back at the information and retrieve it from your memory.  This is a responsibility to learn in your life and you have to be self sufficient to process this important aspect of school.  Also, there are many other aspects of life in which you must be self-sufficient in.  When you learn to drive, you rely on yourself to keep others on the road safe.  You must make driving decisions yourself while you drive.  This is a self-sufficient process.  Also, going to college involves much of the previous self-sufficient processes. One must rely on themselves when trying to live on their own.  not only are they living alone, but they are also trying to keep up responsibilities.  This is a self-relying time in one's life.  Also, one must be self reliant because in the end, it will only be you.  You may have many friends in the world, but at one point in your life, you will be alone.  I know that is sad to think about, but it is an unfortunate truth.  Self sufficiency is a must need trait and quality one must contain in their life.  You need to be self sufficient in order to get through high school and college, and also in your future workplace.  Your peers and boss will expect things from you on time and well done.  If you cannot do this, you will be unsuccessful in your life and will never know how to function properly on your own.

Reaction to Kateb's Analysis of Self Reliance

After reading "Self Reliance" and Kateb's reaction to Emersons writing, the meaning of the passage can be better understood.  Kateb breaks down the writings of Emerson and it helps the reader learn of Emerson's point of views and opinions from this passage.  

"Emerson thinks that every important value, principle, idea (or derivative practice or institution) is permanently indispensable for life, even though any may be at odds with any other."(Kateb paragraph 7).

I agree with Kateb in this quote because that is a great point on Emerson's point on writing this essay.  He wanted to show that he values many virtues and believes each is important to life.  His opinions on important values or ideas show that he thinks they are valuable to life.  Kateb also says that he has important romanticism values and styles when writing.  Kateb shoes a very good understanding of Emersons points and can analyze it in a way to where readers can understand as well.   It is important to read this analysis by Kateb because it helps one to understand Emerson's writings.  

"Infancy conforms to nobody: all conform to it, so that one babe commonly makes four or five out of the adults who prattle and play to it. "(Emerson paragraph 5).

This is a quote from Emerson and it shows a romanticism quality of non-conformity. This is such a good quality to point out when looking at a romanticism writing because that is a value of these romanticism writers.  Emerson values that nobody conforms and that infancy does not last because you grow as a person.    Self reliance is important because it will encourage you to be more of your own person rather than conform to how others want you to be.  He also takes a look at virtues.

"Virtues are, in the popular estimate, rather the exception than the rule. There is the man and his virtues. Men do what is called a good action, as some piece of courage or charity, much as they would pay a fine in expiation of daily non-appearance on parade. Their works are done as an apology or extenuation of their living in the world, — as invalids and the insane pay a high board. Their virtues are penances. I do not wish to expiate, but to live. My life is for itself and not for a spectacle. "(Emerson).

This quote from Emerson also shows romanticism values.  Also, it shows that he has virtues, but lives his life in his own way.  He would rather not just have virtues to just have penances.  He values life and he thinks that it changes day to day and he needs to change in order to live and not expiate his life.  His life is for itself, and not for a spectacle.  This means that he is not living just for someone else's entertainment.  He is living for himself and will embrace and enjoy himself.  Self - reliance shines through in this aspect because he is making his life great in his own way.  He is self relying on making his life a great life for him and nobody else.

Journal #22: Snow

Snow is beautiful and it makes me very happy.  I have been patiently waiting for snow this year.  Yet, it is December and it was seventy degrees last week.  Snow is a part of my life because I like it so much.  I have prepared a little anagram for it.  S is for sledding.  I love sledding down hills and enjoying myself.  It is one of my important childhood activities, so I try to sled each year to relive my childhood loves.  Sometime, I can only sled at my house, which is very dangerous.  I sled down this hill on the side of my yard, but my yard is made up of trees.  One can assume that I have to try and dodge trees while I sled, and I often fail to dodge some.  This is why it is dangerous, but it is also what makes it awesome and fun.  N is for Nippy.  Nippy means that is really cold.  It has to be thirty-two and below for rain to freeze, therefore, to be able to have snow.  Also, when you are playing in snow, you get so freezing you think you get frostbite.  This word reminds me of snow and snow days.  O is for Oooh pretty!  This is my favorite part of the anagram because it is the most true about snow.  This is the first thing I think of when I see a fresh coat of snow on the ground.  It is break-taking to see the silent beauty of untouched snow.  W is for wise.  I think that snow is wise because it shows something that has been on Earth for a long time.  Snow teaches us to be wise when driving, to be safe when walking on ice, and to be be wise with your  choices.  Snow is what makes winter a good season.  A season without snow means that everyone is so sad and bored of cold weather with no positive consequence.  Snow makes Illinois awesome.

Journal #21: Quote from Emerson

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

This quotation makes me think about a time in everyone's life when they have a revelation. They realize that they should be happy and make the most of what they have in their life, because they realize envy is ignorance.  A man should not envy things because he really does not know what it is like to have those things and that those things will not make him happy.  Also it is showing that every person should know that material things will not make them happy.  Also, imitation is suicide because you should try to be an individual.   One must be themselves because the world is a scary place and if people are not true to themselves than they are going to be unhappy.  They will lose site of what is really important.  This quote speaks to the very threads of my soul.  It is gorgeous and makes me think that our lives are more important than some make them out to be.  A life of conformity will be a sad one according to this quote.  The universe is full of good if you embrace it and live the way you should-as an individual. It also says that one cannot grow until he plants his corn in a plot of ground in which he makes for himself.  To me, this means that one must first have a base to build their life and personality on.  Therefore, you must first figure out who you are and then you must grow and keep adding to your personality.  

Journal #20: Cycle of Life

People begin as a small and fragile baby.  They have to be cared for and loved in order to grow and prosper.  From the very first breath taken in this world by that child to the last, it is called the circle of life.  After they spend their first year as a tiny baby, they start to take even bigger steps in life, literally.  They begin to walk around two years of age.  They slowly strengthen their wobbling legs and influential minds by striving to take those first steps of their whole lives.  They weakly lean on short tables and walls while their small legs are shaking terribly and trying to make sense of this new ability.  Then after those first steps, they never stop.  They walk and run and jump and play!  They excitedly jump in rain puddles and splatter mud all over themselves!  They run on the soft and fuzzy carpet with the collective fuzz separating their toes.  And after those glorious steps are taken, speech comes into their lives.  They imitate their parents strange noises and funny sounds.  They learn and develop the ability to speak slowly but surely!  They start with simple words: mom, dad, dog, cat.  Then they move on to new and fun words.  And year by year they grow taller and taller and smarter and smarter.  They learn reading, math, writing, history, and other important things.  They experience the world and the many dangers and glories to it.  They slowly develop a sense of what they want to do with their lives.  This cycle continues on and on until they are old enough to drive and to go off on their own away from their parents.  They go off to college, fall in love, get their heart broken, and fall in love again.  They graduate, get a job, get married and even have children once they are ready!  And thus, the cycle begins again with their babies and their baby's babies, and so on and so forth!

Journal #19: Patriotism Poem

It was the fourth of July,
the fireworks were in the sky,
They were beautiful,
I cannot tell a lie.

The sky was sparkling,
they were so pretty!
They brought tears to my eyes,
like a little kitty!
The freedom in our nation,
proved that we were united as one!

I think back to why this holiday existed,
it seems simple,
but back then life was twisted!
The British had American Colonies under their rule,
and then one day colonists realized it was uncool!
So thus began the Revolutionary War,
against America, the British were sore.

There was fighting day and night,
until America had the right,
to call itself an independent Union.
And thus on the fourth of July,
a treaty was signed!
Americans were free from British strain,
no longer would the Americans
experience the freedomless pain.

 I love the patriotism my life holds,
and the stories from yesteryear's struggles being told.

Journal 18

As I pondered the multitude of eyes beaming at me from the magnificent creature, their UFO came to sweep up the captured humans and themselves to go back to their home planet.  The unidentified flying object was silver and shiny.  It made the strangest noises as it shot through the air.  The sounds were comparable to that of a dying elephant.  The UFO finally came to a halt in the middle of the dark cloudy sky.  It was unlike anything I had ever seen before.  Then, from the core of the UFO came a vibrant green light.  A horrific creature beamed down to the Earth to greet the new human prisoners that would soon be under their control.  The creature looked unlike the ones with the multitude of eyes.  It was more terrifying and awful looking than it.  The creature flipped the curly hair out of her eyes, it was Katie! I tried to prevent her stench from reaching my fragile nostrils, but it was too late!  I gagged on the scent and tried hold back the vomit climbing up my throat.  She was wearing a blue toga, and there was a lime colored sash that had the words: SUPREME RULER.  I tried to avert my eyes from this creature, but she had a power that made me look at her.  I was terrified and Katie was laughing hysterically at my pain.  
"I have been after you Allison!  You will finally be my slave on my home planet of K-topia!" Katie shouted. 
"NO!!" I shouted, "You will never make me be your slave!".  I then threw a hammer at her head, and escaped the woods we were captured in.  The creature with the numerous eyes chased after me, but I had a can of mace and sprayed it in the hundreds of eyes.  Katie then flew from out of nowhere and tackled me!  She hit me with the hammer and I died.  Then the world captured Katie and locked her in a cage in the middle of Times Square in New York City for people to throw tomatoes at.  Then I came back from the dead and haunted Katie and her alien friends.  Katie never returned to K-topia, and the planet was destroyed by the Remember Allie Foundation also known as We hate Katie Foundation.

Journal #17: Sensory Details

As the light blue fuzz feathered through the warm current of air purring from the heating vent, Katie fell off her chair.  Katie fell due to the hysterical laughing fit Allie had put her in.  This was brought on by the wonderful humor and wits that Allie had of course.  Katie, however, fell and broke her left wrist.  Allie, being comparable to the greatest of heroes, scooped Katie up and ran her to the nurses office.  The nurse was not there, so it was up to this great girl to save the day, and possibly Katie's young life.  Allie grabbed the painkillers and crushed them up with her fingers then injected them into Katie's bloodstream to stop the blinding pain of her wrist being broken.  Katie did not react well to the painkillers, and developed a rash on her arm!  Allie just thought, oh no! another battle to face!  But smart and brave Allie put lotion to ease the rash.  Next, Allie grabbed a splint made from her bare hands to use to straighten Katie's wrist back out.  Allie needed a bandage to wrap the splint to her hand!  She looked to the left and found a leather couch.  Allie tore the fibers of the couch in half and made a wrap with her own two hands.  She is truly a hero!  Her great strengths made the leather of the couch perfectly capable to use as a wrap for her injured friend.  She tightly wound the leather bandage around Katie's wrist.  Katie arose with a brand new life in her eyes.  She was back to normal!  Allie actually did such a good job, she actually healed Katie's arm in two days and now Katie can throw a 98 mile per hour speedball and became the first women to play in the Major Leagues.  Katie's life is obviously ten times better just because Allie was in it.  As for Allie, she became and astronaut and a national hero.  She received the Nobel Peace Prize and saved the world from the zombie apocalypse.

Journal #16: Different clothes

When I was in sixth grade, I would always wear strange things to be funny and get attention from other people.  I would wear cow print pants, suspenders, fake glasses, and other goofy things.  I did this and the reaction was very funny.  Some people made fun of me but most people just ignored my strangeness. Another reaction that might happen can been seen when I wear nice clothes to school this year.  Usually, I wear sweatpants or leggings and a tee shirt.  Since I dress nice every once in a while, people will comment on my outfit and say I look nice today.  When someone dresses different suddenly, people think that they went through a sudden emotional or life changing happening.  If a nice girl goes from wearing bright colors and trendy clothes to wearing black baggy clothes, someone will probably think that something is wrong in  their life that caused the sudden change.  There could be multiple reasons that someone would want to change their style.  It could be friends influence, family influences, or just personal want.  I know that if I had friends that all wore something, I might join in with them if I think it is cute.  An example for family influence would be your family disapproving of something you wear, such as a dress that is too short.  That will make someone more conscious of what they wear.  An example of personal want to change your clothes and style would be a gain in money for better and cuter clothes, or a loss in money for having to look for cheaper clothes.   All of these changes lead to one thing, people noticing that you have a changed wardrobe. People will wonder why you have a change in wardrobe, but who cares.  If you are happy with what you are wearing than nothing else matters. It only matters what you think about yourself and what you are comfortable wearing.  If someone ever makes fun of what you wear, just remember that you have your own personal style, and that is what counts for you and for the world.

Journal #15: Someone I miss

Someone who I miss that I try to stay connected to is my Grandma.  My grandma died when I was a freshmen on my birthday, so I think this is a sign that she cared for me and tried to show that she will always be there for me.  The date she died is a connection between us because there must have been a reason she died on that certain date to show me something.  While I still am not sure why she chose my birthday to die, it was for a special reason that will connect us forever.  Another connection I have to my grandma is her jewelry.  She had the best taste in jewelry and I got some very valuable pieces from her.  Whenever I wear these pieces of jewelry, I know that she is watching over me and protecting me and letting me know that I am there for her.  My favorite thing of my grandma's is a ring that said her name on it.  I keep it on a chain in my car so she will always keep me safe on the roads.  I love having it in my car, because it makes me feel safe.  I really think that it is a huge connection between us because she will always watch me when I am driving and keep me safe.  I think it works because there have been a few close calls that have missed me on the road.  Another one of my keepsakes from my grandma is a jewelry box.  I got this before she passed away, and I value this very much as well.  I keep all the jewelry from her in this box, and other special items I have obtained through numerous experiences.  My grandma had the best jewelry and always kept it in cute boxes and such, which made me want to be as stylish and cute as her.  When I think about her, it makes me want to connect to her through being like her.  That might be the biggest connection because it the the most important to me.  I want to be like her because she was stylish, sweet, and strong.  I miss my grandma, but we still have many connections to each other that make me feel like she is still with me.

The Pit and the Pendulum Analysis

The Pit and the Pendulum is a dark story by Edgar Allen Poe.  This story shows a certain side of Romanticism, which is Dark Romanticism.  This story includes dark characters that have qualities such as greed and hate toward others.  In the Pit in the Pendulum, shows this darkness because of the horrors that a man suffers through when accused during the Spanish Inquisition.  His torturous stay in prison also supports Poe's Dark Romanticism style.  A last indicator of the Dark Romanticism in this short story is the depressing tone that is used by Poe in this short story.

The characters in this novel show a great deal of dark and undesirable qualities.  The fact that these characters represent such qualities shows that Poe is a Dark Romanticist.  The judges that sentence the main character shows their dark sides when they do not let the man have a case.  They already made up their minds about the man and decide he should be tortured.  This is a dark quality because it shows that they are abusing their powers.  "With the intensity of their expression of firmness-of immovable resolution-of stern contempt of human torture"(Poe 263). This quote showed that the judges made up their minds about the sentence of the man without caring about his case.  The dark quality that the man possesses is the fear quality.  While this quality is not bad, it shows the darkness of the story.  He is so afraid of death and wait awaits him.  This quality shows the Dark Romanticism that Poe portrays in the story. This quality also shows the emotion of the soldier, which shows regular Romanticism. These characters show Romanticism within the story.

Another indicator in the story shows the Dark Romanticism.  This would be the torture that the man experiences while in prison.  He is in a room with a dangerous pendulum and a pit that he is supposed to die in.  Also, the walls of this room keep getting closer and closer together to force him into the pit.   Not only are the walls closing in, they are heated and they keep getting hotter and hotter.  This horrific scene from the story shows that Poe is a very dark writer and the emotion of the story show Romanticism.  No other writing style would have such dark and emotional times in the stories as much as Dark Romanticism has.  Poe obviously shows it through the experiences of the soldier.

The tone of the story also shows Dark Romanticism.  The dark setting, the dark fears and emotions experienced by the soldier, and the twisted punishment the soldier goes through all make the tone dark.  The description of the setting shows that this story is Dark Romanticism.  Everything is dark, depressing, and scary.  The pit shows that fear and twisted experience that this man is going through.  Also,the horrific events that the soldier had to face shows that this is Dark Romanticism.  He experiences extreme fear during his imprisonment.  He has to avoid death even though that is what he is being set up for.  The importance of the experience and not the knowledge he has shows that this is a Romanticism story.  Also, the twisted punishment of having unpreventable death brought upon him shows the darkness that Poe wrote with.  He had to face a fate that would be tortuous and horrible to happen.  However, him being saved at the end shows that Romanticism is the writing style.  The fact that the hero survived is a Romanticism aspect.  He was not deserving of the punishment, so he survived.

Hence, this story strongly represented Romanticism, more specifically, Dark Romanticism.  Poe showed this through his tone, his portrayal of the torture the soldier experiences, and the characters qualities.  Poe did a wonderful job showing all that is important in this style of writing.  While it is darker than other Romanticism works, it shows the emotion and beliefs other Romanticism stories portray as well.  Obviously, Poe represents the style of Romanticism very well in the Pit and the Pendulum.  

Poe, Edgar Allen. "The Pit and the Pendulum." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffrey Wilhelm. American Literature. Ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill. 2010. 263-273. Print.

Journal 14: Scared

There have been few times in my life that I have been deathly scared.  One of these times was actually yesterday on Halloween.  I was going to my friend Emily's house after school, but I wanted to shower before I went over.  I decided I would go home and take a quick shower before I went over to Emily's house.  So, I drove home right after school so I could be quick.  Once I was inside, I had to let my dog in and feed him and such before I showered.  I let my dog in and he was acting very strange.  He seemed to be timid about something.  I petted him for a a little while to calm him down and then I went up to shower.  When I went upstairs, I heard a strange fuzzy sound coming from my parents room.  I went in and found the alarm clock radio to be going off.  I thought this was weird because usually my parents  shut it of when they wake up.  Anyhow, I shut it off and went into my bathroom.  I decided to turn on the radio in my bathroom because I felt a little strange.  I was scared because it was Halloween, I was home alone, my dog was acting strange, and the alarm clock was left on.  I still needed to shower however, so my friends would not think I was nasty.  Therefore, I put my fears aside and got into the shower.  There are certain rules to follow on Halloween according to horror movies and one of them is never ever get into the shower when you are home alone on Halloween.  Thinking about this got me even more scared and when I was shampooing my hair, I heard the bathroom door creak.  I was petrified!  I did not know what to do because I suspected someone was about to kill me in the shower!  I tried to think of how I could let this happen and then I decided I would charge whoever the person was so I would surprise them.  I jumped out of the shower curtain, and I saw my cat staring up at me.  I had been worried about nothing, but it was one of the most terrifying moments in my life because I thought I was about to die!

Journal 13: Franklin Project Reflection

This project taught me that group projects usually do not work out.  This was learned because I was depended on for a lot of this project.  I had to compensate for other people in my group.  That is a good lesson to learn though, because that will probably happen a lot in life.  Things are not always fair, but it happens all the time.  This project also taught me that technology is unreliable.  I had to redo my video because technology malfunctioned and there were errors in the first time I tried to make it.  Also, one of my group members did not have internet at his house, so it was unfair to him for me to ask him to get it done and it was not fair for me to have to compensate for an issue he could not control.  Also, technology was unreliable because the communication aspect of this project.  E-mail was slow and at the other school it was blocked.  That was inconvenient because that was our main source of communication.  I also learned that Benjamin Franklin's virtues were more complex then I thought they were before.  Before this project, I did not analyze them as well.  I am glad I did and I am glad this project had some good to the many bad parts of it.  There were obviously many things I learned during this project.

There should be many things done to improve this project.  First of all, there should be more time to do it.  It seemed that I was not doing my best work because I had to rush through all of the steps so I could meet deadlines and be fair to my group.  It would have been nice to get an extension on the project so people could communicate better and do their quality work.  Also, communication needs improvement.  E-mail was not the best source of communication because many kids do not check their email daily, even when having an important project due.  Another fault is the distribution of work.  I think that students should not decide who is going to do the video because someone will spend hours on it, editing it and making it the best it can be, while other students do only one aspect of the final project.  That concludes my thoughts on this project.

Analyzing Franklin's Virtues

Franklin made his virtues so he could become a better person overall.  The common question that needs an answer is, were his virtues effective in his goal of being a better person?  Franklin shows in his autobiography, and Tuckerman supports this as well, that Franklin's virtues did make him an overall better person.  He became more frugal, sincere, and more intelligent in the ways he decided to live and dedicate his life.  He truly followed his virtues to become a better person.

Franklin began more frugal in his life in many ways.  A quote from his autobiography shows that the virtue of frugality helps other virtues be accomplished:

" Frugality and Industry freeing me from my remaining debt, and producing affluence and independence, would make more easy the practice of Sincerity and Justice, etc., etc ."(Franklin 85).

This quote shows that frugality was a chosen virtue that extended into other virtues. Frugality was one of the most important virtues that Franklin established because it did have more then just the lone virtue. It extended into silence, moderation, tranquility, and industry (Franklin 83). This virtue is the wasting of nothing. For example, silence is keeping your words to yourself if they are not useful. Frugality go into this because one must not waste their words on pointless thinks, therefore be frugal with your words. This virtue along with the other one's it extends upon made Franklin a better person. Tuckerman elaborates on Franklin's qualities with this quote:

"Who can estimate the vast encouragement derived by the lowliest seeker for knowledge and social elevation from such a minute chart of life, frankly revealing every stage of poverty, scepticism, obscure toil, dissipation, on the one side, and, on the other, of manly resolution, indefatigable industry, frugal self-denial, patient study, honest and intelligent conviction, by means of which the fugitive printer's boy,"(Bloom 2).

This quote shows that Franklin had indeed become a better person through all of these qualities he possesses, including being frugal.

Franklin also becomes a better person through his sincerity. He was sincere in his following of the virtues. He marked what he failed upon honestly and tried to improve his faults the best he could. Sincerity was such an important virtue to follow because without sincerity he would never be able to be honest with himself about being a better person. Franklin's journey to being a greater person would have been pointless if he were to pushed aside his faults and ignore them. It would have been an endless failure if he was not sincere in his pursuing of being a better man. Tuckerman says that Franklin a greater man than other philosophers:

"If we compare the life of Franklin, as a whole, with that of other renowned philosophers, we find that the isolated self-devotion, the egotism and vanity, which too often derogate from the interest and dignity of their characters as men, do not mar the unity of the tranquil, honest, and benign disposition which lends a gracious charm to the American philosopher."(Bloom 7).

Tuckerman obviously agrees with the opinion of Franklin improving himself as a man and philosopher. Franklin's sincerity was a key element to his journey to being a better man.

Another aspect that made Franklin successful in his voyage to being a better person was his increased intelligence from the experiences of implementing his virtues. He gained so much more personal insight on his life and how life should be lived. He made a whole system of virtues that gave him information about human life and what humans should do to gain more out of life and to put more value into his life and others. Ben Franklin shares one of his favorite proverbs in his autobiography:

" "O powerful Goodness! bountiful Father! merciful Guide! increase in me that wisdom which discovers my truest interest. strengthen my resolutions to perform what that wisdom dictates. Accept my kind offices to thy other children as the only return in my power for thy continual favors to me."(Franklin 87).

This shows that Franklin valued wisdom and that he wished to have wisdom so that he could live to his full potential and discover more about himself. His wish to gain more wisdom and the fact that he did, indeed, find his way of gaining this intelligence in life by implementing his virtues, proves that Franklin improved himself as a person.

Hence, Franklin became a better person through his increased intelligence, his sincerity, and his frugality. These aspects of Franklin's virtue system showed that he committed and was successful in his goal. He may not have reached the level of self improvement that he wanted, but nonetheless he progressed highly as a person. Therefore, it can be concluded that Franklin's system of virtues fulfilled its purpose of helping Franklin become a better person.

Franklin, Benjamin, and Leonard Woods Labaree. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. New Haven: Yale UP, 1964. Print

Bloom, Harold, ed. "The Character of Franklin." Benjamin Franklin, Classic Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc.

Journal 12: American Dream

The American Dream has changed in the past decades and now it seems to be very different than it once was.  The American Dream used to be having a family and living in a nice neighbor hood and having barbecues in your little suburban yard.  However, now the American Dream seems to be more individualized.  If it were to be broadened however, I believe the new American Dream is to go to college, find a job, and be successful.  This is due to the newer technology and the need to be an individual in everything we do.  I think that social media sites have made people want to be an individual and do different things.  Therefore, when people go to college, they will want to go to different place and they will major in different things.  This has always been true, but it seems that there are more places to go now, and there are more options.  As for jobs, there are many new jobs that have been created and that will be created while I am attending college.  This is a new adaption the American Dream that  is changing while we are changing with the world.  We are slowly turning into a nation that was too conforming, then we broke through it, and now we are beginning to conform once more.  That is why the American Dream seems to be a lot like how it was fifty years ago, but it is still different because there are still some individuals in the world. Finally, we all want to be successful.  We go through school wanting to achieve as much as we can so we can go to a good college.  Then, we want to work hard in college so we can have a job when we get out of college.  Then, we work hard in our job to pay off college and to pay for other things we need to survive.  Also, we need more money for our kids to live this "American Dream" as well.

Journal #11

Virtues are very important to have in this current society.  As adolescence, we are bombarded with theories and values that we should be following or not following and it is just a big jumble of information that is too much to process.  Instead of conforming with the crowd or rebelling what we are told to be doing, everyone should create their own personal list of virtues to follow.  Personally, I would create mine according to what I like to do and how I think I should live my life with myself and according to how others react to my actions.  Therefore, I would create mine due to my personal outlook and how others are affected by my actions.  My virtues would also have to be reasonable and able to follow.  My virtues would be:

1. Kindness- treat others in a kind way and you will most likely be rewarded.  If not, then you will still feel pretty good about yourself for being nice.
2. Necessity- You should know when your opinion or words are necessary to an event.  You should speak when needed, but if you cause a problem by being rude of unnecessary then you caused an unneeded conflict.
3. Sincerity- I took this from Ben Franklin's virtues because I believe it is good to have.  You should be sincere in all words and actions so people can trust you.  Also, people do not appreciate lying even if you think it will benefit them.  Therefore, you should just be sincere to begin with. 
4. Positivism- One should always look at life in a positive outlook.  This is probably the hardest virtue to follow because it is tough to remain positive.  This virtue is important because if you are negative all the time, it would be hard to go through life happily.  
5. Consideration-  You should always be considerate of what people have to say.  Never look down on others voices and opinions.  You should listen to what they have to say and take it into consideration.  In a world with no one to listen, you would be very upset and feel quite worthless.  

Those are my beginning virtues.  If I were to go into more depth, this list would be miles long.  These are the virtues which I thought were most important and I hope to be able to follow them.  

Reflection of Franklin's Autobiography

Benjamin Franklin's autobiography represents the growing rationalism in this era.  Benjamin Franklin was very rational in his writing and thoughts to maintain his virtues.  He made rational virtues to follow, he made a organized and logical way to make sure he followed these virtues, and he explained his reasoning behind making these virtues and why they should be valued.  There is a clear connection between the rationalist value and life that is in Franklin's writings.  

Franklin's virtues show a great amount of rationalist values.  Some examples would be temperance, silence, and order (Franklin 83).  These are just a few examples from the text, but they show rational thinking very well.  Rational means to be logical, reasonable, or sensible.  Rational values seem to make sense.  Rational values are easy to explain and see why they are necessary.  The values Franklin chose make sense in why they should be followed.  Temperance is important because it is important not to be greedy (Franklin 83).  This is a rational virtue because it will make the world a better place for you and others by not taking more than you deserve.  Silence is logical because people should know when their opinion is necessary (Franklin 83).  If you speak out of turn, than you only create unneeded problem.  Order is also another very rational virtue because if there is no order to the world and nobody knows their rightful place, there will be chaos (Franklin 83).  These rational virtues show that Franklin rights with rationalism in mind.

Franklin's system of following his virtues in his life also prove him to be a rationalist.  He made a very organized chart with his virtues and days of the week (Franklin 85).  He would put a dot down on the day and by the virtue if he were to fault in following his virtues.  He tried to go at least a week without having to put a dot down on his chart (Franklin 86).  This was a very organized and rational approach to how he should follow his virtues and make sure he follows them correctly.  He also had an effective way of re-using his chart and this is another small way he is logical and rational.  This chart kept him following his rational values in a very logical way.  This is a big demonstration of his rationalist attitude in his writing.

The reasoning behind each virtue also makes Franklin's rational reasoning appear in his writing.  When Franklin lists his virtues, he explains what he means by each value.  For example, Franklin has the virtue of moderation.  Franklin writes: "MODERATION. Avoid extreams; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve." (Franklin 83).  This value is easy to understand because Franklin makes the reasoning behind the virtue clear in his writing.  Obviously, Franklin made the reason behind it logical.  

Therefore, Franklin kept his virtues clearly reasonable and his method for following them clear.  He explained each virtue, he had an effective way to keeping his virtues in check, and he made a rational decision when deciding on a virtue to follow.  Franklin was truly rational in his writing.

Franklin, Benjamin, Dixon Wecter, Larzer Ziff, and Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1959. 81+. Print.

Declaration of Independence Reflection

It was easy to see propaganda techniques in "The Declaration of Independence" by Thomas Jefferson.  One that stuck out to me was a form of name calling.  The name calling was not negative of mean, but they called the King of England, he.  While this is not bad, it showed that he was the one to blame.  Him and only him was the reason that the colonies wanted to leave England.  The general term showed that they did not care for him, but they still were against them. 

Another propaganda method I saw would be the "Either" method.  The two generalizations made about England and the Colonists showed this method.  England and the King was referred to as "he". The colonists referred to themselves as "we".  These two terms divided the sides on the revolution.  Either you were part of the "we" or "he".  There was no in between to this opinion.  

Another propaganda method would be "The Bandwagon" method.  The way Jefferson presented the "we" portion of the document.  The generalization of "we" made people think that everyone felt this way against England.  The way this was delivered made everyone think that if they did not feel this way they were not a part of America.  This was a very good method to be used because it almost scared people into sharing the "we" opinion.  

A faulty logic example I saw in "The Declaration of Independence" would be Arguing from Ignorance.  While Jefferson was not ignorant, there was nobody to represent the side the English took in this document.  There was not a defense for England so it was easy for Jefferson to call out everything that England did wrong when there was nobody to explain reasoning behind those happenings.  It was so easy to attack someone who was not there.  That is why this document is a slight example of Arguing from ignorance.


"Recognizing Propaganda Techniquesand Errors of Faulty Logic." Recognizing Propaganda--Guide to Critical Thinking--Academic Support. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2012. http://academic.cuesta.edu/acasupp/as/404.htm.

Wilhelm, Jeffrey D., Douglas Fisher, Kathleen A. Hinchman, David G. O'Brien, Taffy Raphael, and Cynthia Hynd. Shanahan. Glencoe Literature. New York: Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009. Print.

Journal #10: Mints

We the people of the A-5 English 332 class deserve mints from Mr. Langley.  For our numerous struggles and battles we face in this accelerated class, we deserve those delicious little round mints more than any other human being.

First of all, Mr. Langley misses class.  He leaves us with directions which is nice, but if we have questions, they go unanswered!  This is a reason we deserve mints because we struggle to keep going on with our assignments with little direction.  We need mints so we will not start an uprising due to these conditions.  "The man" aka Mr. Langley must satisfy our rebellious spirit with the yummy mints, or else the consequences could be dire.

Another reason we deserve mints is because we are an advanced class.  We could reside in the non-honors English class, but we decide to go above and beyond expectations.  We do not want to answer the normal questions.  We want to think critically and analyze stories with our twenty-first century skills!  We should be rewarded for our hard work and dedication to this honors class.  We do not expect much in return for our efforts, but it would be splendid to be rewarded in this small way.

Last but not least, we need mints because it is the end of the day, and we need to focus.  Days at Pleasant Plains High School can get drawn out and boring.  By our last class, we are often unruly and hard to control.  A few simple mints might be the cure to a hyperactive and inattentive class.  These small mints might help us calm down.  Mints are actually proven to stimulate thought and brain activity.  I know this because way back in middle school, they gave us mints before ISAT testing to stimulate our brains.  These little mints could be the difference between paying attention and falling asleep in class.  It is a small bargain to make with us, therefore you should supply us with mints.

Journal #9: Autumn

Autumn is a pretty awesome time of year.  I really think that it might be my favorite season.  While summer and spring is awesome, fall is so peaceful.  The cool, crisp autumn air makes me feel so safe.  I love cuddling up by a bonfire with a big blanket and some marshmallows in hand.  It is so serene just wearing your big sweatshirt and letting the autumn breeze carry your thoughts away.  This is the best time of year to be outside and in jeans and a sweatshirt.  Fall is also amazing because football season is beginning.  I love to get together with my family and watch a football game. It brings us together because the outside is cold, but inside with your family is warm and cozy.  Halloween is another example of why the amazing season of autumn is so amazing.  You get to eat endless bags of your favorite candy and you get to dress up like something you never would normally.  The best way to go is to make a homemade costume, because those are the best costumes.

Journal #8: Emotional Time

Emotional times can often be times of hysteria and distress.  In these times, it is important for people to step up and behave rationally and logically.  There was a time when many emotions were stirred in my life.  My friend was very upset over the death of her dog.  Being a good friend, I comforted her.  This did not help very much so I developed a rational and logical reason that might make my friend feel less sad about her dog dying.  I said things like it was his time, he was getting old, he lived a good life, but they still seemingly did not help much.  Therefore, I made a logical approach to my friend and said that her dog died because he had served his best days to her family and this world and that was what was needed from his life.  This helped more then any other approach because it was not spiritual or fake.  I meant the words I said completely one hundred percent.  It was also seemingly logical because it was a full proof ideal to why her dog had lived.  It was also not about why her dog died it was more about the life he lived and why he served his life well and to his full potential.

Another emotional time that called for logical reason was when my friends and I almost ran into a deer after homecoming.  My friend was driving and slammed on the breaks when she saw a deer.  This was the completely correct reaction when seeing a deer when driving.  However, she did not account for our friend driving behind us.  The friend behind us luckily was paying attention and was able to pass us due to the lack of traffic.  After this event, we realized how lucky we were to be alive and not crashed in the cars.  I handled this logically because my friend driving was quite hysterical when thinking of the other possible result that could have happened from this event.  I told her that she did the right thing and it worked out for the best.  No one was hurt, so this calmed her down because it was true. The logical answer helped everyone calm down from this emotional ordeal.

The Crucible Act IV Essay

Act IV seemed to reflect the thoughts of Johnathon Edwards sermon, "Sinners in the Angry Hands of God". It seemed that the sermon related to the actions and behaviors of the characters in this final Act.  
The main character that relates the sermon and the play would be Proctor.  Proctor confesses to doing witchcraft although he did not partake in witchcraft.  He did this because he wanted to live and also because he just wanted to confess his sins and be done with the situation.  He was pressured by Danforth and Hawthorne to confess, and Elizabeth finally convinced him to.  He set up his confession to the other men and at the end when he had to sign the confession to confirm that this had happened, he tore it apart and then had to face his death.  In the end, he did what he thought was right and this was probably not influenced by the sermon in any way.  If he had listened to the sermon he probably would have confessed just so God would not be mad at him anymore.  
Hawthorne and Danforth could have been scared by the words of Johnathon Edwards as well.  They pressured the suspects to confess so that they could take care of the situation and make sure that God knows that they tried everything to reject the devil and help those who had been believed to had been involved.  These men wanted to make sure that God could see that it was not their fault that this had happened to their society and that they were certainly not apart of it.  When they had those who did not confess to being involved in witchcraft, they killed them because that was the easy way to show that they were against witchcraft.  Hawthorne and Danforth represented the side of people that were scared by the sermon, "Sinners in the Angry Hands of God".
The events that took place in this play also proved to have been a reflection of Johnathon Edwards sermon.  The whole situation was started by the fear of devilish actions and behaviors.  The horrible fear of disobeying God and ending up in hell was unbearable to think about because colonists were conditioned to be deathly afraid of the fate in Hell.  This sermon can relate to this because it was said in the sermon that hell is a terrible place with fire where you will suffer for the rest of eternity.  
If I were to compare the two in which piece was more interesting, I would say the sermon was.  Most people would not think this, but the intense sermon was very interesting.  I though it was so interesting because it was insane to think that this man was thought of as holy and that he was trying to save people.  All he did was scare people to a point where they only worshiped God to prevent a life of being tortured forever.  In the Crucible, many people were scared, but there were also characters who did not care, like Abigail.  
Thus, this novel reflected the sermon in many ways through characters and events.  It showed the fear of God's wrath was important and that to others, they could not be factored.  Each piece was interesting in the way that the views differed. 

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, NY: Penguin, 1996. Print.

Edwards, Jonathan. "From Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 97-99. Print.

Act III: Human Nature

Human nature in the Crucible is an important aspect to know as a reader when trying to understand the story.  Human nature is such an important aspect to grasp when reading a story because it makes the story believable and relate able.  Humans can be devilish, innocent, and kind, and that is important to incorporate to a story so that the story is realistic.  In the crucible, there are many incidents of human nature being shown through the characters.

Putnam shows human nature through his selfishness.  He wants the trial to go on so he can get more land.  He does not regard any body's feelings and he is willing to hurt others to get his way.  George Jacobs life does not matter as long as Putnam will be able to purchase his land after he is hung.  This shows the negative side of human nature.  Humans can be manipulative and emotionless and Putnam shows this.

Another character that represents human nature would be Abigail.  Abigail shows human nature because she likes to rebel and cause trouble for entertainment.  She is tired of being in such a restricted society and this can be seen through her actions.  She causes trouble and claims that the devil is involved with her just to get a rise out of others.  She likes to cause all this trouble because she is bored of her life in this secure society.  A quote by Proctor shows that he knows why Abigail is acting in this way after he ended their affair:

"A man may think God sleeps, but God sees everything, I know it now. I beg you, sir, I beg you—see her what she is. . . . She thinks to dance with me on my wife’s grave! And well she might, for I thought of her softly. God help me, I lusted, and there is a promise in such sweat. But it is a whore’s vengeance" (Miller 110).

He says that it is a "whore's vengeance" and that she is just blaming Elizabeth because she is mad at Proctor (Miller 110).  Abigail shows another negative side of human nature because of her vengeful actions and pointless stirring up of the colony.

Proctor shows many human nature characteristics in this play.  He shows lust.  He lusts after Abigail although he is married to Elizabeth.  In the previous quote, he admits his actions to the whole court and the whole colony (Miller 110).  It put shame to his name, but it was admirable to admit because it could possibly save his wife.  While he might have done this too late, he still admitted it and in that judgemental and crazy society that must have been a hard thing to do.  Proctor shows some negative human traits like lust and betrayal.  He also shows the positive trait of owning up to what he did although it took him awhile. Proctor knows that he has done wrong, but unlike the other characters who would have hidden his secrets, he let them out to free his wife.

Therefore, there was many portayals of different traits that can be related to human nature.  There were many negatives in this certain play because of the subject, but of course other characters showed that there was a small shimmer of hope that not all the characters in this novel were completely bad.  Thus, human nature was easy to see through the various characters.

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, NY: Penguin, 1996. Print.

Journal #7: Bullying

Bullying is a very serious issue we have in today's society.  It effects more than just the victim of such bullying as well.  The bully can be effected very seriously as well.  To begin, the victim is obviously more effected.  The victim can be hurt beyond physical damage.  The victim can develop emotional issues and become depressed.  For example, if a bully starts a rumor that effects the victim's image then the victim might be made fun of or judged wrongly.  This leads to depression and it is a thing that should be avoided in today's society.  Bullying over the internet is also increasing the amount of teen depression and bullying.  It is easier to bully over the internet because you do not see the direct effects of your words on someone else.  There are many issues that can bloom through the horror of bullying.  The effects on the bully are usually not seen because they are obviously the bad guy in the situation.  They could be suffering just as much as the victim, but they put their feelings out in a terrible way by making fun of other people.  This is horrific, but in today's society of hiding feelings and who you are can lead to pent up aggression many bullies are proven to have.  The bully can get in a lot of trouble if they are mean to people.  They can end up in the office at school and get in huge amounts of trouble, even for cyber bullying.  Many kids at my school have gotten in trouble or been a victim of cyber bulling.  Many kids do not know that their words can be affecting  a persons will to live in a world where people are so mean to them.  It is important for kids and teenagers especially to know that words cut deep and are taken very seriously by certain people.  Bullying is such a horrendous thing and it should be stopped before it has a chance to effect kids and teenagers so harshly.

Journal #6

There are many things that can go wrong when you blame someone else for something they are not guilty of. Consequence is defined as the result of your actions. Whether they are good or not, they are considered to be a consequence. These consequences can be very bad and hurt people a lot.  For example, if Katie went to the store and stole a piece of bubblegum, but I blamed Jessie for it, Jessie would have to suffer the consequences, and Katie would not learn a lesson.  First of all, Jessie would have to do whatever happens when you steal something, like deal with the police and the store and pay a fine or whatever.  This would be very unfair and many people would label her as a thief and not let her into other stores.  Katie, on the other hand, would be chewing her bubblegum and not having a care in the world. This is almost worst then the punishment that Jessie faces because if Katie were to want to steal again, she could be in more trouble.  She would eventually build up to grand theft and then her consequences would be worse then ever.  This is horrible because if she were to have gotten caught the first time, her punishment would be better then the big punishment later.  She would learn her lesson and be on her way.  These lessons can be learned before you fault and try to blame someone else.  If you just take blame for what you have done, the world would be so much nicer.  We would not have many of the problems we have today in society with lying and false punishments being carried out.  This would make a world a difference in society because everyone would be friends.  There would be no blindsiding, or backstabbing, or bullying.  It would be a very extraordinary world.  It would be awesome and lovely and we would all join hands and sing until the end of the world in December.

Crucible Act Two Reflection

In class the other day, each student took a test that determined their personality type.  The four choices for the personality types were all different from each other.  The personality type I got was blue.  This color described me as being a helper.  I care about others and I try to help people through their problems.  This was the closest personality type to me because the other one's were not even close to my personality.  My second highest personality type was orange.  Orange is a doer.  Doer's go out and they do not analyze their decisions before making them.  They live in the moment and they are not very organized people.  This was somewhat close to me because I make impulsive decisions sometimes, but not all the time.  My next closest personality was green.  Green means that you are a thinker.  Thinkers have a different perspective on life then most people.  They analyze things very closely and always think every decision over and over.  This is not close to my personality.  The last personality type to choose from is the gold personality, or planner.  Planners are super organized and think every decision over multiple times.  They keep themselves busy and plan out every aspect of life.  This is the least personality like me, which makes sense because I am not organized at all!

Anyway, all this testing leads to the assignment which was to read Act II of the Crucible and to analyze the personality types of the characters using this test that we took in class the other day. The first character to analyze is Abigail.  Abigail seems to be a blue personality.   Blue people are described as people who keep to themselves, and they are very emotional.  Abigail displays passion and emotion during this novel through her rebelling against her colony.  She does not want to go with the colony anymore.  This passion makes her a blue personality.  A second character is also a blue, would be Mary Warrens.  She seems to be very quiet but still had very emotional and passion driven moments like Abigail.  Some different characters then them would be Reverend Hale.  He seems to be a very intelligent man and critical thinker.  He often analyzes things in a different way than other people and this leads me to think that he would be put into the green personality category.  He is very realistic in his thoughts and this makes him more green than anything else.  He says what he thinks because in this time period he believed in serving God as being their whole world, so he says what everyone is afraid of hearing.  Hale says:

"the Devil is alive in Salem, we dare not quail to follow wherever the accusing finger points!"(Miller 71).

This makes him green because he says his thoughts and that is what thinkers do.  They analyze then declare their thoughts.  Even though their thoughts may not be right, they still think and believe what they "know".

Therefore, the characters in this novel are very similar to us in ways.   Proven through this quiz, we possess many similar qualities with these characters.  

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, NY: Penguin, 1996. Print.

"True Colors." True Colors International. Baytech Web Design. Web. 9 September 2012.

Journal #5: 21st Century punishment

A fair punishment for the twenty-first century teenager would be to ground them from every technology and social aspect of their life.  They should be locked in a cupboard like Harry Potter.  It is not a good punishment to send them into their room because they could access the whole internet world from their cellular device.  If there was a child who was sent to their room, chances are they have a television, an xbox, and maybe even a smart phone.  This is awesome for kids, but they do not get to be disciplined correctly.  In this ever changing and advancing world, technology is always accessible. Through technology, you can mostly contact everyone in the world from your basement while you play World of Warcraft.  This is good for some aspects, but not for when your child is grounded.  This will have to be adapted to the current life because sending your no good child to their room will not do anything anymore.  Therefore, you should make a new room inside your house that has white walls and white floors.  The lighting should be fluorescent and there should be absolutely no furniture!  If there is, it will not be an effective punishment.  When your child does something bad, just lock them in this room for about 12 to 48 hours.  This will teach them a lesson.  Make sure there is no form of entertainment in this room as well.  Or else, your child will not be punished correctly. If you do want a small activity for your child to do while in this room, the following activities are acceptable: reading an atlas, getting a quill that makes a scar on your hand like Harry Potter, and making ceramic dolphins.  These activities will be so boring or painful that your child will never disobey you again.  Your kid will be begging you to give them chores to make you happy with them and they will never risk disobeying their masters(parents) again.  Hence, this is how to effectively punish those no good, dirty rotten, pig-stealing 21st century teenagers.

The Crucible act one reflection

The Crucible is a story about the life in Salem.  It is the story of a Reverend who's daughters are being "possessed" by the devil or participating in witchcraft.  It is a very interesting story compared to the other works relating to Puritan values.  It is a more interesting story that is meant to entertain.  It shows Puritan value because it has to do with the battle between God's people and these girls that are similar to witches and they seem to be showing signs of the devil dealing with them. The reverend tries to create sermons that show that his daughters are not showing signs of devil worship.  He tries to deny that anything is happening to his daughters.  His daughters also try and deny these happenings by saying that they were just being normal or they were too old for this childishness.  However, this shows the other end of the Puritan belief system.  This shows the dark side to what happens when you do not give your whole self to God.  This is such a different side to the stories we have been studying because it does not just show peoples love and respect for God, it shows their fear and denial to the believing of the devil.  It shows that not all puritans are good and pure.  It shows that some let the devil tempt them and they cannot change once they let him in. Parris says this about witchcraft in the play:

"Thomas, Thomas, I pray you, leap not to witchcraft. I know that you--you least of all, Thomas, would ever wish so disastrous a charge laid upon me. We cannot leap to witchcraft. They will howl me out of Salem for such corruption in my house." (Miller 14).

This shows that everyone was concerned with this problem of witchcraft.  Everyone fears the signs of witchcraft and Parris begs Thomas not to trust witchcraft.  This desperate plea from Parris shows how much he fears the fact that witchcraft is happening in Salem.

Another quote was from Mrs. Putnam;

"But I must! You think it God's work you should never lose a child, nor grandchild either, and I bury all but one?" (Miller 28).


This was also a different side to Puritan beliefs because it shows Mrs. Putnam is losing faith in God because she lost all of her children.  She thinks it is unfair for Putnam to think that he should keep all of his family and think that it would be God's will to keep him so fortunate, while God does not treat her as well as him.   She does not believe that Putnam should think of himself to be so lucky.  He does not deserve God's mercy more than anyone else in Mrs. Putnam's opinion.

My opinion of this play/story is way more positive compared to the other stories.  The other stories by Puritan writers were dull and lacked detail.  They could not express too much opinion without overstepping their Holy rules.  They were straight to the point and had no elaboration.  They just said what happened and moved along.  This story, however, is great.  It shows opinions, emotions, and actually has a good story line. It is telling an entertaining story rather then just reciting an event.  It is a way better change to be reading something that might actually be interesting to read!

Miller, Aurthur. The Crucible. New York: Penguin Group, 1976. Print

Journal #4: Travels

I went to Hawaii a few years ago.  It was an awesome experience, but there was a lot of traveling to be done.  I drove to the Springfield Airport at six in the morning.  After the thirty minute flight from Springfield to Chicago, I ate some Chili's buffalo wings.  I restored all of the energy I had lost.  Some people might think it is gross to eat buffalo wings before ten in the morning, but who cares what they think.  After that, I traveled around the airport to look for my gate to Hawaii.  It was about to be eight and a half hours on a plane.  I was getting nervous about being on a suspended floating bus 12345 Miles in the air.  I changed into my tie-dye sweatpants to make my trip more comfortable.  I started the long ride by plugging my headphones into my iPod. It was a good choice to start the trip off.  After that, I noticed that TV shows were on the television. Shows like 30 Rock, The Simpsons, and Friends were being played throughout my flight.  It made the flight less painful, but it still was such a long journey to be on.  The flight had eventually ended and it was lovely to land in the Honolulu airport.  I could finally stretch my legs and walk around.  Hawaii was beautiful, but I did not get to enjoy my first sights of this state because I was s exhausted from my journey.  This was disappointing because I was supposed to embrace the first beauties I saw in this awesome area.  This had a huge impact on me because it felt like I was ungrateful to experience the beauties of this place.  However, I got some rest and before I knew it I was traveling again. I boarded my cruise ship that would take me from one Hawaiian Island to the next.  The waters were very calm.  I saw great animals like whales, dolphins, and turtles.  Unfortunetly, there was one night that the water was very rough and I got sick.  This was another affect of travel.  Some people are not supposed to travel through sea.  Thus, those were my rough travels that seemed especially long!

Reflection "History of Plymouth Plantation"

Bradford had a Puritan writing style similar to the other women that we had observed the other day in class.  He mentions god on every page, he never says anything against his religion, and he thinks that the lord is responsible for every happening in his life.  In a passage in chapter 1, Bradford says:

"The one side laboured to have y right worship of God & discipline of Christ established in y church according to y simplicitie of y gospell wihtout the mixture of mens inventions, and to have & be ruled by y laws of Gods word, dispensed in those offices, & by those officers of Pastors, Teachers, & elders, & c."(Bradford 4).

This shows that some of his fellow Puritans had worked to please God.  He shows that every one of God's people have to work and do good things to earn a spot in the eternal life with God.  On the other end of this quote, it said that there was only "one side labuored to have y right worship of God & dicipline of Christ".  This shows that there were also people who did not worship God in the correct way.  This shows that Bradford judged other people who were not as strict on religion as he was.  This just proves his Puritan beliefs are strongly and accurately portrayed through his writing in this nonfiction piece.  

"The other partie, though under many colours & pretences, endevored to have y episcopall dignite with their large power & jurisdiction still retained: with all those courts, cannons, & ceremonies, togeather with all such livings, revenues, & subordinate officers, with other such means as formerly upheld their antichristian greatness, and enabled them with lordly & tyranous power to persecute y poore servants of God." (Bradford 4).

This was Bradford's opinion on the "antichristian" other group.  This sentence shows that the other group scared him and he would rather they honor his religion.  He thinks that the innovation that this group is developing is against God.  The thought of change seems scary to the Puritans.  This shows another aspect of Puritan belief because they do not like when other people believe other things then them.  While they do not push their religion too hard, they still make it knowing that they disapprove of other religions.  This passage of Bradford's is showing that.

He can be compared to the other authors in three aspects: belief, hope, and hard work.  All three authors believed in God.  They all followed his rules and spoke to him because they believe that God is there for them always.  Also, they all hoped.  They did not hope in a greedy way, but they prayed and asked for help and forgiveness.  They were never ungrateful, but they new that God had a plan for them and that he would not disappoint them.  Lastly, all three authors showed work ethic.  They all worked hard to earn a spot in heaven.  They never were spiteful to God.  They also gave forgiveness even when they had bad fortune.  This shows the Puritan beliefs were in the writing because as a reader, I gathered all that information.  It is very important to write in a unique way, and each Puritan author wrote in a way that the reader could understand their opinions on religion!




Bradford, William. "Chapter 1." History of Plymouth Plantation. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society, 1856. 1-10. Print.

Journal #3: Hostage Situation

If I was a hostage in a desperate situation I would try to discover an escape plan.  I would analyze every aspect of my situation and find a way to escape because I am a ninja.  I would use my special ninja skills to get out of there alive.  First, my kidnappers would take me because of my divine beauty.  My exact kidnapper would be Katie Hayes because she has always been jealous of my awesome personality and stunning good looks.  She would hire Audrey to distract me and then her friend Carl would tackle me and drag me into Katie's big suburban.   I would wake up in Katie's car, and then I would scream and shout until they pulled over and knocked me out.  Then I would wake up in a strange building full of kitten photos and smelly animals.  This was Katie's lair!  I ripped up some kitten photo's and Katie slapped me.  I was hysterical!! But I used my ninja skills to knock my evil competitor out of her senses.  Carl was trying to hunt me down after I chewed through the strong ropes that were binding my arms together.  Carl would turn every corner looking for me, but I was hiding on the ceiling because I can float sometimes if I focus a lot.  However, I sneezed and Carl found me but I floated away.  I then ran away but I shaved Katie's head for revenge before I left.  This was a very funny thing to do because Katie looks like Danny now.  I escaped with minor scrapes and bruises.  I forgave Katie though, because she thought she looked like Natalie Portman from V for Vendetta, but she did not at all!  I felt bad because she was so delusional, so I did not punish her more.  The haircut was bad enough Katie and I became friends after a while though, because Carl thought we should rekindle the friendship.  Her hair grew back and now she looks more like Slash, but we are best friends now.

Reflection Blog: Mary Rowlandson and Anne Bradstreet

Mary Rowlandson shows her Puritan views in this passage in many ways.  Puritan's basically followed religious morals and kept faith in their god although they were going through hard times.   Rowlandson wrote about her time in captivity due to the Native Americans.  She was not treated very well during this time.  The Native Americans did not provide her food or shelter. A page would not go by without mention of God or some religion related mention.  A quote that revealed that Rowlandson stuck to her Puritan views very well:

"And my poor girl, I knew not where she was, nor whether she was sick or well, alive or dead. I repaired under these thoughts to my Bible (my great comforter in that time) and that scripture came to my hand." (Rowlandson 85).

She said that her bible was "my great comforter in that time" which shows that she shows so much love for the bible and the story within (Rowlandson 85).  This is a good example of Puritan  writing because it shows that her faith was the most comforting thing she had in her life at one time.  Although her life was awful at this time, she still believed in her god and that her god would help her. She also showed that she was polite which can be a Puritan value.  She never though of how unfair her life was, she just kept looking forward to her life getting better.  She was never ungrateful for what life had thrown at her, which seems like a Puritan value to me. Another quote that explains her thankfulness for her lord is:

"I have since thought of the wonderful goodness of God to me, in preserving me so in the use of my reason and my senses in that tough time, that I did not use wicked and violent means to end my own miserable life."(Rowlandson 83).

This quote was so important to point out because it basically sums up the Puritan values very well.  Rowlandson was at the end of her rope, so to say, after the death of her "babe" or child (Rowlandson 83).  She thanked God for keeping her sane and keeping her from giving up on her life.  Puritan's were so faithful to God that they think that he is the reason that they live and breath for every second they spend on Earth.  

Bradstreet was also a very Puritan writer.  She wrote about how religion and God was so important to her during the burning down of her house.  She did not reveal her love for God as much as Rowlandson, but she still showed her Puritan values in her poem.  A certain passage from her writing stuck our as an important mention of God:

And to my God did my heart cry, to strengthen me in my distress, and not to leave me succorless (Bradstreet 91).

This shows that she turned to God in her time of need.  Bradstreet showed her love for God and her faith by showing that she wanted to cry to God for strength to get her through this event.  While she did not show as much evidence of her need for God and her thankfulness for God as Rowlandson, she still showed her Puritan values.  

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

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