Reflection: Analyze Two Poems

The two poems that I have chose to analyze are "Autumn" by Longfellow and "April" by John Greenleaf Whittier. I picked these two poems because they were both about seasons. I figured if they were on the same topic it would be easier to compare and contrast them.

Autumn was a very interesting poem to read. Longfellow used a lot of descriptive words to get his point across. It was mainly about the season of Autumn and how they were going to be ready for it. "Autumn" was a happy poem because the speaker discussed how the farmers were prepared and excited for the season. Longfellow made Autumn a happy time for all. Using metaphors describing Autumn as a bright time, he was definitely a fan of Autumn.

Greenleaf's poem "April" was also on the happier side of poetry. It, like "Autumn," described the season and all the joy it brings. For example, the following lines from this poem really describedthe season (lines 35-37).

Revive with the warmth and the brightness again,

And in blooming of flower and budding of tree

The symbols and types of our destiny see.

I think that Greenleaf and Longfellow were both two men who really appreciated nature. They each used a lot of description to describe the season that they chose to write about. They also seemed to talk about the positives of the seasons they picked. All seasons have some down sides, but Longfellow and Greenleaf only wrote about the positives.

Greenleaf used a lot more description than Longfellow, though. He seemed to use more metaphors and was more creative for his words. The next lines from this poem I am going to share is my favorite part of Greenleaf's poem (Lines 23-25).

O soul of the spring-time, its light and its breath,
Bring warmth to this coldness, bring life to this death;
Renew the great miracle; let us behold

I like this part of the poem because it gives the season human characteristics. It also uses a lot of symbolism. I really find this passage interesting. "Bring warmth to this coldness, bring life to this death" (line 24) is my favorite line in the whole poem. The speaker of this poem writes this line as if something as little as a season can bring someone a reason for living and an answer to their problems. He makes April sound like God in this line. I find it really creative and one of the best lines of poetry that I have heard before.

According to Randall Huff, Greenleaf's first exposure to poetry was from the bible. I find this interesting because Greenleaf's poem had nothing to do about religion. By Huff's point, it seems as if Greenleaf belonged in the Puritan time period. If I did not read his poem, that is probably what I would have thought. After reading this poem and reading a little more about Greenleaf himself, I think I will read some of his other work. He really seems to be an interesting man and his poetry seems just wonderful.

Greenleaf, John. "April by John Greenleaf Whittier." PoemHunter.Com - Thousands of Poems and Poets.. Poetry Search Engine. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. .

Longfellow, Henry. "Sonnets. Autumn. The Belfry of Bruges and Other Poems. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 1893. Complete Poetical Works." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. .

Huff, Randall. "Whittier, John Greenleaf." The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 1. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007.Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CPAP0476&SingleRecord=True (accessed December 11, 2011).

journal 20

Autumn was a very interesting poem to read. Although it is still pretty early in the morning and by my brain really had to work hard at analyzing this poem, I think I finally understood it. This poem is talking about Autumn. It is also talking about all the things that Autumn brings and the effects of the land and people it has.I think that the speaker of this poem is preparing for Autumn. They seem to be ready for it, but a little upset because of the rain that will come with it. The verse on line 12,

"Like flames upon an altar shine the sheaves," is a metaphor comparing flames to the shine of the sheaves. I would think that flames would bring brightness and color to the sheaves. Beings that the sheaves are already shining, I think that Longfellow is trying to say that Autumn is going to be very bright and colorful.

Longfellow also writes about the farmer's dealing with Autumn. He says that Autumn is going to bless the farms (Line 8).

This poem definitely belongs in the Romanticism time period. Longfellow uses a lot of different references to nature, such as farming and the leaves. Nature was a big part of Romanticism because nature involved a a lot of creativity. It took creativity to be able to describe something like the dew on a leaf. Longfellow used a lot of metaphors in this poem. One of the main ways to express creativity in the Romanticism time period was through poetry. The final way that Romanticism characteristics were shown throughout this poem was through description. Longfellow described all of the little things. He paid close attention to the finer things in life. Describing the season of Autumn, he made you get excited for Autumn and think of all the things Autumn brings with it. With all of these characteristics of Romanticism writing, Longfellow definitely fit in with his time period.

Longfellow. "Sonnets. Autumn. The Belfry of Bruges and Other Poems. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 1893. Complete Poetical Works." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. Web. 08 Dec. 2011. .

Reflection: A Fireside Poem

The poem I chose was called "The Chambered Nautilus" written by Oliver Wendell Holmes.

This poem could be interpreted in many different ways, and it can have different meanings to different people. This poem's main subject is a sea creature called a Nautilus. This nautilus lives inside a shell, and the shell changes and grows over time. Oliver Wendell Holmes uses a metaphor between the shell of a nautilus and the human soul. The speaker of the poem says that he hears a voice singing a heavenly message (lines 29-35). The heavenly message was:

Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul,
As the swift seasons roll!
Leave thy low-vaulted past!
Let each new temple, nobler than the last,
Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast,
Till thou at length art free,
Leaving thine outgrown shell by life’s unresting sea!

I think that this can be interpreted in many different ways. I think that life, like the nautilus shell, will also grow and change. I think that this message is encouraging people to be themselves and that it is okay to change. It is saying that people changing is a part of nature.

This poem has a lot of different examples to show that it belonged in the Romanticism period. The Romanticism period was full of creativity. This poem was very creative. It involved a lot of nature, just like other writings of the Romanticism period. Nature is a very creative subject. Oliver Holmes also used a lot of descriptions. He described things and paid close attention to little detail. His subject of the poem, the nautilus shell, was described as a beautiful thing that changed due to nature. Comparing that to a human life, Holmes created a wonderful metaphor that people could still use today. Metaphors are very creative. One of the key ways to show your creativity during the Romanticism period was through writing poems. Holmes definitely belonged during the Romanticism time period.

In Randall Huff's literary criticism, he talks about how this poem includes a lot of references to Greek mythology. He also talks about a metaphor involving human architecture (Huff). Another thing that he wrote about was the moral of this poem. I thought that the moral of this story was to not be afraid of changing and growing. Just like the nautilus shell, I thought Holmes was trying to encourage others to grow, change, and just be yourself in life. Randall Huff interpreted the moral as to continuing to grow spirituality (Huff).

Poetry can be interpreted in many different ways. That is the beauty of poetry. One person can be completely right and give support for why a poem is saying one thing while someone can give a perfectly good other reason. I enjoy reading poetry, interpreting it, and listening to other people's interpretations.

Holmes, Oliver W. "801. The Chambered Nautilus. Oliver Wendell Holmes. 1909-14. English Poetry III: From Tennyson to Whitman. The Harvard Classics." Bartleby.com: Great Books Online -- Quotes, Poems, Novels, Classics and Hundreds More. Web. 07 Dec. 2011.

Huff, Randall. "'The Chambered Nautilus'." The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 1. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007.Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CPAP0070&SingleRecord=True (accessed December 8, 2011).

Reflection: The Devil and Tom Walker

Washington Irving's short story, The Devil and Tom Walker, has many examples of Romanticism in it.

Romanticism was a very interesting time period. A lot of people admire this time period. This time was known for people trying to be more artistic and creative. The main way that this was done was through poetry. During this time period, poetry was very popular. Making up stories and telling them with creative words was also very popular. Writing short stories was Washington Irving's way of embracing the Romanticism period.

Washington Irving had examples of Romanticism in his work by using detail. He explained everything and paid a lot of attention to little details. In the following text taken from The Devil and Tom Walker, it is obvious that Irving fit in well with the Romanticism period (Irving).

On one side of this inlet is a beautiful dark groove; on the opposite side the land rises abruptly from the water's edge, into a high ridge on which grew a few scattered oaks of great age

In this example, you can see how Washington Irving used a lot of detail. In previous times, a writer would not spend this much time describing the setting of the story. But in the Romanticism time period, a lot of attention was paid to the little things. The little things were found beautiful and interesting. It was a great way to be creative by describing your views on nature. Beings that Washington Irving used nature and creativity in his writing, he fit the profile for a writer in the Romanticism period perfectly.

Even though Washington Irving wrote both Rip Van Winkle and The Devil and Tom Walker, I think the two writings are very different from each other. Rip Van Winkle was more of a comedy. It seems like its sole purpose is to entertain the reader. The Devil and Tom Walker seems like a deeper story. It has a moral to it and it deals with religion, while Rip Van Winkle is more fun and deals with fictional characters.

In Rip Van Winkle, a boy is summoned to help out with a party by bringing a keg. After drinking his fair share, he then falls into a sleep and awakes later in his life (Bruccoli). When he awakes, he finds that the village is different and his wife is dead. He then lives with his daughter (Bruccoli). In this story, it seems as though Rip has an identity crisis when he wakes up. The reader would like the story at the beginning, thinking that it was all fun and games, but now the reader can develop a feeling of sadness when they see what Rip is going through.

In The Devil and Tom Walker, Tom lives with a nagging wife and is very frustrated. He then meets the devil and strikes up a deal so that he can become rich. Once he gets older, he tries to get out of the deal, but the devil does not like that (Irving).

These two stories are similar in a couple ways. Both of them have a wife as a a character. The wife seems to be a little annoying in both stories. Both of these stories also share a common setting. A forest is mentioned in both of these writings. In The Devil and Tom Walker, Tom Walker meets the devil in the forest. In Rip Van Winkle, Rip comes from the forest at the beginning of the story.

In the literary criticism I chose, it discussed Rip Van Winkle in a different way than I thought when I read it. It pointed out some very important details that I did not catch. It also described how two different era's were included, one before Rip fell asleep and one after (Bruccoli). I found that to be true and very interesting.

Works Cited

Irving, Washington. "'The Devil and Tom Walker' Short Story." Books & Literature Classics. About. Web. 06 Dec. 2011. .

Bruccoli, Matthew J., and Judith S. Baugman. "Rip Van Winkle." Student's Encyclopedia of American Literary Characters. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= SEOALC395&SingleRecord=True (accessed December 6, 2011).

journal 16

There are a lot of different ways that you could communicate with group members.

The most obvious way to communicate is the internet. There are several different sites and tools on the internet for communication. Some different things that you can use are Facebook, Twitter, email, video chat, and so much more.

Facebook is probably what a lot of people having this project will use. Beings that a lot of teenagers already use this, it will be easy to send friend requests to your group members. After they accept your friend request, it is possible for the two group members to chat by instant messaging, normal messaging, and video chat.

Email is another way to communicate that a lot of people will use. It is easy because you can directly talk to someone. You can also send it to multiple people. If your group needs a discussion, then email is probably the way to go. Although it is a little slower than Facebook instant messaging, it might be easier and more direct to use email.

Another way to communicate is Twitter. I know that a lot of people in my class were excited to use Twitter. Personally, I think that connecting via Twitter is pointless. You can't really directly talk to anyone and it seems like you wouldn't get much done.

Video chat would also be an easy thing to use. Video chat using Skype would probably be the best because Skype is a trustworthy program. You could directly talk to your group members as if they were with you. If you like doing things in person, this way would probably be the best way to interact. It may be a harder way to communicate, though. Having a video chat means that both people have to be able to chat at the exact time. When you use email, the group can email back whenever they are available. Since not everyone is available at the same time, video chat may be a little harder to use.

Thanatopsis Reflection Blog

The poem Thanatopsis is a very deep and depressing poem. Since thanatopsis literally means "View of death" you can tell that this poem is not going to be a happy one (Huff). This poem starts off with a not so depressing view on death. It sort of shows the views of death from a younger person's point of view, explaining how they do not really worry about it and how it happens all the time to other people. William Cullen Bryant, the writer of this poem, basically writes about how death happens. There is no way to avoid it. When it is your time, there is nothing you can do to escape it. He also claims that people should not really be afraid of dying. At the beginning of the poem, it seems that death is not real to him. It is almost as if he will welcome death when the time comes, but at the beginning it will not happen.

The Romanticism period really relates to this poem. During this time period, creativity was very important. Creativity was to Romanticism like God was to the Puritan time period. During this time period, one of the most important ways to show creativity was to write poems. William Cullen Bryant was very deep in this poem as he expressed his views on death. I found it very interesting how he viewed death. He explained some things that I would not be able to explain in words. Death is a very hard thing to talk about, but he was creative enough to write about what others wish they could find the words for. Not only did he find the words for it, but he made the words flow in a beautiful way.
In this poem, he seems to talk about a girl in a very high way. It seems like he thinks the world of her. For example, he says that "she speaks a various language, for his greyer hours..." (Bryant lines 2-3) and "she glides into his darker musings" (Bryant lines 5-6). These two passages that I took from Thanatopsis really make me happy. I feel that he used the perfect words to describe his feelings. He obviously felt strong feelings towards a subject, but this subject could be a number of different things. I am sure that different readers of this poem feel that he could hae been writing about a number of things. Although it is very easy to argue about what he was talking about, I think that it is clear that whatever he was talking about he felt very strongly about.
I wish that I could write like he did. The way he just magically through all of these words together amazes me. They were beautiful and it was a very interesting poem to read. I will probably venture out and read more by William Cullen Bryant. This poem really interested me. He seems like he was a very talented man.
Bryant definitely belonged in the Romanticism period. His life poem was very descriptive and showed a lot of beauty even when he was writing about a depressing subject.

journal 19

Nature and spirituality are very important in the cycle of life and death. Nature seems to be in your life as soon as you are born. As a child, your parents are always bugging you to go outside and play. I know that the phrases I heard day after day, such as "It's a beautiful day, go enjoy it!" or "Get off the computer and go outside," were always a delight to hear. And by delight, I mean an annoyance. You also see nature in school. I think that in every science class I had in elementary and middle school, nature was involved. We had trips to the habitat to look at bugs, trees, leaves, the pond, and so much more. We studied nature.

Spirituality also seems to start right at birth. In this day and age, most kids are the same religion as their parents. For example, my parents were raised Christian, so they raised me to be a Christian. I will probably raise my children to be Christian as well unless they choose otherwise. People of all religion seem to raise their children to be the same religion as them. With multiple churches per town, spirituality is hard to ignore. I am sure that even Atheists contemplate spirituality.

Spirituality is not just religion, spirituality could also be believing in ghosts. I believe in ghosts and spirits. I have heard so many stories that you never know are true or not, but they seem believable. My parents do not believe in ghosts, so I guess I went with my own path on that choice. Some of the things that I have heard makes me believe in ghosts and spirits.

Spirituality is very important because it brings creativity. Without believing in something, you kind of just live your life and then disappear. Some people who believe strongly in a religion think that there is no point to living if there is no God. The point of life to some people is to prove to your God that you are worthy to live with him. Religion gives people something to believe them and gives them hope for something better with their lives.

Spirituality and religion are very important in the circle of life and death, especially to someone who believes in a religion.

Reflection: Fireside Poets

The fireside poets use very different writing styles than the previous writer's that we have read in our English class. According to our textbook, the fireside poets were a group of highly popular American poets of the 18th century. These poets got their name because people thought that their stories would be good to be told be a fire (Wilhem 210). They were also great at creating vivid pictures of the New England country side. These poets were William Current Bryant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, John Greenleaf Whittier, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and James Russel Howell. These poets told great narrative poems and had very vivid lyrics. (Wilhem 210).

The oldest writer, WIlliam Current Bryant, was influenced mainly by English Romantic poets. He wrote a lot about wild life. He was the first to talk about the American landscape in words (Wilhelm 210). I find this very interesting. He gets a lot of credit for being the first to do this because a lot of people nowadays write about landscapes and about nature. Since he was the first, he was kind of the most creative for starting it. He started something that is still happening even today. I think that is pretty amazing.

The first writing we looked at was the Puritan writing style. This writing was based on a religion. Another writing we looked at was Rationalism. Rationalism was a time of logic and reasoning. The people in this time period seemed to focus more on the logical reasons of things instead of just blaming everything on religion. It was different than anything that has ever been before because it found logical reason for things. It took more effort to think of a scientific reason for something when you could just say it was because God wanted it to be that way. For example, when I was little my mom told me the sky was blue because that was the color that God picked it to be. Later in my life, I have learned in science classes the real reason why the sky is blue.

Another example involves Benjamin Franklin. Franklin seemed to use logic for everything instead of just blaming things on God. He tried to think of reasons for things, such as reasons for his life to be better (Franklin). He had thirteen virtues which were things that he wanted to improve on with his life. He wrote this and really thought about a plan to make them happen. I think that he truly believe that he would succeed with this because of how much thought he put into it. Even though he planned it out nicely, actually doing all of these virtues were harder than they were thought to be. For example, silence would be a hard virtue to succeed in (Franklin). In this day and age, quiet never happens. People like to talk and hate silence because it can sometimes be an awkward time. It would be hard to keep to yourself unless you are spoken to. Everyone has an opinion, and everyone wants that opinion to be heard. Since we live in a world where everyone's opinion is supposed to matter, silence is not virtued anymore.

The next period (the period after Rationalism) was the Romanticism period, which we are currently learning about. This time period really interests me. It seems to include logic, emotion, and interesting reasons to it. It doesn't just focus on scientific things. It is more of a deep time period. Instead of wanting freedom as a whole, people want more individual freedom.

Wilhelm, Jeffrey D., and Douglas Fisher. Glencoe Literature. New York: Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009. 210-111. Web. 21 Nov. 2011.

Franklin, Benjamin. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Henry Altemus. 1895. Print.

Journal 18

Autumn is a great time of the year. Autumn has a lot of perfect days because of the nice weather. Beings that I hate wind, the perfect day would not have a lot of it. It would be a still day with colorful leaves everywhere. Leaves would be falling from the trees and I'd be crunching then as I walked. I would notice the nice weather more at a park, such as Washington park. I smell the scent of a burning fire, maybe someone was burning leaves in the neighborhood. I would hear laughter of all the children enjoying the beautiful day outside as dogs innocently barked. It would be a pretty quite, peaceful day. On a nice fall day, I might want to eat a nice apple from a local farmer's market. When I think of the perfect day, I also think of the perfect, fresh food. I would enjoy going to a local farmer's market and getting some fruit for the week on a nice day. I would see all the beautiful colors that autumn brings, but at the same time I would think of how ironic it was that the leaves were most beautiful when they were dying. Most things get old and brittle when they begin to die, but it turns out that they are at the most beautiful point. They have beautiful, bright colors that my eyes get lost in. I love Autumn. It is my favorite time of the year. It is also a lot of other people's favorite time of the year. The reason that a lot of people enjoy this time of the year is because it is peaceful. It is not too hot or too cold, it is just right. I love going for runs during a perfect day in Autumn because you can crunch the leaves and look at all the changes that nature brings.

journal 17

My family are huge campers. They have a huge RV and they go to random places across the country at least once a month. They have there favorite spots, but sometimes they just drive until they find a campsite that they think they would enjoy for the weekend.

When I was younger, I would join my family on these trips. We would go hiking, biking, and just hang out around the campfire. I would really enjoy it. As I got older, I got more bored with the trips. I found nature to be a little annoying and sometimes being without a telephone signal was hard. Being in the same place without being able to communicate with anyone besides your family for a week was not appealing to me anymore. That is why lately I have not joined my parents on these trips.

I did decide to go to one trip during the summer to Florida because my parents really wanted me to go and I decided the ocean would be nice to see again. While I was there, I went on the beach during a rain storm. It was pretty cool because I was the only one I could see on the beach. I just kind of stared out into the ocean and watched the waves get bigger and bigger. It made me think of how little I was to the rest of the world and how vast the world really was. I just stood there in water a couple inches above my ankles. I was the perfect temperature. It was a really great moment for me. I really enjoyed just being there and bonding with nature. It was calming. It was also a great time to think about life and just focus on what really matters. With everyone else hiding under a deck or back in their beach houses, I just stayed there and enjoyed the silence. I really enjoyed that moment and will be joining my family to Florida again next year.

Journal 15

There are a lot of different things people can do to communicate with other people in other ways than being in the same room with them. There are many social networking sites that enable people to communicate and become friends without even meeting.

One site that is very popular and nice for communicating is Facebook. Facebook has a chat setting which enables people to communicate. It also has video call. Video call is where two parties have a web cam and they see and hear each other through the computer. A lot of people use video call to communicate.

Another popular social networking tool to use would be email. Emailing was very popular a couple years ago, but lately the need for emailing has faded with texting and other social networking sites. Emailing is still used, but I don't think it as used as much now that there are more tools to use that are easier and involve less steps.

These days, long distance relationships mean a whole new thing. You can still see and talk with someone like they are in the same room. The only problem is that you can not physically touch the person. You can still communicate with talking and looking at the other person. This makes long distance relationships not as hard as they used to be.

In a partner needing project, it would obviously be easier to be in the same class as your partner. You would get to physically make sure that they are doing their share of the work. When you are working with someone as they are working right next to you, it usually keeps you on track more. You would have to keep up with your partner and the two of them would get work done together. When you are not physically with your partner, it would definitely be easier to get distracted. It would also be a lot easier for one partner to do all the work.

Reflection: Franklin's System of Virtues

In my opinion, Benjamin Franklin was becoming a better person with his system of virtues. Dictionary.com defines virtue as "moral excellence, goodness, or rightousness" or as a "good or admirable trait in a person" (Virtue). I think he was successful at being a better person.

Franklin came up with thirteen different values that he was going to follow to become a better person. Knowing that a person just can not change over night, he came up with a plan to slowly get him to where he wanted to be(Franklin 15). His plan would take thirteen weeks, and each week he would add a new virtue. If he failed one of the weeks, which he did not think he would, he would place a check mark by it. If he was successful in not putting any checks for a whole week, he would move on to the next. It turned out that he was not as successful as he thought. He realized that he was even harder to change than he thought. He realized that it was going to take him longer than he thought to be successful. Some were harder and some were easier. For example, he had a very hard time with silence, but did not have a hard time with temperance (Franklin 15).

When Benjamin Franklin first had this idea, I am sure that he thought it was brilliant. On paper, I think it is a good idea, too. But reality is that changing is hard for people. Even dropping a bad habit takes a lot of time and self motivation, so actually changing would be even harder. To put it into perspective, think of a diet. There are millions of diets out there that only work for a small amount of the population who uses them because they do not want to change. They think they want to change and they do for awhile, but after a certain amount of time they just want to go back to their own ways.

Benjamin Franklin seemed like a very smart man. Not only did he seem like one, but he actually was one. He came up with a lot of new insights and ideas. He was always aware of the things around him. Since he kept a small journal with his plan with him all the time, he was definitely trying to complete his goal. I bet he did better with the plan than I could have. I do not have a lot of self motivation. Benjamin Franklin, who was an incredibly smart man, could not even complete his plan, so there is no way that I could even come close to being successful with it.

Even though Benjamin Franklin did not succeed, I am sure he became a much better person. His plan was made with all good intentions. He was definitely successful with becoming a better person even if he could not finish his plan. In Tuckerman's criticism, he talked about how Benjamin Franklin was a very smart man who could make amazing plans that would be awesome if people could follow through with (Bloom, Harold). He was concerned with small details that could make him a better person. Tuckerman explained how Franklin believed that small details in a person could make all the difference.

Works Cited

"Virtue | Define Virtue at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 31 Oct. 2011.

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.

Franklin, Benjamin. Autobiography. Harvard University, 1895. Print.

Reflection: Franklin's Virtues and Deism

According to dictionary.com, deism is defined as follows: Belief in a God who created the world but has since remained indifferent to it or as belief in the existence of God on evidence of reason and nature only (Deism). For me, this definition is plane and simple, which makes it easy to understand.

Benjamin Franklin was very modest in religion (The Religion). "The Religion of Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father" states that "he did not attempt to wither Christianity by ridicule or bludgeon it to death by argument" (The Religion). He was a confirmed Deist, and yet he still respected other people and their religions. I find this to be an extremely good characteristic to have. I think everyone should have their own religion and believe whatever they want to believe. I think it goes too far when someone tries to shove their religion down your throat, though. People should not be pressured into being a certain religion. During this time, religion was more important than it is today. People had to be a certain religion to survive in certain areas. People also seemed to think that their religion was right and wanted to convert everyone to their religion. I was surprised to read that Franklin was modest about his religion, but happy to hear it at the same time.

With his father being a true Puritan, I would expect that Franklin would be, too (The Religion). His parents wanted him to be a minister of the gospel, so they educated him with everything he needed to know. He did not like what doing with his life, so he stopped (The Religion). I was really rather surprised to hear this. I assumed that he would continue with what his parents had planned for him. During this time period, people usually just followed in their family's foot steps. They did not really pick their own path and make their own decisions. I am surprised at how different Franklin is from the rest of his time period. He is way more advanced.

Being an active reader of the philosophy of Deism, Benjamin Franklin definitely had all the facts about it before he started to believe it. He studied works from famous philosophers such as Descartes, Locke, Bacon, and Voltaire (Deist). Deism kind of went with the new thinking revolution of this time period. People were not wanting to blame God for everything anymore. Deism puts religion and reason in the same thing, which is really cool. When philosophers applied science to religion, they found that it was necessary to strip revelation and ended up with Deism (Deist). Deism is a natural religion (Deist).

I think it is cool how we started reading about Puritan writing and everything was because God said it was. If something good happened, it was God's doing. If something bad happened, it was God's doing and you had to change your ways that way something bad would not happen again. Later, people started becoming obsessed with reasoning. They would give a reason for everything and not blame God for anything. After those two extremes, they have reached Deism. Deism, being a mixture or religion and reason, seems like the perfect in between. I think it's really cool how we studied these things in the way that we did.

Works Cited

"The Religion of Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father." World Religions Religion Statistics Geography Church Statistics. June-July 2005. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. .

"Deism | Define Deism at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. .

"Deist Roots of America." Welcome To The Deism Site! Web. 26 Oct. 2011. .

Franklin, Benjamin. Autobiography. Harvard University, 1895. Print.

journal 14

An average day being Benjamin Franklin's apprentice would be an interesting position. Being an apprentice means that you learn from a master or leader. With Benjamin Franklin as your teacher, you would definitely learn a lot. He was an extremely intelligent man. You would learn a lot of new things and you would also learn a lot of new ideas about those new things.

Waking up to the smell of fresh bacon cooking by the help seems like a normal morning for Benjamin Franklin. I assume that you would be living either with him or near by that way you can really get a feel for what he does. Waking up early in the morning, Franklin's apprentice maybe would wake up around the same time as Benjamin Franklin does. I assume that the apprentice would try and do about everything that Franklin does that way he can get the full idea of everything he does. After eating a nice breakfast, together they might do some morning chores. Those might be cleaning up after themselves and taking care of any cleaning that needs to get done. After getting some house cleaning and chores done, they may go into his office or thinking room, they may get started on a speech or a study. After spending some time doing their private studies, they might attend a sermon or visit someone who could help them figure something else. Back in their time, it would be hard to plan ahead to visit and listen to a professor, so they may just go visit someone of higher knowledge to help them figure something out. The apprentice would learn how to work a printing press and other basic things before learning about what Benjamin Franklin really does, just like any other job. Benjamin Franklin's apprentice would be a lucky guy.

Journal 13

What is today's American dream? What does it mean to be successful today? Being successful in this day in age means a very different thing for everyone. With so many different choices in life, everyone can choose a different path.

Being a teenager, I am always choosing a different path, or dream, with my life. Currently my dream in life is to create my own little business, such as a frozen yogurt shop. I realize that this will take a lot of money, so I may have to put in a lot of extra time and work before I complete my goal. I am also not good with math, so this may not be the best idea for me. Without thinking of all the negatives of this, doing this would be my personal American dream.

An American dream nowadays would probably involve making a lot of money. Money is a very important thing. Everyone wants as much money as possible. There are a lot of good and bad ways to make money, but a lot of people these days choose the bad way because it is easier. Society has made people want money so they can waste it on things such as fast food, even though they have plenty of food at home.

Being successful definitely means having a lot of money. Also, being successful means being better than someone else. Society has us believing that we should be better than other people by being skinnier, prettier, more nice, having more money, etc. When you are better than someone else, you feel accomplished. It is just the way people are. Everyone wants to be better than everyone else, but that is impossible. Only one person can be the best at something, so that means everyone else is competing to be the best. Being successful means being the best at something. After trying for awhile and realizing that you cannot be the best, then a lot of people give up. Hopefully people can learn to be as good as they can be and not let other people effect them.

Journal 12

If I were to make up my own reals for right and wrong, I have no idea what they would be. I am bad with decision making and being the boss. I like to be a follower. If I had to make up my own rules, I would probably ask people what would work best for them. I would possibly make a poll with choices and choose what other people want and what would benefit them.

I would think long and hard before making such an important decision. Something I would consider would be the speed that you drive in your car. I think that some of the speed limits are ridiculously slow. If someone wants to drive fast in an area where there are no pedestrians, they should be allowed to drive fast. Another thing I would really try and hammer down on is cops violating their privileges. Every time I see a police car go by me, they are always speeding. If they can give us a ticket for speeding, then they should not speed themselves. It is really not fair and really makes me upset. I think other people would agree with this rule as well.

Another rule that I would consider would be an ethical issue. When I go and walk in the park, no one even acknowledges each other. They just walk past without even making eye contact and smiling. When I was down in Texas, everyone greeted each other- even if it was a just a smile. I tried to do the same here by greeting people as they walk by in the park, but people seem so surprised by the random act of kindness that they just look at you in shock. It is pretty sad when people cannot even recognize kindness as a every day thing. I think being nice to people should definitely be a right that everyone should do their best to abide by. Being rude is definitely a wrong.

Reflection: Franklin's Writing

Anne Bradstreet wrote "Upon the Burning of a House," which was written in the Puritan writing style. This means it was based on God. Puritans lived by a strict set of rules with their religion. They had many morals and principles that were mandatory to follow. They wrote about them, making a Puritan writing style. God was the focus of a Puritan's writing. Anne Bradstreet used God in an uplifting way. She talked about how she was losing so much, but she was still content because she knew God had a plan. For example, "and to my God my heart did cry to strengthen me in my distress and leave me not to succorless" and "...a price so vast as unknown yet by His gift is made thine own; there's wealth enough, I need no more..." (Bradstreet 91). In these passages, Bradstreet is in despair. The house is burning down as well as all of her belongings. Everything she had is now burning away forever, yet she is still leaning to God and thanking him for everything he has given her. She believes that he will take care of her and none of this matters. To have that much faith seems impossible, but she seems to portray it.

Ben Franklin is not a Puritan writer. He does not talk about God. He does not blame God on anything. He does not say that his listeners have to do what he says because God told them to do so. Instead of taking the easy way out and using God as an excuse, he used reason to get his point across. He was a rational writer.

Another writing was "From a Narrative of Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson. " This writing was also another Puritan writing. It used God as reason. Instead of an actual reason for something, the blame and the gratefulness automatically went to God. I did not have my textbook with me, so I used an article from the Department of History. In this writing, Mary states that "I have seen the extreme vanity of this world: One hour I have been in health, and wealthy, wanting nothing. But the next hour in sickness and wounds, and death, having nothing but sorrow and affliction" (Rowlandson). She blamed and thanked God for everything that has happened to her. This woman lost her child and was held captive. When most people would hate God for putting him or her in that kind of position, she prayed to him and loved him. It was pretty amazing. She had so much faith. There was no way that I would be able to do what she did in that situation. She also learned how to forgive. She realized they were not such bad people. She realized that her old, horrible thoughts were not true and these people were not too bad. In the beginning of the story, she said that "...if the Indians should come, I should choose rather to be killed by them than taken alive" (Rowlandson). This is how much she hated them and how bad she thought of them.

Works Cited

Franklin, Benjamin. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 104- 108. Print.

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. 91. Print.

Rowlandson, Mary.. "The Narrative of the Captivity and the Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson." Department of History. The College of the State of Island, 2000. Web. 13 Oct. 2011.

Journal 11

An aphorism is "a short, point statement that expresses a wise or clever observation about human experience" according to our textbook. There are a lot of different aphorisms. Some are more clever than others, but they all get their own point across. The aphorism that I will be discussing for three hundred and twenty five words will be "The older a man gets, the farther he had to walk to school as a boy." The author of this quote was unknown.

I found this aphorism extremely funny and a great aphorism. When I was younger, i would always complain about walking to the end of our drive way to my bus stop. We had a very long drive way, and I always hated walking to the end of it. I complained- saying that all my friend's parents drive them to the bus stop. My dad would always come back with the same line: I had to walk to school uphill both ways so I think you can handle walking to the end of the drive way. Parents are always saying how lucky us kids have it with our technology and with how "well" we are treated by our parents. I can not speak for other parents, but mine occasionally go on rants about how hard they had it. They used certain complaints such as "we never got to pick what we had for dinner. Ma put a plate down in front of us, and whatever it was, we were grateful to eat!" Using the same complaints over the course of my childhood, I have memorized their most used ones. Knowing their stories, when I hear them again and they change by getting a little worse, I know that they are exaggerating. That makes me wonder how bad it was in the first place.

This symbolizes how adults think the youth has it easy by saying how hard they had it. Maybe they just want to think they lived a very hard childhood when they really had it alright. Whatever the reason is, it is a humorous tale that can sometimes go a little too far.

Reflection Blog: The Crisis, No. 1

Thomas Paine's work represents the rationalism period. From the last couple weeks of english, we have learned what rationalism is. Rationalism is basically appealing to logic for reason instead of God like the Puritan writing style. The rationalism writing style tends to use a very different form of reason. Rationalist writers use reason and logic as support. This writing style tends to be more educated because it does not just claim that God is the reason for things happening. Rationalism gives exact reason and logic for something that has happened or something that they think should happen. It is very good for persuading someone because they have the facts and no one can deny a fact. If it is a fact, it is true.
Thomas Paine's work is definitely a rationalism piece of writing. It uses logic instead of saying the cause of the problem is God and God will fix everything if we do this and this. That is very vague, but you catch my drift. Thomas Paine was one of the most influential revolutionary writers of all time according to Boucquey (Boucquey 1). As a youth, he studied works by authors who wrote about radical topics. He was very interested in people who wrote about politics in a radical way (Boucquey 1). That is probably what prepared him to write this writing.
Thomas Paine definitely wrote a rationalism piece of writing. He never blamed God for things. He never claimed that God wanted this, so we should do it. He gave reason and logic to everything that he talked about. Instead of taking the easy way out for his support and saying it was what God said, he gave reason and logic and made his thinking seem correct because he had support to back it up.
Thomas Paine was a patriot. He wanted independence from Britain. He wrote this to show why they should be independent. He does not support the war, though.Written in an elegant, simple voice, he convinced a lot of people to agree with him (Destafano). He believed that the war was started because of his writing. He wants to be separate from them. He was speaking to all the colonist. He was trying to rally support up and get some people to agree with him. Using reason and logic, he got what he wanted (Destafano).
According to Destafano, he stayed away from propaganda. I think it is cool how all the writings tie in together. Writing in a simple format, he avoided incoherent terminology (Destafano).
"These are times that try men's souls" (Paine 134). This was the opening line of Paine's writing. By starting with this line, he got a lot of people's attention. This line meant a lot with just a couple words. He basically said that he understood what was going on, he understood how hard it was, and he wanted to find a way to get away from all that and be happy again. By getting the people to know that he knows what is happening, they will agree with him to get away from that problem.

Works Cited

Boucquey, Thierry, gen. ed. "Paine, Thomas." Encyclopedia of World Writers, 14th through 18th Centuries. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= EWWII0214&SingleRecord=True (accessed October 4, 2011).


Destafano, Richard. "Homas Paine's The Crisis, Number One, 1776." Let. Rug. Web. .

Paine, Thomas. The Declaration of Independence. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 134-138. Print.

Reflection: Declaration of Independence

There are many examples of Propaganda techniques and faulty logic in the Declaration of Independence. The declaration of Independence was written on July 4th in the year of 1976. On June eleventh, about a month before, a five member committee was appointed to draft a statement declaring independence from Britain (Jefferson 121). These techniques are used to change the reader's or listener's views or opinion on a subject. They help you persuade someone with techniques. They are popularly used in speeches, religion, on political aspects.

As I started to read, I noticed an example. Thomas Jefferson used the King of Great Britain in his writing (Jefferson 122).
This is a propaganda technique. It fails under the testimonial category. He uses a "big name" person to make his point. When someone mentions a famous person being for or against something, it makes a person think it must be bogus. They then may drown that person speaking out because they took it too far and insulted someone they were considering agreeing with. On the other hand, name calling may be helpful. If someone is already siding with the speaker and the speaker calls their opponent a name, that may rally up the listener and get him/her excited. It may get him/her to start something like get their friends to side with them, too. It could unleash some strong emotions, but you never know how the emotions would turn out(Recognizing Propaganda).

Another use of a propaganda technique is name calling. Name calling can be very different for certain people. If someone is debating which side they want to be on and the speaker calls one side a name, the person may stop listening because name calling is inappropriate in his/her opinion.

Another example of a propaganda technique is using glittery generalities. The Declaration of Independence includes this. For example, "good" was used. Good is considered a "glad word." A glad word has little to no meaning and the statement can not be approved or disapproved(Recognizing Propaganda). In the Declaration of Independence, a sentence using a glad word is "...by the authority of the good people..." (Jefferson 122). Using glad words are a propaganda technique used in many speeches.

Thomas Jefferson also uses an either/or fallacy. An either/or fallacy is when their are only two choices that you can side with. There is no in between. You cannot be mutual. You either have to be for it or against it. It is very popular in speeches because you can not just sit their and be idle. You have to say what you think and it can only be one way or the other. Thomas Jefferson's idea is that we are either going to be with Britain, or by ourselves (Recognizing propaganda).

Another popular technique used is the bandwagon effect. A lot of speeches or persuasive writing includes the bandwagon effect. It basically says that since everyone else agrees with me, you should too. It is like peer pressure. It basically puts everyone back in high school and makes them think a certain way. No one wants to be left out. This writing does not specifically state anything like that, but it is the general philosophy of the speech (recognizing Propaganda).

Jefferson, Thomas."Declaration of Independence." American Literature. Columbus: Mc-Graw Hill, 2009. 120-124. Print.
"Recognizing Propaganda--Guide to Critical Thinking--Academic Support." 6 Mar. 2011. Web. 26 Sept. 2011. .

Journal #10

Our vocabulary assignment should be due on Wednesday, not today!

One really important reason to post pone our vocabulary quiz is because students need time to study. If we took the quiz today, a lot of the students would not be prepared. If the students are not prepared, they might not do as good on the assignment. If they do not do as well on their assignment, their grades will suffer. If their grades suffer, it looks like Mr. Langley is a bad teacher. Since he is a great teacher, that would be tragic.

Another reason that this vocabulary assignment should be postponed is because some of our students are already really behind. If this is assigned today, it will just add up to the pile of homework. For example, Morgan was absent. She was already behind in this class, but being absent just put her even more behind. If this was started on Wednesday, she would have some more time to catch up and not drown in homework.

A lot of people need to catch up. My blogs are all finished, but I have to use proper citations in my text. This will take me awhile by itself. I cannot imagine how the students who are behind on blogs feel. I am only behind on citations, and I feel like I am lost. There is just so much time consuming things. We really need this day to relax and catch up. This is why the vocabulary should be started on Wednesday instead of today.

Reflection: Patrick Henry's speech exemplifies the Rationalism

Patrick Henry's speech does a good job of displaying the Rationalism writing style. It is very different from the Puritan writing style. Thomas Marshall thought that his speech was very bold and was one of the most animated speeches ever delivered (Wilhelm 114). It must have taken a lot of guts and feelings to give a speech as good as the speech he gave.

According to Boucquey, rationalism was born from Enlightenment. Enlightenment originated in the 18th century. Rationalism was the idea that formed the basis of Enlightenment (Boucquey). Rationalism led to a lot of great works because it showed creativity and it was skeptical of the things people believed in at that time.

By standing up to the people, Patrick Henry showed that he fit in with the rationalism period. He was very skeptical and unwilling to compromise his high ethical standards (Wilhem 114). He seemed like a smart, stubborn man with very high standards for himself and for his country.

After the parliament passed a lot of new taxes on the people. Thousands of British people went to protest. Patrick Henry led the growing opposition of this (Wilhem 115). The speech gave Patrick Henry a new reputation. After he gave that forceful speech, he became a forceful proponent of liberty.

Patrick Henry wants to go to war. He feels very strong about the subject. He does not think they should raise the taxes. Giving this speech was hopefully going to be his moment of glory and the start of the war. He already had everyone's attention with the interesting subject. Everyone wanted to hear his opinion and get all the facts together. With a great introduction, he kept their attention and even attracted some other's who were not interested I am sure. He gave a very rational speech. Even though it was a rational speech, he occasionally used an emotional appeal. He also gave a lot of information and ideas. After he gave an idea, he backed it up. This is very different from Puritan writing. In Puritan writing, they just said God had everything in control. God does this, God made that a certain way. During the rationalism period, the people tended to find a logical reason for something. That is what Patrick Henry did. He gave a reason why they should go to war, and then he backed it up with facts. He rationalized his speech, and I think that worked out for the best. The phrase which is known today, "Give me liberty or give me death!" Was a great way to end his speech. It was very powerful. Even though it was a bit of a hyperbole, it still got the point across. Hyperboles are very popular and an awesome tool to use to persuade someone. His speech had a lot of nice techniques that were used to help get his point across in a great manner.

He did do something that was some what dangerous, though. He called the government "tyrants" (Wilhem 117). Calling the government a bad name can knock people off board. If they were just considering it, they would have probably stopped listening after he insulted something that they still believed in. It was a poor move on that part.

Wilhelm, Jeffrey D., and Douglas Fisher. Glencoe Literature. New York: Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009. Print.

Boucquey, Thierry, gen. ed. "rationalism." Encyclopedia of World Writers, 14th through 18th Centuries. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= GEWWII0240&SingleRecord=True (accessed September 22, 2011).

Journal #9

A rational approach is responsible way to react to an emotional situation. According to dictionary.com, rational is defined as agreeable to reason, or having good sense. Being rational is very crucial to getting through hard, emotional times.

When something horrible happens, such as when a fire breaks loose in a house, people panic. They tend to act irrational. Instead of thinking of where everyone in the house is and if they are going to be able to get out okay, they just stand there and panic. It is normal human nature to panic, but reacting in a rational manner is something everyone in a panic situation should try to do.

Being rational is a very positive way to react to something. It means you use your brain and your good sense to think about the situation you are in instead of being irrational and just doing whatever comes to your mind first without even really thinking.

Being rational also works for smaller situations. For example, my little cousin had a history test coming up and she had no idea what was going on. I like history, so I decided to help her. She wanted to just grab her book and read, thinking she would learn what she needed fast. I directed her into a more rational approach. Together we made note cards and organized all of the information from the chapter. It took longer, but she learned more information than she would have from just skimming the chapter. By taking a rational approach, she got an "A" on the test! Being rational in a situation is very helpful in the long run, even if it takes more time and effort in the beginning.

Another example that I have went through would be when a girl fainted at a cross country meet. People were panicking and did not know what to do. Luckily someone was thinking and took a rational approach. He started taking charge because someone needed to. He got someone to go get help, another person to call 9-1-1, and started looking for someone with some medical experience for immediate help. Being rational, he got her the help she needed and the situation ended with her safe and sound with her family.

Bibliography

"Rational | Define Rational at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 20 Sept. 2011. .

Autumn

I love Autumn! It is my favorite season. This should be an easy blog thing.

Autumn is so pretty. I love everything, from the leaves to the Pumpkin Spice Starbucks drink. Speaking of that, I could really use one of those right about now. I also quite enjoy the Pumpkin Pie Shake at Sonic. I am so hungry right now.

Autumn weather is also really nice. I love when jeans and a sweater is perfectly comfortable to wear. Not too cold, not too hot. A nice flannel is also fun to wear, like I am wearing today. Autumn makes school a little bit better. October is also a nice month because of Halloween. Halloween is a fun holiday, especially when it is a nice, autumn night. October is also a nice month because we never really have a full week of school. We get out on some Friday's early, and others we just have them completely off. My birthday is in November, so October is good because it is almost my birthday. I am so hungry. Autumn must make me hungry. That is another good thing about autumn! There is so much good food going on in autumn. There is pumpkin pie, the Pumpkin Spice Starbucks thing, the Pumpkin Pie Shake at Sonic, cookies, a lot of cinnamon stuff, pumpkin pie, caramel pie, apple cider, and a whole lot of other stuff that I can not even think of right now. Autumn is such a fun time of the year! Well, I have less words than I thought I had. So continuing my journal will be mandatory.

Autumn is also known as fall. Fall is a favorite season of hipsters a lot. Hipsters love fall. I love hipsters, so I love fall, too. Hipsters hate other hipsters, but hipsters still all love fall. Hipsters like fall because they get to wear their flannels and skinny jeans. Hipsters love fall because of the food, too. Hipsters just love fall so much. All my hipster friends love fall, which is ironic because hipsters hate other hipsters. But being ironic is also part of being a hipster, so it all fits in. Autumn is so much fun!

The Crucible Act IV

Finally finishing the Crucible, I feel accomplished. We will be ending the book with this blog. It will contain comparisons to "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God."

The two novels are both examples of Puritan writing. They are pretty much revolved around God in a way. Both of the writings seem to be a little mad at God. He is very powerful. These two writings are also like the other Puritan writings we have read in this class.

"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is shorter than The Crucible. "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is basically criticizing people throughout the whole thing. The author wrote about how people are doing the wrong thing and are being bad. Criticizing the characters, the speaker seems to basically tell the characters how they are going to Hell and are horrible people. He tells the people how God is mad at them and will punish them all. He also lectured about how people are good and holy in church, but are bad outside of the church as they are on their own. This is a problem in the current day as well. I see a lot of people at church acting holy and such, but when I see them outside of church, they are cursing and not being holy at all. They are only faking themselves because God can see the people everywhere. They are just putting on an act for themselves and the church goers.

The Crucible is like this in a way. When life was difficult and confusing, they praised God and asked for help. When life got simple again, they kind of just forgot about him. When things get easy, God seems to just fall out of a person's priorities. In both novels, when they needed help they asked for it. Also in both novels, when life was going good, they forgot about God (Edwards 97). They no longer prayed as much and they no longer kept their Christian life. They started to get lazy with it. In The Crucible, people started to want to take over and they wanted power. As they tried to succeed in life, they did not care about succeeding in the after life. Their priorities were different than they were when they were struggling. When things got hard again, they started to pray again (Edwards 98).

Both of these writings did not resemble being a good Christian during the full story. Both the writings seemed to show falling away from God and falling away from being a good, respectable Christian. There is a lot of emotions in both of these writings, but none of it is really positive. All of the emotion is negative. I think these books could have been more enjoyable if they were a bit more positive. It was weird that people did not really have a happy ending in these writings. Also, when I saw novel (referring to "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God") I actually mean writing or story. It is not a a novel, but I have noticed I accidentally have said novel instead.

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

Bloom, Harold. Arthur Miller's The Crucible. New York: Bloom's Literary Criticism, 2008. Print.

Edwards, Jonathan. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Pub., 1992. Print.

bullying and its effects on both the victims and the bully

Bullying has been going on since the beginning of time when a dinosaur would rule the land. It goes on with little things, like bugs, and bigger things, like people. Bullying is human nature for some, and to be bullied has a bunch of different possible outcomes.

There are many different effects on bullying. We will discuss about the bully's feelings first. When a bully bullies someone, they may have a bunch of different motives. One motive would be jealousy. When someone is jelly of someone, they may pick on them to take our their jealousy. Another reason that someone may bully someone is because they are self conscious of themselves. They may try and take out their anger on someone else.

The bullies can have a big effect on their victims. When someone points out a flaw to them, they may take it very hard. If they have a bad home life, they may take it even harder. Some victims act like the bully's comment did not affect them, but it still may have hurt them bad. I know that when someone makes fun of me, I act like it's no big deal and I just shrug it off, but in reality, it could have hurt me pretty bad. That is how it is for a lot of people. Cyber bullies are even worse because they do not have to say anything face to face. They can just send anonymous hate mail to a person. That could hurt the victim even worse. With all the social networking sites these days, it is easier and easier to bully someone without even being known for the bullying. It takes guts to bully someone in person, but being behind a computer screen, it is easier and easier to send hate.

People can be very cruel. Bullying is a problem in school a lot of times. The problem of bullying will never disappear, but it could get a little better. Hopefully people will realize what they are doing to others and try to be nicer to people. A lot of bullies do not even realize how bad that they are hurting their victim.

How is Human Nature displayed in the events of The Crucible

According to dictionary.com, human nature means the psychological and social qualities that characterize human kind, especially in the contrast of other things. Human nature is like a unconditional reaction, meaning you were trained to do what you do. For example, getting up when the bell rings at the end of class is an unconditional reaction. We learned about this in my psychology class, and since it related to this topic, I decided to include it in this blog. Human nature is an unconditional reaction because you do not choose to do what you do, you just learn it and it happens. It is human nature to give blame to something. When someone bad happens, the first thing someone does is put the blame on someone. For example, when the twin towers got attacked, people looked for blame. First, they thought it was an accident and that the pilot accidentally took the plane off course. Later, they learned that it was a terrorist attack. They put the blame on the wrong person, which is very popular with this human nature trait. Blame is such a horrible thing in human nature. No one can just not blame someone for something. In result, the blame is put in the wrong place a large percent of the time. When someone is late for work, it is always the traffic or the weather's fault. The driver never blames themselves for not leaving early enough.

For examples in this book, the best one would be when Betty falls ill. Even though this event happens throughout the whole book, it still is the best example. When she falls sick, people immediately look for something to blame. When something goes terribly wrong, there has to be someone to blame. In this time period, witch craft was a good thing to blame. Blaming witch craft instead of considering the possibility that she was just ill was placing the blame in the wrong direction.

Another display of human nature would be when the needle was found in the doll. The people who found it automatically assumed the worst. When we are unsure about things, we tend to think it is bad and wrong. That is exactly what they did with the doll. During this time period, they took the blame very far. For example, they killed people who tapered with the devil, even if they really did not. People were accused of things they did not do a lot during this time period.

This time period really took things too far. Witch craft was automatically assumed to be the cause of the problem when anything was sketchy at all. I can not believe this. It is truly different from our time period. When someone gets in trouble these days, they may try to put the blame on someone else, but never on something like witch craft. We have become more piratical. It is truly unthinkable how they dealt with things back then. It is also pretty interesting, though. I would be interested to see how I would survive during this time period. Being accused of tampering with witch craft seemed like a pretty easy thing to do.

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

possible repercussions of blaming someone for something he/she didn't do

It is human nature to blame someone for something. Someone always has to take the blame in our society. Having someone to blame is like a way to take your anger away.

Blaming yourself, even when you are the one who deserves the blame, is a very hard thing. Instead of blaming themselves for their problems, a lot of people blame someone else. For example, if you are fat, a lot of people don't blame themselves for eating too much. They might blame their parents or their generation.

I once blamed my sister for something bad that I did. I ate the last cookie from the cookie jar that was supposed to be saved for my dad when he got home from work. Eating the cookie, I was not even worried about the punishment because I figured I could blame my younger sister. When my mom found out that there were not any cookies left, she questioned us. I immediately denied and told her that I saw my younger sister, Maddie, eat the cookie. Maddie, flabbergasted, denied. Eventually, my mom found out that I ate it. I got in even more trouble for lying. When you blame someone else, you get in even more trouble and have an even worse consequence for the bad thing you did if someone finds out the truth. If you blame someone else for something that you should take the blame for, like being fat, then you are just lying to yourself. Lying to yourself cannot be very good for your personal being, especially if you honestly believe that lie.

The previous examples are pretty much all minor blaming issues. There are also bigger blaming issues, such as ones that involve the government. For an example that is relevant to this time, when the twin towers were attacked, people blamed the terrorists. The terrorists were the one who should have been blamed for this act. Later on when people did "research," some people blamed our own government. That was putting the blame in the wrong place, which is not good.