Words of Thanks

             Who am I thankful for in our English Class. Well I really can't pin it down on one person, so I'll give a few examples of who I'm thankful for. First and Foremost, I'd say I'm thankful for Jesse, Justin, and Jiawei, my go to group for basically every group work or activity we have to do. Our group is known as Rameez and the Triple J's (name pending).

              I have a couple other shutouts to make. I'd like to thank all of those in our English class that constantly volunteer their opinions or answers in class (Keduse, Johnathon, Claire, etc) as its good to know that I won't be randomly called for a question I don't know the answer to. I've had classes where no one volunteers, and it is awful, so thank you for keeping this class interesting.

           My final "Thank you" is to Bing, for lending me that pen a couple days ago. She insists that I haven't gave it back yet (but I did). Also anyone that voted that this blog was tubular, rad, or cool deserves thanks. HOWEVER, if I find out who said this blog was politically incorrect, or disgraceful,  they're in for a world of pain. Just kidding by the way, I probably shouldn't have even made that an option.

            Well if you're reading this, I'd like to thank YOU, for reading my blog post. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

I Celebrate myself

            Celebrating yourself and who you are can be a very though thing to do at times. You really need to realize who you are, and you have to accept it. The famous phrase “Be Yourself” is a very simple way to celebrate yourself, as you are being you, and not someone else. While I’d like to think that I’m always being myself, I’ve acted in ways that I definitely consider not like me. I guess as the years go by, I find my opinions on everything changing and changing. Something I found funny years ago might now seem obnoxious or annoying, and sometimes vice versa. I guess celebrating yourself is accepting everything about who you are. It’s about realizing your strengths and your weaknesses, and accepting them. Social norms are important, but it’s not a strict code for how every human should live their life. Individuality is the most important thing to have for celebrating yourself. For me, expressing myself through music is how I tend to celebrate myself. The feeling of finally learning a tough song is extremely rewarding, and I hope to leave a mark on the music industry someday.

Edgar Allan Poe

                During the Romanticism age, one man changed the very idea of literature as we know it, writing in Gothic, mystery, and horror genres. He was considered to be a master of suspense, and was also called “Father of the detective Story.” Edgar Allan Poe became one of the most well-known writers in the world, but his path in life was filled with obstacles since the beginning. By the age of 3, Poe’s mother had died and his father had left him, leaving him to live with John and Frances Allan. Poe attended the University of Virginia, but with monetary issues, he had to leave. He came back to find out that his fiancée Elmira Royster got engaged to someone else. Poe then left his parents, to truly start his career as a writer.

                Edgar Allan Poe’s first book, Tamerlane and Other Poems was published and 1827, around the time he joined the army.  After a few more years in the army, he left to write full time. Another thing to note about Poe is that he married his 13-year-old cousin, who died by the age of 20. 

                I feel that all of these hardships throughout his life are really shown through his work. The Raven and fall of the house of usher all show many similarities to Poe’s life, with The Raven showing themes such as “the loss of a loved one”  Or The Fall of the House of Usher showing  a man who has lost his nerve, at the edge of a crumbling bloodline.

What Is an American?!

          

       What is an American? I've always found it strange as "American" is usually shunted to the side when talking about nationalities and ethnicity. This is probably due to the fact that the USA is a fairly young country, and so it really is a culmination of a bunch of ethnic groups. The truth of the matter is that America is an extremely diverse country, and saying you're American could mean a ton of different things, so a lot of people think saying you’re American isn’t enough to classify yourself.  In truth, America doesn’t have too much culture. 

             We have thanksgiving, black Friday, July 4^th, and honestly I can’t think of anything else. Other cultures and countries have roots going back to ancient civilizations, making them rich in culture and traditions. America is more like a blank slate, as we are currently creating traditions and ideas to really decide what an American is. One of my favorite quotes is by Gerald Early, saying “There are only three things that America will be remembered for 2000 years from now when they study this civilization: The Constitution, Jazz music, and Baseball. These are the 3 most beautiful things this culture's ever created.”

             To answer “What is an American?”, I would say that an American is someone with virtues of freedom and justice.  An American is someone born in America (obviously) or someone that moved to America, and melded with American society. In my book, anyone that believes in freedom and justice for all is a true American.  

Modern Puritans

 Ahh, Puritans. Can’t live with em, can't live without em. Or can we...? In our modern society, we haven't seen many groups that are really up to speed for Puritan standards. A few groups come to mind, such as the Amish, although their only similarity with the Puritans is how cut off from society they are. The Puritans are pretty harsh and strict with their beliefs, and anyone with a toe out of line will be called out for their sins, and punished.

                Sometimes school feels like a Puritan society, with there being some unfair punishments and strange rules. But for the most part, school rules are justified, and there is a good amount of leniency. During my trip to Pakistan this summer, there were a few things that could connect to Puritan society. Religion is a huge part of people’s lives in Pakistan. It’s mandatory to celebrate certain holidays (An example being a holiday where you cannot eat during the day. You could get arrested if you didn’t follow their customs).  

                Puritan ways have not fully died out; as we see sprinkles of their ways around out world, but unless there is an underground Puritan group plotting their up-rise, I have a feeling we won’t be seeing any modern puritan societies any time soon.

John Proctor: Hero or Stooge? (Spoiler: Stooge)

                     "The Crucible" Shows a very interesting explanation for the Salem Witch Trials. This event showed a lot about human nature, and out of all of the characters in this story, the most intriguing one was John Proctor. For Puritan standards, John wasn’t exactly a role model. He cheated on his wife, and didn’t come to church too often. He even dared to plow on Sunday! I guess you could call him different, as in the beginning his actions show neither heroism or stooge-ness .  To decide whether or not John became a hero, we really need to know what a hero truly is.

             
                   In my eyes, a hero is someone that fights for truth, justice, and someone that has morals and values cannot be easily broken. Of course, heroes have flaws, and Proctor had his fair share of those. Anyways, later in the story, John was defending the supposed witches, saying that Abigail was lying about these accusations. Try as he might, his words didn’t affect the outcome of those who were hanged. By the time John himself was up for being hanged, Hale and Danforth knew him to be innocent, but they wouldn’t free him and the others just like that, as it would cause doubt as to whether the other hangings were actually justified.  If John just “confessed” that he was a witch, he would have lived.      Was it because lying is sinful? I'm not so sure. he was the last person to die because of his devotion to god; he instead died to spite those that sentenced him to death, knowing full well that he was innocent.When John says "I cannot mount the gibbet like a saint. It is a fraud. I am not that man. My honesty is broke, Elizabeth; I am no good man. Nothing’s spoiled by giving them this lie that were not rotten long before."  he's basically saying that he can't pretend that he won't lie because lying is a sin, as he exclaims that his honesty is broke. His only benefit would be that those that accused him and the judge would know that he was innocent, but was still killed.

                
                Does Dying make someone a Hero? While it does make for a flashy exit to this world, it’s not heroic. He’s not the first to deny performing witchcraft, and his reasoning behind it is definitely not heroic. While someone could make the argument that sacrificing yourself is heroic, John Proctor did not need to sacrifice himself for anything, he just added to the death toll. In short, John Proctor is a stooge, or at least closer to a stooge than to a hero. He makes rash decisions which don’t benefit himself or anyone for that matter. If I was put in a situation like his, I would without a doubt “confess” so that I may keep my life. Does that make me a stooge? No. It doesn’t make me a hero either. I’d just be a person trying to get by, and live to see another day.