Declaration of Independence

While reading the Declaration of Independence I realized how serious Jefferson was about this new country and I saw through is eyes how he pictures this nation. He tells you throughout the declaration the hard times the people in America had gone through. He completely bashed the King for what he had done to the people and made the colonists sound very innocent. It was sort of like he was "pointing fingers" at the king saying that all their problems had come from him and all the colonists were innocent. I would consider that to be the "plain folks" propaganda technique. A great section of the declaration is about what the king had done. Jefferson was using true facts so nobody could argue or disagree with the declaration. It said,

"He has refused his assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be obtained; when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature, a right inestimable to them, into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people" (Jefferson 122-123)

Paragraphs like the following continued on for several more paragraphs. Jefferson continued to insult the king. Jefferson was using the name calling approach. He was trying to convince the people who were not against the king to be against him. Jefferson stated a lot of the bad things he did to the colonists and it is pretty obvious he didn't care what happened to the king's reputation.

At times Jefferson kind of over exaggerated somethings the king did so you knew it did not really happen. Such as this statement, "He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people" (Jefferson 124). Now people know he did not actually plunder the seas and burned their towns. He was over exaggerating. This could be a bad thing if you think about it. If he over exaggerated one thing, then, how do the people know the whole thing was not over exaggerated? It may be confusing on what really happened and what didn't. People may have thought that the whole thing was an opinion rather than fact. I don't think he did this intentionally but I could see it happening. This could be considered an error of faulty logic. In our own Declaration of Independence there is an error? It is weird to think about.

Overall I think the Declaration is a very strongly worded document and makes good points so people can really understand what the country was like at that time. It makes you feel sorry for the colonists and dislike the king. I think that is probably what Jefferson wanted out of the declaration but I guess it's hard to tell.

Jefferson, Thomas. "Declaration of Independence" Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 122-124. Print.

Journal #9

It's hard to except the fact that we are in high school and drama is constantly surrounding us. It is pretty impossible to escape it. People are always saying how they hate drama when they actually are the ones causing it. Teenage girls are over emotional and take every thing too seriously. If someone gives them a weird look they automatically think that something is wrong with them or the person has a problem with them. I'm pretty sure boys are just as insecure as the girls are but they just do not want to let it show. I'm almost totally positive that's why guys are always making fun of each other and others. Boys can be so mean and make fun of almost everyone. It's pretty ridiculous. All teenagers assume things and start rumors about people. Facebook only makes this whole teenage drama thing worse. A girl is seen talking to a boy on facebook. He may have just wrote and her wall and they were just having a nice casual conversation. Others see the post from this boy and assume the girl is cheating on her boyfriend. Word spreads and by the next day at school everyone thinks the girl is a cheater. When actually the boy was just a friend. Little did she know that a nice conversation about their day could cause the girl to get a bad reputation. I swear it's the worst time of life. You don't get a break and people are constantly judging you. If you tell the truth your mean, if you don't say the truth to be nice then your considered a liar. If you dress the same as everyone then you're a copier, if you dress differently then your a freak. It's pretty difficult having a nonemotional, happy day in high school it seems like. Oh how I wish we could all go back to elementary school. That poor girl on facebook lost her boyfriend just because she was judged by others.

Journal # 10

It only makes sense that the vocabulary should be pushed back, Mr. Langley. I mean you are an amazing teacher and always know best but I think some times you may need help realizing what you are doing, even though you are very smart. I can guarantee that every student in this class and your other English classes would like this assignment to be pushed back. Teachers this year are piling the homework on us hard and it is very stressful. All of us will have other work to do this weekend to stay caught up in all of these classes. Plus you are way cooler than all the other teachers, so I'm sure you will understand. You will be everyone's favorite teacher for sure and it would be a little relief to not have to do something extra over the weekend. Many of us probably have plans to do something fun because we have no time to go out and do anything during the weekdays because of all this homework. You are guilty for this to. You, like all the rest of my teachers, are assigning so many things. This would be a really nice act of kindness towards are students. Plus it'll be one less thing to grade and I'm pretty sure we all know that there are a lot of things to still be graded so why add more? Yeah, I can not think of a good reason either. So give the students and yourself a break from homework and grading and maybe all of us will be able to get out of the house this weekend and actually do something enjoyable. Well maybe not since we do have all this other homework that needs to be done. I know a lot of students at this school are super stressed out from so much homework so I think taking one thing off the "to do list" would really do some good. Don't get me wrong, vocabulary is important. But, pushing back the date is not that big of a deal.

Patrick Henry

Patrick Henry makes it very clear what he wants in throughout this passage. He basically says give me what I want or I would rather die without it. It is said in his famous quote "Give me liberty, or give me death." It makes him sound like kind of a brat and has his mind set that he is right and that is all he wants but I understand where he is coming from. Since my parents tell me what to do still even though I want my freedom I can relate to why Henry and other Americans would like their freedom as well. Although, their situation is to the extreme compared to mine. Patrick is living in America and for some reason Britain still thinks that they have total control over this new country because the people there originated from Britain. Britain is taxing the colonies and making them pay for things that are taking place in Britain even though the colonists do not live there and have nothing to do with that country. All the colonists want to do is to trade with Britain and get goods in return. They really don't want anymore involvement than just that. Patrick Henry does not believe Britain should have any control over the people in the colonies, and I agree with his idea. The British were causing many of the colonists to become very poor, they were taxing them as if they were people still living in Britain. Patrick Henry gives many examples on how he feels and how the British are treating the colonists. He used rationalism to get his point across so nobody would doubt him. Henry used facts so it would be hard to deny him. An example would be, "Three millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we posses, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us." (Henry 118.) He believed the only way to achieve his idea was to fight and he made it clear there were three million people ready to show the British who is boss. He also stated this "We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have prostrated ourselves before the tyrannical hands of the ministry and Parliament. Our petitions have been slighted; our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded; and we have been spurned, with contempt, from the foot of the throne." (Henry 118) This quote from the passage also tells how the colonists have tried everything and need to go to war. He used rationalism and really proved that they have tried a lot but there was nothing else that could be done except to fight. They used words to really try to get their point across to Britain but, obviously, that did not work. Patrick Henry firmly believed that he had the perfect way to get the colonists what they wanted and he would not back down. Fighting would have to happen.

Henry, Patrick. "Speech to the Second Virginia Convention" Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 116-118. Print.

Journal # 8

Autumn is the worst season of the year. Summer ends, school begins, and allergies come. Summer is the best time of the year and when the fair comes I get sad because I know autumn is coming. I hate how its cold in the mornings and then by the time its noon it's eighty degrees outside. You have to plan ahead, or else your cold in the mornings in school and then burning by the end of the day. One day it is hot outside and you are wearing shorts and a tank top the next day you are all bundled up. Then it is time for school to start. I have to go back to waking up early, stressing out over tests, and dealing with people all day at school. It comes to the last week of summer and I don't even enjoy it because I'm dreading fall. They begin to cut down the corn and my nose goes crazy. My allergies are worse in the fall than they are in the spring. It is pretty awful and it only happens in the fall. Lucky me. The only good thing about fall is bonfires, football games, and watching the leaves change. I love bonfires and the smell of the wood burning. It is fun to sit around and roast marshmallows. We have a bonfire at my house every year. My family is a big football family and we always attend Notre Dame football games. I always look forward to it all year. They are one of the most fun things I do all year. It is so beautiful on the campus with all the colorful leaves. It is really pretty watching the leaves change, even if it is just in my backyard. So I guess I don't really hate autumn that much now that I am thinking about it because a lot of fun things do come in autumn such as homecoming, halloween, yummy apples, and of course the things I mentioned earlier.

Journal #7

I'm pretty positive that every person has been the victim and the bullier at one time or another in their life. No matter what people say everyone has talked badly about someone behind there back to others or helped spread gossip. I know this can really hurt the victim knowing people think badly about them. Nobody knows what goes on in somebody's life they could be going through a lot and they really do not to be bullied on top of everything else. A simple mean act or word can really bring down somebody's self esteem and ruin there day. Bullying can eventually lead to suicide and becoming depressed. One smile or nice word to someone can totally make their day and make them happy. Being nice to someone can make a big difference in their life when other people are bullying them. That's why you should never judge anyone because you never know what their home or social life may be like. They could be bullied enough at home and should not have to put up with it from their peers at school. Then on the other side of the story the bully has to have a reason for doing what they are doing. Maybe the victim has bullied them in the past and the have resentment and want to get back at them. Or possibly the bully is unhappy with their life and is taking it out on others and thinks that will make them feel better. Maybe it makes themselves feel bigger or stronger and better about themselves when really, it is just hurting others. I think bullying is totally unacceptable and completely ridiculous. Teachers and other adults I think should really be doing things to help end bullying because it goes on more than I think they know. Everyday kids come to school and get bullied and it should not be like that. People should feel comfortable and not be scared to walk past certain people in the hallway.

Journal # 6

The possible repercussions ( also known as consequences) of blaming someone for something they did not do may vary. Such as suing people you could end up losing in court and losing a lot of your own money you spend on suing them. Not to mention the costs of hiring your own layer. I think it is pretty obvious that you could lose your money but you could also lose your dignity or reputation. Accusing someone for something they did not do may cause people to not trust you anymore and they may think that you are a bad person and just want everything to go your way. Lying could also lead to other consequences. Such as if you snuck out of your house and your parents thought you were asleep. While you were gone at night you could get into some trouble but not be able to get help because your parents think you are in bed. But, if it was a big enough problem you could have to call your parents. This obviously would be bad and I know I would immediately be grounded. Also if your parents tell you they do not want you to hang out with certain people but you do it anyway may lead to problems. There is most likely a reason why your parents told you not to hang out with them. They could put you in a situation you are uncomfortable in or one that is dangerous. Then you would have to call your parents to help and you would get caught in your lie. You parents would be disappointed and lose trust for you and I think that is the worst feeling ever knowing your parents lost trust in you. Lying is just a bad thing to do I mean that is pretty obvious. Making yourself untrustworthy and losing a good reputation can really affect someone. People may not want to be their friend and may find it hard to believe the things that person says.

The Crucible - Act 2

After taking the true colors test I found out that may true color is blue. I really believe that this test is correct because the description explains me well. Blue means very caring and just wanting everyone to be happy. This works for me because I'm all about keeping the peace and want to be a psychiatrist when I grow up. I think the characters in the story all have different personalities and would fit in different color groups, too. I can't remember exactly what the definition of each color group is but I know the basics. I believe that Abigail could belong in the blue catagory with me. She really cares for Proctor and just wants to be with him. She wants to hug him and touch him and he pulls away. In a way I don't think she is completely blue, though. Abigail does not think of Elizabeth at all during her love story. Elizabeth and Proctor are married but Elizabeth never comes across in Abigail's mind. Proctor is obviously not a blue either. He is in the middle of a love triangle. He has an affair with Elizabeth and then totally leaves Abigail after he was done with her. He left them both a bit heartbroken he was not completely thinking about everyone's feelings like blues do. Most people only think about how Elizabeth feels because she was the one who got cheated on but nobody really mentioned Abigail's feelings. She is young and in love and the man she loves just ignores her and loves someone else. I could see why she would be so upset and heart broken. I found Elizabeth to be more of a "do what must be done" kind of attitude. If I remember correctly that would be the orange personality. She tells Procter to do what he must do and she will stand by him in his decisions. Such as telling the court certain information. She just wants to please her husband which makes me think she is a blue in some way. She wants him to be happy and wants to please him. When she cooked dinner for him she wanted him to like it and for him to be pleased with her. I think of Parris as a gold ( I think, remember I don't remember the colors perfectly.) Parris had very strict rules and knew what was okay and what wasn't he wanted order and for things to go his way. He didn't want the girls getting into any funny business, he didn't want to visit the people, he wanted his maid to do exactly everything that he told her to do. He was very straight forward and was a typical gold with all those rules he set. Those are pretty much the only colors I can remember (at least I think I remember.) I do know though just about everyone they have mentioned in the story this far have all had different personalities. Everyone so far is sharing the same emotion though and that is concern and wondering what is going around in Salem and what could be coming. Are there really witches? Or is this girl just seeking attention?

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

Journal #5

I agree with parents taking away electronic devices as a punishment because I think it is an effective way of getting what you want from your kids. Though, sometimes parents take away phones or facebook without a warning. I believe they should warn you before it gets to the point that they actually take it away. I think it is a big deal to take those things away from kids, though. That is the only way kids can communicate with their friends. Now days kids even need their phone's and computer's for homework assignments so I think parents need to understand that. I know when I'm on the computer after school my mom will tell me to do my homework then she will freak out when I'm still on the computer. But, a lot of my homework takes place on the computer. Electronic forms of communication is a big thing now days. People around my age have always been around computers and cell phones. I think the old spankin is completely unacceptable. I believe it is wrong to hit your kids and there are a lot of other ways to get your kids to listen to you than by violence. I know that whenever my parents yell at me I listen and remember it. Nobody wants to be yelled at and it really sticks to me when my parents do. So I do think that is appropriate. But, there is a definite line that should not be crossed when yelling at a kid. It is effective and it does work but I don't think parents should take it to the extreme. They should say only what they feel in necessary and then move on. If the yelling does not work I think then they are at the point where it would be exceptable to take the kids phone or facebook because they got a warning and then should know better they are doing wrong. That is what I believe is the best form of punishment for kids in the 21st century.

The Crucible - Act 1

The Puritan style of writing was not as obvious to me in this story as it was in some of the stories we read that were in the text book. This whole story was not focused on God and what he was doing for the people but it was pretty much the opposite of that. This act was more about the devil and his doings than God and what he does. The people of Salem were focusing on witch craft and the devil and most of them believed that was why Betty was in the state she was in. She was acting very strange and people had no other explanation for what it was. But, they did not think it was something health related or the physical body like we would think now days. They knew had to do with something spiritual instead. Instead of calling a doctor they called a minister to help save the little girl. Parris did not want to believe the devil was in his home causing this to his daughter. He was a pastor and believed that God would protect him and the ones he loved. He did not want to except the fact that something "devilish" had happened to his daughter. So I guess that does show the Puritan style of writing because they thought that there was a spiritual reason for all the problems going on in Salem. I do not know if I believe it was witch craft or not though. I bet once I get farther into the book I will be able to make my own opinion on what the real cause for this weird business is. When Parris first saw that Betty had gone into her episode he immediately started praying and did not want to stop. He stayed at her bed side and prayed to make her better. Parris really believed that, that would do the trick. The people's faith in God was very strong then. He did not try anything else to help the girl besides just praying. He did not even want to stop to go see the people who wanted to speak with him. He was the village pastor so I assume he was a very popular man among the people. But, he would not stop praying for Betty to become back to her normal self again. The story was also very straight to the point during the actual play parts. The paragraphs added in were a bit confusing to me and I did not really understand what the author was trying to get across. Otherwise, the play is very easy to read and each part flows with the next nicely. I can go through and read it very quickly without thinking to hard about it because of the simple way it was written. That is what the Puritan style is known for, simplicity in the writing and this play shows it. I don't quite understand why the paragraphs are added into the play. I know they give me some of an insight on what the people are like but I think I would be able to know a character and their personalities without the extra writing. But, maybe I'm just being lazy and want to fly through the story. Overall, I am really enjoying the play so far.

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

Journal #4

Three years ago when I was in seventh grade my family went to Mexico. It was the first time I had ever rode on a plane. As soon as we took off my sister, Izzy, started freaking out and crying because we weren't touching the ground anymore. I loved flying though. I though it was cool. I liked looking out the window and being above the clouds. But, of course, my sister made me close the window for most of the trip because she was so scared. That is the only time we have ever flown anywhere and I'm pretty sure it is because of my sister because nobody else has a problem with it. But, finally two hours after take off we landed in Cancun, Mexico. We hopped on a bus and rode a mile south of Cancun to Riveria Maya. I had my eyes glued outside the window of the bus. It was beautiful. There were palm trees everywhere and bright flowers growing on the sides of the high way. Finally we made it to our resort. We checked into our room, I changed into my swim suit, and then we headed for the beach. It was the first time I had ever seen the ocean. Well I did see the ocean when I was one, right after I was born, but that doesn't really count since I don't remember it. It was huge and beautiful. I grabbed a hammock that was in between two palm trees and laid their for a while to relax. Then I went into the ocean and saw all sorts of tropical fish. It was so cool and they were swimming all around my legs. Then a sting ray swam up close to the shore so I left and went back onto the beach. My family spent a week there eating new kinds of food, visiting small towns, and shopping in local markets. Before I knew it, it was time to leave. We flew back to Springfield. It was a nice rainy cold day when we landed... beautiful!

Puritan Writing - Bradford

I think Bradford's "Of Plymouth Plantation" seems like it would be a very depressing story. So far all these stories that use the Puritan writing style have all been very depressing stories. I'm not sure if this is a coincidence, if this was just a sad point in time, or if it was part of the writing style. Either way I don't really like it very much. I think the Puritan style was less obvious in this story than in the other two we have already read. Though, this story was straight to the point and mentioned God it seemed like it was written in a journal style which made it seem more modern to me for some reason. I enjoyed this story because I thought it was easier to read than Mary's and Anne's stories. The Puritan style was shown when Bradford mention God. He mentioned Him a few times in the story. The people blessed God when they finally made it to Cape Cod. Even though the people who were already there were in poor condition and were sick and dying that others were happy that they had finally arrived. After almost half of the group died that rode across the sea with Bradford. It was a harsh winter but Bradford and I'm sure others did not lose their faith in God.

Squanto continued with them and was their interpreter and was a special instrument sent of God for their good beyond their expectation. He directed them how to set their corn, where to take fish, and to procure other commodities, and was also their pilot to bring them to unknown places for their profit, and never left them till he died. (Bradford 67)

The way it sounds from this writing it seems like the people believe that everything good that happened was because of God. They did not think good things happened just because, they thought everything was planned by God and everything that happened to them had a reason that only God knew. Bradford also was straight to the point when he was writing. He never really went into much detail about things. Like the boat ride he said it was horrible but he never gave specific details about what exactly happened and how long they were on that boat. He also said they ran into bad weather but he never explained any of it, that was all he said about it. I think that is kind of boring. It makes it harder for me to get a picture in my head of what is going on. Overall, I do not like this style of writing very much. I find it kind of boring and confusing at times because not enough detail is used so I get confused on what exactly is going on. I think this style is fast to read and it doesn't take too long to read, which is a plus. But, I do think Bradford is a good writer and it was important for him to write this story because it shares history so people now days can know what it was like for the settlers. Also he could warn people of what it was like in America so they could be prepared.

Bradford William. "Of Plymouth Plantation" Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 64-67. Print.