How to keep a family from falling apart

     As we read A Raisin in the Sun this week, my thoughts kept jumping back to the fact that this whole book wouldn't be anything without the death of Big Walter. Because of all of the work Big Walter did while he was alive, his family members got $10,000 to spend as they wanted once he died. It wasn't until the end of the book that the family even brings up how grateful they should be towards all the work their father did for them. This frustrates me because all Big Walter did was work for his family, and once he died, it seemed to me that all they cared about was the money and how to spend it, rather than taking time to appreciate the man who earned the money for his family that he loved. Because of the money, the family seemed to be falling apart more and more; most of the book consisted of arguments between family members.
     This reminds me a little bit of what's going on in my family. My grandpa died a couple years ago and my dad and his sisters had to divide up all of his belongings. There were a lot of times when my aunts would get in fights over who would get what stuff. It never got too bad, but they were arguing nonetheless and this is definitely not something my grandpa would've wanted to happen because of his death. He would've wanted his death to, if anything, bring his kids closer together, rather than make them argue over how his money and belongings would be split up. Relating my family's situation to the Younger's situation, I've realized that what's important is, not the money and material items, but keeping the memories, stories, and morals of the one who died alive. Focusing on these ideas will bring a family closer together instead of tearing it apart.

A Dried Up Dream

     During this past week, I've really thought in depth about dreams. In Langston Hughes' poem, "Harlem", he refers to the dreams of African Americans and what happens if dreams are put aside. He compares this to a raisin drying up in the sun-- it festers, stinks, crusts over, sags, and could even explode. When one forgets, loses, or puts off a dream, it will have a torturing effect like a raisin that dries up and "[stinks] like rotten meat." Although it may seem easier to just give up on a dream, the poem suggests that this action would be a burden on you by saying "it just sags like a heavy load." To some people it may not make sense that a dream that is out of your way is actually quite a burden, but it in fact is because this forgotten dream is holding you back from complete happiness. The last line of the poem says that the deferred dream could explode. This suggests that not pursuing your dreams could negatively affect not only yourself, but many people, just like an explosion. For example, if your dream is to put an end to poverty and you don't even give it a chance, then you're letting down everyone who is in poverty. A dream that isn't pursued makes you one step further from your idea of a perfect life.
     So, is it better to set off a dream and let laziness take over or go after your dreams at risk that they may not end the way you planned? After reading this poem, I am positive the best action to take regarding your dreams is to chase them. If you put off a dream because of the fear that it will end in disappointment, you're not giving your life the chance it deserves. It's important to at least try to achieve your dreams, because you never know where it could lead you.

We are people who we aren't

     In our critical world, it is very rare to find someone who is always true to his/her real self. It sounds cliche, but it is true that the majority of people make most decisions based on what would please others. This happens so much to the point that it takes over our lives; most of our lives are spent working to convince others that we are someone we aren't. We see this happen in The Great Gatsby through Gatsby's character.
     In Gatsby's case, he worked his whole post-war life to be wanted and loved by Daisy. All he wanted in life was to be with her, so he went to extremes to get her. Gatsby was a poor young man with no connections to wealthy people when he met and fell in love with Daisy, who was rich. After coming back from war and learning that she was married, Gatsby illegally sold alcohol to earn all his wealth, bought a glamorous mansion across the water from Daisy, and held huge parties in order to be the man that Daisy wanted. In the end, his closer connections with Daisy killed him, which shows how changing who you are is not worth it. In today's society, we see people changing to be accepted by others all the time. Whether it's by wearing certain clothes, listening to certain music, saying certain things, or doing certain actions, everyone seems to be a little fake.


     It escapes me why people think that the only way to be happy is changing themselves to be accepted. We don't owe anything to people who are going to only accept us if we fit their standards of living, so why try to please them? On the other hand, we owe everything to ourselves; the least we can do for ourselves is stay true to who we are so our lives don't go to waste.

Is innocence greater than knowledge?

     On Monday, we discussed the poem "The History Teacher" by Billy Collins. I really liked this poem because it was fun and unique, but it also taught a very valuable lesson. It was about a teacher who taught his students less harsh versions of historical events to "protect his students' innocence." The teacher is happy with how he's teaching and he thinks he's doing the right thing for his students, but all he is doing is making them think they live in a perfect world. This poem teaches about the idea that if people aren't taught about past mistakes, then history will repeat itself.

     The worst part of this situation, in my opinion, is the fact that the history teacher finds nothing wrong with his teaching. In the last stanza, it says he "walked home past flower beds and white picket fences." This is saying that he is in his own little perfect mindset. He is completely oblivious to the damage he is creating for the future generation; he is even proud of what he is doing. The teacher finds the kids' innocence more important than their correct knowledge of history's experiences. Although, to some extent, children should live their youth without worries, they need to understand what our world has done wrong in the past so that their generation will know what not to do. It is really just important to keep stories and historical knowledge alive, which is what Harriet Jacobs did by writing about her experiences as a slave. In the long run, knowledge of the past will be much more valuable and important than innocence as a child.

Death and Life

     This past week, we read a few poems by Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman. I thought I knew all there is to know about death, but these poems have opened my eyes to what death really teaches us about life.
     In Dickinson's poem, "Because I could not stop for Death", death is personified as a polite and kind carriage driver. This is unusual because most people would never think of losing someone they love to death in a positive way, but what Dickinson is expressing in this poem is that death is, although an ending to a life, the start to peaceful immortality. Another one of Dickinson's poems from a different point in her life, "My life closed twice before its close", shows her more negative view of death. This poem is about how she felt as if she died inside twice because of losing loved ones to death. It teaches that death really causes more pain for the ones who remain alive than it could ever cause for the one who died. In "Success is Counted Sweetest", it doesn't seem like it's about death, but it can relate to a lesson that death teaches. This poem is about how you don't know what success is unless you've never had it. This reminds me of the idea that you don't know what you have until it's gone, which teaches us the importance of making that most of the time we have on this earth. In Whitman's "Song of Myself", he discusses how death is natural and leads you back to where you came from, which is nature. It teaches us to accept that fact that death will occur and to enjoy life while we can, instead of worrying about dying.
     I have never looked at death so carefully as I have reading these poems. I understand and accept death more, both in a positive way. In short, death teaches us that there is eternal life in immortality, it is more painful living through others' deaths than actually dying, it is important to live life to its fullest, and it is even more important to enjoy life while you can.

The Effects of a Secret

     As we finished reading The Scarlet Letter this week in class, I've been really thinking about secrets and their effects. What I've concluded through what we've discussed in class, including the PostSecret blog and connections to The Scarlet Letter, and what I've thought about on my own time, is that secrets are not meant to be held in.
     In the novel, we see the effects of secrets in Dimmesdale's character. As the whole community knows about Hester's adultery, no one knows that Dimmesdale is the one who she committed it with. It is obvious why Dimmesdale wants to keep his sin a secret; he is the minister and would be the last person anyone in the community would expect to commit this sin. Although keeping this secret upholds his respectable position, it really doesn't do him any good because his whole inside is being eaten up by guilt, shame, and weakness. Just because Dimmesdale decided to keep his secret in, he has created a mental downfall for himself.
     As I was thinking about secrets, I remembered an old Disney channel movie called Little Secrets. This movie is about a girl named Emily who is a "secret-keeper" and charges neighborhood kids 50 cents to relieve themselves of a secret they've been keeping. All the kids are fine because they aren't holding their secrets in, but Emily doesn't have anyone to tell her deepest secrets to. She eventually breaks down and her dreams are almost crushed. This is just another example of how secrets shouldn't be held in. In class, we discussed the PostSecret blog, where people can send in post cards with their secrets on them. The man who created this is amazing because what he has done has saved millions of people from experiencing their inner downfall and from holding in their pain any longer. Keeping a secret might seem like the right thing to do, but, in the end, all it will do is cause inner pain and most likely create a mental and, in Dimmesdale's case, also a physical downfall.

The trailer for Little Secrets:

The Effects of a Decision

     Reading The Scarlet Letter this week, I've realized that one decision you make can affect your whole life, in either a good or a bad way. Hester Prynne decides to commit adultery with Dimmesdale and, because of her sin, she is forced to wear the scarlet letter on her chest her whole life. This action she took ended up giving her a huge amount of ridicule and hate. It also affected her life in other aspects, such as almost not being able to keep custody of her own child. Hester's decision has made her life much more difficult, but she doesn't regret it and she stays strong. She even wears her scarlet letter almost proudly to prove she doesn't regret her relationship with Dimmesdale.
     Although Hester's life is filled with ridicule for a long time, after a while, she gains respect from some of the community. She becomes more active in society and does much to help the poor and sick. Society reinterprets the meaning of the scarlet letter as "able" rather than "adultery". Hester has proved that she is strong enough to overcome the hatred and even give back to her community. In this sense, her past choice has a positive effect on her; it gives her strength and motivation to improve.