"We are part of the system"

"We are part of the system... We are, in this view, neither owners nor operators; at best, we might see ourselves as motile tissue specialized for receiving information" (Thomas 916).

Many people believe as humans we control the earth. Although we have continued to develop and make advancements in our society, we do not control nature but we are a part of it. Many view humans independent from nature "despite the sharing around of genes, enzymes and organelles"(916)  as those other species living on earth.

Through our actions we not only harm other species but ourselves too. We are not protected from the effects of climate change, pollution, and many other harmful problems as we are a part of the environment. We directly affect other species and "we are as dependent as the leaves or midges or fish on the rest of life"(916). As humans are dependent on other species, we also face the same negative effects that humans cause. As climate change continues to threaten the earth, many forget that it does not only affect animals living on earth but also humans. Not only climate change, but also the ongoing problems of plastic and trash being released into the oceans negatively affects humans and while it may affect the species in the oceans more, it still affects us.

As humans we continue to attempt to control the environment but the reality is, is that the earth is not "at our disposal to be consumed, ornamented or pulled apart as we wished"(915) as many previously believed. We were evolved the same way as the other species that live on earth as not to control or rule over nature and other species but instead we asserted ourselves into that role. It is true that we are "neither owners nor operators"(916) of the earth but despite how it may seem, we are still just one more part of the environment, ecosystem, and the earth we live in.

If the effects we have on other species that have already occurred or will occur in the future are not enough for society to take action to save the environment, we need to change our actions to not only save other species, but ourselves too.


Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/science/human-evolution/images-videos/media/275670/73009
The Language of Composition: Reading Writing Rhetoric

"My Three Englishes"

My three Englishes include speaking with family, friends, and speaking/writing in school. When speaking to these different groups or environments, I speak differently using formal or informal language choices along with using different vocabulary with each of these groups.

My most casual form of speaking is with my friends. While with my friends I often use certain jargon and I do not always speak with proper grammar. I don't worry about being judged on how I speak because when speaking with people my own age we generally speak the same way using the same jargon and grammar. Along with speaking with my friends, texting is also very casual and informal. In texts, I often use abbreviations and incorrect grammar, I rarely use punctuation, and I do not correctly capitalize.

My most formal speaking and writing is in school and with my teachers. While speaking with teachers, I always use correct grammar and try to use a deeper vocabulary. I also write very formally in papers and assignments for class. I try to use sophisticated language while writing and always check my grammar and spelling before turning an assignment in.

My other form of English is speaking with family. When speaking with my family, I often find I use a combination of how I speak with friends and teachers. I talk somewhat casually with my family but I don't use the jargon that I use with my friends. This is due to parents or other family not always understanding the jargon and terms people my age use and it can be difficult to describe the terms to them. By refraining from using this jargon, I use a different vocabulary similar, but not as formal, to the vocabulary I use with teachers.

With these three Englishes I use during different times and with different audiences, I think I have the most power while speaking with friends and others that are the same age or younger than me. I think this because while speaking with friends they don't judge the way I speak but focus on what I am saying instead of how I say things so they focus on the idea I am trying to express instead of how I express it. I feel I have less power while speaking with teachers or other people that have a higher authority because they often focus on your grammar, language choices, and whether your speaking formal or informally. By teachers focusing on those details, they are less focused on what you are saying and you cannot fully express your ideas.

By using my three Englishes, I am able to change the way I speak with different groups of people to try and express my ideas to their full extent. With using these languages I am able to obtain different levels of power to portray my opinions and ideas successfully.

Metacognitive Reflection

Over the course of this semester, I feel I have grown as a writer immensely. Though I can sill improve a great deal, discussing my writing with others has helped me continue to grow. This semester, I have had my peers and I have personally reviewed and reread my essays after receiving my grade and Ms. Nagi's feedback.

The area I felt I have improved the most in is my analysis. At the beginning of the semester I had used phrases such as "this shows" but as the semester continued I began to refrain from using such phrases and have let my ideas flow more smoothly. I also think I have improved on embedding my quotes in my writing. I now do not use stand alone quotes and embed my quotes to continue to improve my analysis.

One area I feel I can further improve in is focusing on the big picture and broader ideas instead of focusing on specific things in the text I am writing about. To accomplish this, along with meeting with Ms. Nagi next semester to discuss my writing, I plan to spend time focusing on the broader idea the text is trying to portray and focusing on that idea instead of specific details from the text.

The writing assignment I am specifically proud of is my social concerns final essay. I am specifically proud of this essay because I feel this essay reflects all of the skills I have learned this semester. In my essay, I believe I provided an effective thesis regarding gender inequality and provided sufficient and effective analysis to support my claim.

To help further develop my skills, Ms. Nagi can provide more feedback for my writing. To provide more feedback on my writing, it would be helpful for me if she could mark and comment more on my writing. Along with receiving more feedback I plan to meet with her more often next semester to further discuss my writing to continue my improvement this school year.

Why I Want a Different Ending to Huck Finn

Many readers similar to me did not enjoy the ending of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I do understand Twain's purpose of expressing the struggles for freedom in the end of the novel, so you may wonder, why do I want a different ending to Huck Finn?

I want a new ending without Tom Sawyer. As "Huck permits Tom to not simply intrude, but to dominate, his story for so long"(Kaufmann 69), all of Huck's progress towards becoming more mature and expressing his ideas is forgotten and he reverts back to his old ways of being a follower. A new ending without Tom Sawyer would still express the same ideas about freedom without adding, in my opinion, unnecessary plot to the novel. I want a different ending where Huck learns how to take control of his life, without simply agreeing to whatever others say.

I want and ending with Jim earning his freedom, not simply learning he had it all along. I want an ending where all of Jim and Huck's hard work paid off instead of learning they were fighting for something Jim already had. I wanted Jim to have only gone through mistreatment for a reason towards his freedom not because of others cruel actions towards an already free man.

I want an ending that highlighted the struggles for freedom but still provided the reader with a story and an ending that continued the progress and developments of characters instead of allowing them the lose all progress made. Most of all, I want an ending that left me wanting more, not wishing I hadn't read the ending at all.



Pictures:
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51tsRv3kXJL._SX303_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

My Name is Abigail Williams and This is my Story

It has now been 20 years since I have left Salem and I have tried to put the past behind me but with encouragement from friends and family, I am finally ready to tell my side of the story to help me move on. It all begins with my affair with John proctor.

I did truly love John proctor. I am not trying to defend my actions but I did want the best for him and at the time I believed that was to get rid of Elizabeth. When I was dismissed from the Proctors service, I was angered and filled with rage. Since I was no longer living with the Proctors, it was no longer possible for me to try and persuade Proctor to run off with me and the only way I could think possible to get Proctor to love me was to kill Elizabeth.

I will admit now that I was a major cause in the start of the witch trials and while I don't believe I am responsible to what happened to many men and women, I do realize that I was a a major cause of the start of the witch trials. I am ready to admit, I did convince Tituba to make me a charm to kill Elizabeth. I know that I did lie in the courts and I hope you understand that I was a young immature, selfish, and scared girl who decided to protect herself over others.

When I had realized what I had done, lying to the court, I knew I could not return to normal life. I had admitted that I knew that John proctor will never love me and will always side with his wife but I was not ready to admit to performing witchcraft. But being a scared young girl, I did not wish to die from being accused as a witch, so I did the only thing I could think of, getting as many people to protect me and simply denying the charges by accusing others. I realize now that I was very threatening but I was young and did not know what else to do.

After the witch trials had spun out of control, I knew I had to get out. I could no longer take part in all the lies that jailed and hung many others, and I needed to run away. So I took Mary lewis with me and we left Salem for good, I have now built a life for myself and have a loving family and many friends. And to anyone reading this, know that I am truly sorry for my actions and what they caused in Salem and know that I am trying to become a better person and being truthful to myself and others.

Pictures:

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/143059725640080213/?lp=true

The Crucible v. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

The new Netflix show Chilling Adventures of Sabrina examines the life of a half-witch half-mortal hiding her witch side. Similar to The Crucible, the show tells a story of witches and witchcraft. Despite the obvious difference of in the show witches are real and in the crucible witches and witchcraft are not real, the show and the play contain many similarities and differences.

For starters, within the first episode it is revealed that there are witches in the city Sabrina lives in called Greendale. The witches are similar to those during Salem witch trials where both the witches in Greendale and Salem were hung for witchcraft in the past and in the show witches are now hidden. In both the show and the play, witches are unknown to others and not necessarily excepted in society. In the play, Abigail does admit that she dances in the woods to Reverend Parris and states, "Uncle, we did dance... But we never conjured spirits,"(138, lines 63-79) and does not admit she performed witchcraft. In the show, Sabrina tries to reveal to her boyfriend, Harvey, that she is a witch but then performs a spell to make him forget because she doesn't want to face the consequences of him knowing. Another similarity is what Sabrina and Abigail used witchcraft for, Abigail used witchcraft to kill John Proctor's wife while Sabrina used it for slightly less extreme reason, to scare/hurt her principal.



Now for some differences, obviously the show is not real and witches are real in the show and the play recalls historic events from the past where we now know there were not witches in Salem but there also are some other key differences in the witchcraft part of it all. In the crucible, Abigail drinks a charm in order to kill John Proctor's wife but in the show it is not necessary to drink blood or a charm in order to perform a spell. In the show, Sabrina must choose between two worlds, the one with witches or the world with mortals. Obviously there are not two literal worlds to chose from in the crucible, but in a sense there are two paths of lives chosen in Puritan society, to go along with the rules and worship god, or become and outlaw for worshiping the devil.



While there are some clear differences between the two, The Crucible and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina both examine witches and witchcraft in their own time periods, displaying that witches were not accepted in society and revealing the consequences that go along with it.

Pictures:
https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/the-crucible-10-major-events
https://www.glamour.com/story/the-chilling-adventures-of-sabrina-netflix-details

Christopher Columbus Was Not as Great as He is Perceived to Be

I think we all know that Christopher Columbus did not "discover America", in fact, all he did was accidentally end up on land people were already living their lives on.  

  

Think back to elementary school when we all learned of this great guy named Christopher Columbus who discovered America. We all remember the saying "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue" that even ended up in a Mini Wheat's commercial, but in reality, all Columbus did was walk into an already developed civilization and ruin it. But somehow society decided to dedicate a whole day to the person who spread disease to indigenous people and took their land. 

  

Christopher Columbus is a great example of what not to do. He spread disease, enslaved many Native Americans, and caused genocide of Native Americans. Knowing all of the things Columbus caused it seems obscured why he is celebrated and idolized. Thinking of it, why are children all across the United States taught about Columbus being a great man when "He wasn't the first European in the New World, either. Leif Eriksson and the Vikings beat him to it five centuries earlier." I strongly believe instead of continuing to idolize the man who wiped out an entire civilization we should instead celebrate Indigenous people's day to honor an recognize the people affected by the harsh actions of Christopher Columbus.

Sources:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/08/us/columbus-day-vs-indigenous-peoples-day/index.html