Honors History Blog #4

Here's the final Honors History blog of the semester.
Honors: A Personal History
Please complete all of the following:
1. Discuss your successes as an honors student this past semester.


2. Discuss what you might have done differently if you do this past semester of honors over again.

3. Discuss your goals for honors in the second semester.

4. If you could choose any parts of literature and history for our honors work, what would you pick and why?

Please post this before 11:59:59 pm on 12/15. Up to 20 points for completing each section.

Blog #27: Nature Writing

Into the Wild

Choose two of the following:

1. Do you feel, as one letter writer did, that there is “nothing positive at all about Chris McCandless’ lifestyle or wilderness doctrine …surviving a near death experience does not make you a better human it makes you damn lucky” (116); or do you see something admirable or noble in his struggles and adventures?

everyone who wrote a letter to the author, critiquing Chris' adventures and actions, were enrage that someone would follow their dreams. We all have dreams when we are young, dreams of exploring the world and living crazy adventures. then when we grow old and our dreams seem ridiculous. for some reason we stop following our dreams, we settle down with what society wants us to do. ----"Quote from book where Chris rejects society, and society is involve"---.

Blog #26: Professional Exhibition? Contest?

MSB projects must go beyond the walls of HTHMA. You have two basic choices: enter a contest or have a professional organization exhibit your work.

If you are entering a contest:

1. Post a link to the contest

2. Summarize the basic requirements including entry fees, contest deadlines, permission forms, file sizes, and other requirements.

3. Evaluate your work against their requirements. Will your work be accepted?

If you are having a professional organization exhibit your work:

1. Post a link to the organization.

2. Post contact information for a member of that organization that is assisting in the exhibition of your work.

3. Post the date & place of the professional exhibition.

4. Post any requirements they have & evaluate your progress towards meeting them.

The Great Gatsby!

5. Evaluate “The Great Gatsby” as a criticism of the corruption of the American Dream.

 

In the book, The Great Gatsby, by F.Scott Fitzgerald, every character has its own views of the American Dream. Each character interprets the dream differently to benefit them. The American Dream was founded on the phrase from the Declaration of Independence "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. The phrase itself has already been corrupted, but in the book, it takes a different meaning. F. Scott Fitzgerald creates characters and scenes, to explain the corruption of the American Dream in the 1920’s. Jay Gatsby, one of the main characters in the book, came from a poor family. He never did accept the fact he was born poor he actually invented another life for himself, were he could have wealth, which he believed was happiness. This, to him was the American dream.

Jay Gatsby idolized Daisy for her social status. She was wealthy, powerful and popular in society; she had all the characteristics that he wanted. He consciously became the man he had always dreamt of becoming. A rich, intelligent gentleman that was sure of himself and the people around him.  

“The truth was that Jay Gatsby, of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God—… So he invented just the sort of Jay Gatsby that a seventeen year old boy would be likely to invent, and to this conception he was faithful to the end.” That is how James Gatz, the young farm boy, created Jay Gastby. He corrupted the American dream by becoming rich unlawfully; something he believed was the easy way into popularity. Fitzgerald creates this character to emphasize that the American Dream, in some terms, refers to the social climbing happening around that time, with illicit forms such as bootlegging.

Those who inherited their wealth like Tom and Daisy Buchanan who live a life of pleasure and luxury. Also corrupt the American Dream because they haven’t worked for their money. They waste and spend the money they didn’t work for, on materialistic objects. Throughout the novel Tom criticizes Gatsby for obtaining his money in an unlawful way. But at least Gatsby worked in order to get his money, as he is following his dream.

Tom also despises Gatsby for being a “newly rich” person. It is Tom’s selfishness and egocentric characteristics that corrupt the American dream, by not letting others pursuit their beliefs of happiness.

“I see now that this has been a story of the West, after all-Tom and Gatsby, Daisy, and Jordan and I were all Westerners, and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly unadaptable to Eastern life.” Almost every character was provoked by the majestic lifestyle the East brought them. The lived a life of parties and no moral values. Jay Gatsby was devoted himself in trying to achieve happiness by living this way. He’s dream also included the socially acceptable Daisy, the love of his life. After all, Gatsby’s American dream was focused on wealth and power; he was reaching this by illicit ways. Ironically, Gatsby dies while trying to achieve his corrupted American dream. It was the pursuit of wealth that brought Jay Gatsby to his end.

Blog #24: More current events

Blog # 9 Hepatitis A Threatens Swimmers At San Diego Beach

This headline is a red flag waving, warning us that we have mistreated our beaches. We know that the Tijuana River empties their sewage on Imperial Beach. Its not the first time we hear this, we all know that eeverything that goes into the sewage system ends up on our beaches. What is important here is that our beaches have become much polluted and the water now contains diseases that we never expected. A team of researchers from San Diego State University took some samples from the Imperial Beach, and they found that 80% of the samples had Hepatitis A. this is very threatening to the surfers, swimmers and fishermen, and anyone that visits Imperial Beach.

"We export 2 million tires to Mexico every year to keep them out of California landfills and then they end up coming back when it rains through the Tijuana River channel at the end of the pipe."

This shows that even California, hasn't been able to find a solution to this problem, a way to recycle this material that will benefit us all. 

 

Blog #23: Environmental Current Events

This was an article from November 13, 2009. It stated that the City Council was in charge of deciding the fate of the seals at La Jolla Children's Pool. A law will go into effect on January 1; it makes it clear the uses for the beach. Jan Goldsmith, a San Diego City attorney supports Judge Timothy Taylor's decision to rule out a 2005 state ruling that orders the seals removal. 

"A new law goes into effect on January 1 that broadens the scope of acceptable uses for the beach. It also gives control of the Children's Pool to the city council. Judge Timothy Taylor ruled that nothing would be gained by enforcing the 2005 ruling for a month-and-a-half. San Diego City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said he's happy with the ruling."

I don't think everyone will be too happy about the ruling. Where could the seals possibly go? They have no other home, yet they do pollute the beach, so how are we supposed to know hat is the right thing to do? 

 

From D'Vaughn McCrae’s blog, since I know she has a similar question, I read one of her articles titled, Residents Protest End to 2nd Trash Pickup

I have actually been reading articles like this one that talk about the rise of recycling trash. 

"That additional service will no longer be provided as a result of cuts made by San Diego last year to close a $43 million midyear budget gap. Some Mission Beach residents are just beginning to learn about the loss of the service, which costs the city $58,000 a year, and are lobbying City Hall to restore it."

If the City or state raises the price on recycling or collecting trash, then less people would want to recycle. More trash would end up on the streets and eventually in the ocean!

 

San Diegans Urged To Throw Their Butts Away

How many times have we seen people flick their cigarette butts on the streets, when there is a trash can two feet away from them? This is something that upsets me so much! Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the U.S. They can be found everywhere, mostly on beaches. Even though San Diego has banned alcohol and cigarettes on beaches and parks, they are still a major issue. What are we doing to prevent this from happening?  

"Because you have birds and fish that mistake them for food," David said. "Also they are not made of cotton, they actually include plastics, so they never totally breakdown."

This article is reliable and supports my essential questions in some ways. San Diegans need to learn to dispose cigarette buts appropriately and HTHMA students need to learn to dispose trash and recyclable items correctly.

Honors History Essay #3

The 1920’s were among the most preliminary years in American History. This decade was known as the Roaring 20’s, most likely because America experienced a fast growth in economy, commerce and culture. These among other factors created a roaring lifestyle for many Americans. The economy was prospering and benefited citizens who were involve with the marketplace. Culture played a huge role in society, such as music, fashion and literature. Yet one of the most important changes during these years was the women liberation movement, which opened the door for women’s rights.

A women’s movement started many years back in history. The first or maybe on of the first women success in history started in 1807,when New Jersey granted women the right to vote in the State Constitution. Women kept struggling to make their voices count, in 1919, the federal woman suffrage amendment is written by Susan B. Anthony. It is later introduced to Congress in 1878, where after many reviews and examinations it is approved by the House of Representatives.  

It took women more than 100 years of campaigning until Amendment 19 was finally signed into law on August 26, 1920, granting women the right to vote. It is a historic event, because women were now accepted as full American citizens with an equal protection under the law. Today, most countries allow women to participate in politics and economic affairs, but it took years of campaigning and suffering trough harsh times.

Carrie Chapman Catt was president of the National Women Suffrage Association (NAWSA) for two terms. It was under her second term in which the 19^th Amendment was signed and it culminated along with women’s rights. "To get the word 'male' in effect out of the Constitution cost the women of the country fifty-two years of restless campaign...” Chapman referred to the struggle it took to obtain their natural rights.

After this, wealthy women went on living a fancy and luxurious lifestyle. Culture and fashion were a part of women, and played a huge role in society. Women had also changed their standards in society. For example women in the Roaring 20’s liked to party, they would smoke and drink although alcohol was prohibited. They lived a life similar to men, and even though they still attended their families, they were more liberal.

All these benefits and comforts came to women after the success of their movement. It lasted many years, but it gave women the same rights as men. It was an event in history that changed our world and values for women.

 

Resources:

http://doe.sd.gov/octa/ddn4learning/themeunits/1920s/style.htm

http://kclibrary.lonestar.edu/decade20.html

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=4929

Blog #23: Environmental Current Events

Council Will Decide What Happens To Seals

This was an article from November 13, 2009. it stated that the City Council was in charge of deciding the fate of the seals at La Jolla Children's Pool. A law will go into effect on January 1, it makes it clear the uses for the beach. Jan Goldsmith, a San Diego City attorney supports Judge Timothy Taylor's decision to rule out a 2005 state ruling that orders the seals removal. 

The most important information is that the City Council will have the final decision, wether or not the seals will remain in La Jolla Children's Pool. 

The article includes the interview of a Jan Goldsmith, the S.D City Attorney. Yet it misses other important information like the opinion from other City Attorneys. This will help us make assumptions on the issue. The Public opinion might not be relevant but I did wanted to see other peoples ideas. 

I actually saw this article before i read another one about cigarette butts, which is the most littered item. But this article shows that the community is already looking at ways to clean and preserve our beaches. 

San Diegans Urged To Throw Their Butts Away

November 13, 2009

SAN DIEGO — The local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation is holding a Cigarette Butt Awareness Day tomorrow. Activists will be at three busy intersections in beach communities to urge people to throw their butts away.

Cigarette butts are called the single most littered item in the United States. The problem has gotten even worse since many communities imposed indoor smoking bans.

San Diego bans smoking in city parks and on beaches, but discarded cigarette butts are still an issue.

Ken David, who is with the Surfrider Foundation, said butts aren't only a litter problem; they're also an environmental concern.

"Because you have birds and fish that mistake them for food," David said. "Also they are not made of cotton, they actually include plastics, so they never totally breakdown."

A recent study from San Diego State suggests cigarette butts should be classified as toxic hazardous waste.

 

Blog #22: Your MSB Organizations

Blog #21: Gatsby! Ch 1-4

Gatsby and Nick are both somewhat detached from their surroundings. Compare and contrast this sense of detachment. How are they similar and/or different in this respect?

When Nick was at Gatsby's party for the first time, he noticed that Gatsby was standing alone observing his guests. Gatsby was not drinking and he didn't seem to be having much fun.

On chapter 4, we realize that Gatsby and Daisy had an intimate relationship. Even though he is very wealthy, he loves her and he wants to get her back no matter what.

Nick has been observing and analyzing everyone.

Blog #20: Beginning The Great Gatsby

1. Who is the narrator? Describe his perspective, biases, character traits, etc.

The narrator is Nick Carraway, he studied at Yale. He seems like a smart efficient man. Even though his family is wealthy, he doesnt spend it and wants to invest it. He lives in the West Egg which is why we know he wants to use his money wisely.
He thinks Tom Buchanan is a bit showy, it seems he doesn't like them very much.

2. What do you think F. Scott Fiitzgerald accomplishes by chooses this specific narrator versus another choice, such as a different character or 3rd person?

He is wise, compared to what he believes of himself. He thinks highly of Gatsby, even though Nick is charismatic.
He is not that biased, and brings a view or perspective that makes it clear to infer about people's character.

Blog #19: Critique a professional example

The Igloo

1. What is the most successful element of this work sample? Why do you believe this?

The artist uses recyclable items that we use daily. for example he uses newspapers, paper cups and plastic bags. Instead of trowing them away, he uses them to create an igloo.  

2. What is the message of the work? How do you know?

I think his message is that, even in remote conditions like he is, you can create something beautiful from household objects that might destroy our environment. maybe someone, in a near future we might depend on these items to help us live trough our rough climate. 

3. Who or what is the intended audience for this work? How do you know?

Intended audience can be anyone, that can figure this object out. Young children will find this interesting and they can start creating their own artwork. Young adults can build more complex examples and so on. the main idea is to recycle and reuse what you might consider trash. 

4. How do specific elements of the work sample come together to deliver the message?

Plastic bags are used all the time and they are found in beaches. these bags can be recycled and reuse. Newspapers or any type of mail that might never get used, can be recycled. in fact you can call any magazine that you rarely read and cancel your subscriptions in order to save more trees. As we all know trees are critical for the survival of humanity.

5. Describe one technique the creator of this work used. Why do you think this technique was used for this specific piece of work?

This is an igloo from artist David Hamlow. 

It consists of trash collected and includes newspapers, paper cups and plastic bags.

I noticed that it has no or few flexibility, especially in the entrance. the dimensions seem wrong because it has odd edges. 

6. Why did you choose this work sample?

This piece stood out, because it represents a type of housing or refugee for some people. It gives a message of preserving our habitat. 

Honors Literature Writing #2

David Henry Thoreau gave a true assessment of literature, “In literature it is only the wild that attracts us. Dullness is but another name for tameness. It is the uncivilized free and wild thinking in Hamlet and The Iliad, in all scriptures and mythologies, not learned in schools, that delights us.” Thoreau explains that the malice of writing is what connects us, and delights us to literature. I’ve heard this connection with the analogy of “the cruelty of war makes us love war.” These connections seem true, it was the sin, and the darkness brought by the scarlet letter that makes the novel, The Scarlet Letter, so enthralling.

The scarlet letter is meant to impose on Hester Prynne shame; the letter itself is uncivilized, because it brings misery to Hester Prynne, for the rest of her life. She is scorned with this letter, and even poor innocent Pearl, having nothing to do with the initial sin, has to bear with the criticism. The owns people see Hester as the sinful one, and even though she hasn’t committed the sin alone, she has to

The first view of wild thinking is the novel starts with the “Goodwives”. They, the women of mature age and members of the church, condemn Hester Prynne for her adultery. They delegate about the punishment Hester must receive, “This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die,” say a pitiless woman. Even thought the magistrates decide on her punishment, the women who are supposed to feel pity for Hester repudiate her deeds and would like to see her be humiliated by bringing shame to all women. Now a day, if we know someone commits adultery, we start judging them right away, because it is the shame we bring upon them, that makes us more powerful. It gives us the opportunity to feel better than them, and we get addicted to this feeling, that we keep on doing it.
The main character and storyline that is contradicting the values of the townspeople is Reverend Master Dimmesdale. When Hester is publicly humiliated, Dimmesdale tries to avoid the magistrates from forcing Hester to reveal the father of her child. He only does this because he is unsure and afraid of people from knowing his dark secret, yet he never tries to defend her from the rough criticism. The multitude is amused by Hester’s suffering; they judge her as a sinner, even though Dimmesdale, being a “pure” man has committed a sin as well. Later on in the novel, the townspeople and Pearl, Hester’s daughter, see the affection and connection between Hester and Dimmesdale, the people try to ignore it because they don’t want to realize that their own minister has done them wrong.

Blog #18: Newspapers & MSB

For this next project, MSB, I want to make sure I find an interesting idea that I can have fun with it and create a unique product.

Brainstorming earlier, making sure I am aware of all the contents needed, will help me manage my time. Preparing examples or rough-drafts of my work for critiques, and finding examples to base from, will make sure I use my time wisely, something in which I struggled during the Newspaper project. Even though this is not a group project, I do want to work on my group skills, and communication. I know that my group was having trouble deciding on ideas together; it was more like a dictatorship at the beginning. It wasn't my entire fault, but I did contribute to the lack of communication. Unlike my Newspaper article, I want to make my final product interesting and important. This is why I am planning beforehand, and hopefully I can make my ideas happen.

Blog #17: MSB people, groups & orgs!

Honors History Writing #2

America can’t afford another President who thinks of their own benefits before worrying about the necessities of the American people. We have already reached an all time low. It’s taking all our effort to adjust to the bitter depression, and get back on our feet. The government hasn’t reestablished the wealth our nation had. Now they want to enforce the gold standard policies, which make it even harder for us to recuperate. It is now imminent that the only candidate that has shown interest in helping those who suffer the economic depression is William Jennings Bryan.   

 

Bryan has been in a prolong tour by train, where he has spoken to voters directly. He is the first presidential candidate that has made an attempt to reach the American people from every corner. Over the past few days he has given speeches to more several million people. “My place in history will depend on what I can do for the people and not on what the people can do for me,” he has definitely shown his passion in helping families who are struggling. While other candidates conduct a “front porch” speech that excludes many Americans. Bryan is bringing hope to every the American families, knowing that we need a new currency system, because the one operating has failed us.

 

Implementing the free silver theories, would help get rid of debts and push our economy forward. It would give us a new start and a brand new opportunity to be successful. Sixteen silver backed dollars equals one gold dollar. Having more paper money, backed by silver, would allow farmers and workers to pay off their fees and maintain a dignify living. This system makes paper money easier to circulate nationwide and it would help lift our economy. This would be the fastest way to recover from the economic depression of 1893, thus perusing a new direction for the United States.

 

Let us not forget that we have no one else to blame but the corrupted corporations and government, for our great downfall in the economy. These same corporations that have lower our wages; have formed a coalition with our main opponent, William McKinley to bring more wealth towards their own benefit. This man has supported the Gold Standard because it has helped businessmen gain more wealth. Even though the majority of the United States have been starving, and living in the worst conditions, McKinley worries for the rich minority.

 

Don’t be intimidated by the over powering minority, they have yet to understand that the free silver will only implicate the growth of our nation. It will not impact the laborers and it will not cause them to lose their jobs. Not one corporation will fall trough with the silver backed dollar. Do not let your fear guide you into voting for candidates that can be sold. There is no doubt that the right man to lead this new era, lift us from the crisis and construct a well organized government is William Jennings Bryan.   

Blog #16

From Ruben's blog post titled, Narrowing it down, I thought his idea was very creative. I had never though that people could actually make some profit from beach clean ups. America is all about businesses and profits, so why not make money while helping the environment. I love this idea and I already want to see his results and final product. 

From Osamah's blog post titled, Blog # 15: Media Saves the Beach,  I realized that many students are planning on creating a video related project. Osamah plans on creating a video with photos of the bay and ocean. His ideas are really good, and I know many people will also have bright ideas. So maybe doing a documentary might not be a good idea for me, I want to make something unique, or different. 

 From Corey's blog post titled, Possible MSB Products, I thought that I could also do a photo essay. Corey also wants to create a video, but I thought that a photo essay will not be a bad idea. I do love photography, like everyone else, and taking some time taking pictures of the bay can be joyful. I have now decided to add photo essay into one of my possible products. 

 

Blog #15—Possible MSB products

A 3-dimensional sculpture made from recyclable trash. 

For example this piece is a recycled bottle cap fish mosaic. Its a small beautiful art piece, but it proves a point and this is somewhat of what I have in mind. 

Recycled bottle caps, can be found anywhere including the beach. These objects are dangerous to our wildlife and can be recycled.

Its creative, beautiful and its appealing to the public, and relates to our ocean waters, which is something that MSB calls for.

It looks like the artist had fun while making this piece. It expresses his ideas. I want my final product to involve all of these things. 

A documentary showing the process of MSB water testings and findings.  

This video shows a group of scientist that conduct a research on water pollution, just like us. So I don't know if this idea can work, but it wold be interesting to see and videotape all the research the students will make. Getting deep inside the process, their thoughts and showing their results on video. I can of course conduct some research some test. Like i said before, I'm not sure if this can be consider a project, but it will give the audience a big idea and first hand look at our process in this project.   

Blog #14—MSB Questions & Resources

What materials found on the beach and oceans, can be recycled?

The following link answers questions about plastics that can be recycled.

It also gives a lot of information about recycling.

http://www.costaricareciclaje.com/eng/recicle_faqs/recycling_faqs.php

This link can help many understand our water pollution problems and it also talks about recycling plastic, metal, glass and paper.

http://www.beachcleanup.org/trash.html

And more facts about recycling, I think it is very important for everyone to recycle and most important, know, how to recycle. This article titled Aluminum Recycling Facts, teaches you the main facts about recycling aluminum, many of which we don't know.

Media Saves the Beach, is all about helping the beach, we pollute our waters

With our sewage, but we also dump a lot of materials that can be recycled.

So please, learn how to recycle and do it everyday.

Titled

Blog #13: Industrialization and Coastal Environments

"Ocean water quality at San Diego County beaches was largely good or excellent this summer, according to the annual end-of-summer Beach Report Card released Tuesday by the environmental group Heal the Bay. Of the 94 locations monitored over the summer months in San Diego County, 83 sites received either an A or B grade.
There were 11 locations that received fair to poor water-quality grades, according to the report, which is based on routine monitoring of beaches from Humboldt County to the Mexican border. Two areas in San Diego Bay received F grades, while in Mission Bay, there were four C's, two D's and one F."


Eleven locations in the San Diego coastal area, received poor water-quality grades.
Mission Bay seemed to be one of the worst graded areas.

We are missing information that explains how the grades were give and hoe the test process occurred.

The follow up could include information on the beaches or bays that have the highest visitor numbers. Or the beaches around or near high populations.

Optional Assignment

Qualcomm Inc. was formed in 1985, by the master mind Irwin Jacobs. "Franklin Antonio, Adelia Coffman, Andrew Cohen, Klein Gilhousen, Irwin Jacobs, Andrew Viterbi and Harvey White—decided they wanted to build “QUALity COMMunications," know today as Qualcomm Inc. The main goal for this industry, was to provide great software and manufacture innovative ideas to help improve technology and lifestyle. This was the largest company during that period of time. It later divided and multiplied into many sections all over the San Diego County. It is one of the largest employers and best facilitated industry, providing Healthcare and Insurance to their employees.  

"Law360, New York (January 02, 2008) -- Qualcomm Inc. has vowed to appeal a federal judge’s permanent injunction order that bars the company from importing and selling certain chips and devices that infringe three Broadcom Corp. patents.

Judge James Selna of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued his injunction order on Monday against Qualcomm products that infringe on Broadcom’s video-encoding and cellular..."

I think this is an important event because we see how companies try to be more successful than others. Broadcom didn't want Qualcomm to sell, trade or export certain items, and this confrontation lasted while. 

Honors Novel Essay 1

When Mark Twain wrote "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" he received harsh criticism. His book was banned in many libraries Mostly everyone from his time period believed his literature was demeaning to their culture and country. The most reasonable idea might be that Huckleberry Finn, one of the main characters in the book, displayed the same values, ideas and controversial life that modern society had. And maybe that’s why they saw the characters as obscene and ridiculous. Twain directly examined people's beliefs about slavery and made a witty but fun satire of society when writing "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn."

The novel consists of many controversial characters whose ideas collide and change trough out the book. The main character in the book is Huckleberry Finn, who is only thirteen and has been raised by his alcoholic dad because his mother has deceased. We soon start to see that Huck is street smart and has never been educated, or perhaps his dad doesn't want him to be educated. His father, knows as Pap, kidnaps him, and takes him away from Ms. Watson who at the time had been his guardian. Ms. Watson teaches Huck mannerism, but Huck hates wearing decent clothing and hates the fact of being civilized.  

Huckleberry Finn is an interesting character, even though he is young and tries to act like his old friend Tom; he also matures and breaks away from society's perspective. He became friends with Jim, one of Ms. Watson's slaves. Jim is much older than Huck, but they both have an intertwining relationship when Jim escapes from Ms. Watson in order to prevent being separated from his family, and hopefully arrive to the free states. Jim has a very familiar situation, because many slaves would also want to escape slavery, even when they have to sacrifice their family. At first Huck doesn't even realized that Jim is as much human as he is, and doubts that he loves his family as much as white people do. It’s hard to believe that a thirteen year old boy has ideas like this, and worst of all, Huck wanted to return Jim to Ms. Watson, who Huck believes "is his rightful owner." When Jim and Huck started traveling the Mississippi River, Huck sees their situation as an opportunity to have an adventure, just like the ones he experienced with Tom. But Jim, knowing that some decisions Huck was makes are completely risky and foolish, he doesn't want to question Huck’s authority because he knows, Huck could turn him in to the authorities anytime. Again we see the fear, slaves felt towards the power and authority of the white male, even when it refers to a thirteen year old boy. 

I would say that Huck started to understand his society when he started meeting more characters in the book. The further they go the more grotesque situations they would find. The actions from the Duke and Dauphin, gave him an idea that his society was terrible to the extent that blacks had to run away from their families in order to reach freedom, and humans had such nature to bring one another down in a greedy and selfish way. The cruelty, in which people were living, made him question, right from wrong. This is where he questions what would be the right thing to do. Turn in Jim, a run away slave, something Huck's society consider the right thing, or follow his emotions, which were in favor of helping Jim. Huck sympathizes with Jim, when Jim tells Huck "he is the only white person that has kept his word." And so he does, after a long analysis, he realizes that Jim, a slave, was as much or even more human than whites.

Towards the end, the reader is finally convinced that Jim has been the good soul all along. He believed in Huck, an adventurous kid, he also protected Huck from harms way. He didn't allow Huck to see his father’s dead body because he knew it would hurt Huck, and wanted to avoid this horrific moment. And when he is freed by Tom and Huck, Tom gets wounded by a bullet; he takes care of him and assists the doctor in order to save Tom's life. To connect Mark Twain’s society to the book, he tells the readers that Ms. Watson, who has passed way, has freed all her slaves.

Huckleberry has grown and matured trough the novel, he broke away from the society he had been structured from, and has found his own belief, making an individual we didn't know before. Jim, in my opinion, has been the hero, for providing his humble as a reason to change Huck's life. Now I understand why many people from the 1860's found this as obscene. They were offended when being compared to Jim, who was the only character to show a moral conscious.

Blog #12 Media Saves the Beach Questions

1. Can we use sewage or waste water to produce energy for its own filtration?

In 9th grade we took a trip to Hoover dam, I got the chance to see how the water was utilize to provide energy and was a way to filtrate water. This got me wondering if there could be a possible way in which water is use to produce energy for its own filtration. if it is somehow possible then we can clean our water and use the water pressure to produce energy.

2. What is the ocean waters' original pH?

Since every liquid has a certain type of pH, I wonder was is the ocean water's pH. it contains a lot of sodium, so I wonder if it is acidic or basic.

3. If people are not sure about the Toilet to Tap proposition what other alternatives are there?

Plastic water bottles are very hurtful to the environment, instead of drinking and using that water, we have the Toilet to Tap idea, which many people don't agree with. are there any more alternatives to drinking water.

Honors History Writing 1

Headlines burst wildly, from every corner of the country, front page covers with bold print read, “Wilson’s Remarks Based on Racism,” “Obama’s Care Protesters Racist,” the entire country was focused on Jimmy Carter’s comment during President Obama’s Health Care speech. Americans were quickly making assumptions that Carter’s comment was based on racism. Many Americans were shocked to know, that racism still existed in modern day America and had infiltrated inside our Congress. As soon as I read a blog title, “What?! Racism Still in America?” I asked myself, “Hasn’t racism always exist in America after the Civil War?

When the first colonies in the South were getting started, people from Africa were being brought into America as slaves, in order to work the land. We never assumed it was an act of racism. Plantations needed to be taken care of, slaves were believed to be inferior because they were dark and it seemed that the perfect solution to obtain higher profits was having slaves worked in plantations. Along the way, there were a few Americans who truly believed slaves were as much humans as whites. This started high tensions between Southerners and Northerners. We can remember from our History textbooks, the Canning of Senator Sumner.[1] Charles Sumner, an outspoken senator from Massachusetts delivered a passionate speech called, “The Crime against Kansas.” In his speech he condemned slavery, and insulted the great state of South Carolina. Days later, one of the congressmen from South Carolina, Preston S. Brooks went up to Sumner and beat him with a cane, until Sumner lost conscious. This became the most problematic event in 1856.

I would never expect anything like this to ever happen in Congress. We know that different opinions can be argue, but never imposed on others. Brooks was outraged that he and his state had been insulted but there is no excuse that supports his actions against Senator Sumner. Then why is it that when Representative, Jimmy Carter interrupts president Obama, it becomes a major issue and it is explained as a racist act. We know that Carter has had many other issues relating racism or discrimination, but race shouldn’t be the first thing going trough our minds. Yes, he did interrupt our first African American president, but we shouldn't be shocked that racism exists in modern America.

Back in 1856, when the Brooks-Sumner confrontation, they were both whites, but Sumner supported the idea to end slavery. Americans who had an affection towards blacks where know as “Negro Lovers,” and as we know this people were also looked down at. Before the Civil War, racism also existed. It was in the form of slavery; Americans believed slaves were less than humans, as current Americans believe immigrants are inferior. The same idea Brooks and slave owners had of blacks, back then, Carter and many extreme hate groups think of immigrants now a days. Racism has always existed, it has prevailed trough the Civil War, the Reconstruction and the Civil Rights movements. When the thirteenth amendment was passed and Jim Crow laws were imposed, whites had to live with the idea that blacks are equal to them. Whites unconsciously formed their own way and idea to keep feeling superior, that idea was racism.

An eight-year-old black girl in South Africa recently told Ted Koppel on Nightline, "White people are better than black people. Whites know more, have more, and get more. I wish I was white but I am not.”[2] It seems that with time, these racist ideas have caused extreme acts of hate against many races all over the world. It has become so extreme that children have become apart of it.

Some Americans believe that racism does not exist in America anymore. Making laws that ban segregation, laws that “make” us equal to one another, are not enough to get rid of racism. If a new born can not distinguish race, therefore it can’t make racist assumptions. He will, at some point be curious of the different skin tones, accents and beliefs; it is up to the parents to show them that no race is superior to the rest. That no one should be considered a second class citizen. Carter never thought his comment would cause a scandal, but it did. He probably thinks his comment was not based on racism. “Few Americans of either race -- about one out of eight -- consider themselves racist. And experts say racism has evolved from the days of Jim Crow to the point that people may not even recognize it in themselves.”[3] Many of us that accuse others of being racist, might not notice, that we, ourselves can be racist. It doesn’t take much; step by step we can reconstruct America and amend what the Civil War has left.

References:

[1] Davidson, James West, Williamf Gienapp, Christine Leigh Heyrman, Mark H. Lytle, and Michael B. Stoff. Nation of Nations: A Concise Narrative of the American Republic, Vol I. Boston: Mcgraw-Hill College, 1998

[2] "Racism in America's Schools. ERIC Digest." ERICDigests.Org - Providing full-text access to ERIC Digests. 3 Oct. 2009

[3] "Poll: Most Americans see lingering racism -- in others - CNN.com." CNN.com - Breaking News, U.S., World, Weather, Entertainment & Video News. 3 Oct. 2009