Advanced Essay #3: Trump's Twitter. Enough Said.

Introduction
When I first thought about what my topic should be, my mind immediately went to social media. What's one of the biggest social media platforms? Twitter. And who spends so much time on Twitter? Donald Trump. I always believed that Trump wastes his time posting and that he should spend more time actually being a president. In my essay, I wrote about two very controversial posts from over the past year and analyzed how Trump's tweeting has affected the nation now and in the future. The word count, however, is a bit higher than it should be, even after trimming it down without leaving anything out. I always ended up adding more.

Advanced Essay
Words are important. They are arguably the strongest tool mankind has created. They are strong enough to carry information and open people’s minds. That’s why writing is important. People use writing to convey their ideas, to explain and interpret the world around them. Writing can come from many different things and from many different backgrounds. It’s truly an amazing concept. It’s just when one abuses writing that it gets bad. President Trump takes writing and language with a grain of salt. Instead of being a responsible president like he should be, he spends his days writing 140 (and now 280) character messages. 
If there’s anything that President Trump is known for, it's his Twitter account. It’s something that most people just love to hate and, in some ways, serves as a shrine for Trump’s supporters. Ever since he was inaugurated, and even before, his Twitter has been one of the most discussed and reported topics in politics. It’s just so...random! One can find literally anything on his page - comments, roasts, criticism, racism, official political decisions, everything. Twitter has evolved so much over the course of Trump’s first year in office, that people have several different views on it, and he has shocked the nation time and time again with the posts.

The Transgender Military Post - July 26, 2017
In a series of tweets, Donald Trump announced that the military would no longer accept transgenders. He claimed that the “tremendous” medical costs would disrupt the military and keep it from achieving its goal: decisive and overwhelming victory.

These posts surprised several thousand people. However, its effects were delayed until January 1 of this year.  As one could imagine, Trump received overwhelming applause for the bill’s release from his supporters, and equally sparked protests and resistance from Democrats and even some Republicans. The opposers claimed that the military shouldn’t be discriminating against anyone because everyone just doing the same thing: helping to protect America. “Transgender people are people and they deserve the best we can do for them.” - Sen. Orrin Hatch. The huge medical cost excuse was over exaggerated as well. There’s plenty of other things that military puts a lot into, like Viagra, for instance, as The Washington Post writes. They reported that medical care for active transgender soldiers costs between $2.4 million and $8.4 million annually, whereas total spending on “erectile dysfunction” amounts to $84 million.


The “Covfefe” Post - May 31, 2017
Rewind to May 31, 2017. President Donald Trump posted a tweet that caught the entire nation’s attention. Let’s just say that he invented a word:
“Despite the constant negative press covfefe”
That’s it.
That’s the entire post.
At a first glance, this tweet looks completely ridiculous. You just look at it with a blank stare of surprise and confusion. Like most of Trump’s tweets, this one made the news but received a lot more attention than others. There wasn’t really much to report on, though, since no one really knew what the sentence meant. All anyone could do was think and speculate about what Donald Trump was saying, er, tweeting.
  On one hand, the covfefe post was rather bewildering and completely out of nowhere. It made no sense to anyone at all, which is alright compared to most of the things Trump does. He often makes no sense. However, on the other hand, everyone, supporter, and non-supporter scrambled to find out what exactly “covfefe” meant, and the two groups even worked together in some cases. So, in a way, this tweet, as crazy as it was, united the country in a sense. This was definitely a surprising tweet, but it was one of the “better” ones, compared to the other trash Trump usually posts.
Something noticeable about Trump’s tweets and (mainly) his supporters is that they never really go into depth about anything, despite Twitter’s limitations. Whenever Trump makes an accusation or an announcement like the one above, no matter what, his supporters applaud him. However, when they’re asked “How?” or “Why?”, a true answer never arises. They’re always like “Yay! No more LGBT!” or “I know Trump would save us!” or they just flat out repeat whatever he says without a second thought. They have never ground for their claims and when they do, their response is usually vulgar and ridiculous, but their sources appear to always be an only be Twitter. It’s awful.
Bottom line, Donald Trump’s twitter account has been an essential part of his presidency, and his supporters. The posts make it obvious that he has absolutely no concern for people besides himself and others like him, fitting for a billionaire from Corporate America. Twitter themselves have debated about terminating Trump’s Twitter account, but it’s still there. I personally think the twitter account plays too much of a roll in media and politics. People shouldn’t have to cite a person’s social media to gain valuable information, especially when said information pertains to the well-being of the country. Imagine what people of future generations will have to do. They’ll have to live in a dysfunctional or even a destroyed economy. Kids will be doing literal research projects about Donald Trump. His tweets would be printed in textbooks! Donald Trump needs to start being the president he signed up to be and lay off of Twitter.

Sources
“Hatewatch.” Southern Poverty Law Center, www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/201.
Ingraham, Christopher. “Analysis | The military spends five times as much on Viagra as it would on transgender troops medical care.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 26 July 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/07/26/the-military-spends-five-times-as-much-on-viagra-as-it-would-on-transgender-troops-medical-care/?utm_term=.c3341a0dbe5f.

Advanced Essay #3:

Introduction:

The goal of this essay was to explore the relationship between people with mental illnesses and their identities. I am proud of using my scene of memory to attempt to explain an issue that can be difficult to talk about. I think that one area I could work further on would be the overall flow of my paper.


Advanced Essay:

Matthew Milligan

Mr. Block

English 3

9 March 2018

Identity is the accumulation of one’s characteristics. Each individual part of a person blends together to make up the larger self, so in order to establish an identity it is important for one to be aware of the aspects of themself. However, when a person has a mental illness, their own self can seem like a stranger. People with mental illnesses can struggle with forming an identity outside of their illness, but regardless of that they do have one. It is harder for this to be understood though because there is a tendency in society to place stigma upon those with mental illnesses.

Having a mental illness makes forming an identity confusing. Madeline Wikerson explains this in her article Mental Illness and Identity by saying, “For example, I don’t know if I’m naturally a borderline pessimist/realist or if that’s due to my depression. I don’t know if I’m naturally a worrier or if that’s just my anxiety. I don’t know if I care a lot about what people think or if I wouldn’t care at all if I were to be cured of my illnesses.” Having a mental illness changes the ways in which a person perceives themselves and others. People with mental illnesses have intrusive and irrational thoughts that overpower reason. These thoughts are hard to silence and wind up making it difficult for a person to comprehend who they are. For many people like Madeline it is hard to tell where the illness stops and where the person begins.

Even though mental illnesses make it harder for somebody to understand the characteristics of themselves, that does not mean that those characteristics do not exist. In the article When You Struggle to See Your Identity Apart From Your Mental Illness, Anna Lente writes, “I see my identity includes having mental illnesses, but I am much more than that. And I remind myself that I change. My identity changes over time. My experience of mental illnesses changes.” When a person has a mental illness, it cannot be denied that there is an affect on who they are. However, the effect does not determine all that they are. No one person is defined by a singular characteristic, and a person with a mental illness still continues to grow regardless of the impact that their illness has on them.

Besides the internal problems caused by having a mental illness, people with mental illnesses are also affected by the stigma placed upon them by society. Melissa Kirk explains this in her article Who Am I? Self-Identity and Mental Health by saying, “If you're ‘mentally ill’ (read: if you often struggle with emotional experiences that are uncomfortable and you choose to be honest about it), that is you, you are it, and everything else about you is suspect.” When a person has a mental illness they can be placed within a box where none of their other characteristics matter.  Despite having multiple thoughts and emotions, people will continue to see only the label they gave.

Mental illness is a complex issue that people look at in a simple way because they do not understand it or because it makes them uncomfortable.  Instead of looking at the problem as a whole and figuring it out, it is easier to give a person with a mental illness a label and choose to see only that label. This diminishes the person with the mental illness and keeps them from being seen as a whole. Many people with mental illnesses fear this judgement and try to keep their struggles hidden because of it, which only adds on to the issue.

While each person is impacted by their mental illnesses differently, I have experienced firsthand how having one can affect your identity daily. When you live with anxiety, it never fully leaves you. Even when I find myself relaxing or having fun, there is still a voice in my head casting doubt my way. Sometimes the voice is screaming and overriding my thoughts, while at other times it is a whisper that I can ignore if I try hard enough.  Everyday is a battle of ups and downs.

The times where I commute to school are usually when it’s at its worse. I hop off of  the train and find myself faced with the station platform, which seems to stretch outward into infinity. I know in reality that the walk from the platform to the trolley stairs is brief, but when I start to worry time slows down and warps itself. As I walk I listen to music, which is supposed to be a lifeline, but my heart is beating too fast and I am breathing heavily. My face flushes and it feels like the eyes of every commuter are on me and I have to keep reassuring myself that they are not.

My breath shortens as my mind begins to race like a flooding dam. All I can think about is how stupid I must look, or if my school bag zipper is open even though I have checked it three times already. My palms are sweaty and I am nervous for school because I got the answer wrong in class yesterday so now everyone knows I am dumb. I bite my lip as my thoughts pick up and the next thing I know I am reduced to a fidgeting zombie and I am imprisoned by my own thoughts. I feel my body go on autopilot as my mind is taken away from me.

That is what anxiety feels like. You no longer own your thoughts as they are taken away by an illogical voice that will not shut up. When I get like this, it is hard to understand my thoughts and emotions and it can be difficult to know who I am. When my anxiety gets the best of me I know that I just have to continue going through the motions until I can find myself again. I know that that self exists.


Works Cited

“Mental Illness And Identity.” The Odyssey Online, www.theodysseyonline.com/mental-illness-and-identity. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

“When You Struggle to See Your Identity Apart From Your Mental Illness.” The Mighty, themighty.com/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

“Who Am I? Self-Identity and Mental Health.” Psychology Today, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/test-case/201012/who-am-i-self-identity-and-mental-health. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.



Advanced Essay: Standard for Masculanity

                                                                                                                                                                       


Introduction: My goal for the paper is to explore the standard of masculinity that is set in today's society and argue that it is outdated. I am proud of the way I incorporated my quotes. One way in which I could improve my paper is by adding more quotes that support my claims.



Advanced Essay:

Ever since I’ve been a young child, I’ve had the idea that being masculine means being powerful, muscular, and dominant. This idea is embedded in the minds of young boys across the world, making them feel minuscule compared to the ideals found in sports like wrestling, mixed martial arts, football, basketball, soccer, and even the action movies they see on T.V. This standard also discourages men to show emotion, labeling this behaviour as feminine, and creating a divide between young, impressionable men and their emotions. As a man, the impression is set by society that your role is to be powerful and brave, with a physique like the Rock. Society has created and stuck by a model of masculinity that is outdated and doesn’t fit the design of every man.
One of the clear problems with this is that these set standards benefit certain people more than others. Men who are unable to fit this certain dynamic, because of genetic setbacks, don’t fit this mold because of something they can’t control. These expectations can make them lose their true selves as they chase this ideal image of masculinity, which often leads to depression. This depression could cause men to feel the need to prove that they can be dominant. Not only to others but to themselves, leading to potential outbursts of violence. The Boys Are Not Alright offers an interesting, yet truthful explanation as to where this pent up rage and depression leads. “And so the man who feels lost, but wishes to preserve his fully masculine self-has only two choices: withdrawal or rage. We’ve seen what withdrawal and rage have the potential to do. School shootings are only the most public of tragedies. Others, on a smaller scale, take place across the country daily; another commonality among shooters is a history of abuse toward women.” They state that the public effect of this withdrawal can be a severe public showcase of rage, such as a school shooting, something we’ve seen an increase of in the past few months in our country. Of course, these shooters chose to go out and do what they did, and no amount of abuse or pain in their lives can justify that. We can, however, look towards this standard society has created and seen it as a step that built up to these violent tragedies.
Women constantly have movements for empowerment, telling them to be proud of who they are, go out to change the world for the better, and not let people see them for their bodies, but for their minds. These movements truly do empower and enlighten the hearts of millions of little girls on a daily basis, but what about the boys? What do they have to enlighten them, to tell them they don’t need to be the slabs of muscle they see on T.V, whose sole job is to hurt people and show just how strong they are? How can these boys grow up to be anything different then what they see on T.V. if they don’t have anyone to tell or guide them in a different direction? We need to implement a new set of standards for masculinity in today’s society, one that strays farther from that of domination and physical strength and accepts intelligence as a form of masculinity too. Intelligence is something that is respected in today’s society, but it is often seen as nerdy, and not exactly placed in the category of masculine. We need young boys to want to study and do well in school. Building up their knowledge, instead of focusing on strength. Physical strength is still important in today's society, and there's no reason to completely remove it from the standard of masculinity, but why not promote intelligence more, allowing young boys to choose which one they value more, or which one suits them better? Psychologist William Pollack said it well when he made a theory on this subject over two decades ago. “Boys start out sensitive but through a “shame-hardening process” — told to stop crying, to be a man — they learn to hide what they really feel. And if they don’t know or understand their own feelings, how can they care about anyone else’s?” The quote is stating that young boys are told to hide their emotions and ignore them throughout their childhood. Does it raise the question that if you take their emotions away and make them almost emotionless, how can they understand the emotions of others? You can almost see this as dehumanizing them from childhood, making them become these dominance obsessive beings which can lead to abuse in a relationship. 
Overall, what I’m trying to accomplish with this essay is convince you that the standard of masculinity is outdated in today’s society. We focus too much on the physical attributes society has decided it takes to be a man, and not enough on the mental ones. A strong and dominant man shouldn’t need to be muscular anymore unless he wants to be.

Works Cited:

Velasquez-man off, Moises. “Real Men Get Rejected, Too.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Feb. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/02/24/opinion/sunday/real-men-masculinity-rejected.html.

Black, Michael Ian. “The Boys Are Not All Right.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 21 Feb. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/02/21/opinion/boys-violence-shootings-guns.html.

Advanced Essay #3: Two Generations and Activism

Introduction:
For this essay my goal was to give a better understanding to the similarities between baby boomers and millennials. I think I did best with my analyzation in the section about millennials and with the knowledge I've shown. I think this paper's weakest points is that it sometime feels more like a history paper than an English one. Although, overall I am proud of this piece.

Advanced Essay:

There is a divide between Millenials and Baby Boomers that seems to get larger as time goes on. Where does this disconnection stem from? Both generations identities were formed in a climate that was gradually becoming harsher. Baby Boomers lead the Civil Rights Movement and resisted the Vietnam War. Millennials, on the other hand, had their perspective of America become warped and were affected by the Great Recession. Baby Boomers and Millennials both spent their younger years advocating for social change, despite their differences now.

The Baby Boomer generation (born between the years 1946 to 1964) has dealt with many events that would lead to them uniting to demand change. One of these events was the Vietnam war. Many Baby Boomers opposed the war as well the draft that came along with it. In response, some Baby Boomers destroyed their draft cards to give a message to the U.S. that they did not believe in the war as well as the draft. Eventually, the cards were being damaged to the point where Lyon B. Johnson, who was the president at the time, decided to make a law against the destruction of the cards. The protests against the cards reached its climax when a young man named David Miller decided to make a public statement about the draft cards, “...he clambered up to the top of a sound truck and announced to the crowd that he believed that what the U.S. was doing in Vietnam was immoral and that he wanted to make a political statement, “so here goes.” Then, in full view of news cameras, he touched a cigarette lighter to his draft card…” Shortly after Miller was finally sent to jail in April of 1967, major protests in New York and San Francisco included organized draft-card burnings.” (Rothman) Young Baby Boomers protested changes that would negatively affect them, but no real change was present until the generation made their demands public. The Baby Boomers was starting to form an “us versus them” mindset with the “them” in this situation being the U.S. They identified as people who were against the decisions of the United States and as activists who were willing to risk comfort and safety for what they desired. They found that they needed to be their own leaders in order to attain freedom.

Millennials (born around the years 1980 to 1999) vividly remember 9/11 and were negatively impacted by the Great Recession. These two events have made them stop believing the illusions put in place by America, leaving for them to eventually have a pessimistic attitude towards their country and towards life in general. They are viewed as lazy, entitled, and anti-social by older generations and have multiple articles written about them stating the countless industries that they have destroyed. Jake Elson argues in his article Millennials and the quest for personal identity that “It should also be brought to light that what may be perceived as anti-social behaviour is actually a disinterest in a system that is perceived to be failing and most certainly does not work in their favour.” Millennials were promised much more in life than what they were given. Despite this causing them to develop a bitter view on America this also has lead to them to become activists. Millennials spend their time fighting for social change with the hope that they can improve their future as well as the future of the generations that will follow them. They have created an identity based of the idea that they do not fit under the negative narrative placed onto them. Instead, they are the caretakers of the world. A high portion of them are into activism in some shape or form even if they don’t identify as an activist. A report by Achieve and the Case Foundation states, “Millennials in our research saw “making a difference” as personally gratifying, yet they are engaging with causes in ways that redefine traditional labels. Most notably, millennials are reshaping what it means to be an activist. Though many are actively involved in causes, just slightly over half (52.5 percent) identified themselves as activists. Achieve’s research suggests millennials equate “activist” with someone who participates in protests or some similar form of publicly noticeable action...” The rise of technology and the internet has made activism easy for anyone with a laptop or phone. Millennials don’t identify as activists but do identify with the social changes they fight for. Despite their perspective on America turning sour, millennials have chosen to identify with the change they want to see in the world.

Baby Boomers and millennials both spent their younger years identifying with their activism. There is a divide between the generations that’s based on the idea that one side is too different than the other. In reality, both generations have very similar beginnings. Perhaps as both groups grow older this divide will disappear and both will realize that their identities are closer than they thought.



Bibliography


“See the Vietnam Draft-Card Burning That Started a Movement | Time.” Time, http://time.com/4061835/david-miller-draft-card/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.


“‘Millennials and the Quest for Personal Identity’ | YourCommonwealth.” Your Common Wealth, www.yourcommonwealth.org/editors-pick/millennials-and-the-quest-for-personal-identity/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.


“The Boomer List | Timeline of a Generation | American Masters | PBS.” PBS, http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/the-boomer-list-timeline-of-a-generation/3153/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.


“GENERATIONS TIMELINE - After The Millennials.” After The Millennials, afterthemillennials.com/. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.


Advanced Essay #3: High School vs. The World

Introduction:

High School vs. The World is basically an essay about how children are heavily influenced by the world, and because of this teenagers have no chance to discovers themselves, for it is only what society sees them as. My goal is for the reader to understand my points, and really connect to what I am saying. I am proud of my topic, I really liked it in a way that was close to me personally, but I don’t think I did that good of a job describing everything I was saying.


Advanced Essay:

My high school experience is just like any average high schooler, surrounded by the bullies, temptations, and popularity that they encounter, but throughout my observations with my friends and others around me, we all seem to have a different way of interpreting high school. Our understandings of high school seem to be so exotic to each other, but it all comes back to the part of our lives where we are in the middle of childhood and adulthood, and it's not easy on anyone. We are all teenagers, and it is obvious that none of us truly know about the real world, and although people try to explain it to us, we are still ignorant as to what is going on. For this reason, we should stick together and try to help each other succeed and strive towards greatness, but what we actually do is separate ourselves.The physical and mental feeling of separation and isolation is detrimental to everyone, especially high school students.

Separation has become a normal thing in American society, proven by the numerous examples in any history book ever made. Historical events like: slavery, deportation, etc are all topics that demonstrate America’s track record with isolation. These history books have been seen by millions of high schoolers around the world, and it has managed to turn into an acceptable topic. Teenagers don’t have a good example set for them, we only have the example set by society, which affects us everyday, in the worst way. Teenagers are still children, we still are in the process of developing into society. Because of society, children can’t see themselves the way they want to be seen, but only as the world sees them. It is too early for a child to learn the rules of society before they are able to even understand what it all means. In this day and age, being categorized by race, religion, social class, and anything else is ordinary. It has led to children to form social groups in schools, and these groups contain people that are similar to each other, according to their class. This split of kids can almost always have a negative effect, just like in the history books we observe everyday. For instance, social groups often have ranks, and that means that there are kids at the bottom of the ranks. If anything else, groups can personally offend people, making them feel bad about their lives, and the situation they are in. No one is able to determine whether or not they fit into a “group” in high school, let alone the real world. It’s not anyone’s fault, and no one can change it. It leads kids to believe that they don’t belong in a place they should feel comforted in if they don’t have a place in society itself.

I was raised by my mother, who always sent me to Catholic and Christian schools. I grew up thinking that most children are the same as me, and therefore I could only be friends with people who were African American and middle-class. My first year at a public high school, I instantly made friends with other African American children, but I had no other friends. People whose hair wasn’t a natural color freaked me out, and people who weren’t middle-class made me uncomfortable. My second year at high school was a game changer, as I didn’t have a lot of black kids with me in my classes, and my upbringing made made me skeptical of merging social classes and races to make more friends. These ideas were considered radical to me, different theories of life were planted in my head for years by my community, one small group inside an even bigger one: the world. It was just then that I popped my enclosed bubble, and was introduced to society. I wasn’t separated anymore, and it was the first time in my life that I had felt alone, unwanted. I had to teach myself how to let go of the ideals I had held onto for ten years of my life, the ideals that I picked up from my original American society.

High schoolers know identity is a struggle, for most of us haven’t found it yet, and maybe never will. Figuring out who you are is hectic, and no one can do that themselves anymore, for they assume that the world has to do it for them. Life is hard to understand, and not everyone even realizes how much they are truly separated because of this society. It depicts one’s entire life, from young until old. In fact, Morgana Bailey, a speaker for a TED Talk convention and a human resources professional, admits that she and many others like her were "hiding her true identity for so long, that she became paralyzed by her fear of not being accepted". The initial reaction is to become themselves to fit into the "preferred” group by changing who they hang around or learning from past experiences, but it usually ends terribly. There is no use in trying to change who we are, as long as society is involved and in action. It’s interesting that we try to take the past and actually use it to their advantage in not making the same mistakes, but history with social systems continue to repeat history. This makes me question how future kids are supposed to attempt to break a system that hasn’t been broken for centuries. Kids and adults shouldn’t have to give up their true identities to society anymore, without even knowing them, but what can we do to regain them back?


Works Cited

Bailey, Morgana. “TED at State Street London.” TED. TED at State Street London, 9 Mar. 2018, London, England, www.ted.com/talks/morgana_bailey_the_danger_of_hiding_who_you_are/transcript.


Advanced Essay 3: America Apart

Introduction:
My essay is on the divisiveness of both sides of the political spectrum. I focus in on one example of how liberals clash with other liberals (over political correctness) and how conservatives have their opinion suppressed by the majority (with the NRA and gun control). I think I did a good job with conclusion and introductory parts, but I think my weakest point is making it all as cohesive as it could be.

Advanced Essay:

Jack Sugrue

Mr. Block

English 3

09 March 2018


The United States of America faced a tragedy recently. A shooting at Parkland High School left 17 dead and many more injured. The nation, along with being in a state of mourning, was abuzz. Tragedies like these have been happening for years, and the answer lingers of “What preventative measures can we take?” Depending on your political view, your answer to that could be very different. If you lean politically left, as do many SLA students and faculty, the clear answer is to restrict gun ownership. Gun control, many believe, is the only way these actions will cease. If shooters can’t get guns in the first place, these shootings won’t happen. The other side of the political spectrum, however, believes that the answer to the problem is arming school faculty & teachers. They believe that preventative measures can only go so far, and that people who will commit these acts will find a way. For them, the prevention of tragedies must happen on the scene, where teachers can disarm potential shooters and control the scene. The debate between these two sides is one that has been in full swing as of late: both sides attacking one another, students from Parkland actively debating against NRA members. Inevitably, events like these act as one of many interesting case studies into the divisiveness of politics in today’s society.

It’s very easy to say that politics have always been divisive and that this era of politics is no different. What makes this era of politics stand apart from eras earlier is truly how radical each side has become. One of the best right-wing examples of this is the National Rifle Association. They have spent much of their history defending gun use on a state-by-state basis. For example, NRA leaders have put forth so much pro-gun legislature in Florida that it’s almost impossible for Democrat politicians to act against it in any way. However, they have not had the power to act nationally until recently, where their very radical plan to arm teachers has been viewed in the national spotlight. Their opinions have been spread through platforms like NRATV, which is their very own news source. This is an extreme idea, no matter how you look at it. However, many right-leaning people see siding with the NRA as par for the course. This opinion has made it harder for moderates to have a place in some right-leaning political climates, especially places like Florida, where 91% of Republicans have an A- or higher grade from the NRA (Spies).

The left is also very capable of committing the same acts of alienation. However, it doesn’t happen as much of the governmental level as it does on the individual. One of the biggest issues amongst left-leaning individuals is that of “political correctness”. Simply put, many older liberals are in contention with younger progressives on what should be deemed politically correct. Amy Chua, in a book about “political tribalism”, writes that “A shift in tone, rhetoric, and logic has moved identity politics away from inclusion - which had always been the left’s watchword - toward exclusion and division.” Left-leaning politics have created this alienating atmosphere by moving from a culture of acceptance to that of shunning those who do not agree with their point of view. As such, many liberals choose to not identify with their own side of the political spectrum, almost out of shame of what their own party represents.

An environment where every person is entitled to a unique opinion is of utmost importance in preserving a democracy. The unfortunate turn of our political climate, however, has been drifting from that. This has occurred not in a forceful way, but in a way that comes about from gradually increasing societal pressures to keep your social opinions in the majority, and that some fringe opinions are absolutely unacceptable. Every person in the United States needs to be able to listen more to disagreeable opinions, despite the fact that doing just that can be one of the most difficult things for someone to do. Living in a bubble of your own opinions, one where the viewpoints of others become completely blasphemous, is an undoubtedly unhealthy way to live. So why aren’t we changing?


Works Cited

Rauch, Jonathan. “Review | Have our tribes become more important than our country?” The Washington Post, WP Company, 16 Feb. 2018, www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/have-our-tribes-become-more-important-than-our-country/2018/02/16/2f8ef9b2-083a-11e8-b48c-b07fea957bd5_story.html?utm_term=.858b435be686.

Spies, Mike. “The N.R.A. Lobbyist Behind Florida's Pro-Gun Policies.” The New Yorker, The New Yorker, 5 Mar. 2018, www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/03/05/the-nra-lobbyist-behind-floridas-pro-gun-policies.


Advanced Essay – One Goal and Conflicts of Interest

Introduction

In this essay, I wanted to learn about how even when a group of people have a common goal, there are still separations. In this case, I look at activists' ideas during the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements – ideas from Dr. Martin Luther King and Malcolm X – and see how they shaped their identities based on one goal. Additionally, I wanted to find out how these identities were destroyed by an even bigger force – the government itself. I am proud of my analysis – this is an area that I usually have a harder time doing in other essays. In my next essay, I will try to be even more specific and focus more on certain people or in a more specific point in time. I would also like to write better conclusions and make them less abrupt.


Advanced Essay


In the United States, the fight for Civil Rights has been a continuous fight. From the fight for citizenship of black people after the Civil War, the Civil Rights Movement and the Black Power Movement – each of these fights led to changes in the way society viewed black people. Black people wanted to have justice and equality. However, in a society where white power has dominated in the government of this country, these calls for rights were turned to deaf ears. Each of these struggles showed how this society prevented black and brown people from belonging in it and creating identities for themselves – culture, governments, and education.

The 1960s and 1970s saw the Black Power Movement. During this time, black Americans were fighting (again) to have justice, freedom, housing, and education. Black people felt that the black power movement would help create a new identity for black Americans – an identity that involved self-sufficiency and the celebration of black culture. This movement was created in response to not just the major political and social issues during this time, but also in response to other Civil Rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose approach to gaining Civil Rights was peaceful protests. In fact, Dr. King condemned the ideas of Black Power as a solution to the issues regarding Civil Rights. In a document by Dr. King, titled "It is not enough to condemn black power" in October 1966, he talked about the dangers of using the ideas of Black Power in gaining Civil Rights. October 1966, importantly, was also when the Black Panther Party was founded by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton. "The slogan was an unwise choice at the outset. With the violent connotations that now attach to the words it has become dangerous and injurious." This quote represents the fears of going to, what seemed to be, extreme measures in fighting for civil rights in the 1960s and 70s. Dr. King felt that using the "Black Power" term would have changed the way black people were viewed by society – that black people would have been viewed as violent people rather than peaceful people. He felt that using violence was not and should not have been used to win the civil rights struggles because it would tarnish his ideas of how black people should craft their identities – peacefully and civilized.

From the perspective of the Black Power Movement and activists such as Malcolm X, Huey Newton, and Bobby Seale, they felt that the peaceful approach to gaining civil rights in the United States would not be enough to force lawmakers and society in general from changing its views on Civil Rights for black Americans. They felt that the identity that Dr. King wanted to create – peaceful protests leading to social change – was being taken advantage of. They felt that this identity would just be brushed to the side, and that the fight for civil rights would not be as productive as if they became more forceful with their protests. The ideas of the Black Power Movement represented a more aggressive tone, to show that they would not be taken advantage of and pushed around. The ideas of this movement influenced other organizations with the same aggressive ideas to take shape such as the Black Panther Party, which performed community service and armed patrol of police in black communities. A document from the Black Panthers lists out all of the things they wanted, and all of the things they would fight to be changed. "We want education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society. … We want bread, housing, education, clothing, justice, and peace." These initiatives showed how the fight for rights took a turn following a whole different approach. While the initiatives of activists like Dr. King were to have integration, where black and white would be equal and work towards gaining civil rights together, the Black Panther Party wanted black Americans to be able to sustain themselves.

These goals changed the national attitude towards the Black Panthers and black Americans, as they no longer were just protesting. They were working towards these goals, regardless of the criticism from a society built on racism. This progress was not met with widespread approval. In 1956, the FBI launched a counterintelligence program called COINTELPRO, aimed at investigating "'radical' national political groups," according to PBS. A year after the Black Panther Party was formed, COINTELPRO shifted most of its attention to investigating Huey Newton and the Black Panthers. Also according to PBS, out of 295 documents outlining actions against black groups, 233 of those documents specifically targeted the Black Panthers. As a result, the organization began to lose its footing, and officially closed in 1982. The swift action of COINTELPRO in shutting them down showed how the deep-rooted racism influenced the government and their institutions. It showed that the identities that black people wanted to create for themselves during these movements were not socially accepted because of their race.

One group of people with a common goal create different identities based on their general ideas of how society is run and how it should be changed. In this case, the identities that were created by those who followed in the footsteps of Dr. King and the identities of those following the footsteps of Bobby Seale seemed to be conflicting identities. They were working towards a common goal – to have Civil Rights – but there was disagreement on how that goal should be achieved. Nonviolent activism was an identity that was accepted by some black people, but unaccepted by other black people, and vice versa.


Sources

  • “The Black Power Movement.” The Black Power Movement | DPLA, dp.la/primary-source-sets/the-black-power-movement.

  • “Black Power.” Ushistory.org, Independence Hall Association, www.ushistory.org/us/54i.asp.

  • Rethinking the Black Power Movement, exhibitions.nypl.org/africanaage/essay-black-power.html.

  • Black Panther Party | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed, www.blackpast.org/aah/black-panther-party.

  • “The Black Power era.” SocialistWorker.org, 13 Mar. 1970, socialistworker.org/2011/10/25/black-power-era.

PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, www.pbs.org/hueypnewton/actions/actions_cointelpro.html


Advanced Essay: Primal

Intro: I wrote this essay to explore the ideas of the abnormally large amount of gay slurs and homo phobics that appear in sports. I am proud of how I tied it together but my grammar could have improved and the middle sections of my essay could have been better.



Homosexuality is something in society today that people are slowly coming to accept however there are still outliers such as the Westboro Baptist Church and other hate groups set out to oppose homosexuality. Sports are a huge part of society especially in the United States. When people think of an athlete who plays sports they will most likely think of a masculine, muscular figure, which is a trait and body composition commonly associated with playing sports. Most people will not think of someone flamboyant which is a trait commonly associated with gay men. The homosexuality bias that occurs in sports does not stop there, gay slurs and dissatisfaction towards gays are abnormally high in the sports communities compared to other groups. The reason for this bias comes down to the fact that people do not like what they are not used to. The majority of sports players are testosterone filled men because testosterone fuels muscle growth, but the overall amount of testosterone in a person's body does not just have that one affect. Testosterone also causes hyper competitiveness and aggressiveness. Maybe there are not more people who are homophobic in sports but more people that speak their mind and tend to be insensitive when playing a competitive sport.


Bill Kennedy is a gay NBA referee and basketball is the second most popular sport in the world. When a gay referee is put in a spot where the whole world can see what he's doing it does not always end up with a person saying something positive. ‘‘I am proud to be an N.B.A. referee, and I am proud to be a gay man. I am following in the footsteps of others who have self-identified in the hopes that it will send a message to young men and women in sports that you must allow no one to make you feel ashamed of who you are’’(Morris). Through the limelight Bill Kennedy has become a figure head for the LGBTQ community, what he says matters, it has impact and effects the NBA as a whole. Bill Kennedy Later says something that provides a great insight into sports culture and its homophobic tendencies. “The stigmas are different for gay male athletes, in part because men have made intolerance and slurs a lasting feature of sports culture. And so, tribally speaking, for a star — a male star — to say ‘‘I’m gay’’ is, in a sense, to place himself above the culture of the team”(Morris). The point Kennedy brings up is something important to the reason why sports has a abnormally high rate of homophobic reports. Culture is the deciding factors in these types of situations, the culture of a team is different then the culture of the world that is ever changing.


The culture of the world has changed immensely, but evolution has not caught up. Humans evolved to live in hunter and gathering societies, we are now removed from this scenario. Humans evolved so that men are the ones to hunt and women are the ones to take care of the home, Now gender roles in society are generally open and not conflicted. The male female behavioral differences were pushed further apart by things such as estrogen and testosterone. Testosterone is known to contribute to aggressiveness, competitiveness and muscle growth. Testosterone gives athletes major advantages in sports because of its association with muscle growth. This could be a major factor in the cultural capital of sports, when a homosexual male or women comes into contact with a place that is fueled by primal human instincts due to the excess of hormones they effectively isolate themselves from the rest of their team. There is no science to prove that homosexuals have a different hormonal balance but their difference is seen as a challenge to sports.


Obviously sports culture is something that needs to be changed. The fact that professional sports players like Kobe Bryant and others can yell out racial slurs and only occur a fine is unacceptable. “Bryant stormed to the bench, hit his seat before sitting down, threw a towel and then yelled "Bennie!" toward referee Bennie Adams. Bryant then leaned back and muttered a gay slur”(ESPNLA). Bryant later received a 100 thousand dollar fine that he appealed. Bryant showed no remorse, he apologized but still went for an appeal. The NBA needs to hand out stricter punishments for these incidents Bryant should have received a league suspension, however in a culture such as professional sports the straight owners would not ask there straight coaches to suspend or trade their straight players. The only way I can see something changing is through time, whether that be cultural change or biological change.

Morris, Wesley. "Why ‘Self-Identifying’ Is Different From Coming Out." Nytimes.com. N. p., 2017. Web. 10 Mar. 2018.


Simpson, Connor. "Kobe Bryant Takes One Big Leap For The NBA On Gay Slurs." The Atlantic. N. p., 2013. Web. 10 Mar. 2018



Advanced Essay #3: Fractured Americ

Introduction: 

My goal for this paper is to help people understand why America's politics have become so divided. I wanted to go farther than just talking about the language used in our politics and talk about the what is causing these tempers to rise in the first place, not only among politicians, but among everyday Americans. I'm proud that I was able to talk about an issue that is so impactful in our country, using details and examples to back up my point. I wish I had also included possible solutions, as our country urgently needs to improve relations between the major political parties.

Advanced Essay:

Politics in the United States has changed a lot over the last few decades. In the past, Democrats and Republicans have been able to come together and pass laws to improve our country. However, now that is very rare, with a party often needing to control the White House and both houses of Congress to pass meaningful legislation. As our politics grow more divided more divided so has the nation’s identity. We are being pulled apart from each other by dramatic ideological differences between the major parties and political language that is divisive and disrespectful.

The bases of the two major political parties are as far apart from each other on policy issues as they’ve been in the last hundred years. For the last 23 years, Pew Research has conducted polling to seek the opinions of the two major political parties on several basic policy issues such as the role of government and environmental policy, among others. When they first started conducting the poll there was an average difference of 15% between how the two parties thought of these issues. (Taylor) Now, the difference between the two parties is a whopping 36%. (Taylor) These differences have led to a lack of bipartisanship on Capitol Hill. In recent years both parties have passed bills without the support of a single member of the other party voting for it, such as the Affordable Care Act in 2010 or the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. This leads to disappointment and anger among the minority who feel that their views are not being heard by the rest of the country. These feelings, often aimed at the majority party, has led to an ever-rising tension between the two parties.

One of the greatest things pulling people apart are the social differences between the two political parties. Take race, for example. According to additional Pew research, 75% of Republicans believe that “blacks who can’t get ahead in this country are mostly responsible for their own conditions.” (Taylor)  Only 28% of Democrats share that viewpoint (Taylor). In addition, while only 13% of Democrats think homosexuality should be discouraged, 37% of Republicans believed it should be. (Taylor) The differences between the parties are even greater on opinions about gay marraige. Similar divisions exist on issues related to immigrants, poor people, and an assortment of other issues. As a consequence, given that Republicans control the White House and both houses of Congress, a number of groups scorned by many Republicans feel excluded and ostracized.

The language used by elected officials and candidates has also served to pull our country apart. During the 2016 campaign, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton said that half of all Trump supporters were deplorables. Meanwhile, the Republican Donald Trump has taken offensive statements to a whole new level, most recently blaming the FBI for the mass shooting at a Florida school, because they had devoted too many resources to investigating his ties to Russia (Twitter). During the campaign, a video surfaced of him bragging about sexually assaulting women, and at various times he has made numerous statements that have offended African Americans, Latinos, immigrants, and Muslims. We’ve gotten used to these statements, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t further divide us. Every time Donald Trump or someone else takes to Twitter, it riles people up, causing clashes between their supporters and those who find what they said wildly offensive.

A difficult characteristic of our divisive politics is the increasing dislike for those with whom we disagree. A plurality of both Democrats and Republicans (44 and 45 percent, respectively) said they dislike those who are members of the other party.  Only 14% of Republicans and 9% of Democrats said that they had many friends from the other party. From these statistics, it is clear that there is more than just an ideological divide between the parties, but a social one as well. Democrats and Republicans tend to stick to themselves, but when we don’t associate ourselves with those whom we disagree with it become difficult to find compromises and repair the relationship between the two groups.

In the last decade, politics has become the most dividing issue in our country. As the parties’ voters continue to be further divided and candidates and politicians continue to launch verbal attacks on each other, it is likely that these trends will continue. Americans will become more and more divided, the number of people who say that they dislike members of the other party will rise, and people will continue to feel as though they don’t belong in their communities.


Sources:

Taylor, Jessica. “Republicans And Democrats Don't Agree, Or Like Each Other - And It's Worse Than Ever.” NPR, NPR, 5 Oct. 2017, www.npr.org/2017/10/05/555685136/republicans-and-democrats-dont-agree-dont-like-each-other-and-its-worst-than-eve.


Vavreck, Lynn. “The Great Political Divide Over American Identity.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 2 Aug. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/upshot/the-great-political-divide-over-american-identity.html.

Advanced Essay #3: You Are Who You Remember

​Introduction

I wrote this essay to explore the way our memory affects our identity, a relationship that is almost obvious but rarely discussed. My essay does a good job of implementing quotes from outside sources, but could have better flow and deeper analysis.

Advanced Essay

History is a man-made record of the universe. It is a way for people to remember and carry on the knowledge of those before them and things they discover in their own life times. As a species, we have the extraordinary ability to not only learn through our own experiences, but also to learn from the lives of others. History however, is often told in the very general sense. It is a broad overview of past events, where only the ideas and overarching themes of an event or a time period are taken note of. It is often about “what happened?” rather than “who were affected?” Very rarely are the specifications and fine details of the lives of those who lived in a time period well documented. Personal accounts and diaries are by far the best resources we have to understand a person’s life. Just as historical documentation is a way of recording things that happened, a person’s memory is also a way of remembrance—only on a more personal level.

Our memory is our personal record. This record makes us who we are, and is the sole basis of our concept of identity. Susan Krauss Whitbourne writes in an article that “You are able to have a sense of identity because you know that you are the same person you were yesterday and will undoubtedly be the same person tomorrow” (Whitbourne). Our memory is the foundation of our identity as our experiences, or the ones we remember, shape who we are as people. People learn from past mistakes and adjust accordingly for future occurrences. People also learn to empathize with certain groups based on previous experiences with them or of them. Memory, however, is also volatile and ever changing, meaning one’s identity isn’t always the same. Whitbourne states that “the content of your self-defining memories may vary according to your age and current life concerns.” According to psychologist Jefferson Singer, older adults tend to come up with more general memories and feel more positively about their self-defining memories, even if the memories were of events that were negative in nature. Whitbourne explains that “older adults have found ways to make sense out of their life stories. They convert memories of troubling events into stories of redemption in which they make peace with their past struggles.” When people reflect on their memories, sometimes it is hard for there to be consistency in the recollection of events. Our attitudes toward certain events may change over time, as it gives people the chance to accept them.

Memory isn’t permanent either. As such, our identities are not permanent and can change. In an article written by Alan Lightman for the New York Times, he writes about a trip back to his childhood home after the passing of his second parent. Upon arrival, he comments that, “The house isn’t here. There’s a hole in space where the house used to be...Something is terribly wrong. I feel as if I’m not in my body any longer. My body is a distant, cold moon” (Lightman). In that moment, Lightman was in a state of confusion and disbelief. He feels disconnected from reality, as if he were no longer in his own shoes. He states that “Some careless god has cut the ribbon of my life...The piece that was the past has slipped away into black eternity, or perhaps into nothingness. Until this moment, I was sure that the past was still present...” (Lightman). This home, the place of his childhood, the “meals of fried chicken and mashed potatoes,” the “cops and robber games with my brothers,” and the “evenings watching TV” all seemed to have vanished out of thin air. These memories that he held on to, years after living on his own, this essential piece of his identity, felt like it never existed, just like the house that once stood there.

In an article written by Liz Frontino, a student from Bryn Mawr College, she defines memory as “the ability of humans to recall and conjure long-ago specific events from our lives” (Frontino). According to her, things like Amnesia and Alzheimer’s give perspective on memory’s importance, as the loss of memory is linked to the loss of identity. She claims that “Those suffering from amnesia are at a loss of identity, having no memories to draw back on” (Frontino) The disease only affects long term memory, but the effect of this is that “Those suffering from Alzheimer’s have to be told about their interests, hobbies, and favorite people. They are not aware of who they are as individuals because they do not have the memories of their life to draw back on” (Frontino). The loss of memory is directly associated with the loss of self and identity, and belonging.

Memory is the very framework of a person’s identity. It is a record of our experiences, our beliefs, and the story of how we became we who are today. It is our memory that tells us how to respond in different situations and how to behave around people. While it is volatile and everchanging, the loss of memory can very destructive to our sense of self. Without memory, we would not know who we are.

Works Cited

Lightman, Alan. “Opinion | The Ghost House of My Childhood.” The New York Times, The New 
York Times, 22 Aug. 2015, www.nytimes.com/2015/08/23/opinion/the-ghost-house-of-my-childhood.html?_r=0.

Whitbourne, Susan Krauss. “What Your Most Vivid Memories Say About You.” Psychology
Today, Sussex Publishers, 20 Nov. 2012, www.psychologytoday.com/blog/fulfillment-any-age/201211/what-your-most-vivid-memories-say-about-you.
“Who am I? An Examination of Memory and Identity.” Who am I? An Examination of Memory 
and Identity | Serendip Studio, serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/lfrontino/who-am-i-examination-memory-and-identity. 

Advanced Essay #3: The Digital Memorial [Antonio DeRock]

The Introduction For The Digital Memorial

My goals for the audience when reading my paper is for them to understand where I am coming from. Introducing my ideas have always been a struggle. My peer reviews believe that my introduction started off strong so I’m glad of that. Being able to find a way to incorporate a memory that is more recent is something I am proud of. In previous essays, I could only think of memories from long ago that I can’t describe as clearly. Another thing I am proud of is the ideas and thoughts that I developed throughout. I need improvement in how I word those ideas and my analysis paragraphs in general. I don’t practice them enough so properly analyzing can be quite challenging for myself.


The Digital Memorial

Death is a part of all of our lives, and how do we go about coping with it? We keep it a secret from the world and make it seem like it is confidential. Societies all around the world have their own means of going about death. In our lives, we tend to not talk about it and don’t accept the reality of the situation. Grieving over something that most of the time is uncontrollable is understandable because it's not easy to hear, especially if they are close to us. With our society heavily based on technology, we have social media and other forms of communication that cause people to lose their social skills easily.

In my life, I have experienced this in the flesh. A few weeks ago I took a leave of absence from school for personal reasons. My grandfather on my mom’s side had passed away. I was unable to accept his passing all the way until the day of the funeral, which was as cold as Antarctica and felt like a part of you was ripped out. The people around us make up a part of ourselves, and he was a part that I didn’t get to see a lot. I haven’t been to a funeral since 2007 when my grandmother and cousin passed away. This all resulted in me not being able to communicate my feelings to my best friend Amaris in person. Every day we went to clean out his apartment along with my brother Jc. This is significant because my mother had to tell him not to post anything on social media since she thought he would be the one to most likely post personal matters.

Ghosts in the Machine is an article that I came across written by Jenna Wortham about how she believes death is perceived in society and how we respond to it. Jenna had a similar story when her father died in 2011 and she didn’t know how to tell others. She froze in the familiar fashion as I did when hearing the news. She believed social media would be the easiest way to spread the news even though she knew this wasn’t the best way to go about it. She stated “Social media seemed to be the quickest way to let people know why I had disappeared and why I would continue to be a ghost in my own way. But it felt wrong, even ghoulish, to announce the death of a parent in the same venue I might a new job”(Wortham "Ghosts in the Machine" 2015).  Businesses and jobs now offer communication behind the screen such as video chats or messaging. When Jenna told people, nobody was gloomy or seemed in the least bit affected by it. People joked around and posted songs which were inappropriate for the situation. Knowing it was odd to post on social media was recognizing the norms that were emplaced upon us when it comes to the topic of death.

Society has grown to the point where we who make it up are unable to express these things that seem so personal to others. I agree with Jenna when she says “The near pervasiveness of social technology has delivered death back into our daily interactions”(Wortham "Ghosts in the Machine" 2015). The problem with this is that it has to be behind a screen. The new norm is to find out about death where we find out the latest fashion trends or he score of sports games. This doesn't seem as prevalent in other countries. The culture in the United States is different, and so are our responses to situations. We all have these norms based on society, especially when it involves a serious matter such as death. Only those who stay to their families’ culture and religion go beyond the norm. Other parts of the world have access to the technology we possess, but they still remember one important thing and that is to have social skills to the extent of expressing important news to family and friends.

As we grow, changing the very society we live in every day, we need to value the moments that are precious to us. If someone passes away we should be able to speak about it and discuss it to live a more positive life. Society currently isn’t at that point, and we don’t know if it will be at that point ever. In the end, we know that our norms for responding to death have been based on our society and those who surround us. Social Media has changed the norms of society for responding to death.


Bibliography

Wortham, Jenna. “Ghosts in the Machine.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 23 Dec. 2015,

www.nytimes.com/2015/12/27/magazine/ghosts-in-the-machine.html.


Document

Advanced Essay #3: Addiction does not discriminate

​Introduction:
When I first started writing this essay, I was not really clear as to what direction I wanted to take it in. As I wrote and researched more and more, I started to develop an idea for where I wanted to take this paper. The goals for this paper were to inform the reader of the possible misconceptions they are having and how misconceptions in general could be effecting their actions and choices. Although it was specifically centered on people in lower socioeconomic statuses, that wasn't really the main focus of this essay, and if I had more time I would have changed that. One thing that I am proud of this essay for is being complete. 

Advanced Essay:

As big and “grand” as a country as America is, there are downsides to it. One of the inevitable downsides to a nation such as ours is the socio-economic hierarchy associated with it. Known as the land of opportunities and the home of the free, one of the biggest negatives about American society is the large number of people categorized as lower class. We, as American citizens, treat these people unfairly because of preconceived notions that they deserve it or that they put themselves in that situation. Because of that there are better options and better surface level thoughts about people in higher social classes and they are viewed in a more positive light. Resulting from this lack of opportunity and disadvantages caused by lower economic status people, this situation heavily encourages continuous substance abuse within people in this class.

We can’t pinpoint the exact reason drug abuse and misuse occur at such a frequent rate in more poverty stricken areas, but an article on the National Council on Drug Abuse sums the situation up pretty clearly. “Drug use and addiction have no single cause but the risk factors for drug use include poverty. A person in an impoverished situation may abuse drugs or alcohol as a way to cope with the dangerous environment she lives in, a way to deal with her financial stresses or a way to cope with physical or emotional abuse.” One of the biggest reasons that these people do drugs is because it’s an escape. It’s an escape from reality, and an escape from their situation. An escape from their lives so they can feel happy, and not think about what they’re doing. Because it is in such an impoverished area, drugs are easier to get access to. With that said some people even sell drugs in hopes to climb their social class and make a living out of it.

As of 2011, 22.5 million americans age 12 and up had used an illegal drug or misused a drug in the past month. This study was taken by the Nation Survey on Drug Use and Health, and it further digresses to say that regular drug abuse and misuse was almost double that of employed compared to unemployed, from 8.4% vs 17%. The types of things that stop middle class Americans from doing drugs does not exist, or has a far lesser influence. Things like family, a stable job and/or, a stable position in a community. This only further backs the points I was talking about earlier, that having a lower socioeconomic status has less advantages and encourages substance abuse. As a part of an article from the Guardian states, “Addiction does discriminate.”

As Dr. David F. Musto stated in his interview with the New York Times, “''The question we must be asking now is not why people take drugs, but why do people stop,'' Dr. Musto said.”. And that truly is the question that needs to be asked. The thing is, it’s already been answered. Part of the answer to that is that it’s just harder in general for poor people to recover from substance abuse. There are less options available to them, the social stigma is higher, etc. “The member of a middle class family who has become addicted to alcohol or drugs has a number of options for recovery. The same person in a poor family has far fewer options. In fact, if they admit their addiction, they risk losing the benefits they currently have. The average cost of a medical detox is $1,707 per day. Insurance may cover $14,000- $20,000 of that amount, but over 25% of Americans do not have health insurance.” From the information we have, we can make the statement that detoxification is a luxury privilege that most Americans cannot afford. Even with the numerous facilities or rehab centers that offer free or reduced treatment, the time taken only disadvantages people because that time is being used for work or the transportation there costs money only digging a deeper hole for these people. This only increases the social stigma that comes along with substance abuse while being poor.

Misconceptions, bias, and stereotypes are everything. They shape how everything and everyone is perceived. The impact of how impoverished people are viewed is far more influential when you also consider the ones that suffer from substance abuse and misuse. One of the misconceptions about drug addicts in general are that they are all poor. This is false as the amount of alcohol and drug abuse spans across almost all the social and economic classes, from the rich to the poor. It’s also more visible and portrayed in media that it’s higher there. Another difference also being that people in higher classes are way more likely to stop as well as having more opportunities and chances to stop. When people are not educated and base all of their decisions and judgements off stereotypes and misconceptions, it’s a recipe for disaster. We start to trust and listen less and we all start to become a little less human.

The impact this has on American Identity is that which needs a lot of work to be reversed. For example, in 2012, in Utah, state Republicans passed and enacted a law that mandated drug testing for Welfare recipients. This wouldn’t be a problem unless you actually take time to know what you’re talking about and what you’re voting on. The overall incident rate for those applying is less than 3.6% for recipients that were actually affected by this law. Similarly, for food stamps, the percentage was also very low. This is all a result of misconceptions and stereotypes of drug addicts and impoverished people. In order to have a society which functions optimally, we need to help the people that are worse off at the bottom. This isn’t really achievable with the way we perceive people that are poor as well as abuse drugs. One could say that this is the way American society behaves and if we change it, then it wouldn’t really be American society anymore. But nonetheless, the point still stands that because of the disadvantages people in lower socioeconomic classes have, it encourages people to stay addicted to drugs and to also try them in the first place.


Bibliography:


Smith, Paulette. “Drug Talk.” National Council On Drug Abuse, ncda.org.jm/index.php/publications/drug-talk/66-poverty-a-drug-abuse.


“Truth #6: Alcohol and Drug Abuse Spans All Classes-the Rich, the Poor, and in between.”Voices of Welfare, blogs.elon.edu/voicesofwelfare/truth-6-alcohol-and-drug-abuse-is-a-problem-that-spans-all-classes-the-rich-the-poor-and-the-people-in-between/.


Kerr, Peter. “Rich vs. Poor: Drug Patterns Are Diverging.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 29 Aug. 1987, www.nytimes.com/1987/08/30/us/rich-vs-poor-drug-patterns-are-diverging.html?pagewanted=all.


Szalavitz, Maia. “Addictions Are Harder to Kick When You're Poor. Here's Why.” The Guardian, The Guardian, www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jun/01/drug-addiction-income-inequality-impacts-recovery.


Bouie, Jamelle. “The Myth of Welfare and Drug Use.” The Daily Beast, The Daily Beast Company, 30 Aug. 2013, www.thedailybeast.com/the-myth-of-welfare-and-drug-use.


Advanced Essay #3: Educational Discrimination - Nicholas Ryan

Introduction:
My goals for this paper was to educate any unknowing reader about the injustices committed against people with disabilities. It's a huge problem to me that people still don't know about these issues that are taking place right under their noses, and they should at least be aware of that and then they can decide what to do with that knowledge. However, if there are so many people who don't know about this issue, then how can we, people with disabilities, hope to elevate our position in society? That was my goal, to give people the knowledge of a pressing issue that's taking place right now and to give them the choice of choosing what to do with that knowledge.​ I think my strong suits were the analyzations of my sources and my scene of memory. I went dug deep into these quotes and really analyzed what it meant for the disabled community. And I think I did a really good job connecting my analyses to my scene of memory too, because it created a much stronger impact for it. My weakest points of this paper was my choices for sources. A lot of my sources were outdated, but they were still relevant. It still would've helped to have more recent sources that may have quoted the old sources I used. Then, I could have more recent information on this issue.

Advanced Essay:

People with disabilities make up 15% percent of the world, and they continues to grow. They’ve been around since the dawn of humanity, and during this time, they’ve been discriminated against, had countless injustices committed against them, and have been isolated away from society. People with disabilities were caged, probed, experimented on, and left to sleep in their own feces. This incapacitated them even more than they were. It was inhumane and cruel. It fixed the perspective that disabled people have no place in society and are inferior to non-disabled people, and this still takes place today, especially in the education system.

In 1978, Ed Roberts, an impactful leader of the Disability Rights movement performed a speech at a CIL hearing, discussing the advancements the movement he had fought so much for. He was also revealing the issues that was still present regardless of the advancements made. Roberts stated, The prevailing factor, and the most difficulty that people with disabilities have, is the underdevelopment of our communities and of our society.” Roberts is stating that due to the underdeveloped society, people with disabilities have had a lot of difficulty fitting into society and becoming a part of society. The problem with popular culture is that they have a fixated view on people with disabilities. The view being that they are inferior mentally and socially, and they enforce these views on them, making them self-conscious in their ability to live among non-disabled people. This discrimination is representative of society’s norms surrounding the culture of people with disabilities, which is to throw them into a corner and exclude them from participating in society with the rest of abled people. People who do not have any kind of disability believe themselves to be superior to those with disabilities socially because of the misconception that a disability lowers your social ability to communicate with everyone else. And the way society “takes care” of people with disabilities, especially today, has done nothing but reinforce all of these misconceptions about people with disabilities into them.

Gunnar Dybwad, who was an educator and advocate for disabled rights, wrote a book discussing how society handles people who are mentally challenged/disabled institutionally and how it worsens their conditions further than what their conditions call for. He stated, “Today’s more comprehensive knowledge has made it clear that such unilateral identification is most misleading and apt to hinder effective program development, whether in practice, teaching, or research.”(Dybwad, 1) This is just stating that categorizing mentally challenged/disabled people only worsens the way society and institutions treat them. Categorizing them is unfair since every single one is different in their own way and they need their own specialized learning plan in order for them to rehabilitate, grow, and prepare to become a part of society. They shouldn’t be categorized and receive treatment based on their category. The education system back then negatively affected children with disabilities, putting them on a path to failure. All because of the belief that they are not as good as people without disabilities.

But, with the advancement of the Disability Rights Movement in the 1960s, all of that was supposed to have changed. It didn’t. Instead, society and the government only found new ways to discriminate against people with disabilities. The discrimination now occurs within the education system, students with disabilities continue to be affected. This type of treatment, isolating children with disabilities and categorizing them as their own group in schools, is still enforced in today’s education system. Teachers and administrators of the education system continue to isolate people with disabilities, by putting them in different classrooms and separating them from all the other “normal” children. This reinforces the oppressive ideas into the children with disabilities’ heads. Raising them with negative and restrictive ideas about their ability to live and function in society. And they justify these actions through the means of pity and lack of expectation. Teachers, who are supposed to be leaders to children, have such extremely low expectations for children with disabilities and they pity them, so they “do them good” by isolating them in their own space, stuck in their bubble where they’ll never learn to become a part of society. They’re taught that they are an entirely different species compared to the “normal” kids, and they go about the rest of their lives with this attitude.

I know this because of my own personal experience. I went to a demonstration school, which means that it is a school that specializes in demonstrating different programs that are specifically for special-needs children. There was a program for autistic children, emotionally disabled children, and deaf children. I was in the deaf children’s program. I remember many times where I was told, by my teachers, that I was not going to make it in life, not become successful because of my disability. They told me I had no chance. However, I was able to look past what all my teachers said and succeed regardless. They also tried to keep me in my own bubble with the rest of the deaf children, teaching me that I only belong with them. And in that bubble, they dumbed down the deaf kids by limiting their academic potential with overly-simplistic learning plans. But, my mother and I had fought for a better learning environment because we knew I had a lot of potential, even as a young child, so I was put into a classroom with all the other kids who didn’t have disabilities. Soon after, more deaf kids from my program followed and joined me, and they were able to do much better than they were expected to do. But, the other kids from the deaf program and other programs were not so lucky. In my program and the other programs, the students’ grades were suffering and there was no reinforcement of their capabilities. They just gave up on them and expected them to fail.

This only worsened their situation within the educational system. They were literally being set up to fail because they had no confidence in themselves, in their identity as someone who has a disability. They were not supported or taught that they can do so much better than what everyone else expects them to. The current educational system fails at rehabilitating these children and it’s designed to ensure their failure in society.

Bibliography

  • Dybwad, Gunnar. "Mental Retardation". Social Work Year Book, 1960.

  • Roberts, Ed. “C.I.L A.M Sessions.” Testimony on CIL. Testimony on CIL, 5 May 1978, Berkeley, California.

Advanced Essay #3: Amelia Benamara (One World Per Self)

Amelia Benamara

Mr. Block

English 3

07 March 2018

One World Per Self

Most of us have felt like we've been invaded by aliens at one time or another. I’m sure it sounds just as crazy to you, as it does to me, but we’re all living multiple lives in a world such as ours. Some might know it, others do not focus on the subject, and the rest simply are not fully aware.

It is more of a performance where you are executing a different self in different environments. Almost like Erving Goffman’s dramaturgical analysis approach which is demonstrated through his book: The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. It is well known for the use of imagery of the theatre in order to portray the importance of human social interaction. When you're at home, you perform your “family” self, where most are surrounded by family members in a house that contains different rules from the outside world, therefore your mind automatically knows to be more cautious whether it’s with words or responsibilities. When I walk into my home, I have gotten used to instantly speaking my native language to my family members rather than speaking with a certain slang the way I do elsewhere. Almost like a puzzle, our body registers a certain self wherever it might fit based on our surroundings, which we, of course, get comfortable with over a period of time.

On the street, outside of the home, you are surrounded by people who have also have multiple selves hidden under their physical characteristics. The public persona refers to the public image that you attempt to project to others, which in turn interacts with how other people actually see you. Just as you show them a certain self, they do the same to you. This public self is different based on the type of environment, for example, in low or middle-class neighborhoods, you will find personas that use a language known as “street slang.” Some personas also feed habits of addicts who are trapped with the uncontrollable cravings of addiction. However, that is the persona they are showing to the people they are surrounded with.

In school, it might be a mixture of both your indoor and outdoor self. Many schools have different environments, for example, most private schools have strict rules for students to follow, setting a guaranteed path to success for them. Other schools, such as the schools I am familiar with in a city such as Philadelphia. I grew up in South Philadelphia, where neighborhood middle schools weren’t very safe. Many fights broke out daily and teachers didn’t show much care towards teaching the curriculum the best they should. All of these negative components have an effect on students, giving them irrelevant issues to be concerned about when at school, rather than what is more important: their academics. Teachers do very little to encourage students to stay focused on their work. In an environment as such, people might perform a persona that isn’t “real” to their surroundings. This means that they might have their guard up and act like they don’t have much care about their academics, even if those aren’t their true emotions. Once one gets used to trying to fit in by changing many aspects of who they are, they eventually get used to it and it becomes a new self within them. On the other side, in private schools, one’s home persona comes out more than their street self. This is because the strict rules the school sets are on the same scale as the rules parents set at home.

When one is alone, perhaps in a state where they no longer feel the need to wear a different mask for others that surround them, a "true," "private," or "core" self which is not always seen by other people, is shown. This self is consistent with us at all times, even when we do not have access to it. Stephen Mitchell, a New York psychoanalyst, and author, suggests in her book Relational Concepts in Psychoanalysis: An Integration, that all of our selves are true. Some are more private or hidden than others, but that doesn't make them any more reals than those that are visible to the world. Although a true self is most important within the soul, the other different selves serve a very important function, as well. They represent our ability to respond and adapt to different situations and different people. Unfortunately, we begin to suppress some of the selves that get the least response in our lives as we develop into adults. So when these selves suddenly appear, we are taken back and have no idea what to do with them.

At a certain point in life’s growth — mostly during the late teenage years or early adulthood — an individual will notice the multiple personas that exist within them. How do we react to such news? We compare ourselves to others, and often times we wonder if we’re the only ones. Society portrays figures to be “flawless,” where being the heroes, models, singers, actors, and actresses, will be something we cannot accomplish. This is where insecurities play a role as we question our worth of identity. Superheroes are an example of ones who frequently lead double lives - think Superman and Clark Kent, Batman and Bruce Wayne, Spiderman and Peter Parker, and the list goes on. The poem We are Many by Pablo Neruda reads: “All the books I read lionize dazzling hero figures, brimming with self-assurance. I die with envy of them; and, in films where bullets fly on the wind, I am left in envy of the cowboys, left admiring even the horses” (Stanza 5). We pay a huge amount of attention to even the normal things like horses that we get jealous of just because they are in movies and they seem to be living fairytale lives when in reality none of that exists outside someone’s imagination.

Even those who might seem to live perfect lives have more in common with you than you think. Politicians, professional athletes, and actors are all famous for having public and private personas - although these days there's not as much to hide behind as there was before the days of the internet. Everyone, famous or not famous, performs multiple acts, even if it is hard to tell just by looking at them. Remember, if we can hide our true selves well, so can they.
























Bibliography


Neruda, Pablo. “We Are Many.” PoemHunter.com, 3 Jan. 2003, www.poemhunter.com/poem/we-are-many/.


TEDtalksDirector. “Thandie Newton: Embracing otherness, embracing myself.” YouTube, YouTube, 20 July 2011, www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzKBGtf0i0M.

Goffman, Erving. The presentation of self in everyday life. Anchor Books, 2008.


Mitchell, Stephen A. Relational concepts in psychoanalysis: an integration. Harvard University Press, 1995.



























Name of author: Amelia Benamara

Name of reviewer #1: Cynthia To


+I really like how you talk to your readers and make them understand your argument in the first paragraph. I thought this was really cool of how you added that.


+I like how you have different identity in different places. I think this is true connecting to myself I am much different at home when I am at school. I love how you point that out and also connecting it to your experiences.


  • I like how you add questions throughput your essay which I think is really unique.


?what make you choose to write this?


? What kind of reactions to you want the readers to have?


?Does you think different actually affect  people identity?



  1. I used “you” and “they” throughout my essay. Am I communicating with the reader? Or am I talking in a more general toe? Which one should I stick to?

Yes, it does sound like you are communicating with the readers. You should still with the reader because you are stating an argument.


  1. What other points do you think I can add to my writing to spice it up? What other details should I mention, maybe you as a reader thought I should expand on or add a certain topic to talk about while reading my essay?

The other points that you can add in your writing to spice thing up are





Name of author: Amelia Benamara

Name of reviewer #2: Meymey Seng


+ You make the readers understand and connect more by giving many examples of certain situations that support your point. Even if the reader does not relate, when they here the examples they probably will be shocked that they in fact- do relate.


+The sources you used are strong and relevant to your point, it helps make them stronger. Also, you introduced them smoothly.


+Interesting introduction that draws in the reader to thinking what the essay is about and wants them to read the rest.


?Have you had to do this before and if you had, did you know about it or was it more of a subconscious action?


?How did you decide which source to use out of your many that could also fit?


?Do you personally think that everyone doing this is a positive or negative thing?



  1. Any other approaches you believe I should take/include in  my big idea?


Possibly to add another source about how a certain person in fame does it because that is apart of a point in your conclusion.



  1. I believe I am doing well so far, however how can I conclude my essay at the same time make y ig idea clear to you, the reader?


Connecting it to how everyone does this thing even though at times it seems like it is unique. Although, the truth is that it is something everyone does, even if it is a subconscious thing.



Advanced Essay #3: Unconscious Idenity

Introduction:
My goal for this paper was to digged deeper into identity with how it is interpreted and relate it to everyday lives. Something I would like to improve more on is adding more quote. Overall, I'm proud of completing this paper because I feel like Identity is a strong topic.

Essay:

Identity is defined as the fact of being who or what a person or thing is according to the Dictionary. But, there is more to Identity than just its definition. This word can be interpreted in many ways, such as your very own identity, how you look at other people’s identity, what identity you take on, or how your identity isn’t sometimes decided for you. With all of these types of ways this word is interpreted has its own very meaning to it. But most important society plays a huge role as it shapes people’s identity. Society has its way of persuading people to be a certain way, and it can be presented in things such as media.

Think about when you first started to question things. Question things such as why people act a certain way? What makes a person look another way? How to act a way where you fit the social standards. Typically we’re all born into the world as a baby and when you are you’re given an identity. It could be your name, date of birth, skin color, and more. But as a baby or a kid, they grow up copying or taking in what others do. You can say they take on other identities unconsciously. And this new identity could potentially become something you like to do. But no one really explores their identity, or embrace it, not when you’re a baby. Not until that day comes, until you encounter something that will make you start to question things. This first experience can be anything. It can be your first day at school, first time encountering racism, first time introduced to a culture, or even when you first have to put your big boy/girl pants on.

I remember my very first time I started to think more about the world. It was my first time going into the outside worlds, typically I always played around in the house with family. I never really explore or adventure into the outside world yet. But when it was time, my mother told me to not hang out with a certain group of kids and I always wonder why. As I start to think about it more and see these group of kids, I started to see why my mother told me that. It became a part of my identity of how I view these people. Experience after experience I started to avoid them, but I soon realize that not everyone's the same. They all have their unique identity which makes everyone different. I realize that not everyone would act like the way they do, but I only saw it that way because my parents influence the idea of me.

Identity may be acquired indirectly from parents, peers, role models, and even the media. Children come to define themselves by what surrounds them. This can be how their parents see them. If their parents see them in a negative way, they will come to define themselves as a negative person. And generally, negative words tend to stick more than positive words. Children can also define themselves by the media, in today's society technology has become a thing, mainly for children. “Media plays an influential role in shaping how we think about and enact race in our everything lives” according to the Critical media project. To me this is mainly for children, for someone who is attached to media will start to change. Media is filled with different aspects of identity that can influence someone to dress or act a certain way. It is mainly filled with social norms, which can have an immediate effect on one’s perceptions of social reality.

This is a world where we will continue to advance forward, ask new questions, and discover new things. For Identity it is never “final,” and it will continue to develop throughout your lifespan. Anyone can change, and it can be based on factors like where you live, who you hang out with, and your experience with the outside world. People are changing their identity by the everyday thing they do. Everyone is unconscious changing and shaping their identity because of how society set standards. But people should start to understand Identity as a conscious thing, we should be able to make choices ourselves rather than let society make our identity. It is only a benefit to recognize what to happening or changing your identity.


“Race & Ethnicity.” Critical media project icon, www.criticalmediaproject.org/cml/topicbackground/race-ethnicity/.

Advanced Essay #3: The Fluidity of Self

Introduction:

My goal for the paper was to explain my train of thought when it comes to identity and belonging. There were a few sources we went over in class that I knew I wanted to include, so I started to develop a solid thesis based on that. One area that I think I have to improve on is the transitions between topics because it’s a bit choppy at parts. Overall, I’m proud of what I’ve written.


Essay:

Our sense of belonging shapes who we are and how we view ourselves. As babies, we don’t have our own identity, we just exist in relation to other people. Thandie Newton explains this in her TEDTalk, Embracing Otherness, Embracing Myself, she said, “... the self is a projection based on other people's projections.” We are first defined by other people’s ideals and preconceptions about who we are. We can simplify the major influences of belonging to three sections: friends, family, and social media. The way we act within these three groups are usually very different, self is fluid.

Our friends are who we choose to associate with and relate to. This is how other people view you. When you are in a friend group, the way that group is defined is the way you will likely be labeled. Most don’t notice that they do it, but it’s very detrimental. Grouping people and making assumptions about their personality based on it is limiting and can lead to someone being afraid to do something outside of what their friend group typically does.

The next section is family, which, depending on the situation, can be how we view ourselves. It’s the first indication we have of our own identities since the people in your family are the first people you’re close to. This section can be similar to friends in that when a family thinks a certain way, it’s hard for one individual to break that. There are things people keep secret for their entire lives because they’re afraid of the reaction their family will have. Both friends and family have good and bad parts. On one hand, they offer companionship, giving us something to hold onto. On the other hand, there can be an unacceptance to change that puts a limitation on who we can be.

The last piece is social media, which is how we portray ourselves. The growing popularity of social media has sparked a change in the way we think. Due to the huge impact social media has on us, we often think of it first. The first thing we do in the morning is check our phones to go on Instagram or Snapchat. Online, we can post virtually anything we want, so we can be anything we want. According to Psychology Today, “We come to see our identities as those we would like to have or that we want people to see rather than who we really are.”  There is a pressure in today’s society to have a perfect, aesthetic life and teenagers fall victim to this, thinking that they aren’t as good because they aren’t popular on social media.

When I was a kid, I didn’t have a ‘group’. I was part of them all, which ended up with me not actually being part of any of them. This left me in identity limbo, I didn’t know who I was. Eventually, I learned to be my own person; I figured out who I was to myself, not to others. Now, I still have more than one group, but I genuinely fit into each of them, they all matter. I’ve thought about this a lot, trying to understand why I didn’t fit in, but I realized that it wasn’t just me, it’s really the way people view friendships. Someone’s friends shouldn’t be what defines them, they are their people with individual thoughts and interests. Although there are a lot of negative effects on our identities because of social media, personally, I was benefited. Social media helped me to discover who I was. It allowed me to post and express myself in whatever way I wanted. Family also played a big part in this, they support me constantly.

Identity and self are fluid, they change. People see us in different ways and we act differently around them, this forms our identities. Erving Goffman, one of the most influential sociologists in history, has a theory about self that essentially states that there is no one true self. He thinks that humans just display a series of masks to control how we appear. This theory has been seen and adapted many times, Newton even mentioned a form of it in her TEDTalk, stating that the self she tried to use in the world was rejected so many times that it began adapting to the rejection.

Overall, how we belong has the biggest impact on our identity. A part of it is how people view us, but we choose how they see us. We can manipulate people’s insight to our lives and only show what we think they should see. This ties together all the pieces of belonging, family to first shape our identity, friends to help us find it, and social media to help us change and show it.


Works Cited:
Embracing Otherness, Embracing Myself. By Thandie Newton. TEDTalk. July 2011. Performance.

Taylor, Jim. "Technology: Is Technology Stealing Our (Self) Identity?" Psychology Today, July 27, 2011. <https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-power-prime/201107/technology-is-technology-stealing-our-self-identities>

"Erving Goffman and the performed self." Youtube. BBC Radio 4, April 15, 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z0XS-QLDWM>

Advanced Essay #3: Identity Takes its Own Role

Introduction: The goal of the essay was to show how drugs can affect identity in two ways: to a person as themself and a person to society. Peer pressure can be make a person fall and take the wrong path to life but it's about "fitting into society". On the other hand, there are some ways that drugs makes a person feel safe and letting them fit into their our body.


Autumn Lor

Block

English 3

9 March 2018

Identity Takes its Own Role

Growing up, the brain starts to develop differently, what a person thinks and how they react. Most people can develop skills that will help them in the long term, but what difference does that make? According to National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teens, it says that more than 46,000 teens (8th to 12th graders) have done drugs in 2012. Most people, by the age of 25, have jobs and families to worry about. Others could be living in their parent’s basement; there are so many reasons as to why. Kids, as young as 13 or even younger, are walking around with weed in their bag, looking for a good time or just to loosen up. Marijuana is illegal in the United States, so individuals, for that matter do not want to get caught. Some kids do it because of peer pressure and others for pleasure. High does not always mean messing around just for fun, it’s about not wanting to feel a certain way, in other words, to help individuals grief the pain and sorrow they are going through. When a person is sad and wants to hurt themselves, they do it to feel relax and it helps them lose track of what they were planning to do.


Each drugs has its own purpose. Some makes people happy, forgetful, more thoughtful, and feel like they are in a whole new dimension. The idea of belonging does not always have to be included with a group. Sometimes it’s about fitting into their own body and feeling comfortable. A line that stood out in a story called Medicine stated “You let it beat you down, deciding you deserved it. Deserved it for not doing more for your guardian. Deserving it for letting adrien down. Deserved it for just breathing,” (Woozy). When the story first starts, Woozy was just starting to go under peer pressure but soon, started to do it for himself. This was when his life started to change and lead to a new path. He kept doing it to the point where the skills that he learned is not just simply getting high, but as a guardian and a helper to help his brain see a better point of view.  


Often times, people say that high school is the time to “identify themselves.” Students has a subconscious choice of picking two paths in high school: staying focused and interacting with other students, or doing things like skipping school and inputting unknown substance into their body. Every choice has an ongoing effect. Doing one thing leads to 10 other things. With that one event it will change your identity as a person.  


When a person first starts to do drugs, the person’s mind has full control. Over time, the scale of who has controls, shifts. Drugs starts to have more control; the body system grows stronger and takes over causing the brain to lose function. An online journal called The Untold Side of Me, said “I haven’t smoked weed in almost 2 weeks now, it’s weirded when you start smoking and that just cause you to have insomnia. There’s a door that has a bright hallway that is extremely far yet so close” (Daniel). Daniel is going through withdrawal and looking at the affects, his brain is telling himself that he can’t do anything. This little path has changed his whole identity. It’s not pushing himself to the fullest potential.


Despite all the bad, there are good things that come in with drugs. An anonymous teen posted a memory about how it help him. “I was really curious to see what it was all about. I had a few hits, but didn't really get stoned. Later, I smoked some more until it got to the point I didn't even know what’s going on. The next chance I got to get high, I jumped on it. The more I did it, the more I liked it. I loved the way pot played with my head,” (Anonymous Teen). People who doesn’t smoke often, use drugs as an escape. Being able to get away from life and feelings are great ways to relax the brain. It also allows a person to speak their own mind without others giving them boundaries. Identity is about fitting in to your own skin, but people believe that they should try to fit in with society or group of individuals. Identity is more about the self and being selfless. Identity is when you are able to look in the mirror and accept you for who you are. Individuals are able to form different type of personality, however, they just need to accept them for who they are in reality.


Bibilogy:


Stories by Teens - Marijuana Anonymous, www.marijuana-anonymous.org/literature/pamphlets/stories-by-teens March 4, 2018.


“Real Teens Ask: How Many Teens Use Drugs?” NIDA for Teens, teens.drugabuse.gov/blog/post/real-teens-ask-how-many-teens-use-drugs, March 5, 2018.


Quotev.com, www.quotev.com/story/3083262/Drugs-Deppression-The-untold-side-of-me/4, March 4, 2018.


Advanced Essay #3: Refusal to vaccinate your kids


Introduction

My goal for this paper was to try and teach some people about the reasons behind some refusals to vaccinate. I'm really proud that I included sources that explained more about what my topic was about. Areas for improvement are that I could've elaborated more on the idea of value systems and their impacts. Another area for improvement could be that I should expand more on analyzing the quotes. Overall, I'm proud about my topic because not many people think of the reasoning behind this choice.

Advanced Essay

According to the Collins Dictionary, “the value system of a group of people is the set of beliefs and attitudes that they all share.” Refusing to get vaccines is something that some parents choose to follow for their children’s health. Nowadays, many parents are choosing to delay how often their kids get their vaccines and some also choose to just not get them. According to the U.S National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, “These reasons vary widely between parents, but they can be encompassed in 4 overarching categories. The 4 categories are religious reasons, personal beliefs or philosophical reasons, safety concerns, and a desire for more information from healthcare providers.” (McKee, Chephra, and Kristin Bohannon. “Exploring the Reasons Behind Parental Refusal of Vaccines.” The Journal of Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics : JPPT 21.2 (2016): 104–109. PMC. Web. 8 Mar. 2018.) Personally, I believe that everyone should get vaccinated because I know that it would most likely prevent people from receiving certain diseases.

I think that people don’t realize that not getting vaccines is dangerous because if they’re in the same area as vaccinated kids and the kids with vaccines have something like whooping cough, the non-vaccinated kids can catch it. People could be spreading viruses onto kids that don’t have their vaccines. I think it’s important that parents should be educated enough to know what their choices could lead to. Parents should get enough information to know what would happen if their child got sick and didn’t have their vaccines. I think that children should have some say when parents are hesitant about issues that concern their public health. I believe that some value systems that have been set in place should be removed because in a way they “punish” those who have different beliefs.

I understand that it wouldn’t be ideal if some kids got to choose whether or not they wanted them because there are kids that would refuse it because it “hurts.” I’ve seen a poster at a pediatric office I intern at and it says something like, “If there were a vaccine against cancer,  wouldn’t you give it to your child?...” Most parents wouldn’t even think twice about giving their child a vaccine to prevent something like cancer, so why not for other diseases? This value system that has been set up doesn’t take into consideration that children may die if they get a disease that they aren’t protected from. What does it have to take in order for a parent to ignore their values and actually do what’s best for their child’s health? For example, there’s a story about the death of a boy named Colin Durkin. I think that the personal story of the family who lost a child is an important source because they speak about how maybe if they’d gotten the chance to give their child a vaccine, it’s possible he wouldn’t have died. In the story, the parents explain, “We never had the chance to immunize Colin as he was still too young, but an ounce of prevention could go a long way in saving your child's life…” (Durkin, Pamela and Kevin)

In situations like this, it’s difficult to receive a vaccine because the child is so young. However, this family realized that if they could’ve done something, in order to prevent this death, they would’ve done it. This is an example of how refusing to give your child a vaccine could result in something devastation, sometimes even fatal. Sometimes there aren’t “in your face” symptoms, which is why it’s important to receive a vaccine because it could detect what your eyes couldn’t.

Personally, those who don’t get it because of “religious reasons” should have to give proof that is a legit reason for the exemption. I understand the thinking behind those who do it because they’re concerned about the health of their children. “Religious reasons tend to account for the majority of total vaccine refusal, while parents with personal beliefs against immunization tend to be more willing to compromise and at least partially vaccinate their children. Parents are concerned with doing the best for their children, and hearing reports of potential safety issues or that childhood diseases are not a large threat can hinder them from vaccinating their children.” (McKee, Chephra, and Kristin Bohannon, 104-109) This quote really speaks about how most parents could be influenced in vaccinating their child if they’re told about what major illnesses it could prevent. My mom has chosen to not give us the flu vaccines because everytime that we used to get them, we would get extreme fevers and even more sick. I understand that some parents don’t want to risk their children’s health even more because of the symptoms that may occur afterwards. I think that society needs to get rid of these systems set up with specific beliefs because it doesn’t allow for those who oppose those ideas to speak their minds.


Bibliography

McKee, Chephra, and Kristin Bohannon. “Exploring the Reasons Behind Parental Refusal of Vaccines.” The Journal of Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics : JPPT 21.2 (2016): 104–109. PMC. Web. 8 Mar. 2018. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4869767/


“Infant and Child Vaccines - Personal Testimonies - The Death of Colin, Pamela and Kevin Durkin's Infant Son.” Accessed March 8, 2018. www.vaccineinformation.org/infants-children/testimonies/whooping-cough/colin-durkin.asp.


Advanced Essay #3: One Man, One Path

Introduction:
The essay I have written goes along with my first point of view on what masculinity looks like in an Asian culture. Being Asian American, I have adapted to what my parents have been expected of me, however, I want to live my American dream. Filmmaking is not a career that most Asian immigrant parent would agree seeing their children doing in their future. In America, the freedom is different and the society can accept it but not my parents. I feel like I could write more in detail, describing my culture and the expectations of it in an average TeoChew family. What I like about the essay that I wrote was that I took the time to write clearly and get peer reviews. It was a struggle for me in the past to get feedback, but this time I had friends who helped out. 
 

I grew up living in a different lifestyle than most Americans. I remember waking up asking myself ,“Why am I so  different from all of my friends?” What I should be asking is, “Why am I different from the people who share the same culture as me?” My culture dictates that the ideal man gets a job and becomes successful, wants to start a family, raise a son, and teach him to be strong and courageous to pass down the family name. I, however, orbit the idea of the social norm in our tradition culture of being Asian, not being completely part of the Teochew (chinese) culture yet I haven’t left it. Both of my parents tried to raise me to be the best at math and science so that I could go to college and become a professional doctor. As I grew older, I realized that being a doctor never interested me. Being a doctor was just an option, but making movies was something that has been in my mind as something I would want to do as a career for a very long time. As time thickened the air of maturity, I consulted myself and began to wonder what my parents’ opinion would be about my career goal of becoming a filmmaker.

I’ve lived the life of being an Asian American, who was raised by a pair of Chinese Cambodian immigrant parents. The American culture was never embraced with my parents and they haven’t adjusted to the norms of what the typical American would do in the United States. As a family, we have always strictly followed our multiculture of being both Chinese and Cambodian. From food to language to family roots, gender roles were never a conflict for my parents because of where they are from. It was as if they already knew what their responsibilities were and what they wanted to do in their future. My mother was raised to stay in a home to cook and clean, and my father was raised to survive hard times through many jobs and small businesses just to make an effort of living. Once they came to America to escape the war that was happening in Cambodia and Thailand, they thought about the possible “freedom” they could have in a new country. After having three children once moving here, they realize how my siblings and I grew up with are different than what they have experienced in their country. They keep telling us, “You don’t know how lucky you are to be born in America with more freedom. You don’t have to do what was expected to for you do back in our country.” They claimed, “You didn’t have to wake up four in the morning to work day and night and come back home to cook and clean the house.” My father would then sometimes tell my sister to sweep around the house and he would tell me to go unload and load the restaurant stocks with him. This is when I realized that the gender roles are becoming a mental concept and what acceptance is for a typical Asian family. I have to learn to accept both options myself as a responsibility. Masculinity hides what I want to do in the future without being judged by others and especially my parents.

What I wanted to be was a professional filmmaker. Directing a film and working with cameras was a dream of mine since childhood. Ever since my parents allowed me to watch horror movies as a child, they told me that it couldn’t be real because the camera man would have been killed the minute the movie started. It brought a question to my attention: “What if I could make movies like that and understand how people make movies.” Unfortunately my parents disagreed to my thought process. They said, “Making movies is a waste of time and it’s not as fun as being a doctor. You get to study for money. Once you become a doctor, you can help people. That helps your good karma and you don’t have to struggle with losing anything.” The words stabbed me like a burning hot knife gutting my heart out.  As their son, they want me to be better than who they were. As the oldest of the siblings, my parents only supported me to be highly skilled at math and science, training me to do multiplication when I turned four. My mom thought it would help if I learned the multiplication table of two in Cambodian as well. They set the expectation so high, but after reaching the seventeenth year of my life I feel as if I was the one who is backstabbing my parents of their hard work raising me for something they didn’t expect. Filmmaking to them seemed unmanly and non-educational in a traditional Asian family.

For generations, my family has been very traditional with gender roles and how masculine a son could be. America is still changing the norm of having a diverse culture and gender is becoming a loose idea of how we consider our identity to be. From New York Times, The Boys Are Not All Right, the author stated, “It’s funny because it shouldn’t be that easy to rob a man of his masculinity, but it is.”(1). When describing what masculinity looks like around different cultures, Asian men are very vulnerable of how masculine they are. Whether it is a situation of life and death or something smaller, we accept the fact that we can be light hearted in the inside. Most men won’t show how they feel as if there was a secret male language that could not be spoken. In The Boys Are Not All Right by New York Times, the author mentioned, “They are trapped, and they don’t even have the language to talk about how they feel about being trapped, because the language that exists to discuss the full range of the human emotion is still viewed as sensitive and feminine.”(2). Not showing any sign of being feminine, males consider themselves not vulnerable or sensitivity. Cooking and cleaning in a household would be considered feminine and ladylike, but in my case I cook and clean as a practice to when I leave for college. From Coming Home Again by Chang-Rae Lee, Lee wrote, “She shooed me away in the beginning, telling me that the kitchen wasn’t my place…” I find the skills of cooking to be essential to my everyday life, rather than focusing on how masculine I needed to be in order for myself to be accepted in certain societies. Sometimes masculinity is viewed as “life or death” for mankind, especially when I have two different cultures to fit into. I feel as if I live in two different lives, one at home being some of the Asian expectations, and one socially in the American society where people are more accustomed to the American Culture.

What is considered the most valued aspects of being Asian is that we surround ourselves with our culture and our “identity”. Also being a American citizen, I have to consider the cost of what is accepted of the American society and what is accepted within the traditional Asian family. Playing two different people is hard enough as it is, and trying to bring one culture into another is a pessimistic goal.  What I want is a lot different from what other people expect, but it isn’t always the case where two diverse cultures can go hand in hand with each other. However, I can live two lives but the only assumption I have is that I have to expect the unexpected. I will expect disappointment from certain people, and others will expect disapproval.


Work Cited

Black, Michael Ian. “The Boys Are Not All Right.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 21 Feb. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/02/21/opinion/boys-violence-shootings-guns.html.

The Implications of a Name- What baby books won’t tell you

Introduction

My goal for this paper was to investigate identity and belonging through a very specific lense: names given during childhood. I am proud of the ways I incorporated both given names as well as other forms of naming. I would have liked to work more on my conclusion as this is an area I always struggle in.

Advanced Essay

I often hear people predict, “You look like a [name]” and guess something scarily accurate. During childhood, many children craft their appearances and personalities to resemble people with their same name, identifying with that group and subconsciously conforming to match it. The names we are given dictate our identity starting the day we are born. They present us with shoes to fill, or to defy; they offer a personality (e.g., unique, traditional) to take on. However, these names are only the first step. Our parents label us with these names likely as a mere suggestion of the person we should be, but as we grow, our communities and societal influences begin to use names as restrictive measures. Children’s development of feelings of identity and belonging stem directly from these labels.

Given names are the first label one is awarded and a lifelong one at that, offering a persona for the child to take on. They are similar to visual first impressions and for this reason, they carry a strong associative power. One article notes this trend, “When a new person introduces himself to you (let's call him "Spencer"), your first instinct is to assemble a rough mental sketch of everyone you have ever known named Spencer… You subconsciously judge this new Spencer, at least a little, based on all the other Spencers you have ever known” (Hedrick). People create some expectations for others based on their name prior to any interaction with them or other information concerning them, thus enforcing the external influence a given name has on identity.

Names have drastic effects on internal views of identity as children learn to build their identity based on their names. Naming trends vary, with many parents handing down a relative’s name and tacking on “Jr,” while others try to find the most unique name possible for their child, and with many variations in between. Whether they choose to name their child with a numerical suffix or an uncommon name, both are encouraging their child to lead a certain type of life. Being named after one’s father or another family member gives a child a standard to meet, but some learn to instead challenge the notion that they should be another “chip off the old block.” Familial connotations, religious connotations, gendered implications, as well as having a name with no connections, affects where a child feels they belong or do not belong.

Aside from given names, children are further labeled as they grow and learn in a community or school context, quickly learning behaviors that are labeled masculine or feminine, intelligent or stupid. Children are given names associated with their gender and their perceived capability early on, and these names become who they are as it is easier for them to give in to societal pressures than to defy them in their early childhood.

As for gendered labels, girls and boys find themselves restricted by the implications that the words girl or boy come with. Girls are taught to be “girly” which in many contexts means submissive and shallow, while boys are taught to be violent, stoic, and powerful to fulfill the notion that “boys will be boys.” In the case of boy’s learned identities based on their labels, it has become an issue that boys go through this “shame-hardening process” (Velasquez-Manoff) because it creates a destructive culture of hypermasculinity. One researcher mentions that men are not inherently bad, that their power complex derives from their interpretation of being male from childhood norms, explaining, “They’re ‘over conforming’ to common, if exaggerated, notions of masculinity. They’re doing a five-star rendition of what they think manhood requires” (Velasquez-Manoff).

Children are also affected by the names of intelligence parameters bestowed to them in early childhood. When given the label of “smart” or “dumb,” children take the label to heart and follow the norms associated with them as they do with gendered labels. One woman, Amy Cuddy, shared her testimony in her TED Talk, describing a traumatic car accident that resulted in her being withdrawn from college and her IQ dropping two standard deviations. She stated, “I had identified with being smart, and I had been called gifted as a child,” (Cuddy) so it was very difficult for her to understand who she was without her “core identity.” Due to the names she was given in childhood, she struggled with recovery as she no longer followed what society said was accepted or expected from her and had to essentially create herself over.

Effects of naming are not strictly positive or negative. People often feel connected with their given names as they remind them of their families. Gendered labels can be empowering when used correctly, and positive reinforcement through intellectual labels can build confidence in children. The issue is the misuse or abuse of labels: when these names take over a child’s identity in a negative sense. Children often have very little control over how these labels shape them and similarly minimal recognition of their influence. However, in adulthood, some have taken to renaming themselves as a form of rebirth, properly addressing themselves to match who they are. They change their names in defiance of the restrictions that their names implied to embrace their true identity (e.g., references to countries of origin, variations of words that resonate with them) and have ownership over themselves.


Works Cited


Cuddy, Amy. “Your body language may shape who you are.” TED. TEDGlobal 2012, 6 Mar.

2018, Edinburgh,

https://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are#t-1234115


Dahl, Melissa. “Junior status: Sharing dad's name a mixed bag.” NBCNews.com,

NBCUniversal News Group, 19 June 2009,

www.nbcnews.com/id/31416975/ns/health-mens_health/t/junior-status-sharing-dads -name-mixed-bag/#.Wp3xwOinHrd.


Hedrick, Michael. “How our names shape our identity.” The Idea Factory , The Week, 15

Sept. 2013, www.theweek.com/articles/460056/how-names-shape-identity.


Velasquez-Manoff, Moises. “Real Men Get Rejected, Too.” The New York Times, The New York Times Company, 24 Feb. 2018,

www.nytimes.com/2018/02/24/opinion/sunday/real-men-masculinity-rejected.html.

Advanced Essay #3: Feminist Identity

Introduction

Feminist identity has been a topic discussed in more modern eras of what it means to fight for equality. This essay explores feminist identity in relation to what it means to be more feminine or masculine, and the connotations of such. I am proud of the ways I analyzed outside sources to develop larger themes and ideas presented in my essay. If I were to do this again I would connect more books and stories.

 

Advanced Essay #3

Reading sources that reflect how modern day feminism has attempted to shift the ways we raise boys to be the people that can shift society’s patriarchal agenda has opened my eyes. Many observations on recent interpretations of being a strong “feminist” consist of being a strong and powerful woman, both characteristics of stereotypically masculine demeanor. Women  free of discrimination is one of the priorities of feminism -- being free of the patriarchy and being free to express themselves.

In the earliest days of feminist movement, there was a fight. Women were fighting for societal equality, in which was not granted to them in the extreme. Shifting to today’s age, the fight has not ended but it has been subdued. We as women have the right to vote, we no longer see the majority of us as housewives, and we no longer see marriage as quite the priority in its earliest sense. The fight has shifted from constitutional rights to the general state of societal norms. The patriarchal society we live in has not only dominated opportunities, but also the way certain versions of feminism play out.

My view of  feminism is that it is a spectrum; there are different versions and interpretations of the main basis that female equality to men should be standard. Many modern feminists today preach an idea of strength and perseverance to get to the top where the men reside. Using a voice and screaming your strength, which in my eyes, can diminish the fact that we are women, and we can be feminine and still be a feminist. In her book “We Should All Be Feminists,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie discusses a time where she was going to a class she was teaching and decided to leave her pretty dress and lip gloss at home. She replaced her ideal outfit with a blazer and pants to seem more respected. This respect, she came to realize, was her idea of respect that came from looking more manly and less feminine. In that moment she believed that if she dressed more like a man she could be respected as one. This is just one example of us as women claiming our respect that we deserve, but falling to the patriarchal demands of needing to look or act more manly to receive that respect. Chimamanda realized her mistake and changed her mindset, “I have chosen to no longer be apologetic for my femininity. And I want to be respected in all my femaleness” (Adichie, 39).

The action of looking more “manly” to be respected as one, may work for some feminists -- act as they wish to claim the position they deserve. However, I wish to be respected as a woman without having to fall into the trap of a patriarchal society that only respects women who can claim their actions as more “manly.” This plays back into the ways we raise boys and girls. The ideal of parenting which focuses on expression can implement feminism and not discourage a strong pinpoint on masculinity or femininity. Freedom of expression is the true meaning behind feminism. Freedom to obtain power and equality while also being able to be a woman should be the priority. Having to use “masculine” features in order to get that power takes away from freedom, and reestablishes the patriarchal motive that being a man is the only way to have that power.

Girls are told that if they dress a certain way they’re just demanding the attention of a man, and boys are taught to give that attention. When women dress more feminine they aren’t taken seriously because obviously (according to current societal attitudes) they’re “demanding extra attention from men and drawing focus from their point.” If we as women dressed more like men we wouldn’t be forcing additional attention. However, we would be losing our femininity and betraying the origins of feminism as being actions of women.

The deepest bubbling down of this comes into how we perceive gender, and the stereotypes of such. What does it really mean to a boy or girl besides the genetic origins of sex? We as people have evolved and changed, and with that change comes another spectrum of gender and what it means to look or act like ones assigned sex. These roles and ways ones gender should dictate how they act is the poison behind it all, and the reason why some are treated with more respect than others solely based on how they choose to identify.

All of us, not just men, are taught to be tough in order to be respected. The human feelings of being sensitive are often frowned upon, and our empathetic humanity forgotten. When being sensitive is accepted, is when we as a society see it as only a feminine feeling, calling people names for expressing emotion. This is where we have to change to accept our humanity between each other, and accept that it’s natural to have feelings. It’s natural to want to be ourselves in a society who doesn’t let that thrive.

 

Works Cited

Velasquez-manoff, Moises. “Real Men Get Rejected, Too.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 Feb. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/02/24/opinion/sunday/real-men-masculinity-rejected.html.

Black, Michael Ian. “The Boys Are Not All Right.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 21 Feb. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/02/21/opinion/boys-violence-shootings-guns.html.

Berlatsky, Noah. “Can Men Really Be Feminists?” The Atlantic, The Atlantic, 5 June 2014, www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/06/men-can-be-feminists-too/372234/.

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. We Should All Be Feminists. Anchor Books, 2015.


Advanced Essay #3 - David Roberts


David Roberts


Mr. Block


English 3


9 March 2018


The Battle of Battle Royale Games

Recently, within the gaming community, a furious debate has emerged between the supporters of the two most popular battle royale games: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Fortnite. PUBG, for short, the first game to be released of the two, is a “realistic military shooter at its core,” as Erik Kain stated in his article comparing the two games on Forbes.com. 100 players, all fighting to survive, are released into an arena to fight to the death. Only one survives. PUBG, which is praised for its mechanics, the inner workings of the game, exploded into the gaming community, selling 10 million copies sold in just 6 months. In addition, Fortnite shares the same overall plot. But there are some differences. Fortnite, from the day it was released, has been a less realistic, almost “cartoonish,” as Kain  called it, and has always been called a ripoff of its predecessor PUBG. Despite this, Fortnite has been revered for its smooth gameplay and its absence of cheaters, both of which occur in PUBG. Regardless, the debate between the PUBG players and the Fortnite players has reached monumental proportions. Both sides argue that their game is better, without actually listening to the other side’s opinion. However, all this bickering leads back to one main question: are players of Fortnite real gamers? The gaming community is very particular about who is part of their community, and having this debate is a way to filter out people who don’t deserve to be a part of it.


Players of PUBG have always thought of Fortnite as the more childish game of the two, and for good reason. First, the graphics, the overall looks, are like a “cartoon,” states user Pedro Deuces on a skynetgaming.net forum. The characters are animated and modeled after fictional figures. The building structures and terrain features of the map can be compared to those seen in children’s books. But most importantly, the game is free to play. This means that a possible player does not have to pay any monetary value to download, install, and play the game. The main reasoning behind the hate for free to play games is that “the majority [of free games] are garbage, pay to win, clones of actual good games,” stated user FarplaneDragon on a GameSpot.com forum. Free games are incomplete rip offs of paid to play games. All of these things put together give PUBG players a reasonable excuse to accuse Fortnite players of not being real gamers, which is a huge insult to those within the gaming community. Fortnite players are quick to fire back though.

Despite its recent glory, PUBG has many flaws. Because of its realistic nature, the game is incredibly hard to run. The graphics make its loading times longer and its lag, which occurs when the screen freezes for shorts amount of time, increase. Therefore, players, or even prospective players, who do not maintain a high quality computer, which is a large part of the community, can experience these issues much more. Fortnite, on the other hand, does not have these issues. Also, PUBG is riddled with cheaters. Players that download external programs into the game to help improve their aim and other things are called cheaters. As Kain states, “playing against cheaters in a competitive shooter is about the least fun thing I can imagine.” These two things about PUBG, although being overlooked by current players, are slowing gaining attention and in turn forcing players away from the game. Nonetheless, PUBG is still considered the more mature game, and therefore the better game.


The gaming community is very particular about who gets in and who is rejected, and players of Fortnite are in the gray area. The players fit the description. They play on console or PC, and not on mobile, which is a whole other debate. The game format is also compatible. Other battle royale games like PUBG and H1Z1 get a pass. But the issue is the game itself. Being free to play, Fortnite can initially rejected, as most free to play games are. To add on, the graphics are cartoonish and childish, making the whole game childish. Finally, Fortnite is considered by many a rip off of PUBG, a game made and released before Fortnite. These reasons are the key issues for players of Fortnite impending induction into the gaming community.


Bibliography:

Kain, Erik. “'PUBG' Still Does One Thing So Much Better Than 'Fortnite'.” Forbes.com, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2018/02/23/pubg-still-does-one-thing-so-much-better-than-fortnite/#53c53a8f510e.

Thier, Dave. “'Fortnite: Battle Royale' Does One Thing So Much Better Than 'PUBG'.” Forbes.com, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2018/02/25/fortnite-battle-royale-does-one-thing-so-much-better-than-pubg/#76905b222e1d .


Advanced Essay #3: A Fight With Masculinity

​Introduction: 
The goal of my paper is to demonstrate and prove how the media uses language and images in order send negative views of masculinity to the public in order to destroy feelings of belonging. I'm very proud of my essay and I think that integrated quotes into my essay effectively as well as used quotes that support my essay very well. I feel that I have improved since my first two advanced essays by using better transitions. My process for creating this essay was very organized and allowed for me to complete my essay earlier and have extra time for editing. 


Advanced Essay: 

Eric Valenti

Mr. Block

English 3

8 March 2018

A Fight with Masculinity

Masculinity has changed and developed since the role of men in society was first introduced. Males believe that they have to adhere to social norms in order to survive the persecution of society. Modern-day masculinity roots back to the 19th century, during the industrial revolution. George L. Mosse explains in his book, The Image of Man: The Creation of Modern Masculinity, that media began to really spread its wings in the 19th century due to the fact that magazines and newspapers were being produced at a rapid rate. He explains that men were separated by their social class and their power.

Media has helped create gender norms that people feel compelled to follow because of the language that is used to destroy ideas of belonging. Media has shaped expectations of masculinity and men’s interpretation of what a man is. Men in media are demanded to be powerful and emotionless. Basically, a macho bag of muscles. I’m no exception to trying to fit into these norms. It started the first time I watched the film “Rocky” with my father.

It was a hot summer night. The street light gleamed in through the window, providing our living room with a dim candle-like light. My Dad was sitting in the living room fast-forwarding through the commercials with his feet propped up on the black ottoman. I was sitting on the floor with my legs crossed. My head perked up when I noticed the tv displayed in bold silver letters “ROCKY.” I had always loved watching movies with my Dad, he had this gift where he could choose a movie that really inspired me. I always had trouble connecting with my Dad because we were so different but when we watched movies it was like nothing else mattered. There was one point in the film where Rocky began his montage where he climbs the art museum steps and beats up frozen meat. My Dad said something that struck me:

“That’s a real man. He gets the girl, he’s strong and he never gives up.” I didn’t understand it. Rocky was just a guy who beat up others for entertainment. Then it clicked. A man was someone who liked to be physical with others, in order to show their affection. As the movie continued, Rocky beat up more boxers and appeared to be quite monotone and dulled even at the most hardcore fights. Rocky made me believe that men had to be emotionless and could only care about being the best, and if you weren’t the best you go back to the slums. Emotion meant weakness, and only women were allowed to have emotion, so this created the idea that women had to be weaker than men. Masculinity became this stage of life that numbs a boy.

In my opinion, masculinity is this phase that every boy goes through, where they learn this peculiar lesson that emotions are for girls and all men can do is be violent. It's sort of like a second puberty. And in this time you discover that as a man you must always be in control.  For example, Rocky starts off as a bit of a loser. Until he meets Adrian and sort of forcibly tells her not to leave him. Rocky becomes more controlling of his life and he becomes generally happier. It’s the language and messages in films like this that send these beliefs to impressionable boys. What happens to boys when they get lessons like this?

In a New York Times article, Real Men Get Rejected Too, writer Moises Velasquez-Manoff, talks about how men use sexual abuse as a tool of power over women.  Manoff explains where this behavior comes from. Manoff says in his article,Little data exists on whether kids actually listen to what their parents say, he concedes, but if you don’t talk to your children, he argues, they’re left to absorb norms from, most likely, pornography. And what boys learn from porn is that men must dominate and that women like it that way — neither of which is necessarily true.” What Manoff is explaining here is that pornography acts as the guiding factor for boys sexually and why men use sex as a tool. Pornography is a tool of manipulation, Manoff shows that parents are not all to blame for boys that grow up to be sexual abusers but the media that turns sex into an act of power and control. It’s not just about the images used in the media that destroys feelings of belonging but the language is just as important.

We constantly see language like “faggot”, “wimp” or “pussy,” being used by men in media. This language becomes a part of societal norms, meaning, we as males feel compelled to use this language to show our dominance over other males. Its like were primal beasts fighting for control of the land. When a man uses words like “faggot” or “pussy,” towards another man it's because they feel inadequate to see someone with enough courage to express themselves. This idea of masculinity only exists because people in the media feel inadequate, and now this culture is so invested in our everyday lives we can’t just forget or ignore it. This type of language promotes not only a craving for control but a demand for violence.

Male characters in films don’t have a very wide range of characters. Most male characters are drug lords, a martial arts expert or have a special set of skills used for revenge. In a documentary called Tough Guise: “Violence, Media and the Crisis in Masculinity”, by Jackson Katz, Katz explores male characters created in films and the influence they have on their audiences. Katz states, “What the media does is help construct violent masculinity as a cultural norm. In other words, violence isn’t so much a deviation, but an accepted part of masculinity,” (1:59-2:08). What Katz is saying here is that the media uses only a few types of men in films in order to make men believe that violence has to be a part of who they are, no matter which man they chose to be. When Katz says “isn’t so much a deviation,” he believes that men have this idea that they can’t be a man without being violent.

Masculinity is a social construct that society has created in order to make one gender believe they have more dominance and power over another group. The type of masculinity that is presented in films and other media outlets, has made me feel compelled to bottle up my emotions which causes me anxiety and harder for me to connect with others. Masculinity has created this mask for me to put on and I can’t take it off.


Work Cited

ChallengingMedia. “Tough Guise: Violence, Media & the Crisis in Masculinity.” YouTube, YouTube, 4 Oct. 2006, www.youtube.com/watch?v=3exzMPT4nGI.


Velasquez-Manoff, M.

Opinion | Real Men Get Rejected, Too

In-text: (Velasquez-Manoff, 2018) Your Bibliography: Velasquez-Manoff, M. (2018). Opinion | Real Men Get Rejected, Too. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/24/opinion/sunday/real-men-masculinity-rejected.html [Accessed 8 Mar. 2018].


Mosse, G. (2010). The image of man. New York: Oxford Univ. Press.