Critical Thinking Question: How different are people allowed to be in this text? Does it assume everyone is happy and good in the same ways?

In the book Cinder by Marissa Meyer, all the characters are portrayed as being forced to be certain people fulfilling certain positions, even if they don’t desire it. The people and circumstances around them have labeled them in certain ways that may not even be accurate. The characters struggle to come to terms with what is expected and who their true personality really is, even if that is different from what other people want them to be.

Cinder is often overlooked by many people because of her background as a cyborg and Lunar. Many people are afraid of cyborgs, while Lunars are known to be evil because of their special abilities to mind control others. Because she is a cyborg, this makes her stand out as different from everyone else, and they treat her badly. For example, her neighbors stay away from her and warn their children about her too, despite Cinder sharing human-like feelings. Because she is labeled different, she is seen as bad. People think that all cyborgs are not human and all Lunars are evil in the same ways, even though Cinder is actually different from these stereotypes. She is treated like a group, not an individual.

Another example of a character in a forced position in the book is Prince Kai. Due to a major outbreak of a disease known as the plague, Kai’s father, Emperor Rikan, passes away, forcing Prince Kai to take his place as emperor. Before he died, Rikan proposed marriage to the queen of Luna, Queen Levana, in order to seal the treaty with the Lunars after being threatened many times with starting a war. Kai’s new role and responsibilities are summed up by what the royal advisor tells Kai: “’Your Majesty, with all due respect, you no longer have the luxury of being a lovesick teenager. You have a duty to fulfill to your people now.’ ” (Meyer, 348) Although Kai just wants to live a normal teenager’s life, he is thrust into following his father’s footsteps. He feels like he lost his childhood because of this, and doesn’t have the same abilities to do things he used to do when he was just a prince; he isn’t allowed to be himself anymore. Even though many people would probably think it is great being Emperor, it doesn’t make Kai happy.

Many of these characters wish to be someone else, in a different position in their lives; however there’s always someone or something that forces them to be something other than they want to be. They all have their own personalities and wishes, but it is a constant struggle for them to find a way to project it.

Critical Thinking Question: Whose perspective is missing in this text? What would it be like if we put it back?

******Spoiler Alert********

In the book The House of Hades by Rick Riordan, we follow Percy and his friends as they go on their adventure to save Olympus. Along the way we’re shown multiple perspectives from each of the six main characters. However, one of Percy’s friends, Nico di Angelo, although always present throughout the book, never has his perspective expressed. This makes him come across as mysterious to the reader, but limits our understanding of him as opposed to the rest of the characters.

While all of Percy’s friends are all part of a prophecy to be the seven demigods who are supposed to save the world, Nico is not included. In the first Percy Jackson series, Nico and his sister are said to have been born in around the early 1930s in Venice Italy, but he and his sister were brainwashed and brought to a hotel after their mother was killed in an accident where Zeus trying to kill them. They remained in the hotel for about 70 years without aging or noticing the time pass by. Later in the same book, Nico’s sister dies within Percy’s trust. After she dies, Nico starts to lose his trust for all humans and buries himself into darkness by spending time in the shadows and hanging out with the dead more than the living. When Percy “let” his sister die and started a relationship with one of their friends, Nico starts to grow hatred towards him. From looking at Nico’s past, the reader can tell why as a character he’s always gloomy and in a way scary to the other demigods. We only learn about Nico’s traumatic past when it is forced out of him in this book – up until then, Riordan does not give us any insight. Until this book, I didn’t really care about his character and found him creepy. Now, I am curious whether there is more to his personality than what meets the eye. This is what including his perspective would help do.  

Clearly, Nico has an interesting back story, along with a mysterious personality, which hooks the reader to want to know more about him. Before The House of Hades came out, lots of fans requested that Riordan put Nico as one of the character’s perspectives. However, at the time I disagreed because I thought that the book was fine the way it was and nothing seemed too amazing about Nico that I would want him to be a narrator. When we read The House of Hades, we discover that Nico used to have a crush on Percy, which in a way helps explain why Nico is the way he is. I’m not quite sure why Rick created this character, but after reading The House of Hades, the reader learns more about Nico than what is told in the past few books, since the beginning of the series. I wasn’t really interested in his character before when I read the other books in the past, but when I found out more about him in this book; it helped me understand why others suggested that Nico become a narrator. At the end of the book, the group is forced into a situation where they will have to begin including Nico’s perspective. I think this will be very interesting because he is so mysterious to the readers up until this point.  Adding his perspective will help us gain a better understanding of his true personality, which hasn’t been very clear.

Ruby the Copycat by Peggy Rathmann

            My favorite picture book from growing up is called, “Ruby the Copycat” by Peggy Rathmann. In the book, the new girl in Miss Hart’s class, Ruby, keeps copying everything her classmate Angela does.  At first they get along because of their similarities, until it drives Angela crazy, realizing Ruby was actually just copying everything about her. When I reread the book today, I notice how relatable the story is.  Growing up, I always noticed many of my classmates would copy one another’s personalities; no one would act as themselves. One person would start a trend, and then everybody copies them. In elementary school, if you heard a lot of people at school played a certain online game or watched certain TV shows, you would start to watch them too, so that you could try to fit in with them. When my mom first read this book to me, I was so young that I don’t even remember old I was (probably in kindergarten). I didn't understand what the book was about; what stood out the most was the cover, illustrated with the two girls writing on the chalkboard.  Both are wearing purple flowered sweaters and red bows, except Ruby’s sweater has drawn flowers pinned on to it. It only started to make sense when I got older, once I started witnessing it myself. Even I felt pressured into liking the same things my friends did. Today, I look back at this book and realize how unique the book is to bring up this topic of individuality.

            Many children growing up have trouble finding who they are, so they copy one another’s actions in the meantime. The book helps me remember how important it is to be comfortable just being myself. Whenever I feel peer pressure to fit in with everyone else, it’s okay to be different, and just be who I really am. In the text, Miss Hart tells Ruby, “You don’t need to copy everything Angela does. You can be anything you want to be, but be Ruby first. I like Ruby.” Everyone has their own good qualities that they should remember to appreciate. We don’t need to look to someone else to find that. The book’s message reminds me of another quote I've heard, “You were born an original.  Don’t die a copy”- John Mason. Even though it’s a picture book, “Ruby the Copycat” really can teach people of all ages.

Argument Essay 2nd Draft

              What is censorship? What is its purpose? Many adults think children need it, but do they?  Censorship is forcing someone’s own beliefs on someone else, as well as deciding what their limits are. The purpose of censorship is just a form of control over someone and their beliefs. The novel Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher is about a teenage girl, Hannah, who committed suicide. Through fictional cassette tapes, we learn the reasons behind her actions.  Because of its serious subject, many parents are worried that if their children read these kinds of books, they will start to copy the character’s actions. However, although many parents want to ban this book, it should not be banned because the story helps the reader become more comfortable acknowledging suicide as a real life issue and promoting meaningful conversations on a difficult subject.

            Many of these banned books have taught us valuable lessons, such as how to identify warning signs in a suicidal person. Thirteen Reasons Why also helps teach readers things you can do in response if you think someone you know could be thinking of hurting themselves. One of the lessons the author teaches is that everyone’s actions can affect each other in very powerful ways. One of the things that most affected Hannah was by rumors spread by her classmates. On page 156 of the novel, Hannah reflects on the power of other people, saying, “No one knows for certain how much impact they have on the lives of other people.” Reading the book shows a glimpse of how a suicidal person might feel, and how we can prevent these feelings from happening.  Most writers write these books to help young people in traumatic states know that they’re not alone.

            Despite the merits of many censored books, adults think books like Thirteen Reasons Why aren’t appropriate for certain ages to read. Many think the subjects mentioned are too difficult or mature for young readers to handle. If books reflect what life is like, the newly written books with dark topics in them might make the reader think that’s how life really is. However, this book is written in a way that clearly doesn’t promote Hannah’s actions, but tells why she did it and how we can prevent things like this from happening in our own lives. In the words of Hannah herself, “Because it may seem like a small role now, but it matters. In the end, everything matters.” (Asher p.30) Some adults think the solution is adding age ratings to our books like we do to movies. Movies and video games now days have age ratings, so some people think books should too. However this fails to take in account how people develop at different paces with different reading interests that may not fit into a specific age group.  As explained in the article “Age-rated books: Right or wrong?” by BBC News, “Children read up and down. They read over and over again. They read the same book at two different ages and get something totally different out of the experience each time.” This shows that books for young readers can’t be categorized by one age, and doing so will only limit many learning opportunities.  

            Young adults should have the right to choose which books fit their own comfort level. When questionable topics are mentioned, the author is usually putting them there for the purpose of helping the reader visualize the text better, not just because it makes the book more dramatic. According to Meghan Cox Gurdon in the text “Darkness Too Visible”, “Foul language is widely regarded among librarians, reviewers and booksellers as perfectly OK, provided that it emerges organically from the characters and the setting rather than being tacked on for sensation.”  Gurdon states that some allow these books to be acceptable because as long as the content that’s being questioned is there to help describe something in the book, they should be okay to read. Also according to BBC News, the cover illustrations and blurbs are alternative indicators for readers to know what to expect in a book.

            Books shouldn’t be banned just because they bring up topics that people are afraid to talk about otherwise. Supporters of book censorship are missing the true point of the authors to educate the readers on important, although difficult, issues. Creating age ratings on books will just catch more attention towards the book and make those under the limit want to read them even more. Instead, I think we should include these books in our school curriculum, where we have the opportunity to responsibly discuss and understand them with our peers and teachers.  Avoiding what makes us uncomfortable does not help anyone; instead, we should face them together. 

Works Cited

Asher, Jay.  Thirteen Reasons Why.  New York: Penguin, 2007.  Print.

BBC News.  Age-rated books: Right or wrong?  BBC News, 20 Aug. 2008.  Web.  14 Nov. 2013.                 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7571152.stm>

Gurdon, Meghan Cox.  Darkness Too Visible.  The Wall Street Journal, 4 Jun. 2011.  Web. 14 Nov. 2013.

< http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303657404576357622592697038 >

Argument Essay Draft

The novel Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher is about a teenage girl, Hannah, who committed suicide. Through fictional cassette tapes, we learn the reasons behind her actions.  Parents are worried that if their children read these kinds of books, they will start to copy the character’s actions. Although many parents want to ban this book, it should not be banned because the story helps the reader become more comfortable acknowledging that things like suicide actually happen in real life. Adults shouldn’t censor which books young adults can read, because many controversial books actually teach us important lessons and help promote meaningful conversations on difficult subjects.

Young adults should have the right to choose which books fit their own comfort level. Whenever these questionable topics are mentioned, the author puts them there to help the reader visualize the text better, not just because it makes the book more dramatic. According to Meghan Cox Gurdon in the text “Darkness Too Visible”, “Foul language is widely regarded among librarians, reviewers and booksellers as perfectly OK, provided that it emerges organically from the characters and the setting rather than being tacked on for sensation.”  Gurdon states that some allow these books to be acceptable because as long as the content that’s being questioned is there to help describe something in the book, they should be okay to read. Cover illustrations and blurbs for these books show the reader what to expect in the book.

In addition, many of these banned books have taught us valuable lessons, such as how to identify warning signs in a suicidal person. Thirteen Reasons Why also helps teach readers things you can do in response if you think someone you know could be thinking of hurting themselves. One of the lessons the author teaches is that everyone’s actions can affect each other in very powerful ways. One of the things that most affected Hannah was by rumors spread by her classmates. On page 156 of the novel, Hannah reflects on the power of other people, saying, “no one knows for certain how much impact they have on the lives of other people.” Reading the book shows a glimpse of how a suicidal person might feel, and how we can prevent these feelings from happening.  Most writers write these books to help young people in traumatic states know that they’re not alone. These books help promote meaningful conversations on subjects that are usually difficult to discuss. In 7^th grade, the whole grade was assigned to read the book Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick, which contained subjects like cancer and death. This allowed us to discuss the serious themes openly with our classes in a positive way.

Despite the merits of many censored books, adults think books like Thirteen Reasons Why aren’t appropriate for certain ages to read. Many think the subjects mentioned are too difficult or mature for young readers to handle. If books reflect what life is like, the newly written books with dark topics in them might make the reader think that’s how life really is. However, this book is written in a way that clearly doesn’t promote Hannah’s actions, but tells why she did it and how we can prevent things like this from happening in our own lives. In the words of Hannah herself, "Because it may seem like a small role now, but it matters. In the end, everything matters." (Asher, p.30) Some adults think the solution is adding age ratings to our books like we do to movies. Movies and video games now days have age ratings, so some people think books should too. However this fails to take in account how people develop at different paces with different reading interests that may not fit into a specific age group.

Books shouldn’t be banned just because they bring up topics that people are afraid to talk about otherwise. Supporters of book censorship are missing the true point of the authors to educate the readers on important, although difficult, issues. Creating age ratings on books will just catch more attention towards the book and make those under the limit want to read them even more. Instead, I think we should include these books in our school curriculum, where we have the opportunity to responsibly discuss and understand them with our peers and teachers.  Avoiding what makes us uncomfortable does not help anyone; instead, we should face them together.  

Monday Muses Post

My childhood

I hear

The echoing voice

Of my father telling me

Two words:

“Be Good”

I taste the lingering flavor

Of my mom’s saucy, homemade spaghetti,

And cheesy Costco lasagna

I remember the beautiful wrapping paper,

Concealing past presents,

And birthday cards

I can still see

The picture of the beautiful,

Unique,

Enormous

Bright,

And sunny Paris I once saw

Years ago

I worry of the day,

You betray me

I sometimes wonder,

“What would the world be like without me?”

I wish I had never said “no”,

When you invited me to see that movie

I am courageous,

Carefree,

And believe.

I want to be happy,

To have a good life.

I am

a survivor of bullying.

A 5’1” gymnast,

Stares in the mirror.

Homemade chocolate chip cookies,

Straight from Mrs. Field’s Cookbook.

The strong smell

Of Tide, laundry detergent.

The quiet slope of

5^th Street, covered with trees,

And brownstones.

The love and chaos

Within my house

The four voices of the Beatles,

Singing “Misery”

Or the TV playing Elton John singing

“Crocodile Rock” on the Muppets

Two places called “home”

Totally different

Only a mile apart

Voices cry

From all directions,

Calling:

“Wash the dishes!”

“Mom!”

“Dinner!”

Every day,

On schedule.

From staying up past 10:00

Watching movies on the weekend,

To staying up to finish the homework,

That was supposed to be done

Hours ago.

Disney World,

“The happiest place on Earth”

My dream job

 San Francisco, California

And the school,

Down my block.

Waiting,

Like it’s my destiny.

The brown skin,

Of my first and only babysitter

The time I got spanked,

The tears that streamed

Down my face,

Ever since

I came home,

I knew,

Life

Will never

Be the same.

Playing my family Wii, GameCube, DDR mats, Club Penguin,

And karaoke on the PlayStation.

The morning I came back, to give you that birthday card,

And the day I started off some place new,

A mile away from you.

Memories of my life, since the day I was born,

Stored in a cabinet,

Against the wall in the living room,

Stuck in a cramped space,

Every now and then being grabbed,

Then shoved back in,

Just like life,

Going in and out of the happy circle.

Theme response

Many teenagers are self-conscious about how others see them. Sometimes they do things they later regret, not knowing what would happen. Often when we are put in a situation we’ve never been through before, we have trouble fitting in with the crowd. Even though we might all have different conflicts, something we all worry about is feeling like we belong somewhere. In the book “Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky, all the characters try to be someone different than who they are in order to fit in with their surroundings. However, when their real personalities start to show, it’s not always that easy to face the results.

                Charlie (the protagonist), often feels very different from others and has trouble fitting in, even with his friends. A lot of his friends and the people around him are older than he is, which makes things awkward for him sometimes. While they’re off smoking and talking about college, he’s just started high school and isn’t even old enough to smoke. Sometimes when this happens, Charlie ends up trying to act older due to pure pressure. According to the text, even his friends tell him they think he’s different, saying, “He’s something, isn’t he?...He’s a wallflower…You see things. You keep quiet about them. And you understand.” This quote helps show that others think of him as different from everyone else and his personality as quiet and observant. Although he’s physically present during that conversation, he’s not actually taking part in the discussion.
                Another character who often tries to change his personality is one of Charlie’s good friends, Patrick. Unlike a lot of people, Patrick is gay. During the story, Patrick is currently going out with the quarterback of their high school football team. Although Patrick doesn’t mind expressing to others he’s gay, his boyfriend, Brad, does mind. Since Brad doesn’t want others to know he’s gay, both he and Patrick act towards others as if they were straight by “dating” girls for show. Later in the story, Brad breaks up with Patrick, which initially makes him really upset. However, later Patrick starts to realize he feels “free.”  He says, “I’ll tell you something, Charlie. I feel good…Really good. Like I’m free or something. Like I don’t have to pretend anymore. I’m going to college, right? It’ll be different there.”He’s not afraid to be different; he can just be who he really is.

Teenage years are often a time when we learn in life they can just be who they are, and be happy with that. It doesn’t matter how others think of them. They don’t have to try so hard to make others happy, just as long as their happy with themselves. In the end of the book, Charlie’s English teacher tells him he’s special, which no one else has ever told him. This makes him feel more satisfied and confidant with himself, reassuring him he’s “special” in his own way.