To Kill a Mockingbird: How does this text make you think about justice in the world?

“To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee takes place in the 1930’s. During this time, the justice system in America was not exactly fair. So when Atticus Finch, a respected lawyer, is tasked with defending a black man in court, he knows that it is a case that he cannot win. Still, he tries his hardest to persuade the jury that his client, Tom Robinson, is innocent. And although all of the evidence points to Tom being innocent, the jury still says that Tom is guilty. After reading the book, I realized that the justice system has drastically improved through years of patience and slow change. People like Atticus Finch helped to pave the way for a new and improved justice system in the near future. He knew that he was given a case that was unwinnable, but he still fought, because he knew that if he could sway the jury just a bit, that it would be a step towards more just courts in America. Harper Lee wrote the book in 1960. This was a time when the Civil Rights Movement was starting up. I think that Harper Lee wrote the book as a reminder of what would continue to happen if people continued to allow the unfairness throughout the country to continue. Lee’s book sent a bold message that helped to make the dreams that she held in her book a reality.

Argument essay 2nd draft

Alexander Schell 809 Argument Essay Second Draft As an author writes more and more stories, it becomes more likely that someone is going to be offended by some of their work. Edgar Allan Poe wrote sixty-seven short stories, thirty-one poems, and one novel, so it’s safe to imagine that some of his work may have been taken the wrong (or right) way, and some people may have attempted to ban him. However, Poe is a brilliant and classical author and his work should not be banned. Edgar Allan Poe’s work can help people to understand his time period better. Poe was born in 1809 and died in 1849. The way that people spoke and wrote back then was completely different than we do now, and most of his work can perfectly capture the differences. For example, in the first page of his story, “William Wilson”, he says, “The fair page now lying before me need not be sullied with my real appellation.” (Poe 1). In this sentence, he says sullied, meaning to stain or tarnish, and appellation, meaning name or title. He then goes on to say, “This has already been too much an object for the scorn—the detestation of my race. To the outermost regions of the globe have not the indignant winds bruited its unparalleled infamy?” I can honestly say that I am not sure what half of this sentence means. My point is that Poe can teach people about the history of our language and how it has become more complex (or less complex, in this case). Much of Poe’s work is told through the eyes of insane people. His stories can help sane people better how the minds of crazy people work. One of the most notable examples of this type of story is “The Tell-Tale Heart”. It is about a man who committed murder simply because he did not like the way an old man’s eyes looked. What I noticed is that throughout the story, the man is convinced that he is not crazy. He even says, “You fancy me mad. Mad men know nothing.” (Poe 4) He is describing a situation which would sound crazy to any sane person, yet he has convinced himself that he is not insane. Poe, unlike many authors, can accurately portray an insane person in his stories, which is probably because he was a little bit insane himself. He once said “I don’t suffer from insanity, but enjoy every minute of it.” He was also an alcoholic who suffered from depression, so…yeah. Lastly, and probably most importantly, Poe’s stories can get people to question their mind and to understand themselves better. In a story called “The Cask of Amontillado”, A man decides to kill his “friend” Fortunato, simply because Fortunato insulted him. This story can make people ask themselves an important question: at what point would I be willing to commit murder? How far over the edge would I have to be driven in order for murder to be my only way out? In another story, “The Black Cat”, it only takes one bad day for a man to kill the one thing he really loves in the world. So, how many bad days could you endure before being driven to insanity? I personally think that I could only handle about six, maybe seven bad days before I just went absolutely insane. Poe can write a good story while also getting the reader to question basically their entire life. After reading Poe’s stories, I can confidently say that they are great works of art and can be appreciated by mature minds. So I’m not saying that Edgar Allan Poe’s work should be put on the shelves of first grade classrooms, but I think that 8 grade students are perfectly capable of understanding and interpreting Poe’s work the way it was meant to be interpreted, and they are capable of not being driven insane by all of the fancy words that his stories contain.

My Favorite Picture Book

My Favorite picture book is “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish” by Dr. Seuss. The book is the perfect combination of poetry, strangeness, and absolute brilliance. What makes the book strange, in my opinion, is the fact that there really is no clear message behind the story. It is really just an almost childish story that has the potential to make most people smile.

            What I love about this book and most of the author’s other work is that he doesn’t need to create a perfect storyline or complex characters to make a great book. Part of what makes his work so great is the pictures in the books. Try reading any of his books without seeing the pictures. They’re still great, but I don’t think that they would be remembered as well as fondly as they are today. Every single picture in every single book is just a bit over the top, with an extreme amount of bright colors and strange characters.

            Another reason why I think that the book is so great because of the feeling of nostalgia that comes with every page. I remember always reading the book when I was six or seven years old. I loved that the book was so simple that even a child could have come up with the ideas in it. I also loved the very simple rhymes that the story contained. The very first lines are the most memorable example. “One fish, Two fish, Red fish, Blue fish. Black fish, Brown fish, Old fish, New fish. This one has a little car. This one has a little star.” When I think about it now, that is one of the simplest books that I have ever read, yet it also impacted my life the most.

            Dr. Seuss and all of his great books taught me many things. They taught me how to read. They taught me how to write a poem. But most importantly, they taught me that a good imagination is the greatest gift that a person can have. I sincerely hope that in the distant future, the work of Dr. Seuss will still be remembered, and that it will make both children and adults smile. Because even now, we are failing to remember that there is no such thing as too much imagination, and sometimes that’s all it takes to make a good story.

Argument Esay First Draft

Alexander Schell                                                                                                   11-9-2013

809                      

Should Edgar Allan Poe be banned?

            Throughout his career, Edgar Allan Poe wrote one novel, sixty-seven short stories, and thirty-one poems. Many of these stories taught different lessons and demonstrated the many types of people in the world. But in the end, all of his work must be recognized for what it really is: classical stories that can be interpreted in many different ways. I think that Edgar Allan Poe is a brilliant author and should not be banned.

            Edgar Allan Poe’s work can help people to understand the time period better. He was born in 1809 and died in 1849. The way that people spoke and wrote back then was a lot different than how people speak and write today, and some of his work perfectly captures the differences. For example, in the first page of one of his stories, “William Wilson”, he says, “The fair page now lying before me need not be sullied with my real appellation”. Basically, he’s saying “I don’t want to tell you my real name. He then goes on to write, “This has already been too much an object for the scorn- for the detestation of my race. To the uttermost regions of the globe have not the indignant winds bruited its unparalleled infamy?” I am honestly not sure that I understand what that means. My point is, Poe can teach people about the history of our language and how it has become more complex (or less complex, in our case.)

            Much of Poe’s work is told through the eyes of people who are basically insane. His stories can help people who are less insane understand how the minds of crazy people work. One of the most notable examples of this type of story is “The Tell-Tale Heart”. It is about a man who committed murder simply because he did not like the way an old man’s eyes looked. What I noticed is that throughout the story, the man is convinced that he is not crazy. He even says”You fancy me mad. Mad men know nothing.” He is describing a situation which would sound crazy to any sane person, yet he has convinced himself that he is not insane. Poe, unlike many authors, can accurately portray an insane person in his stories, which is probably because he was a little bit insane himself.

            Lastly, and probably most importantly, Poe’s stories can get people to question their mind and to understand themselves better. In a story called “The Cask of Amontillado, A man decides to kill someone simply because he insulted him. This story can make people ask themselves an important question: at what point would I be willing to commit murder? How far over the edge would I have to be driven in order for murder to be my only way out? In another story, “The Black Cat”, it only takes one bad day for a man to kill the one thing he really loves in the world. So, how many bad days could you endure before being driven to insanity? I personally think that I could only handle about six, maybe seven bad days before I just went absolutely insane. Poe can write a good story while also getting the reader to question basically their entire life.

            After reading Poe’s stories, I can confidently say that they are great works of art and can be appreciated by mature minds. So I’m not saying that Edgar Allan Poe’s work should be put on the shelves of first grade classrooms, but I think that 8 grade students are perfectly capable of understanding and interpreting Poe’s work the way it was meant to be interpreted, and they are capable of not being driven insane by all of the fancy words that his stories contain.  

Alexander Schell                                                                                                   11-9-2013

809                      

Should Edgar Allan Poe be banned?

            Throughout his career, Edgar Allan Poe wrote one novel, sixty-seven short stories, and thirty-one poems. Many of these stories taught different lessons and demonstrated the many types of people in the world. But in the end, all of his work must be recognized for what it really is: classical stories that can be interpreted in many different ways. I think that Edgar Allan Poe is a brilliant author and should not be banned.

            Edgar Allan Poe’s work can help people to understand the time period better. He was born in 1809 and died in 1849. The way that people spoke and wrote back then was a lot different than how people speak and write today, and some of his work perfectly captures the differences. For example, in the first page of one of his stories, “William Wilson”, he says, “The fair page now lying before me need not be sullied with my real appellation”. Basically, he’s saying “I don’t want to tell you my real name. He then goes on to write, “This has already been too much an object for the scorn- for the detestation of my race. To the uttermost regions of the globe have not the indignant winds bruited its unparalleled infamy?” I am honestly not sure that I understand what that means. My point is, Poe can teach people about the history of our language and how it has become more complex (or less complex, in our case.)

            Much of Poe’s work is told through the eyes of people who are basically insane. His stories can help people who are less insane understand how the minds of crazy people work. One of the most notable examples of this type of story is “The Tell-Tale Heart”. It is about a man who committed murder simply because he did not like the way an old man’s eyes looked. What I noticed is that throughout the story, the man is convinced that he is not crazy. He even says”You fancy me mad. Mad men know nothing.” He is describing a situation which would sound crazy to any sane person, yet he has convinced himself that he is not insane. Poe, unlike many authors, can accurately portray an insane person in his stories, which is probably because he was a little bit insane himself.

            Lastly, and probably most importantly, Poe’s stories can get people to question their mind and to understand themselves better. In a story called “The Cask of Amontillado, A man decides to kill someone simply because he insulted him. This story can make people ask themselves an important question: at what point would I be willing to commit murder? How far over the edge would I have to be driven in order for murder to be my only way out? In another story, “The Black Cat”, it only takes one bad day for a man to kill the one thing he really loves in the world. So, how many bad days could you endure before being driven to insanity? I personally think that I could only handle about six, maybe seven bad days before I just went absolutely insane. Poe can write a good story while also getting the reader to question basically their entire life.

            After reading Poe’s stories, I can confidently say that they are great works of art and can be appreciated by mature minds. So I’m not saying that Edgar Allan Poe’s work should be put on the shelves of first grade classrooms, but I think that 8 grade students are perfectly capable of understanding and interpreting Poe’s work the way it was meant to be interpreted, and they are capable of not being driven insane by all of the fancy words that his stories contain.