Literature post about injustice

Another literature blog post:

My topic: injustice.
What is injustice, you may ask. What is the thin line that seperates fair and unfair? In To Kill a Mcokingbird we get two views on this subject. Injustice in the eyes of the modern-day reader, and injustice in the eyes of a young girl named Scout in the story.
First, the reader's point of view. When hearing about the case that Atticus is defending, a witness of the 21st century would see Atticus as doing the right thing. He is defending a man, who did not do the wrong that he was accused of. It doesn't matter that he's black. But there is much more equality in our culture today then there was back then. The townsfolk don't see it that way, but instead see Atticus as stupid and low-down. Is that really fair, seeing as the man wasn't even guilty of the crime? This is what we, today, call injustice, unfairness, or just plain stupidity.
But what about Scout, Atticus's daughter? Because of the work that her father is doing, she is having to deal with problems far beyond her years. She gets teased and made fun of at school, and even with her relatives. But she keeps a good image for the most part to keep Atticus proud. Scout doesn't even really understand what's happening, but even so she stands with her family for better or for worse. She doesn't think that it is fair in the beginning, her getting bullied for Atticus's actions. But overtime she realizes that trials will arise and she needs to face them bravely. However unjust the situation might be, Scout is ready to defend her family's honor.

"Sometime we fall down and can’t get back up

We’re hiding behind skin that’s too tough
How come we don’t say I love you enough
Till it’s too late, it’s not too late"
~Live Like We're Dying
Kris Allen
Kris Allen
(This is mah new Kris Allen CD. I LOVE it!)

Inclusion (lit post)

For my literature assignment. I am supposed to talk about a main idea in the book To Kill a Mockingbird. I have decided to use the topic: insiders and outsiders.

When reading this book you really get a good idea of who is in the loop and who isn't. The county of Maycomb is tiny, so whenever someone new comes to town it's quite obvious that that person doesn't quite fit in. I would like to use the example of Miss Caroline the first-grade teacher. She has never lived in Maycomb and doesn't know the rules. Everyone expects her to be aware of what is happening in the town. I guess you could say that she isn't caught up on the "pop culture" of the county. She's written so that you kind of dislike her and she's not supposed to be your favorite character in the book. But is it really her fault that she wants to make a good impression in this town? If you were suddenly thrust into a situation where everyone else knew each other, whereas you didn't know anyone, wouldn't you want to make a good image of yourself? And wouldn't you be upset if other peoples' view of you was ruined on the first day of a new job in a new town? I know that I would be. 

The people of Maycomb aren't accostumed to change, they sort of automatically shun the new and different one in the group. When Miss Caroline tries to introduce the Dewey Decimal System, no one really cares. The people of Maycomb are insensitive and narcistic to say the least. But aren't we all? This is a good wake up call to the reader. It emphasizes to me that we need to be aware of when we are excluding one another from our cliques. The idea of insiders and outsiders is actually kind of tragic. But yet, no matter how hard we try, they still exist in the every day situation. And the book To Kill a Mockingbird is just another example of this. 

"I wonder what its like to have it all
To never be afraid that I would fall
But I don't think I've ever known a time
That I was part of the in crowd"

~The In Crowd

Mitchel Musso

Social Context

This week for literature, I have to write about the social context of Huckleberry Finn. I will be talking about the seperation and bringing together of people.

The story takes place around the abolitionist movement. As we all know there was much seperation around that time over the matter of skin color. In Huckleberry Finn, Huck has grown up with slavery so he doesn't really see what's wrong with it. But as he gets know Jim, he sees that skin color does not make someone different. When they run away on the raft, they are forced to spend all of their time together. Huck learns a valuable lesson that not many people in that day and time cared about. He learns that just because someone looks diferent, that does not make them lower than you. When Huck was struggling with the idea of turning Jim in, he realized that he would just be turning in a friend. Would he turn Tom Sawyer in if he ran away? No. So neither would he turn in Jim. It shows that even back then, people could put aside their differences and come together.

"The blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice. I can say it ain't so, but darlin, what's the use? The darker the chocolate, the richer the taste. And that's where it's at. So run and tell that."
~Run and Tell That
Seaweed
Hairspray

Run aways

Today I will be doing another post for my literature class in coop. We are reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. And I'd like to compare Jim's escape to "freedom" to Huck's escape to "freedom".
    First off, we'll start with Huck. Huck was being held by his drunk dad, who was practically imprisoning him. He would not let Huck out of the house unless he needed Huck to do something for him. But he would never let Huck out of the woods that they were secluded in.
    Jim on the other hand, was actually a slave, but his mistress, Miss Watson, gave him a lot of freedom. He was able to have his own money and invest it in whatever he wanted. He was even aloud to go places sometimes.
    So, I would like to venture that Jim was actually more free than Huck. It took more effort for Huck to escape, and even then, he had to make people think that he had died. Jim, he just walked away.
    But, in my opinion, even though they seem to be free from their past ailments, they are not all together free. They still have to hide way on an island for fear of getting caught. They are not aloud to show their faces to anyone who might recognize them. Their lives are really quite restricted. Maybe even more so than before they escaped. At least for Jim.
    Their escapes really showed some of their personality too. Huck, underneath all of his superstitions, is actually a really smart kid. He made people think that he was killed by robbers, when really he had just left. Jim is smart, but I don't think quite as witty as Huck. His superstitions get the best of him, and that's all he really knows and believes. Jim, just saw a chance to leave, and did. He knew everyone would know he ran away, but that was okay with him.
   So, I would like to conclude that Huck's escape showed that even though he wasn't actually a slave, he was enduring more slavery than Jim. He had to really work just to, well, leave.

"Can you hear this soul? It's crying. My soul is crying, calling out to you.Will you come and wash over me like only you can do. Will you be...my freedom? Will you be...my freedom?"
~My Freedom
Krystal Meyers
Make Some Noise

GENIUS!!

Okay. So I have to do this crosspost for my literature class at coop. I had to choose one other person from my class to make a post about a post that they made. I know, confusing, but bear with me. Anyways, I chose to post about Steven's. That kid is like a little genius! I never thought that way when I was his age! He blogged about his idea of truth. I completely agree with everything that he said here. His idea of sin not wanting us to be happy? Again, may I say, GENIUS!! But can I add to that thought? Sin doesn't want us to be happy in a Godly way, true. But it gives us the temptation to find happiness in a material way. So sin does offer "happiness", but not the happiness that God wants us to have. Thanks, Steven for such an insightful post! :)

"This world is like a trampoline. High and low, no in between. Jumping at the chance to please. Everyone, but that's not me cause all that matters is, all that matters is, I know your love has set me free. That's all that matters to me!"
~All That Matters
Addison Road