Propaganda in the Declaration of Independence

Despite the Declaration of Independence being a very well written document, I am sure that there are some forms of propoganda and faulty logic in it. The Declaration of Independence is in my opinion a very accurate depiction of how England treated America, with few exceptions. I can actually remember reading about several events in the Declaration that were mentioned as wrong doings by the crown. I also noticed that although there were several parts with rather violent language. The rest of the document was fairly mild mannered, though. You would think that a document starting a revolution would be a little more violent and distressing, but I guess that must not have been Jefferson's style because this read more like a documentary list that a passionate rebellious one. That being said, I do believe that Thomas Jefferson did exaggerate in a few points when he was writing in his more dramatic style.

At one point, Jefferson accuses the English having "abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war on us. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people" (Jefferson 124). I know that America was in the middle of the Revolutionary War at the time this was written, but even so the language may be a little bit melodramatic. Even though many people died in the Revolutionary War, I still think that it is a pretty big stretch to make the generalization the king ruined the lives of the American people. Other than that, I think that if you were to ask Thomas Jefferson to give an example of an any even that he accuses the king of doing, he would easily be able too. The real issue between America and England was caused by Parliment trying to control the American assemblies, but the king's rude insolence was apparently much easier to attack than that of Parliment. All of Jefferson's accusations just seemed a little too dramatic for my tastes.

Other than that specific example in the Declaration of Independence being overdramatic, I think that it is a very reasonable document. Without taking the Revolutionary War into account, it does sound really dramatic and a bit unfounded and unreasonable. But when you remember that they were in the middle of a war, and the King George III had gotten entirely rid of the local representative governments and gave their power to his governors. I can understand completely why the American people would be outraged enough to start a revolution. All things considered, I was really surprised at the tone of the declaration. It was not as self-righteous as I thought it would be, and considering that the declaration was starting a revolution. It was really pretty mild. I think that it was a really good example of writing in the rationalist period because it really put reason and rationality before emotions. There was a bit of emotion in the Declaration of Independence, but it really was mostly based on reason. I think that it is a very good thing that our government was founded on reason, because governments founded on emotion tend not to be very stable. Overall, the Declaration of Independence was a very well written piece of rationalist literature.

Jefferson, Thomas. "Declaration of Independence." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 97-99. Print.

Journal #11 - VIRTUES

Everyone has their own ways of living their lives. Some people go with the flow, where some others create a set of rules by which they go about living. I personally go with the flow. I choose to do what I feel is right, and that has always worked for me. Unfortunately, for this assignment, I must create a set of virtues to follow. Not that that would be to hard.

I will make an effort to open doors for those I feel need help! Some examples are: crippled people, injured people, the elderly, and the small children who just can not push that door open. This does not mean I will not open the door for those who are able, I just will make more of an effort to be that person who takes a stand and helps out. I will always be polite, unless the situation requires a more firm approach. I will maintain a healthy, Christian life. I believe that having and living by a religion is good for a stable life of love and happiness. I will maintain humor in my life, bringing joy to those around me. I have always felt that a life without humor and laughter is not a life at all. If life does not bring you such happiness, what reason would you have to live? I also believe in the virtue of silence. As I have been taught many times in the past, "If you have nothing nice to say, do not say anything at all." By staying quiet, you avoid conflict. I do not like conflict, so this is a good virtue for me to live by. Another virtue that I would choose to live by is tranquility or peacefulness. Going on with what I said about the last virtue of silence, I hate conflict. Why would I try to get  stressed or angry when I have the option of staying calm and not allowing myself to become mad? If I do not let conflicts get to me, I will not become too emotional, and therefore I would be able to stay happy.

With these virtues at my side, I would be able to live a much more fulfilling of a life, so I may just have to choose to live by them full time.

Journal #10 - Persuasion of the Mints

In my opinion, mints are among some of life's true delights. I would spend this blog talking about how tasty they are as my reasoning for wanting you to bring them, but unfortunately I believe that is what you meant by "faulty logic". Despite the amazing, calming, and refreshing sensation brought on by the taste of mints, I have more logical reasons for wishing that you bring them in.

Are you aware of the health benefits of mint? Sure, they taste good. But, they also do wondrous things for our bodies. Our class is in the afternoon, so therefore the students in our class have already consumed their lunches. A good percentage of those students probably had a school lunch, which, despite attempts by the kitchen staff, are not very healthy. Unhealthy foods cause indigestion. The aroma, and therefore the taste, of mint soothes our stomachs by activating our salivary glands to produce more digestive enzymes. Our digestion would be working so well if you brought in mints! It is a fact that it is significantly harder to pay attention while you are feeling ill. Healthy students are happy students!

Mint does not only help ourselves, though. It helps the people around us. Again, I will bring up how this class is after lunch. I will also bring up that teenagers are not the cleanliest people in the world. As much as people try to keep up with dental hygiene, there are still some that forget. Being in an English class, we often find ourselves having to speak up and reflect on certain topics. Well, when we have stinky breath and we have to talk, bad things happen! So, Mr. Langley, with the help of Brach's Star Brites mints, we could have amazing smelling breath. That would make you, our classmates, and ourselves much more comfortable in this class. Who would be able to speak up in class if the moment they try to they are blasted in the face with disgusting odors?

You can see now that bringing in Brach's Star Brites mints would be a major help to the class as a hole. Not only that, but the taste would brighten the lives of us all. Considering all of these reasons, how could you not bring in Brach's Star Brites mints.

Journal #9 - Autumn

There is seriously nothing I love more on this earth than the Autumn season. I am not one who likes bitter cold or scalding hot temperatures. Quite frankly, I hate them. They are not perfect to me. Fall brings on a very cool calming temperature that I always want to be outside in. It is not too hot or too cold. It is a perfect in-between temperature of warm days (in the beginning) and cool nights. It is also the perfect weather for hoodies and campfires. I love the feeling of having no homework on a cool Friday night in Autumn. Most likely, the perfection of that night would be used by some friends for a bonfire and movie night. So, since I would realize the chilliness of the weather, I would put on a hoodie and head out. The night would be lots of fun and I would have an amazing time. Then, when I come home, I would still smell like the campfire smoke and be reminded of the hot dogs and smores that were cooked over them.

Fall is the most relaxing time for me. I would like Spring more (seeing as though it is also not too hot or cold), but I enjoy the cooling sensation more than the warming sensation. I don't know, but I really just enjoy cooler temperatures. I suppose it is because I realize that it is easier to get warm when you are cold than to get cool when you are hot.

I am also significantly happier during the fall. Most people get depressed during this time because everything is dying, but not me. I love the sights, the smells, and the tastes of fall. It is an overall beautiful time. I have only ever been truly relaxed during the fall. I know I am rambling, I just adore this season. With its crisp, freshly picked apples to the crackling sound of falling into a pile of leaves, I have never enjoyed anything more than Autumn.

Journal #8 - Being Emotional

When some one is emotional they tend to get angry, sad, or even depressed very easily. The biggest thing that stops people from being rational is their swing of emotions. When something or someone causes a person to become angry or upset, that thing consumes their lives and they just cannot handle it anymore. The hardest part is that people might try to fix their emotions through even more emotionally blocking strategies. This makes rational thinking become nearly impossible. The trouble with emotions is that they are constantly there and apart of our everyday lives. The thing with being rational is that we have to use your brain to be rational. Many people do not like to use your their brains and actually think things through. I am a pretty good example of an emotional person. I take everything to heart, but I can take a joke when it is meant to be a joke. My emotions cause me to speak my mind a lot and give my opinion in times when maybe it is not exactly needed. The hardest part about that is that it tends to cause problems sometimes when my opinions or feelings are cared about or wanted. The only rational way I can think to fix this is to basically just keep my mouth shut. All I can do is just vent my feelings in writing or speaking aloud to myself because the more people I involve in my problems, the more problems that causes. When people get involved they add their emotions into as well. So rationally, I would keep it to myself and keep my mouth shut. Would this really be the rational thing to do? Maybe....maybe not, but I have no other choice but to sit and think about it. This is my way of turning my emotions into rational thinking to minimize more emotions and problems in my life. With more emotions, it is almost inevitable that I would get too emotional and the endless cycle of emotions would continue.

The Crucible - 4 : Comparisons

Ther are actually a few things that are very similar between Jonathan Edwards' "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" and The Crucible. I noticed that a few of the characters in the play remind me of Jonathan Edwards, and the message those characters seem to be expressing is very similar to Jonathan Edwards'.

Mr. Parris especially makes me think about Jonathan Edwards. In the first act, Mr. Procter talks about how Mr. Parris is always preaching about fire and brimstone and how the unfaithful will go to hell (Miller 28-29). Jonathan Edwards' entire sermon was to that effect, so it was easy to make that connection. (Edwards 97-99). I have trouble putting up with people like this who always talk about the bad side of things. I know that it is important to consider the consequences of the things you do, but for God's sake do you really need someone nagging at you all of the time like your step mother? It is no wonder that there is a faction in the play that does not like Mr. Parris. I would not like a person like that either.

I can also see similarities in the things they talk about and their priorities. It seems like a big priority to both of them is avoiding God's wrath. They do not really talk about the things a person can do to please the Lord, they just want to be not sent directly to hell. I think that most of the reason for there violent phrases is that they want to keep their power and keep the support of the people who pay them. I can see that the message of getting people all worried about their eternal souls would be a bit more profitable than letting the parishioners stop attending church. In the play it is really obvious that Mr. Parris is trying to further the conviction of witches because it makes people afraid of the devil and sends them back to church. I am not truly certain if this was what motivated Jonathan Edwards or not, but I would not be surprised it ifit was.

In the end, I can see a lot in common between Jonathan Edwards and Mr. Parris. The parts I had to read concerning both people annoyed me a lot. I guess I just do not like people who preach in general. I do not like to be told how to think and feel about certain things. I want to process the things I am told and think about them myself. I also wonder what motives those preachy people have. Why does it matter to them how I feel about things? I really do not think that it should. It just makes me feel very bad in general. The Crucible and Jonathan Edwards' sermon had a lot in common through the way the characters behaved, so it was easy to make connections between the two.

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, NY: Penguin, 1996. Print.

Edwards, Jonathan. "From Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 97-99. Print.

Journal #7 - Bullying

If there is one thing that I can absolutely not stand in the world is the concept of bullying. Why would you do that? Why would you purposefully belittle someone like that? Does it make you stronger or better? No. It just tears apart everyone involved, the bullies and the bullied alike.

Obviously, there is at least on person being affected in a bullying situation. The person being bullied. They are the person that is being made fun of/yelled at/picked on/etc. They do not deserve that much hatred. When you make fun of or bully a person, you are pointing out their flaws and weaknesses and using them to your advantage. That is the lowest thing I have ever heard of. How cruel do you have to be to actually have the guts to do that to someone? Anyways. The person being bullied has to try and put up with this. But, let's say they can't. What do they do then? They go into a depression or something of that sort. They lose their confidence and expose more of their weaknesses to the person bullying them, which only brings on more bullying. The person who is being bullied is being torn apart from the inside, or maybe even the outside, just by being called out and made fun of.

Not only is the person being bullied affected by the bullying process, but also the bully. Most of the time in bullying situations, the bully will not realize how much it is affecting them. Truthfully, it is affecting them a lot. When you bully someone - not that I have had any experience in it -, you are gradually or even drastically altering your attitude and mannerisms. Once someone begins to bully another person, they become more violent, rude, sarcastic, and overall mean. Most of the time, the bully gets a sense of pride after they are done bullying the person. They feel like they have accomplished something. They grow accustomed to this great feeling of power and domination that they begin to cling to it. Soon, it would become so addicting to them that they would not be able to stop. Without that feeling of power, they are nothing. In order to compensate for this loss of power, they bully more and more and more. It would tear apart their very being from the inside until there is nothing left. Maybe I am being a little dramatic with this, but it is the truth. There are people out there who feel that they need to bully others to feel good themselves. They are self conscious. So, they use other people's weaknesses against them in order to not expose their own. To know that there are people out there like that who bully because they feel they need to... It is just sad. In a way, I feel bad for them just about as much as I feel bad for those who are bullied.

So, in all, both sides of the bullying process are effected greatly by it. You could either be mentally deteriorating yourself as a person or losing your self esteeem. Either way, bullying is just a horrible thing that should never ever take place.