Response to Joel Stein's Article on the Common Core State Standards

I completely agree with Stein's notion that fictional work has a much greater value than what the common core awards it. I understand the benefits, as Stein has pointed out, of reading nonfiction and its practical use in society. However as a student, I could never have learned how to use words to move or captivate an audience had we not analyzed Faulkner's As I Lay Dying or Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath. Nonfiction is commonly straight to the point and requires no real analysis while Fiction forces one to think beyond the scope of words given but rather the meanings and themes it's trying to convey. Without this focus on analysis,  it would be difficult to maneuver society's double meanings and unspoken rules. Nonfiction updates us on historical or social events while Fiction captures the hearts of readers which causes true concern. This ability is truly an essential to life, especially for those who want to make a difference in the world. I do believe that Nonfiction should have a greater focus, but Fiction should never be pushed to the side.

Book Talks: The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Date Published: 2006

Number of Pages: 287

Protagonists:

• The lead protagonist is "the man" whom is never named. Although his past is scarcely mentioned, his dead wife, tuberculosis, and young son are the center of his musings when the past is brought up. 
• The man's son is the only companion to the man. Though age and name are also not mentioned, he is most likely eleven to ten years of age. It is also explicitly revealed that he has blond hair. 

Minor Characters:

• The first character to be introduced, other than the protagonists, is the man's wife. In a flashback, it is revealed that she walked out on her family after the apocalypse because she felt as though there was no longer a point in surviving.
• The first person the protagonists meet on the road is an old, decrepit man. His body is burned, he can barely see, and he can almost pass off as ninety years old.

Main Settings:

Beginning: The first place that they really settle down in was by the waterfall. Here they had plenty of drinking water yet the sound of the falls drowned out other noises and was an attraction to other travelers.

Middle: The second place which ignites hope in not only the protagonists but the readers as well, was the underground bunker. Stored with everything they'd need for at least a year, it was too good to be true and they would have been too easily cornered which forced them to move on.

End: Finally getting to their end point, the family reach the sea. However, it is ashen like the rest of the environment and offers no better alternatives to them despite finding greatly needed supplies in an upturned boat.

Plot Outline:

The Road centers on a man and his child traversing across America in hopes of reaching the southern coastline in an ashy post-apocalyptic world. As they trek onward, they are met with few but impactful travelers who reveal the nature of the two characters and just how far the man is willing to go to protect his child. However, once they finally reach their destination, it seems as though their misguided hopes haven't truly solved their problems though they are rewarded with much needed supplies. And as the end draws near, a death that has been depicted throughout the novel finally takes place.

Important Plot Symbols:

• Fire is consistently mentioned by both the man and the child. It represents the goodness of mankind as a whole and the ability to trust in finding a way to survive.
• The revolver initially symbolized the desire to take the easy way out, however as the story progressed it morphed into a weapon to protect their lives.

Style:

McCarthy uses the lack of punctuation to highlight the bareness of the novel. It echoes the loss of civilization and the emptiness the characters are forced to face.

Dominant Theme:

The dominant theme of The Road is that no matter the conditions, mankind will always find a way to survive and protect what it loves. 

Quotes:

Beginning: "If he is not the word of God God never spoke." is said by the man and refers to the purity and hope that the child brings just by his existence and survival.

Middle: "Please dont tell me how the story ends." is also said by the man and refers to his loss of hope and uncertainty of being able to care for the child.

End: "This is what good guys do. They keep trying. They dont give up." is said by the man and is his way of encouraging the boy to always try to survive and of giving him something to believe in.

Literary Elements:

• The vivid and dark diction of The Road sets the stage for much of the novel and highlights the seeming hopelessness of the entirety of their situation.
• The third person point of view also adds to the ambiguity of the book and its suspenseful events.

Post 5: How do Democratic and Republican positions on the fiscal cliff differ?

The American government’s two major political parties traditionally stand for the opposing viewpoints on social, foreign, and economic problems. However, 2013’s “fiscal cliff” has come to the forefront of the United States’ concern. The “fiscal cliff” is a term coined to describe the economic changes taking place at the beginning of 2013. These changes are the ends of the Bush tax reductions, the cuts from the Budget Control Act, and the raising of the debt ceiling. The liberal leaning Democrats and the far more conservative Republicans have drastically differing views on how to approach each of these topics.

Democrats believe that with the end of the Bush-era tax reductions, an increase of taxes to the upper class will ease the burden on the less fortunate and allow for a fair distribution of tax responsibility to those who can afford it. They also support the current federal spending rate and are hesitant to reduce the budget. Though they are not for or against raising the debt ceiling as a whole, the party is ready to raise the ceiling if it becomes necessary. These viewpoints reflect their liberal leanings and beliefs.

However, Republicans follow a more conservative approach. They support the reduction of the federal budget and were in favor of the extension of the Bush-era tax reductions. This view stems from their belief that many taxes or increases in federal regulation pose a threat to the growth and stability of America. They are also strongly against raising the debt ceiling to accommodate for the growing deficit.

Though the democrats may hinder growth by increasing taxes, the republican approach would deeply cut into government run programs that many communities rely on. Both parties offer valid plans but the time for agreement draws near, and a consensus seems almost impossible.

Post 4: The Loneliness of Frankenstein and His Creature

Despite the severe hatred Victor feels towards his creation, there is one emotion that binds them strongly together: loneliness. This can be seen multiple times in both Victor’s narration and the creature’s. Victor exhibits a strong sense of loneliness after William is killed because he cannot tell those he loves that he has made such an abomination in the first place. This depicts a kind of loneliness achieved by one who cannot show their beliefs and insights because of the disastrous consequences it has led to. The creature experiences a reflection of this feeling as he does not have a family to begin with. An indication of his loneliness is the fact that he requests a mate from Frankenstein in the first place. The creature wants to be able to feel loved and live with someone who would not shun him for how grotesque and unnatural he physically looked but rather to be cared for for his insight and beliefs.

Post 3: Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton, and Ozymandias

Victor Frankenstein, Robert Walton, and Ozymandias have one common definitive characteristic: the thirst for greatness. Although each had their own end goal, the basic premise was that they create something that would allow them to leave their mark on history. Each man’s goal has defined who they are, yet like Ozymandias, their monuments shall fade from society.

Victor Frankenstein was blessed with the thirst for knowledge and advancement which he went on to use for what he believed to be a wonderful cause. Frankenstein stumbles upon the realization that he could use his childhood love of alchemy and his education on modern chemistry to discover the secret of life itself. He believed he had a duty to humanity to end the fear of death. Of course, this was accompanied with the hope to go down in history as well, as seen in his declaration that, “I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creations.”

Though his quest to better mankind is still visible, Robert Walton’s desire to be remembered is a more prominent feature in his research. Walton purposely removes himself from the luxuries his wealth can afford him to seek out the thing that will make him wealthy in a more powerful way. He sees greatness as something owed to him for this sacrifice as he says, "...do I not deserve to accomplish some great purpose? My life might have been in ease and luxury, but I preferred glory to every enticement that wealth placed in my path."
Finally, Ozymandias's pursuit of greatness was an architectural marvel rather than a scientific discovery yet his success may foreshadow the end product of both Frankenstein and Walton's goals. Ozymandias's giant statue corroded by the sands of time even though his monument was huge. He believed that by putting his all into this statue, he would live forever in the eyes of society. This view is much like that of Walton and Frankenstein, signaling the inevitable fall into obscurity. As seen in the description of Ozymandias's monument, "Half sunk, a shattered visage lies", the world will pass on and other things will be deemed of greater importance.

Post 2: Do you think science and religion will ever see life the same way?

Science requires a form of faith similar to that of religion because though there can be physical "proof" of a concept, like a religion's holy text, one can truly never know. Though there are the few that use scientific evidence that a specific god does not exist, no one can discount the possibility of a higher power completely. There are also those who believe that science is a blasphemy and must be shunned. Therefore I believe that science and religion can coexist in society only if there is tolerance within both belief systems.

In a society where more intelligence is usually proportionate to one's standard of living, many practitioners of religion are also scholars of science. As long as one does not decide that their mission is to disprove a god, science does no harm to any religion. An antithesis of this possible coexistence is Galileo's imprisonment for his scientific proof that the planets revolve around the sun. Religion, specifically Catholicism, had accepted the belief that the universe revolved around the earth because humanity was God's child. Galileo's discovery did not endanger Catholicism because no where in the bible does it specifically say that the earth is the center of the universe. Although this challenged a widely accepted belief, Galileo's discovery did not attempt to downplay any religion.

Though religion is a very sensitive topic for many, as long as one is willing to understand that there is a universe out there that we have barely broached understanding of, religion and science can coexist peacefully.

Post 1: College

Hello, my name is Franchesca Natividad. I'm finally in my senior year of high school and everything I've been working for, for the last twelve years is going to finally come to fruition. It's so exciting and terrifying. It's a good thing I've got a plan. Kind of. U.C. Berkeley has always been my dream school. Beginning in my childhood, I loved learning and held education as the most important thing one could do with their mind. In South San Francisco, U.C. Berkeley seems to be the prioritized and most looked to college, so growing up in that area has greatly swayed me towards the Berkeley mindset. Another factor in dreaming to attend Berkeley is also the fact that since I've spent much of my life reading and learning my family has put me on a pedastal. Not only do I feel compelled to make them proud, I would also like to fulfill what I believe my potential to be.