Changing Teacher's Status

I agree with Kati Haycock's declaration to change the status of United States teachers. She proposes that the U.S. must "enrich the rigor and relevance of teaching programs and ratchet up their admission requirements." I think that if a teacher's education is expanded and their requirements for being a teacher are raised, the society will have more respect for teachers. Students, especially, have no respect for teachers. Eavesdropping on my peer's conversations, I hear that they do not like or respect certain teachers because many teachers do not know how to teach and they know absolutely nothing about the subject that they teach. My problem with many of my teachers, is the fact that they are unable to answer a question about the unit that is being studied efficiently and in many thorough ways. Science, for example, is a terribly difficult subject that is hard to grasp. My teacher cannot answer hardly any question because he either does not know anything about the unit or he cannot find different ways to explain the answer to my questions in a way that is easy for me to grasp. If he could explain more thoroughly, I would respect him so much more as a teacher. Some may say that with more required schooling for teachers, there will be less people that would want to be teachers. This is not neccessarily true. As a student that respects teachers and the teaching proffession, there will be more students interested in becoming teachers. With respect, comes interest.

The Great Gatsby Analysis

Fitzgerald's character's hopeless realization of the book's society's damaging changes from the old world to the new world gives insight to the changes in the real world's society in the 1920 time period. The idea of modernization was taking place during this time period after America was discovered many years before and hundreds of settlers came trying to live the American Dream, but in reality the dream is hard to grasp.

In the passage, the character is thinking of when his world was first discovered, "a fresh, green breast of the new world." He believed in the "green light, the orgastic future..." Why would Fitzgerald use words like "breast" and "orgastic?" Fitzgerald is making a connection to America during a changing time period. During the 1920s, the real world society was making a drastic change in women's status and clothing. Women at this time started wearing revealing clothing, showing more skin, compared to before when their entire bodies were completely covered. Society's greed and desires made this change seem appealing, but as the character points out, the old world is quickly forgotten. Just like trees, beautiful and appealing, but when used as a resourse to the greedy, are gone and quickly forgotten.

"Tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther...And one fine morning---" The character is getting lost in thought of dreams and hope and youth but quickly his thoughts cut off and change into a feeling of hopelessness. Fitzgerald's character also mentions the "vanished trees" that were used to build Gatsby's house. This thought compares to the hope in America's "new world." The dreams that many wished to fulfill and then the sorrow when the stuggle in America's society causes those dreams to vanish because when the trees vanished, the dreams went away with them.

In the last paragraph of the last page, humans are compared to "boats against the current." We are trying to make change and "beat on" but with no success. We can't win. Americans have become so greedy and obsessed with the many desires in life such as trees, land, unessesary resources, that the few trying to fight against the "dark fields of the republic" will simply go nowhere.

Shattered dreams, hopelessness, greed... By using his character and the character's society in The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald emphasizes the horrid changes that the world (America's society in particular) have taken and the strive that many have to go back to the past that has already been forgotten and to accomplish the dreams that they once had.

"My Wood" Response

In his essay "My Wood," E.M. Forster inputted his belief that property makes a man feel "heavy." Therefore, making the biblical reference that "it was a man of weight who failed to get into the Kingdom of Heaven," Forster seems to be against the owning of property. But, when he mentions that this man was not "wicked," he seems to contradict his first thought. Basically with this contradiction, Forster is saying that the owning of property can be dangerous but not all property is bad, depending on how one deals with that power. I completely agree with this belief. Power affects people in many ways. A strong person can deal with property without always wanting more and believing that the more property he has and the more he does with his property will make him happier. This person is not "a man of weight." On the other hand, there are the weaker beings who worship their property and believe that property is the equivalent to happiness. Along with Forster, I believe that property can be good and bad, depending on how the power is handled.

Reading List

I read 3 books, the equivalent of 7 books.

• Tess of the D'Urbervilles (384)


• Dreamland (250)


• Eragon (768)

Dreamland was a book that I really enjoyed reading this quarter. Though I feel like the reading was below my level, I enjoyed the break that this book gave me from the more complex books that have been tearing me down this year. Dreamland features a young, highschool girl whos sister ran away from home. Caitlin had always looked up to her sister, Cass, so when Cass left, Caitlin did not know how to go on with life. Then she meets a boy. Isn't that how it always starts? This boy, Rogerson, helped Caitlin climb out of her shell and start her own, dangerous life. As there is in all books, life shifts once again for Caitlin when Rogerson starts hitting her. I enjoyed all of the details that the author included of the events in Caitin's life. I recommend Dreamland to all readers interested in an eventful, emotional book is not stressful for english class.

Consumerism Quote

Advertising tries to stimulate our sensuous desires, converting luxuries into necessities, but it only intensifies man's inner misery. The business world is bent on creating hungers which its wares never satisfy, and thus it adds to the frustrations and broken minds of our times.

-Archbishop Fulton Sheen (1895-1979), Lift Up Your Heart, 1942


Sheen's powerful words explain our society so well. Today, research has proven that people buy and buy and buy to make themselves happier but in truth, while "converting luxuries into necessities," they are actually intensifying their "inner misery." Businesses strive off of "creating hungers" or making and selling products that will be bought just because another family (the Joneses) bought those products therefore making themselves seem better than everyone else because they have more. Sheen's quote reflects and emphasizes the pain of our societies over consumption but slightly pushes towards the realization that over consumption will not end because of the business world.

Advertising Technique

Wii has been advertising their games and gaming systems for years now, but with the times getting tough, sales may not be as high as they used to be. In the past few years, family time has become a big part of the American society. The Wii company takes notice. Their newer advertisements mention Wii as being included in family time. This Wii advertisement is a prime example of the way most companies advertise now. I think that this new advertising technique is a clever way for companies to sell their products but is bad for the society because of the American over-consumerism.