The Execution of Capital Punishment (Blog 1)

According to Turgenev, capital punishment in the form of executions and the entire spectacle of the event is dramatic, over the top, and unnecessary.  He conveys his point of view on this social injustice by giving a detailed description of an execution he was invited to attend.  Being up close and personal with Troppman, the man convicted of the crime and receiver of the execution, gave Turgenev new insight on capital punishment.  His tone throughout the piece is disgusted and astounded by the public's joy and also a sense of remorse for the loss of a young life, even for this "guilty" young man.  His tone is also scared and uncomfortable.  The restless hours he spends waiting for the execution to begin are torturous and aggrivating, causing him to write with such anxious language and apathetic diction.  The description of every step towards Troppmans death, like the toiletry of the condemned, adds to the lucid ridiculousness of the punishment.
In the end of section one Turgenev writes that he would relay everything he saw that night as a punishment to himself and as a lesson to others, hoping one "may derive some benefit" from his story.  I believe his purpose in writing this passage was to provide his point of view on capital punishment and a potential argument for someone to use.  He himslef did not intend to argue with anyone on the absolving of executions, though his writing was not unbiased.  He simply want to open peoples' eyes to the absurdness of beheading, the long process in which the condemned must go through, and the grossly excited reaction of the people.  In the last paragraph of his essay he writes, " I will be content and excuse my own misplaceed curiosity if my account supplies a few arguments to those who are in favour of the aboltion of capital punishment or, at least, the abolition of public executions."  Turgenev hopes that what he had to witness that gruesome night would be worth it, if only a little, for someone who could use his account to support their argument to rid the system of executions and seemingly unjust capital punishment.
By describing the rambunctious crowd of people and the entire process Tropmann had to endure before being beheaded provide good evidence as to why this punishment should be reviewed and possibly eliminated.  The publics' reactions were inhumane and wrong, for they created entertainment out of the death of another human being, which clearly goes against most peoples morals.  Getting Tropmann dressed and undressed, trimming his shirt, cutting his hair, these are all petty traditions that have been upheld, for what, the sake of tradition?  The way Turgenev describes it, these traditions have no purpose and take dreadfully long.  He also mentions Tropmann's youth and how unfair it seems to be taking his life in a such a horrible way and at such a young age.  The argument of age can be used to some degree, for they still have much to contribute to the world.  But one could also argue that age does not matter, because the intensity of the crime overrules any age and justice must be served.

Our friend O.J.

The O.J. Simpson trial.  An unprecedented case that changed the way people see law enforcement and the U.S. system of government.  So, in other words, yes, I agree with Albom's argument about the significance of the O.J. trial.  There are many views society and different cultures hold today because of what happened in that court room.  Following the case, there was a surge in the number of people who looked down upon the Police Force, disrespected their ideals, and watched closely when they happened to slip up.  Media now plays a big part in crimes and investigation.  Cop shows and News broadcasts make people feel more connected and aware of whats going on behind the caution tape.  But in truth, they are all huge exaggerations used to pull people in and make the trust in the government and police forces once again.  The O.J. Simpson trial has caused numerous other changes on the way society thinks and feels about our legal system, even today, and thats not likely to change.

"Cowboys" by Ehrlich

Ehrlich describes cowboys as the gentler, more compassionate male figures in society.  She says that they are tough, silent and serene on the outside, but on the inside posess a tender heart.  She says they have a certain shyness towards women and don't know how to express their feelings, but they do have the same emotions as one can tell from the lamb and the cowboys reaction.  The cowboys are also chilvarous and radiate that southern hospitality.  They know how to get the job done without complaining.  Ehrlich's tone in her essay conveys her admiration for cowboys and the respect she thinks they deserve.  By the end of the essay, one feels that the cowboy is amiable and compassionate.  This tone helps her to completely unveil the cowboy without painting him in a negative light.  The loving language helps ehrlich describe her main idea and purpose for the essay, that is, to make readers understand that the majority of men may appear tough and emotionless on the outside, but underneath, they contain feelings just as strong as women.  They just don't always know how to show it.

Sante's Secrecy

Sante's argument about secrecy and his examples of breakdowns of secrets (i.e. Soviet Union, the internet, and the media) tell us that our society today needs secrets to survive.  We also need to find out secrets, for it makes us feel empowered to have knowledge others don't.  Secrecy is an important aspect in American society.  We use it to feel safe and guarded, putting our trust in them, which can lead to catastrophe when a secret is shared, no longer making a secret but a public fact for all to know.  That's basically what the internet does today.  Media and the technological world has violated our privacy and our ability to keep secrets.  Some secrets we've kept our whole lives can be shared in an instant to millions of people.  Because of Facebook, Myspace and other social networks, people feel the need to share every aspect of their lives, having no regard for secrecy.

On Morals and Ethics in School

The issue of morals and ethics being taught in schools, along with religion, is constant controversy.  I believe that certain morales like "Don't steal", "Don't cheat", "Do to others what you would have done unto you", should be taught in school because they apply there.  Don't steal another kids lunch money, Don't cheat on a test, and Don't bully if you wouldn't want someone else bullying you.  They are simple ideals that apply everywhere every day.  Other than that, I feel most morals and ethics should be taught at home and come from the parents first.  It's their job, not the schools, to prepare their child for life outside of school.  But I do feel, if the parents are not taking responsibility and educating their children, then someone else (i.e. a teacher) can step in to try to better prepare them for what lies ahead.  I also believe that respect towards other people and their cultures is important.  There should never be a 6th grader who is more racist than a middle-aged man.  It's not fair to the child because at that age, it would seem like brainwashing by a parent.  But everyone is entitled to a free education and no one should feel like they don't deserve because  a classmate won't stop muttering degrading names under their breath.

"Great" Films

What constitutes a great film?  There are many different criteria associated with films, but it is the individuals opinion on what really makes a film memorable and "great."  To me, a great film means having a highly praised director.  It means having someone behind the lens who really knows what they're doing, has a keen eye for imagining things, and has a sense of creativity that goes beyond what a couple actors and props could ever do.  A great director has the capability of making a great film.  Take for example, George Lucas and "Star Wars."  The movies themselves are not very high-tech compared to, say, Avatar, but they began a new era of films, inspiring many other well-known directors today.  A "classic" is also another term for a great film, meaning another crucial element would be the plot of the film.  If there is no story, there's no film.  A movie has to captivate it's audience, not bore it to death.  Movies like "Forest Gump", "Casablanca" and "Titanic" moved their audiences.  Even though all 3 were filmed in different scopes and view points, they all struck a chord in the hearts of America.  A great film is one that is well directed, involves an interesting storyline, and impacts the culture and society of that era.

Metacognition Questions

Culminating Writers Profile
1.  Since the start of this school year, my expectations as a write have been to improve in my vocabulary and to form more complex sentences.  With the out of class essays, i feel i have enough time to revise and improve my essays, but I hope to be able to write as well as i do out of class during a timed write.
2.  Using creative strategies to draw the reader in and anecdotal leads are my strengths as a writer.  There's always room for improvement but I enjoy those aspects of writing so I am better at them then other organizing techniques.
3.  My writing weaknesses are composing a well structured essay under a timed situation.  I can write an okay essay with the amount of time we're given, but i want to write fluently, even when i only have 45 min.

Evaluating Your Writing Process
1.  If I had time to revise my essay one more time, i probably would have talked more about the history of "common sense" and maybe eliminated the quote at the end.
2.  As I received peer feedback, the easiest thing to improve upon was the sentence structure and how to provide more emphasis on my main points.
3.  The biggest problem I had with revising this essay was figuring out ways to remove all of the "to be" verbs and still make the sentence flow.

Evaluating Your Success
1.  My most successful large-scale revision in this essay was my concluding paragraph and taking out all of the "you"s and "we"s.
2.  In my essay, I was able to successfully incorporate descriptive, narrative, and illustrative language through the use of an anecdotal lead.  I feel like i captured the readers attention and drew them in with certain words and emphatic sentences.
3.  My best success considering my audience would have been the use of the story at the beginning and referring back to the story to really solidify my point.

Being Honest With Self
1.  At first, I was intimidated by the prompt because it was something I had never written about before.  I wasn't sure how to organize my essay and really understand how to "define" a term.
2.  From what we read and talked about, I thought using my own personal experience would be a good key element to have.
3.  The example papers that I read used strong examples and stories to define their term and I felt that method really connects with the reader.
4.  I learned a lot of new ways to revise sentences so I wouldn't have as many "to be" verbs.
5.  I definitely see myself as a stronger writer compared to where i was at before I started this course.  I feel more confident in my ability to write in different types of structures, but i still need a lot of work in trying to accomplish what I did after 7 drafts in, say, 3 or 4.