Classmate I'm Thankful For

There are very many people in my life that I am thankful for.  Whether it is at home, at sports, or at school there are a lot of people that help make me a better person.  This Thanksgiving, I will think of all the people I have to thank, and all of the people who make a difference in my life.

                In my first period English class, I enjoy the people around me and I am thankful for my classmates, but the one classmate I am particularly thankful for is Kay Kay.  She is very helpful during class, and can sometimes help me to better understand a reading.  She also contributes in the group work and creates valuable discussion during group sessions.  Finally, Kay Kay is very kind and we get the chance to talk before class, so I am very thankful for her in my class.

Then he is Dead?

                In the story, Macbeth is a man who is unsatisfied of what he has accomplished and to satisfy his needs, he commits crimes to get to the top.  Since he feels he is disrespected, he has to fight his way to the top, which means killing multiple people along the way.  Near the beginning of the story, it seems that his motives are driven primarily by his wife Lady Macbeth, but as the story progresses Macbeth shows more desire, and he seems to be the one leading the murders.  Although Macbeth deserves more than he received at the beginning, is all of the killing worth it?

                In my opinion, while what Macbeth did was morally wrong, it was logistically the right thing to do.  Macbeth works harder than everyone else in line yet he does not have the opportunity to move up, so in order to do just that, he needs to kill and force his way to the top.  Since Macbeth has the opportunity to be king, it is vital that he pursues it, and so it is worth it to kill to earn his spot.

                The main reason it is worth it to kill for his spot is because of the potential reward he could receive.  If Macbeth kills the king and wipes out all of his heirs, he will be the king and he will be the one in charge.  Once he is the king, people will respect him and listen to what he has to say.  Although there is the risk of being caught, if he succeeds he will have accomplished his goal.  In the long run, Macbeth will be in charge and he will be able to keep his throne for the rest of his life.  If that is the goal, then it is absolutely worth pursuing.

                  

From the Crown to the Toe

At this point in Macbeth, Lady Macbeth has just found out that her husband Macbeth has been promoted after all of his brave deeds in the battles.  Also Macbeth writes about how three witches that he encountered all praised him for his accomplishments, but it was interesting how he was called by a different name by each one.  One witch calls him the Thane of Cawdor, Thane of Glamis, and also called a king.  However, he is really the Thane of Cawdor, but he did not know that he was going to be promoted, so he believed that the one witch was predicting the future. 

Macbeth is happy and he believes that he has a good future ahead of him because he thinks that he could become king.  However, Lady Macbeth knows that he would not be powerful enough to overthrow the king since he is too nice.  Based off of this idea, she writes how she can become evil and become a killer in order to overthrow the king, so she writes “from the crown to the toe, top-full of direst cruelty.”  By saying this, she is showing that she just wants Macbeth to be king by all means necessary, which would include killing the king and his heirs.  I feel that this is very interesting because now Macbeth’s actions seem like they will be driven by Lady Macbeth’s ideas.  She will want to constantly achieve higher power, so it will create mayhem between Macbeth and her, in addition to people whose lives are at risk.

No New Tale to Tell

                I feel that the Canterbury Tales presents a foreign idea to the representation of the setting in the story.  Essentially, what we see in the Wife of Bath is that women are given power and equality, which is a thought that is unheard of.  Women fought for years in fairly recent history to be equal, yet the equality is shown in a time setting long before.  The women in the story are given power and equality and it is demonstrated a couple of times.  For example, the first time we see a woman having authority is when the queen is given the decision to choose the Knight’s punishment.  In other stories and tales, the king is the one with power and the queen serves more as a spouse, whereas in this tale, the queen is given direct power.

                In addition to the equality of women being shown through the power of the queen, it is also shown through the old woman.  The old woman is able to use her knowledge to overpower the knight twice.  The first time, she bribes him with the answer to his question but asks for a favor in return.  The second time, she outsmarts him again and shows why she should be his wife and what he should really want, which in turn forces the knight to give up his decision and put it into the hands of his wife.

                All in all, the idea of equality is a revolutionary process which begins with this story.  The decisions are put into the hands of what is seen as the minority, and good results come from their choices.

Truth

                Grendel has very mixed feelings when he hears the Shaper’s songs.  The first time he hears them, he is so overwhelmed that he begins to cry, yet he still goes back to see the Shaper.  Grendel listens to the Shaper because even though he has no beliefs in relation to religion, he still wants to find emotional and spiritual satisfaction.

                Throughout the story, Grendel is torn between the things in life that he knows are true, and the things in life that he wants to be true.  Grendel knows his world to be a “mechanical” place that has no pattern or laws, and he knows that all the ideas that the Shaper sings about are not true, but because he is isolated from all of the animals and humans, he wants it to be true. 

                Grendel wants to feel welcomed and he wants to believe what the Shaper is saying, but this all changes after he meets with the dragon.  The dragon tells Grendel how the Shaper is not telling the truth, and how the world and future is all set, and there is no such thing as a God.  Grendel does not want to believe him, but he has no choice.  After the meeting with the dragon, he comes to the reality, “It’s one thing to listen, full of scorn and doubt…it’s another to know what is.” (pg. 75) Grendel listens to the dragon, and finally realizes that what the Shaper teaches and sings is not true. 

Modern Day Beowulf

Modern Day Beowulf

            Beowulf is a very self-confident individual, and he is also very strong and powerful.  Beowulf is known for protecting his people and helping others in battles, but what would it be like if he lived in modern day?  One person that Beowulf is very similar to from recent history is Muhammad Ali.

            Muhammad Ali is a very famous boxer, and is regarded as one of the best boxers of all time.  However, although he was a great boxer, he was also known for his trash talking and his cockiness in and out of the ring. 

            Due to Muhammad Ali’s characteristics, he is almost a perfect fit for what type of person Beowulf is.  Beowulf is a man who is also very cocky, and he likes to show off for his followers that are watching.  For example, when he kills Grendel, he hangs up his arm for all the people to see and be reminded of him when they see it.  Beowulf bragging about all of his battles to his people is similar to Muhammad Ali’s trash talking.

            Not only do Muhammad Ali and Beowulf have similar attitudes, but they are both hands-on workers.  Muhammad Ali is a very good boxer, so he is skilled and he fights using his hands.  Beowulf is a very confident fighter, and he does not like to use weapons when fighting, he likes to use his bare hands and strength to defeat his enemy.  

Me

Hi, my name is Jack Eberle.  I am fifteen years old and I am just starting up my sophomore year here at Whitney Young.  I started in the academic center in seventh grade, making this my fourth year attending Whitney Young.  I have two dogs, and a twin sister that goes to St. Ignatius.

At Whitney Young, I am a manager for the boys’ basketball team, and I also play on the lacrosse team.  Last year, we won a city championship in both sports, so it was a very fun and exciting year.  In addition to basketball and lacrosse, I love to watch football and spend time with friends and family.

This year, I am taking all honors level courses with the exception of gym.  With sports, academics, and social time, it will be a very busy school year but I am definitely looking forward to it.  I hope to continue my success in the classroom and outside of the classroom, and this year should be a very exciting one.