Who's to Blame for the Deaths of Romeo and Juliet

 In the love story Romeo and Juliet, two people whose family hate one another fall in love.  Each one loves each other and stays faithful against all odds until death. But the tragedy of these star crossed lovers death is because of Friar Lawrence. Friar Lawrence is to blame for the death of Romeo and Juliet.

           Why Friar Lawrence is to blame for the death of Romeo and Juliet is because he entrusted Friar John to deliver the letter to Romeo an Friar John failed. This is written in act 5. Sc. 3, “Friar Lawrence

          Who bare my letter, then, to Romeo?

Friar John

I could not send it (here it is again) Nor bring a messenger to bring it thee So fearful were they of infection.” Why this letter was important was because it said that Juliet wasn’t dead she just had a sleeping potion. Since Romeo did not know this he thought Juliet was dead and killed himself because of that.

          In conclusion, the star crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet have the person who ,married them Friar Lawrence to blame for their deaths. All in all if Friar Lawrence had made sure the letter had gotten to Romeo they would not have died.

Rich Man in a Cold World

All money in the world wouldn’t compare

Times we have spent together never fade

I remember the memories we share

The times together I would never trade

You’re my love and have the key to my heart

My love for thee, money could never buy

When you call walls nor sea shall keep us part

I would cross oceans for you or I’d die

But love we had is but a lost balloon

Floating away to lands of no return

My hearts bitter as ice an cold like the moon

But for you my love I will always yearn

My heart is now just but a barren hole

Just filled with not money but bitter coal

Martin Espada Essay

In the poems written by Martin Espada called, “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson”, “Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz,” and “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School,” all express a theme dealing with power. In all the poems a theme that appears a lot is when people have an abundance of power they sometimes oppress someone else.

An example of this theme is in the poem “The Bathroom Policy at English High School.” In the poem it says, “The boys chatter Spanish/in the bathroom/while the principal/listens from his stall/the only word he recognizes/ is his own names/…./So he decides/ to ban Spanish/. This illustrates how the principal uses his power to oppress someone else. Because the principal doesn’t know Spanish and doesn’t understand that culture and just because he doesn’t understands he uses his power to ban Spanish. This demonstrates the theme in these poems that when person has an abundance of power they abuse it.

Another example of this theme is in the poem, “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson.” In the poem it said, “Whenever my name/is mispronounced/I want to buy a toy pistol/…/hijack a busload/of republican tourist/. This expresses how many people that the author comes across don’t respect his culture enough to pronounce his name right. So they oppress the speaker in the poem by disrespecting his culture. This illustrates how other people with power oppress the speaker of the poem.

The last example of the theme in all three poems is present in the poem, “Two Mexicanos Lynched in Santa Cruz.” For example in the poem it reads, “When forty gringo vigilantes/cheered the rope/ that snapped two Mexicanos/ into a grimacing sleep of broken necks/…/a high-collar boy smirking some peering/../crowding in the photograph/. This portrays the theme well because the gringos used their power and oppressed the Mexicanos by killing them. This shows how people with an abundance of power oppress other people.

In conclusion, people who have an abundance of power oppress other people. As shown in these poems by Martin Espada oppression can come in many forms. An example of this in our lives today is how Governor Chris Christie used his power as a Governor, and shut down a lane on one of the most busiest bridges in Brooklyn just to spite a mayor who didn’t support him in new jersey.  Which shows how he abused his power to oppress someone. Overall when someone has an abundance of power, that’s person usually oppresses someone else.

The Vicious Deep

            The book The Vicious Deep is about a boy named Tristan who behaves in both obvious and subtle ways.   Tristan is a high school boy who lives in Brooklyn with his mom and dad. Then one day Tristan goes into the ocean to save a girl when he gets sucked under water and turns up three days later. After that Tristan learned that his mom is a mermaid and Tristan turns into a merman himself.  Tristan’s obvious behavior is that he acts funny when he is nervous but the more subtle trait is Tristan is private with his feelings

 I think Tristan behaves in obvious ways when he is in an awkward situation he uses his humor to ignore the tension. For example, on page 77, right after Tristan figured out he was a merman and is learning little details about merpeople he uses his humor by saying, “My fingers hover over the trident, stopping short of touching it. ‘What does it mean?’ ‘It is the symbol of the sea court,’ (Kurt says) ‘Okay, so a tattoo. I can deal with that. At least I don’t have to get my lip pierced or have a stick driven through my nose.’ I emphasize, ‘Right’” This example shows that Tristan is using his humor to try and break the tension and unnerving discovery that he is a merman.   Another example of how Tristan uses his humor in tension filled situations is on page 19. This scene takes place right after they found Tristan washed up on a shore after being gone for three days.“ ‘So, Nurse Christine’– I take a deep breath and put on my best grave face- ‘am I terminal?’  It takes her a few seconds to register that I’m just kidding.” This excerpt from the text shows how Tristan is being funny after he just mysteriously disappeared for three days. Tristan used his humor there to break the tension of his disappearance. These examples from the book show how Tristan is using his character trait of being funny to get around tension filled and awkward situations.

             I think Tristan behaves in subtle ways that aren’t so obvious because he is private with his feelings. An example how Tristan doesn’t share his feelings is on page 196 when the Sea King is introducing the champions in a fight over the throne. “I’m up. But I don’t have an entourage. I don’t have my dad or a fiancée to walk me in front of the court to show my goods. What am I thinking; I can hold my own if a fight against some jerk at school but I’m not at Thorne Hill anymore. Elias could crack my skull open and use it as a serving bowl if he wanted to.” This example explains how Tristan doesn’t share his feelings because he keeps his thoughts to himself. Another example how Tristan is private with his feelings is on page 186 when Tristan is in his bed reflecting on his life as a merman and thinking about how his life would be as a king. It says “I can’t exactly go back to the way everything was. Now that I know what I am. How do I just sit in class and joke with the boys? How am I supposed to be a champion? The only time I’ve ever fought is when Angelo and Jerry wanted to reenact WWF. ” This piece of text shows that Tristan has all of these feelings bottled inside but he doesn’t share them with anyone. These examples express how Tristan is very private with his feelings and does not share his feelings.

            In conclusion, Tristan behaves in obvious and subtle ways. For example Tristan behaves in obvious ways by using his humor to break a tension filled or nervous situation. How Tristan behaves in subtle ways is he doesn’t share his feelings with anyone and lets them bottle up inside of himself. All in all Tristan is a very unpredictable character, he acts one way but he’s really is something else.

What conflicts are your characters facing and how do they affect your characters? My book, The Awakening by Michael Carroll, is about a generation of super humans. The superhumans fought crime and bad guys and now their offspring Colin and Danny, who are best friends, are dealing with difficult problems. Overall the main conflict my characters are facing is preventing the bad guys from taking their power and trying to maintain a normal life.  Having superpowers ruined and destroyed the lives of Danny and Colin by putting them on the run from secret agents and tearing their families apart by splitting them up.

One way how the presence of superpowers is destroying their lives is because of the situation that Colin is in. For example, Colin was being chased by agents in a helicopter, torn away from his parents and stuck in a lab with terrible conditions. In the text it says “‘Colin please do as I ask.’ Rachel said [she is one of the scientist] ‘No.’  ‘Very well,’ and she pulled something against his neck and a powerful electric shock coursed through his body.”(159) This evidence shows how Colin’s life was turned upside down. Just the other day he was sitting on his bed wishing he had superpowers but after he got powers he was stuck in a lab being tortured like a guinea pig. Another way how superpowers are ruining Colin’s life is because his family is getting torn apart. For example on page 62 it says “ ‘ If either of you sees an opportunity to escape, go for it. But only if you’re absolutely certain that you can make it. Leave us behind.’ ” To save their child Colin’s parents are willing to give up freedom so their only son can escape and be free. These reasons show how having superpowers is a big conflict in this book because it can split up families and destroy lives.

Another reason why superpowers are a big conflict in this book is because it destroyed Danny’s life.  For instance, Danny has been living for about thirteen years with a guy pretending to be his father. But it turns out he was actually a superhuman who was pretending to be Danny’s parent to monitor his abilities. This information is supported in the text on page 55 “‘You’re not Danny’s dad, you’re not Paul Cooper. There’s only ever been one superhuman with shape-shifting powers. You’re Façade. The man nodded ‘Correct.” That shows how Danny’s life was turned upside down since he was deprived of growing up with his real father because a shape-shifting villain wanted to monitor Danny’s abilities . Lastly, why I think that having superpowers is such a big conflict and life changing situation is because Danny ends up losing his right arm as he destroys a machine that would strip superhuman powers and kill many people. For example, on page 183 it reads“‘ Danny you have to shut it off. Hundreds of thousands of people could die. He closed his eyes and concentrated and his arm became translucent and his hand slipped right into the nucleus and ripped out the plugs. But Danny’s arm turned to a solid too quick while his hand was still inside the machine. Pain tore through his entire body as his arm fused with the inner workings of the nucleus. Danny Cooper screamed for a long, long, time before he finally blacked out.” Danny’s arm had to be amputated because it fused with the machine. This shows that Danny’s world was turned upside down with the discovery of superpowers. Just the week before Danny was sitting in class learning math. Now he lost his arm cleaning up a mess someone else started. These examples explain why I think that superpowers are a big conflict in this book and changed the life of Danny and Colin for the worse.

In conclusion, superpowers are a big conflict in this book. For example, it destroyed Colin’s and Danny’s lives by splitting their families apart, causing one to lose an arm, turning another into a lab rat, and separating one from his father. Overall superpowers might seem cool to have but according to the author, Michael Carroll, it can make your life harder and more complicated.

Home run Hank Arron

In the book Home Run Hank Arron the main character has to go through a series of issues. For example, in the time period that the story was taken place, the main character, Hank Arron, has to deal with a lot of issues such as discrimination. In the book Hank can't go in many of the stores, hotels or restaurants as his team mates because of his skin color. Also Hank Arron doesn't get treated with the same respect as his fellow team mates because he is African American.
Another issue in the book other than the public discriminating against Hank Arron is the other team do not like Hank because of his race.
In this book the people that have the power is the people of the Caucasian ethnicity. And many of the people with the power oppress African Americans such as Hank Arron. They don't respect him when they play him and the pitch throw pitches trying to hurt Hank Arron.
Overall, i am amazed how Hank Arron struggled through that rough time period and became one of the best baseball players that ever lived

Song that had a significant meaning

“Imagine” by John Lennon

♫♫ Imagine all the people

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion too

Imagine all the people living in peace

You may say I’m a dreamer

But I’m not the only one

I hope someday you’ll join us

And the world will be as one

Imagine all the people

No greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man

And the world will be as one ♪♫

“Imagine” by John Lennon is about world peace and ending world hunger. I think this song is about how John Lennon wanted to help stop wars and end world hunger by having people work together as one. This song is significant because it addressed big issues such as war, world hunger, and world peace.  John Lennon advocated these issues to the end of his life. I also think this song is also significant because as a very influential celebrity he brought world-wide attention to the movement to end war, poverty and hunger.

Letter to Ms. Berner

Dear Ms. Berner

          Banning books has been a very controversial issue in the United States for many years. Some teachers and parents have tried to get books banned, but books should not be banned from the 6^th grade library in MS.51. Books should not be banned because young adults have the right to know and learn about issues in the world that are present in these books address  Books allow for Teens to learn to deal with issues that are found in young adult literature by opening discussions around these issues with their peers and adults. Overall, books should not be taken away from the 6^th grade library because although one book might not relate to one teen, that same book could help another teen that is going through a struggle and provide them with guidance.

          Books should not be banned from the 6^th grade library because they teach young adults about issues that are going on in the world. In the town of Katy Creek, Texas, a reporter named Debra Wrigley of channel 13 ABC news  reported that a father named Alton Verm wanted to ban the book Fahrenheit 451 from his daughter’s school curriculum. Ironically, Fahrenheit 451 is about how people took away books, and Alton Verm wanted to ban it. He wanted to ban the novel because the bible was burned in the book to stop people from reading it. Although the book Fahrenheit 451 is fictional it still has a lesson that can be applied to real life that books are the key to knowledge. Alton Verm wanted to censor the book even though much of the school’s population liked the book or found that it was their favorite novel to read. This should not be able to happen because one person’s opinion about a book should not have an effect on another individual’s reading preference, especially if the person who is dictating your reading life isn’t your parent.

Another example of banning in high school was explained in the video called “Banned in Stockon.” In the video some of the teachers and parents were trying to ban Sherman Alexie’s novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, while others were fighting the ban. The video explained that while the teachers were trying to ban the book a student spoke and said that the book was based on a true story and should not be banned because it taught people that “if the main character could do it and he had a lot more problems than me, then I can do anything I put my mind to.” This shows how the lessons that are portrayed in books can be used as guidance to deal with the issues that might be occurring in a teenagers’ life. This also explains how people deserve to know about the issues presented in books and the lessons that come with them.

          Another example of how books provide guidance for young adults is in the article, “Banned Books Week 2010: An Anti- Censorship Manifesto,” by Ellen Hopkins. In the text Hopkins says, “I have received tens of thousands of messages thanking me for turning them around.” This proves how Hopkins’s young adult literature has changed the lives of teens in a positive way. Another example how books provide guidance is because they can help people through issues. For example, in the text by Ellen Hopkins said, “Books show outcomes to choices. And offer understanding.” This idea supports how books can help young adults cope with issues and provide them with answers.

          Many people may think that books have become to dark or as Megan Cox Gurdon said in her article “Darkness to Visible”, “Rifed with explicit abuse, violence and depravity.” Also, in the Guardian, Maureen Johnson wrote, “Young Adult literature is inappropriate and denotes a slipping of moral standards.” However, many teens are going through issues and problems and are looking for ways to deal with them or sort them out. As Sherman Alexie said in his article, “Books written in Blood,” “I write to give them weapons in the form of words and ideas that will help them fight their monsters.” As Sherman Alexie expressed, although young adult literature might be dark for one person, for another teen that book could be their guidance. This explains that some teens and adults might think that young adult literature is dark and inappropriate, but that some literature can help someone through hard times.

          In conclusion, books should not be banned from the 6^th grade library because they provide teens with guidance and educate them about issues that are occurring in the world. It is wrong to hinder teens from reading these books because teens should be able to have access to knowledge that might help them. All in all, books should not be banned because they provide guidance for teens and educate teens about issues in the world.

Fat Kid Rules the World

In the book Fat kids Rules the World the main character troy really wants to fit in and be normal. But he thinks everyone doesn't like him and treats him different because of his weight. Troy is 300 pound teenager and he hates himself so much that at the beginning of the book he tried to kill himself. And he would have done it if it weren't for his his friend Curt who saved him. Curt is homeless punk rock star who is very popular and a legend at school.And Curt too has a lot  of issues going on in his life.

In the Book the main character Troy Billings would do any thing to fit in and be popular like Curt.
For example, he joined  a band and told Curt that he could play the drums even though he knew he could not. So he lied to Curt just so he could fit in. Why i think he would lie just to fit in is because everyone treats him as an outsider, even his dad and his brother. Troy's dad was an army marine who is obsessed with fitness. And because Troy is overweight he is always trying to make Troy go to gyms and programs forcing Troy to try to be someone he is not, Also Troy's brother is and all star athlete who also is obsessed with fitness. Troy's brother is always cracking jokes and making fun of Troy's weight and treats Troy as a "Loser".

All in all, I think Troy tries really hard to fit in. I think this because he doesn't fit in at home because he family treats him as and outsider. He doesn't fit in at school because everyone treat him different and weird because of his weight. So Troy had to resort to lying to one of his friends just to try and fit in.

R.I.P Sammy

Dear Sammy,
We might not have been the closet friends but we were pretty close. You were the nicest person in the world. You never got mad at anyone and would always let people ride on your scooter. It is so weird that you are gone because the other day you came over to me and asked me for my metro card because you had no money and I lent you money. Also yesterday we were talking at the turf and after school before i went to Kaplan. I remember all those days in jazz band after school and the day we barged into Az's house with Adam and played Fifa. Or the times when you and Az's would steal my celtic's hat and run away with it. Also i remember the times with you when we played a big game of manhunt after the science fair. I love you and you will be greatly missed.
To Sammy a.k.a (Sammy Germinoes)

Long Way Gone

The book Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah is about how his life changed because of the civil war in Sierra Lone. The civil war was between the rebels and the army who were fighting for control of the government. In the book, the main character, Ishmael, life is turned upside down. He was split up from his family, saw long time friends get killed and had to join the army to survive. The lesson about life that Ishmael Beah is trying to teach through his story is war can change someone of even the friendliest person. A boy could be fun, loving and friendly before a war, but come out the war a changed man.

One way Ishmael is shown as fun, loving and friendly before the war is how all he wanted to do was spend time with friends, have friendly competitions and go to school. For example, in the text it says “After I returned from school with my friends I went to Khalilou’s house to wash my crapes (pants) and count for Junior and Talloi, who were having a push-up competition. When I finished I sat and listened to Rapper’s Delight by Sugarhill Gang on my cassette tape.”(9) This example explains how Ishmael was a regular boy who liked to hang out with friends, go to school, and listen to music. This paragraph shows that Ishmael had a normal life before the war.

One example of how the war changed Ishmael is how killing other people didn’t affect him. Ishmael now kills people without remorse. For example, in the text it says, “We walked for long hours and stopped only to eat sardines and corned beef with gari, sniff cocaine, brown brown (a type of drug) and take some white capsules. These combinations of drugs gave us a lot of energy and made us fierce. The idea a killing didn’t cross my mind at all….. I had no problem killing rebels.”(122) This quote explains that Ishmael has changed very much. He changed from a fun outgoing boy who loved to listening to music to killings rebels without remorse.  This paragraph shows the lesson that war can really change someone.

 The last reason how the war has changed Ishmael is because he not only kills without remorse but also his way of thinking has changed. For example, in the text it says “My army squad was my family, my gun was my provider and my protector, and my rule was to kill or be killed….. We had been fighting for over two years and killing had become my daily activity. I felt no pity for anyone. My childhood gone without my knowing, and seemed as if my heart had frozen.”(129) That quote explains that Ishmael’s way of thinking has changed. It went from thinking about school and friends, to worrying and thinking about having to kill to stay alive. This paragraph shows how the war has changed the way Ishmael thinks.

In conclusion, war can really change someone as evidence has shown in the book Long Way Gone. The main character, Ishmael, has gone from a fun, outgoing boy who loves to listen to music and hang out with friends, to a boy who kills without remorse and whose rule is to kill or be killed. War can drastically alter one’s life as shown in the book Long Way Gone.

Faithful Elephants by Yukio Tsuchiya

Have you ever experienced the affects of war? Probably not, but war doesn't only affect the soldiers fighting in the war, it can affect other people. The Short story “Faithful Elephants” was about animals in Ueno Zoo in Tokyo, Japan that had to be put to death because the threat of bomb hitting the cages and letting the animals loose. This caused many concerns because if the animals were loose they would run wild through the city. Because of this threat the animals in the zoo were put down, even the Faithful Elephants. In the story a theme that constantly appeared in the story was, the affects of war doesn't only affect the soldiers.

 The theme that war doesn't only affect the soldiers is evident in the text “Faithful Elephants.”For example, the war in Japan didn't only affect the soldiers it affect the animals in the Zoo. In the text it says “What if bombs hit the Zoo? And the cages were broken and dangerous  animals escaped to run wild. Therefore by command of the Army all of the lions, tiger, leopards, and bears and big snakes were poisoned to death.”  Another example of how the war affected the animals, was when the trainers had to kill John the Elephant. “By and by, it came for the three elephants to be killed. They began with John – they mixed the poisoned potatoes with the good ones when it time to feed him. –When this didn’t work the keepers reluctantly decided to starve him to death. Poor John died seventeen days later.” This shows how the war affected the animals in the Ueno Zoo.

  Another way how the theme is present in the text is the war affected the trainers. For example, since because of the war the animals had to be killed the trainers had to watch them die. In the text it says, “Seeing his beloved Elephants this way, the trainer felt as if his heart would break.” Another example of how the war affected trainers was even though years had passed the war that killed the three faithful elephants still touched the Zoo keeper. “With tears in his eyes the zoo keeper finished his story. ‘These three elephants John, Tonky and Wanly – are now resting peacefully under this monument’.” This shows how the war took a toll on the trainers even many years after the elephants had died.

 All in all, the short story “Faithful Elephants” by Yukio Tsuchiya demonstrates how the destructiveness of war can affect other people not just the soldiers. The author Yukio Tsuchiya inspires us to think like Aristotle. “It is not important to win a war. It is more important to organize peace.” And if there was more peace in the world like Aristotle suggested and the wars were stopped as the zoo keeper suggested, the world would be a better place

Long Walk to Water

The book "A Long Walk to Water" is two stories of survival about boy an a girl from Sudan. The male main character, Salva’s, story is about him fleeing from from his home because of the war going on in Sudan between the government and the rebels. While Salva was fleeing he had no family or friends to help him on his journey at first because he left abruptly. During his process of fleeing and as Salva had gotten older he helped young boys who were like him, people who had to flee from their homes, survive. The female main character, Nya’s, story is about her taking care of her family. A theme that appeared frequently in the book was some you have to take more responsibilities in order to help others.

The theme of this book relates to the main character Salva because even though Salva was only seventeen at the time and still crying and searching for his lost family he took responsibility and helped the other boys in need. For example, on page 81 it said, "Crowds of other boys followed him, Salva had become the leader of a group of about fifteen hundred boys. He organized the group, giving everyone a job: scavenger for food; collect firewood;stand guard while the group slept. Whatever food or water they found was shared equally." This shows how Salva stepped up and took more responsibility to help the other lost boys.

The theme of the book "A Long Walk to Water" relates to the main character Nya because even thought she was young she had to take care of her family. For example, in the book it said Nya had to walk many miles with her sister on her back. She had to walk to the village with the medicine that could heal her sister from the dirty water her sister, Akeer, drank. Another example how Nya helped the family and took responsibility is every day Nya walks eight hours to the lake and eight hours back to her home with a fifteen pound jug of water. This paragraph shows how Nya took more responsibility and walked sixteen hours a day to collect water for her family and took care of her sister when she was sick.

All in all, both main characters, Salva and Nya both stepped up and took an obligation to help others. Salva helped lost boys survive and Nya helped her family survive. This shows how people sometimes have to step up and help people even if they are not ready, because when Nya helped her family she was only eleven and when Salva helped the lost boys he was only sixteen.