Eating Disorders.

Do you think eating disorders are caused by the media or by low self esteem?

People that have eating disorders usually have negative feelings about their body type and their weight.

Do you think weight determines how good you feel about yourself?

I'll paint you a picture of the streets

The typical, white, all american family, decides to kick their kids out once they reach 18. Right or wrong? Who should decide when you are ready to be on your own supporting yourself? You should be, right? I recently had a good friend of mine get kicked out of her house with no job and no place to stay. Her whole life she was raised given what ever she wanted. Got involved with drugs and was pulled in with the peer pressure from all of her "friends". It's hard these days the way that parents raise their kids, giving them everything there little hearts desire. When its time for the kids to start middle school and high school, war starts. Fighting all the time about failing grades, ditching class, going out and curfew. Some kids get really lucky in school and are able to put their hands up to everyone and say no. No is a hard thing for kids to say. Some kids are lucky, and some are not. The portion of those who aren't as fortunate are looked down on. Does anyone really understand, and i mean REALLY understand, the difficulty of the need to fit it or being addicted? By addiction i mean to anything. Drugs, sex, money, self harm, addiction isn't fun or easy. I have a very strong opinion on suicide, and that is that kids have to many pressure and not enough support and cannot deal with it on there own. This is where the streets come into play and i can paint you a beautiful picture of what that looks like to someone in this position. Its lonely and scary and defiently something that not one kid wants to experience. No where to stay and nothing to eat, no money and no one. Did i paint you a pretty enough picture to change your opinion?

Chinese Olympics

Do you think that the Chinese Gymnasts were too young for the Olympics? If so what do you think should be done to prevent it and why is it unfair?

Also, are judged sports biased to the country holding the event?

What does American mean to you?

In our textbook, Gary Q. Arpin notes that as soon as European explorers visited America in the 1400's and 1500's, they began to write back to Europe about how great this unexplored new world was. Arpin writes, "Hoping to fund further expeditions, the explorers emphasized the Americas' abundant resources, the peacefulness and hospitality of the inhabitants, and the promise of the unlimited wealth to be gained from fantastic treasuries of gold" (6, italics added). In order to get the money they needed these explorers painted a rosy version of America that captured the imagination of Europe. Writers like Spenser, Montaigne, and Shakespeare were influenced by the idea of this Utopian continent.

The trend of seeing America in an idealized light has continued in full force ever since. When John Smith (think Pocahontas) wrote the first book on American soil, he romanticized America and the noble and teachable savage. The Puritan settlers saw their society as a city on a hill that the rest of the world could look at as a shining example.

How do we see America today? Do we idealize our country? Is our strong sense of national pride a good or a bad thing? What does it mean to be an American?

"Young Goodman Brown"

Please respond to one or more of the following questions taken from http://english.uiowa.edu/courses/boos/questions/hawthorne.htm in a thoughtful paragraph. Or feel free to respond in a meaningful and insightful way to one of the posts of your peers.
a. What is added to the story by the narrator’s comments? b. What seems to be the allegorical significance of the story? Which aspects of the story seem most directly relevant to seventeenth-century New England, and which suggest general themes? c. Which aspects of Puritanism does the tale seem to critique? Which aspects does it seem to replicate or embody? d. Which aspects of the story seem to suggest psychological readings? What kinds of "sin" seem to preoccupy the protagonist and narrator? Are there other aspects of morality/religious attitudes outside the scope of the tale? e. What relationship between imagination and reality is presented by the story? f. Did you like "Young Goodman Brown"? What are ways in which it is well-written? What passages did you most admire? g. Are there aspects of this tale which remind you of "Rip Van Winkle"? What are some contrasts between the two stories, e. g. in their responses to nature? portrayal of women? moral concerns? approach toward history? h. What values might Irving and Hawthorne have shared?

Dark Romanticism and "The Fall of the House of Usher"

In what ways is this story an example of dark romanticism? What passages relate to the ideas of dark romanticism?

Connection to "Tell-Tale Heart"

In class, I mentioned that "The Fall of the House of Usher" has many similarities to "Tell-Tale Heart." What connections do you see between the two?

Themes in "The Fall of the House of Usher"

A theme is a statement of meaning which the author portrays in a literary work. What do you think is the theme of this story and why? What parts of the texts suggest that this might be the theme?

Rip Van Winkle and the birth of America

"Rip's awakening has been seen by many critics as an analogy to the awakening of the new American nation." -Our Text.

How does is Rip's experience like the American Revolution? Can you draw any parallels? I am excited to see what insights you come up with.

The Battle of the Sexes

"Rip Van Winkle" really taps into the idea of men and women as adversaries. This idea wasn't new in Washington Irving's time, however, and it still applies to modern society. Pick another comedic work (a book, TV show, or movie) and explain how it portrays the battle of the sexes. According to that work, who wins the battle? Why is this such a popular conflict?

Satire in Rip Van Winkle

William Harmon and C. Hugh Holman write that satire is, "A work or manner that belends a censorious attitude with humor and wit for improving human institutions or humanity. Satirists attempt through laughter not so much to tear down as to inspire a remodeling."

How is "Rip Van Winkle" a satire? What is Washington Irving satirizing? How do you know?

Rip the Hero

Literary critic Cynthia Bily suggests that Rip Van Winkle can be compared to countless other literary heros. For example, she compares the first part of Rip's journey.

"As Campbell explains it, the hero's story starts with a call to adventure.The hero does not necessarily want to become a hero, or to venture outon a quest that will separate him from the world he knows and change hislife forever. Instead, some outside force compels him to leave home. FrodoBaggins must leave home because his Uncle Bilbo has left him the One Ring,and he must get it out of the Shire before it is found. In Rip's case,the force that drives him away from home is his wife's bad temper. Shescolds him to such an extent that he is "at last reduced almost to despair,"and finally "his only alternative" is to take up his gun and "stroll away into the woods." Campbell writes that "the dark forest" is "typical ofthe circumstances of the call," and it is not until late evening, too latefor him to reach home before dark, that Rip begins to leave for home andhears a voice calling his name" (Bily).

Pick another hero that you are familiar with and compare them to Rip Van Winkle. Don't worry about finding a hero who is an exact match. Find a hero with an interesting similarity and run with it.