Love Song Blog

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miOEmyjpLkU&feature=kp

The song "Explosions", by Ellie Goulding shows how sometimes love can be a scary thing, and how it can bring pain that can feel very intense and real. The lyrics from the chorus are probably the most meaningful lyrics in the song.“Explosions, on the day you wake up needing somebody, and you’ve learned, it’s ok to be afraid. But it will never be the same.” These “explosions” are referring to an awakening, when whoever broke her heart realizes that they cannot live without her. Finally then the person will realize that whatever caused him to run away during the relationship wasn't worth ending things over. Throughout this entire song one can learn that in some cases, love can be a very selfish thing and can often seem unclear. “Explosions” depicts love in a negative way. When she sings this song she is reflecting on the memory of an old relationship that she had, where she gave everything to someone who left her when things got to real for them to handle.

Animal Testing Verdict

My final decision on animal testing is that it shouldn’t be allowed. Although animal testing has its benefits, at this day in age everything is so advanced that there should be another solution. It took me a long time to come up with a verdict because of how well each group argued their points. The pro animal testing group showed a video of how well animals that were being tested on were treated. The con animal testing group however showed a video of how poorly the animals were treated. Even though one of the videos was trying to focus on the good aspects of the labs, the dogs and all other animals were still living in small cages and didn’t seem to look genuinely happy.  I do think it is a great thing that animal testing has helped develop medicines that save people’s lives. Even though I think this, I also think that if less money way being spent on useless experiments and  more money was being spent in trying to find a new way to test these products, that in the future we could have a way to test the products with ought damaging any animal’s quality of life. 

Boo's Journal

Last night I did something that i hadn't done in a long time, i showed my face in public and was seen. I was sitting in my house when I heard shouting, and it sounded like Jem and Scout Finch. Naturally i ran out to try and help, it was the least I could do. The Finches had been the only people in Maycomb that I felt didn't judge me like the others. Plus, over the summer Jem and Scout had make an effort to meet me. Nobody else had ever really cared what I was up to, and the fact that Jem and Scout did care made me feel as if i were close to them. After I fended off the man trying to hurt them, I carried Jem's limp body back to the Finch's house with Scout trailing behind me. I killed the man, who turned out to be Mr. Ewell, but i don't feel bad. The only part I feel bad about is that he was that messed to want to kill innocent children. He was trying to hurt the kids, and I would have done it again if it meant saving them. Mr. Heck Tate and Atticus however, decided it would be a better idea to lie and say that Mr. Ewell slipped and stabbed himself. I guess that because off all the rumors about me in town, not many people would believe me if i told the truth. Atticus Finch is a very good man. He has empathy for others and is raising his children to have empathy as well. Atticus's children have been taught to not judge and to not have prejudice. Everyone in Maycomb hears my story and rumors about me and they make assumptions. The fact that they unfairly judge me proves that they aren't just. The Finches however have been the only truly descent people in this town and they've actually treated me like I matter. 

Ch. 26-27 TKAM

In chapters 26 and 27 there were a few events that I wasn't expecting to happen and they surprised me. For example, Jem's reaction when Scout it explaining to him how Miss Gates dislikes Hitler for not having equality, yet she didn't have equality towards black people during the trial was shocking. Jem became furious with Scout and shouted, "I never wanta hear about that courthouse again, ever, ever, you hear me? You hear me? Don't you ever say one word to me about it again, you hear? Now go on!" (Lee 247). I didn't understand why Jem was reacting so harshly when Scout referenced the trial. Maybe it is because he is so upset with the outcome that he never wants to think of it again. I think it may be that it makes him sick to think about how someone can be wrongly accused of doing such an awful thing, simply because he was black. 

 In addition, when Helen Robinson calls Link Deas because Mr. Ewell is bothering her again, Link Deas comes out to tell Mr. Ewell to leave her alone and says "You don't have to touch her, all you have to do is make her afraid, an' if assault ain't enough to keep you locked up awhile, I'll get you in on the Ladies' Law, so get outa my sight! If you don't think I mean it, just bother that girl again!" (Lee 250). This surprised me because even though Link Deas is white, he is standing up for a black woman against another white man. Unlike the rest of Maycomb, Mr. Deas looks past people's skin color and judges them more for their character. I think that Link Deas knew that Tom Robinson wasn't  guilty, and that is the reason why he especially doesn't like the Ewells. It also surprised me that Mr. Ewell was following her and harassing her, and that he didn't get the hint when Mr. Deas walked by the house with Helen. 

Ch. 24&25 TKAM

Throughout chapters 24 and 25, there were certain events where I understood why the author decided to add them. For example, when Scout is talking to the women about what she wants to be when she is older, she says that she wants to be "just a lady" (Lee 230). I think the author added this scene to show how Scout is starting to mature. She used to never want to dress girly, and she acted like one of the boys. I think that maybe Scout said this just to please the women though. 

In addition, when Scout was about to kill a bug, Jem tells her not to and Scout thinks, "He was certainly never cruel to animlas, but I had never known his charity to embrace the insect world" (Lee 238). The author made this scene to show how much Jem is turning into an adult. Everyday, he starts to act more and more like Atticus. Scout notices this and brushes it off as a phase, but I think that it is more permanent than that. If Jem were a kid like Scout, he would have joined in and smushed the bug, but instead he decided to be mature and spare the bug its life.

ch. 22-23 TKAM

In chapters 22 and 23 of "To Kill a Mockingbird", there were some events that I didn't fully understand or that made me double think. For example, when Jem is talking to Miss Maudie about the trial, Jem says, "I always thought Maycomb folks were the best folks in the world, least thats what they seemed like" (Lee 215). While reading this I wondered why Jem was taking the outcome so hard. The people of Maycomb are still good people, but they have just been living in a time period where black people weren't as easily. I do understand why Jem was so let down by the people in Maycomb though. Atticus did everything he could to prove to the jury that Mr. Robinson was not guilty, and yet they decided his fate by the color of his skin. 

In addition, another time where I was confused and surprised was when Atticus was talking to Aunt Alexandra about being threatened by Mr. Ewell and he said, "We don't have anything to fear from Bob Ewell, he got it all out of his system that morning" (Lee 218). I wonder why Atticus isn't more worried about being threatened to be killed. If Mr. Ewell beats his own kids, then I think he would be capable of killing a man and especially one who he feels threatened by. 

Mr. Ewell may feel threatened by Atticus because Atticus knows the real truth, and that is that he actually beat Mayella and not Tom Robinson. Any other person would be very scared to be threatened, but Atticus takes it very lightly as if it will just blow over. 

Rhetorical Video

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mZAneYIPXTw

This commercial is for PETA, which stands for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. While watching the video, one can tell that it uses ethos because whoever made the commercial had to of had some insight on how animals are actually treated before they are made into clothes. Logos is also used by saying "Every year, people kill millions of animals for fashion". This is a logical reason to make people notice how much they are affecting the lives of innocent animals by buying clothing made out of real fur. Pathos is also a huge factor in this commercial, and it is probably the strongest rhetorical device used here. Throughout the commercial it shows animals at a fashion show, dressed up in clothing made out of human parts. As disturbing as it is, PETA does a good job at getting the point across by making the viewer feel like they are in the position of the animal. Also at the end it shows humans locked up in cages and scared to death. The person that made this commercial is trying to show how horribly animals are actually treated, and since showing animals locked up sometimes isn't enough to make people want to stand up, the creator is showing something that humans can relate to.