The Hobbit

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." -Neil Armstrong, 1969

As Americans, we grow up hearing this quote; having it frequently used in sentences or literature, our exploration of the outer realms of space defined us a Americans and recognized us as a technological and aerospace power to be reckoned with. Moreover, this quote symbolizes what power one man's actions can have over a nation, and what significance our first moon landing had on our legacy as a nation.

The relevance of this quote to my current book, The Hobbit, may seem completely implausible when first attempting to make the connection between hobbit and man, and the plot-line when relating it to Neil Armstrong's journey to Bilbo's journey. Firstly, The Hobbit illustrates the journey of a relatively young hobbit named Bilbo who embarks on a journey with a group of dwarves and a wizard to uncover the dwarves' stolen gold from a dragon named Smaug. Bilbo is dragged on this journey originally against his will, as a "burglar" for the group, although he has no burglaring experience. After causing the traveling party to be nearly eaten by trolls and getting lost in Gollum's cave and separated from the group, Bilbo is doubted as a burglar or to be of any kind of use to his traveling party. However, he soon redeems himself when rescuing the dwarves from murderous spiders and wood-elves that hold them captive, saving them twice in the period of a week and regaining their trust and adoration, and willingness to obey him when trying to get out of taxing situations. And while its plot-line may seem rather elementary when first hearing it, the spectacular writing of J.R.R Tolkein and the story within itself make for an incredibly meaningful and universal message that can be applied to all walks of life.

While reading, I questioned myself: Why a hobbit? What prompted Tolkein to choose a quaint, simple, endearing character to fight the dragon Smaug, be of such vital importance to the dwarf party, and be the protagonist of this story? Hobbits are creatures that "have no adventures of any sorts", love food and comfort and live in clean, minuscule hobbit-holes with gardens and overstocked libraries. The other creatures Tolkein portrays in his novel have special attributes, that help them fight evil and make them superior to others. Hobbits, on the other hand, are straightforward, simple and lovable. So why such simple creatures chosen to be the heroes? Because hobbits won't succumb to power, and Tolkein thus proves that any being can make an impact, whether it be good or bad, no matter their size or strength. When looking back at Neil Armstrong's quote, it's one giant leap of bravery and cunning for one hobbit, and one humongous leap for the race of hobbits and their impact.

The Death of Mercutio

The theme of love is prevalent throughout many novels and plays of the past 20 centuries; as soon as humans became capable of forming written language and writing, love has been crafted into stories, poems,   and theater. It is something we all aspire to achieve one day, or to gain. While reading Romeo and Juliet we wonder if the theme is truly young love, or if it is perhaps teaching us about mistakes teenagers make, or the consequences severe rivalries can have. But if one were to truly delve into the themes of Romeo and Juliet, we would have to first look at its characters and how William Shakespeare has crafted these characters, and the way he  makes them interact with one an other.

One of the most influential characters in Romeo and Juliet, is my opinion, is Mercutio. Mercutio himself is not a character of vital importance to the plot in the first two acts of this tragedy; he simply provides humor and sexual innuendos. It is his death, however, that creates tumult and a chain of catastrophic events in the story. Although we have discussed Mercutio's death in class and all the chain reaction his death causes, we haven't discussed the true significance of Mercutio's death.

Firstly, we ask ourselves, why Mercutio? What meaning is Shakespeare trying to convey by having such a facetious, amusingly indecent character murdered? Additionally, why does William Shakespeare create a character like Mercutio in the first place; to place such a character so full of risqué jokes in a tragedy such as this?

Shakespeare chose to create a character such as Mercutio in the first place to offer another view on love; a view that scoffs at love and treats it as a joke, or a game. To offer this view on love is to appeal to audiences and identify with many, for many people may treat love as a game as well. Furthermore, Mercutio brings comedy to a serious topic, such as love, and makes the play appear as a comedy in the first two acts. I believe that making the play seem as if it is a comedy in its first two parts is crucial to the plot. Once the story takes a violent twist with the death of Mercutio, it is as if all hope and happiness in the story dies. We become exposed to the reality of murder and its expenses, as well as Romeo's banishment and what this means for the relationship between Romeo and Juliet.

Although Mercutio may not prove such a vital character in the first two acts of this tragic play, it is his death that marks the turning point of Romeo and Juliet and transforms this play from a comedy to a tragedy, in a matter of seconds.

Isn't She Lovely

I first heard it when I was 6, driving in Yosemite in Northern California with the windows rolled down and music playing softly in the background, driving aimlessly or to one destination or another. The song came on, and I asked my dad to turn up the volume, roll up the windows, so I could fully hear what I was listening to. The song Isn't She Lovely by Stevie Wonder isn't in itself a complicated song, or any masterpiece really. It contains three verses, or stanzas, that are simply repeated over and over. There is no hidden message or metaphor within its lyrics, no extreme sadness or sorrow or feeling of depression that are conveyed in its verses, as many songs do. Nor does it tell a story, a progression of events that have happened in the songwriter's life or a narrative of any sort. So why did it appeal to me so much?

The song itself emulates love, pure and simple. It was not a love I could or can relate to; the feeling of having a new child; who is all yours and who you created and are responsible for. Yet when searching deeper, are there truly different kinds of loves, or is it all the same? Is love, by its definition, diverse and varying for those who experience it, since all bonds in life are so dissimilar as they vary from person to person in terms of experiences shared, personalities, and the relationships themselves. Or is love the same for all that feel it, the same feeling, the same notion? Whatever the answer to this rhetorical and indisputable question may be, Isn't she Lovely has stuck with me for a little more than 7 years.

I've heard renditions of it several times, on various T.V. shows and so forth, and all of them stir something inside of me. Yet it is the original version, the Stevie Wonder version, that touches me the most. Firstly, because Stevie Wonder is blind and therefore has never actually seen his daughter, yet he writes her a song her a song as a declaration of his love. In the original Stevie Wonder version, there are also recordings of his daughter's newborn cries in the background as the song is playing. Stevie Wonder therefore uses his hearing, and his senses other than sight, to learn about his daughter and to show that one can love without sight, and that a proclamation of love can be issued without the aid of sight. The song doesn't contain a "worldly" message, one that speaks of social issues and how we can make the world a better place; it does't tell a story, or contain a complex and thought-provoking message. It is just love for his daughter. It is something that touches us all, and, in one way or another, we relate to.

Shadows

"When I awoke it was day; an unusual movement roused me; I looked up; I was in somebody's arms; the nurse held me; she was carrying me through the passage back to the dormitory. I was not reprimanded for leaving my bed; people had something else to think about. No explanation was afforded to my many questions; but a day or two afterward I learned that Ms. Temple, on returning t her own room at dawn, had found me laid in the little crib; my face against Helen Burns' shoulder, my arms round her neck. I was asleep, and Helen was--dead."

Envisioning this situation was simple. A poor, neglected, ten-year old Jane Eyre who awakes to find her first true friend in this world limp and pale by her side, the tremors of consumption rumbling through her body until she fell silent and cold. But to truly empathize with Jane Eyre, who has so ripely lost her one and only friend? I struggle to do so. Jane has been spurned, disregarded, paid no heed her entire life. She is finally given her first drops of sublime, sweet attention by Helen, who becomes her companion at the new boarding school she is forced to attend. The boarding school is for orphaned children, such as Jane Eyre, yet it is found to be an establishment of the highest quality in comparison to the horrific and cumbersome lifestyle endured at her Aunt's house, where Jane was no more than the punching bag for her "family" to abhor.

Will this experience affect Jane negatively and impact her life greatly, or will the loss of this first friend be only minor, a small bump in her life filled with mountainous horrors. Yet it is my belief that while this event may prove to be traumatic for Jane for the time being, it will only be a minor glitch, or setback, in what will prove to be a dark yet fruitful life of this bright young girl. The deaths of her parents will always overshadow Jane's life and whatever accomplishments she makes, as will her torturous years living in her Aunt's house, so I feel as that the death of Helen will not take as big of a toll on Jane's life.

To me, this idea of having your best friend die is such an enormous shock and would create such disarray and havoc in my life that I can barely imagine. It is a foreign idea to me, having the death of your friend be comparatively small to the other occurrences that have happened in your life. It is my hope for Jane Eyre, however, that she will be able to grow past this shadow of death and grief that has plagued her life so terribly, and will soon be surrounded by her accomplishments and successes. But then, how quickly does the shadow of death fade?

The Feats of History

In a recent New York Times Article entitled, "Illuminating Jewish Life in a Muslim Empire," it discussed the first piece of physical evidence of Jewish life within an Iranian culture of the eleventh century. This evidence of a Jewish community in the Persian part of the Muslim Empire were manuscripts found in an Afghani cave inhabited by foxes, and the said manuscripts reported upon the details of this Jewish society, things such as their culture, religious practices, and economic life. These documents are incredibly well-preserved for their millennium of survival, mostly due to the dry, arid landscape of Afghanistan. Other historical sources of the Middle Ages have suggested that there were Jewish communities in the Persian part of the Empire, yet verification of such societies was required up until the discovery of these manuscripts.

These documents are known as the Afghan Geniza, and were written in a variety of languages such as Hebrew, Aramaic, Judeo-Persian, Judeo-Arabic, Arabic, and some even used the Babylonian system for vowels. The source of these manuscripts is something yet to be determined, yet there is speculation of their origin. They are speculated to have come from an area near the borders of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, seeing as the migration of Jews to that area was probable in the Middle Ages due to the trade along the Silk Road. The documents are being bought and acquired by the National Library, and are then to be scanned and digitalized, so as that they are accessible to all who wish to look at them and attempt to understand their complexities.

It is here that I am plagued with confusion; why computerize documents so as that they are available to all, and bring technology to such beautiful, historic manuscripts. Excuse me if I am being redundant, for I did write my picture book on how technology is awful and should only be used in moderation, yet in this case I feel that it is more destroying the beauty and excitement of seeing these documents first hand and experiencing their fragility, and all that they hold. It is my belief that computerizing suc historic things ruins that exhilaration you feel when you see them in person; that pang in your chest, that wondrous gaze that many of us find upon our faces when looking at such a historic artifact. I don't see the point of putting such things on the internet or digitalizing them; there should not be "previews" of art or historic artifacts; people should experience them first hand.

The Worst of a Bad Situation

"It took several days for me to realize Luke was not coming to my new foster home, which was nowhere near my grandfather's house. I wondered what was so horrible about me and why I had been rejected again. Then there was my perpetual question: What had I done that was so terrible that I had to be taken from my mother? I had no idea why she hadn't been able to get me back. You would think someone would have explained it in words a child could understand. Yet nobody did. I believed they were keeping secrets from me- but supposedly, they thought they were protecting me."
-Ashely Rhodes-Courter, Three Little Words

Foster care is something generally overlooked in America as an issue; most foster care homes are overrun with children and toys that many "parents" cannot remember the names of all the children they are fostering. Or the homes are so unaccustomed to the presence of children and how to deal with them that many foster kids find themselves frightened, unwelcome. Webster's defines it simply as to bring up a child that is not one's own by birth. Yet the true definition of foster care is something to be found in the stories and experiences told about it.

Foster care is traumatizing; it can be all the bad situations that can be found in a middle American low-income home all in one. There are of course, exceptions to this, but in the grand scheme of foster care, those who welcome foster children into their homes may not be the most stable of people or properly equipped to care for children. While the government may check to ensure these things, who can say what goes on behind locked doors, or what foster parents are truly like when they are not being scrutinized by the Federal Government? The negative affects of foster care are many and extreme ones at that. Child abuse is foster homes is increasingly common, and for those who enter foster care at a young age, their nuerodevelopment can be permanently messed up along with serious psychological defects.

Whether or not Ashley Rhodes-Courter experienced any of this mental damage is something we'll never know, although the physical and mental trauma displayed in her book, Three Little Words, knows no bounds. The book opens with some of the most catastrophic scenes of her life; her stepdad Dusty beating her mother, her brother that died after two months and who her mother put in a cardboard box, and, probably the most painful of all, being torn from her mother's arms as her mother got arrested and Ashley and her one surviving brother being forced into foster care. Continuing through this book will be an agonizing experience, for I know that from now on Ashley's foster care situation will worsen, rather than improve, or else there would be no story. But how on earth could this tragic story possibly worsen?

How our Relationships and Bonds Shape Us

The life of a struggling, conflicted writer is one that has been used countless times before; a cliché that we cannot escape. These striving writers are always very deep thinkers, rather scraggly people, who are unorganized due to the clutters and masses of ideas and thoughts contained in their mind. This exact character is portrayed in The World According to Garp, so why was I not so immediately repelled by this book, since I despise clichés and simply cannot stand them? I have concluded that it is the plotline of The World According to Garp that I find so intriguing, and the development of the characters found in this book. Yet when looking further, I realize that the story is just one of a struggling marriage, and how having a feminist mother and the nonexistence of a father shapes a young man's life.

The absence of a father is something I expect to take a large toll on a young man's life; meaning that later in life he will not be capable of playing the role of a father later in life, when he has children.  I expected much the same of Garp whilst reading my book, yet he seems fully capable of loving his kids to the very fullest; making them dinner every night, picking them up from their schools and clubs, worrying about their illnesses and their friends with less than reliable mothers. Garp seems like the perfect father, so how on earth could the nonexistence of one parent not have affected him? I searched the text for evidence of Garp acting as an invalid or fraudulent father, or showcase any actions that may have been better or different had he had a substantial father. But I then found myself stuck with that last thought; how would Garp have acted differently had he had a father? Would he be more levelheaded since he would have had a second parent to act as a counterpart or opposite to his mother's craziness and extreme view of men?

How would our lives be shaped differently had we not met just one single person who has influenced our life in ways that we may not realize. I try and picture my life with an absent father, a predicament such as Garp finds himself in, and I find that I would have been a very different person, one who would have more aspects of my mother's personality, and who would have had a very different sense of humor, if any at all. In the long run, I would not like the person I would be had I not had a father, or more specifically, my father. I believe it is much this way with many of the relationships I hold; had I not had those relationships and the experiences I've had and accumulated over the years, I would be an entirely different person. Which is why it is my belief that we all should value the relationships we have  even if they are awful and have no benefits, for they all teach us something and have something to offer.