John Proctor: Hero or Stooge?

      John Proctor is one of the most rational and unreligious characters in The Crucible.  Unfortunately, this is what led to his death. I believe he was a hero because he knew the reasons that everyone was crying witch, and tried to stop the unfair accusations. Basically the one bad thing he did was cheat on his wife, but he made it clear that wasn't going to happen again. He is usually kind; for example when you first meet him he is going to check on Betty. Proctor is Christian, but he openly disagrees with how Reverend Parris preaches. He wasn't afraid to stand up to Parris about it, or to the judges in the court. His strong will and pride also show at the very end, when he refuses to have his confession posted on the church door. He knows he has already committed enough sins, and by not giving a false confession he believes he is honoring the other prisoners who didn't confess, and he can still go to heaven with pride.
      I don't think Proctor was a stooge, because he was doing what he thought he should and not what others wanted him to do. His accusations against Abigail are what caused his death. When he finally admitted he had an affair, to make them not trust Abigail, they made him look like a liar. After, Mary Warren turned on him saying he made her do witchcraft. John Proctor was never meant to be accused; Abigail wanted Elizabeth dead. Her plan backfired while causing the deaths of more than 100 people.

Sinners In the Hands of an Angry God

      This sermon by Puritan minister Jonathan Edwards shows the strict, conformist beliefs of the Puritan faith. Using pleasant metaphors like the bow of God's wrath pointed at your heart, or hanging by a thread over over hell, could easily scare someone who believes strongly in God to not make the slightest slip. Edwards was  a very smart man; he graduated from Yale when he was sixteen. He knew how to manipulate people very well. If reading this in modern day can still spark such a strong reaction, imagine it being read by him, in a Puritan church, in 1741.

      Though he was good at what he did I don't believe that he was using it the right way. Having so much fear and ignorance is no way to live. One good thing that Christianity usually has is the idea that good deeds can help you go to heaven, but they threw out this idea believing they are the chosen ones. This, to me, is a selfish act that defeats the most important feature of religion. Maybe religion originally, at least in part, was motivation to to good things and be a good citizen. Its simple: if you're a good person you're rewarded.

      Besides that, I don't believe that there's an all-powerful God with your fate in his hands, and there can't be a VIP reserved seat in heaven with your name on it. It is your actions that shape your life and only you can make life how you want to live it.

There Goes The Neighborhood

      When two different societies meet, especially if for the first time, there is likely to be some tension. A long-continuing and very complicated example of this so called clash of civilizations, is between the Muslim world and the West. These groups have always been very different. Of course to humans, different = bad  so, what better way to solve your differences than by violence? Conflicts between the two groups have persisted even since the Crusades in the middle ages. The most obvious example in modern day would be terrorism caused by extremist Muslims. The basics of this complicated situation is that the minority extremists hate how America and the west have almost the opposite values of strict Islam. The word Islam is said to mean peace, submission, or obedience; or some combination of those words. Contrastingly, the west is about freedom, expression, equality between men & women, etc. Sometimes rumors are taught, that are usually completely untrue, that worsen the situation. The book Infidel, by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, describes parts of her childhood growing up as a Muslim in Africa. She says how everyone in her class "was convinced that there was an evil worldwide crusade aimed at eradicating Islam, directed by the Jews and the whole Godless West." On the other side, some Americans think that all Muslims are like the extremists and that they are all violent. There's been discrimination against them, like opposition to the mosque near ground zero, and other situations. One big, but not so simple, step to lessen tensions could be to clear up these extreme misunderstandings.

Introductions

      Going into this school year I was relatively excited; hoping it would be a bit better than (seemingly unending) last year. This was for a number of reasons. First I wouldn't be a freshman anymore, meaning I knew a lot more people, and I knew my way around. Also, I had more of a say in my classes, so there would be more things that I'm interested in. One big thing I wasn't looking forward to this year was all the homework, and at the very bottom of the list of all the time-consuming assignments would be writing. I've never considered myself a good writer, and even when something comes out fine, it probably took me hours and hours sitting at the computer (or at least longer than it should). Even though I sometimes loathe writing, I know that it is an important skill and I would like to get better at it.
      Some things I do enjoy are bike riding, martial arts, traveling, and history. I also like trying new things, whether its a new food, place, activity, or type of music. How these interests can all come together would be traveling to another city or country, learning about its history, going for a bike ride there, eating local foods, and doing things that might be touristy, or something the locals would do. This curiosity can also apply right here in Chicago. I like seeing new parts of our diverse city, and learning the history of my neighborhood and others, understanding how they got to be that way.
      For whatever reason, my personality doesn't reflect that more adventurous side of me very much. I tend to be quiet and keep to myself, though less with my friends. I like to think of myself as a generous person, whether its volunteering at the food pantry, or just doing somebody a favor. All these characteristics describe who I am and thank you for reading about me!