Historical Reflections

If I could choose any one Historical figure to come back to life so that I could run into them at college, I would choose Abraham Lincoln. There are several reasons for my choice of historical figures. I have always admired Abraham Lincoln for his perseverance and continuous effort to make something possible even when all of the odds are against him and when he is told he wont be successful. As Lincoln said himself,"The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just."

I would also want to show him how much things have changed from the time that he was president, because I think that he played a huge role in the anti-Slavery movement that made things the way that they are today.
I think that Abraham Lincoln would make a good professor, because he has proven that he is a very powerful leader and can positively influence a large amount of people. I think that Lincoln's wise ideas about life could be used to educate and give students a better view on life. For example, Lincoln once said "Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing." Quotes like this bring me to the conclusion that Lincoln would be a very successful college professor.

Literary Reflections

If I could bring any one character to life from a book that we have read this year , it would be a Tralfmadorian from the novel Slaughterhouse Five. A Tralfmadorian is an extraterrestrial being from the book Slaughterhouse Five who can see the whole span of time, and believes that there is no free will and everything that will happens is already predetermined. Out of all of the characters in all of the books that we have read, I chose a Tralfmadorian because he would have a viewpoint on life that is the complete opposite of mine, and is more interesting to me than any of the other characters that we have read about this year.
There aren't very many roles that a Tralfmadorian can play at a college, but I would have him as my roomate. If I lived with a Tralfmadorian, he could answer any questions that I have about the past or future, which could be infinitely benificial. I would want to learn more about the Tralfmadorian view on life, time and free will. I would also give him insight about how differently people see things on earth. I would want to be able to see things from a Tralfmadorian perspective, because I don't believe in their ideas of no free will and I would like to see it for myself.

I am a Japanese immigrant coming to America, I chose this character because I am interested in learning more about the struggles that Japanese immigrants were faced with when coming to America at this time of war.

Research:
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/immigration/enemy-aliens-overview.html

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Japanese_American_life_under_U.S._policies_before_and_during_World_War_II

Out of the list of innovations came from the aftermath of World War Two, the technological advances that were developed over the course of the war. Some of the most famous examples of technology which were developed during World War Two and used heavily over the years are nuclear weapons, jet engine, ballistic missiles, and U-boats. These more advanced weapons made an extremely big impact on wars in the following years.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_during_World_War_II

http://www.123helpme.com/view.asp?id=23618

http://www.bukisa.com/articles/85094_technology-advancements-of-world-war-2

Blog 14

1. During World War 1, more than 9 million men died on the battlefield. During World War 2, 40,000 men served on U-Boats during World War 2, and 30,000 never returned.

2. I don't know much about these wars, so I hope to learn more about how these wars have impacted our world today


3. There were a great deal of technological revolutions and advances in the medical field that took place during World Wars 1 and 2 that have greatly impacted where we stand today.

GOW final essay

Jim Casy is introduced in Grapes of Wrath as an ex-preacher who gave up his practice because he felt that he was not worthy of preaching teachings that he did not truly practice or believe in. Throughout the novel, Casy undergoes a transformation in which he goes from being an ex-preacher who no longer knows where his spirituality fits in with his lifestyle to a man who has discovered exactly where he stands and uses his newfound knowledge and philosophies about life to guide others through a difficult journey. Casy’s ability to take a negative experience and learn from it in a way that led him to a positive transformation reflects the overall theme of the novel, which uses Jim Casy and the journey of a family during the Great Depression to show the valuable realizations and positive transformations that can come from going through hardships. "There ain't no sin and there ain't no virtue. There's just stuff people do. It's all part of the same thing.” These are the words that Casy found rang true to him after giving up his practice as a preacher and reevaluating his faith and spirituality. He also came to the conclusion that "maybe a fellow ain't got a soul of his own, just little piece of a big soul, the one big soul that belongs to everybody". These ideas that there’s no such thing as sin and virtue and that everybody has a special piece of this “soul” that makes them important rings as a constant theme throughout Grapes of Wrath, as Casy uses his voice of wisdom to guide Tom Joad and the Dust Bowl farmers through their struggle to find opportunity in a desolate time.
Throughout the novel, Steinbeck makes a strong point that religion and superstition is over dramatized by many and made into something that does not rely on common sense. This idea is first presented in the form of John Casy’s newfound philosophy, and carried throughout the book using different examples. Through the course of the story, these ideas are presented through the teachings of Jim Casy and the transformation of Tom Joad, as well as Rose of Sharon, who is preagnant with her first child through the family’s journey to California. For the majority of the book, Rose of Sharon is found worrying and complaining about the safety of her baby. She is told by a religious woman that if she takes part in “sinful activities”, such as dancing, that her baby will die or “be born bloody”. This thought scares Rose of Sharon, who spends all of her time ensuring that she does not sin in order to save the life of her baby. In the end, her baby dies right away in a still birth. This could be blamed on the amount of sin that Rose of Sharon was surrounded with, but the true reason is the difficult circumstances and environment that she was traveling in was much too harsh for a pregnant woman, no matter what amount of sin was happening around her.
When reflecting on the characters and the events of this book, you will find that Casy’s idea that every one of us has a spiritual importance, that we all have the power to make a change and shouldn’t rely on just one holy power to do everything for us. As the book progresses, Casy himself begins to take on a role similar to that of Jesus, helping people guiding people with his words and changing lives with his teachings. This is ironic because this happened after he resigned from his job as a preacher. The book ends with Rose of Sharon using her breast milk to nurse a starving man to life, making a sacrifice to save the life of another and presenting herself as a holy figure. This act of nobility again ties back to Casy’s philosophy.

Blog #12

Public works projects are facilities and improvements designed for the benifit of the public and funded by the government. Some examples are hospitals, public building, schools and railroads.

Some of the most famous examples from the New Deal include the Golden Gate bridge, Hoover Dam and the Del Mar fairgrounds.

It would be benificial today to make more low income housing and improved healthcare and educational systems.