R & J Character

Interesting Character

        In Romeo and Juliet, the main characters are Romeo, Juliet, and sometimes Mercutio, who is now dead, and Benvolio.  Each one played a significant role in the play, but they are not what I am most interested in.  There's one character that I'm not sure of.  Are they bad, or good?  That character is the nurse.  I chose the nurse because I'm not sure what role exactly she takes on.  Is she a peacemaker, like Benvolio, or is she a troublemaker like Tybalt.  Which side is she on?

        In the play, the nurse is clearly in the Capulet household.  But she's just a nurse, right?  Maybe not.  She's always talking to Juliet and she even tried to help her get Romeo to her.  However, that's just what we've seen her do.  Right now, she's good if you are on the young love team.  Maybe she's secretly trying to break them apart.  She might be telling the Capulet parents about everything that Juliet tells her.

        Another reason I think that she is more significant than she seems is because she's so concealed into Juliet's thoughts, and not her own.  We never knew what she was doing with her own thoughts, on her own time.  We've only seen her with Juliet.  But who knows?  Maybe she's not significant, and she just does whatever Juliet tells her to do.  I just think that she could possibly be hidden from us for a reason.

        So is the nurse bad or good?  We'll find out.  But for now, she's just concealed in Juliet's thoughts and demands.  And she may never come out.

Love

Love

    

    The concept of love is very controversial.  Some people think it's amazing and it brings hapiness to the world, and some think it's foolish.  For example, Romeo in Romeo And Juliet by William Shakespeare believes that love is powerful.  He thinks that it can take over your mind.  And for him, it does in the play on several occasions.  But is he exaggerating on love?

    Also in the play, Romeo's friend, Mercutio, has a perspective on love.  And it's far different from Romeo's.  He continuously tells Romeo that he's getting himself worked up about love, when it's really unnecessary.  He says love is foolish, especially at age 14.  So who is right?  I believe that neither of them are completely wrong nor are they completely right.

    In my opinion, love isn't foolish at all.  But since 14 year olds are not fully mature, they may believe they're in love when they're really not.  For adults, I believe love is when you and someone else want to spend the rest of your life together.  Basically, marriage.  But 14 year olds don't have the maturity to decide that they want to spend the rest of their lives with someone.  However, in the play, Romeo believes love can take over your life.  And I have to admit, it did because him and his lover showed their love by committing suicide together.  That shows true love.

Song Response

Unwritten

I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined
I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

Oh, oh, oh

I break tradition, sometimes my tries, are outside the lines
We've been conditioned to not make mistakes, but I can't live that way

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten

        The song "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield has many ideas that relate to self confidence, being who you are, and embracing everything about you.  It also includes themes that relate to life decisions.  I think the song is mostly about the power you have over your own life.  She wanted to leave the listener thinking about their life, and how they can change it, using what the song was about.  That's exactly what it did for me.
        In the song, there is a theme about how you make the decisions in your life, and no one else.  She says, "Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you."  I think the rain represents your feelings, good or bad.  No one can feel your feelings for you.  Also, I think she's trying to say you should accept your feelings, and be proud of them, whether they're negative or positive.  That also goes for being who you are.  You should embrace all your traits, and everything about you.
        Also in the song, she tries to say that the rest of your life is depending on you.  She says, "Today is where your book begins, the rest is still unwritten."  That could mean two things.  First, it can mean that you are the author of your book.  The book represents your life.  She's trying to say that everything you do is your decision.  Sure, people may tell you to do things, and you may listen to them, but it's your decision to do it.  Maybe she's also trying to say that you have to be careful when making decisions, since it's all your choice.  The other thing she could be trying to get across is that every day is a new day, and you can start over.  I used that to improve myself.  Every day, I forget all the bad things that happen, and try to succeed.
        All in all, everyone can see this song from a different angle.  The lyrics can provoke new ideas and themes.  What I got out of it was that I make the decisions in my life, and I have to be careful about the ones I make.  I also learned that I should embrace myself, and everything about me.  It makes me more self confident.  

Non-Fiction New

Israel And Gaza Bombing 2012

        "Israel Gaza Attacks Intensify Despite Truce Talk" by Josef Federman is mostly about the fighting that took place on the border of the Gaza Strip and Israel, in November of 2012.  Directly on the border, Israeli tanks and gunboats eliminated targets in Gaza.  Meanwhile, 200 rockets were being fired into Israel.  Israeli and Hamas officials were hoping to reach a truce deal soon, but it was far from definite.  Israel will have to take any actions necessary to defend their people."Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a meeting with Hillary Rodham Clinton.
        A deal was going to be worked out between the enemies, but it took almost a month.  Israel wanted to keep bombing, for a little longer.  They wanted to show Gaza that they were not afraid.  And that's exactly what happened.  Gaza held back, and the truce was made.  This could mean that there will be no bombings ever again between them, or it could mean that there is just a short cease fire, because the enemies both need to keep an eye on each other.
        In my opinion, Gaza was being cheap and cruel to Israel.  They were accusing Israel of doing nothing but being who they are.  Israel didn't start the war.  Also, Israel has been through enough war, hate, and killings.  They don't need to be cheated into being accused of doing nothing to harm anyone at all.  If someone tried to fight me, I would fight back, no matter what kind of foolishness the fight is about.  The Israel and Gaza War wasn't a misunderstanding, it was an act of tomfoolery.

Random Family

Random Family

        I am currently reading Random Family by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc.  It is about a girl named Jessica, coming of age in the ghetto.  She deals with love, drugs, trouble, and living in the ghetto in the Bronx.  I am at the beginning of the book, but I have some predictions and observations that I foresee happening.

        In the beginning of the book, Jessica mentions that her family members, mostly boys, are selling drugs in the ghetto, and that some of her past boyfriends did too.  She said that boys were attracted to her wherever she went.  Most of her boyfriends were more high class than her family, or at least they thought they were.  This is because they were all drug dealers.  It's true that the drug dealers did make more money than the people who weren't, but their behavior is so obnoxious, that it seems that they're millionaires!  It really bothers me that that kind of fake personality can attract women who should be able to see what's really inside a good guy.  The problem is, Jessica's a nice loving girl on the inside, but her personality is fake too.  If she really wanted to be who she was, she wouldn't be accepted in the ghetto.  But the best place to be in life is the place where you feel comfortable being yourself.

        What I predict is going to happen is that Jessica is going to "Fall in love" with a drug dealer.(She said that for all the other boys she dated too.)  And when she gets too close to him, he's going to get busted by the police, and he's going to blame it on Jessica, as a last resort.  I think this is going to happen because I know that she is going to date a bad guy, who is going to become really close her.  And when he does, she's going to realize the truth inside these people.  I just believe it's going to happen in this way.

        My hope is that these fake people can one day let themselves be who they are, and that will change the attitude of the people in the ghetto, drug dealers or not.  Because this book shows how much can be inside a person, even though their outside shows nothing but a fool.

The Catcher and The Rye

The Catcher And The Rye

        I just read "The Catcher And The Rye" by J.D. Salinger.  It is about a guy in Pencey College, named Holden Caulfield.  He is rooming with a guy named Stradlater, who is a ladies man who is stuck up.  Holden gets tired of his school and comes to Manhattan, to try something new.  It takes place in the 1950s.  I believe that Holden is a very negative person, and that he has very high expectations for almost everything.

        Holden lets jealousy and negativity take over his impression on his life, sometimes even life in general.  Like when his roommate Stradlater went on a date with Holden's old friend Jane, he was in his room worrying if Stradlater was having sex with her, and he kept thinking about how he thought Stradlater was a goddamn sonuvabitch if he was doing so.  He doesn't realize that it's none of his business and that whatever Stradlater was doing on his own time shouldn't make Holden hate him.  When I'm mad at someone for whatever they've done, I try to think of things from their point of view, and I realize how ridiculous I'm being.  But Holden doesn't have the ability to do that, so almost everything anyone does bothers him.

        Whenever Holden meets someone, he is very excited for a serious discussion on his thought of the world.  But as we all know, a lot of people don't want to do that all the time.  For example, he had a prostitute in his hotel room, and wanted to talk to her about what he thought of Manhattan and his school, and his life and her life.  Not that prostitution is ok or anything, but I don't think that's what a prostitute is so interested in.  But the main problem is that if someone isn't willing to do that, Holden believes that it's completely their fault, and they're not a sane person.  No one else expects what Holden expects, and that is why he has such a hard time getting along with people.  What everyone in the world should expect from other people is themselves, and if you don't like that, than it's not their fault.

        Overall, I think that Holden Caulfield's main issue is that he doesn't have the social ability to respect that not many people in the world are like him.  I think that he should embrace that about himself, but not use it to make himself think badly of everyone else in the world.  If I were in Holden's shoes, I would start to think of things from other people's points of view.  Mabye I would even start thinking about changing myself, and my personality. so that I wouldn't have to deal with the social difficulties he's going through.

Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

        I just read The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.  It's about a 14 year old boy who is just starting high school, and is socially inactive.  But he wanted to turn things around.  His first day wasn't successful.  But he met 2 seniors, Sam and Patrick.  They became friends with him, and showed him fun.  They were misfits, just like Charlie. (The main character.)

        Charlie changed personalities, and lifestyle.  For example, he made friends who he could trust, and that loved him.  That can be so uplifting, especially after being a person as lonely as him.  Also, he started doing drugs such as L.S.D. and Marijuana.  It had only been a few months, not even!  I can't even imagine changing that fast.

        Some people think that Sam and Patrick were bad influences.  In some ways they were.  They got him into smoking, and drugs.  But luckily, that didn't take over any of their lives.  They were nothing more, nothing less, than great, loyal, friends.  And that's all anyone needs.  When I'm down, I go to a friend, and they cheer me up.  If you don't have that, life can be harder.  Loneliness can wreck you inside, but having friends you can trust is even more powerful.