Thesis Statement (which will probably be changed at least six more times before my final draft)

The United States Government is taking action in censoring the Internet more, which limits the creativity of the online generation.

Langston Hughes

In I, Too by Langston Hughes, the main theme is the freedom found in equality. The speaker tells of how he is sent to the kitchen to eat. Although this is degrading, he says he will eat well and grow stronger. In the next stanza, he speaks of Tomorrow. He says when tomorrow comes, no one will dare tell him to eat in the kitchen. This indicates that he is treated as an equal. He says that they’ll see how beautiful he is, and will be ashamed of how they treated him. The speaker knows that one day he will be free and treated as an equal to white people. He just has to be patient enough to wait for that day to come.

This piece shows the struggle for equality that African Americans faced. In this time frame, the equal rights movement was taking shape and they realized they could find freedom through equality. I thought this piece was inspirational, even though I do not know the hardships they were facing firsthand. It is a positive poem that shows that one day, African Americans will be treated as equals.

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

1.  He is surrounded by people with no emotional depth, and is in love with a woman, but he is afraid to tell her.

2. Prufrock feels overwhelmed and confused.

3. He thinks he is a wimp and is self-conscious about his disappearing hairline. Prufrock thinks he is scrawny and has body image issues.

4. This poem shows Prufrock’s internal conflict with whether or not he should tell the woman he loves about his affection for her, as well as his struggle with his self-confidence. The climax of the poem occurs in line 111, where he compares himself to Polonius from Hamlet, who serves the king. This shows that Prufrock does not view himself as a worthy man, but a low and sad man. He decides to not to tell the woman that he loves her. The resolution is about him growing older, and talking about drowning in the waves. Throughout the poem, he expresses his insecurities. He knows if he goes to the parties, people will talk about his balding head and his thin arms. The women would ignore him, even if he held the secret about life after death. He even goes so far as to say he wants to be a sea creature, so he can be in the lonely, quiet, and peaceful sea.

5. The structure speeds up the rhythm of the poem, which indicates his anxiety.

6.

Lines 120-121: When people age, they get smaller and their clothes become too large. As he gets older, he’ll have to roll up the pant bottoms. This shows that Prufrock is again and will soon have to fix his clothing so it will fit.

Lines 122-123: He again talks about his bald spot, and how he may have to start parting his hair behind to cover it. The peach represents women and their “disgusting” arm hair, and how they are temptation. This again touches on his fear or almost hatred of women, as well as his insecurities about his appearance.

Lines 124-125: Mermaids often represent sirens, which lure men into the sea until they drown. Prufrock is so insecure, he doesn’t even think they’d sing to him.

Lines 126-131: In this, Prufrock is talking about how he is living life in a daydream sort of state. Lines 131 is a very sad line, which says “Till human voices wake us, and we drown.” This implies that when you live life in a dreamlike state, and when you finally are woken up by the important decisions that you have to make, you drown in the amount of responsibilities and worries that you have. This shows that he has realized how important his love decision is.

Elizabeth Peratrovich

Elizabeth Peratrovich was born in Petersburg in 1911. She was key in the native rights movement between WWI and WWII. She became the president of the Alaska Native Sisterhood, while her husband, Roy Peratrovich, was the president of the Alaska Native Brotherhood. In 1941, Peratrovich moved to Juneau. She and her husband were keen to live in a nice neighborhood and were nearing lease arrangements when the owner was informed that they were native. The owner, in response, told Elizabeth and Roy they couldn’t live in that house. Elizabeth testified in front of the territorial senate before they voted on The Anti-Discrimination Act. It is assumed that her speech was the turning point for the act, and it passed 11 to 5. In celebration of her work in ending native rights, the Alaska Legislature approved creating a state holiday in her name. Unfortunately, Elizabeth died of cancer on December 1, 1958. Her husband died around one week before the first Elizabeth Peratrovich Day, on February 7, 1989. Elizabeth Peratrovich day is celebrated throughout Alaska every year on February 16.

Episode 9 Outline

Episode 9 (Chapters 36-The Last)

-Huck finds the Phelps house

-Sally thinks Huck is her nephew Tom Sawyer

-Sally’s husband Silas shows up and is pumped to see him

-Huck hears a steamboat and rushes to tell Tom what is going on

-Tom is very surprised to see Huck

-Tom agrees with Huck’s charade, and even agrees to help Jim escape

-Huck and Tom sneak out and see a mob with the tarred and feathered king and duke

-Even though they’ve never done anything for Huck, he still feels sorry for the frauds

-Tom comes up with a plan to steal Jim back

-Tom’s scheme becomes more and more complicated

-Tom and Huck put snakes in the shed and in the house

-Tom demands they leave anonymous letters indicating that something bad will happen

-The family freaks out

-House is filled with farmers

-Huck Tom and Jim are chased away by dogs and the angry farmers

-Tom gets shot

-Huck gets a doctor for Tom

-Silas finds Huck and brings him home

-The Doctor takes Tom and Jim back to the house

-Jim is told he was a good guy by the the doctor

-Tom tells Aunt Sally their whole scheme

-Tom says Jim was freed when Old Miss Watson died

-Aunt Polly shows up

-BOOK ENDS HAPPILY EVER AFTER(ISH)