The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is most notable as a
challenge to racism and the racist institution of slavery, but the novel
also takes aim at a whole field of social problems: child abuse,
homelessness, crime, war, lack of education, poverty, lawlessness, etc.
For this blog post, write about a social problem that you care about
and have strong opinions about. Describe the problem as you see it, and
explain your stand on the issue and why it matters to you.
P.S.
This blog post will not only help your grade for first quarter but it
will also set you up for an upcoming assignment (called the "ironic
paper"), so it is particularly useful.
A social problem that I care about and have a strong opinion on is gang violence I think this terrible for many reasons such as premature death drug distribution and social and environmental destruction. Premature death is a big issue because anybody can get admission on these gangs all for a small price like selling drugs or killing someone not liked by the gang teenagers are often influenced by this for protection or family for people who are homeless and have nowhere to go. Drug distribution is a big one because most drug selling has its roots to a gang this is there way of money for the group which is connected to deaths in many ways such as violence with other gangs. Social and environmental destruction is big because gang violence is so dangerous that once a place is known for it people will often stereotype about the area and it will stick forever so the poor people will often have to live with that stereotype. Gang Violence is a big issue that needs to be resolved fast or these problems could intensify.
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest issues in our society today is the destruction of a woman's right to choose. There have been many attempts by the government to set regulations on women's bodies through restrictions on abortion and birth control. Some of the reasonings behind these regulations include religious and moral standards, but who gets to decide what the moral or religious standard is? Furthermore,in the US there is a separation of church and state. By this reasoning religious reasoning should not be taken into account when making laws. A woman should be allowed to make her own choices, especially when these choices involve her body and her well being.
ReplyDeleteBy taking away the right to choose the government is sending the message that a woman is not capable of making such big decisions. If a woman cannot decide what is best for her own life how could the government ever trust her to make decisions regarding a child? There are certain situations in which abortions are safer or healthier than carrying through with a pregnancy. These situations include financial problems, rape, risk to the mother, and risk to the child. In same cases women simply feel as though there is no other way out, and what gives the government the right to stop them? A woman’s body is not like a piece of land. It cannot be regulated and restricted. By restricting the decisions a woman can make regarding her body and health it sends the message that women are inferior and incapable of taking care of themselves.
A social problem i'm strongly familiar with is violence. Coming from a city where the chances of you being a victim is one out of fifty-four people with a population of about thirty-six thousand citizens, I can personally say violence is only becoming more popular. It can be "ironic" that guns are made to keep you safe, but they're the number one weapon used to kill. This can be feign because in the constitution, we have a law stating one can keep a gun for protection. Why allow people to buy fire arms if they're only be used for negative reasons? I feel strongly about violence because I visit my hometown most weekends to spend time with my family. Imagine i'm innocently walking down the street and i'm shot or kidnapped. I've witnessed shootouts on my street. My sister was shot on my birthday when i was nine years old. I used to fall asleep to police sirens every night. Since I moved from Chelsea, Massachusetts, my uncle was shoot at a family gathering after a funeral. Why must churl beings exist in the world? I understand that the government cannot slake everyone, but they should be smarter and create better laws regarding gun laws.
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DeleteOne issue in society that bothers me most is how swearing and vulgarity has become such a big part of today's vocabulary. Kids throw around offensive language left and right like it's not a big deal. To some people these words can be extremely offensive. Not even just kids and teens, but adults as well over use this language. It has become a habit for some. There are even some people who can barely say a sentence without it having a curse or swear in it. Are these words really nessecary? When used in literature, I can understand the use of these certain words for effect. But when it comes to having a normal conversation with someone and hearing these words over used gets quite irritating. I do not want to have a conversation with someone who misuses swears. People find humor in vulgar language. Sometimes, it can be funny. Others, it is taken way to far and gets disturbing or just tiresome to even listen too. I for one believe that swearing is a big part of today's language, and plays maybe even too big of a role in the way we communicate and speak to one another.
ReplyDeleteAn issue that concerns me in todays society is how everyone is hypocrites. We all want everyone to be equal but we don't understand how to do so. The way we believe we do is to be over protective to others race, beliefs, etc. For example, if someone was to mention someone's culture and ask them a question about it, something completely respectable to their culture, another person would state "Thats so racist whats wrong with you?" When you clearly meant no harm to the person you were questioning. Now, that person feels uncomfortable with themselves when they didn't need too. What I think is unequal when people point out there is a difference. I think it is wrong how people have to stand outside with signs about everyone being equal. The people who believe they are different and are not welcome into our society are the ones who make themselves not equal. If I had a friend with a difference in my beliefs, gender, or race I would treat them the way I treat everyone else. The thing is when ever I do treat them with out being extra nice, they blame themselves on being different when it had nothing to do with that. I think people should feel more confident with themselves and stop blaming things on how things are unequal when they are.
ReplyDeleteHow does America treat their veterans returning home from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars? I am compassionate about the lack of services the veterans receive when they come home from wars. Many of them have missing arms or legs and many suffer brain damage from bomb attacks. When vets return home after a long tour of duty their family life is sometimes never the same. After experiencing war it is hard for veterans to adjust to civilian life and relationships with loved ones and friends.
ReplyDeleteI believe that vets should be sent to the best hospitals in the country for the special treatments that they need. They should have a hotline available that they can call 24 hours a day for their emotional and psychological problems. I feel that the veterans should be given priority in jobs such as law enforcement and firefighting. They should be allowed to go to college for free and those who are not interested in college should be given training in a trade. Americans should be deeply grateful to our returning veterans and the sacrifices they have made for our freedom.
Perhaps some of you are familiar with the phrase “like a white girl”. It is often used when describing how much one loves delicious beverages from Starbucks, or the carassing touch of an Ugg boot against one’s foot.
ReplyDeleteNot only is this phrase demeaning to anyone who is a girl and is white, but I find it personally insulting. The ‘species’ of the ‘white girl’ is defined by Urban Dictionary as “A creature who often posts pictures of Starbucks on Instagram, Tumblr, or Facebook. Often wears leggings and Ugg Boots… You will always see a White Girl with her Ugg Boots on, Leggings on, and IPhone at Starbucks.”
So, basically, society says that the white girl can not amount to anything more than the value of her Starbucks, Ugg boots, leggings, and iPhone.
Coming from said ‘whitegirl’, I can tell you firsthand that Starbucks is awesome, they have great coffee. Ugg boots are the most comfortable things for feet ever invented, so hats off to you, Australia. Legging also are great because they allow the freedom of movement for one’s legs while simotaneously making one’s butt look good, which, to attain both qualities, is no easy feat to come by. Lastly, EVERYONE HAS AN IPHONE. IT IS NOT JUST WHITE GIRLS.
I am a white girl, and I do all of the things stated above. But I also shoot guns, do jiu jitsu, hike mountains, play soccer, and enjoy a good cheeseburger. And I know lots of other ‘white girls’ who do the same.
I am tired of “like a white girl” causing shame. Since when is having the ability to beat up any football player embarrassing? I can do it, and a lot of girls, white and black and all colors, can too. So I say it is time that we, white girls, stop being ashamed of our stereotypical joys because they make us happy, and start standing strong. Peace, Justice, and Starbucks For All!!
this made me so happy. Coco is so awesome.
DeleteOne social problem that needs to be resolved is the amount of education that the poor are able to receive. Countless students are faced with the issue of how to pay for schooling. Weather it be books or the basic school necessities, like paper and pencils, many students are unable to afford their school supplies. The struggle to get the proper materials to be educated prevents many students from receiving a proper education. Along with inaccessible materials, some students have to worry about paying for school tuitions. Students everywhere are in a constant struggle of saving enough money for college. This inability to pay for certain colleges prevents many students from achieving their academic dreams. These students are forced to lower their standards of education and their dreams to ones that could be more realistic. Many poor students struggle to receive their educational needs and desires.
ReplyDeleteThis problem of education is one that is very important to me. I believe no one should be withheld an education based on money. All students deserve the right to a proper high school and college education. In my opinion, it's wrong that some students are unable to achieve their dreams of schooling because they face poverty. Although there are some services out there to help the poor receive education, I believe there needs to be more programs that are able to satisfy all students needs. The issue of poverty prevents many inspired students from achieving their educational hopes and dreams.
A subject that strikes me as wrong and unfair within our society is the lack of women's rights and gender discrimination throughout the world and our country.The right to have children or not to have children should be their own. Even though women can be very intelligent, sometimes a woman may unintentionally become pregnant. Women should decide if they wish to stay pregnant, yet many people believe that some of these choices shouldn't even be made. If a women becomes accidentally pregnant due to rape, shouldn't she have the right to choose whether or not she is ready both financially and mentally for the child to be born? One in five women in the United States have been or are at risk of being raped in their lifetime. Many people say things like “oh she deserved it”, or “she was asking for it, just look at what shes wearing”. No person is asking to be raped, or abused, or misused because of what they are wearing. Womans sexuallity is taken advantage of, people see them for their body instead of their intelligence or personality. Many girls and women in the society are thought of for their sexuallity and how “hot” they are. Women in society are taken advantage of because of their looks and this leads to major let downs on their choices as human beings. As well as sexuality, gender inequality in the workplace has been the norm since women entered the workplace about 100 years ago. Many studies indicate that women work more than men, yet are often paid less. Women and girls are often the ones that suffer most from poverty. However, many people around the world is striving to make gender equality and women’s rights a bigger deal and are trying to improve poverty in women and child survival and development. The importance for women's rights and gender equality should be taken much more seriously because it will increase the rate of child survival and also the development in more successful women. If women were to have equal rights there would also be a growth in confidence and decline in girls self harm. Gender discrimination is a huge problem both globally and across the United States even today. This is something that is a huge problem in society and something about which i feel strongly.
ReplyDeleteYou tell em L Kuhns!
DeleteIn todays society, I think there are many issues. I think the worst is the amount of stress on teens. Being a teenage girl in this time period is one of the most stressful things I will inquire in my life. You are expected to go to school and pay attention in class. Expected to treat all of your treaters with respect when they give you none and actually tell you they don't care of my opinion. Seriously? I could care less about some of the irrelevant things I'm FORCED to listen to everyday and I'm not saying that to them. This only makes you stressed when you realize how much you dislike one class and if you do something about it you will probably fail. Then they get mad at you for not knowing the vocal terms because we don't spend 30-45 minutes everyday studying them. Maybe if everyone of my teachers didn't tell me that I could focus on one thing and be able to do it but there is so much going on it gets so over whelming I don't know where to start with it all. On top of all this they want you to play a sport and participate in after school activities when all school really wants me to do is go home and go to sleep because I was most likely up all night on some sort of assignments. I think the true way to stop feeling stressed is to get your mind off of it and find what makes you happy. Happiness to me is surrounding myself with my friends and family which I never have time to do because I'm always so caught up with school. So now not only does school cause stress but it is taking away happiness to me. Also, they want you to be at school at 7;30 in the morning and to be awake at this time you should get a good nights sleep and thats close to impossible unless you just ignore the fact that you have 3 quizzes tomorrow and an essay to do. I think teachers should find ways to make it so you don't have to study because if you have to study that means the teachers aren't doing there job teaching it because you have to memorize these terms to know them. It's not something that you will remember it's something you will forget the second the test\ quiz is passed out. A huge issue on our society is school because it causes teens way to much stress and takes way to much time giving is no other choice but to dread it. The only way we can fix this if the board of education would actually have to listen to students and try and make a compromise with us instead of having unrealistic expectations.
ReplyDeleteA social problem I feel strongly about is homophobia and people against gay rights. I personally feel, having homosexual family members and friends, that love should be between anyone and that it should not be limited to only a man and a woman. I feel that if two people love each other enough, they should be allowed to be together and share the same rights that every other couple (married or not) have. Im glad that this social issue is being viewed in a better light that it use to be in the past, with communities accepting homosexuality as a part of our culture and states legalizing gay marriage is just another step towards equality. Unfortunately not all countries have the same freedom that we are fortunate enough to have and are much stricter, making homosexuality illegal and even punishable. (Whether by the government or others)
ReplyDeleteReligion is another contributor to many people's intolerance of homosexuality. Many religions like Christianity and Islam for example are very much against gay rights. Though I'm not saying i'm against any religious beliefs, i am against their prejudice against same sex couples. I find that gay rights is one of the large social issues that people are still struggling with to this day.
An issue in today’s society that I find particularly disturbing is technology’s negative impact on humanity. It should be noted before I begin that my intent is not to discredit the several great advances we have made with technology, but to simply prove that it is causing human interaction to slowly deteriorate. We need to realize that what was created as a way to “connect” us, has only caused connection to get worse. How will it be possible for this generation to function in society when technology does almost everything for us?
ReplyDeleteTake a second to imagine a time when you could go out with a friend and have an actual conversation. How about a time when your self-worth was not measured by amount of followers and likes but simply by how you felt about yourself as a person. Can you imagine actually confronting someone with a problem rather than writing an angry message or post? Now lets think about school. Can you remember the last time you used a book for research instead of Google? When is the last time you spell-checked your own paper instead of having the computer do it for you?
We currently live in a world where news has been reduced to 140 characters and where videos are only six seconds long. Overstimulation is at its highest and the average attention span of a person is one second lower than that of a goldfish. It’s no wonder we can’t have normal conversations anymore. Technology has taken hold of us. It has twisted and shaken and morphed us so that society is nothing like what it once was. We need to escape this grasp. So please, put down your phone.
As a high school student, homework is a frustrating issue in today’s society for students all across America. Teenagers in this society have a lot to balance in their lives, sports, friends just to name a few. After a long day of school, students hate the fact that they have to two to three or maybe even four hours of homework. In addition, if a student participates in an after school activity, it adds on more time to the students schedule, and makes the homework even harder to accomplish. Also, if a student has a social problem or having to take care of a sick family member, homework will highly interfere with the problem that student may have. Also, if a student is staying up too late to complete their homework, then they are not getting the right amount of sleep they need each night. Doctors recommend teenagers to obtain eight to nine hours of sleep. As a result, as a high school student, my friends and I get at most six to seven hours of sleep a night. Also students spend less time with friends and family and start to lack a social life. With all the hours of homework, and having a sport students are unable to be with their families, and are unable to catch up with their friends. Some may think that homework helps the student review what they learned in school that day, but having two or three hours of it is too much, when it should just be a quick review of thirty to forty five minutes of what they learned that day. To sum it up, homework causes a lot of stress on students, and even interferes with their lives, socially, and even mentally.
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