This was completed in collaboration with Emma Maltba and Kenna Sipe.
While reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, Ebenezer Scrooge is first introduced as “[h]ard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster” (stave 1). Scrooge is entirely unhappy and despises the presence of other people. After visits from four ghosts, he has a change of heart towards others. A Christmas Carol was published on December 19, 1843 which was during the time of the cholera pandemic. In the following diary entries, Scrooge is writing his thoughts in the course of the pandemic.
June 14th, 1848
Today marks the six month period since the beginning of this pandemic. It has not been as dreadful as everyone is bringing it out to be. The townsfolk always say I’m a pluviophile, but I needn’t not mind what they say. It’s all mullock to me anyway. The outbreak has started to get more unfavorable every passing day. Countless people are perishing every day, but this does not affect me. However, I have been thinking “what if I am next to go?” Drinking water is supposedly the reason for all this nonsense. Cholera is ruining my business, but I am certainly not giving my money to these wretches, especially the Cratchits. Bob Cratchit is consistently requesting for more and more money. Alright, enough about this mullock. Let me tell you about this dream I had the other day, well I believe it was a dream. It felt very realistic to me. It seemed to involve this ghost who somehow brought the past to life. I saw myself as a young boy and it was extremely peculiar. Jacob Marley was there as well and it was like he was trying to haunt me. Not only was he there, but my old schoolmates were there too. It seemed like the ghost was trying to show me that I missed the company of others. Which is somewhat true to life, but I would never declare that to another soul. The dream was trying to show me that I shouldn’t like being alone, but rather relish the presence of other individuals. I feel as though this spirit was trying to get me to recognize that things need to change. That’s all I have to say for this moment in time. Hopefully when I write next I will arrive with greater news.
-Ebenezer Scrooge
December 23rd, 1848
I am beginning to realize why everyone blithers on about happiness without money. Money is all I have. I am living in solitude during this horrendous pandemic while everyone else around me is fading with no fortune to carry their name. Everyone else has their kin and confidants while I have me, myself, and money. At the same time, I still believe that life without money is mullock. If I get ill and die, at least I shall have my fortune to carry my name. Who would wish to be poor like those Cratchits? Undoubtedly not I. Although, I slightly wish I had someone, anyone, to share it with. No one wants to be in my presence. I am certain of this because I hear whispers from the windows of the townsfolk. They say that I am a snollygoster. It is like a spirit haunted me and opened my eyes to what the townsfolk think about me. I want to keep my fortune, but is the solitude and scuttlebutt worth it?
-Ebenezer Scrooge
June 5th, 1849
It has now been an entire year since this cursed pandemic began. If someone was to ask me to describe myself in this isolated state, I would say that I am a librocubularist. I have begun re-reading the books on my shelf for the fourth time. I have also begun to wonder if I should write my own tale. This notion made me realize that I could make myself even more money, but since all of the bookstores are closed, no one would be able to purchase such a book. What a misfortune, really. However, at this point I am beginning to grow quite tired of my money’s company. What I would give to have someone here with me. This next statement may make me sound like a blithering idiot, but I would be ecstatic to be in the presence of Jacob Marley’s ghost. Speaking of spirits, I have seemed to encounter yet another. I have begun having those wretched dreams once more. However, this time I have begun dreaming about a hooded figure with arms and fingers like twisted tree roots. In these dreams, he has shown me Tiny Tim’s death and the town’s feelings towards me. They say I am cruel and selfish, and I have begun to think that they are right. Perhaps if I give money to the Cratchits I can aid Tiny Tim before he meets his grim end. It is now reaching eventide, so I shall try to put these dark thoughts to rest along with myself.
-Ebenezer Scrooge
December 25th, 1849
The end of this wretched pandemic has finally arrived. I have come to realize that my scurrilous behavior needs to change. Throughout isolation I began to long for company. I realize now that being so greedy only pushes others away, and I do not aim for that anymore. I do not wish to drown in my fortune and greed only to die a lonely man. Now that isolation is over, I am going to have a pannychis with Bob Cratchit. I am willing to sophronise myself to create a relationship with him and his family. From this day forward, I am going to be a new, better man.
-Ebenezer Scrooge
Works Cited
Dickens, Charles. A Christmas Carol. 1843. Project Gutenberg,
War has always been a term many people are familiar with. For centuries, many different civilizations have been at war. Although it may seem like a good thing, there are many consequences to it. In William Godwins, “Of the Cause of War” the reader can start to see the after effects. There aren’t just after effects of a war, but many times there are also preceding effects. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein shows us that through one specific character. By comparing and contrasting the two Romantic Period works, the concept becomes something new.
In William Godwins “Of the Causes of War,” he demonstrates the mindset of what war can do. He starts by talking about the political aspect of war, to then continue on to talk about the “gross ideas” (NAEL, 744) that war puts into thought. Godwin portrays the thought that “[a] wise man will not fail” (NAEL, 744) to exhort his country by facing the battles and difficulties of war. By giving an example of a battlefield, Godwin then extends his knowledge of war. Godwin questions why “men deliberately destroy each other” (NAEL, 744) without knowing why the opposing man is there. Throughout his work in “Of the Causes of War” William Godwin sheds a new light onto the thoughts and doings of war.
In chapter four of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein starts working on the monster. Before he begins, Victor has shut everyone in his life out and he is alone with his own thoughts. Through the process of creating this monster, he starts to think about the characteristics of a human. By telling a story about his father, Victor shows an example of what he is wanting his creation to not be. His father had an aggressive mindset and was portraying these feelings towards Victor. Having a rough childhood, Victor portrayed the thought that his father was “neglect to vice” (Shelley, 49) and that is not what he thought what a human should convey. In fact, Victor believed that the “pursuit of knowledge” (50) should be taken into consideration when speaking about “unlawful pursuit.” Victor thinks a “human in perfection” (50) shouldn’t have the thought of vice. He strongly believes that if a human would have a “peaceful mind” (50), then “Greece had not been enslaved; Caesar would have spared his country; America would have been discovered more gradually; and the empires of Mexico and Peru had not been destroyed” (50). Through the character of Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley portrays her views against the thoughts of war.
Through both of the Romantic Period writings, the thoughts of war are brought up. Although they have different contexts, both works convey a similar view. Through Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and William Godwin’s “Of the Causes of War,” the reader is able to identify that both pieces of writing portray that war is not always a good thing. Godwin believes that a man should exhort his country, but shouldn’t be deliberate with killing people they don’t know. Along with Godwin, Shelley portrays through Victor Frankenstein that a perfect man has a “peaceful mind” (50), and shouldn’t be content with killing people. Both authors have portrayed their thoughts of war throughout their works.
William Godwin and Mary Shelley have given their views on war and how it can alter someone’s life. By giving an example of what he believes a battlefield may look like, Godwin shows the post-war effects that could occur to a civilization. Through Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley shows what a “perfect” man would be like. Both of these Romantic Period authors see war as a negative aspect of life. For centuries, many people believed that war is a solution to a problem. After seeing the views of Godwin and Shelley, one could begin to question “Is war really a good thing?”
When taking a glance at Disappointed Love, ones eyes are directed towards the young girl sitting on the floor of the woods. The artist Francis Danby uses strong detail and contrasting colors to allow this painting to feel more real. With her head on her knee, the young girls emotions are hidden. By the use of the title, subtitle, and the young girl, it could easily be inferred that this is how the young girl is upset with a love that she couldn’t control. In comparison to the Introduction and Preface of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the painting Danby created can be seen as Shelley herself. Shelley had a rough love life and didn’t find it easy and seen on page XIV of the Introduction of Frankenstein, Shelley talks about how on July 8, 1822, her husband Percy Shelley drowned. This is an example of how Danby’s Disappointed Love can relate to Frankenstein.
In Collaboration with Jenna Ramsey and Kenna Sipe.
As our time in English 112 began, we were informed of a book we would be reading and studying throughout the semester: Educated by Tara Westover. As we dove into the book, we met Shawn Westover, one of Tara’s brothers. In our progression in the book, we read of accidents Shawn faced and the aftermath(s) he experienced psychologically. As we read of these incidents and the way in which they affected Shawn, we became curious. We began to wonder how these psychological issues may have affected Shawn’s relationships with his loved ones, particularly with his sister Tara, and how these issues may have affected the mental state of Shawn’s loved ones.
The trauma and abuse in which Tara experienced is sadly something in which many people face in their lifetime. In the bibliography to follow, we studied how such trauma and abuse may affect a person, their life, and the lives of their friends or loved ones. We found a variety of sources such as research articles and blog posts to help us to study and learn about how abuse and trauma can affect relationships.
The first research article we found discussed psychological and physical aggression and the effects it has on people. The first blog that we found on Tara’s memoir broke down the individual situations that led to Shawn’s psychological issues and the situations of abuse/controlment that Shawn inflicted on his loved ones. The second blog post was written by a psychologist who wrote wrote about Educated with her opinion on the book, the mental illnesses/psychological issues that were introduced in the story, and on how everything Tara mentioned in her book affected her and her family as a whole. In the second research article that we found, the author discusses Stockholm Syndrome and the way in which this syndrome controls/affects the people who have this syndrome. Lastly, we used a chapter from Westover’s memoir to show first hand the abuse Shawn inflicted on his sister and how she had learned that she must hide how the abuse truly made her feel so as to not let Shawn know.
Annotated Bibliography
Lawrence, E., Yoon, J., Langer, A., & Ro, E. (2009). Is psychological aggression as
detrimental as physical aggression? the independent effects of psychological aggression on depression and anxiety symptoms. Violence and Victims, 24(1), 20-35. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.24.1.20
Throughout the source written about psychological and physical aggression, the authors conduct a study to try to figure out how the levels of anxiety and depression in a person can lead to a type of aggression in a relationship. Within the beginning of the study, the authors found that many of the relationships in the study had a past of having aggression.The study proved that the woman in the relationship had an aggression within the first two months, but the aggression levels dropped within the third month. The mens aggressive levels were low in the beginning of the relationship, but steadily grew throughout the next three months. This research shows that ultimately that both men and women can show the same behaviors just at different times.
Going through this study of psychological and physical aggression, one can see how many of these traits relate to how Shawn treated Tara within certain chapters of Educated. Although the source was primarily about marriage and couples, the same things can apply to Shawn. His use of physical aggression leads him to have many factors of psychological disorders. On page 24 of the PDF, the authors talk about the use of psychological victimization. Many of these factors can be seen within Shawn and his relationship with Tara.
Penn, A., & Penn, A. (2019, October 11). Shawn Westover: Tara Westover’s Brother and
In the article “Shawn Westover: Tara Westover’s Brother and Sadistic Abuser,” Amanda Penn provides an insight into the psychological problems of Shawn Westover and how these issues affected his relationship he held with his sister, Tara. In some situations, Shawn would be kind and seemingly normal towards Tara but then, at the slightest trigger or ‘wrong’ movement, he would turn violent and aggressive towards her until she did as he wished. These acts of violence were not a one time deal, but something that occurred time after time, whenever something occurred in which Shawn didn’t approve. In Penn’s article, she goes through different scenarios of aggression and violence that Tara and other family members experienced at the hands of Shawn.
These acts of violence/aggression that Penn discusses show a sense of insight to what Tarra discussed in some chapters in her memoir. The psychological issues that Shawn experiences come from accidents and injuries brought on by his time working in the junkyard and not seeking the proper medical attention necessary to correctly heal the injuries. The injuries he faced caused him to become aggressive and cruel when he experienced a trigger and this caused his relationship with Tara to become strained, toxic, and unhealthy. Shawn abused Tara whenever he was upset and this caused her to blame herself for things when she wrote in her journal and caused her to worry about what others thought of her and her family.
By writing “A Psychologist’s Take on Tara Westover’s Memoir, Educated” Goal Saedi Bocci Ph.D allows the public to see into a professional’s point of view when it comes to Westover’s writing. Throughout the article, Bocci writes about how shocked she was by the abuse and torment that Tara went through when it came to her brother Shawn. Bocci repeatedly mentions that Shawn should have been contacted by Child Protective Services. While reading aloud to her husband, he asks her, “does she have Stockholm Syndrome?”.
The thought of Tara having Stockholm Syndrome is not an irrational thought or an absurd idea. Throughout Educated, there are multiple examples of Shawn terrorizing Tara both at home and in public. However, Tara continues to tell herself that the abuse isn’t Shawn’s fault. Instead, she blames herself for allowing it to escalate and continue. One specific example would be in chapter 22 “What We Whispered and What We Screamed”. While eating dinner with Charles and her family, Shawn stabs Tara in her stomach, causing her to break a plate. Tara is pinned to the floor before she realizes what is going on. Seconds later, she is dragged into the bathroom by her hair and Shawn pulls her into the bathtub when she tries to fight him off. While all this is going on, Tara is howling with laughter and tries to make light of the situation, which implies that she may have Stockholm Syndrome.
Wallace, Pat, BSc,R.G.N., R.H.V. (2007). How can she still love him? domestic violence and
In “How can she still love him? domestic violence and the Stockholm Syndrome”, Pat Wallace provides an in-depth explanation of Stockholm Syndrome and how it affects both the perpetrator and the victim. Wallace mentions how victims may feel like they need to protect their abuser and how they grow an emotional attachment to them as well. Most victims feel dependent on the abuser, they are hopeless when it comes to ending the violence, they try to deny the violence, they develop low self-esteem, and they worry that people won’t believe them when they do come forward. The victim tries to develop a bond with the perpetrator in order to drown out the sense of anxiety and hopelessness. Ultimately, this acts as a way for the victim to see the situation from the point of view of the abuser and allows them to develop a sense of survival.
After reading this article, it is evident that Tara may have had a case of Stockholm Syndrome, but was unaware of her own mental status. She had mentioned previously in Educated that she was trying to cover up for Shawn, even though she knew that he was the perpetrator in this situation. Tara’s older sister, Audrey, was also a victim of Shawn’s abusive ways. She had never spoken up about Shawn either, because she was scared that her parents wouldn’t believe her. In chapter 31 “Tragedy Then Farce”, Tara and Audrey both decide to confront their parents about Shawn’s abuse. Tara’s mother realizes that she should have protected her children from the growing force of negativity and anger growing in their household. In the end, Tara’s obscure family inches closer to becoming your run-of-the-mill family.
Westover, T. (2018). Educated. Random.
Throughout Chapter 22 of Educated, Tara shares her memory of her and Shawn going to the store where Charles was. Tara was going into town to get something to help with her job scraping. She did not have the best appearance that she could have, so she didn’t want Charles seeing her. Shawn pulled her out of the truck and started to hit her vigorously. Throughout that happening, Tara just laughed it off and acted like he was just kidding with her. Also, Shawn told Tara that if he was ever hurting her at one point, that she should let him know and he would stop “playing around” with her. So it made her think that it wasn’t his fault that she was getting hurt.
Reading through the chapter, it is obvious that both Shawn and Tara have a mental disorder. This relates to the other sources because it ties in how Shawn treated Tara and how it lead to the diagnosis of Tara. When Tara tells this story, it proves the point of Bocci and how she should be diagnosed with Stockholm Syndrome. It gives concrete evidence that they both have something wrong with them. It shows that Shawn knows he is being abusive, but plays it off as a joke. Tara knows he is being abusive, but plays it off like he is just doing it to be funny.
References
Bocci, G. S. (2018, April 2). A Psychologist’s Take on Tara Westover’s Memoir, Educated.
Lawrence, E., Yoon, J., Langer, A., & Ro, E. (2009). Is psychological aggression as
detrimental as physical aggression? the independent effects of psychological aggression on depression and anxiety symptoms. Violence and Victims, 24(1), 20-35. Retrieved from doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.24.1.20
Penn, A., & Penn, A. (2019, October 11). Shawn Westover: Tara Westover’s Brother and
Throughout Tara Westover’s memoir Educated, the reader is brought into her life as a young girl. She speaks about her family and her day-to-day life. One character that goes through a development is one of her brothers named Shawn. Within chapter twelve, Tara writes about how much he changes, from teaching Tara self defense to being a reason to learn self defense. Through chapter twelve, Tara allows the reader to develop certain feelings about Shawn and Tara’s relationship.
In the beginning of chapter twelve, the relationship between Shawn and Tara is first introduced. Throughout the beginning chapters of the memoir, Shawn and Tara seemed to have a good relationship, due to the ways Tara describes him. In chapter twelve, Tara really shows their closeness with sharing about the time he was helping her with self defense and playing games during the long truck drive. When driving, Shawn came up with the “game of talking.” (pg. 105) The objective of the game was to switch the beginning letters of two words. Shawn started the game with “sittle lister.” (105) With Tara writing about this road trip, it shows the relationship between Shawn and Tara. Shawn seemed to care about Tara and wanted to keep her happy and safe.
After the beginning pages of chapter twelve, the relationship between Tara and Shawn starts to change. Tara starts becoming active with the plays at The Worm Creek Opera House. Shawn stepped up and started taking Tara to the opera house for auditions. This is where Shawn met Sadie, a young girl who seemed to have a crush on Shawn. After Shawn and Sadie met, he was starting to mess around with her. One afternoon Shawn asked Sadie to get him a Snickers from the dime store. When she returned with the Snickers, he said “ I want a Milky Way.” (108) Shawn did this a few more times and Sadie still went to get him whatever he asked for. With her doing this, it made Shawn realize that he had some sort of power over her. Not only over Sadie, but Tara as well. He started treating Tara like she was his personal assistant. Shawn asked Tara for water and threatened that if she didn’t he wouldn’t drive her to town the next day. Tara was getting tired of this so, she poured the whole cup on his head. Without thinking, Shawn “grabbed a fistful of [her] hair.” (110) He dragged her all the way to the bathroom and held her face in the toilet. With this event happening, it shows how Tara and Shawn’s relationship starts to change. Shawn started to get aggressive and Tara writes about this throughout the rest of the chapter.
With writing chapter twelve, Tara sets up the rest of the memoir with just a change in a relationship. The use of a plot twist allows Tara to write the rest of the memoir with leaving the reader to see what happens next. This also shows the development of Shawn and how one thing can change in someone’s life affecting the people around them as well. The relationship of Shawn and Tara within chapter twelve has a jurassic change and allows Tara to truly show her feelings.
Throughout my high-school career, in almost all of the classes I have taken, we students have been asked to conduct some form of research. In any of the main subjects such as math, science, English and history, research was conducted. Whether it was an essay in English, a project for math, or even a PowerPoint for science or history, research was conducted.
In many of my classes, I have done either formal or informal research. I have created posters for math that show how to solve a series of equations, and even a PowerPoint for science talking about a specific scientist. The research project I remember most vividly is the scientist project in high school biology class. I remember when I was assigned to conduct research on Rosalind Franklin. When I first received the little sheet of paper that read her name, I was clueless as to who she was. Throughout the next few weeks, I started to learn more about her and the things that she had accomplished throughout her life. I soon found out that she found that there are two forms of DNA, “A” dry form, and “B” wet form. After finding this out, I created a presentation to show all of my findings of Rosalind. Two weeks had passed and it was time to start presenting our research each student had found.
Although many people believe that when he or she watches a TV show, they know everything about that series, but many times that is not the case. This was shown and proven to me when I was asked to conduct a TVography. After a show has ended, credits then roll across the screen, saying the information about the show. When compiling research on my top five favorite tv shows, I found that most of the shows were produced in the same general areas. Throughout the research of those five shows, it was shown to me that even though a person thinks they know a lot about some of their favorite things, they will always find something new to learn.
When reading chapter 26 in The Norton Field Guide to Writing, I was able to find a specific section that really sparks my interest. The section on page 318 about Health Sciences is the main paragraph that really interested me. This is something that sparked my interest because when I choose a career I want to be a Speech Pathologist. It has always been something I have been interested in and would be something I would enjoy doing. When doing research on that career, I found that writing was an important aspect, but finding that “writing in third person, paraphrased source information,” (Bullock et al. 318) would be something that is required in this field of study. This paragraph in the textbook really brought good insight to this career and the many others that were also listed.
In all of my years of school, I have always conducted some form of research. Whether it being a paper, a PowerPoint or just looking something up, research has benefited me in some way. After doing all of the things that I have done in the past with research, it is now clear to me why it is needed, especially when someone is trying to figure out what they would want to do as a career.
Works Cited Bullock, Richard et al. Chapter 26: “Reading Across Fields of Study.” The Norton Field Guide to Writing with Readings and Handbook. 5th ed. Norton, 2019. pp. 294-304. PDF.
Throughout my life, I’ve always had the privilege to have a TV in my home and that has allowed me to see how shows change throughout the years. Many of my favorite shows are from different years and some of them were things my mom watched when she was my age. Some of my favorite shows are listed above and as one can tell, they are all from different times. F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Full House and One Tree Hill are all the shows that were released around the 1990’s to early 2000’s. First Responders Live and Brooklyn 99 are shows that were released after 2010. I have been a fan of all of these shows as long as they have either been released or as long as I’ve known about them. The newer shows that I listed, I have watched and kept up with them since they were released on air. The older shows I have been watching since about eight years ago. They all fit around the same genre of shows, drama and comedy. I like my shows to have a mixture of both drama and comedy and all of the shows have a good equal balance and I think that is the reason they are so appealing to me. Choosing these shows weren’t very hard for me to choose. When I was asked to choose five shows, these were the first ones that immediately popped into my head. I enjoy watching all of the seasons and episodes, so I really don’t have a favorite.
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