April Blog: Prisons in the United States

The Stranger’s ending brings up the question of whether or not the prison system harms its’ prisoners rather than provide them with the necessary rehabilitation provided to succeed in society once they serve their sentence. By showing Meursault come to a revelation while being in prison, The Stranger goes against the current view in American society about prisons. In today’s society, especially in the United States, the prison system is becoming more and more criticized for its harsh punishments for minor crimes, taking people completely out of society for life for a crime that did not deserve to do so. The United States prison system has led to millions of people losing job opportunities because they have a felony on their record as well as leaving these same people with mental liabilities for their rime spent in prison. However, The Stranger reveals Meursault’s coming to life and reality as he finds his purpose in his prison sentence to be executed. Instead of harming Meursault, prison actually helped him realize his only purpose in life. By no means do I think the United States prison system provides everyone with a life changing revelation, but I do feel that there’s a lot more benefit to it than the majority of Americans view it has. I feel that our prison system does provide certain people with a better outlook on life as they are able to change their life around due to seeing how rough life can be as a criminal. However, I do feel that the prison system overall is a bad system as too many prisoners end up ruining their lives over petty offenses due to their prison sentences are too lengthy. I believe in getting punished where a punishment is due, but I feel like the overcrowding of United States’ prisons occurs because of strict punishment. Meursault had no problem with his punishment because he knew he committed a heinous crime. This is why he didn’t lie to protect himself because he had no reason to. The United States prison system should strive to imprison people like that instead of imprisoning people that still can contribute to society.

February Blog: Knowing Your Roots

The easiest action to undertake in the middle of a crisis is to run away. Removing yourself from a hard situation represents the easy way out. However, most people see running away from a problem as a cowardly act and I would have to agree with them. In Khaled Hosseini’s novel A Thousand Splendid Suns, Laila and her family decide to escape Kabul because it has become unsafe to live in. However, she ends up returning because she wants to live out her life in the place where she was born and raised and where she saw so much of her life happen whether good or bad. The longing to maintain at home amidst a crisis is one that I have seen throughout modern culture. For instance, after the September 11^th attacks in New York, most people decided to remain in that area instead of running away. After seeing something so dreadful happen to their beloved ones or their beloved home place, many people refused to leave because of one bad occurrence. The people of New York bonded together instead of departing in several different ways, showing how society strives to get through hard times together by staying true to their roots. For me, staying true to my roots is something I take into consideration with every major decision I make. I always want to be around my family because that is where I know I’ll receive the most help and care from. For college, I am trying to stay as close to home as possible because that’s where I feel most comfortable. Similar to Laila and Kabul, I see the Philadelphia area as my home where I know where everything will be. Yes, there might be some conflict and some hardships, but at the end of everything, my family will still be in that area, which means I will be a part of that area. Too many people nowadays run away from conflict to leave behind their past experiences. I understand that some of them are leaving to search for a better life, but I believe that the best life that most of them will cherish will be to work things out where they are comfortable in.

January Blog: Appearances vs. Happiness

Modern society tends to focus on appearances rather than happiness. Many people today care too much about how they look to others and too little about how they look to themselves. As a result, the world has focused on success, looks, and surroundings rather than happiness. To me, this is why too many marriages fall apart in today’s world. In A Doll’s House, Helmer tells Nora, “Now it’s just about saving the remains, the wreckage, the appearance”. Helmer wasn’t interested in happiness from a marriage, but he wanted Nora to stay with him so his business appearance would stay the same. Nora, on the other hand, was tired of giving up happiness for a good appearance, causing her to leave Helmer and carry on with her life looking for true happiness. Their marriage focused solely on appearance and involved little emotion. I think in today’s world, more people are trying to achieve something other than happiness through marriage. People are trying to gain an advantage by marrying someone who could help them succeed more in life rather than focusing on the qualities of a partner. I feel like this is the problem that has led to a higher divorce rate. I have also seen the focus on appearance rather than joy and happiness in several other areas of life. For instance, up until this year, many people feared for their life to announce they were homosexual. They feared their appearance would be ruined so they wouldn’t reach out to obtain true happiness. In fact, many homosexuals still are in fear of coming out even if it has been ruled to be legal. The world is driven by what makes one look good and not by what makes one happy. Too many people are caught up in making money rather than living life. I get it, everyone wants to fit in and be successful. But why should people give up happiness to achieve these things? While Nora wasn’t exactly a great character in the play, I feel that more people need to stand up against social trends and start focusing on what makes them happy, not what makes the corporations, executives, and so many others happy.