Malala's Mission by Alessandra Potenza

  Although the idea of equal opportunity education is second nature many, Malala Yousafzai was not so lucky. The Nobel Peace Prize winner lived in a Pakistani village that was controlled by the Taliban; with the Taliban in control, she did not get a chance to go to school. Disappointed by this, Malala advocated for the education of women, believing that the Taliban’s laws were unjust and unfair. Then suddenly, on October 9th 2012, her world turned upside down as two Talib officials shot her in the head for preaching womens’ education. Even though she survived the attack, Malala’s world changed that day as her family fled to England for her safety. This is why Alessandra Potenza makes it clear in her article, “Malala’s Mission”, that the Taliban’s treatment of the education system is a social injustice.

In this article, The author wants the reader to agree that this is a social injustice, and there are many loaded words to prove this. One instance in which there were biased words was in the middle of the interview section when Potenza asks, “What would you say to the members of the Taliban who tried to kill you?” (Poteza P.18). This question shows that the author was trying to get Malala to say hateful things about the Talib policies to add a subjective tone to the article. Although Malala was not hateful, she did make it clear that the Taliban governed unfairly, with sexism, not religion, as a driving force. Overall, this shows that Alessandra Potenza agrees with Malala about Pakistan’s questionable politics.

This article makes me feel like the living conditions in Pakistan are something out of a horror movie, and action needs to be taken to help these innocent people. This article inspired me to act, and fight for what I am passionate about because of how much Malala has gone through. In addition to this she makes it very clear that all people should fight for what they think is right when she says, “I think it’s important that teenagers take active roles in speaking up against injustice and inequality.” (Yousafzai P.14). Because of these powerful words, I am going to do more for my community, and the fight against social injustice.

Malala is a very inspiring person who did the right thing for others, and looked past herself even by when she had to put herself in danger. Although this seems very heroic, I don’t think that many people are as selfless as she is when she risked her life. Although I do believe that, I think that there are still smaller ways that people can help with social injustices.

Activism in New York

     On Friday, when I went to The Museum of the City of New York, I learned a lot about how modern day activism stemmed from New York. For example, the gay pride parade came from the stonewall riots in New York. In addition to this, we learned how New Yorkers are currently protesting bike safety. All of this makes me think that when us New Yorkers want something, we band together and make a change. 

     We also learned about the use of humor in protesting. For example, we learned that the bike safety protesters dressed up like clowns during their protests. I think they did this so people would take notice of them and their cause. In addition to this, I think that this tactic was used so onlookers would take their dedication seriously, but also so they could have a laugh and make it memorable. Overall I think this tactic is powerful because it draws attention and makes the protest memorable.

The Kite Runner By: Khaled Hosseini

The people around you have a strong influence on your actions, and emotions. Either by something happening to the people on your block, or your friends doing something with you, everyone has an effect on their contemporaries. Even though this is true, many people put others second. For example in The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini the main character, Amir, lives in a world of regret because of the treatment of his peers. This is primarily caused by his constant need to betray them to get out of trouble.

This problem starts for Amir in the very beginning of the book when him and his friend Hassan are attacked by the neighborhood bully, “ ‘You’re bothering me very much. In fact ,, you bother me more than this Hazara here. How can you talk to him, play with him, let him touch How can you call him your friend?’... But he’s not my friend! I almost blurted. He’s my servant” (Page 41). When I read this my first thought was, is this selfish action going to cause more problems for Amir as the story progresses? I thought this was foreshadowing because it introduced a new character, and a new side of Amir that we hadn’t seen before.

By the middle of the book Amir has ignored many more incidents with Assef, the neighborhood bully. For example, “Assef yelped as he flung himself at Hassan, knocking him to the ground… I bit on my fist. Shut my eyes.” (Page 73). This quote made me realise that Assef indirectly caused Amir to act selfishly by putting him in situations where he would be in grave danger if he didn’t. In addition to this I realised that Assef was a symbol for all of the looming danger in Amir’s life because of the constantly changing Afghanistan.

Finally, by the end of the book Amir learns to look after others because his life choices caused him to grow regretful and depressed. This becomes evident when he visits an old friend on a quest to save Hassan’s son. This is shown when Amir has a conversation with his dad’s very wise friend, “Children are fragile, Amir jan. Kabul is already full of broken children and I don’t want Sohrab to become another.” (Page 220). This quote makes me think that although Amir needs convincing, he would do anything for Hassan just repay him for everything (including giving up his life) Hassan has done for Amir. I think this because Amir strayed away from his normal selfish tone just to help take care of Hassan’s child.

The Kite Runner is a very strong example of one child’s selfish journey to become a passionate man. In addition to this, The Kite Runner connects to the real world by showing readers the effects of a constantly changing nation on it’s citizens. Although this novel is a brilliant piece of fiction, the strong emotions and relationships depicted by the author are very real.

Synthesis Page

In many books, characters are reflected by common archetypes, for example a selfish person who matures over time and learns to put others first. Another example is a shadow figure who is an antagonist. In the Kite Runner, many of these Archetypes are used.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

1984 By: George Orwell

If everything you did was closely watched, what would you do? This is a question that has to be answered often by the civilians of the superstate Oceania, formerly known as Great Britain, because every move they make is a life or death decision. The main character of 1984 by George Orwell, Winston, is a very daring man, but as time goes on his confidence wavers. In the beginning of the book, Winston is very confident, in the middle his paranoia starts to kick in and he starts doubting everybody around him. Finally by the end of the book Winston breaks down and goes crazy

In the beginning of the book Winston is very confident in himself and starts a diary despite it being punishable by death. In addition to this Winston writes things that could start a revolt if shown to the right people. An example of this is, “He discovered that while he sat helplessly musing he had also been writing, as though by automatic action… His pen had slid voluptuously over smooth paper printing in large neat capitals- DOWN WITH BIG BROTHER”. This quote shows that Winston was very brave and confident because he was defying all laws just to state his opinion, and express himself.

By the middle of the book, Winston had grown paranoid, doubting his friends and contemporaries. this is shown when Winston starts doubting O’Brien who he was sure was on the same side as he was the whole time, and who he thought hated Big Brother with a burning passion. Winston also starts thinking about leaving his girlfriend, Julia, so she could live a longer life without torture. An example of this is, “ ‘Your young. You look normal an innocent. If you keep clear of people like me, you might stay alive for another fifty years.’ ”. This shows that Winston is growing less confident as the book progresses because it proves that he is worrying about the safety of him and his loved ones. Similarly Winston declines into insanity by the end of the book, and submits to Big Brother.

In conclusion, although strong at first Winston is strong, he eventually bested by Big Brother like everyone else. This means that Winston was less confident by the end of the book because it proves that he was emotionally weakened as he lived under the control of Big Brother for longer, and longer.

The Unwanteds By: Lisa McMann

     The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann is a fascinating book. Although it appears to be a simplistic fantasy novel on the surface, The Unwanteds has many complex underlying themes. The primary issues of The Unwanteds include sibling rivalry, and then the much darker theme of killing the weak for the survival of the strong. The first of these themes, sibling rivalry, comes into play at the beginning of the book when you find out that Alex, the main character, is to be executed, and in turn separated from his brother. Although this is terrible, Alex's brother, Aaron does not show any sympathy for Alex's situation. In fact, you find out later in the book that Aaron was the one who reported Alex in hopes of having him executed. In addition to that the head of their society has a twin who rebelled against her by harboring the Unwanteds, people sent to be executed, and giving them new purpose. Eventually there is a war between the two communities leading to the brothers fighting, and one of the twins ultimately dying. The second theme in this book is a dark, and sadistic take on the survival of the fittest. Every year the community that Alex was exiled from has a purge; in the purge all Unwanteds at the age of thirteen are sentenced to death for showing creativity, a trait that is looked down upon by the citizens of their community. The purged are sent to their graves at the infamous Death Farm to be executed, but in a twist of fate all the purged are saved by Marcus Today, a mysterious man who is later revealed to be the twin of Quill's leader, the society from which Alex is exiled, Justine. When this is found out, Quill, wages war on the saved Unwanteds because they are scared of an uprising that could take away all the power of Quill, and it’s power hungry leadership at the hands of Justine. Overall the Unwanteds is a very meaningful book with themes that make you rethink the way the world works. Similarly to The Hunger Games, The Unwanteds has the reader at the edge of their seat cheering for the victory of the mistreated underdogs. Also like The Hunger Games this book is about a dystopian society with very few individuals in places of power, and the very difficult situations they put their people in. Finally, The Unwanteds shows that even during sibling rivalries, and the looming fear of being killed, you can still defeat the most powerful of enemies.