The Myths of American Freedom- What is Really Happening?

(Photo of Man with Mouth Sewn Shut)

Is he a writer, an investigative journalist? Is he an advocate against politics? Or is he an ordinary man with an opinion? The question of who this man is remains unanswered, but whether we know who this man is doesn’t matter. All those who witness this gruesome photograph know one thing: that he is being silenced. This concept of silencing others isn’t uncommon because every day people’s thoughts, ideas, and opinions are being shut down or censored. Why is our human right, written in the constitution, being ripped from our hands? Why is free press and free speech no longer “free?”

                Anne Applebaum writes in “The Decline of American Press Freedom,” that gradually press is being subdued under power of foreign groups, terrorists, and immigrants. It is not only “Islamic terrorists but authoritarian foreign governments and the companies aligned with them,” Applebaum states, that help with the oppression of truly free speech and press. From book publishers all the way to the television companies, and even to those walking the streets, this oppression reigns all through the fifty states (Applebaum 640). So you can see it here, in that photo of an ordinary man with his mouth sewn, that free speech is in fact a dying right to Americans. I find it disturbing that an artist would portray such violent and blunt meaning of the loss of free speech and press. Although true, it does indeed make me wonder how those who swear their careers on the constitution let these rights fade away into history. Is the constitution just a thing of the past along with Thomas Jefferson? I don’t believe it, but every day brings new evidence in the findings that freedom does not mean free speech and press any longer.

                The photo in and off itself proves that for years we have been censored. From my composition class, where the photo was shown with a warning of it being disturbing, to all art work and literature trying to pose as “sensitive” to its audience. I wonder why an artist cannot capture gruesome things like this, if it’s the truth. When it comes to being American- it should be free of chains and restriction, even if an audience has a different cultural understanding of the work. Since we are America, and we stand for free press and speech, when we reach out and advertise to other nations, we should not have to censor our preaching. If a Chinese official came to America, or an American official went to China, it is the American who tries to obey the cultural understanding of the Chinese. If that means that we must do as their culture would, we would try to conform to that. Americans shouldn’t have to fight for their words when we are protected by the constitution. No man’s lips should be sewn shut any longer.

Works Cited

Applebaum, Anne. "The Decline of American Press Freedom." Colobumo, Gary, Robert Cullen and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing Ninth Edition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013. 640. Book.

Revisions on Gender Stereotypes Essay

Julia Frederick

Emilie Lindemann

Composition 1

October 10, 2013

Forty-Five Wins, Zero Losses:
An Insight to Floyd Mayweather’s Masculine Appearance

            High elbow block, head pull, shoulder roll, and finishing off with a slap hook and forearm crush: these fighting tricks are posted on the internet for all aspiring professional boxers. These tricks are mirrored by the icon Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. This 5’ 8” light middleweight champion in the WBA is no match for many other competitors like Gernaro Hernandez, Diego Corrales, Jose Luis Castillo, and Canelo Alvarez. The fight alone against Canelo was worth 41.5 million dollars; power and wealth are almost synonymous with the name Floyd Mayweather. As the next fight comes up, there’s no doubt in his fans’ minds that “Money” Mayweather will win. This powerful and aggressive man makes all those who watch cringe at his powerful forearm crush; he is the ultimate example of a man conforming to gender stereotypes.

Michael Kimmel describes perfectly the four basic roles to masculinity. Mayweather can be categorized in all four of those rules as the ultimate example. Kummel’s rules to masculinity are as followed: Do not act like a girl by acting heterosexual, having hobbies and occupations that are very tough and demand power as well as wealth. The second rule is that a masculine man must “be a sturdy oak.” Being a sturdy oak requires that during hard times the man shouldn’t show or put his emotions out there, and act cool and collective. The third rule is one that says a man should be strong and forceful, a man should protrude an aura of hell to another man. The last and final rule is a man is defined by his money, power, and status in the world- socially and economically wise Whether it be warming up for a fight, training in the gym, or out at the gentleman’s club, Mayweather proves why he is the best, and why he is the man.

            Being known as a strong and wealthy man, like Mayweather, provides a lot of room for expectations of a being man. Not many people imagine Floyd visiting animal shelters in his spare time, or volunteering himself at a soup kitchen, that’s just not a “manly” thing people would expect. Certainly that’s not what he does. Although good for a community, it wouldn’t be good for a professional WBA fighters’ reputation. Every one of Mayweather’s 1.9 million followers on Instagram (a social networking site for photos) can see exactly what this man of all men does in his time out of the boxing ring. A 2014 Flying Spur Bentley, a Piaget watch worth well over a million dollars, and photos of Mayweather in gentleman’s club all reveal the inside life an undefeated WBA professional. Also Mayweather is known for his TMT, The Money Team, brand; TMT alone stands for all the wealth and power Mayweather holds. He dedicates his time to representing his brand online, in the ring, and with his wife. Shantel Jackson, also known as Mrs. Jackson, is a very famous lady, known for the diamond ring placed on her ring finger, the size of an unshelled walnut. The 18 karat ring was designed by a jeweler who assembled an engineering team at the request of Floyd Mayweather. The cars, the jewelry, the clothing brand, and all the way down to his very own spouse, Mayweather is synonymous with fame, fortune, and power. Today the paychecks of Mayweather resemble phone numbers, but it didn’t always come easy for Mayweather.

            It is automatically noticed that “Money” Mayweather is a dominant male figure because of his undefeated career in the WBA, but it could have been said that he gets it from the way his father raised him. Into the early childhood years of Floyd Mayweather junior you can venture into Mayweather senior, a WBA Super Welterweight champion just like his son. Out of 35 fights, only 6 were lost, and he is obviously just as strong as Mayweather Jr. and just as equally admired when thinking of a very dominant male figure. “My dad was kind of hard on me,” he said. “As a child I didn’t really have a child life. I was jogging with combat boots on and chopping wood at the age of 10” (larrybrownsports.com). This visually depicts the type of father Mayweather Sr. was and why Mayweather Jr. is the type of man he is today. Floyd is very open about speaking of the abuse and hard times he endured as a child. The gender role Floyd Sr. took on suppressed the stereotypical “must toughen up my son,” into a physical and demeaning manner. This makes Mayweather Jr. very conscious about abuse especially when it concerns his son. “’After I was abused as a child, I don’t abuse my children,’ Mayweather said. ‘No. I truly don’t believe in putting my hands on my children.’” Rooted in a strong and very determined stance, it is safe to say Floyd wouldn’t be mistaken with the nickname “sissy” versus “money”, the one he has currently.

To become the best man in the league, one must first overcome physical rigor and challenges, Mayweather knows this all too well. “…do the speed bag; neck work with the weights; 200 sit-ups, pull-ups, dips, jump rope… Then, I run between five and eight miles after training is over. It’s a very grueling and hard workout, but it’s worth it” confesses Mayweather in an interview with Dave Golokhov, a sports commentator. This tiresome and very extensive work out isn’t done by any amateur who decides to hit the gym one day; this is the routine for a world renowned boxer who remains undefeated. This routine suits Mayweather because in the ring he sure does give an aura of hell when he knocks out his opponent. Twenty-nine out of the 45 wins for Floyd have been won because of knockouts. A knockout is when the opponent is not able to get up after being knocked down, within a specified time. The boxing world and its definition of a true man was redefined when Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. entered the sport in October of 1996.

            One of Floyd’s most recent fights was against Canelo Alveraz; it landed Mayweather over 40 million dollars in his bank account. Only a minute left in round one of the Mayweather vs. Alvarez fight,  the crowd is already cheering for Canelo, but the look upon Floyd’s face remanded as tough as steel. He resembles a rock even when he is presented in a moment that would leave any other man with shaking knees. Although a true crisis has never resulted in a loss out of all of Floyd’s 45 fights, the continuous punches being thrown at his body definitely can break a man down. All in all Floyd Mayweather received a win in each fight, this proves that he is the man, and a punch or two cannot hurt a rock, like himself. In Michael Kimmel’s ““Bros Before Hos”; The Guy Code”, two out of four of the “Guy Code” rules state that a man is to resemble an inanimate object like a rock during a tough situation, also a real man’s rank in the world is determined by his power and wealth. Although Mayweather probably never read this passage by Kimmel he is the very example of these two rules.

             Another rule that Michael Kimmel explains men should not take part in “girly” or “sissy” activities because it is not a masculine trait. For centuries it has been thought that woman are to cook, clean, take care of the children; it is also thought that being a nurse, an elementary school teacher, a baker (and the list goes on) are women’s jobs, not males’. Whether these stereotypes are real or not is beside the point, the point being that “Money” Mayweather does not take part in any of these gender roles designed for woman. Instead Floyd is profoundly the best in the WBA, the World Boxing Association, and not much tops that in the rank of male professions. Besides fighting in gruesome fights and winning every single time in the ring, Mayweather is very prominent in his heterosexuality. This is another key point in Kimmel’s rule of not being known as a “sissy.” He has a wife, who is very attractive in the eyes of many men, and he spends a lot of time publicizing gentleman’s clubs through Instagram, Twitter, and on his website floydmayweather.com. All in all, Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. represents masculinity through his actions inside and outside the ring, on social networking sites, and even when it comes down to his wife and clothing brand; he is the very man Michael Kimmel refers to in his passage about the “Guy Code.”

            “Amazingly these four rules have changed very little among successive generations of high-school and college-age men,” stated Kimmel in his essay. Whether it be Barack Obama, a heterosexual married male who leads this country, or Denzel Washington, another heterosexual male who makes millions of dollars every year; Floyd Mayweather Jr. can be found upon these masculine male figures in our society, regardless of age. Michael Kimmel explains the four rules of the guidelines to being an accepted male in today’s world. First, being a man means to be perceived as a strong and heterosexual, as well as not taking part in feminine type roles; professional boxing definitely fits in the category of a masculine occupation/hobby. Second, a true man should show no emotion during hard times or situations, like when Mayweather receives a punch in the ring, he doesn’t show pain in his face, and he endures the pain and fights on. Third, an aura of hell should be protruded when Mayweather fights, or when a man wants to be perceived as masculine; on several accounts Floyd shows this when he knocks out an opponent. The last and final rule of the basics to being a masculine guy is to have success, power, and wealth. This all can be visually and audibly depicted when millions have given Floyd the nickname Floyd “Money” Mayweather.

            There are thousands of millions of male and female viewers that watch and engage into Mayweather’s life, inside and outside of the ring. Many fans of Money expect a few things out of him, first would be to win his fights, second would be to have money and valuable things money can buy, and last is his wife being dressed and ready in a promiscuous fashion. Many famous people are watched with barely a private second to themselves, but because Floyd is in a very demanding career that must be upheld by a man with a strong masculine personality, he is under extra pressure. The fans, the critics, the viewers and the general audience of the WBA all react positively when seeing that Mayweather upholds the expectations set for him. Some would wonder if he takes it too far with his wealth and if he makes men who are not as masculine or even those who part take in a homosexual relations, feel uncomfortable. In all honest opinion if Floyd “Money” Mayweather acted any less masculine, his audience would react negatively, mainly because of his occupation in the WBA and with his upbringing (and his ex-WBA father.) Mayweather does the correct thing when following, very closely, the rules of masculinity set by the standards of Michael Kimmel; his audience, whether it be fans or critics, all approve of the way Money acts in his personal and professional lifestyle. 

The Woodworking’s of Niedecker

Easter

A robin stood by my porch

   and side-eyed

      raised up

         a worm

A literal interpretation can be noted; simply a bird that is hungry for a worm is being observed by the speaker. But in Lorine Niedecker’s Granite Pail it isn’t always as obvious as to what she sees, hears, observes, and truly means.

Emilie Lindemann always speaks about the importance of poetry and that there is not one definite interpretation that can be extracted. Instead of having us discuss to discover what Niedecker means, she has us share ideas as to what we think Niedecker (or the speaker) means.

To be quite honest, I usually have no idea what to interpret from Lorine’s poetry. My Life By Water is a great example of where my confusion comes from.

“first frog or board” “Muskrats gnawing doors” “to wild green arts and letters” “thru birdstart wingdrip weed-drift”

These few phrases pulled from Niedecker’s poem, mean absolute madness to me, the reader. What does the speaker see? Muskrats, whom gnaw upon doors?

Maybe it’s because I’m not from Black Hawk Island and I don’t observe the natural habit around there daily, but I have not heard of muskrats gnawing on doors. And if it’s not in a literal sense, then what could possibly be interpreted? Also looking at the phrase “thru birdstart wingdrp weed-drift. This stanza basically sounds like Lorine made up some new words, and added it to her poem.

The plus side to her confusing ways and vocabulary is it can leave room for a wide variety of interpretations; for me that is very good, in this case.

Breaking this down My Life By Water, stanza by stanza:

My life

   by water-

      Hear

I can see that the speaker lives by water. This is a pretty easy interpretation and very literal in meaning. But a cliffhanger is left with “Hear.” Which leads to me question why is it capitalized? For importance, or is it a new thought. But if so, then why not add it in the next stanza.

spring's

   first frog

      or board

It seems like the seasons have just changed, the spring animals (a frog) are coming out and venturing into nature. But what is this board the speaker notes?

out on the cold

   ground

      giving

I think the last stanza and this one are related. “The first frog of the season appears, or wait is that a board on the cold ground,” is what I hear the speaker’s thoughts as.

Muskrats

   gnawing

      doors

The previous stanza and this one make no sense, and have no relation (in my opinion.) The board on the cold ground, giving, giving what? Does the cold ground make muskrats gnaw on doors? I think maybe; maybe the animals comes out from hibernation and during exploration it only leads to bone-chilling weather and now the muskrat is gnawing on the speaker’s door, looking for a way into warmth.

to wild green

   arts and letters

      Rabbits

The first thing I notice is the capitalized word Rabbits. What might be the importance? It could be that Lorine is emphases the animals, but frog wasn’t capitalized. So I’m puzzled once again. Next the wild green…arts and letters? This is puzzling as well. I know that when spring rolls around beautiful greens appear and nature is full of beautiful colors- in contrast to the bland white from winter. Quite possibly the speaker sees the leafy green scenery in beautiful shapes (arts and letters.)

raided

   my lettuce

      One boat

(Again questioning the importance of One boat.) I picture rabbits savaging on some lettuce thrown away in the garbage of the speakers.

two-

   pointed toward

      my shore

The previous stanza and this one must tie together. She (the speaker) sees, in the distance, a boat and then realizes there must be two boats that are headed in the direction of her shore line.

thru birdstart

   wingdrip

      weed-drift

I imagined birds shuttering from around the boat (from the previous stanza,) once it starts up its engine, and they soar across the pond; dipping their wings in the water and above the weeds that surround the body of water.

of the soft

   and serious-

      Water

The capitalization of this word, water, makes much more sense than that of the other words. Water is important to the speaker, she lives by the water, and the water surround her. So I understand. The water is so calming but serious. Knowing the history of Black Hawk Island I’m pretty sure her calling the water serious is in reference to the floods that come about once the snow from winter melts.

Now that the poem is done I gather my thoughts and interpretations of the poem- and I come up empty with a fulfilled meaning for the poem. I’m still left with questions. Why were certain words capitalized? Why does Niedecker use the line breaks that she does? One thing answered, though, is I understand and can visualize what the speaker sees. I have somewhat of an insight.

The first frog comes out from winter hibernation, and muskrats are searching for a warm place. Rabbits are scavenging for food. On the other side of the water are boats, which startle up the birds.

That all is visualized, but why does Lorine Niedecker use the writing strategy that she does?

The Reversed Gender Roles of Single Parents

Julia Frederick
Emilie Lindemann
Composition 1

“The real issue buried underneath my grief was the fact that I rarely got the male affection I’d wanted as a kid.” With a few alternations to this quote by Jackson Bliss, (A Scarcity of Affection Among Men at goodmenproject.com) this couldn’t be more relevant to my life. The real issued buried underneath my grief was that I rarely ever received the motherly affection and never received the male interaction that I know I deserved (throughout my life.)

If I was a boy I’m positive my dad would have been around. Being the third daughter Jerry had from his affairs, I wasn’t anything special. Him being present in my life wasn’t something I worried or cared about, I know I’m fine without him because I have the strongest parent figure- my mother. But it would have been nice to get the male attention from a male, not from a single mother trying to balance it out for me.

I was in 6^th grade getting the good old sex education talk- all Horace Mann middle school preteen girls and myself sat in the room with our women teachers. Watching those awkward videos from the 50’s and asking questions about it. It couldn’t have been any worse; considering none of this was true, and it defiantly didn’t concern me. I was brought by the stork, and I knew this for a fact because I didn’t have a dad. I only had one single mom who took care of me every day, who took me to school even when I didn’t want to go, and who watched me play in every basketball game. I was brought by the stork, but the teachers just didn’t understand.

Later that night after school and once my mom picked me up from KinderCare I anxiously told her how none of the teachers listened to me and how the other kids laughed. I couldn’t get enough words out in a minute, they were coming out mixed with each other. “Mom they tried telling me I have a dad, but I don’t have a dad. Do they see a dad with me? Walking me up to the line in front of the school doors? No they only see you. I was brought by the stork, they just don’t believe me.” And then she sat down, with her pajamas folded neatly in her hands about to change out of her work scrubs, as a deep sigh crept out. My mom realized during my scrambled spiel she’d have to tell me why it was only a mom tucked me in at night, and not with a dad, and that the stork defiantly didn’t bring me to my mom’s doorsteps.

Besides the point of why my mom is a single parent, there’s another question I’ve always had. A more important one, something I still don’t understand today, and something that hurts me more as the years past and I get older. Why isn’t my mom like the other moms? I know everyone’s different, but my mom was never the type of mom to hug me when I cried, to leave notes in my lunchbox in my elementary days noting to have a good day, we never played board games to pass the time, and she defiantly isn’t the type to watch love movies and eat chocolate ice cream with after a horrible breakup. Whenever I was in trouble or about to go out my mom would spat some motherly advice followed by “you know I wouldn’t be a mom if I didn’t say things like that.” She would completely contradict the meaning of the advice.

But I guess that was my mom, and I guess it was because of her father, my grandpa. I knew him for nine years until he passed away from cancer. He was the most stern, analytical, and emotionless man. The Guy Code is something he abided by in personality, although loving to his wife and family, he didn’t find much room for nurture. My mom followed in his footsteps and surpassed his level of emotionless but in a different sense.

The difference between my grandpa and mother was the absence of attention. I would always travel, play, and create with my grandfather. He was a hand-on kind of male figure in my life. My mother was a very reserved and hands-off female figure.

Straying away from the idea of my mother, for a moment, the idea of nursing instead takes a role in all of this. Between colleagues and I, we constantly talk about the rigorous lifting and the hard tolls our backs and knees take on the job. So then why is it that “only woman are nurses?” Looking back when I was first hired at Holy Family Memorial as a nurse’s assistant, I had to pass a physical with a registered nurse. I was required to lift 50 pounds off the ground, put it on a bed, then take it back and set it on the ground again. Does this sound like the stereotypical girl job that one thinks of when they think of nursing? My assumed answer is no. Did you also know that very often I must lift a 300 pound man in bed so I can clean his back and behind? Sounds pretty similar to a construction man who must lift hundred pound blocks to build a brick wall. It does have the very feminine part of it. The job is very demanding when it comes to being nurturing and sweet- a trait a man might not be very sensitive about. That is a large part of the job and I’ve seen my mother in action during this part for years.

My mom would take me to her job at nursing homes all the time. She was the director of nurses so everyone knew me, and I always got to do what I wanted. That usually consisted of watching mommey do her job. She was amazing, my eyes glistened in amazement because no one could calm a 93 year old with severe dementia like my mom. She is clearly a very nurturing and maternal woman, right? Then why is it that when it comes to parenting me she isn’t the same way?

Today I understand the troubles and difficulties of working 40 hours a week as a nurse and trying to mother a child; but now that I’m older I still wonder why she remains absent. The strenuous work of managing a child and work is lifted, I’m not as needy now but yet she remains distant. Jackson Bliss expresses his relation with his dad is mending because Bliss is older as well as his father being present emotionally with his third son. This wouldn’t be the case for me.

Is it because of her stern father and how he absent emotionally in her life? Or was because she was a single parent that she needed to act more like a male figure (and be distant?) Or is it simply her domineer to be a very reserved parent?

I am reminded constantly that she does love me and she has always wanted a baby girl, but are her parenting ways the ones she envisioned when she imagined motherhood? 

Revision of Educational Experience Essay

Julia Frederick

Dr. Emilie Lindeman

Composition 1

Monday September 16^th, 2013

The Silver Lining  of Education

            The first thing that someone says when I say I graduated from Kohler deals with the bathroom appliances that they make; but what I think of when I hear of Kohler is Mrs. Good and Mrs. Krejcarek’s science classes, oh the horror. There’s always a silver lining on every rain cloud, though, and for Kohler’s students the silver lining is Stacy Rozmariowski. Besides the last name, there’s nothing tough about her or the way she taught my senior English class. Stacy Rozmariowski, Mrs. Rozy for short, was the break halfway through the most challenging school days. She is the main reason why I think there is more to education, and that teachers can and should go above and beyond to challenge and empower students.

            To really understand Kohler’s Kindergarten through twelfth grade school, it can become easily understood right away when speaking to a student of theirs or a graduate. I was only there for two brief years versus some others whom were known as “lifers” at Kohler Public School. I didn't have to spend my education years at Kohler from junior kindergarten to senior year (like a lifer), to learn their ways, I quickly learned that there wasn’t anything ordinary about this public school system. In fact, Kohler was a rigorous and challenging private school (based) system. I can attend college today and breeze by because of their 8 period class schedule that was crammed with months of homework into a single week. There was not one single class that didn't have hours upon hours of homework assigned. English was the worst, jammed with literature and essays, but science didn't fall short behind. There were plenty of surveys created in sociology classes that focused on the most stressful classes and the classes with the most homework at Kohler. Between English and Science it sure showed Kohler’s true colors of academic rigor. Before when I mentioned Kohler having a private school (based) system, I was directing this towards the criteria of the teacher’s expectations and how they were higher than any of the teachers at my previous school- Sheboygan South High School (another public school.) Looking at Silver Lake as a private school, Kohler clearly surpasses as one. A graduate, like myself, almost doesn't need general course credits at college because the ones at KPS were just as hard and even available to CAP for college credit or just a college class itself. I obtained 16 college credits my senior year, as many others did, between the online classes, the CAPed classes, and the AP classes. And to add to this list, Kohler’s high school classes are considered college preparatory classes at other public schools like Sheboygan South, just to help compare.

            This dreary rain cloud of a school sounds like there’s no possible way for it to have a silver lining, but I promise it does Mrs. Rozy is really the true blue opposite of the other “by the book” teachers teaching at this un-ordinary system in Kohler. Mrs. Rozy is the real-life equivalence to Mr. Keating, whom is an English professor at Welton Academy (a private school) in the film Dead Poets Society. Painting a picture one could say she’s a massage therapist for the mind, a relaxing solution to a maxed out brain from Kohler’s academics. In my English class, filled with 20-something other seniors, the expectations were thought to be of a college composition 1 or 2 class. On the first day when Mrs. Rozy’s face appeared and her voice chimed, we instantly felt relaxed. She explained that she didn't want this to be another load on the homework pile, she didn't want students coming in asking about the assignments, but instead she insisted that we have a safe haven in this room where students instead brought ideas about life. The comparison about Mrs. Rozy and Mr. Keating is a perfect match, right after viewing Dead Poets Society, Stacy Rozmariowski did something that brought upon fear to all the other teachers at Kohler; she challenged the system and empowered students. The scene where a classroom full of uniformed boys at Welton Academy were ordered to rip out an introductory passage in a English textbook was re-watched; then our senior English class did as those boys did. We all ripped apart English texts that enclosed ideas instead of sparking new ones at the order of Mrs. Rozy. That was it, that sealed the deal, ever since then I knew she was different. She didn't come from the same system as we did, and if she did, she definitely didn't agree with its woodworking’s.

            One of the “lifers” at Kohler is the true definition of what it means to be a Kohler student- attend all social events, head of student council, head of future problem solvers, join Globe and Testing The Waters, volunteer, know all teachers, and the list goes on. Katie Anderson, she did all those and more while acing every assignment and test put in front of her. This was all accomplished while keeping up a 4.0 grade point average. She honestly seemed like the nicest and happiest girl you've ever met, and there was no reason to believe otherwise, until the robotic chains of Kohler snapped. Mrs. Rozy had us all talk about what we had on our plate and how we dealt with it. Since she taught at Kohler 5 years ago, she basically knew the load a student would take on, but she still asked. When Katie started talking about it she started off joyful, she talked about the events she loved and the people she met, and then as she went on someone questioned her, “how do you manage to eat or sleep or even take care of yourself?” She lost it, she broke down, and of course Mrs. Rozy was there; she gave the best advice I believe Katie has ever heard. She told Katie she didn't have to help every person, and when a club conflicted with a family dinner she wasn't obligated to satisfy the clubs’ needs just to present something prestigious on a resume or college application. Since that day Katie was different, she has always been nice but she seemed a lot more relaxed. Our lockers were right next to each other, and before I never saw her besides at the beginning of school and ending, but after that talk, Katie relaxed. She went to her locker, she talked with her friends, she walked to class, not ran. But I’ll never forget when Mrs. Good confronted Katie about her lack of dedication to a lab report she submitted. It was still A material, but it wasn't her usual, and I wonder if that’s because she didn't spend time on the computer typing but instead asleep resting for another day or out with friends.

            Mrs. Rozy subverted from this Prussian system, and she led others. It was not a revolt of any kind; it was just her guiding us into a normal groove with no stress. We were able to relax and not think about the next club we should join, the extra credit we could do; Stacy Rozmariowski helped us realize that Kohler’s expectations were not realistic and we didn't have to feel bad when we didn’t met them. I now view the ways of education very differently before. I pick through teaching ways with a fine tooth comb, because I have seen the silver lining, and she is Stacy Rozmariowski. Subversion against a demeaning power, challenge young minds, empower those to be strong- that is what an educator should do.

Is There More to the System?

What makes a good professor? Should one empower students or demean the ones who seem unfit to conform? Should classes be boring or should it be a lively atmosphere that engages students to think out of the box? These seem like obvious questions with one right answer, but if we look at texts by John Taylor Gatto or Mike Rose, even letting our eyes view movies like Dead Poets Society, the answer seems to have a broader perspective. So how should professors teach young pupils from all different backgrounds, should they or should they not force them to conform, meeting the standardized ways of today’s education system?

I met a teacher who instead of taking the narrow pathway of education, broadened the horizon; it’s as if her teaching ways mirrored those of the well-known character professor Keating in the movie Dead Poets Society. The Welton academy is just as Gatto described “…it is in the interest of complex management, economic or political, to dumb people down, to demoralize them, to divide them from one another, and to discard them if they don’t conform.” The twist that Mr. Keating brought was a new thought upon how a professor should educate young minds. From the bare back of these children to the books read for the classes, everything met the criteria of “conformity.” Watching this film it disgusts me to see how obedient the students are. The seal was broken on the first day of Mr. Keating’s’ class when he walked in and swiftly walked out whistling a cheery tone and encouraging the students to get up and out of the classroom. It carried on when Mr. Keating challenged the authors thoughts in a textbook the students had. After reading a mediocre introductory page, Keating ordered all the boys to rip all evidence of this demeaning passage. The headmaster thought this was ludacris; the story continues with Mr. Keating’s teaching ways being ridiculed, but that something you can read off of Spark notes.

On another note, what I’m trying to get to the bottom is was his teaching ways REALLY that insane that other faculty and even parents had to intervene? He inspired these boys, in the classroom, outside of the classroom, to critically think, to be an individual. But if the school system is really supposed to be a mimicked version of the Prussian system, then yes it was that insane, and it wasn’t to the extreme for others to get involved. I cannot sit here though and think that that is it. It can’t be all that there is to the education system of the 21^st century. We are in the future, the present right now, we cannot try to do things that were implemented hundreds of years ago. If we did that with every aspect of life I would be writing this with a feather pen and some ink; rewriting and rewriting till I spelled everything write and every punctuation was in the proper place. No, I think Mr. Keating was a proper teacher, he let his students do the thinking, instead of interpret conforming papers.

I haven’t always thought this way, in fact until last fall I didn’t even think about the ways teachers taught. I thought “okay this is just the way it is and has to be,” and sat through classes just taking in whatever knowledge was force feed to me. But I met this teacher, she was more like a friend, though. She was knew to Kohler. She graduated from Silver Lake as we will someday, but she has had many more years of experience. Kohler was the type of insutition (it was way more than just a public school) that focused on academics; if you really wanted to get something out of your tax dollars you invested your child’s life into academics. The academics were rigor and challenging, in fact everyone graduates and always goes onto college. When those who come back talk about college life they often comment on how easy it is compared to Kohler classes. Two teachers, Mrs. Good and Mrs. Krejcarek are often the center of attention. Both science teachers for the high school and both are the same teachers that John Taylor Gatto speak about. Of course but of those teachers along with every other, had they’re say about Mrs. Rozy. The first week of senior English was spent watching Dead Poets Society and after that we watched the textbook scene where they all ripped papers from a old textbook. Then we acted the same scene. Mrs. Rozy went around handing everyone a textbook, challenging everything Kohler stands for, she announced we would ourselves rip out all evidence of conforming school systems. And as we did.

So here I sit with my thoughts questions who is in the right and who is in the wrong, and why? Why should teachers try to force the same education and teaching ways upon every unique child? Can someone answer this because frankly I’m baffled. Until the day where someone can provide persuasive evidence in the ways that the education system really does benefit the whole I will shut up. For now I stand by teachers like Mrs. Rozy and Mr. Keating who teach revolutionary thoughts.

Getting To Know The Student

The alarm set for 6 goes off, slowly widening my eyes I approach my dresser. Filled with scrub pants and tops, throwing on whatever is first in line; I reach for my toothbrush and mouthwash. With my eyes half open half shut, I drive through town arriving at my patients’ house. Preparing myself for either a busy and exhausting morning or an undermining hour and a half. That’s not even the worse part. After that visit that usually results in drenched scrubs and a messy head of hair, I have to rush back to the dorm room. With adrenaline pumping and sleep in the back of my mind I literally jump in and out of a bone chilling cold shower. What seems to be a disaster of a day set up for me is started off with a boring class filled with mindless chatter about whatever the course is about. Not even a pretty classroom filled with posters about grammar, or a family picture of my professor, or even a stupid quote from some famous guy; it’s just a room entrapping me with white walls.

The funny thing is all the while I’m scribbling down notes spat off from some voice, I’m dreaming, almost fantasying. Not about boys or lunch, about different classrooms. Classrooms filled with the smell of hand sanitizer and almost a deafening silence while students try to insert IV tubes in the veins of nursing manikins.

I know it sounds ridiculous to complain about school, considering it’s a place of sanctuary for me. But I can’t help it, I thrive to be a nurse. Nursing classes are all I want to attend and learn from. But for now I will remain Within White Walls.