why are we thankful

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. This is a day where everyone celebrates...well, what is it that we celebrate? Why have we been celebrating Thanksgiving since FDR declared it a national holiday in 1941. But what are we, as Americans, thankful for? We are thankful for the families that we celebrate with, the excessive surplus of food that stresses the legs of the table, the heated houses that shield us from the cold late november flurries, the military that is risking their own well being across the world to ensure our well being domestically, the government that as much as we complain about it, serves us well and is unparalleled worldwide, the football game that comes on every year, the win that the Lions got for the first time in 10 years, and the overall happiness that all of these elements combined give to us. We, as Americans, are THE luckiest people on the earth. We enjoy arguably the highest standard of living in the world, yet we take this for granted. We don't always appreciate why he have all of these luxuries that the rest of the world longs for, we just expect it because its all we know. We need to understand that this country started from a couple ships full of colonists who had faith in the New World, and through generations of hard work and self dependence, this great country became what it is today.

A Chain Reaction

People always wonder why the stock market crashed in 1929. The general consensus is that people were buying stocks when they did not have the money to back up that investment. So many people did this that the market became valueless, thus crashing. But why were so many people buying stock on credit? Why was it acceptable to buy things knowing that you could not afford them? The answer goes back to the attitude of the 1920s, buy buy buy. In the 20s, Consumerism exploded. Companies and marketing agencies were unveiling mass advertising campaigns that were designed to appeal to the whole nation. This along with the newly invented consumer products like the radio, the telephone, and fountain pens were so irresistible to consumers that they had to have them, even though they could not afford them; and this attitude became acceptable in society. It was not that big of a deal to invest in very expensive items knowing you possessed insufficient funds to actually pay for these items. So in summary, the stock market crash of 1929 happened because of the ability for people to purchase stocks on credit because it was an accepted practice of the era because people had been purchasing consumer goods on credit because that was acceptable because mass marketing campaigns targeted the consumer with revolutionary advertising because of the new ability to mass produce goods because of the recent strides in the development of technology.

Punctuation's Role in Modern Literature

Thesis: Punctuation has been present in writing for countless years and develops alongside the style of writing; while it is constantly evolving, the use of punctuation in writing is vital as it helps communicate the author's message, adds a level of style unattainable without said punctuation, and organizes writing in order to make it easier and more clear for the reader.


Punctuation is a lot like apple pie; the all American desert, an iconic part of our culture, delivering happiness and warm memories to people since the birth of our country. Apple pie continues to play an important role in American society regardless of the invention of newer more modern deserts like ice cream cakes, brownies, and cupcakes. No matter how old punctuation may be and how much the style of writing evolves, there is an ever present need for punctuation as a foundation of literature. Americans need punctuation like they need apple pie. Even though certain punctuation marks may not be necessary throughout the course of hundreds of years, "language evolves in conjunction with culture," (Hitchings), and punctuation evolves with language. Just because the recipe of apple pie may have been slightly modified since  the 1700s, the same idea is still there as the foundations for the necessity of punctuation are present because "not for me the dogma of the period preaching order and a sure conclusion and no not for me the prissy..."(Austen) is a continuation of words meaningless without the proper placement of punctuation. Just because one eats raw eggs, butter, white sugar, and a tablespoon of cinnamon at the same time does not make it apple pie, just how reading a mass of words does not make something a literary piece because it lacks proper structure provided through punctuation. Oftentimes the author is writing to portray events or persuade according to his or her point of view, and without the proper use of punctuation, a simple statement could have two totally opposite and contradictory meanings because of the placement or misplacement of a simple comma, leaving the reader wondering what the author actually intended to write because history can be forever changed if one night "we invited the strippers, jfk and stalin." instead of "the strippers, jfk, and stalin." The placement of one comma can manipulate the true meaning of a statement. While this may be a silly example, punctuation is a timeless asset to writing and may be modified as language evolves, but the foundation remains just as apple pie continues to be a favorite and America would not be America without both apple pie and punctuation.

Fatal Guilt

As we read this week in the Scarlet Letter, after formulating a plan to leave to Europe with Hester and Pearl, Reverend Dimmesdale unexpectedly mounts the scaffold, tears off his shirt to reveal his own scarlet letter, and dies immediately after revealing his sins. The guilt of committing adultery with Hester literally killed Dimmesdale. This kind of death can be seen everyday. Many people have extreme guilt about certain things like murder, marital infidelity, or other unspeakable acts. This guilt often causes people to commit suicide in order to escape their extreme guilt. Many people see it as the only way to alleviate their guilt. This can be seen in the murder suicide of famous professional wrestler Chris Benoit. He felt guilt because of his failing marriage with his wife, Nancy, so he decided to take his life as well as hers. Some may argue that guilt is nothing more than some minor personal affliction and that it is not capable of being more than that. On the contrary, guilt can vary from person to person and can most certainly cause people to do extreme, often life changing or life ending acts. The conscience can be very powerful and causes people to do make very powerful decisions that can impact the individual or their family for the rest of their life.

guilt or freedom? pick one

It seems apparent that a person who has done wrong has two options. Either swallow it and try to forget about it, which almost never happens, or admit it, accept the consequences, and move on with life. In The Crucible, Hester and Reverend Dimmesdale are both guilty of adultery. However, Hester admitted it while Dimmesdale did not reveal it. The difference between the two characters could not be more obvious. While Hester is publicly shamed and shunned by the Puritan Society, she can accept the fact that she made a mistake, and move on with life. However, Dimmesdale hides it from everyone and becomes so consumed with his guilt that every day he is getting weaker and weaker. His guilt is literally killing him. And although we have not finished the novel, it seems that Dimmesdale has no choice but to either admit his wrongdoings or die. So what seems better? Admitting your sins and moving on with life, or bottling up all of your sinfulness and let it eat you alive? I bet to most people the choice is obvious, just admit it and move on. However, if you are a public figure like Dimmesdale, I bet it is much easier to reason that a sin such as adultery could not be associated with a Holy figure in the community.