Easy A

When we first got our The Scarlet Letter novels, I had never even heard of the book before. I assumed it would be a boring book set in the 1700's, but as I started to read it, I realized that the story seemed very familiar; it was like I had heard it before. In the very beginning of the novel they spoke of the letter "A" stitched to her clothing and the first thing that came to mind was the movie Easy A which is based off of The Scarlet Letter, but set in a modern high school.

The main character of the movie, Olive, has many similarities to Hester, both in their offenses to society and their treatment from society. Olive, who is modeled after Hester, is shamed for the publicity of her sexual life, which causes society to avoid her and treat her differently. This is similar to Hester, who is also shamed for her sexual life and deals with the same problems that Olive does. However, because of the year and the different circumstances that they both deal with, they react in very different ways from each other. Olive, who is living in the modern era, embraces her actions and use them to her advantage to gain popularity, wearing the scarlet "A" proudly, unlike Hester who only sees it as a mean of reminding her of her sin, wearing the "A" in agony. However, Hester and Olive face people that do not approve of their actions like the people that "Need to pray for her, but also need to get her the hell out of here. Amen" (Easy A, Trailer)(Amanda Bynes is really the person that needs to be prayed for but lets save that for a different blog). This opposition is comparative to the religious people of Hester's era that pray to cleanse her of her sin, but nevertheless do everything in their power to shame and oppose her.
Examples like Easy A show how The Scarlet Letter has had a lasting affect on generations to come and how it will always be of relevance to society.

Cliché Stereotype Post

Although everyone will most likely be blogging about stereotypes, I still believe it is a topic worth writing about. A stereotype, something that can define a whole race by just a few adjectives. At Troy High there are many stereotypes that describe the many students that walk through its halls: the smart Asians, the "typical" white girl with her Starbucks, and many others. These assumptions, which can be untrue for many, are created just because they are common to see. 
I myself have been affected by stereotyping as many others have, and I hear them everyday in my classes. Many people ask me because of my Chaldean ethnicity, "do you own a liquor store?" and every time I have to explain that not every Chaldean family owns a liquor store (even though four of my uncles own them). Although stereotypes are sometimes true to an extent--like with my uncles owning liquor stores-- you can still defy them and make them untrue for whom you want to be. Do not let people use stereotypes to define who you are. Be who you are, and if you are a white girl that loves Starbucks and Uggs or a Chaldean that owns a liquor store, then embrace it.

Growing Up

            The environment in which one grows up is, most of the time, what shapes the person you're going to be. But in a few instances, there are people that defy all these odds and grow to be the opposite--Jeannette being a prime example. Throughout the week we have spoken of the growth of Jeannette and her hunger. When we first spoke about the motif of hunger, I only viewed it in its most vague and simple form--literal hunger. But throughout our class discussion, we opened up to realize that she has hunger for more things then just food to eat. This opened up my eyes to view all the instances that Jeannette went through in order to tame her hunger.

    

             

            One aspect of Jeannette's hunger that was well above any of the others was her hunger for success and how she was going to achieve it by going to New York, "I told Lori about my escape fund, the seventy-five dollars" (Walls, 223). As Jeannette makes a new, successful life in New York, it conveys that no matter where you are born or into what family, you can always achieve great things; Jeannette sets a prime example for anyone who doesn't believe so.