Nerd Camp Synthesis Page

Who has the POWER in the text?

However in the end, Gabe realizes he can be himself around Zack because Gabe helps Zack when they see a snake and Zack realizes its okay that Gabe seems like a nerd. Because of situations like this, people come to the conclusion that they don't have to be the typical stereotype and others will just have to learn to accept them for the way they are, even if they are different. In the world, this is very common, especially with unacceptance of the idea of being gay, and it is times like this when people realize it is okay to be themselves and hiding their true life will result worse than if they would’ve said it in the beginning because they were leading others on about their fake self.

New Understandings: Expressing oneself in their own way, whether or not it is what everyone else expects, is the only way to get people to truly accept you for you. Living honest is much better than living in fear.

Argument Essay

Kaitlyn Duong 

Ms.Galang

English 811

December 18, 2014

       Banning Books: Unconstitutional but Worth Breaking

Freedom of speech is expressed in the first Amendment in the Constitution. No freedom of speech is expressed in the act of book censorship. Carrie by Stephen King has been a frequently questioned book since the time it was published. The story about a girl, that performs a horrific act on her whole town with her telekinetic powers, was written about 40 years ago, yet it is still being challenged today.  Banning books threatens our rights in the first amendment. However, when these books contain content that parents may not like their kids reading, they should have the right to prevent their children from reading it since they have custody over their child. Therefore, banning books such as Carrie should be allowed. Although the text includes informative content for teens, middle school students should not have access to it due to its use of sex and explicit language.

        Most importantly, middle schoolers should not have access to the book because it uses sex in a way that doesn’t express its true meaning- love. It uses sex to show rape and a way to distract people. Sex is so commonly shown, that it doesn’t seem like true love. Books like Carrie have to be taken off middle school bookshelves because “The line between sexuality and pornography must be understood as the difference between the exploitation and sex as a natural aspect of life.” (Rich 1). What this evidence suggests is books containing many scenes of sex are turning into pornography and just exploiting it rather than being used as a natural response to love. What this makes clear is that books like Carrie is turning sex into porn, which parents most likely don’t want their children reading. Specifically, a part from Carrie that shows this is when Chris and Billy begin to have sex on a car after Billy didn’t want to talk to Chris. This doesn’t show affection,  in fact it misuses the purpose of sex, supporting the quote above. Its used as a distraction, rather than a natural part of life and a response to love. Overall, it becomes clear middle schoolers should not have access to Carrie due to its misuse of sex.

        Another significant reason Carrie should be banned is because it uses unnecessary, explicit language. There are other ways to express rage, not just swear words. Gurdon stated “The author makes free with language that can’t be reprinted in a newspaper.” (3) about Lauren Myracle’s books. The same goes for Carrie. A lot of the language can be deemed inappropriate by parents. Some may argue its how teenagers speak, so it is fitting in the situation. However, when it is used frequently in the book, it seems like it’s okay to say things like that. It encourages kids to speak like the characters because they have no consequences. In particular, after reading The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby, Maycock says “[a] 6-year-old was suspended for calling a classmate ‘poo-poo’ head” (qtd. in DiBlasio 1). This illustrates how language can affect the way readers speak. In Carrie, the characters say things that parents and teachers probably don’t want their kids reading. It influences kids’ language and their lives because they think there would be no consequences if they do the same, but as shown here there are and potential suspension. The language in the book is censored in movies and rated R, so the same should apply for books. Therefore, Carrie should be censored from teens and in middle schools.

        On the other hand, some may say Carrie should be read by teens because it is informative in that it exposes teens to puberty. Books with coming-of-age content can help kids learn about what happens when they grow up. This can help them so they won’t turn out like Carrie, who was bullied for not knowing about puberty. Some people say, “Objectionable the material maybe for some parents, but it’s not grotesque.” (Gurdon 3). The book is appropriate for kids because it informs kids on puberty without making it unsuitable for kids. This may be true, but the book should not be read by middle schoolers because puberty  should be introduced by their parents. Since it is an important topic, parents may want to discuss it with their kids before they read about it. It may frighten them when it happens, similar to Carrie was when she got her period. Talking to their kids about puberty is a big responsibility for parents and having a book introduce it to their children, may upset them. Their kids may be hurt too because their parents didn’t talk to them about it first. Therefore, books involving puberty and coming-of-age should be reviewed by their parents before kids begin to read it. In other words, books should be censored before kids read it.

        Clearly, Carrie should be banned because it misuses sex and explicit language and includes a topic that should be discussed with a child’s parents first. People may say banning books are unconstitutional and hinders kids from learning about the world and their educational development. However, if movies can have age restrictions, so should books. This doesn’t mean books shouldn’t be read by teens, but that they should have permission from their parents first and be read only when they’re ready. If unconstitutionally banning some books means preventing kids from reading inappropriately deemed books, it seems worth the risk. 

Works Cited

Diblasio, Natalie. "Schools Once Again Face Bind Over Censorship vs. Book Lists." Usa Today 2011 aug 19: A.1 DB - SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. <http://sks.sirs.com>.

Gurdon, Meghan C. "Darkness Too Visible." WSJ. Wall Street Journal, 4 June 2011. Web. 17 Dec. 2014.

Rich, Jake. "Can Book Censorship Save Our Children and Their Innocence?" University Wire (2014 Oct 07): N.p. DB - SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. <http://sks.sirs.com>.

Social Awareness Project

Table of Contents

Media/News Immersion
A daily diary for five days on 1-2 articles from the news

Reading Response on Literary Work

Reading response on “Guess Who’s Looking at Your Facebook Page?”

Original Literary Piece

A poem named "Anne" on bullying

Media/News Immersion

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Article: “Major Reaction in School Allergy Fight” By: Aaron Short and Sophia Rosenbaum

Summary: The article discusses the large increase of Epipen supply in school due to a large concern of students’ allergies by their parents.

Social Issue: This social issue I see present in the article is health. Schools need to be ready if anything happens with someone’s allergies and cannot rely on the student knowing what to do in an emergency. They should not rely on students being able to determine what and what not to eat. For example, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are typical meals at schools and this can increase the Epipen supply because so many kids are allergic to nuts. It makes me think of budget cuts because it doesn’t cost that much to make that sandwich, so that might be why it is so commonly found. Schools need to recognize the allergies of their students and this is seen as a result of the increase in Epipen supply. This doesn’t mean kids should not be aware of their allergies, but they should and schools.

Article: “Kid’s a Duper Hero” By: Bruce Golding

Summary: The article is about a recent viral video showing a boy running through a hail of bullets and playing dead to save a girl behind a burning car in Syria that has been determined to be fake and staged.

Social Issue: The social issue displayed in the article and the video is the heroic personalities of kids in war zones. Kids living in places where war is common have a hard life because they are forced with hardships, such as family loss and destruction everywhere they go. However, this doesn’t mean people serving our country are not heroes. The video is meant to raise awareness to this situation because the spotlight is always on people serving the country, but is also very hard for the kids. It makes me think about how lucky we are because we don’t have to worry about war and bombings everywhere we go. These kids are resilient and brave, where as many of us are spoiled and take advantage as luxuries, such as school and family.

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Article: “N.J. Boy, 12, Shoots Sis, 9; She’s Critical” By: Bill Hutchinson

Summary: The article explains an event that took place on the night of November 15th in New Jersey. A 12-year-old boy show his 9-year-old sister with a stolen 9-mm gun when he was playing with it. Their mom was charged for endangering children and charges are pending on her boyfriend.

Social Issue: The article expresses the social issue of gun control through an incident where a girl was shot by her brother. The gun should not be in the house in the first place, especially a stolen one. If there is a gun, it should be locked away securely. Since the boy, was able to retrieve it, the mom was probably not responsible enough to lock it up. Parents need to have responsibility and learn to take care of their kids at all times. Where were their mom? Shouldn’t she be watching them or have someone else with them? It makes me think about how some parents don’t care for their kids properly and when something happens to them they said it was their faults. It seems like very childish manner, whereas she should be watching her children.

Article: “UN: Now ISIS is Killing Kids” By: James Warren

Summary: The article is about how ISIS trains 5 to 16 year olds to kill others. It provides evidence on teen boys from Syria murdering teens from other nations. They are seen beheading and or shooting teens. Kids are not victims of ISIS says the UN.

Social Issue: The social issue is quite obvious- ISIS. ISIS is a big topic in the US currently in which the US are struggling to find a solution for it. The article makes me think about how much Syria hates the US because they train their kids from their youth to fight in combat. It feels really threatening being a teen myself. They are terrorizing the US which seems really hard to fight against. If the US fights back, it seems ISIS will make things worse and continue executing people, possibly even more frequently. This shows me that we are kind of stuck in a situation that we are unable to escape.

Monday, November 17, 2014

Article: “Deja Fool on B’klyn Bridge” By: Caitlin Nolan and Stephen Rex Brown

Summary: The article is about French tourist, Yonathan Souid, who climbed up on one of the Brooklyn Bridge cables around Sunday noon to get the best shots of the bridge with Manhattan traffic under him.

Social Issue: This article shows yet another time someone has gone past the NYPD without any trouble. If they were more careful, he probably would not have been able to get up there. Luckily, he went up there just to take a picture, but what would’ve happened if it was a bomb. Last time a flag, this time a photo, next time a bomb? When it is actually something that can hurt the bridge, will the police finally step in? They should be on guard at all times especially during a busy time like around lunch and at a large landmark and tourist spot. They should watch all of New York as a matter of fact. Although Souid was just taking a picture, he should’ve not been allowed up there. What’s next for the bridge?

Article: “Evil Below Lunatic Pushes Man to Death on Bronx Subway” By: Tanisha Morris, Pete Donohue, Caitlin Nolan, Bill Hutchinson

Summary: This article summarizes the tragic death of 61-year-old Wai Kuen Kwok, who was unexpectedly pushed into the subway tracks right in front of his wife. Kwok was a family man with 2 adult sons and a friendly wife. The one who pushed him in ran away and took the Bx35 bus for 3 stops.

Social Issue: The social issue of the article is subway safety. I feel like this is a very big topic that should be made aware of because the subway is such a large part of the everyday life of a New Yorker. Subway accidents are very common and cause many deaths and injuries in New York. We really need to find a solution to all these subway accident s because Subway has become a part of our culture, and if this continues, we would probably lose count of the number of accidents. This makes me think of my trip to Hong Kong over the summer because when I  was at the train station, I couldn’t help but notice a glass in between the tracks and the platform that only opened with the subway was here. If we had that here, there might be less accidents.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Article: “Ebola Doc Dies in US Hospital” By: Nelson Lampe

Summary: The article explains the death of Dr. Martin Salid, the second Ebola victim in the US. He was treated with the same medications as other Ebola patients. The medications cured some, but Salid dies in Nebraska at 4am on Monday.

Social Issue: The social issue of the article is a big topic in the US these past few months- Ebola. This makes me think of how our country is very advanced because many people diagnosed with Ebola in the US were cured, whereas more than 5,000 people have died in West Africa. The US are able to develop a treatment that helps with curing Ebola. On the other hand, people in Africa hadn’t had all the technology to save many people. This makes me think of all the diseases in history, such as malaria and smallpox, which have wiped out many people. I wonder what causes the diseases to just break out. How come they hadn’t been such a big case earlier?

Article: “Gay Gene Theory Boost” From Associated Press (AP)

Summary: The article describes a study by scientists with nearly 800 pairs of gay brothers to test if genes have an effect on sexuality. It isn’t scientifically proven but the data leads towards a chromosome affecting your sexual orientation.

Social Issue: The social issue is sexuality. When I first read this article, I thought it was just about an experiment. However, when I read it over, I thought why does it matter? Questioning gay people to create a scientific study seems kind of rude because trying to see if genes affect their sexuality is just like asking why there are gay. To me, it just seems a little like bullying. There looks like there’s no difference between this and bullying.

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Article: ”MTA Big ‘Bonk’ers Over Backpacks” By: Thomas Tracy and Larry McShane

Summary: The article is about Charles Moerdler, an MTA board member that attempt to backtrack the idea of banning backpacks on subways. This proposal was made because many complain about getting hit with backpacks especially on crowded trains.

Social Issue: The social issue in the article is public transportation. I totally disagree with banning backpacks because as a student who takes the train home, it would outrageous to not be able to bring my backpack home on the train. This ban would affect many people including me because we would’ve have to find other ways to get home. It’s just a little push from a backpack, but that doesn’t mean that backpacks should be banned.

Reading Response on Literary Work

Before clicking that post button, think twice about tweeting about your horrible job and posting the picture of your teacher on Instagram. It may just seem like a joke or taking out your anger, but in the world, it seems like a whole lot worse. Alessandra Potenza expresses that privacy is very hard to find online, especially on social media in her article, “Guess Who’s Looking at Your Facebook Page?” Once it is online, anyone can see it- parents, teachers, and or employers. It is always up there and can never be erased. In other words, the claim Potenza is making is one of the only things you can’t find online is privacy.

            At the start, Potenza shows that there is no privacy online through someone losing their job from a post. Potenza starts off her article by introducing Kirsten Kelly, a waiter in Ohio. Potenza writes, “She posted her Facebook status update on a Friday night in July. By Monday, she was fired.” A customer had shown her manager a post Kelly wrote that complained about the lack of tips she was receiving. This shows social media hurt her because she became unemployed from the post. Online on a public website isn’t somewhere to complain about problems because it can have many consequences. Kelly thought she would just get yelled at most, but after that day, she realized the manager can do anything he or she wants. This part of the text shows me, there really isn’t much privacy online. Sharing personal information on websites is mistakenly thought of as private. However, in reality, there is no security on information online, especially on social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Therefore, the example of Kirsten Kelly shows privacy is unavailable online.

            Furthermore, Potenza shows privacy is unavailable online by telling the story of Emma Sullivan. She was a high school senior when she tweeted about Governor Sam Brownback and faced consequences for her actions by her principal, who found it offensive. Potenza writes, “Two years later, the incident is still all over the internet if you google her name. And she worries it might affect her chances of getting a job.” This illustrates how the internet is like haunting ghost. There is no privacy online because her story is still around two years later. Posting things on the internet can permanently scar her from getting a scholarship, job, and many other things she might need in the future. Once it was out, its out, and she couldn’t take it back. She is stuck with for the rest of her life. From one pose, anyone can become famous, but known for something they will probably regret. Just because it is deleted, doesn’t mean it is offline. It is like a heavy burden that will never unload off your back. Emma Sullivan’s story shows posting things online can haunt people because privacy is so hard to find.

            After reading this article, I realized that one small post, picture, and or tweet can turn into a horrible nightmare. This makes me think of labels because on many occasions people get labeled from their online profile. Take Emma Sullivan for example, from now on she is remembered by her offensive comments. Online profiles seem to define us. This has created an interest in social media and thinking before I put something online. This article shows me how social media has become such a big part of many of our lives. Social media is how people get to know each other. However, anyone can get to know anyone. This concludes it, but what I’m still thinking is, is privacy even in the online dictionary?

Original Literary Piece

Anne

Anne once a bully

Then she lived with a burden

Anne is now alone

Process/Problem

            To write this poem, I listed all the social issues I could think of and once I had about 10 I stopped and chose one to focus on. I was kind of stuck on how to write it so, I looked up examples of poems dealing with social issues and read a few. One poem named, “Eric”, really stood out to me because the title was just one name and the short poem described many of his problems while only mentioning his name once. After reading five poems, I decided to write a haiku using the same style “Eric” used in which having a name as the title and describing their problem in a few lines. In other words, I used an example of a social issue poem to help me write my own.

            The social issue in the poem is bullying and how it can hurt you even though you are the bully. When people bully, it is mainly because they are insecure and trying to bring others down to suffer with her. The burden represents Anne’s guilt and how after bullying, people including Anne just feel worse about themselves. The last line shows how bullying just got Anne alone because her actions pushed everyone away from her. All in all, I wrote the poem by making every line a different part of her life and how it progresses.

Works Cited

Saturday, November 15, 2014 News- New York Post

Sunday, November 16, 2014 News- Daily News

Monday, November 17, 2014 News- Daily News

Tuesday, November 18, 2014- New York Post

Wednesday, November 19, 2014- Daily News

“Guess Who’s Looking at Your Facebook Page” by Alessandra Potenza from Upfront Magazine

Mentor Poem: “Eric” by Barry Taylor URL: http://www.poemsforfree.com/eric.html

"Guess Who's Looking at Your Facebook Page?" Non-Fiction Reading Response

Before clicking that post button, think twice about tweeting about your horrible job and posting the picture of your teacher on Instagram. It may just seem like a joke or taking out your anger, but in the world, it seems like a whole lot worse. Alessandra Potenza expresses that privacy is very hard to find online, especially on social media in her article, “Guess Who’s Looking at Your Facebook Page?” Once it is online, anyone can see it- parents, teachers, and or employers. It is always up there and can never be erased. In other words, the claim Potenza is making is one of the only things you can’t find online is privacy.

        At the start, Potenza shows that there is no privacy online through someone losing their job from a post. Potenza starts off her article by introducing Kirsten Kelly, a waiter in Ohio. Potenza writes, “She posted her Facebook status update on a Friday night in July. By Monday, she was fired.” A customer had shown her manager a post Kelly wrote that complained about the lack of tips she was receiving. This shows social media hurt her because she became unemployed from the post. Online on a public website isn’t somewhere to complain about problems because it can have many consequences. Kelly thought she would just get yelled at at most, but after that day, she realized the manager can do anything he or she wants. This part of the text shows me, there really isn’t much privacy online. Sharing personal information on websites is mistakenly thought of as private. However, in reality, there is no security on information online, especially on social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Therefore, the example of Kirsten Kelly shows privacy is unavailable online.

        Furthermore, Potenza shows privacy is unavailable online by telling the story of Emma Sullivan. She was a high school senior when she tweeted about Governor Sam Brownback and faced consequences for her actions by her principal, who found it offensive. Potenza writes, “Two years later, the incident is still all over the internet if you Google her name. And she worries it might affect her chances of getting a job.” This illustrates how the internet is like haunting ghost. There is no privacy online because her story is still around two years later. Posting things on the internet can permanently scar her from getting a scholarship, job, and many other things she might need in the future. Once it was out, its out, and she couldn’t take it back. She is stuck with for the rest of her life. From one pose, anyone can become famous, but known for something they will probably regret. Just because it is deleted, doesn’t mean it is offline. It is like a heavy burden that will never unload off your back. Emma Sullivan’s story shows posting things online can haunt people because privacy is so hard to find.

        After reading this article, I realized that one small post, picture, and or tweet can turn into a horrible nightmare. This makes me think of labels because on many occasions people get labeled from their online profile. Take Emma Sullivan for example, from now on she is remembered by her offensive comments. Online profiles seem to define us. This has created an interest in social media and thinking before I put something online. This article shows me how social media has become such a big part of many of our lives. Social media is how people get to know each other. However, anyone can get to know anyone. This concludes it, but what I’m still thinking is, is privacy even in the online dictionary?

Museum of the City of New York Trip Response

The trip made me think of rebellion. Many activists go against authority to prove a point. Is this considered illegal? They are technically going against the law to prove a point. However, it is to make the world a better place. Most of these rebels served a time in prison because the courts and government considered them to be breaking the rules. This makes me wonder because many of them used a non-violence plan to stand up. For instance, Martin Luther King Jr. used speeches such as “I Have a Dream” to end segregation. I wonder was this considered illegal? They are just trying to act on something that is unjust. Segregation discriminated on race and no one should be judged on race because they are unable to control that. You are born into a race and you can’t change it. It is unfair to separate blacks from whites, so taking a stand and rebelling gets you to spend a time in jail. Therefore, the trip made me think whether or not rebellion is considered legal and the unfair consequences of it.

In addition, the trip made me think about being brave and courageous. It takes guts to stand up to authority and many people certainly did to fight for their rights. It also made me think about how the government mainly enforces things that will benefit them and the people they mainly care about. They encouraged segregation by saying separate but equal, although people didn't listen to it. Segregation was only determined not right when the blacks decided to go against it by using speeches and other methods. If it wasn't for people rebelling against it, there might still be segregation occurring today. However, they didn't encourage bike lanes and gay marriage because it was not typical thing to do. There weren't bike lanes ten years ago and many people weren't gay long ago. They even made a stereotypical Gay Bob doll to make fun of it. Also, I see many white bikes around the city that show where someone has died from a bike accident. This shows the importance of bike lanes because people need to feel safe when riding, not like they might get run over. New laws that people have brought up to benefit themselves and many others, are not enforced as much as laws the government made up. It seems like the government is biased to something they want rather than what the people want.

Lastly, women rights were a big issue back then and it makes me think about what people do to try and get their point across. Suffrage was a movement to try and earn their rights in which women marched through the street wearing long, formal dresses to try to be treated seriously. They wanted men and women to be treated equally. Since, the government opposed this, they had to try harder to get their rights. Many people believed they shouldn’t have rights and many suffrage cards making fun of women. This shows people that oppose it trying very hard, too. People who believed in an act and people who didn’t that fight to express their opinion shows me how hard someone works to fight for what they believe in.

  My Original Poems- Limericks

Women had no rights Blacks lived a bad life That was unfair As if they breathe different air So they acted and started a fight

People lives weren’t well It seemed like they were in hell They said no more Opposers thought what for So they started to rebel

Gay Bob Toy

White Bike Memorial

A Suffrage Card Opposers Made

    

Carrie Reading Response

Low self-esteem and self-harm has become a major issue in teen life and has caused many stories to end tragically. It was no different for Carrie. Carrie by Stephen King focuses on the telekinetic powers of Carrie, a girl living with a religious, abusive mother. She becomes really depressed and turns her powers into a weapon. Social issues such as bullying, religious discrimination, and abuse are the main reasons of depression for Carrie and many others.

Bullying was one of the main reason from the start of the story that showed signs of depression. Carrie was made fun of lack of knowledge about growing of age although that being her mom’s problem. When Carrie experiences her first period at school, King writes, “Then the laughter, disgusted, contemptuous, horrified, seemed to rise and bloom into something jagged and ugly, and the girls were bombarding her with tampons and sanitary napkins...They flew like snow and the chant became: ‘Plug it up, plug it up, plug it up, plug it-’” This shows Carrie being bullied because of inexperience. Carrie was being punished verbally and physically for her mother not telling her about her period. This quote proves that she has been a victim of harassment. Through all this, she was unable to keep her head up and fight through it, leading to depression and performing homicide. This doesn’t just happen in books because in reality it happens in everyday life for many people. Amanda Todd was a girl that made one mistake and was taunted for the rest of her life because of it. She gave up her life showing the terrible effects of bullying. Teens need to notice this and made aware that it does occur despite the negativity of it. It will hopefully teach them to be nicer to others.

In addition, religious discrimination has also been a large factor in Carrie’s depression. Her mom’s influence on her has made her very religious and value God. She believes everyone except her and her mom will go to hell. During prom nominations, Carrie thinks, “George and Frieda. No was Frieda Jason was a Jew.” This quote shows Carrie making fun of others like how people were making fun of her. Bringing other people down to increase your self-esteem is not an excuse especially someone’s physical feature and or religion. People are unable to control their religion because they usually grow up in their parents’ religion. Religion is a big case in the world, too. Many kids in Israel has been kidnapped and killed by others because they didn’t like that they were Arabs. Carrie is just talking to herself, but it can lead to drastic results like this. It may seem funny to the bully, but it is really offensive to the recipient. Carrie thinks of anyone unlike her as lower, which is how everyone treats her. So, she should think about how she feels when she is bullied because that is probably how Frieda will probably feel. Teens need to realize this to make them think before they discriminate on religion.

Furthermore, Carrie’s homicidal actions are partially caused by abuse. Her mom has been abusing her ever since she was little, mainly because of religion. Her mom would force her into a closet to pray for her sins. A part in the book that shows her mom abusing her is when King writes, “She [her mom] was clawing at her neck and cheeks, making red marks and scratches. She tore her dress.” This quotes proves the fact that her mom was abusive. This abuse led to Carrie despising her mother, resulting in Carrie using her telekinetic powers to stop her mom’s heart from working. Her mom’s abusive relationship with her led to her murder rampage because when she killed her mom after her mom stabbed her, it was certain she was taking everyone down with her. In our society, abusive relationships are unfortunately, very common and similar to this. They are controlled by someone in the relationship forcing the other person to do something. Carrie and her mom have the same relationship in which her mom forces her in the closet. In both cases, the person being abused had no way out of it and are too scared to speak up. Teens reading this book should learn to speak up and report it because abuse is not something to overlook.

As these examples has proven, Carrie became really depressed mainly for three reasons- bullying, religious discrimination, and abuse. Carrie is truly not a role model when it comes to dealing with these problems. None of them are fun and should be tolerated with. The interesting thing about the book is through all the terrible social issues, it is entertaining. However, the issues teach people how not to deal with them, in hopes of people doing the opposite- to speak up and to not do it. Everyone has problems and the end result is up to the way you deal with it, so the book should encourage readers to learn how to deal with problems such as bullying, religious discrimination, and abuse the way that will benefit them the most.

Carrie Synthesis Page- Archetypes

Quick Summary- The book Carrie by Stephen King is about 18-year-old Carrie that discovers her telekinesis power throughout the book. It starts off with her getting her first menstrual cycle and being bullied by Christine "Chris", her clique, and surprisingly Sue Snell, a good girl. She is allowed to go homeland comes home to her abusive mom, Margaret. Margaret is very aggressive and restricts Carrie from doing many things. The next day, Sue feels guilty and tries to make it up to her. An act of kindness of Sue and her boyfriend, Tommy allows Carrie to fit in for once, but also leads to Chris and her boyfriend, Billy's act of terror. These acts collide with Carrie as she uses her powers as a weapon that will go down as one of the most unstoppable and tragic destruction ever. These are some of the archetypes found throughout the book.
Carrie

Victim	Rebel	Temptress
Carrie plays the role of victim of bullying and abuse. In the beginning scene Carrie comes out of the gym shower and sees blood running down her leg. King writes, “Then the laughter, disgusted, contemptuous, horrified, seemed to rise and bloom into something jagged and ugly, and the girls were bombarding her with tampons and sanitary napkins.” This shows Carrie is a victim because all the girls are making fun of her simply because she doesn’t know what a period is. She should not be bullied because Margaret is not a good mother, which brings us to the second point. she is a victim of Margaret’s abuse. Magaret once looked her in a closet to pray for forgiveness for a day. Carrie fainted from the smell of her own waste. First, she is verbally taunted by her schoolmates, and right after she goes home to a physically abusive mother. Overall, Carrie is seen as the victim in the beginning of the book.	Carrie is seen as a rebel because throughout the book, she talks back to her mom and goes against her mom. For example, when Margaret finds Carrie in her prom dress, after returning to work, she tells Carrie to take it off repeatedly. However, Carrie continuously says no and goes to the prom anyways. As you can see, Carrie is quite rebellious towards her mom and does the opposite of what she says. Another part that shows this is when her mom disapproves of Carrie going to prom, let alone with Tommy, but Carrie still sneaks out and goes. These moments when Carrie decides to go against what her mom says proves that she is a rebel. Margaret is her only parent and usually kids have to follow their parents rules or they’ll get grounded or charged with another punishment. In this case, Carrie doesn’t care what the punishment is and still does whatever she wants. For that reason, Carrie is seen like a rebel when she is with her mom.	Carrie is a temptress because she uses her telekinetic powers to her advantage. Instead of using them to help others, she uses it as a weapon. For example, in the end, King writes, “State officials say that the death toll in Chamberlain stands at 409, with 49 still listed as missing.” This was caused by Carrie. She uses her powers to trap all the kids that went to the Spring Ball in a burning school building for revenge, blows up the whole town, and kills her mom by stopping her heart. She takes advantage of her powers to make everyone else weaker. She kills 458 people and dies herself from blood loss. No one would have died if she didn’t do any of this. None of it was necessary if she would’ve dealt with bullying and abuse a different way and ask someone to help her with her problems. Sue would’ve easily agreed to help her. Therefore, Carrie seems like a temptress because of the fact she didn’t ask for help and she tried to solve her problems by punishing others using her powers.

Sue (and Tommy)

The Good Girl	The Scapegoat	Star- Crossed Lovers
Although at the start of the story Sue seems like just another mean girl she recognizes that her action were wrong and tries to make up for it. Sue joins Chris when she starts throwing things at Carrie, but she tries to help Carrie after feeling empathy for her. She proves she is a good girl when King writes, “‘Wait. Just wait. Let me talk. You want me to ask Carrie White to the Spring Ball… [Tommy says]’” Sue askes Tommy to take Carrie as a way to make up for bullying and to help Carrie break out of her shell. She wants Carrie to not be so timid around kids because she’s scared she's going to be made fun of. Sue seems like a good girl because she recognizes her mistakes and tries to fix them. She feels guilty about bullying Carrie and to make up for it she tries to do the complete opposite and help her. Thus, Sue tries to maintain her good girl attitude not for a public image, but for her self benefit.	Toward the end of the book, Sue is treated like a scapegoat. King supports this statement when he writes, “Q. [interviewer] You deny you had prior knowledge of Carrie White’s whereabouts? A.[Sue] Of course I do. It’s an absurd idea.” This quote shows the society people not trusting Sue and keeps hammering her to try to get her to say what they want to hear. Sue seems like a scapegoat because she is blamed by the society for knowing where Carrie was and having knowledge that she was going to blow up the whole town . For this reason, Sue can be considered a scapegoat during her interview after Carrie’s horrific effect on Chamberlain.	Sue and Tommy are star- crossed lovers because Sue lives and Tommy dies due to Sue‘s good girl personality. Sue askes Tommy to go with Carrie to the prom and when he does they win prom king and queen. Pig blood gets poured on them causing Carrie to lose her mind and start killing everyone including Tommy. Sue is left alone and one of the only survivors of Carrie’s reign of terror. When Tommy dies, it shows they are star crossed lovers because their love is ill-faded. Sue’s act of kindness to help Carrie come out of her shell is her downfall and as a result Tommy and Sue become star- crossed lovers.

Miss Desjardin- The Mother Figure

Miss Desjardin seems like the mother figure to Carrie due to Margaret not acting like a mom. One reason one can call Miss Desjardin a mom to Carrie because when Carrie goes through her first period . She tries to help her and defend her from the taunts of the other girls. Many teachers will send her to the nurse or just punish the bullies. However, she acts like a mom and tries to help and educate on her. In addition, Miss Desjardin tries to punish the bullies harder than just two detention periods. She cares for Carrie and wants to help her with her problems . Maybe this is because she had a mom that didn't care about her or she was bullied as a kid as well. Margaret treats Carrie like a dog while Miss Desjardin treats her like an actual daughter. All in all, Miss Desjardin takes the place of Margaret’s absent mom attitude making her kind of like her second mom.

Tommy- The Puppet

Tommy can be seen as a puppet with Sue being the puppet master. This is shown through his decision of asking Carrie to the Spring Ball. When Sue askes. Tommy to ask Carrie to go with him, he quickly agrees it besides his small doubts . Tommy follows Sue and what she does because he is basically blinded by her love, since Tommy agreed to ask Carrie despite dating Sue. It could've been a test to see if Tommy would actually do it to prove his love for her, but he wouldn’t know because he is too focused on making her happy. This is his downfall because he is so dependent on her resembling a puppet and the puppet master controlling it. Tommy acts like Sue's little puppet that she is controlling and Tommy is happy to fit that position in exchange for Sue's love.

Chris (and Billy)

Popular Mean Girl	Spoiled Brat	Shadow-Bully
Chris acts like the stereotypical popular mean girl with a clique that everyone is nice to out of fear. All the teachers are scared to stick it to her with the exception of Miss Desjardin. King writes, “‘Chris and her Mortimer Sherds’ Morton murmured.” Even Mr. Morton, the assistant principal, knows Chris and her little minions are a problem. The way King writes murmured to describe the way Mr. Morton talked shows he didn’t want to say it too loud and have anyone overhearing. Also, Chris fits the popular stereotype because she is so concerned about winning prom queen until she is suspended from the prom. The prom queen desire and campaigning seems like the popular mean girl in all school life movies and book that everyone hates. That being the case, she fits the role of popular mean girl.	In addition to being that popular mean girl that everyone despises, Chris is the spoiled brat in the school. This is supported when Miss Desjardin pushes Chris against the locker for verbally and physically harassing Carrie, but Chris refuses to take her two detention punishment. After the incident she goes straight to her lawyer also, known as her dad. King writes, “‘I am here because my daughter was manhandled by your gym teacher Miss Rita Desjardin. and verbally abused..’ [Chris’ dad said]” As you can see, Chris is only telling her dad her side of the story and not Miss Desjardin’s reasoning. This resembles a spoiled brat because she complains to her parents to get others in trouble. Because of her dependence on her dad, she seems like a spoiled brat.	Chris and Billy are a perfect example of a shadow in a school environment, also called a bully. They run the halls like a perfect couple. Everyone fears them, and does their best to satisfy them because they don’t want to be made fun of. A part in the book that shows this clearly is when Chris and Billy take pig blood and places it above the prom stage to put on the winners of prom queen and king, since they couldn't run. Because Chris was banned from the prom her malicious attitude creates a lot of drama. She makes sure Carrie wins prom queen to embarrass her. She wants to punish her more form getting her banned from the prom. On that account, Chris and Billy act like the school bullies to punish others and take out their aggression on them.