Revised-"Walk of Death"

     Based on a comment I have received so far on specifically my old post titled, "Walk of Death", I am going to edit it based on the constructive criticism offered by user Pauly_jay920. I feel it is very helpful when a reader points out ideas or mistakes  that perhaps the writer did not notice themselves because that's how your own writing abilities improve. Moreover, I feel that commentary from others can drastically make your writing piece way better than the first time you wrote it, but cannot always make it perfect because there are readers that may want you to elaborate on different things or whose writing style is different from your own.

 

      The Trail of Tears has always been a reoccurring topic discussed in history classes I have taken. Just as we’re (students) are taught, they were forced off their land and were considered, “backward and ignorant”, therefore had to learn the Christian way of living. However, many of the individuals interviewed in the film we saw in class stated that we need to learn about the history of the Cherokee population because a lot of facts are left unsaid and I feel that’s what I really gained insight to. I always thought they were forced to do what they were told by the whites such as changing their lifestyle and learning the European culture. But, I learned they actually wanted to adapt to white customs in order to keep their homeland. And, most of all they were successful in doing everything the right way, regarding changing their ways and participating in the missionary schools. Nevertheless, chaos still broke out when two leaders, Elias Boudinot and John Ridges wanted to marry white women. Now, the issues among the Cherokee people focused on “color”. They proved they were capable of doing the same things whites can do, yet this served as a new excuse for them to suffer from oppression.

       It just doesn’t seem to make sense that a group of people were treated less than humans by the same people who welcomed them with open arms at one point. Looking at the big picture, the real reason of it was purely greed. Wealth was the motive, which is exactly what President Jackson wanted.  Assuredly, he had support to carry out the Cherokee genocide and obviously the power to do so. It was survival of the fittest, a concept in Social Darwinism. Regarding the Cherokee population, money was not something to fight for. To them, real value and worth stemmed from the comfort of living on their land and the beautiful mountains that surrounded it. But, European-Americans intent for the removal of Native Americans was profit. Everything had to be done to make sure wealth was in the hands of the whites and only them which is why the Cherokees couldn’t testify against whites, sell land, mine for gold or have freedom of speech. Even the sympathizers and intellectuals had to be eliminated. Among such people were some Americans and members of Congress like David "Davy" Crockett.

     As we discussed, global genocide is evident throughout history as a repeating event. A historic reference can be the Holocaust, in which millions of Jews were killed by the Nazi regime under control of Adolf Hitler. And unfortunately, we’re not safe today either. Greed drives people to do bizarre things, whether it’s on a big or small scale. A lot of times, wants are placed on top of needs. It  makes me think of a small example like the MTA and their greed when it comes to raising up the fares, with the poor economy and middle class struggling enough already. But, of course, there are always excuses as to why their actions are justified.

Textual Works by Paul Laurence Dunbar

"The Lynching of Jube Benson" by Paul Laurence Dunbar, is a text told as a story by one of the main characters, Dr. Melville. It started off as a discussion on bout the desire to witness a live lynching, but Dr. Melville actually participated in one in which he felt guilty about. Jube Benson was an African American who was a server to Dr. Melville and a white young teenager in town, Annie. Benson was trusted and always by Dr. Melville's side, even when he turned ill. The doctor grew to love Benson. However, one day, Annie was found beaten and raped and when asked who did such a thing, her last words were, "that black", before she died in the arms of Dr, Melville. Immediately assuming it was Jube Benson, the town and doctor searched for him and lynched him. However, after it was too late, they soon discovered it was actually a white man who committed this murder, whose face was smeared with dirt to resemble an African American.

Another text was Paul Laurence Dunbar called, "The Sport of the Gods", surrounded a wealthy white family who owned a mansion and cottage in which Berry Hamilton, a former slave became a butler for them. Through years of catering to them, Berry gained acceptance, trust and acquired the Oakley's cottage to live in, while creating a family of his own with Fannie, the housekeeper. All was well between the Oakleys and Hamiltons until Maurice's brother, Frank discovered that his money was gone from his bureau. Maurice explained to Frank, that negroes of their present day were becoming less faithful and less contented and understanding the value of money, thus stealing more than what met their immediate necessities such as food. He suspected that Berry Hamilton had been stealing from them all of the years that he had known him, despite Berry's plea to believe he wouldn't do such a thing. As a result, Berry was found guilt and arrested . In the text, we find out Berry was indeed innocent of something he was falsely accused for.

Being written around the same time, these two texts by Dunbar are very similar because they both involve former slaves that were falsely accused of wrongdoing. The norm of society back then always pointed to African Americans for everything that was looked down upon. The two characters, Jube Benson and Berry Hamilton were described as loyal, grateful and trusted by those who cared for them like Dr. Melville and Maurice Oakley. However, both of these men turned against their servants and believed the typical stereotype of the time period-it was the black man who did it.

In "The Lynching of Jube Benson", Benson tells Dr. Melville, "'W'y, doctah,' he exclaimed in the saddest voice I have ever heard, 'w'y, doctah! I ain't stole nuffin' o' yo'n, an' I was comin' back". Similarly, in "The Sport of Gods", Berry turns to Maurice and tells him, "You believed a thing lak dat aftah all de yeahs I been wid you?" I believe these are the two lines in each texts in which the innocent victims are basically begging for their life and also in disbelief that they are being accused of something sinful by a person they were always there for. The ways in which these two stories are different is the punishment that was condemned for Berry and Benson's (false) wrongdoings. Berry had to serve 10 years of hard labor, and Benson was lynched. These were two scenarios that was feared by their fellow persons of color during Post-Reonstruction. As described in "The Sport of Gods", the influence that stemmed from slavery was still relevant. They had to go against their own kind for the white man's displeasure for their own interests and safety.

"You Can Do Anything With an English Major!"

     Yesterday, I attended the, “You Can Do Anything With an English Major” event, hosted by the Writing and Literature Major of the English department; which our Professor said, basically featured guest speakers who discussed the ways in which being an English major helped them with their career paths and achieve their goals. Unfortunately, I missed the first half of the event, when a majority of the speakers shared their stories. However, I was there for one story by Professor Hector Fernandez. He was discussing how being an English major, helped him on his journey throughout law school. Employers and individuals who looked at his qualifications liked the fact that he had essential writing skills; something that is greatly beneficial. He also made a career out of banking before becoming a business advisor at LaGuardia Community College and running his own paralegal program. Just with his story, it is evident that it served the purpose of this event in the first place; to demonstrate how an English major can provide different career paths, instead of positions people may associate it with such as being an English teacher or an author. I thought it was interesting how this major can come in handy for many employers; and know that it doesn’t set an absolute strict limit on what you want to do.

     Moreover, there were a lot of advice shared among the panel of speakers and questions asked, that I will pass along myself.  The topic of books was mentioned and it seemed like all the speakers had something significant to say in regards to how they personally feel about them. Books were described as a way to transcend into another world to better understand different types of cultures and a great way to network or start a random conversation. Some suggested titles were, “Angry Black White Boy”, by Adam Mansbach and “One Hundred Years of Solitude”, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It was advised that if one becomes a writer, to market yourself and manage your money because if you make a huge profit like J.K. Rowling for the Harry Potter series, you have to know what to do with it or else you’ll end up with nothing.

     Overall, this presentation was very informative. Some things that I took away with me and what others may find useful is to stop doubting, reach high and to absorb as much information as possible while I’m still in school. A major point I think they were trying to convey is that, English may not be a popular choice of major but there are opportunities out there. Also, it not about English, it’s really about the skills you develop and how you choose to use them that truly matters; which is a mindset that can be applied to any major you choose to declare.