"Only Daughter"

In her essay, “The Only Daughter,” a professor and a writer Sandra Cisneros states, “I am the only daughter of a Mexican father and a Mexican-American mother” (1). Her father does not think of her as part of the family because she is the only daughter out of sevens sons. Cisneros’ father thinks that she is just going to get married, instead of doing something better with her life, because she is a woman.

My father used to think the same way when I used to go to school. He thought I was just wasting my time in school and I won’t graduate from high school. He thought I was just going to end getting married, since I am a woman. This similarity in ideas between Cisneros’ and my father is part of their cultural beliefs. Cisneros’ father was not expecting anything from her because she is the only daughter.  I think that he has a traditional mindset that is discouraging to all daughters and women. Even though Cisnero became a successful writer, she was still concerned about what her father will say about her books. I agree that it is important for her father to treat her like his sons and accept the work that she is doing, so she can feel fulfilled and good about her achievements. She will be more open to her father and construct a healthier emotion and family relationship. Acceptance from her father will make her feel less isolated and be part of the family.

I suggest to the readers that even though someone in the family might discourage them, they should carry on with accomplishing their dreams. They shouldn’t think that people can tell them what to do. They should do whatever makes them happy, and prove others wrong for thinking that they are just a woman. Instead, they should prove that they are better than what their family members think and that they want to do something good in their life. Maybe one day their father will understand that all those things he used to say are wrong. No one is just a girl out of however many sons. Fathers should think their daughters are the same as sons and they shouldn’t think that their daughters wouldn’t succeed in life.  

http://www.tbaisd.k12.mi.us/departments/docs_gen/pacing/ela12-6/9thGrade/9-4/Only_Daughter.pdf

http://www.sandracisneros.com/

http://www.sandracisneros.com/news/2007-11-01_elvira_cisneros.php

A soundtrack is a recording of the musical accompaniment to a movie. The purpose of the soundtrack is about the promoting of the movie and the setting the mood and enhancing the scenes in a film. A soundtrack of my life would be a great story that has nice songs that have a lot of connection to my life. The three songs that I will like in my soundtrack are “I Wanna Know” by Joe , Jordin Sparks’ “One Step at a Time” and “Mad” by Neyo.

In “I Wanna Know” by Joe, he wants to treat his girl better than the previous guy did.  He says, “You kiss my lips and then you take my breath away.”  The reason I pick this as my first song is because it reminds me of my wedding day. It makes me smile because that is the relationship I have, and I have someone who understands me. My husband loves me and always tells me that he cares about me.

Jordin Sparks’ “One Step at a Time” sends the message to people that if they want something, they need to take small steps, because it takes time to accomplish any goals and dreams. The lyrics “we live and we learn to taken one step at a time” stood out to me because I want to take things step by step in my life. One day I want to appreciate each accomplish and struggle that I went through to reach into my goals and be happy about it.

Mad” by Neyo is a lesson to people who do not easily get over conflicts or grudges. Instead of staying mad at people, listening to each other will help resolve problems. I can sympathize the most with the lyrics “Cause I can’t sleep through the pain; girl, I don’t want to go to bed,” because this is how I feel when I am mad at someone. I will not go to bed until I work things out with that person. I do not want to wake up in the morning with an unresolved issues in my life and negative feelings.

My soundtrack says that I’m a great person who likes to work towards my goals and stay dedicated. I would make a soundtrack to express my mood and to listen to the songs as a self-reminder of my perspectives, motivations and intentions in life. My song choices portray my passion, either for work or for people I love. I suggest the readers make their own soundtrack to express their ambition and personal philosophies.

"Inocente" Blog

 The documentary" Inocente", directed by Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine, is about a young homeless girl, who is aspired to become an artist. She becomes homeless after her mother runs away with her and her brothers, because she had an abusive father. She started painting her face, which led her to become a painter. She lives in the streets and has to take showers in public bathrooms. Her mother makes income through recycling collected cans and bottles. Painting helps her cope with her situation. Inocente successfully sells all of her painting and gains independence by moving out.

 I like it because it shows that people can move on despite having obstacles and being trouble. In the video you see a young girl who loves to paint. She has a lot of passion for art. She has financial problems at home, but tries her best to keep up at school. People at her school do not know that she is homeless. She doesn't give up hope of achieving her dream and becoming an artist.
 My Opinion is about finding personal support by valuing life and appreciating even the smallest prizes in life. My opinion is significant because it emphasizes on the idea that people should not give up instead, they should learn to appreciate what they have and continue to accomplish their goals. The readers might benefit from my opinion because it could help them think about their lives and what they have, and learn to be grateful for their lives and what they have.

"ugly or beautiful"

People are the same whether they are ugly or beautiful because when we die we all turn into skeletons. In the image, I see two words “ugly” and “beautiful”, but in the picture they all look the same. The images are exactly the same but they present two words that make me think differently about the picture. The image is stating that we might be labeling ourselves from one another but the truth is that we are all equal.The image tells us there are differences on the outside, but we are the same on the inside. People always judge each other because of how they look without  trying to know the person first. My assertion is important because it is important to accept ourselves base on who we are on the inside. On the inside, we are our culture, background and tradition, and there is no way change that by altering our outside appearance.

Television keeps us from communicating with people and getting more exercise, because it wastes our time by keeping us attached to it  In the video, I hear an annoying voice talking to the audience. It shows the phrase “look at me” and “don’t look there”. The voice says that it will provide everything the audience wants to see 24/7. In the video, it shows advertisements and models. The voice gets louder and tries to get our attention. I believe my assertion is true because television brainwashes people and makes people addicted to it. It tries to get our attention. The longer people watch it, the harder it is for them to stop watching it. Therefore, people will continue to spend more time on the television, so we have less time to be active and interact with people. Now that we know the truth about television, we can watch it less and not always want to see what is shown on it. Instead, we need to spend more time with people and participate more in physical activities.

How To Tell People They Sound Racist

Jay Smooth’s video is talks about racism. I think people can watch his video and understand when people are being a racist or not and learn how to approach to them. In the video, “How To Tell People They Sound Racist,”  is about going to someone and telling them they are being a racist based on what they said and what they did conversation. There are two types of conversation. What they did in the conversation is focuses on the person’s actions and what they said in conversation indicates how they approach to you. The reason that I believe in my assertion because I think the video suggests a good way to face people that sound racist. We should always remember the difference when someone is being racist or making neutral comment. A racist comment could be when someone says that all black people are ghetto and trashy, while white people are educated and the smartest people in the world. Now that we know how to approach someone who is racist in a nice way, we can address them without causing more conflicts. It is very important to tell who is racist and who is not, because in the United States we are going to meet people from all over the world and we have to learn to work with them and resolve conflicts.

The Harlem Shake Reacts

‘The Harlem Shake Reacts" clip shows how the people from Harlem feel disrespected and humiliated by the white people, because they are making fun of their dancing and the Harlem culture. In the Harlem shake video there are many people dancing all over the place. Some of them are wearing masks on their faces, dancing on the wall, and moving their bodies. They wear funny outfits like Super Mario, Power Rangers, and some other cartoons Characters. They were also making themselves look like thugs. I believe my assertion is true because I know how the people from Harlem feel. They feel disrespected and ashamed of their culture. I can relate to them in many ways. A lot people do not know the effect of the Harlem Shake video and the meaning of it. Also, a lot of the people do not even know that they are hurting people’s feels by making these videos. Now that we know how the people from Harlem feels about the video. We should expect to feel the same when people are making fun of our culture. People often ask me questions such as ‘Why do you wear something on your head,’ and ‘Are You from Somalia?’ sometimes I feel disrespected because I do not have to be from Somalia to wear something on my head. I wear the hajiab because I am Muslim.