The Cycle of Useless Advice

As teenagers we often think the advice and actions of our parents is useless, however, through the two pieces we read this week I've realized that I will be the exact same way that they are. In "Shooting Dad," Sarah Vowell realizes that her dad's hobby and profession is parallel to hers. Already, in my own life, I see myself taking on a mixture of interests similar to my parents'. Also like our parents, our generation will eventually be handed the reigns of society and be expected to run it just like they did. This is exactly what happened in the case of Brad Manning, described in "Arm Wrestling with My Father." In this piece, we can also see the similarities between Manning and his father. He may not be an identical copy, for example is father isn't interested in orchestra, but in many other ways he is. His father can see himself in the sports that Brad Manning plays and, although he doesn't play the same sport, he still takes interest in them. So now, when I think of all the advice my parents have given me, I realize that this is the same advice that I will be giving to my children in the future. Similarly to me, they will also think my advice is useless. Nevertheless, it is in the nature of people to be just like their parents. To be cliché, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

The Thousand Yard Stare

My eyes remain unfocused,

weary of what could lay on horizon.

It is called the Thousand Yard Stare,

a sign of a battle weary soldier.

All my eyes can perceive is fire and smoke,

attempting to burn the Vietcong out.

We are surrounded by forest and mountains,

with no relief.

The ashen smell radiating from the forests burns our noses,

there is no escape.

Still,

we converse, heal, live, and hope.

Constantly, we hear the engines of U.S. planes flying over us,

dropping napalm on our surroundings.

It contributes to these hellish conditions,

burning our noses more and drowning out our voices.

Fellow soldiers are discussing possibilities,

one of these days a plane will come to take them home.

I've moved long past those possibilities,

my hope is but a sliver.

Other soldiers are worse off than me,

they crumble on the ground in despair.

Reflecting on their lives,

they erase themselves from reality.

Our surroundings symbolize us,

burnt out, dying, dead.

Almost like zombies,

we carry on through this misery.

Knowing right now that we are living,

but soon we will all be dead.

Us soldiers are all trees of the forest awaiting napalm,

we just do not know when it will come.

What it Means to be an American

This week, we discussed pieces by Amy Tan, Maya Angelou, and Sherman Alexie. All of these pieces involved some sort of racial conflict, both external and internal. Amy Tan wishes to appear more American and not seem weird to her crush Robert. Maya Angelou describes the constantly waging war between blacks and whites. Finally, Sherman Alexie describes what being a Native American is like in the new American world. While all of these authors are proud of their identity, I feel as if there is something they all fail to realize. There is no strict definition of what it means to be American. This nation, founded by a mixture of immigrants, isn't all one single race. It's a melting pot of different races and that is why we can call this country great. I am as much American as is Amy Tan, as is Maya Angelou, as is Sherman Alexie, as is the voice actor for Ford truck commercials. Any citizen of the U.S. that is proud of contributing their race to this unique country is an American. Amy Tan doesn't need a new nose to be American, and her mother is partially wrong to think that inside, Amy must be proud that she isn't. However, only by accepting she is different, can Amy truly experience what it is like to be an American. There is a great example of this going on right now in the Olympics. The U.S. team(also including Summer Olympics) involves a variety of foreign teammates including Chinese, Russian, Kenyan, Mexican, and many other races of athletes. A person of any race can become an American. Just as Jill Geer, the U.S. tracks & field communications director points out about foreign athletes, "no one considers them anything but American."

Purpose of "Champion of the World"

Maya Angelou wrote the piece “Champion of the World” in an attempt to reveal the ongoing racial conflict that existed long after the abolition of slavery. She refers to Joe Louis’s title match as just another battle of races. It was just another time in which blacks had to prove that they weren’t inferior to whites. Angelou describes that if Louis loses “It was another lynching, yet another Black man hanging on a tree” (Angelou 16). Using simple sentences in paragraph 16, Angelou emphasizes the constant battles that blacks had to fight to protect themselves. But more importantly, the allusions that she makes to slavery show that blacks know they are still not safe. Even they think that they must prove themselves. However, after they have won a battle, such as in Louis’s victory, African Americans still had to face a violent backlash. Angelou recalls after the victory that “It wouldn’t do for a Black man and his family to be caught on a lonely country road” (Angelou 28). Using simple sentences, repetition of horrors blacks had to face, and allusions to slavery, Angelou displays the insecurity that blacks still felt over a hundred years after abolition.

To this day, a war between races is still being waged. However, it is not nearly to the extent that it was in the time period of Joe Louis. Many African Americans are discriminated against in the labor market and make much less than a white man doing the same job. In this case racism has still not been eliminated, but steps are constantly being made to reduce it. One of the most important milestones in racial progression has happened in this past decade when Barack Obama became president, the highest government position there is. So while there are still many battles taking place in this racial war, they are not nearly as violent or inhumane as they used to be in Joe Louis’s time. Society has progressed in this sense and hopefully will continue to.