Gender Roles In Media - An Argumentative Essay

 Gender Roles in Media- An Argumentative Essay

            Women are more often shown through media that they look a certain way. Conventional wisdom claims that there should be a lack of personal individuality to meet these types of sexualized standards. There is often a lack of understanding that these standards exist with men, too. My whole life, I have heard people say that I should look or act in a certain way, and as I got older, I learned that many of those ideals that were being pressured on myself and other young individuals came from a media outlook. Gender in media should not be so stereotypically sexist for both men and women because these types of effects can take generations to overcome and change.

            The Gender in Media Encyclopedia demonstrates that gender roles have existed for centuries. It states, "The first women’s magazine, The Lady’s Magazine, began publication in England. It creates the model for other popular women’s magazines of the period by targeting upper-class women with a combination of fiction and articles focused on concerns such as fashion and etiquette” (Koust).  Koust emphasizes that though the first idea of gender in media was very long ago, we still see examples of the same thing in media today. To show how complicated the media continues to become regarding gender roles “in 2011, journalist Peggy Orenstein published Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie Girl Culture, detailing the cultural pressures on preteen girls to adopt sexualized clothing and appearances” (Koust). This is important because it demonstrates that even though we have moved forward as a society in many ways, we still have work to do to make gender roles not as prominent in the media today. I have always believed that the press has too much influence on how one should look or behave, and many of these ideals are displayed in media in ways as diverse as children's picture books, magazines, Broadway productions, and comic books.

            However, a long-accepted argument is that those roles are there for one reason or another, but one must look at the generational impact they can have. In the book “The Three Bears Are All Boys: Mothers’ gender labeling of Neutral Picture Book Characters” by Judy DeLoache, she evaluates how often mothers label characters of picture books with a more masculine pronoun. This is important because, as stated in the book, “they show that adults unwittingly behave differently to boys and girls, and in the process communicate sex- mothers' labeling stereotyped information to them” (DeLoache). This type of labeling inadvertently shows that girls are not valued or thought of as much as boys. Often, one will use a masculine pronoun in a gender-neutral sense, but the biggest question that should be asked is why that has been the case for so long. It’s gotten so common that it’s often done subconsciously without realizing it. Some could say that it’s an old habit, but it usually comes down to the passive perception of men as usual and that they are viewed as more important. This thinking can even start with something as simple as a picture book. It’s always refreshing to find a book, movie, or sitcom with a female protagonist. However, it is still incredibly rare even in today's day and age, with it being even rarer to have one represented by the LGBTQ community.

            One way that feels more notable regarding gender roles is those portrayed in comic books. Michelle Ann Abate wrote “Funny Girls: Guffaws, Guts and Gender in Classic American Comics.” This book is a representation of gender in comics. It showcases many main female protagonists in comics and how female representation is becoming more common. The main point that the author makes is that “the increased presence of women and girls in comics in the United States is regarded as being so newsworthy because it represents a massive shift in the gender dynamics historically associated in the industry.” Abate uses key points when it is shown that “although comics have been a masculinist form for many decades, this observation does not hold for the genre’s entire history.”

In the early days of comics, the first comic that gained active interest was Marjorie Henderson Buell’s Little Lulu, which had a female lead. From 1935 to 1944, it lasted nine years in total. After this, the first comic book with a female lead was published in the 1940s. This happened in the Jungle #2 issue by Fiction House Magazines. They introduce a character who becomes the first true female superhero, Fantomah, Mystery Woman of the Jungle. Her supernatural powers allow her to punish those threatening the jungle or its inhabitants.

 It wasn’t until the 70s that the comics started to have more of an adult theme, and the dynamic shifted to be more male-focused.  Although there were more adult themes, many of the early 1970s comics did talk about LGBT issues within the self-published Underground Comix. When the revolution of comics started to shift in the 1970s, we saw more females take on the role of the damsel in distress, the character that always needed to be saved. Though these characters appealed to a larger male audience, they showcased females in a negative light, often making them objects of male desire. With all this changing, it’s no surprise that the female sales of comic books dropped, as they were no longer represented well. One could argue that males were not represented well in that same light. These types of overly done male stigmas, where they must be the ultimate protector, are often not seen as benefiting how the average male should be in everyday life.

Kenneth Kraus wrote “Male Beauty: Postwar Masculinity in Theatre, Film, and Physique Magazines.” And it is about the difficulty of discussing masculinity and various understandings of gender constructs. It takes a deeper look into different media outlets to see where the first ideals of masculinity emerged. Starting with Broadway, Kraus uses the production of “Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie, written and first produced before World War II had ended, the figure of the defiant, nonconformist young male, which would haunt American culture during the late 1940s and through the 1950s, first appears on stage; presciently, Williams creates a character who will dominate much of the literature of the postwar period. The young man who escapes the traditional, approved social and sexual norms and attempts, through his alienation, to thwart the middle-class rules that impose themselves on the individual remains a romantic emblem of youthful defiance in an oppressive and repressive era.” With these new ideals being implemented at such a crucial time, it is important to see its impact. These views offered a different perspective that was not traditionally seen; they started paving the way for men to be more open about their sexuality and emotions.

As the acceptance of male sexuality became more of a mainstream topic, the idea of male fantasy persisted and grew, and new types of media appeared, offering a deeper view into homosexual desire. Kraus continued to state “that because of their precarious status and their homosexual agendas, physique magazines could challenge the status quo only within an often-narrow range. Thus, physique magazines, even as they catered to a persecuted minority, tended to fulfill many of the cultural norms held by America at large.” More often, this is not understood as part of an issue in mainstream society, but it offers a glimpse into how males can also be mis-portrayed in media. Much like with females, it’s a hard reality to face when the depictions in media look nothing like you, leaving many individuals with lower self-confidence. 

Monique Ward and Petal Grower wrote Media and the Development of Gender Role Stereotypes. It is about how the media influences the development of gender stereotypes. First, the article refers to gender as an open concept when it uses the example, “As with other belief systems, youth learn their culture's gender norm expectations from those around them, including parents, teachers, and friends. The mainstream media provide compelling models of gender norms for several reasons.” This is important because it highlights the media has power around us, especially when it comes to our appearance and how others perceive it. This is shown in the article when it uses the example of “Recent analyses of prime-time television programming reveal that male characters are more verbally and physically aggressive than female characters and that female characters are better liked and more family-oriented than male characters.”

Revealing this stereotyping is eye-opening to many viewers who may not see this happening in front of them. But it’s an important representation to highlight as it shows how, even in media, women are meant to be soft-spoken and in the background. At the same time, men take on more of a central role, and from the early days of media up until now, that has remained relatively the same. Even with the new rising trend of having females in leading roles, more often, it is still seen where the men must come in and save the day, implying that women are unable to be the heroes of their own stories, and this is showcased by most media being unable to pass the Bechdel test. Lois Neville of Backstage Magazine says the Bechdel “test is a measure of the representation of women in film and other forms of fiction. To pass, the work must feature at least two women who speak to each other about something other than a man. Some iterations of the Bechdel test require that the two women be named.” With such easy criteria, astonishingly enough, these are continually overlooked.

Candan Ozturk wrote “Attitudes of 3 Generations of Women toward Gender Roles.” This is an important investigation as it looks at a broader view of gender roles because it spans three generations. As stated in the article, “The roles of a woman and a man are shaped by the demands concerning gender. Gender defines women as responsible for caring for the housework, and men should take part in business life and meet the financial costs of the house.” This highlights the restrictions often placed upon people because of their gender. Within the three generations, there was no significant difference in how each viewed gender roles. This shows how long these types of ideals have been around and how each generation has them.

Much of this research is still observed in everyday life, even in the current 21^st century. Women are still often overly exposed to media that normalizes the need to take care of everything at home, while men are labeled as the head of the house. It’s not only a woman’s place to do housework or take care of the kids, but also a general responsibility that shouldn’t be only a woman’s role. At the same time, men shouldn’t be expected to isolate themselves emotionally and always act as the heroic savior. LGBTQ people of both genders are negatively affected by gender stereotypes portrayed in media as traditional roles do not accommodate people who do not fall neatly into these categories.  Gender in media should not be so stereotypically sexist for both men and women because these types of effects can take generations to overcome and change.

©️ The Rosebud Writings 

Citations:

Abate, Michelle Ann. Funny Girls: Guffaws, Guts, and Gender in Classic American Comics. University Press of Mississippi, 2019.

DeLoache, Judy S., et al. “The Three Bears Are All Boys: Mothers’ Gender Labeling of Neutral Picture Book Characters - Sex Roles.” SpringerLink, Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers, 1987, link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00287623.

Kosut, Mary. Encyclopedia of Gender in Krauss, K. (2015). Male beauty: Postwar masculinity in theater, film, and Physique Magazines. SUNY Press. Media. Sage Reference, 2012.

Ozturk, Cadan. Attitudes of Three Generations of Women toward Gender Roles, Oct. 2021, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ppc.12776.

Neville, Lois. "What Is the Bechdel Test?" Backstage, 30 May 2023, www.backstage.com/magazine/article/what-is-the-bechdel-test-75534/. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.

Ward, Monique. “Media and the Development of Gender Role Stereotypes.” Media and the Development of Gender Role Stereotypes., Dec. 2020, www.researchgate.net/publication/344404333_Media_and_the_Development_of_Gender_Role_Stereotypes.

Mortality - Philosophy

 Mortality - Philosophy

“Morality entails a system of values and beliefs that we begin to learn at a very early age” (Shaw). Kantian ethics, with its universal principles, implies that one should always show respect for humanity in others and only act in a way that could hold for everyone; this is something that Kant calls duty. Unlike Kant, "Cultural relativists (a.k.a. ethical conventionalists) often tell us that we should not use our moral standards to judge the beliefs or practices of other cultures. They see absolutism as a kind of imposition of the absolutist’s moral beliefs on others (Shaw). Cultural relativists wouldn’t want to judge people by the beliefs that are held by others, even if they may be right.

            Kantian ethics and the presented moral dilemma, in which the protagonist is faced with the decision to provide shelter and inform her father of her safety, offer a unique perspective. This situation requires a thorough examination to fulfill one's ethical duties. The focus is not on the consequences but how these actions, if applied universally, would manifest a moral society. As Shaw states, “Neither provides practical advice about specific situations, but rather, through rational reflection, Kant aims to establish the supreme principle of morality” (Shaw). In this dilemma, the protagonist would provide shelter and inform her father of her safety, as both would be something that could be applied to society, given that people who are in trouble need the right to shelter and withholding information on the safety of someone’s offspring would be a detriment if applied broadly. These duties would be upheld without considering the potential outcomes. However, leaving out the bad grades would also be a part of the moral dilemma. The protagonist must decide whether it is ethical to withhold this information, considering the potential harm it could cause. While lying would be something that would be a detriment overall, withholding the information could be seen as restricting the father’s autonomy to make a morally correct decision. “The goodwill unlike anything else is good unconditionally. and what makes a goodwill “good” is will alone, not other attitudes, consequences, or characteristics of the agent (Shaw). Kant wouldn’t care about the recommendation from the psychology professor; that is not a part of the moral decision. In addition to telling the father the truth about his daughter's grades, the protagonist would then have an obligation to tell the psychology department about the potential abuse of the father.

A counterargument for the Kantian perspective would be that from a utilitarian perspective, they view it as their duty but disregard the consequences. This could be seen as avoiding the real choice. If people are unwilling to look at the consequences of their moral choices and follow their duties dogmatically, then it would be naïve to hope immoral people wouldn’t take advantage. You can follow your duty of pacifism perfectly, but that’s not much relief to the children of your society if they are slaughtered by people willing to take advantage of your unflinching goodness. You can't universally allow people to have autonomy while also stopping sociopaths from harming others.

            From a cultural relativist standpoint, one couldn’t judge how the father handles his family. That would be his business, shaped by the context of his upbringing. “They suggest instead that we accept other cultures' moral choices and rules as normal for their society, as “right for them,” and not use our moral perspectives to judge them” (Shaw). For the daughter to be sheltered, they would have to call the father first and ask if the father accepted that. They wouldn’t want to lie, so they would tell the father where she is. There would be no reason not to tell the father she got bad grades because whatever action he decided to take, given the information about his daughter’s grades, would align with his cultural values. The protagonist wouldn’t claim to know the whole story or the context of their relationship, so they couldn’t judge the situation. If it is a part of the protagonist’s moral beliefs, including getting ahead in doing favors for people who could then do favors for them, they could get the reference to get into graduate school. “Cultural relativism is the claim that one’s culture creates moral rules, and cultures differ in their interpretation of moral rightness or wrongness” (Shaw).

            A counterargument for cultural relativism would be that what counts as a “culture” is too subjective. You can say it's cultural, but when does a group of people become a culture? Does it have to be a million people, a thousand or even twenty? It doesn’t allow you to hold any group of people morally responsible. It takes away people’s rights to things like freedom and gives moral power to the majority, making people’s position in society a matter of luck. Just because a group has historically held power and can influence culture and what could be considered morally normal doesn’t make it right. That sounds suspiciously like the naturalistic fallacy.

            This type of dilemma is a hard one. One wants to do the right thing, but people's views on what is morally right can differ.  Helping someone can look different to different people. Some could see it as helping if they tell the father what is genuinely going on, while others would keep her grades and where she is a secret. Cultural relativism doesn’t look at the bigger picture of what might happen, and Kantians consider it goodwill to disclose some of the information that could lead to harm. One must question what they would want someone to do for them in a situation like this and use their best moral judgment for how to follow. 

©️The Rosebud Writings 

Citations:

Shaw, Daniel G., The Philosopher’s Quest, Pressbooks. CC BY-NC 4.0 https://pressbooks.ccconline.org/introtophilosophy/. Accessed 29 April. 2024.

Banned Book Essay - Burned By Ellen Hopkins

 Banned Book Essay – Burned by Ellen Hopkins

            There are many reasons a book might get banned. Often, none are from a valid cause of concern but more of a personal opinion about a book. Some of these will include LGBTQ issues, violence, and sexual themes within the story. What is interesting about banned books is that they are often on topics where people need to read them more because people are usually looking for acceptance that they cannot find in the real world. Author Ellen Hopkins has a wide variety of books on mental health, addiction, family issues, religion, and so much more. Many of her books are on the verge of being banned in multiple states, making them more of a must read. The stylized verse in the book “Burned” offers a look into the life of a young girl named Pattyn, who is sent to live with her aunt in Nevada because she doesn’t fit her family's religious ideals. While she is away from home, she finds acceptance and love in not only herself but others. While this book is banned in Idaho because of its views on the Mormon community, many Mormons who have read it have enjoyed it. It has still been banned from libraries and stores. With it still being well-liked, one must wonder what in particular has made it the topic of controversy and bans.

            When Ellen Hopkins was asked about her books being banned in the ACLU article called Here’s What You Lose When You Ban Books, written by Hopkins herself stated, “People trying to protect children and enforce parental rights more often don’t have children rather than having a “well-funded political drive” to achieve more equal rights. Further, the authors explain that the books are usually written by or have characters representing the LGBTQIA” (This is a paraphrase; Hopkins). As the article progresses, she makes the perfect statement of empathy for the ones who read her books, saying “that her goals were always to have a more comprehensive view when most people typically have a narrow-minded view. This will allow positive or negative outcomes one will face. This shows people they have a choice and how to make a more informed decision” (This is a paraphrase; Hopkins). 

            When books are banned, the voices they are helping are taken away, leaving those who need them without an outlet to turn to. Amid all the negativity from placing a book under controversy or banning a book, we must look at the positives. There are many quotes from unknown readers showcasing her book's importance by stating, “Crank saved my life, opened my eyes to the world I was exposing myself to and rapidly getting drowned in. And then, two years later, it did the very same for my little brother. . . Thank you, Ellen, you've touched our lives forever” (Hopkins). Though this quote is about one of her other books, the effect her books have had on people is still the same: they open people to a level of understanding and hope that they have not seen before.  

            Even when opening the first page of “Burned,” anyone struggling with Hopkins's words feels accepted and understood. The first stanza has a realistic view of life and growing up; in her words, she expresses the characters' frustration with living with their parents and not having the freedom they desire. Her writing promotes a sense of growing up and all the small details that come with it. Feeling frustrated and alone is a common theme in Hopkins's writing, which is why it appeals to many people. Her ability to talk about things seen as complex subjects and make them a part of everyone is a rare gift, but this often makes those books easier to ban and easier to have issues with.

            As recently as February 2024, Hopkins's “Tricks” was banned again in Buncombe County, North Carolina, joining five of her other books, including “Burned.” Many of the parents were venting their frustrations, saying the “Crank” is “filth in poetic form,” with other parents going further and saying that her writing exposes young adults to unhealthy sexual relationships. Much of Ellen Hopkins's writing focuses on the realism of life and how it doesn’t work out perfectly for everyone. Many of her books are personal, real-life journeys of Ellen Hopkin’s family. “Crank” is about her daughter and the real-life struggles with addiction she watched her go through, and “Burned” is about a Mormon girl from whom Hopkins visited and gained inspiration.  

            Banned books will always exist, but the hope is that they will become less common over time. It’s important to look at why a book is under scrutiny or has the potential of being banned. The article Book Banning from The Free Speech Center by Susan Webb has a very sound take, stating that fear might be the biggest instigator in book banning by further citing how “book banning is becoming a very known thing in the United States and children’s literature is always the focal point. This is because the people advocating worry that the children reading will be swayed by the contents, which could have potentially dangerous consequences” (This is a paraphrase; Webb). Books on controversial topics should be welcomed and not be feared. People should be more upfront about the issues within these banned books, as banning them won’t make those sensitive topics disappear anytime soon.

©️The Rosebud Writings 

Citations

Black, Mitchell. “Buncombe County Schools Board Bans NYT Bestselling Book; Which One?” The Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville Citizen Times, 20 Feb. 2024, www.citizen-times.com/story/news/local/2024/02/20/buncombe-county-board-of-education-bans-nyt-bestselling-book/72662699007/. Accessed 20 Apr. 2024.

Hopkins, Ellen. “Here’s What You Lose When You Ban My Books .” ACLU of South Carolina, 5 Dec. 2023, www.aclusc.org/en/news/heres-what-you-lose-when-you-ban-my-books. Accessed 20 Apr. 2024.

Hopkins, Ellen, and Laura Flanagan. Burned. HighBridge Co., 2009.

Staff, NCAC. “Kids’ Right to Read Project Interview with Ellen Hopkins, Author of The Banned Book Week Manifesto.” National Coalition Against Censorship, 15 Jan. 2016, ncac.org/incident/kids-right-to-read-project-interview-with-ellen-hopkins-author-of-the-banned-book-week manifesto#:~:text=My%20book%20Burned%20had%20been,including%20stores%20and%20libraries%20%E2%80%93%20everywhere. Accessed 20 Apr. 2024.

Free Will - Determinism

Free Will & Determinism Essay

Determinism challenges the idea of free will by stating "that what appears to be a free choice is not. Instead, every action we choose is no choice at all but is predetermined by brain chemistry and environment. Free choice is an illusion (Shaw). I do believe that determinism plays a part in our lives. Compatibilism is the belief that determinism and free will are compatible and that it is possible to believe in both logically. Compatibilists believe that free will is the ability to act on desires and motivations without being forced to act differently. Libertarians believe that determinism is false because they have the "philosophical position on free will that argues that we have genuine free choice in at least some of our decisions and actions" (Shaw). It argues that "for a genuine openness and self-determination to human decision-making, we have free will, not just complex reactions to external and internal stimuli, which are fully explained by deterministic chains of physical cause-and-effect. Our uncaused self-caused choices ground moral responsibility" (Shaw). Though I understand where libertarians come from, our circumstances often cause our actions. Libertarians are right in saying that free will and determinism are incompatible, and it is also stated in the textbook that “those who claim that we are free, and who reject determinism, are called libertarians” (Shaw). Often, we can be predetermined from our childhood upbringings.

For example, if one grew up in a poorer community, one would be determined not to have the advances others might. It can often make one more prone to mental health problems. Though I know this isn't always true, the statistics align with it. In the article "What are the effects of Child Poverty," it is stated that "There are millions of children in poverty. Many come through it and achieve great things. However, it's not easy. Sleeping in a cold bedroom, studying on an empty stomach, missing out on trips with mates. Young people from poor backgrounds must fight harder for their future" (The Children's Society). We are often predetermined to go down a particular path without even realizing it, and it usually starts in one's childhood.

Though I understand where libertarians come from, our circumstances often cause our actions. Do I have the free will to go outside? Yes, but was I predetermined to make that choice because growing up, I spent a lot of time outdoors, or is it a different type of free will where my action of going outside followed my decision to go outside? A Liberationist could say that prior events did not cause my decision to go outside because of a belief in dualism, where the mind is separate in some way from the physical world. A libertarian, who is also a physicalist, may believe in something like quantum indeterminism, where subatomic events do not necessarily have a cause and cannot be known with one hundred percent certainty.

A way to contradict a determinist view is to say that free choices are achieved by something supernatural or acausal. When looking at this viewpoint, there is a phrase that says you must be the cause of yourself. In doing this, one can take fundamental responsibility for how one is, leading to free will choices. From this perspective, having literal free will means making decisions entirely independently of material things. Your consciousness would then need a supernatural ability to defy material input. The existence of valid free would suggest the nature of reality and provide strong evidence that awareness, not seen as material, is fundamental. This would mean we have free will based on our conscious abilities, meaning our soul, heart, and mind. There wouldn’t be a pre-determined side. Our soul is closely related to free will; thus, a non-physical source is part of the person's soul; if we have a soul, we have free will.

Libertarians believe there is evidence that something nonphysical or acausal affects our choices. It would be unreasonable to assume that choices aren’t made with some degree of freedom. For this counterargument, it could be stated that there is no good evidence of a soul or other supernatural things that affect our decisions or that there are physical events without a cause. This would lead to the conclusion that all decisions made up to that point were caused by the chain of events proceeding back in time as far as we can tell, and free will is nothing but an illusion we hold in our minds to justify our decisions.

Compatibilism argues that free will and determinism are compatible, and this group can often be seen as “fence-sitting” because it does not pick a side. It wants to have it both ways, saying that something is predetermined while also saying that we still have free will. Some compatibilists say that even though choices are pre-determined, the choices that people make in their minds and the ability to act on those decisions should be the only things necessary to make a free choice. They change the definition of free will to win the argument, but the compatibilist definition of free will is not what people mean when they say free will, and if the world is determined, then a literal free choice cannot be made.

            In philosophy, free will is always a hot topic, with so many views that it could be hard to offer a compelling case for any of them. Compatibilism is the most popular view of free will, as it says that we can still act free even if the world is deterministic and our desires cause our actions. Determinism says people cannot have free will because everything has been predetermined.  One of the main criticisms of determinism is that it denies the ability to make moral decisions, but it does make a valid point that there are some things in life that we cannot control. Libertarianism says that we need to be able to take more than one course of action, making everything seem more based on choice. With so many ways that people can choose to see free will, the biggest question is, does free will matter? 

©️The Rosebud Writings 

Citations:

Society, The Children’s. “What Are the Effects of Child Poverty?: The Children’s Society.” Effects Of Child Poverty | The Children’s Society, 2024, www.childrenssociety.org.uk/what-we-do/our-work/ending-child-poverty/effects-of-living-in-poverty#:~:text=Children%20from%20poorer%20backgrounds%20may,simply%20can’t%20afford%20it.

Shaw, Daniel G., The Philosopher’s Quest, Pressbooks. CC BY-NC 4.0 https://pressbooks.ccconline.org/introtophilosophy/. Accessed 8 March. 2024.

Philosophy - The Mind Body Problem

 The Mind-Body Problem

            Physicalism shows how the mind is connected to the nature of the world. Some examples include emotion, sensations, and information. The mind-body problem is seen as exploring the relationship between the mind and the body and whether the phenomenon of the mind is apart from the body or caused by it. Physicalists believe there is nothing more than brain activity; there is no soul like the Dualists believe because that would be considered supernatural. In the book Introduction to Philosophy, Matthew Van Cleave stated, “The mind-body problem is best thought of not as a single problem but as a set of problems that attach to different views of the mind.” This is an essential view because it shows how there can be nothing more to consciousness besides brain activity; the mind would not be separate from the physical world. With its realistic views, physicalism shows how one doesn’t need a soul to understand the relationship between mind and body.

            In society, there are multiple views of what people think happens after one dies. A person would be considered alive when they present neurological activity, but after one dies, that goes away. A physicalist would say that the state of being alive is tied to brain activity. The mind of the person stops functioning if the brain stops functioning. A counterargument from the dualist perspective is that the mind does not die; it continues to exist as an entity outside the brain. One could link this to seeing a car with tinted windows driving around town, and someone says that the car is driving itself. When the car breaks down one day, The physicalist is confronted with the driver stepping outside the vehicle, revealing they were driving the vehicle the entire time. So, it could be said that the car had a soul guiding its movements the whole time. From a physicalist perspective, the problem with this analogy is that our brain is not like a car. No driver steps out of the brain after it is dead.

            Another argument that a physicalist can make is that, over time, people’s personalities, beliefs, and memories change; with a soul not being physical, it should not change over time and should remain constant. People do not remain constant; therefore, that is evidence of there not being a soul. The book A Philosopher's Quest by Daniel Shaw states that “Physicalism, therefore, claims that mental states/events are mere brain events.” A counterargument to this could be that the soul is changeable and, therefore, could change to the physical form it is attached to. But taking a deeper look into this could lead to situations where the body taking damage could lead to the soul being damaged as well. Shaw also states, “Changes in the relevant parts of the brain always seem to alter the relevant mental states, and all changes in the relevant mental states seem to go along with changes in the relevant parts of the brain.” Imagine a situation where someone experiences massive trauma right before their death. Would their soul be eternally traumatized after?

            To fully understand the effects of mental states and trauma, one could look at the story of Phineas Gage, the man who survived a metal spike going through the left frontal lobe of his brain. His personality drastically changed; he went from being friendly and pleasant to being more aggressive. This offered neurologists more insight into how brain trauma is linked to personality change. People often called him not the same person he was before the incident because he wasn’t the same. Much like with people with dementia, once their brain activity is altered and their memories and personalities change, they don’t have the same ideals that they once held. A physicalist would say that his personality changed because the rod went through the temporal lobe, a part of the brain that controls emotions. A dualist would think that if there are damaged brain structures, the mind can’t force a broken brain to express feelings controlled by damaged parts of the brain. The physicalist argument is correct because many scientific examples show how additional brain damage causes different brain behaviors. The dualist could argue that the mind isn’t changed, but only how it can express itself through the body.

            Another way to look at traumatic injuries is when Phineas Gage suffered brain damage; his soul also got damaged. This would be the dualist explanation, and it would also explain that with his suffering a massive trauma before his death, his soul would be traumatized into an afterlife. Though that does provide some sense of an explanation, a way that a physicalist would see this situation as only his brain got damaged; the other parts of his body were seen as fully functioning. His brain damage did not contribute to any other physical defects he might’ve had later.

Neuroscientists have a better understanding of the function of the frontal cortex today. As stated in the article Phineas Gage: His Accident and Impact on Psychology by Olivia Guy-Evans, “They understand that the frontal cortex is associated with language, decision-making, intelligence, and reasoning functions. Gage’s case became one of the first pieces of evidence suggesting that the frontal lobe was directly involved in personality.” This is important because it further investigates why his personality and actions changed after suffering brain damage. His brain damage could simply explain all the later actions.

            Views on the mind-body problem will likely always be debated in society. Some will believe that the mind and body are connected, and others will see them as separate. Each view is important as it investigates the different perspectives of the argument to gain a deeper understanding. It is often more seen from the dualist perspective as the body and mind are different, but it would be beneficial to explore a different idea from the physicalist view where they are the same. The dualist's answer to the mind-body problem takes for granted personal experience in favor of a more proper investigation into the evidence. It makes up supernatural connections that should be quickly stripped from the everyday vocabulary of society’s mind by the quick but deadly touch of Occam’s razor.

©️The Rosebud Writings 

Academic Argument Essay - Homelessness in Colorado

Academic Argument Essay – Homelessness

Everyone has been impacted by homelessness in some way, whether by seeing the rise of encampments in their neighborhood, seeing it more in denser areas, or being homeless themselves. One important thing to remember is that even with the increase in homelessness, these are still people who deserve the help that they are often not getting despite the many misconceptions surrounding the issue. In the article "Who is homeless in Denver? Let’s look at the numbers", authors Jennifer Brown and Kevin Jeffers talk about the housing crisis and show that “the latest homelessness count in the Denver metro area shows over 9,000 people either sleeping on the streets or in shelters. And that doesn’t even include the growing number of migrants” (Jeffers).  People experiencing homelessness are more often overlooked and ignored, and they become victims of violence. It becomes an assault on human dignity, and it isn’t even their fault; it’s the economy. Given these facts, we should be more comfortable providing housing, stability, and other social programs to help homeless communities. 

One misconception is that many of the homeless people who are on the streets in Denver are people who moved to Denver from out of state, but that is not true. In the article, it is stated, “When not counting the recent influx of migrants, Denver’s homeless population is overwhelmingly from Colorado. This debunks a common misconception that most people living on Denver’s streets moved from out of state to take advantage of the social services, or as some suggested in the first years after Colorado became the first state to legalize marijuana, the easy access to pot” (Jeffers)—over “9,085 out of 10,276” homeless people recently had a Colorado address. One other issue is that people of color are given disproportionate representation on Denver streets. “Demographic data collected by the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative, which coordinates the annual count, has consistently found that people of color are significantly overrepresented in the region’s homeless population” (Jeffers). It has been surprising to see how many people see people experiencing homelessness as just a personal inconvenience. They want something done, but only if it isn’t near them. Many are unwilling to consider proposals to help these people if the effects on their way of life outweigh the benefits people experiencing homelessness would receive.

A fundamental human right is to have a safe place. Many homeless people are unable to obtain that and are often pushed from one place to another, making them feel like they don’t belong anywhere because their existence near other people is seen as bad. Much of the violence that happens surrounding homeless communities shouldn’t be seen as their fault, as most people experiencing hardships in life are often more desperate. It’s much harder for homeless people than it would be for a person that they live near because they don’t have the same privileges that are seen by people who can live in apartments or houses. Many people often lack empathy because they fear the reality that they might face living near a homeless encampment. Even though some precautions may need to be taken, it would be even worse to squander the opportunity to show compassion than to be blindsided by fear. 

As the pattern of homelessness continues to escalate, it continues to hurt the economy. The article, The Impact of Homelessness on Economic Competitiveness by Caroline Julia von Wurden, states that “homelessness is costly to society because people experiencing homelessness frequently require the most expensive publicly funded services and institutions. Homelessness is also costly in terms of its negative impact on human life, health, and productivity” (Wurden). This means that they are often underfunded since the programs to help are more costly. Some solutions that the Colorado Coalition has suggested are “to address the ongoing homelessness crisis, the local, state, and federal governments must focus on implementing long-term solutions that strategically invest in affordable housing and supportive services.” The solution that has the most significant impact is giving someone homeless a safe place to call home, as it is easier to seek out other services if this is the case. Many tiny home micro-communities or refurbished hotels could make a substantial impact, but these ideas are often met with considerable pushback from people in the area. If we as a society want to lessen the economic impact of homelessness in the long run on the economy, we should invest in long-term solutions to it.

            Having a safe place to call home is easier said than done, as many people protest having tiny home communities that house people experiencing homelessness in their area. When finding local solutions in the area, many Denver residents were not on board, stating to local area news in the article Residents push back against Denver mayor’s short-term housing sites, featured on Fox 31, “I know we need housing for these people; I know they need support,” said neighbor Janet Cornell. “My brother was homeless, so I understand the plight these people face, and we’re not trying to say they don’t need a solution; we’re just trying to say this is not the solution (Henderson). But when does enough become enough, and more changes are made? Even with the tiny new home community recently opened in Littleton, many area residents are unhappy, and some threaten to sue, as stated in the article Denver’s opening 60 tiny homes on Santa Fe Drive to help end street homelessness. Some neighbors say they’re scared by Kyle Harris. Some quotes from the article about people in the area show a high level of unease; one person said, “It's horrifying,” he said, “I bought my house 16 years ago. And this got thrown upon me. I'm not happy about it. I’ve never had good interactions with people experiencing homelessness. I know that there’s nothing I can do about it.” Even adding, “I think they kind of pushed their way in here knowing that they wouldn't get a big fight like they do over in the other bigger neighborhoods” (Harris). Most people do not see a homeless neighborhood in their area as a good thing, but the biggest question is if communities aren’t willing to stand up for one of their most vulnerable populations, where should they go? Is it ok to play hot potato with people’s lives, throw up our hands, and say, “I’m not responsible?”

            With the homeless population multiplying, one big question is how to solve it. In the article “How does Colorado solve its homelessness problem? Here are three programs that could help,” author Jennifer Brown discusses the types of solutions the city of Denver is trying to develop. The first solution that was brought up is preventing homelessness by hiring apartment maintenance workers. Many apartment complexes are being built, and one solution is that “all will need maintenance workers and front-office staff, which are hard to find in the current worker shortage” (Brown). This could help get homeless people back on their feet and work while providing them with a safe place to call home. Another problem that the city faces is housing though, “Denver is buying up old motels, the state has plans to turn a former juvenile detention center into a homeless recovery campus, and nonprofits are building towers of apartments to get people out of shelters” (Brown) it still doesn’t seem like it is enough. There is a solution that might help, with the non-profit organization called Entryway, “The organization has partnered with the Colorado and Denver apartment associations — which have at times been at odds with those battling against evictions and for renters’ rights — to help identify and train people on the verge of homelessness to work and live in apartment buildings that need staff” (Brown). One exciting thing is that this program is set to take effect soon, “the first participants are expected to begin training in early 2024. Entryway plans to start with about 20 people in Denver the first year, growing each year after that” (Brown).

            Offering homeless people this opportunity could be huge in getting them into safe places and off the streets. This is even more important in cities with a higher population because more apartment complexes will be built, and there will be more opportunities, such as Entryway.  In the book “A Closer Look at Homelessness in the United States,” author Connor Congreve talks about the effects of homelessness on people in denser cities. This is important because it showcases that homelessness affects cities with increasing populations. A critical point that is made is that “over half a million people go homeless on a single night in the United States” (Congreve). The article also reveals the statistic that “Meanwhile, over 350,000 sheltered homeless people are found in emergency shelters and transitional housing programs. Homelessness almost always involves people facing desperate situations and extreme hardship” (Congreve). People who suffer extreme hardship deserve a place to go but are often not given that opportunity as they are seen as more of an inconvenience than anything else.

            As many tiny homes are currently being built or are in the process of being built in Denver, an important thing to realize is that they aren’t all bad. They are meant to create a place where people experiencing homelessness can get back on their feet. The article by Sam Pena on Denver 7 states, "We're basically going to go into those encampments and tell them we have a place for them," said Chandler. "We'll be able to go directly into encampments and bring people that were living on the streets, in tents, into a home of their very own in the form of a micro-community" (Pena). The article continues with him further stating, “We also wanted to look down the road longer term, what was going to be a great long-term product here for our climate in Colorado, and we feel really great about the manufactured sleeping units as a great long-term product for us" (Pena). Although these are small achievements, they are still big steps in the right direction to provide even temporary housing for those in need.

            It’s safe to say that most people would like to have a safe space to call home, and homeless people are no different. Many actions are being taken to help, but the community's empathy and compassion need to encompass these people to address many of the issues. Even with the government and supportive services often provided, there still needs to be an acceptance that homeless communities can take up space and get the help they need. With so many people being afraid of the outlook of living near a homeless community, one must wonder if the outlook would be different if the media didn’t portray homelessness in such a negative light. The DC Journal titled What My Experience Being Homeless Taught Me About Compassion shows that the biggest source of understanding is “By recognizing the homeless and showing them the basic respect that we extend to others, we can do our part in mitigating their misery. We will often find decent people underneath the rags” (Ludwig). Homeless people are still people and deserve the same type of respect that is given to the general population, as many of us could have found ourselves in such a problematic situation if our lives had been a little unlucky. It can do so much harm to a homeless person’s overall mental and physical well-being if they are rejected, no matter where they go or what they do. Hopefully, the efforts to provide adequate support, care, and housing will not be dismissed or go unnoticed as time passes, and when people have a chance to vote on these issues or otherwise make their voices heard, they will reach out a hand to help their homeless neighbors.

©️The Rosebud Writings 

Citations

 Brown, Jennifer. “How Does Colorado Solve Its Homelessness Problem? Here Are Three Programs That Could Help.” The Colorado Sun, 5 Oct. 2023, coloradosun.com/2023/10/05/homeless-housing-programs/.

Coloradocoalition. Colorado Coalition. (2024). https://www.coloradocoalition.org/sites/default/files/2024-01/2023%20StateOfHomelessness_CCH_F_0.pdf

Connor Congreve. A Closer Look at Homelessness in the United States. SNOVA, 2020. EBSCOhost, research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=98e36564-f45e-32a3-a9e7-df91ec857e84.

Harris, Kyle. “Denver’s Opening 60 Tiny Homes on Santa Fe Drive to Help End Street Homelessness. Some Neighbors Say They’re Scared.” Denverite, 11 Mar. 2024, denverite.com/2024/03/11/denver-overland-microcommunity-homeless-resident-concerns-safety/.

Henderson, Andrea. “Residents Push Back against Denver Mayor’s Short-Term Housing Sites.” FOX31 Denver, FOX31 Denver, 5 Sept. 2023, kdvr.com/news/local/residents-push-back-against-denver-mayors-short-term-housing-sites/.

Jeffers, Kevin, and Jennifer Brown. “Who Is Homeless in Denver? Let’s Look at the Numbers.” The Colorado Sun, 21 Dec. 2023, coloradosun.com/2023/12/22/denver-homeless-by-the-numbers/.

Ludwig, Jeremiah. “What My Experience Being Homeless Taught Me about Compassion.” DC Journal - InsideSources, 14 May 2023, dcjournal.com/what-my-experience-being-homeless-taught-me-about-compassion/. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.

Peña, Sam. “Denver Receives First Batch of Tiny Homes as It Looks to House 1,000 Homeless by the End of the Year.” Denver 7 Colorado News (KMGH), Denver 7 Colorado News (KMGH), 1 Nov. 2023, www.denver7.com/news/local-news/denver-receives-first-batch-of-tiny-homes-as-it-looks-to-house-1-000-homeless-by-the-end-of-the-year.

Book vs Movie - Where the Wild Things Are

Book Vs. Movie – Where the Wild Things Are

            While watching “Where the Wild Things Are,” I was brought back to when this movie was first released in theatres. I remember being so excited to see one of my favorite childhood books being brought to life and wondered how they would approach making a film from such a short book. After my 19-year-old self watched it, something didn’t sit right, but I didn’t understand why. I haven’t watched it since. Watching it now that I am older, I understand why something felt so off. The movie itself is very depressing, and it took what I thought was a very lighthearted children’s book and made it increasingly dark. I prefer the book over the movie for multiple reasons, but I don’t think I am alone.

            As a kid, I remember a book where I was taken away from reality and brought to a magical land where wild things existed. Nothing could hurt me there, and any sense of imagination was welcome. I could visualize myself walking with the wild things and wondered if they would welcome me as their leader as quickly as they did Max. What would the wild things and I do together? Would we have the same adventures as they did in the book? Being taken away in the story let me cope with the reality of the world around me.

            An issue I had with the movie happened within the first twenty minutes because they made Max out to be way more rambunctious and wilder than I thought he was in the book. Part of me wonders if the directors added this to show the audience further how wild of a child Max is. The part that got to me is that before setting off to the wild things and running away, we see that he is struggling with his divorced parents, and while his mom is on a date, he bites his mom. This scene sets the pace for the rest of the movie as she yells, “What’s wrong with you.” After that, he sets off on his boat to find where he belongs. Once he reaches the Wild Things, he is greeted with fire, and one of the main characters destroys their village. I was immediately drawn in because this showed how chaotic Max's nature was, even in his imagination. Feeling like he isn’t accepted at home by his sister and mother, he tries to convince them why they should trust him; the only problem with this is that he lies. The book doesn’t offer this level of dishonesty and trust issues portrayed after Max meets them.              

What I did find as a fun little detail is that the book and the movie kept much of the major dialogue the same. This offered avid readers of the book a little insight into the movie that most people may not have gotten. When Max yells, “Let the rumpus start,” I know what will happen next. In the book, they all have fun together and seem to play, but the movie takes a completely different approach as they all seem more destructive than otherwise. They start tearing down their homes and being more chaotic than the book initially portrayed. A part of the movie I liked was how they gave the Wild Things a deeper emotional context. They all had personalities and achieved character growth throughout the film.

One big thing to note is that when Max is first crowned king of the Wild Things, he promises them no more loneliness. Although this seems like a lovely and genuine promise to make, as the movie goes on, we see how unrealistic it is. With all the characters being so diverse, no one person could make them all happy. This is where the movie takes a sadder turn because even in Max’s imagination, his newfound friends don’t want to hang out with him after many issues and disagreements, much like in the reality he was facing at home. His home with the Wild Things is just as broken as he shares with his mom and sister. In the article from Course Hero called Where the Wild Things Are, Themes, it states that “Many emotions that Sendak says are "an ordinary part of children's lives" are ones they "perceive as ungovernable and dangerous forces." These problematic emotions include anger, frustration, anxiety, fear, and even hate. In Where the Wild Things Are, Max struggles with frustration and anger” (Course Hero). Another example is Vox's article titled Many banned books were made into movies. Where the Wild Things Are may be the greatest, it is stated: “The film isn’t too explicit on that last point. But its recognition that Where the Wild Things Are has always been a kind of psychodrama — and its subsequent embrace of that aspect of the book in shaping the Wild Things’ fears, hopes, and conversations with Max — makes the whole story much richer and resonant with a wider range of ages than the picture-book crowd. Adults get sad, mad, angry, and torn up inside, too. Adults also sometimes need a Wild Rumpus to make sense of their real lives” (Wilkinson).

Although this children’s book has many fans, many of them found the movie very depressing. From the broken home to the inner anger and unresolved issues, many watchers could find this movie relatable in some way, but this usually only happens with an older audience. I think that the article from Vox has a very good point as it states, “Instead of focusing on a narrow audience segment — just kids, or just adults who like fantasy, or just families with particularly mature young children — it manages to capture the universal experience of having difficult emotions and transform them into a story that’s already beloved by millions of kids, and those who used to be kids. It’s a quiet reminder of the power of scary-ish stories, made with warmth, humor, and wisdom” (Wilkinson). After watching this movie, I was left with a new perspective on how to view the story and be given more context into what the author was going for. I felt captivated by the story, much like my younger self was, while also being more depressed by the real life behind the story.

©️The Rosebud Writings 

Children's Literature - Annotated Bibliography

Module One: History and Characteristics of Children’s Literature

Bemelmans, Ludwig, and Christian Strich. Madeline. Inhauser u.a, 1999.

The book Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans teaches that it is best to learn from your mistakes. At seven years old, Madeline is the smallest yet bravest girl with bright red hair in her boarding school. She is a joyful little girl who loves to try new things and experiment and often makes mistakes, but that does not stop her, and she remains joyful despite her mistakes. This book is a perfect example to learn from, especially for kids, as it shows that one does not have to let their failures bring them down; one can learn from them and persevere forward. It is also the perfect example of being ok standing out. Madeline does not let her appearance bother her, often using it as a strength. This book is recommended for ages between one and four years.  

Collier, Mary, and Frances Hodgson Burnett. The Secret Garden. HarperCollins Publishers, 1998.

At the start of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, we meet the main character, who is young, bad-tempered, and spoiled. Her name is Mary, and she became an orphan at the early age of ten. Her neglectful parents die from an epidemic, and once this happens, she moves from India to live with her ‘hunchback uncle” in Yorkshire. After arriving, she is very displeased with her new surroundings, but as time passes, she gains a friendship with the housekeeper, who tells her about the secret garden on the grounds of the house, a garden that will eventually change her overall outlook on everything. This book is powerful because not only is there a secret garden, but there are also secret messages placed within the story. It is shown in the story that her parents and her mother do not like Mary because of her appearance, so Mary must search for self-discovery when she is at her loneliest in Yorkshire. Once she does this, she can heal from her physical disabilities and mental health issues that she suffered from parental neglect with the help of the Secret Garden. Although the overall plot of this book is darker than most, it shows the power of positive thinking, which is a crucial lesson to learn when younger. This book is recommended for ages eight years and up.

Liu, Katrina, and Heru Setiawan. Let’s Go on a Hike! Katrina Liu, 2020.

In this rhythmical yet adorable story, perfect for children aged one to four years, Let’s Go on a Hike! Author Katrina Liu Katrina takes us on an adventure with a family going on a hike; as the story progresses, it offers well-illustrated pictures that guide the reader on the journey with them. We learn about the wonders of nature and explore the great unknown with a little boy, his dad, his mom, and their corgi, Archie. The overall simplicity and joyful nature of this book make it a perfect read. It also shows that getting outside can be great, often done with family. This book could be helpful in the classroom by having fun outdoor activities that incorporate the book.

Mackesy, Charlie. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse. Ebury Press, 2022.

The Boy the Mole the Fox and the Horse, by Charlie Mackesy, is a story about the lessons we learn as we grow up. This story follows how each animal portrays a different part of life and the types of realities that will be shown to us during our journey. There are many points that the reader can focus on, whether that be the beautiful imagery, the life lessons, or the quotes that are shared along the way. It shows self-reflective ideals that we can often forget, regardless of age. Many of these lessons can be overlooked when we grow up, whether we lose our charismatic, trusting mole selves, the counterintuitive nature of the fox, or grow beyond what people see you as within the horse. Sometimes, we must look internally to see how far we have come. They are growing and learning, but the most significant thing they are taught is how much love exists in this world. This book is meant for ages six years and up as it caters to meaningful relationships and offers so much empathy that children can learn from. This book provides many possibilities for its usefulness in the classroom. A fun lesson plan with the children putting themselves in the story and explaining how they would fit in would be a great way to understand the story more. 

Sendak, Maurice. Where the Wild Things Are. Beulah Reimer Legacy, 2018.

When Max, a very mischievous and naughty young boy, is sent to bed without supper as an escape, his imagination takes him to the land of the “Wild Things.” Although they considered eating him, the wild things make Max their king. He then promises to make a kingdom where all will be happy. As the story progresses, Max realizes that being a King is not easy and consistently feels like something is missing: his parent's love. This book is excellent for children between 1 and 5 years of age as it offers a way to express their rebellious side and be a true wild thing. Author Maurice Sendak makes the perfect place for a child’s imagination to run wild in Where the Wild Things Are. An ideal way to use this in the classroom is to have the children draw out parts of their imagination to offer a chance to be creative.

 #6 Seuss, Dr and David A. Carter. Dr. Seuss’s Oh, the Places You’ll Go. Robin Corey Books, 2010.

As one begins their adventure in Oh! In The Places You'll Go, by Dr. Seuss, you follow a nameless character's journey as they navigate various aspects of life. The characters are excited about the choices they can make and the adventures that await them. As the story progresses, obstacles show up, allowing readers to learn from them. This book is meant for children ages between 5 and 8 years old. It shows that even though we often face life struggles, we can overcome the obstacles that come our way. It also emphasizes that stepping out of one's comfort zone is okay. With its catchy, rhythmic nature, this book is as fun to learn from as it is to read. A way to use this in the classroom would be to have an open reading of the book between the students to have a fun and engaging activity while also including the lessons from the book.

Verde, Susan, and Peter H. Reynolds. Who I Am: Words I Tell Myself—Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2023.

This book celebrates what makes you you. Who I Am: Words I Tell Myself by Susan Reynolds is about the rough days when our minds will not stop racing. It teaches kids between 4 and 8 years old that we can talk back to negative voices and love ourselves through positive affirmations. With its robust outlook on life, this book is perfect for anyone having a difficult day. It also can teach that we do not have to listen to that negative voice swirling inside our heads; we can rise above it. This book is the ultimate celebration of self-love.

Willard, Christopher, et al. Alphabreaths: The ABCs of Mindful Breathing. Sounds

True, 2022.

Through the book Alphabreaths: The ABCs of Mindful Breathing by Christopher Willard, children ages 2 – 6 years are taught the act of mindful breathing. It also incorporates cute breathing styles, such as “ninja breath” and “dragon breath,” into the story, making it a fun activity for learning. As a bonus, lessons on the ABCs are incorporated into the story. This book also had an adorable addition of many fun illustrations and exercises in the story that enhance learning, making it a book that kids will want to come back to repeatedly.

Module Two: Genres of Children’s Literature

Beagle, Peter Soyer. The Last Unicorn. Ballantine Books, 1982.

Peter Beagle's novel, The Last Unicorn, embarks on a journey to discover if she is the last unicorn, as all the others seem to have disappeared. During her adventure, she encounters humans who do not see her as a unicorn, proving her assumptions that unicorns have not been around for a while.  This novel offers insight into the fact that pain can lead to growth, which is why it is the perfect book to set an example that not all pain is bad. With the darker tones of this book, it is recommended for ages thirteen to sixteen years old. It is the perfect fantasy book to go on an adventure with.

Green, John Patrick. Investigators: All Tide Up. First Second, 2023.

“Investigators” by John Patrick Greene is an adorable adventure book that follows the lives of two alligators as they travel through the sewers and fight off evil. This children’s book has a very silly demeanor and offers many spy adventures for kids. It is so beloved that it has a series behind it. Recommended for ages six to nine and offering a silly story style, this book provides bright images and is presented in a comic strip style.

Hopkins, Ellen. Burned. Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2013.

Author Ellen Hopkins has a wide variety of books on mental health, addiction, family issues, religion, and so much more. Many of her books are on the verge of being banned in multiple states, so young adults must read them. The poetry book “Burned” is about a young girl named Pattyn who is sent to live with her aunt in Nevada because she does not fit her family's religious ideals. While she is away from home, she finds acceptance and love in not only herself but others. This book is written in the style of poetry and is recommended for ages fourteen and up, given its themes within the story.

Frank, Anne. The Diary of Anne Frank. Pendulum Press, 1979.

This historical book is set during World War II when Jewish Anne Frank and her family are hiding from the German Nazis in an Annex to escape being taken to a concentration camp. Anne's words describe what it was like growing up and having to survive in hiding during a scary point in history. This book is suitable for children between nine and twelve years. It is an essential piece of historical literature that all should read as it shows the horrors that took place, but from a deeper perspective, it shows the destruction and devastation that war can cause in families and the world.

Penfold, Alexandra, and Suzanne Kaufman. All Are Welcome: Wherever You Go—Knopf Books for Young Readers; First Edition, 2018.

All Are Welcome by Suzanne Penfold is a heartwarming picture book that celebrates diversity and shows how we can learn from the cultural diversity of our friends and family. It follows a day in the life of elementary students as they go to school, and everyone is welcomed with open arms. This book is recommended for ages four and eight. As the book progresses, it talks about life, society, and human nature, repeating that everyone belongs.

Pilkey, Dav. The Adventures of Captain Underpants. An Epic Novel. Scholastic, 1997.

In this hilarious children's adventure book, The Adventures of Captain Underpants, by Dav Pilkey, the main characters, George and Harold, convince their principal through hypnosis that he is Captain Underpants. After this, they must go on an epic adventure to defeat Dr. Diaper and his “robot henchmen.” With this book's silly and cheeky nature, it is undoubtedly still popular today. It gives children a way to escape through their imaginations. This book is recommended for ages six to nine. It has been one of the most challenging books for the American Library Association because of its violence. Many concerned parents think that the age range should be higher.   

Silverstein, Shel. Where the Sidewalk Ends. HarperCollins, 2002.

Where the Sidewalk Ends is one of Shel Silverstein's best-known books. It was first published in 1974 and discusses the “hidden world” between the sidewalk and the street. This world is different from ours and one that children will also know how to find. The book is recommended for ages six and up due to some suggestive themes, including morbid humor that some younger children might not understand. This book has been considered controversial and was first banned in 1986 in most public schools and libraries for containing acts of rebellion and profanity. Books make children think and experience new things, and with their subversive nature, they still provide life lessons that are seen as good. The same can still be said about Where the Sidewalk Ends.

Wilder, Laura Ingalls. Little House on the Prairie. Harper and Row, 1953.

Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder is a historical book that follows her and her family's journey across the Midwest. Its primary focus is resilience, pioneer spirit, and family as they struggle to build a life on the prairie. The biggest life lesson from this book is to “lead with generosity.”  It also exposes readers to the territorial displacement and prejudice seen at the time between them and the Native American Osage tribe, offering the reader a deeper understanding of what was going on at the time and how it plays into the importance of history. This book is recommended for ages six to ten years and has become an important series of American novels for children.

Module Three: The Roles of Visuals

Cline-Ransome, Lesa, et al. Before She Was Harriet. Findaway World, LLC, 2019. Before She Was, Harriet is a sensuous and lyrical biography by Lesa Cline-Ransome. It begins with a look into Harriet Tubman as an older woman. In this visually attractive book, she travels back through the many roles she played throughout her life. Illustrated with watercolor paintings by James Ransome, this book dives into the compelling life of an American hero. This book is meant for children from preschool to three years of age.

Colón, Raúl. Imagine! Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2018.

Voted by the New York Public Library as the best book for kids, Imagine! Raúl Colón takes a glimpse at a boy of color who, in America, has a passion for art. Colón used colored pencils and watercolor for the illustrations, and this technique brings the adventure of this book to life. All the colors and textures create art that readers will want to spend time studying over and over. In this book, a young boy ventures into New York City's Museum of Modern Art. After his visit, the animals and people from the paintings join the boy in his adventures as he travels around the city on his skateboard. This book is recommended for between four and eight years old and is excellent to have in the classroom as it can get kids excited about art.

Davies, Nicola, and Laura Carlin. King of the Sky. Walker Books, 2018.

This tale follows a young boy, an older man, and a restless pigeon. Written by Nicola Davies, King of the Sky offers a lyrical text style, and the marvelous illustrations show the heartache of loneliness and wanting belonging and home. The young Italian boy moved to the Welsh hills with his family. The move made him feel isolated with feelings of unhappiness. The older man becomes the friend that he did not expect. The older man lets him fly one of his pigeons in a race. It is then that the young boy learns how he can belong. Beautiful imagery within the illustrations brings the story to life. This book is recommended for ages between four and eight years.

Lawson, JonArno, and Sydney Smith. Sidewalk Flowers. Groundwood Books/House of Anansi Press, 2016.

This adorable and wonderfully illustrated wordless picture book is written by the award-winning poet JonArno Lawson and illustrated by Sydney Smith. While reading Sidewalk Flowers, one is shown the importance of the small things, including small people and small gestures. As the book starts, a young girl and her father walk home from the grocery store. As they make their way through the busy city streets, the dad is preoccupied with a cell phone conversation. The young girl sees a red flower in the black-and-white world. As the story moves forward, the reader sees what she sees, which is wildflowers that come up from the pavement. This book shows the empathy we can offer others as the young girl starts to give flowers to the people they pass. It is recommended for ages three to six years of age.

Lionni, Leo, et al. A Color of His Own. Alfred A. Knopf, 2016.

A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni follows a chameleon that does not have his own color. All the animals around him do as the elephants are gray, and the pigs are pink. One day, the chameleon has the idea to remain in one color forever by staying on the greenest leaf he can find. But as the seasons change colors, so does the chameleon. Another chameleon suggests they travel together, and on their journey, he realizes that companionship is more important than having his color. He learns they will be close and similar no matter where he goes with his new friend. This book is recommended for ages between one and four years.

Walker, Anna, and Emanuelle Mattana. Florette. Story Box Library, 2018.

Florette by Anna Walker looks into the life of a young girl with chestnut hair named Mae. This story follows Mae as her family moves into a new home. Mae misses her old home and wishes she could have brought her old garden with her, as she misses the blooming flowers and the apple trees. This story is illustrated in watercolor, and vibrant colors capture the essence of being on Parisian streets. The author has also won many writing and children's book design awards in Australia, where she is from. This book is recommended for ages between four and seven years.  

Wills-Eve, Pam. The Three Little Pigs (Picture Book). Golden Acorn Pub., 1994.

The Three Little Pigs by Pam Willis-Eve is a fable about three little pigs that build their house out of many different materials, some of which include straw and sticks. The big bad wolf blows their first house down because it is not strong enough. Once the pigs build their third house, the wolf cannot blow their house down because it is made from bricks. Printed versions of this story date back to the 1840s but are suspected to be much older. There have been other adaptations, including a Disney film. The illustrations in this book are classic and ones that people remember as this story has been carried on for generations. This book is recommended for ages between three and five years.

Morales, Yuyi. Dreamers. Scholastic Inc., 2020.

Dreamers by Yuyi Morales celebrates making your home with the things you always carry. Those can include your resilience, history, hopes, and dreams. It is the story of finding your way in a new place while navigating an unfamiliar world but then finding the best parts of it. It is a promise in dark times that you can make better tomorrows. The detailed and colorful illustrations remind us that we are all dreamers while being rich in symbolism. This book has won many awards, some of which include the New York Times Bestseller and the New York Times / New York Public Library Best Illustrated Book. This book is recommended for ages between three and eight years.

Module Four: Trends and Controversies in Children's Literature

Ann., Celano, Marianne; Collins, Marietta; and Hazzard,. Something Happened in Our Town: A Child’s Story about Racial Injustice. Magination Pres, 2018.

This book by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard is a great introduction to systemic racism. It follows two children who heard that a black man was shot in their town while presenting the issue from various points of view and as a historical pattern continuing today. The children were confused by why the police shot the man and, more importantly, could the police go to jail for this action. This book has had many controversies and has been labeled number six on the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom's Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2020.  Anyone against young schoolchildren reading this book is part of the problem in our country. This book is recommended for ages between four and eight years.

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. Scholastic Press, 2008.

Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games is a trilogy of young adult dystopian novels that follow Katniss Everdeen's journey into a battle royale called the “Hunger Games.” The selected tributes from the districts are forced to fight to the death until only one remains. These books have been adapted into movies, ranking them second and just below Harry Potter on NPRs top teen novels. Katniss is a great female protagonist as she protects her sister and does not follow the system while walking to the beat of her drum. This book is recommended for ages eleven to thirteen, and the movies are also listed as PG-13. Even with its likeability by readers, this book has had accusations of violence, anti-family themes, and occult or religious references, making it part of the book ban by certain governments.  

Hoffman, Ian, and Chris Case. Jacob’s New Dress. Albert Whitman & Company, 2014.

Ian Hoffman and Chris Case's Jacobs's New Dress is a heartwarming book about gender roles and their impact on children. In the book, the main character, Jacob, loves to play dress up, allowing him to be anything he wants to be. Many of his classmates tease him and say he cannot be a girl, but he still wants to wear a dress to school. The story follows him getting accepted by his parents and being able to express himself. This book teaches compassion early on, as it is recommended for children between three and eight years old. This book was banned in some schools as parents thought it was teaching their children to be transgender.

Kilodavis, Cheryl, and Suzanne DeSimone. My Princess Boy: A Mom’s Story about a Young Boy Who Loves to Dress Up. Aladdin, 2011.

My Princess Boy: A Mom’s Story about a Young Boy Who Loves to Dress Up is an adorable book written by a mother about her son wanting to wear a dress to school. This book is about a boy who likes “pretty things,” even the cover has a child wearing a crown and dancing in a dress. It even has a dedication on the first few pages for all the princess boys in the world and tells them they are loved. It is hard not to love this book as it offers empathy and compassion. It also shows acceptance for children regardless of their gender expression. This book is recommended for ages three and seven years. It is a delightful book that celebrates being different. This book was banned in Texas under the accusation that it was teaching children to be transgender with its open dialogue on gender.

Lowry, Lois. The Giver. Houghton Mifflin, 1993.

Written by Lois Lowry, The Giver is a young adult dystopian novel set in a society that converts to ‘sameness.' This means that the characters’ lives lack emotional depth, and to preserve order, society also lacks color, climate, terrain, and a true sense of equality. The book follows a twelve-year-old boy named Jonas who is nervous about where he will be assigned for his work. He gets assigned as “the receiver of memory” and quickly becomes separated from the life he once knew. This book introduces ideas such as concepts of the new emotions and the thought of whether they are inherently good, evil, or somewhere in the middle. Its controversial ideals ranked this book number eleven on the American Library Association's most challenged book in the 1990s and then moved to number sixty-one in 2010. This book is recommended for ages twelve and above.

Parnell, Peter. And Tango Makes Three. Simon & Schuster, 2015.

Tango Makes Three follows the lives of two adorable male penguins at the Central Park Zoo who want their own family. With the help of a zookeeper, they can get a baby penguin named Tango. This book discusses the idea of same-sex marriages while showing that all family groups are perfect and that love is all that you need. This book has had controversies for years. The recent one was out of Florida, citing that it was because of the content and the talk of same-sex marriages and its LGBTQ themes. This book is recommended for children between the ages of three and eight and is enjoyable to read because it talks about acceptance and love.

Roth, Veronica. Divergent. HarperCollins, 2014.

The dystopian theme continues in Veronica Roth's Divergent. As the book opens, we are introduced to the protagonist, Beatrice. When Beatrice is sixteen, she is given an aptitude test that will tell her which “fraction” she is suited for and will decide whether she must leave her family behind. She has one in mind that is valued for its bravery, but after her test, she finds out that she is suited for many “fractions,” thus making her Divergent. This book has had many controversies because the main character dies, which does not usually happen. It has also been challenged for being too violent for the set age demographic. It is meant for readers fourteen and up, but that reflects their reading ability, not the content. These books have also been made into movies that have a set rating of PG-13.

Rowling, J. K., et al. Harry Potter. Yapı Kredi, 2001.

Harry Potter by J.K Rowling is a series of books and movies that follow a young boy who, on his eleventh birthday, is the orphaned son of two powerful wizards and has unique powers of his own. He can escape his current life of living in a house where he is unwanted and go to the halls of Hogwarts, where he will learn all about being a wizard.  Along the way, he makes some great friends, Ron and Hermoine, who will help him unlock the truth about his parent's death and where he came from. There have been two main controversies surrounding the books and movies, including the fact that the book is a Pagan text and that they encourage children not to respond to authority. Some religious groups have also banned the books because of the promotion of witchcraft and occult practices. They also claim that it is anti-family. There have been many controversies with the author, J.K. Rowling, and her opposition to transgender rights. These books are recommended for ages eight and up. The movies have ratings of PG and PG-13, depending on the movie.

Module Five: The Importance of Realism

 

Cheng, Andrea, and Abigail Halpin. The Year of the Book. Sandpiper, 2013.

 

This book, The Year of the Book, by Andrea Cheng, focuses on an introverted Chinese-American girl. While in the fourth grade, she turns to books to help her get through her school year. As the story progresses, she makes friends with a little girl whose parents are going through a bad divorce, as well as an elderly widowed man and her school's crossing guard. This adorable book about friendship talks about the realistic side of making friends and what it is like to be one. It is recommended for children aged seven to ten years.

Fipps, Lisa. Starfish. Penguin Putnam Inc, 2023.

 

Starfish by Lisa Fipps is a realistic story about a young girl dealing with her body image and weight. The story follows Ellie and how she has been bullied for her weight ever since she wore a whale swimsuit. As a way to cope, she makes up a set of rules for herself called “fat girl rules.” These include not making waves, avoiding public eating, and not moving so fast that her body jiggles. In a world entirely of judgment, she finds her safe place in the pool where she can float like a starfish and be as weightless as she wants while taking up all the space she wants. This book is recommended for ages ten plus.

Green, Poppy, and Jennifer Bell. A New Friend: Adventures of Sophie Mouse. Little Simon, 2015.

This first installment of the Adventures of Sophie Mouse series, A New Friend: Adventures of Sophie Mouse By Poppy Green, starts in the spring at the Silverlake Forest. This means all the animals are coming out of hibernation, and all the trees and flowers bloom. As the story progresses, we see that little Sophie Mouse cannot wait to return to school after a long winter break. Even more exciting is that a new student is coming into her class, but Sohpie is even more shocked to learn that the new student is a snake. The book talks about accepting people as they are. This book is recommended for children between four and eight years.

Greene, Stephanie, and Stéphanie Roth Sisson. Princess Posey and the First Grade Boys. Recorded Books, 2014.

Ew, boys! In Stephanie Greene's Princess Posey and the First-Grade Boys, the main character, Posey, wonders whether she will ever have a good relationship with the boys in her class. The boys can never sit still and always make annoying and rude noises. Posey learns about bullying when she calls one of the boys a weirdo. The only one who can help her is the Pink Princess, who helps her look at it from another perspective and see that boys have feelings. This lets her know she can be friends with boys, too. Bullying is a real thing that happens in schools daily. It is nice to see a realistic story for children that shows that it is wrong and how harmful it can be. This book is recommended for ages between five and eight years.  

Harrell, Rob. Wink: A Novel. Dial Books for Young Readers, an Imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, 2022.

Wink by Rob Harrell explores what it is like for a child to have a cancer diagnosis that prevents him from being an average seventh grader. The main character, Ross Maloy, expresses his grief over not wanting to lose his hair, having to wear hats, or having friends who leave because they do not know what to say. This story is based on the author's real-life experience, which allows him to be more personable in his writing. We see the heartbreaking, uplifting, and hilarious story that embraces one's uniqueness and the weirdness that life has in store. This book is recommended for ages between ten and twelve years.

Hopkins, Ellen. Tricks. Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2017.

What would you do if you had your life taken away from you? Tricks by Ellen Hopkins explores the reality of five different teenagers trying to survive in other parts of the world as they fall into the world of prostitution while they search for freedom and love. The book has five separate stories that will eventually become one impactful story that shows the effects of making one's own choices, having faith, and growing up. Tricks is the first book in a two-part series and is recommended for ages fourteen and up. 

Lai, Remy. Pie in the Sky. ReadHowYouWant, 2020.

The story of Pie in the Sky by Remmy Lai is about a middle schooler's immigration experience. It was voted Parents Magazine's Best Kids Book of the Year for its writing and appeal to fans. When the main character moves to a new country, he wants to live on a new planet because everything is different. His lack of speaking English prevents him from making friends. To cure his loneliness, he daydreams about baking cakes at a bakery called Pie in the Sky. This is important because this is the bakery his father planned to open before dying unexpectedly. This book is recommended for ages between seven and eleven years. 

Resau, Laura, and Gary Blythe. Star in the Forest. Scholastic, 2013.

Star in the Forest by Laura Resau is about an undocumented immigrant family from Mexico. The main character, Zitally’s father, gets arrested for speeding and, in turn, gets deported back to Mexico. Her family decides to pay a coyote to help guide her father home. In the process of fleeing, the father and the coyote get kidnapped and are held for ransom. Once Zitally finds her father's spirit animal in the form of a dog, she realizes that as long as the dog is safe, her father will be secure. This book introduces children to the reality of what immigrants go through and is recommended for ages between seven and ten years.

A Special Spot For

White, E. B. Charlottes Web: E.B. White (1899-1985). Cornerstones Education Limited, 2013.

Charlotte Web by E.B. White is one of America's most loved novels. In the story, Wilbur, the beloved pig to a little girl named Fern, sets out to be killed. In an unlikely turn of events, a spider named Charlotte, Wilbur's friend who lives in his doorway decides to save him. She can save him by spinning words in her web. With its enchanting narrative and unforgettable characters, this heartwarming story captivates readers with its talks of friendship, compassion, and life while showing lessons on empathy for others. The author has also written classic children's books such as Stuart Little and The Trumpet of the Swan. This book is recommended for ages five and up.

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