Stranger in our Society

Recently in the Boston marathon there were two bombings committed by two Chechnya brothers.  These men are strangers in our society because they are nothing like us.  Although their actions were undoubtedly awful and inexcusable, we as a society are not even trying to understand why, we just want him to suffer the maximum punishment possible.  This is comparable to the events surrounding Mersault's execution in "The Stranger".  Mersault did not fit into his society and was not relatable to the jurors.  This caused the jury to come back with a harsher sentence than they may have if they understood him or could at least see themselves in him. 
This is exactly what is happening in our society today.  There is no doubt that this man needs to be punished for what he did, however before we even knew who it was, his age, his reasoning, people were already calling him a terrorist and dictating what his punishment should be.  These cries of terrorism automatically distance the people from him being a person with feelings and a life.  Nobody is even trying to understand why he did it or even to understand him.  I think this is very wrong because he is not able to get a fair trial or really any rights at all that protect him because it is impossible for some people to empathize with him.  I also feel like he was sentenced to death the minute his race was released and he wasn't American, solely because he doesn't fit in.  I wish that somehow he was able to be understood because obviously he did this to get attention and wants to be understood.  I wish that people would try to see his side of the story and not rush to judgment so quickly.
I really enjoyed this class this year and thank you for everything :)

Women's Rights

"A Thousand Splendid Suns" dealt with the issue of women's rights to control their own body just as today in American Society women are having to fight to gain control of their own body.  Women in Afghanistan are sometimes forced into marriages by their family in order for their family to gain money or power.  This inevitably leads to the women losing control of their body because they are forced into having sex with a man who they did not choose to marry or sometimes even permit to touch them.  Mariam and Laila did not want Rasheed to have sex with them.  This, by american law, is considered rape.  Currently in the U.S men, workplaces, and certain political parties are trying to control what a women does with her body.  The abortion debate is over whether a women is allowed to control her reproductive rights.  The pro- life group thinks that she does not because an egg is a life; while the pro- choice says a women has the right to make that choice.  Rape is even now being fought by some to be taken away as an "accpetable" reason to get an abortion.  Abortions are slowly being pushed into the second and third trimesters by laws making women obtain internal ultrasounds and look at the sonogram and get permission from family or spouses.  Under Roe v. Wade, the govenment can not push abortions into the third trimester becuase then they are considered live abortions.  Birth control is also up to debate over if it should be covered by insurance. Taking away this insurance coverage would for some people, take away their right to control their reproductive rights.  Men and the government do not have the right to tell a woman what she is allowed to do with her body.  Nobody questions whether viagra should be covered by insurance becuase viagra is for a man.  Since when is an egg, that has no brain, heart, or any reason to be considered alive, more important than the life of the woman who is bearing that egg? The minute we take away these rights we are at the same level as the islamic countries that force a woman to get married, beat or execute them for being raped, and shun them for not being a virgin on their wedding night.  The more rights we take away from women, the closer we get to this point.  The U.S is a secular country where religion is not allowed to have any bearing on laws made, however religion is being used as one of the main reasons why abortion and birth control should not be allowed or covered by insurance.  In order to advance as a country we have to allow women to have control over what happens with their body.

Veiled Faces

The issue of women's rights that is presented in A Thousand Splendid Suns is the same issue that exists today in the Middle East.  Laila and Mariam are forced at first to wear a veil by their husband Rasheed and then by the Taliban as they begin to take over.  This is still true today in many muslim arab countries.  Both in the book and in life, this is done to preserve their purity and submissiveness.  This allows only their husband to see their body and keeps them from standing out to other people.  Since the Quoran says that women should preserve themselves and be modest, orthodox muslims who practice sharia law wear them in submission of Allah.  Men use this as a way of controlling women.  It is described by mariam and laila that it is very hard to move in the burkas and they feel more anonymity while wearing them.  In my opinion, nowadays, the hijab and burka are worn in order for men to control their wives better.  Before the Taliban took over, it was a choice to wear them.  When the Taliban moved in and wanted control they enforced sharia law and the women had to wear veils.  This compromises the ability of a woman to express herself because they all look the same.  It is a way of enforcing conformity and extinguishing individuality.  As soon as one gains their individuality they gain control of their lives and can therefore make their own decisions; the easiest way to gain control of a group of people is to force them to conform and follow rules, so they can not think for themselves.

Cultural Relativism

The issue raised about the use of one's own cultural standards and beliefs to judge another cultural is very similar to what happened in the Ibo society in "Things Fall Apart".  Both cultures were at fault for this.  The missionaries came to Africa because they believed the Africans were misguided in their cultural and religious beliefs.  The Africans in some cases reacted so harshly toward the missionaries because they too believed the other was misguided in their beliefs.  This idea of the culture one belongs in being the correct one and all of the others being wrong is still very common today.  For example, the U.S is trying to rebuild the Iraqi government because they believe the Iraqis are wrong and democracy is the only right way.  The reason Al Queda attacked the U.S and other countries around the world is because they believe their beliefs are the only right ones and they want everyone else to either believe exactly what they believe of they should not be alive at all.  This is a problem that will be around as long as humans are alive because we cannot see and fully understand why others believe the way they do and accept it and move on.
I agree with the idea of cultural relativism that people do tend to believe that their way of doing things is the right way and everyone else is wrong.  I also believe that there are shared values among all cultures.  As human beings, we all share common traits because our brains and hearts are all the same.  Murder is wrong in all countries.  Although we call the terrorists killing people murder and say that it is wrong, in their minds it is justified.  The common thought that murder is wrong is the killing of someone else without real motives; for example, killing your father because you wanted his life insurance money.  I am not saying that the terrorists are right and we are wrong, but I think that we too often judge others based on our standards and do not try to see it through their eyes.  The Palestinians believe they are promised Israel in the Bible and the Israelis believe they should get it because it was given to them after the second world war.  Every religion in the world believes that they are the only right one and all others are praising fake gods or will go to hell.  I think that as people we will never accept that we may not be the only correct ones because we are too afraid that we may be the wrong ones.  Although every idea and value is not always correct, there is often many correct ideas and values.

Good vs. Evil

The main conflict in Beowulf is the conflict between Beowulf and Grendel.  This conflict is often depicted as the battle of good versus evil; Beowulf being the good and Grendel being the evil.   However, both sides believe they have a just cause they are fighting for.  This is very much like the conflict between Israel and Palestine.  Some people see this as the fight between good and evil, each side sees the other as the evil.  As in Beowulf, both sides believe they have a just cause they are fighting for.  The Israelis are fighting to defend their land they were given after World War Two as a safe haven from the Nazis and other antisemitic people.  The Palestinians are fighting for their land that was taken to make Israel and the land that they believe was given to them in the Bible.  However this battle is not so black and white as the one in Beowulf.  Many people see a clear distinction between the good and evil in Beowulf.  That good and evil is not so clear in the conflict in the Middle East.

I believe that there is not a clear distinction of which side is right and which side is wrong in the Palestine-Israeli conflict or in the fight between Beowulf and Grendel.  I think that both sides have valid reasons for wanting to fight and being angry.  I think that people take sides because it is easier to make things black and white and to choose a side than it is to say that yes there is a gray area and there really is not a right or wrong.  This is why I want to be an international mediator.  I want to show people that conflict can be worked out without one side being wrong and the other being right because nothing is ever just black and white.

The Hypocrisy of Mitt Romney

Many people have criticized Ayn Rand for going against her beliefs and calling her a hypocrite.  She thought that people should live independently and hated government intervention.  However, she was above her ideals and took out medicare and social security when she found out she had cancer.  These are two things she despised.

This is not unlike what Mitt Romney has done.  As a governor of Massachusetts he passed a health care bill similar to Obama Care.  This is something that he always bragged about and talked about how great it was for his state.  It really did help a lot of people.  Although he passed a health care bill in his state he bashes Obama Care and talks about how it will destroy our country.  He is only doing this because if he did not, he would not have made it this far in the election.  If this is not hypocrisy I don't know what is.  Who knows what he would do if he were to be elected?

Ayn Rand and Mitt Romney are both very similar in their actions and ideals.  Both of them are conservatives and both of them are hypocrites.  Maybe Mitt Romney should have learned his lesson from Rand because people have asked him about what he plans to do with health care and why he changed his mind.  His response is that it is different with the whole country compared to a state.  I suppose it was different when it was Ayn Rand's life on the line and not some strangers.  Both of these people are huge hypocrites.