Learning objective: Connecting a real life story to yourself or text examples. Supporting an opinion with strong evidence or persuation.
Read the article “A Man Interviewed From Prison Has A Message About Good Vs Bad That Everyone Should Read”(http://www.sunnyskyz.com/blog/1288/A-Man-Interviewed-From-Prison-Has-A-Message-About-Good-Vs-Bad-That-Everyone-Should-Read#P2oA3uOF23KUK5ZK.99) and reflect on your opinion about the ideas of “good” and “bad.” Support your opinion with real life examples or text examples.
Course objectives met: 1,8,9,10 (http://robinderosa.net/composition-2/course-policies-info/)
Most people strive to be a good person. Most people want to better their lives. Some people do bad things in order for their lives to be good. Some people want to be good; but are bad. The article “A Man Interviewed From Prison Has A Message About Good Vs Bad That Everyone Should Read” challenges us to question if good and bad can coexist. Is there such thing as a Robin Hood, meaning you do bad things for good, and if so, will it ever be respected by society?
Breaking the law is undeniably frowned upon in our society. If someone mentions to you “I was in prison,” our mind begins to go crazy with worry as we ask “for what?” It’s easy to forget that everyone has their own story. Not everyone has the means, the support, the education, the intelligence or the opportunities that you may have. If you have had a tough life, does that excuse bad behavior? Is it ever justifiable to do bad? There is something that draws us to broken people. We want to see people change; we want to help them.
The man serving time in prison said “I thought I could be double-minded. But it’s not possible. You can’t do good and bad at the same time. The bad always wins.” I believe he means that once you begin to do bad, you can get easily caught up in it. If you truly want to be a good person, you can not simultaneously do good and bad. When he began selling drugs, he was doing it in a need based way only. As time went on there was more and more of a need for money and eventually selling drugs became the biggest part of his life. He became so involved in selling drugs that even the things he originally was working for, like his family, began to slip out of his life.
It’s extremely easy to pass judgement upon people because we all come from different backgrounds. Sure we can try to imagine what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes but it’s impossible to know what it’s really like to be that person. If you have a steady job, a roof over your head and a family to fall back on then you’re lucky. There are people who struggle everyday to stay warm at night or to eat a meal. If you had to sleep on the streets and had nothing to eat can you honestly say that you wouldn’t sell drugs or steal in order to live? It’s hard to say if you can be a good person while doing bad things but it’s not very hard to understand why people do it.
Although I understand that I am better off than a lot of people, I do believe that there are other ways to deal with the issues people face. Instead of always taking the easy way out, people should take the initiative to put extra effort to better their life. If you are not living the life you want to live, it’s up to you to change that. Try to get a job. Try to make new friends. Try to better your life. Nothing in this world comes free. If you find that you are not happy with your life, have the strength to change it. Make a conscious decision everyday to better your life; for yourself.
livehappy 