The Stranger

My Big Question has to do with defining yourself in a society that tries to define you for themselves. I think the Stranger implies to this well because Meursault is seemed as an outcast and is put on trial for his morals and his reaction towards his mother's death. Society tried to dfine him as a criminal because he did not show hos emotions as openly as te rest of the world yet he never let people's criticism of himself change who he was and he took the punishment, death , instead of fighting back. Meursault is a perfect example of someone who did not let society define him, however in being an individual he was sentenced to death.

Metamorphosis

In a modern world, can one find a snacuary? If so, where?

I think that in the modern world one cannot find a sanctuary. This is because government and “authority” have figured out a way to get into almost every aspects of each person’s life. There are cameras in almost every store you walk into, at street lights, on sidewalks, at schools and sometimes even in people’s cars. There is also ways to access phone calls and internet usage as well as GPS that can trace people down by using satellites. Each of these are usually put in for “the people’s protection” but they also interfere with privacy and it seems that now there is no where you can hide. Parents have even started using technology to keep track of their kids at all times which is interfering with children growing up and becoming their own person without their parents. I think because of all the “improvements” in technology that in a modern world it is impossible to find a sanctuary where one can escape away from everything and everyone; someone is always watching.

Big Question

How a person defines themselves is a major part of who the person really is, so for my Big Question I chose:
In a culture where we are bombarded with other people trying to define us, how do we make decisions for ourselves?
I feel that most teenagers, including myself, struggle with this question unconsciously every day. We try and find out who we really are separate from who are parents want us to be and what school and society have laid out for us. Especially as seniors, we are all stuck with major decisions like where do I want to go to college and what do I want to do with my life and it is very difficult to decide what you want and not what other people want for you.

My independent study book this summer was Kite Runner and I feel like it relates well to my big question. Amir, the main character, is constantly reminded that he is a screw up in his father’s eyes and that he is not the son his dad had hoped for. His dad constantly tries to make him life sports, not writing, and to be strong and stand up for himself. Amir, trying hard to please his dad, wins the kite tournament and lets his best friend get raped just so he can get the respect from his dad he has always wanted. His way of defining himself caused others pain, yet it was his way, not his father’s.

This question also relates to my favorite TV show, Gilmore Girls. One of the main characters, Lorelai Gilmore, was brought up in a rich community. Her parents and the community they belong too forced her into proper manners, money and a whole lifestyle she didn’t want. She defined herself as the rebel, based off of her parents strictness, and ended up pregnant at sixteen. I feel like all the decisions she ended up making for herself weren’t made entirely by her because she based all of them off of how her parents tried to define her.

I am really interested to see how this question and multiple answers develop over the year and how it will play into my own life.