Thursday, March 8, 2012

Before You Judge


Author’s Note:  I’m sure you’ve heard of outcasts and the "group less." So many people are judged on how they dress, how popular, and how they act. Those should be the last things you use to judge somebody. Before you label anybody you really should get to know the person first.

I’m sure you’ve heard of the kids that sit their chair with their head down and their hood over head. So many people have "no group” which can become a bad thing.  Just think about how many people walk through the halls of school having their books knocked out of their hand or have parents that do not understanding what they are all about. Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson has described so many people in the 21st century, the clan less, the outcast and the group less. The way Laurie describes people in this book will make you think “do I throw people into a group and just forget about them?” 

People are described and put into groups on how they act, and the way they dress.  Apparently these are the only things that people judge other people on. When has somebody ever done that to you and you just been thrown into a group that you really don’t belong in, they haven’t seen the real you? I’m sure you’ve done this to somebody or that somebody has done that to you.  Just recently we had a BMX rider came to our school and he said that he was bullied all through middle school. This got me to think that he was a lot like my main character from my book...Speak. When I heard that he tried to walk away from the wrong things, it made me think that Melinda also tried to do the same thing, but with a different technique. Instead of walking away she just didn’t talk to anybody, and ignored her problems.

Then you have your parents that really don’t understand the real you. They think that your life is just full of garbage or no hope.  A Child Called It, by Dave Pelzer has gone through the same exact same thing you did. The best part of that is that no matter how much is mom had abused him, he forgave her matter how many times he was abused by her. Just because you’ve been abused or missed understood doesn’t mean that you have to hold onto that burden forever there is always that little forgiveness somewhere. All you need to do is find it. Melinda Sordino had parents that really never interacted with her life, which really impacted Melinda life in many ways. She started to grow farther and farther away from her parents. During school all of her old friends used to look at her and threw her into the group less, but he parents never connected and knew what is going on in Melinda's life.

 Laurie Halse Anderson has done fantastic job on describing people in the 21st century with her dramatic, emotional and impetuous stories. Take the BMX rider and think about walking through the halls with your head down. He has gone through a lot of refusing fights and saying things that may sound necessary but they really aren’t. If you have something to say don’t hide it, say it everyone should be able to say anything that seems right to them. Even Melinda she’s gone through a lot but she ends up speaking up for what she thinks is right.