"Proofreading Thomas Jefferson" Response

    In important documents, punctuation is very important, especially in a document as important as the Declaration of Independence. According to “Proofreading Thomas Jefferson” by Veronica Majerol, a stray period was found in a sentence that could change the whole sentence’s meaning. The author is unbiased to some extent, although she shows how a stray period could change the meaning of the sentence and the “meaning of American democracy”. The author supports this claim by showing examples of how the stray period being a period or comma would affect the sentence.
    The stray period is in the paragraph that begins “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” The stray period in question follows the phrase “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. Majerol uses Professor Danielle Allen’s quotes to help the reader understand why this punctuation change can affect the sentence. Professor Danielle Allen is a professor at the Institute for Advance Study in Princeton, New Jersey, which makes her quotes have more impact. “The period teaches people that that’s the end of the thought,” says Allen, “and then you’re starting a new one.” By explaining what the period symbolizes, the author makes it clear why adding a period after this phrase would change the meaning. The phrase after this is “That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed...” The author then explains that assuming the stray period is a comma means that to Jefferson, the government securing people’s rights were just as important as “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” “You lose that connection when the period gets added”, says Allen. It is still an ongoing debate on whether it is a comma or period.
    Majerol also shows why getting this right is so important, by adding the opinion of another and then ending with a quote from Allen. She adds a quote from Eugene Volokh, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. He claims that the distinction between commas and periods “almost certainly didn’t exist when the Declaration and the Bill of Rights were drafted. It was a more oral culture back then, he notes, and punctuation was used primarily to capture the rhythms of speech.” The author adds this quote in to capture the perspective of someone else’s point of view and compares it to Allen’s point of view by ending the article with Allen’s quote. She does this to make the reader think and compare the two opinions on their own in a subtle way. Allen states that even though it might not seem important, it is because this document is connected to our government and “We should get right what’s in them.”
    Although I understand both sides of this argument, I agree with Allen’s point of view more because I believe that information is important, no matter how it may look. It is part of our history and since it also relates to the government, it is important we know what the Founding Fathers thought. After reading this article I realized how much this matters, as well as how much of a difference punctuation makes.

Reflection on Trip to Museum

    This trip was a very fun and interesting experience for me. Although I had known about some of the famous activists such as Martin Luther KIng Jr, however, I haven’t really given the topic much thought. When I went on this trip I realized the types of social issues that are faced in our society and realized the extent people will go in order to get their rights. For example, for female suffrage, women stood outside and walked with sashes which was unusual in those days because women would stay home to clean. Another example is when the bicycle clowns tried to prove their point about people parking their cars in the bicycle lane.
    Going on this trip also made me aware of the issues that were in our past as well as some that are still going on. These include bicycle lanes and gay rights. I realized that since our community is so diverse, there are so many issues we run into. The issues are also varied. We probably won’t solve all of these issues right away, and I know that these issues will probably never stop coming up. However, I wonder if we will be able to solve the issues we have now.

The Catcher in the Rye

   
    Everyone has probably heard at least once in their life that planning is a vital part of life. Holden, from The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is the perfect example of someone who has insufficient planning. Holden is a kid who’s choices are greatly influenced by his emotions which causes him to have insufficient planning. He runs away from his school, Pencey, and faces many conflicts and problems such as losing money, being scammed, and being forced to pay for otherwise unnecessary things are all causes of Holden’s lack of planning. Ultimately, Holden’s lack of planning holds many consequences.
   
    Holden’s lack of planning is the main reason why all these problems and events keep happening to him. It all starts with him deciding to run away. When Holden decided to run away, he decided on a whim, which meant that he did not really plan things out which led to him not seeing the possible outcome of his actions. “But all of a sudden I decided what I’d really do, I’d get the hell out of Pencey―Right that same night and all.” Here Holden decides to leave on the spot because all the “phony” people annoy him. Making decisions this way can really affect you and your life because you may not be able to see the possible problems that could lie ahead. For example, Holden faced conflicts such as running out of money. He also may not see the impossibility of what he decides on. For example, at one point in the book, he decides to go out West. “But I really decided to go out West and all.” He doesn’t even consider the fact that he’ll need money to get there and the fact that he’s broke.
   
    Holden’s lack of planning holds many consequences and causes many problems as mentioned in the paragraph before. One of the main conflicts is running out of money. He treats money as if it doesn’t matter, and lacks planning that could help him save money. For instance, he gives a donation when he really cannot afford it. “They let me give them ten bucks as a contribution. They kept asking me if I was sure I could afford it and all.” Had he been planning from the beginning, he would have not run out of money so rapidly. Near the end of the book, he only had “...three singles and five quarters and a nickel left...” and is eventually forced to borrow money from his younger sister. Besides giving donations, he also went out on a date with Sally Hayes. “But the thing was, I’d made that date to go to a matinee with old Sally Hayes, and I needed to keep some dough for the tickets and stuff.” He spent extra money on unnecessary things that he could live without, which caused him to not have enough money for things that are necessary such as food. Another conflict was getting scammed. In one part of the book, he decides on a whim to hire a prostitute. However, the next day, the pimp(Maurice) claims that the price was ten dollars, not five like he had originally said. “...Five bucks a throw...” In this way, Holden was forced to pay five more dollars than he originally had to. Had he planned, he would have foreseen the many dangers involved in being alone as well as saved money.
   
    Holden has many flaws such as being judgmental and not knowing when to stop talking, however, his most biggest flaw would be his lack of planning. His lack of planning was the main reason why he faced most of the conflicts in the book such as losing money and being scammed. All or most of Holden’s problems could have either been avoided or solved in a simpler manner had he planned what he was going to do once he ran away. Lack of planning made it easier for him to lose money as well as become an easy target for scammers.