8/28 Reader Response
I know that this is supposed to be listed, but I only really noticed two commonalities in these readings, so I decided to summarize them. One was that humans, no matter how well off we are or what race we are, are all interconnected. And the other was overcoming obstacles in their way and keeping the faith. An example from the readings of humans being connected from Eve Birch’s essay is neighbors coming to help a neighbor and need and having to rely on each other to make it through their tough financial times. An example from Helen Keller’s essay is her belief that we will all someday help each other “pull through the hard times.” Jackie Robinson’s essay shows us the example that we are all equal, all the same, and can all do pretty much the same things. The second commonality of overcoming obstacles is again shown through Eve Birch’s essay of her roughing it out and making it through her tough time, Helen Keller overcoming her illness, Jackie Robinson finally playing baseball with white people, and Isabel Allende getting through her daughter’s death.
I believe that the goals of a This I Believe essay are relatively simple. The most obvious goal is that the editors want people to submit essays that show an important thing that they believe in and the process that it took for them to realize this belief. I believe that these essays are supposed to bring certain points of everyone’s lives into focus. Also, I think that we are supposed to find a deeper meaning from these essays. I think the goal of the editors was to get people to think about their daily lives, believes, and choices, and try to change them for the better. I believe that the editors saw that the world was connected in many different ways, that we all have the same beliefs, but we still treat each other like they aren’t as good as us. This was their way of showing us that we are all the same by showing us a variety of people’s beliefs.iThis