At first, I did think Richard was a "bad" boy because I felt like he just kept making mistakes; he made so many that I felt like his "mistakes" were becoming intentional. For example, when he said, " 'When you get through, kiss back there,' " (41) to his Granny. I didn't beleive it when he said those words, "slipped out of my mouth" (41). How can you just say something like that without even realizing it, how do you say anything at all without control over what comes out of your mouth? I mean I know he didn't know what the words meant, but how can they just spill from your lips?
Although I thought Richard was a "bad" boy right off the bat, I realized that the environment and the culture that he lives in, and at such a young age definitly influences all of the trouble he causes. So I beleive that behavior should be blamed on the person when they've got support and a good nurturing family, in other words when they live in a loving environment. Some of Richards "mistakes" are just due to curiosity, like when Richard wanted to know what was happening next door so he stood on a chair and looked through a slit in the door, "I was puzzeled. Was there something happening next door to where I lived that I did not know?" (62). And at other times he thought he was doing the right thing. For example, when Oskar hanged the kitten to prove a point to his father, "How could I hit back at him? Oh, yes...He had said to kill the kitten and I would kill it!" (11). Or sometimes Richard just made mistakes, which is normal, "The touchstone of fraternity was my feeling toward white people, how much hostility I held toward them, what degrees of value and honor I assigned to race," (78). When Richard joined up with the gang of black boys and they started insulting and declaring war against white ones, they were just continuing the cycle. Don't get me wrong, white people have been completly horrible to black people, but insulting white people further doesn't help anyone. In summary, I don't beleive that Richard is a "bad" boy.
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6 comments:
I agree strongly when you say that a kid in a loving environment is less likely to do bad things, so they should most likely take the blame for those things. I think Richard's environment has a very strong influence on the way he behaves.
I also agree that Richard's environment is the main cause of his bad behavior. I like how you started out saying how you believed one thing, and then after reading more changed your mind. It does a good job presenting both sides of the issue. Nice examples, by the way.
I liked how your opinion changed in the end too! You had really great examples of both sides of the story. I agree with you explanation of how the words "just slipped out of his mouth". Some of the things Richard says are really surprising. But I also agree with you saying that his environment DOES effect his actions. He probably wouldn't have said some of those things if he were in a more positive environment.
Haley i agree that Richard is not a "bad" boy. I also agree that it was his environment that led him to do bad things but i think that when he hanged the cat that was a really bad thing and he knew he was not supposed to do it. i think that in that case he was "bad."
I also thought that Richard was just being "bad" on purpose when i started reading, but a few chapters later, i changed my mind too. Richard's environment and family has a bad influence on his behavior. i liked how you started off answering the question! it was very thoughtful.
Wow Haley I liked the evidence you used from the novel, that was really good. Also, I agree with you that Richard's words to his grandmother could not have simply "slipped out". He must have thought about them. I like how you showed both sides of your opinion on your post and how you can see how Richard could be considered bad or not.
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