How Helen Found Her Way

          Creative writing is a skill that I believe is essential. Children should be taught at a young age how to express their thoughts, and then put these thoughts into words. For most, the writing process is quite simple. For most, writing is inspired by life experience, which is gained by interpreting what we see and hear. Helen Keller's case is an unusual one. At the age on 19 months, she was struck with an illness that robbed her of all vision and hearing. From that day on, it was obvious that she was going to have to be taught in a radically different way.

          Helen's illness not only stripped her of her vision and hearing, it stripped her of her ability to express her thoughts to the world. For most children, language is generally picked up quickly, as well as the ability to associate certain words to certain qualities or objects. Language skills are also developed through interaction, which was virtually impossible for Helen Keller. She had to find an alternate method. Over time, she learned to interpret and make sense of the world around her through basic hand gestures and symbols. This was a very long and arduous process. Finally, she learned to associate words to objects and to form basic sentences, an astounding feat for someone who is blind and deaf.

         Now that Helen had learned simple communication, she wanted to express her feelings to others. This proved to be quite difficult. How could someone possibly form elaborate sentences that adequately  document their experiences when they barely have a grasp of the concept of words and language? This is relatively easy for kids nowadays, because they can effortlessly put a name to their feelings and opinions, unlike Helen. With the help of her teacher, Annie Sullivan, Helen learned alternate methods of communication, which helped her transform her ideas into intelligent sentences. As she reached adulthood, Helen finally began to make sense of the world around her.

          Helen Keller's story is an inspiring one to say the least. "Story of My Life" is her way of informing the world of the struggles of growing up with a severe disability. Her experiences were drastically different than the experiences of most children, especially when it came to writing. Her against-all-odds dream of telling the world her story finally came true.

The Truth About Trolling

     

      While mindlessly browsing through humorous "memes" that had gone viral, I came across the following:

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       Now for the most part, I find this to be somewhat accurate. However, the creator of this meme omitted a fourth type of truly honest person: the anonymous internet poster. In most forums in the online world, users have the option to remain nameless and faceless, hidden behind an online persona. This persona can inspire the poster to express their true beliefs and grievances without the fear of being judged or criticized.
       Often, this illusion of anonymity can cause the user to say things that he or she would not normally say in public, such as their views on more controversial topics. A great example of this would be your run-of-the-mill angry YouTube commenter. These interesting specimens LIVE to stir the pot and draw attention to themselves, usually with some off-colour comment that no one would dream of saying out loud (also known as "trolling"). These comments often have absolutely nothing to do with the video that they supposedly just watched, and often contain somewhat skewed opinions on race, politics, etc. More often than not, there are usually a slew of (also anonymous) angry posters who then comment with their retort. This eventually escalates into a full-out debate filled with outrageous obscenities and statements that are just not very well thought out. On these threads of comments, posters can simply hide behind their computer screen and completely disregard the feelings or opinions of their fellow YouTubers. Blatant racism and sexism is often displayed, and nothing can be done about it. A quick trip to YouTube can show you just how anonymity affects how people express themselves online.
     In the real world, actions often have consequences, and words can hurt. Online, these words are still hurtful, but there are little consequences for the person saying them. Take these anonymous blogs for example. It is much easier to state your views on something and not be worried about what your classmates think. This is because the internet acts as an effective buffer between people. If you make a comment that offends a certain classmate, you don't have to witness their reaction, which makes these comments easier to say. With these blogs, users have the freedom to blow off steam without the worry of being judged for who they are.
      Having a sense of anonymity online has both its ups and downs. One has the freedom to express their innermost opinions without scrutiny. However, one can also fall victim to hurtful comments including racism, sexism, or homophobia. It is the user's responsibility to take these comments with a grain of salt, because more often than not, these comments are intended for shock value and not much else.