(08-03-2020, 04:38 PM)IanPayne Wrote: I also often needed help with essays because I couldn't do it alone.

(08-03-2020, 04:38 PM)IanPayne Wrote: I also often needed help with essays because I couldn't do it alone.

(04-21-2014, 08:54 PM)Spirit Wrote: Hey, guys. I just wrote an English essay about the book "The Bean Trees"

I would appreciate it if you guys read it and told me if there's places where it could be improved and if it seems good enough to you.

Here's the statement that I had to write an essay around:

In The Bean Trees, a number of characters break or circumvent the law in order to protect themselves or others from harm. Is the law always more important than morality? Do the ends justify the means? Consider these questions in connection with relevant situations and quotations from the novel.

------------------------------------------

Spoiler:

Word Count: 770 or something

The Bean Trees – English Cultimating Essay

I personally disagree with the idea of the law being more important than morality. I understand that there are laws put in place that we need to abide, but there are many laws that are just outright ridiculous! I don't see why we can't just have a system that allows people to break certain laws as long as it's for the better rather than the worse.

An example of the laws being ridiculous are the immigration laws in this novel. The laws that are put in place in order to restrict immigration were implemented to keep track of the population, but the way I see it, they have only been putting people in danger since I first started reading the novel. On page 108 of The Bean Trees, you'll see that Mattie is questioned about legal means of immigration on the news channel. Mattie ended up pointing out that the laws block people who need into the United States and away from their own country the most. There are actually two characters in this novel who I find to be great examples for the law-putting-immigrants-in-danger situation, Estevan and Esperanza.

Estevan and Esperanza are two Guatemalan refugees who were quickly forced out of their home country (where they even had to abandon their daughter, Ismene) and into the United States for security purposes. The only things for them to go back to is the destruction and persecution from the viscious Guatemalan government. But because of their big rush to escape Guatemala, they later discovered that they had forgotten to bring the documents which they needed in order to prove that their lives were in danger with them. They needed these documents so they could get out of that country and be accepted to live in the United States “safe and sound” instead. Because of these laws, they're forced to live in sanctuaries that would serve as nothing more than a temporary home for the rest of their lives. Despite the law not allowing them to enter the United States legally, most people would probably say that it would be morally right for them to be granted the opportunity to live in the U.S. as protected citizens of America.

The legal system can even have negative affects on people who were born and raised in the United States, too. Anyone who has read the novel The Bean Trees probably already knows that Taylor Greere (main character) is a great mother for Turtle to have. Throughout this novel Taylor focused almost all of her time, hard-work and dedication on Turtle. She was truly an inspiring figure from my point of view. But despite all of this and her ability to be a fantastic nurturer for Turtle, who notably isn't even Taylor's flesh and blood daughter, she ends up having to hear that “it had recently come to the attention of the Child Protection Services Division of the Department of Economic Security” (Kingsovler 182) that she had no legal claim to Turtle. She even ends up admitting “that I had no legal claim to Turtle” (Kingsolver 182) In other words, the government was ready to take Turtle away from her even though morally Taylor was a wonderful woman for Turtle to call “mommy” for the rest of her life just because the law said so.

If law had it's way with Turtle, she'd end up in some state home where nobody is there to truly nurture her with love and compassion like Taylor would. That being said, I'm going to finish this essay off with a quote from Taylor Greere of The Bean Trees just to support my point of morality being more important than law:

“You're asking yourself, Can I give this child the best possible upbringing and keep her out of harm's way her whole life long? The answer is no, you can't. But nobody else can either. Not a state home, that's for sure. For heaven's sake, the best they can do is turn their heads while the kids learn to pick locks and snort hootch, and then try to keep them out of jail. Nobody can protect a child from the world. That's why it's the wrong thing to ask, if you're really trying to make a decision. So what's the right thing to ask? Do I want to try? Do I think it would be interesting, maybe even enjoyable in the long run, to share my life with this kid and give her my best effort and maybe, when all's said and done, end up with a good friend.” - Barbara Kingsolver, The Bean Trees

(08-15-2020, 10:00 AM)mishel743 Wrote:

(04-21-2014, 08:54 PM)Spirit Wrote: Hey, guys. I just wrote an English essay about the book "The Bean Trees"

I would appreciate it if you guys read it and told me if there's places where it could be improved and if it seems good enough to you.

Here's the statement that I had to write an essay around:

In The Bean Trees, a number of characters break or circumvent the law in order to protect themselves or others from harm. Is the law always more important than morality? Do the ends justify the means? Consider these questions in connection with relevant situations and quotations from the novel.

------------------------------------------

Spoiler:

Word Count: 770 or something

The Bean Trees – English Cultimating Essay

I personally disagree with the idea of the law being more important than morality. I understand that there are laws put in place that we need to abide, but there are many laws that are just outright ridiculous! I don't see why we can't just have a system that allows people to break certain laws as long as it's for the better rather than the worse.

An example of the laws being ridiculous are the immigration laws in this novel. The laws that are put in place in order to restrict immigration were implemented to keep track of the population, but the way I see it, they have only been putting people in danger since I first started reading the novel. On page 108 of The Bean Trees, you'll see that Mattie is questioned about legal means of immigration on the news channel. Mattie ended up pointing out that the laws block people who need into the United States and away from their own country the most. There are actually two characters in this novel who I find to be great examples for the law-putting-immigrants-in-danger situation, Estevan and Esperanza.

Estevan and Esperanza are two Guatemalan refugees who were quickly forced out of their home country (where they even had to abandon their daughter, Ismene) and into the United States for security purposes. The only things for them to go back to is the destruction and persecution from the viscious Guatemalan government. But because of their big rush to escape Guatemala, they later discovered that they had forgotten to bring the documents which they needed in order to prove that their lives were in danger with them. They needed these documents so they could get out of that country and be accepted to live in the United States “safe and sound” instead. Because of these laws, they're forced to live in sanctuaries that would serve as nothing more than a temporary home for the rest of their lives. Despite the law not allowing them to enter the United States legally, most people would probably say that it would be morally right for them to be granted the opportunity to live in the U.S. as protected citizens of America.

The legal system can even have negative affects on people who were born and raised in the United States, too. Anyone who has read the novel The Bean Trees probably already knows that Taylor Greere (main character) is a great mother for Turtle to have. Throughout this novel Taylor focused almost all of her time, hard-work and dedication on Turtle. She was truly an inspiring figure from my point of view. But despite all of this and her ability to be a fantastic nurturer for Turtle, who notably isn't even Taylor's flesh and blood daughter, she ends up having to hear that “it had recently come to the attention of the Child Protection Services Division of the Department of Economic Security” (Kingsovler 182) that she had no legal claim to Turtle. She even ends up admitting “that I had no legal claim to Turtle” (Kingsolver 182) In other words, the government was ready to take Turtle away from her even though morally Taylor was a wonderful woman for Turtle to call “mommy” for the rest of her life just because the law said so.

If law had it's way with Turtle, she'd end up in some state home where nobody is there to truly nurture her with love and compassion like Taylor would. That being said, I'm going to finish this essay off with a quote from Taylor Greere of The Bean Trees just to support my point of morality being more important than law:

“You're asking yourself, Can I give this child the best possible upbringing and keep her out of harm's way her whole life long? The answer is no, you can't. But nobody else can either. Not a state home, that's for sure. For heaven's sake, the best they can do is turn their heads while the kids learn to pick locks and snort hootch, and then try to keep them out of jail. Nobody can protect a child from the world. That's why it's the wrong thing to ask, if you're really trying to make a decision. So what's the right thing to ask? Do I want to try? Do I think it would be interesting, maybe even enjoyable in the long run, to share my life with this kid and give her my best effort and maybe, when all's said and done, end up with a good friend.” - Barbara Kingsolver, The Bean Trees

For me, this topic is quite complex, you need to have certain knowledge to write about it