Lesson #3- “Love and Respect your parentsâ€This, to me, is one of the most important lessons any person should have to learn because you wouldn’t be anything without them; literally! In my experience my parents have always supported me in every endeavor, they give me moral support when I’m struggling (either with school work, a sport event, or dealing with peer pressure). Not only are parents a mean of support, but they are great mentors; they can teach you many lessons, they essentially make you who you are. Bad parenting at an early stage may cause a youth to grow up with bad habits, bad manners and bad morals, though not all of these will occur, they are all possibilities.In the film, “American History X†we see that lead characters Derek and Danny, lost their father (Dennis) at a young age. Their father was murdered by two African-American men; this sparked a hatred for people of any other race in Derek and subsequently Danny too. Even before their father was murdered, we see a scene where he is injecting that prejudice into them, slowly. Their father mentions that they shouldn’t trust blacks, and for the boys to watch them carefully. He makes reference to his job: “I'll tell you one more thing. This "affirmative blaction" sh*t is driving me up the f**king wall. Firefighters gettin' 99's on their tests while rappers who score a goddamn 62 walk away with the job.â€- he continues on to say, “If I'm fightin' a brush fire... surrounded by thousand degree flames...who would I want watchin' my back? A guy who scores a 99 or a guy who scores a sixty? (then) You don't see half the NBA with whites, gooks and spics.†- Dennis Vinyard American History X Derek grows up to be the main member of a Neo-Nazi, white supremacy gang. The reason this happened was not only his father’s death, but the fact that his mother(Doris Vinyard) did not do anything to stop the transition into this life. At one point in the movie she even goes so far as to say “I'm ashamed that you came out of my body.†All of these things happened due to lack of parental support and guidance but also lack of respect for the parents. Now; if Derek had respected his mother enough to listen to her and take heed to what she may have told him in the past, how would the out come of his and Danny’s lives been affected?
Lesson#2-“Don’t talk, just listenâ€By this, I mean exactly as I say. Stop talking! You will learn a lot more if you listen to what the people around you have to say. My father always tells me,â€Be the quiet observer, listen to what someone has to say, think about it. Then give your input, or your opinion on the matter, that way you learn a lot more, and so do they. You do not know everything! So stop saying “yes I knowâ€â€. It can never hurt to gain knowledge, especially from those who are older and wiser than yourself, if you have the opportunity to do so, then do so!In the book “Tuesdays with Morrie†we saw how Mitch always said he’d keep in contact with Morrie but for years after that he got so caught up in his own hectic life that he never got the time to. When Mitch found out that Morrie was dying via the TV he decided to pay Morrie a visit, from this visit they began to meet on every Tuesday until Morrie died. Here we see a perfect example of Mitch just listening. His favourite teacher Morrie was dying so he had to spend as much time as he can learning from him, someone who was older, wiser, and lived a full life. These sessions with his old teacher evidently changed the way Mitch saw life, and how he lived his life.“Ah, talk…†He closes his eyes and smiles. “Tell you what. After I’m dead, you talk. And I’ll listen.†-Morrie Schwartz. “Tuesdays with Morrieâ€, p.170, lines 13-15In the film, “American History X†Derek changed his way of life after harsh experiences in jail and from the lessons that his high school teacher, Dr. Bob Sweeny, taught him. “There was a moment... when I used to blame everything and everyone... for all the pain and suffering and vile things that happened to me, that I saw happen to my people. Used to blame everybody. Blamed white people, blamed society, blamed God. I didn't get no answers 'cause I was asking the wrong questions. You have to ask the right questions.â€- Bob Sweeny, American History X
Lesson #4- “Do onto others, as you would have done onto yourself.†“Do onto others, as you would have done onto yourselfâ€. I first learned this quote when I was very young, maybe seven. From then till now, ten years later, it has stuck in my mind, and I try to live by it. What it means is; don’t do something to someone else if you know that you wouldn’t want them to do it to you. Ex: If you’re contemplating to hit some one, stop and think, would you like to be hit? That may make you reconsider your actions, because I doubt you do. This lesson is some what sociological; it has to do with human relation, in the sense of how we react to other peoples actions. In the movie “Higher Learning†we see how Remy is ostracized by his university peers. Now if they had known this and taken heed of it; Remy may not have murdered two innocent students and taken his own life. In the movie , “American History X†we saw several images of violence, all The reason I believe it is so important to learn this lesson is because it is fundamental for a happy life. If you can live with this quote in mind, and take heed to what it means you shouldn’t get into any trouble. People would tend to respect a person who does onto them as he would like have done to himself.
Lesson #5- “Hopeâ€I believe in hope. There is always hope, for it is never all lost. To me hope means that no matter what trouble you are going through, whatever pain and anguish you may suffer there will be better times in the future. There is a song by reggae artiste, Shaggy where he says “No matter if you’re sad and blue, there’s always someone who has it worse than you, sometimes you gotta pay your dues, so don’t worry just push on through.â€This is so true and I can say that through my own experience. Whenever I go through hard times in school, or when I lose a friend or family member I just keep in my mind that there will be a better tomorrow.In almost every film we’ve viewed during this course, we have seen people go through struggle and heartache. In,â€American History X†Doris lost all hope in her son Derek because he killed two black men and ended up in jail. She kept hope that he would come to his senses and stop this life of crime he was leading. After Derek was released, hope came, he gave up his life of crime and hatred, and he convinced his brother Danny to feel the same way. In the film, “The Pianist†we saw Wladyslaw Szpilman lose everything, but he kept hope and pushed on through in attempt to survive the war, and he did. He made it out of the war and was able to play piano again. This quote is taken from the movie when the Nazi soldier spares him and helps him stay alive. Wladyslaw Szpilman- “I don't know how to thank you.†Captain Wilm Hosenfeld-“Thank God, not me. He wants us to survive. Well, that's what we have to believe.†The quote above is a clear reference to hope, even in the darkest times of people’s lives.The reason I believe everyone should learn this lesson, is because it’s so true. The majority of the suicides in the world are committed by either teenagers, or elderly people who are going through depression. In this state of depression they feel like there is no hope, there is always hope, hope for a brighter tomorrow. There is always that cloud with the silver lining, you just have to believe it’s there and live every day with that in your mind. It is always hard to go through struggles, but once you stick through it, you won’t regret it. Remember suffering is only ever temporary.
Lesson #6- “Don’t Procrastinateâ€â€œDon’t leave something you can do today, to do tomorrow.†this is what my father tells me almost every day. It means, if some one asks you to do something for them, whether it be a chore, a favour or homework; why do it tomorrow when you can get it done and over with now? You may ask how this life lesson is important? Trust me, if you don’t want to be up at 2 in the morning doing school assignments and you want to stay ahead of the game in your school work, job and the way you live life, you won’t procrastinate.The perfect reference to the course, giving an example of procrastination, and why it is so bad, is the book, “Tuesdays with Morrie.†After Mitch graduated he told Morrie, without hesitation, that he would keep in touch. He only got around to going by Morrie’s house when he found out that he was dying, procrastination is the answer to what happened there. In “American History X†Derek procrastinated to help Danny turn his life around, and Danny was murdered in the end.This is a lesson that will teach you to keep on top of things. It’s very important to learn not to put things off, so you can gain a reputation as a reliable individual.
Lesson #7- “Forgive and move on†Forgive and forget is a commonly used term that is more easily said than done. So I changed it to “forgive and move on†which is almost as difficult, but it is usually impossible to forget what somebody has done, yet it is possible to move on with life. Always forgive somebody for a wrong they have committed to you, it is the only way to get on with a peaceful life, don’t forget as to make sure they know it won’t happen again, but move on with life. In the book ,â€Tuesdays with Morrie†he says something very important about forgiveness, it is this;“Forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others.â€- Morrie “Tuesdays with Morrieâ€p.164 line 1.In the book Morrie refers to a sculpture of himself that his friend made, he speaks of how his friend never called after his wife had a serious operation and how they stopped talking. He goes on to say that in the years after that , the friend, Norman, tried to reconcile, but Morrie wouldn’t have any of it, he didn’t forgive him , he says he was prideful. At that point Morrie becomes sad, and tells Mitch that Norman died just a few years before, and it pains him that he didn’t forgive him, that they didn’t spend time together, Morrie spoke of how this made him sad. He then began to cry. “You need to make peace with yourself and everyone around you.â€- Morrie Schwartz. “Tuesdays with Morrie.†p.167 lines3-4. This lesson is very important to learn so that you may live a happy life. Forgive others and move on with life. Life is too short to be holding grudges all the time, referring to what Danny Vinyard said in, â€American history Xâ€.“Well, my conclusion is: Hate is baggage. Life's too short to be pissed off all the time. It's just not worth it.†Then he says- “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.†Forgive and move on…
Lesson #8- “Prepare for life by being qualified†On the morning of January 2nd, 2007, I was sitting outside of school with my friends talking. I notices Mrs. Pomeroy walking up to another group of people with a man in her company, I soon found out he was our new vice principal, Mr. Fenton , what caught my attention was something he was telling another student. He said, “In life, you must always be prepared by being qualified. This means work hard in school, get good grades so that your always qualified for the job, that’s probably the reason I’m here in Trinidad today, because I had the qualifications necessary.†Today, the 16th of January he then explained to me what he meant, he told me that you need to be prepared to follow the economic demands of society, so if Trinidad went into war, you would want to be qualified in military, medicine or technology of some sort. If you didn’t graduate from high school you wouldn’t be able to move with the economic flow. We saw reference to this lesson both in the movie, “Higher Learning†and in the book, “Tuesdays with Morrieâ€. In “Higher Learning†we saw that all the students went to university in order to obtain the qualifications necessary to get the jobs they wanted. In a slightly different way we saw Morrie give Mitch qualifications, the qualifications to live a fulfilling life. He equipped him with all the tools and lessons he needs to know, to live happily, treat others with care and respect, and even accept death. To me this lesson must be learned by everyone because it’s common sense. If YOU want to live a good life and be successful, YOU must work hard at getting the qualifications necessary to be prepared for any circumstance. YOU must be able to adapt to the economic changes of your country to be able to survive in this constantly evolving world.