Works Cited

“Causes and Effects of Child Abuse.” Child Abuse and Domestic Violence. Ed. Melissa J. Doak. Information Plus Reference Series. 2007 ed. Detroit: Thomson Gale, 2007. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Web. 9 Nov. 2009.

“Child Maltreatment 2007—Summary and Introduction.” Child Maltreatment 2007 Apr 2009: iii+. SIRS. Web. 04 November 2009.

Crary, David J. "Congress Pressed to Act to Curb Child-Abuse Deaths." SIRS. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 21 Oct. 2009. Web. 6 Nov. 2009.

“Facts About Child Abuse.” 8 November 2009. <http://baltimorecountymd.gov/Agencies/police/community/abuse.html>.

Jirage, Reshma. “The Psychological Effects of Child Abuse.” Buggler.com. n.p. 23 January 2009. Web. 15 November 2009. <http://buzzle.com/articles/the-psychological-effects-of-child-abuse.html>.

Kim, Jinseok. “Intergenerational Transmission of Child Neglect and Physical Abuse: a Comparative Study.” Society for Social Work and Research. StataCorp. 2003. 16 November 2009.

“Long Term Issues.” National Institute of Justice. 13 November 2007. 16 November 2009.

Mulryan, Kathleen, Patricia Cathers, and Alane Fagin. “How to Recognize and Respond to Child Abuse.” eLibrary. Vol. 34 (2004): 52. Web. 18 November 2009.

“National Child Abuse Statistics: Child Abuse in America.” Childhelp. 16 November 2009. <http://.childhelp.org/resources/learning-center/statistics>.

Behind Closed Doors

“Almo "Almost five children die everyday as a result of child abuse. More than three out of four are under the age of 4” (“National Child Abuse Statistics”). The disheartening, rapid growth rate of child abuse in America continues to be a pressing issue at hand. The upward trend of child abuse will continue to escalade unless American citizens deal with the problem. In order for a change to take place, the voices of the innocent and vulnerable children in American need to be heard. Overcoming the atrocities of child abuse in America can begin to change through educating people on the root causes of this issue.

Many Many factors of a child’s family and upbringing can help determine the probability of a child being subject to abuse. Parents set the most influential example in a child’s life, yet, at the same time, unfit parents prove more detrimental than helpful. Children who are more likely to suffer from maltreatment often come from families with a single parent having minimal education, and where poverty, substance abuse, and domestic abuse exist (“Causes and Effects”). Often, children born into broken families cannot escape the cycle of heartache and abuse. Studies reveal that a child has a high risk of enduring abuse if he or she has a parent with a substance abuse problem. According to the Baltimore Police Department, “One in thirteen kids with a parent on drugs is physically abused regularly. (Drug and alcohol abuse in the family makes child abuse about twice as likely)” (www.baltimorecountymd.gov). Through these negative examples set by parents, children become more apt to follow in their parents’ footsteps.

Various components go into the process of recognizing child abuse. Abused children may have physical signs of maltreatment, such as unexplained cuts and bruises, and may have alarming behavioral and emotional issues. Usually a friend or someone close to the family notices the abuse, and, “Typically, neglect comes to light when a teacher reports a child who has poor hygiene and inappropriate clothing, appears listless, frequently complains of hunger, or frequently misses school without explanation. Neighbors may report a child being left unsupervised, or a health care provider may report that a child is missing appointments for medical care” (Mulryan et al. 52). If more people became aware of these warning signs and take on the responsibility to report it, less children may suffer from these horrific acts. People can see indicators of abuse in a child’s life through the behavior of children with other adults in society. Displayed signs of child maltreatment can show through a child not responding well in society, who, “…may be wary or cling to strange adults, and may become upset if another child begins to cry. An older child may seem fearful around his parents or other adults; his behavior can range from passive and withdrawn to aggressive” (Mulryan et al. 52). Children’s unusual behavior, if noticed by another adult, may help bring the issue into light and can assist in helping jumpstart the process of recovery. Evaluating children’s pattern of behavior becomes the initial step in helping end the vicious cycle.

The astounding statistics on child abuse and child fatality due to abuse proves troubling, and the American people should inform themselves about this issue. Although some instances of child abuse go unreported, the recorded cases show just a small glimpse of the magnitude of this problem. According to one report on child abuse, “…An estimated 1,760 US children died from abuse and neglect in 2004—up 35 percent form 2001” (“Congress Pressed to Act”). This dramatic increase of domestic abuse is even more troubling due to the fact that children are at stake. A study in 2007 shows that, “an estimated 794,000 children were determined to be victims of abuse or neglect. Among the children confirmed as victims…Children in the age group of birth to 1 year had the highest rate of victimization at 21.9 percent per 1,000 children of the same age group in the national population…” (“Child Maltreatment 2007”). The combination of an angry, ill-equipped parent and a vulnerable young child can often lead to tragedy. When stressed parents feel that they cannot handle a situation rationally, their top priority should always be to not take their anger out on their kids. When adults take on the role of becoming parents, they also need to realize the enormous amount of responsibility they must take on.

Not only can maltreatment temporarily harm the child, it can also negatively affect him or her down the road. Child abuse is not just a temporary issue, rather it sadly becomes a part of who the person is. According to a child abuse website, “Some other common psychological effects of child abuse are behavioral problems, attention problems, anxiety, alcohol abuse or drug abuse, bed-wetting, academic difficulties, concentration problems, and chronic sexual behaviors” (Jirage). The devastating long -term effects of child abuse can sometimes cause more harm to a person than the actual abuse. Children who suffered from abuse more frequently get into trouble with the law and in society. According to a study of 1,500 cases of child abuse, “Being abused or neglected as a child increases the likelihood of arrest as a juvenile by 59 percent, as an adult by 28 percent, and for a violent crime by 30 percent…” (“Long Term Issues”). Children born into broken families become more apt to hindering society. Although many young adults who suffered abuse are more prone to act out in negative ways, the choice remains up to the individual of whether or not to rise above challenges.

Young adults who grew up in an abusive home frequently repeat the same patterns and life-style of their parents. Many adults whose parent had a substance abuse addiction will also struggle with this due to emotional trauma. Drug and alcohol abuse can frequently spiral into abusive parents. Adults who suffered abuse as a child are far more likely to pass down abuse in the next generations, and, “Results from contingency tables show that those who were neglected in their childhood are 2.6 times more likely to neglect and 2.0 times more likely to physically abuse their children than those who were not” (Jinseok). Although breaking the generational cycle of child abuse proves difficult, the outcome ultimately provides restoration for families seeking to end such malice. According to a study, “Substantiated cases of adolescent maltreatment (against children ages 12-17) increased the odds of arrest, general and violent offending, and illicit drug use in young adulthood” (“Long Term Issues”). If the amount of child abuse decreased, the amount of substance abuse and delinquency would dramatically decrease also, because the amount of emotional trauma in people would also decrease. Each individual who has suffered abuse has the opportunity to change his or her life for the better if he or she so chooses. It only takes one adult family member to decide to choose a new and positive way of life.

The devastating concern of child abuse in America can no longer remain silent. Children in such instances of abuse are not in a position to help them selves, and, therefore the responsibility rests on the shoulders of the American people. The most important people in a child’s life consist of parents and teachers. Because children come into contact with their teachers on a daily basis, they have the ability to detect child abuse in its early stage. Along with parents, teachers need to help nurture young children and look out for their safety and well -being. When a teacher or an adult at school notices peculiar or disturbing behavior in a child, he or she has the responsibility to look further into the problem and seek help for the child if needed. Not only can teachers help detect abuse, but friends’ parents of the abused child can too. If an abused child gets together to play with another child after school one day and his or her behavior seems odd, it may spark questions from the friend’s parent. Although people tend to brush the warning sides aside and pretend as if no real problem exists, this tragedy continues to rise. Helping and protecting children in need is a crisis in this country that desperately needs more of. When the American people become more educated on this issue and know what to look for in children who may be abused, many more innocent lives will be spared.

Forged Coupon Rewrite

A Good Deed Goes a Long Way

Albert Einstein once said, “The world is a dangerous place. Not because of the people who are evil; but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.” Often, people complain about something that makes them unhappy, yet feel they have no power to change it. Nevertheless, each individual has the opportunity to affect the world in a positive way. Like the old saying goes, “Actions speak louder than words.” When problems arise in a person’s life, he or she has just as much capability to fix it as the next person does. Those who have the strongest impact in society are the people who live out what they believe and what they want to see changed. Through Leo Tolstoy’s The Forged Coupon, individuals can trace how common people can positively shape the world.

Through Maria Semyonovna, Tolstoy shows how one person’s life can have lasting effects on many other lives. Because of Maria’s outspoken beliefs about Christianity and the Bible, her good message spreads throughout the community. She indirectly changes the live of Stepan, an ex-murderer, through Chuyev. In the jail cell, Stepan converts to Christianity and, “had been humble even before, but out of late both the chief warder and the orderlies, and his cell-mates had been struck by the change that had taken place in him” (67). He once was rebellious and wanted nothing to do with God, yet became a servant. With a new selfless spirit, and, “without any command, out of turn, he would perform all the most onerous tasks, including even the cleaning of the slop bucket” (67). One person’s actions start a chain of reactions amongst many people.

Tolstoy reveals how even a common person can make great changes in his or her community, as all people have the ability to touch others’ lives. In the novella, Maria positively influences Mitya, who was once a terrible person. Due to his haunting past, he decides it is time to turn his life around and mend his relationship with his father. Starting to mend their relationship, Mitya, “…decided to make friends with his father…And this father was surprised, laughed at him, but then of his own accord stopped attacking him, and remembered many, many instances where he had been at fault before him” (91). Through Mitya’s change of heart, his father’s attitude dramatically changes for the better.

A modern example of a person, who positively affects those around her, is Mother Teresa. She dedicated over forty-five years of her life to help better the lives of others. For over forty-five years she volunteered with various ministries and charities, helping the sick, orphaned, dying, and poor. With her gentle spirit and servant’s heart, she touched numerous lives. Never did her life revolve around herself, as she was determined to improve as many lives as she could. Mother Teresa knew that God’s calling for her life was to be a missionary, and she used her gifts to the best of her ability to help further His kingdom. When people saw what great work she was doing with the people, it encouraged them to go out into the community and make a difference.

Endless opportunities stand before those who choose to live their lives to positively affect the world. There is no age limit or certain criteria for a person to meet in order to help make this world a better place. Often, the people who think they are too young or insignificant eventually end up becoming great leaders of change. All humans have the responsibility to somehow contribute to the well being of others. God can use people in the most unexpected ways to bring a glimmer of His hope and love to His people. It only takes one person’s positive actions to start a chain reaction of change for the better.

Good Deeds Go A Long Way

Rewrite

Jessica George

Advanced Expository Writing

Dr. Gibson

23 September 2009

The Lonely Road of Isolation

Mark R. J. Lavoie once said, “Life dies inside a person when there are no others willing to be-friend him. He thus gets filled with emptiness and a non-existent sense of self-worth.” Loneliness in a person’s life can cause great anguish and heartache. It can serve as a factor of depression and the feeling of a lack of self worth. Despair tends to set in when a person feels that he or she has no one or nothing on which to hold. Loneliness can tear a person apart as the feeling of shame and isolation begin to set in. As solitude starts to pull people into seclusion, it also can drive them into doing things that they would not normally do. In his short story “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner develops the theme that isolation can lead to madness.

Faulkner shows the negative impacts of isolation through the rocky relationship between Emily Grierson and her father. As Emily’s father demonstrates strictness and high standards, it paints a picture of how tied down Emily is by him. Emily’s cold natured father is described as, “… a spraddled silhouette in the foreground, his back to her and clutching a horsewhip, the two of them framed by the back-flung front door” (4). Although Emily respects her father, they do not share a healthy father and daughter relationship. Mr. Grierson is a controlling father figure in Emily’s life, as he would often prohibit her from dating men and going out for social events. Emily’s friends tell of the lack of her dating and social life due to her father, and say, “So when she got to be thirty and was still single, we were not pleased exactly, but vindicated…” (4). Emily remains in a state of denial about her father’s death; even when people give their condolences, she simply acts as if nothing has even happened. Although her father only wants what is best for his daughter, his sternness left Emily feeling separated from the rest of her community.

Additionally, Faulkner displays how isolationism drove Emily to insanity through her dysfunctional relationship with her lover Homer Barron. Emily becomes interested in Homer and the townsfolk believe that they are going to get married. The town’s people talk about Emily and Homer’s relationship saying, “Then we were sure that they were to be married. We learned that Miss Emily had been to the jeweler’s and ordered a man’s toilet set in silver, with the letters H.B. on each piece” (7). Emily seems to finally be coming out of her shell as she has found a man. Yet, when she finds out he’s leaving it drives her into an even deeper madness. Once Emily finds out that Homer is homosexual, she decides to poison him and then live with his dead body in her house for years after that. As Homer was coming home from out of town, “A neighbor saw the Negro man admit him at the kitchen door at dusk one evening. And that was the last we saw of Homer Barron…From that time on her front door remained closed, save for a period of six or seven years…” (8). Emily refuses to say goodbye to the last companion she has left; therefore she decides to keep the body with her in the house as a sense of comfort. The death of loved ones in Emily’s life causes her to do crazy things, like confining herself in her house.

Becoming less involved with her neighbors, Emily begins to separate herself more and more from society. Before Emily’s depression set in, Emily used to be very involved in the community and taught china-painting lessons to people. As Emily was once a popular teacher, her“ … painting pupils grew up and fell away and did not send their children to her with boxes of color and tedious brushes and pictures cut from the ladies’ magazines. The front door closed upon the last one and remained closed for good” (8). Miss Emily tries to avoid the pain and suffering she feels due to the loss of her father and Homer. Isolation ultimately leads to her death while she drives by cutting off all ties to her community. For most of the time during the end of her life Emily did nothing, and “… she passed from generation to generation—dear, inescapable, impervious, tranquil, and perverse. And so she died. Fell ill in the house filled with dust and shadows…” (8). Because Emily chooses not to deal with the pain of her past, it causes her much more anguish because she relies solely on herself to help heal her wounds. Reaching out to her community to get help with her struggles, can help Emily to diminish her feelings of loneliness.

When a person chooses to seclude his or herself from society, the overwhelming loneliness drives a person to insanity. Emily Grierson was seen as a “normal” lady of society until she let a tragedy get the best of her. Depression can often cause a person to stick more to his or herself, rather than dealing with the underlying issues and getting on with life. If a person does not have companionship, the sense of loneliness takes over, which, in turn, takes over one’s self esteem and drive in life.