{"content":{"sharePage":{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27471397","dateCreated":"1285282826","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"nikki-wiki","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/nikki-wiki","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27471397"},"dateDigested":1531973972,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"response:)","description":"Dave Saunders, the protagonist of "A man who was Almost a Man" is not ultimately responsible for killing that mule for several reasons. First off, Dave had never had a gun in his life and he did not even know how it worked. He only wanted this gun because of the influence he felt others around him had on him because of his insecurity. He felt like he needed a gun to feel like a man. "Ahm old ernough to hava gun. Ahm seventeen. Almost a man." His insecurities led him to this entire problem. Second, it was Dave's first time shooting that gun, there for he does not know how to aim or shoot. We clearly see this when he is about to shoot "The gun felt loose in his fingers; he waved it wildly for a moment. Then he shut his eyes and tightened his forefinger." He clearly shows the reader how he is not prepared to shoot this gun because he doesn't even have his eyes open to aim where he wants the bullet to go, this is definitely calling for an accident because as he closes his eyes he doesn't know what might walk in front of that bullet in that moment. For this, Mr. Hawkins cannot prove that Dave wanted to kill this mule on purpose and that it was an accident. Dave does not want to admit that the gun was his because he felt terribly ashamed of what had happened, even though it was an accident. We can see that Dave was actually concerned about the old mule after he sees that she was hurt. "He looked in the direction of home, wanting to go back, wanting to get help." Dave commited an innocent mistake, it turned out to be a big problem but it was still a mistake, therefore Dave should not pay for the Jenny.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27513489","body":"Thanks Nikki,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285349810","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27468581","dateCreated":"1285279037","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"mekster","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/mekster","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1222961126\/mekster-lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27468581"},"dateDigested":1531973972,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"the man who was almost a man","description":"In the short story \u201cThe Man Who Was Almost a Man,\u201d the main character Dave Glover is an insecure young adult who wants to become a man. Growing up he was influenced badly by others around him, his mom worried more about money than her sons concerns, and this made him insecure. He believes that men are respected and powerful. He believes that to become a man he needs to buy a gun. \u201cCould kill a man with a gun like this. Kill anybody, black or white. And if he were holding his gun in his hand, nobody could run over him; they would have to respect him.\u201d His greatest desire is for people to respect him and by getting a gun he believes that he can achieve. Mistah Joe, when asked about the gun by Dave responds, \u201cYou ain\u2019t nothing but a boy. You don\u2019t need a gun.\u201d Of course this made Dave only want the gun more. After begging his mom, he is finally allowed to buy the gun. In Dave\u2019s defense, people who have shown superiority have undermined his life. This is the main reason that Dave was brought on to shoot Jenny the mule. He tries to prove himself a man by being able fire a gun. It\u2019s not his fault he killed the mule, it\u2019s the people who influenced him and underestimated him that led him to do it. \u201cHe did not quite know what had happened.\u201d It is true that the event itself might have been a accident, but what led to it was certainly not. The constant years of being inferior and being trapped within the body of a seventeen year old with the mentality of a kid was the spark that kindled the fire within Dave which ultimately killed poor, innocent jenny.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27471953","body":"sorry Dave Saunders","dateCreated":"1285283581","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"mekster","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/mekster","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1222961126\/mekster-lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27513595","body":"Thanks Jaime,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285349900","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27468265","dateCreated":"1285278603","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"cfgonzalez94","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/cfgonzalez94","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27468265"},"dateDigested":1531973972,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"The Man Who Was Almost a Man Response ","description":"In defense of Dave, living a life under constant condescendence certainly made him an insecure young man. Without any sort of guidance in his life, Dave, became a young man with a mentally and knowledge of a young man. Even though Dave was 17 years old, due to the way he was influenced by others he had a serious case of insecurity. \u201cahm ol ernough to hava gun. Ahm seventeen. Almost a man\u201d. Dave wanted to prove himself he was a man who deserved respect and was capable of as much as he desired. \u201cCould kill a man with a gun like this.. nobody could run over him; they would have to respect him.\u201d. Growing surrounded by conformists such as his own mom who only worried about the money the family had and not having any true aspirations, Dave desired something different. \u201c Yuh ain gonna toucha penny of tha money fer no gun!\u201d. Dave wanted a gun to prove himself, he was a man, even though everybody else saw him as a boy. He though by carrying a weapon, nobody would mess with him. Once Dave bought the gun, he wanted to test it, feel the adrenaline of firing a loaded side-arm and how easily he could take a life away. After a sudden discharge, Dave killed Jenny, a mule. \u201c His hand was numb; he jammed it into his mouth, trying to warm it, trying to stop the pain\u201d. Dave realized what he had done, but this was no mere accident, this was the result of a young boy who was trying to prove himself as a man, after everyone else had another image of him. \u201c You ain\u2019t nothing but a boy. You don\u2019t need a gun\u201d. This words were the push factor that led Dave to try to become a man by himself. Through this, we can see that it wasn\u2019t Dave\u2019s fault to kill the mule. Instead it was the people that made him feel inferior that ultimately caused the accident to take place.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27472783","body":"1. elminate knowledge","dateCreated":"1285284597","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"cfgonzalez94","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/cfgonzalez94","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27513649","body":"Thanks Carlos,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285349951","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27425437","dateCreated":"1285208949","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"ereiche","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/ereiche","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1226183145\/ereiche-lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27425437"},"dateDigested":1531973973,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"erik reiche \"the man...a man\"","description":"Dave Saunders from \u201cThe Man who was Almost a Man\u201d is an average teenager who seeks a level of maturity and freedom that he is not ready for. He easily fantasizes about the benefits of adulthood but doesn\u2019t understand the obligations that come with more independence. Searching for a quick way to become a man, he is determined to buy a gun, which he doesn\u2019t know who to use correctly, but falsely believes that king of strong power will automatically win him the respect he desires. Even though Dave Saunders has a great amount of responsibility in Jenny\u2019s death, both Ms. Saunders, and Joe\u2019s extremely irresponsible actions makes them both responsible for Jenny\u2019s death too. Joe, the gun storeowner, is extremely irresponsible when he gives Dave the gun. Even though it was clear that Dave didn\u2019t know how to manage a gun properly, Joe sold the gun to him anyways. This incredibly irresponsible action could easily cause many horrible accidents that are worse than the death of a farm animal. Before selling the gun to Dave, Joe should have at least taught him the basics of how to use a gun safely. Ms. Saunders is also responsible for Jenny\u2019s death because of her irresponsible actions. Her first irresponsible action was letting Dave buy a gun for no good reason. Even though Dave doesn\u2019t know how to use a gun, and does not give Ms. Saunders a good argument why he needs a gun, Ms. Saunders still lets him purchase the gun. Its true that Ms, Saunders lets Dave buy the gun with the condition that he will bring it straight from the shop to his home and give it to his mom. However, Ms, Saunders does not enforce her condition and lets Dave keep the gun for some hours. If Ms. Saunders would have enforced her condition, Dave would\u2019ve had the gun, and Jenny\u2019s death wouldn\u2019t have happened. Even though both Joe and Ms. Saunders were not physically responsible for Jenny\u2019s death, their irresponsible actions make them as responsible for Jenny\u2019s death as Dave.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27447231","body":"Erik,
\n
\nThanks.
\nThis is well-constructed and clear. I like this.
\nThere are a couple of things...
\n
\n1) "which he doesn\u2019t know who to use correctly, but falsely believes that king of strong power will automatically win him the respect he desires." (2 mistakes here)
\n2) Please provide us with three synonyms for 'irresponsible'. I think that you have used it here at least 6 or 7 times.
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285255936","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27474955","body":"Mr Webster
\n
\nThanks for the advice. 1) are some simple mistakes that I didn't catch when I read it after writing my response. 2) is something I do really often which I need to fix
\n
\n1) "which he doesn't know how to use correctly, but falsely believes that kind of strong power will automatically...."
\n
\n2) careless; thoughtless, foolhardy, foolish, negligent, impetuous, impulsive","dateCreated":"1285287249","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"ereiche","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/ereiche","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1226183145\/ereiche-lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27513813","body":"Great Erik,
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285350064","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27421305","dateCreated":"1285203947","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"AmandaTrejos","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/AmandaTrejos","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27421305"},"dateDigested":1531973973,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"amanda trejos","description":" A man that was almost a man Amanda Trejos
\n Dave is a seventeen-year-old boy that believes that all of his problems will be solved by obtaining a gun. He also believes that in order to become a real man, one need to have a gun. \u201cAlmost a man. He strode, feeling his long loose-jointed limbs. Shucks, a man oughta hava little gun aftah he done worked hard all day\u201d (pg1113). Dave feels like it is a necessity to acquire a gun since he, out of all people does hard work and deservers to have what he wants. Once he gets his gun after begging his mother, Dave commits a grave mistake; he shoots the mule. In the story it never tells us he pointed at the mule, Dave talked about shooting the gun, but he never argued about killing her. \u201cJenny stood wit head down, her short ars pricked straight. Dave walked off about twenty feet, held the gun far out form him at arm\u2019s length, and turned his head. Hell, he told himself, Ah ain afraid\u201d (pg1117). Dave felt the urge to feel the adrenaline, the power and the capacity to get a hold of the silky black gun and be able to shoot into the air and feel fierce and invincible. In no moment he is intending to shoot the mule. We can see this in the scene where Dave unintentionally shot the mule and started panicking. \u201cThen he saw the whole in Jenny\u2019s side, right between the ribs. It was round, wet, red. A crimson stream streaked down the front leg, flowing fast. Good Gawd! Ah wuzn\u2019t shhoting at tha mule. He felt panic\u201d (pg 1117). It is understandable that he was pointing at something else and he accidentally shot the poor mule. It is clear that he felt compassion towards the mule and that he had no intention on hurting it. After Dave explains and tells Mr. Hawkins the truth, Dave still has to pay for his actions. This is not a fair combat because one can see that Dave is telling the truth. He even burst into tears and could barely speak. This shows how regretful Dave is for doing such an act.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27446843","body":"Amanda,
\n
\nThis is well-written, but I feel that you are spending a lot of your time here speaking of the the incident as an accident. I was hoping that we could investigate other reasons for Dave's defense. Do you think that you could consider a few more reasons for defending Dave?
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285255590","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27468201","body":"The mother of Dave was very irresponsible for giving him the 2 dollars to buy the gun. She can see how mysterious his son is acting, but she still pleases his desires to obtain a gun. Mr. Joe is also responsible for selling a minor a gun when he knows he is capable of causing an accident. He knows Dave is not skilled to handle such a thing. He should also be blamed since he saw how persistent and pushy he was, this should have given him a clue that he was up to something. Because of this, Dave should not be charged for killing the mule.","dateCreated":"1285278516","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"AmandaTrejos","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/AmandaTrejos","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27513363","body":"Great Amanda,
\n
\nBetter,
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285349722","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27414561","dateCreated":"1285196944","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"hansel.andrew","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/hansel.andrew","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27414561"},"dateDigested":1531973973,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"will andrew","description":"Dave should not be held responsible for shooting Mr. Hawkins mule for many reasons. First, his priorities are not what they should be. For example, instead of saving his money to pay for school, as his mother advises, he spends his money on purchasing a gun. Second, the author makes it very clear in his vocabulary that he is uneducated and therefore, probably doesn't have very good decision making skills either. Further, he should not have been able to purchase and own a gun at seventeen years of age. Dave's mother gave him the money to purchase the gun for the father. This was the wrong thing to do. Dave was a minor so she should have gone to purchase the gun herself or sent the father to do so. By sending Dave to purchase the gun himself, so she opened the door for him to have freedom with the gun. This gave him the desire to use it more than he wanted to before.
\n
\nJoe, who sold the gun to him was partially at fault. Because, he was the first one to encourage him to buy a gun. He should have asked to kid to bring back the mom or the dad to buy the gun and not just sold it to Dave. Joe should have also given Dave some instruction about how to use the gun, how to handle it safely and how to manage the responsibility of owning a gun.
\n
\nThroughout the story, Dave's father never said a word. He was absent until the very end when something bad happened. The problem is that the father was never there to talk about anything and never even knew that his son bought a gun in the first place. We know that the father didn't teach Dave to respect other men, especially black men because in the beginning of the story, Dave says that he wants to shoot them. It seems that he wants to do this for no particular reason.
\n
\nClearly, Dave is not capable of making good decisions and he needs the adults around him to teach him, and giving him advice in this case about owning a gun.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27446665","body":"Will,
\n
\nI think that you have made a good case here in defending Dave, but I have a question...
\n
\nYou say that "We know that the father didn't teach Dave to respect other men, especially black men because in the beginning of the story, Dave says that he wants to shoot them". Is this really a good argument? Don't you think that you are perhaps jumping to conclusions here, that just because Dave states that he doesn't have much respect for other men it does not necessarily mean that his father was negligent, does it?
\nCould you consider this and get back to me?
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285255424","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27373641","dateCreated":"1285130277","smartDate":"Sep 21, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"arifishman95","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/arifishman95","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27373641"},"dateDigested":1531973974,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"The man who..","description":"In my humble opinion, Dave, the protagonist of Carlos Bulosan\u00b4s short story \u201cA good man is hard to find\u201d, shouldn\u2019t be accused of killing Jenny, Mr. Hawkins\u00b4 mule. In this short story, Dave Saunders is just a 17 year old teenager that worked for Mr. Hawkins on a plantation field. He constantly struggles to win respect from other fieldworkers and from society in general. Even though he didn\u2019t have the enough maturity, he thought that the buying a gun, was the simplest and the better way to become a real and feared man. One day, after hiding it through many circumstances, he finds a way to get into the field on a place where anyone could hear him shooting the gun. \u201cFinally, he stopped, looked in all directions, then untied the gun and held it in his hand. He turned to the mule and smiled\u2026\u201d By accident, he kills Jenny, one of Mr. Hawkins mule. Even still knowing that this was completely an accident, there are many other reasons that could defend his position. First, when his mother found herself lost in the middle of deciding between her son\u00b4s happiness, and what is right, she takes the wrong decision. Mrs. Saunders ends up giving him the two dollars to buy the gun. Afterwards, we see that her lack of infringement of discipline towards Dave, helped him hiding the gun and finding a way to finally get a way and impute respect it. Furthermore, we know that when the local store\u00b4s owner, Joe, gives Dave the gun catalog, and eventually sells him and old gun, knowing that it\u2019s legally incorrect, he is actually increasing the chances of the accident to happen. Finally, Mr. Saunders may be the main reason why Dave wants to become a man quickly. Dave might have wanted to prove to his strict, violent father, that he was becoming a man; something that he thought his father might have enjoyed. These three persons have a major role, on the teenager\u00b4s decisions, which eventually, they lead to a fatal consequence. Clearly, the death of Jenny is not Dave\u00b4s fault, but of the supposed grown-ups that surrounds him.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27395469","body":"Firstly Ari, please go back and provide us with the correct title and author of the short story of which you are writing; you got neither correct here.
\n
\nAlso, please make sure that you write in the present tense.
\n
\n1) Can you show us where, in the story, he "constantly struggles to win respect from other fieldworkers and from society in general?"
\n
\n2) "Even though he didn\u2019t have the enough maturity..." What is wrong with this?
\n
\n3) "One day, after hiding it through many circumstances, ..."
\n
\n4) "...he finds a way to get into the field on a place where anyone could hear him." Anyone can hear him?
\n
\n5) Please re-write the following sentence; it does not make too much sense... "Afterwards, we see that her lack of infringement of discipline towards Dave, helped him hiding the gun and finding a way to finally get a way and impute respect it."
\n
\n6) Where in the text can you show us that Mr. Saunders is a "strict, violent father"?
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285174758","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27422547","body":"Im sorry about the title, its pure desconcentration. "The Man Who Was Almost A Man" by Richard Wright.
\n
\n1) I want to erase the part, from "society in general". There is no concrete example of it. And about gaining respect from the fieldworkers: "One of this days, he was going to get a gun and practice shooting, then they couldn\u00b4t talk to him as though he were a little boy.
\n2)Even though he wasn\u00b4t mature enough.
\n3)One day, after finding a way to get out from his house with the gun, he gets into the field on a place...
\n4) "...he finds a way to get into the field on a place where no one could hear him."
\n5)"Afterwards, we see that the lack of control imposed towards Dave, helped him hiding the gun and finding a way to finally get a way and impute respect it."
\n6)First, we see his father is very strict when he doesn\u00b4t let Dave read the catalog while he was having dinner. Also, we see the same, combined with a little bit more violence, when he screams "Yuh wan me t take a tree n beat yuh till yuh talk!" in front of all the people gathered around the dead mule, right after the incident. As I said on the response, this leds to an interpretation that Dave was trying to prove something to his own father, who clearly is more respected and feared by Dave.","dateCreated":"1285205424","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"arifishman95","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/arifishman95","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27446909","body":"Great Ari,
\n
\nBetter,
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285255663","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27370721","dateCreated":"1285123891","smartDate":"Sep 21, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"dmarin464","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/dmarin464","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1225941095\/dmarin464-lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27370721"},"dateDigested":1531973974,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"The Man Who Was Almost A Man","description":"In my opinion based on jurisprudence, Dave is definitely guilty and shouldn\u2019t deserve the intention to have a defense. Dave experiences mens rea when he is deep in the woods holding the gun aiming at Jenny. He shows his infant machismo in his malice afterthought when \u201c[F]inally, he stopped, looked in all directions, then untied the gun and held it in his hand. He turned to the mule and smiled\u2026He held the gun at arm\u2019s length. Why y hell, Ahma shoot this thing! He looked at Jenny again.\u201d As he shoots, he commits actus reus and ends up killing the mule. Even though he doesn\u2019t fully comprehend the consequences posterior to the crime, he did commit First Degree murder and is complicit to this crime when he doesn\u2019t go straight for help and tries to hides his evidence. However, there are some factors that constitute in his defense. First off, Dave\u2019s mother should have never given him the money to buy a gun, not to mention her lack of action towards having seen the catalogue of guns and comprehending his desire to purchase a gun. Dave\u2019s mother is responsible for Dave\u2019s actions until he is of legal age. Because Dave is underage, he is not protected by USA\u2019s Second Amendment\u2019s right to bear arms, and therefore his legal parents are responsible for his actions. In addition, Dave\u2019s minority places his actions in the defense of infancy because he has not reached an age of criminal responsibility. Dave has yet to fully develop his frontal lobe, which matures his behavior and voluntary movement, and is not even close to being capable of reasoning to his fullest potential. In Dave\u2019s defense, he could also accuse Mr. Joe for selling the gun to him. It is illegal to sell a weapon to a minor without consent of legal parent or guardian. Whence Mr. Joe and Dave\u2019s mother play a part in the chain of events that lead Dave to his crime.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27371105","body":"I want to add to the first sentence:
\nIn my opinion on Richard Wright's "The Man Who Was Almost A Man", Dave, the protagonist, is definitely guilty of shooting the mule and shouldn't deserve the intention to have a defense. Based on jurisprudence, Dace experiences....","dateCreated":"1285124556","smartDate":"Sep 21, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"dmarin464","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/dmarin464","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1225941095\/dmarin464-lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27394987","body":"Alright Daniel,
\n
\nVery bright and compelling evidence here, written rather obscurely however. I do appreciate that you introduced forensic terms and physiological evidence here (some of which I was not familiar with), but your language is a bit cluttered and, frankly, difficult to follow. This obscures your reasoning, thus making it not quite as potent. I would like you to go back and read this aloud to yourself, without a dictionary, and see whether it sounds clear and straightforward-- if not, then you might want to change it.
\nA couple of things: being a 'minor', is not the same thing as being in a 'minority'.
\nGenerally, 'posterior' means the behind or bottom of a person or animal. Although, it can be defined as after an event most readers will not takes it that way and end up a bit confused. This is when we need to be careful and selective with our language and move beyond simply looking up synonyms in a thesaurus.
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285174167","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27412243","body":"Thanks for your insight.
\n
\nIn my opinion on Richard Wright\u2019s \u201cThe Man Who Was Almost A Man", Dave is definitely guilty for his murder of Jenny the mule. His guilt of cruelty to animals by committing First Degree murder is seen when \u201c[F]inally, he stopped, looked in all directions, then untied the gun and held it in his hand. He turned to the mule and smiled\u2026He held the gun at arm\u2019s length. Why y hell, Ahma shoot this thing! He looked at Jenny again.\u201d
\n
\nHowever, there are some factors that could be accounted for in Dave\u2019s defense for committing the crime. First off, in order of events, is when Dave is at the store asking Mr. Joe for the catalogue of guns. Mr. Joe first questions whether if he is even old enough to buy a gun, but then offers the gun for two dollars. In Dave\u2019s defense, it is partially Mr. Joe\u2019s fault for giving in and accepting to sell Dave a loaded gun. Afterwards, Dave shows the catalogue to his mother and begs for the two dollars. At first his mother refuses to give Dave money for a gun, and seems to obliterate his chances to purchase a gun, however, finally she gives in and hands over the money to Dave with the condition of him brining it back straight to her having the concept that it is for Dave\u2019s father and not for Dave. This implies that Dave\u2019s mom consciously gave her son the money to buy a loaded gun, being part of the sequence of events that leads Dave to his crime. Following Mr. Joe\u2019s offer of selling the gun to Dave, not only does he suggest Dave to purchase the gun, but he actually sells it for him, consciously knowing Dave is not of legal age and has no right to bear arms especially since his crime was not in self-defense.
\nIn terms of forensics, Dave could use the defense of infancy, which is a term used by defendants that means that Dave is not held responsible for his actions because he is a minor and has not reached the age of criminal responsibility. In addition, since Dave\u2019s mother and Mr. Joe both strongly influenced the chain of events that lead Dave to his crime, they are both partially guilty in the result of Dave shooting Jenny and killing her.","dateCreated":"1285194239","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"dmarin464","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/dmarin464","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1225941095\/dmarin464-lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27446275","body":"Much better Daniel,
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285255009","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27320327","dateCreated":"1285047893","smartDate":"Sep 20, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"jsutton26","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/jsutton26","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1222961183\/jsutton26-lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27320327"},"dateDigested":1531973975,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"Und Pusuant!","description":"Jonathan Sutton
\n
\nDave Saunders, a seventeen year old African American. He's trapped living a life with no choices. White society, dictates they opportunities, and the choices he has. He mistakenly thinks he has a chance of gaining the respect the society is refusing to give him, by buying a gun. As part of his fantasy, Dave invisions power, strength, and control by possessing a gun. As a teenager Daves fantasies are highly uncommon, especially given the circumstances he lives under. However when he visits the gun shop and talks to Joe, the shop keeper, his offered a old gun for only two dollars. This is the first adult who Dave encounters, who has the choice to deny Dave's request, and decides otherwise. Knowing the possibilities of owning a gun and the "respect" that comes with it, without even thinking about it, he will probably do anything and everything in his reach to acquire it. He then approaches his mother, the second irresponsible adult that Dave encounters. Through lying he convinces his mother two give him the two dollars to achieve the buying of the gun. Instead of stopping him, she actually gives in to his manipulation and with a lame condition she gives the money to Dave. Although Dave is suppose to bring the gun immediately back to her for keeping, he stalls the operation and talks his mother into receiving the gun the next day. After manipulating the mom, the next day, Dave decides to try his new old gun, he closes his eyes and accidentally shoots Mr. Hawkin\u2019s cow. I agree that Dave should pay Mr. Hawkins for shooting his mule, but I agree that Dave has little concern of what he was doing and that part of the guilt was from Dave\u2019s mom, and from the gun shop keeper, Joe. Dave\u2019s mom ought to know better, and not give a curious teenager the money to buy a gun, that in the future will have greater consequences. Joe, the gun shop keeper, can also be blamed on, for he sold a gun to a minor.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27355105","body":"Jonathan,
\n
\nYour arguments here are compassionate and thoughtful. So, I would like to focus on some grammatical issues to help you out...
\nCould you fix up the following please?
\n
\n1)Dave Saunders, a seventeen year old African American.
\n2)dictates they opportunities,
\n3)Dave invisions power,
\n4)Daves fantasies
\n5) his offered a old gun for only two dollars
\n6)Although Dave is suppose to bring the gun
\n7)accidentally shoots Mr. Hawkin\u2019s cow
\n
\nCould you also provide a conclusion sentence please?
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster
\n2)","dateCreated":"1285107027","smartDate":"Sep 21, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27478407","body":"1) Dave Saunders is a seventeen year old African American
\n2) Dictate their opportunities
\n3) Dave visions power
\n4)Dave's fantasies
\n5) His offered an old gun for only two dollars
\n6) Even though Dave is suppose to bring the gun
\n7)accidently shoots Mr. Hawkin's mule
\n
\nDave made a terrible decision in buying a gun and should take the blame in killing the mule, but the two irresponsable adults who could of prevent this act, should also take the blame for they helped this act succeed.","dateCreated":"1285290510","smartDate":"Sep 23, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"jsutton26","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/jsutton26","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1222961183\/jsutton26-lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27513727","body":"Better Jonathan,
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285350010","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27531903","body":"Sorry for the trolling but you kinda wrote it wrong.. it's En Passant... just saying ;)","dateCreated":"1285376856","smartDate":"Sep 24, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"dmarin464","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/dmarin464","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/pic\/1225941095\/dmarin464-lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]},{"id":"27307193","dateCreated":"1285027263","smartDate":"Sep 20, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"melafavini","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/melafavini","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"},"monitored":false,"locked":false,"links":{"self":"https:\/\/davidgarethw-books-b.wikispaces.com\/share\/view\/27307193"},"dateDigested":1531973976,"startDate":null,"sharedType":"discussion","title":"melanie favini response","description":"In the story \u201cThe Man Who Was Almost a Man\u201d Dave, a 17 year old that works on plantation kills a mule named Jenny. I could start off by saying the incident was an accident. \u201cThen, he shut his eyes and tightened his forefinger.\u201d Clearly, we can see Dave wasn\u2019t looking when he shot the gun. If someone has their eyes closed and their heads turned they obviously don\u2019t know what is happening in front of them, and this is why Dave shouldn\u2019t owe Mr. Hawkins money. Another reason why Dave shouldn\u2019t pay for the mule is because no one was there, no one really knows what happened, and if there is no evidence you can\u2019t really punish someone for it. Many things could have happened there that could explain the killing of Jenny. One thing is that when Dave was about to shoot and he closed his eyes, since he wasn\u2019t looking forward, there was a probability that Jenny had moved direction and went closer to the gun, no one will never know that, and that could really happen to anyone. Also, this was the first time Dave ever held a gun in his hand; he clearly does not know how to use it, so if he wanted to shoot the mule, he would have had a high chance that it wouldn\u2019t exactly even hit the mule. Saying that, if Dave wanted to kill the mule he wouldn\u2019t shoot her in-between the ribs, since almost everyone knows no one can really die right there in that moment being shot in the ribs. Dave would have shot somewhere else, maybe in her head. If Dave wouldn\u2019t have admit he shot Jenny, the gun wasn\u2019t there, so even if the hole looked like a bullet, no one had any proof it was a bullet shot. Also, if the bullet passed right through her ribs, that means there was no bullet inside her body, which means no one can conclude Dave killed her and he shouldn\u2019t pay for the mule.","replyPages":[{"page":0,"digests":[{"id":"27355229","body":"Melanie,
\n
\nThanks for the response but if you re-read the question you might see that "by accident" was not an adequate defense.
\n
\nCould you go back and look this through again, please?
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285107225","smartDate":"Sep 21, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27364531","body":"mr. Webster I know but that's why I explained why i thought it was an incident. so should i just erase that part?","dateCreated":"1285117136","smartDate":"Sep 21, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"melafavini","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/melafavini","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}},{"id":"27395079","body":"Yes please, Melanie,
\n
\nI would like you to re-write parts of this in which you investigate how Dave might be defended without claiming that the incident was accidental.
\n
\nThanks,
\n
\nWebster","dateCreated":"1285174267","smartDate":"Sep 22, 2010","userCreated":{"username":"davidgarethw","url":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/user\/view\/davidgarethw","imageUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikispaces.com\/i\/user_none_lg.jpg"}}],"more":0}]}],"more":false},"comments":[]},"http":{"code":200,"status":"OK"},"redirectUrl":null,"javascript":null,"notices":{"warning":[],"error":[],"info":[],"success":[]}}