Tonalli Garcia Rodriguez

February 21, 2017

Period 6
Monster Argumentative Essay

Our lives are full of a series of choices. In the novel Monster, by Walter Dean Myers, we
see Steve Harmon making decisions that affect his future drastically. His decisions cause him to
come into trouble with the justice system all because of one mistake. Sadly one bad decision for
kids like Steve along with kids in general can turn their entire world upside down and leave them
stuck in regret. At the end of the day the choices that we make affect our lives and make us who
we are.

The way our lives are affected by decisions and the way they affect the lives of others
can be described as a butterfly effect. According to google definitions the butterfly effect is,
The phenomenon whereby a minute localized change in a complex system can have large
effects elsewhere. When we make a decisions like whether or not we are going to apply to our
dream job or going to a party instead of studying can have long term effects on our future, that
at the time we arent aware of. This can cause you to begin to make bad choices hence the
reference to the butterfly effect. The decisions we make also affect the lives of the people
around us which is another example of how our choices cause a butterfly effect. For example, if
you decide to be destructive and reckless you can cause the lives of others to become
burdened with hoping that you're okay and with people who you may hurt while being reckless.
The choices that we make act as a butterfly effect not only in our lives but in the lives of others.

The overall experience that we have on life depends solely what we do. Not deciding to
do something has as much impact as deciding to do something. People all throughout People
all throughout the existence of man have hesitated to do specific asks. A newsela article called,
Martin Luther King Jr's Last March: The Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike, talks about how
Martin Luther King Jr. helped to protest African American Workers not being compensated (paid)
for days they were forced to not work. If it wasn't for Kings devotion who knows what rights
African Americans would have had today. Another event that occurred in history was the
assassination of the 35th President of the United States John Fitzgerald Kennedy. On
November 22, 1963 John F. Kennedy was assassinated, that day Kennedy was to administer a
luncheon speech to kick of his 1964 election campaign in Dallas, Texas . According to an article
by The Daily Beast a secret agent officer named Lehrer took the top down after consulting other
agents (campaign managers as well). Peoples selections to do things whether it has to do with
standing up for whats right or sitting back and watching events unfold shape our world and the
legacy we leave behind.

When people make choices a lot of the time they are influenced by their friends, social
media, or society. Steve Harmon is influenced by his surroundings and finds himself in a tough
situation in Monster by Walter Dean Myers. On pg.50-51 it talks about Steve, King, Peaches,
and Johnny talking to one another as they're sitting on the steps. I need to get paid, man. I aint
got nothing between my butt and the ground but a rag. (King said) I hear that. (said steve).
Here we see steve hanging out with people of bad influence sinde there talking about
committing crime as if it was something normal and not necessarily morally wrong. In this book
Steve is influenced by petrocelli when it comes to how he preserves himself. On pg.21 Petrocelli
says, But there are also monsters in our communities-people who are willing to steal to kill,
people who disregard the rights of others. Then on pg. 24 it says, He is writing the word
Monster over and over again. (OBrien then says) You have to believe in yourself if were going
to convince a jury that youre innocent. This is showing how Steve doubted whether or not he
was a good person after Petrocelli profiled him as a monster. This shows how people can be
influenced by a multitude of things as they make decisions in this day and age.

The changes that we make affect our lives as well as the lives of others. The butterfly
effect is a good example of how our choices affect others. Our choices make us who we are and
determines our character in life and how people perceive us. The choices that we make our also
influenced by the people that we are around and our society. This shows how choices are apart
of our everyday lives and are influenced by a multitude of things.