07/06/2020

MONSTER - Reflective Writing Task Vrushik Ramballee 10H

Agree or Disagree:

1. Life is ten percent of how you make it and ninety percent how you take it. (Disagree)
2. The vast majority of people charged with a crime really are guilty. (Agree)
3. In order to be a healthy individual, we must openly confront our fears instead of hiding from
them. (Agree)
4. The friends we choose and the people we hang out with are an accurate reflection of us.
(Disagree)
5. There is a difference between acquitted of a crime and being innocent of a crime. (Agree)
6. Lying to save yourself from being convicted of a crime is the right thing to do. (Disagree)
7. If a teenager is charged with a serious crime, she or he should be tried as an adult.
(Disagree)
8. No matter what happens, you should take responsibility for your actions. (Agree)
9. The notion of right and wrong are always clearly defined. (Agree)
10. Peer pressure has a greater influence on us than our parents do. (Agree)

Task:

Statement 6: Lying to save yourself from being convicted of a crime is the right thing to do.
(Disagree)

In the book MONSTER, many people spoke lies to help their own self interests. Witnesses would
testify in exchanged for a reduced sentence for their own crimes. Steve Harmon, a young black male
boy, has been given an unfair trial. Bolden and ZInzi are two prisoners who testify with unreliable
information. They were not involved with the incident of the death of Mr Nesbitt, yet they testify to
help reduce their sentence for their own unique prison sentence.

Throughout the screenplay, everyone did not tell the truth except Steve but eventually Steve started
to lie to also save himself from being involved in the crime. This was unexpected and shows how
prison life has mentally changed him. Prison life basically a place to dehumanize people. He is only
thinking off himself, same as all the other people who are trying to lie to save themselves from even
more trouble. And that may be the reason why Petrocelli did not return her feelings towards Steve,
because he has changed.

The Justice courtroom is place where you are under oath and have to tell the utmost truth, yet in the
courtroom people are on stand and still lie.
Statement 7: If a teenager is charged with a serious crime, she or he should be tried as an adult.
(Disagree)

A teenager should not get tried for an adult crime because they are firsty young and being young
helps you to realize mistakes that you have committed and helps to correct those mistakes. A
teenager could do a crime and then learn not to do it again which could change their life around.
Adults have past this stage and that is why teenagers are given a lighter punishment.