Olivia Patch

"If you don't go after what you want you'll never have it"

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How Will I Ever Graduate

As you can probably tell by the title, this project is really really really challenging for me. I know that it is supposed to be, but my brain physically hurts. I really like my book, and I was feeling good about the project and my criticisms until the writing started. The challenge for me is that it is completely new. My brain feels like its being twisted into knots with all the ideas that I have intertwined and confused with one another

I am probably too concerned about “doing it right”, but most days I come home and try to write the literature review, and just find myself staring at the wall because I don’t know where to start. I think that I need clarity, but I don't even know what I need clarity on! I reread the stuff I wrote in class and can hardly make sense of my word vomit of ideas. I have a rough idea of what I want to say, and I really like the points made in my criticisms, but articulating it is so difficult! I often feel like I’m just repeating the ideas that were in my criticisms and not doing anything original at all. 

I get really down on myself when I struggle with things this hard. Especially when I have seen many instagram stories of my classmates scrolling through endless pages of their already written literature reviews. I’m kind of down in the dumps about the whole thing. Hopefully I make some much needed progress tomorrow- I have decided that I cannot handle any more AP lit or The Bell Jar tonight or it is very probable that my brain explodes and leaks out of my ears. 

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Reading Criticisms is Hard

I could just leave this post with the title, but since I’ve already done what feels like days of AP lit homework tonight I might as well continue :) Warning: I have been working on lit for maybe two hours (I have intense seniorities so two hours is like a lifetime), and my brain feels so burnt out that the writing below has a high probability of not making any sense.

So, my second criticism was a lot easier to understand than the first one. It focused on how magazines in the 1950′s confused Esther’s sense of self because she was conflicted between her desires, being a writer, and societal pressures of being a housewife. Magazines exasterbates this loss of self because they advertised that a woman in this era had choices, while subsequently limiting these choices due to the way in which they talk about the difficulties of balancing these choices. I definitely noticed a loss of self and purpose in the novel, so I totally aligned with this criticism. It also talked about eating and how that related to societal standing in the novel. Specifically, how Ester’s eating habits related to her alienation from others and consequently more of a loss of self. It briefly mentions her complicated with other characters (which I soooo blogged about so I feel rly cool that a real writer talked about it). 

The downfall of this criticism is that it was SO FREAKING LONG!!!!!! It was about 25 pages, and I probably didn't even soak up half the information that I could because focusing on a literary criticism for 25 minutes should be considered an extreme sport :)))) 

I was so excited to be finishing up with my third criticism because that would mean I could watch the crossing, but I realized that I am unsure of my third criticism. It is about metaphors and how they are an incredible aid for empathy. All of my blog posts mentioned how amazed I was that Plath’s writing could be so articulate to the experiences of someone with mental illness, and how this made me connect with Esther more than I ever have with a fictional character. Since I noticed this theme myself, I was excited to read this criticism. About halfway through though I noticed that it was written by a social worker, and although it talked about the Bell Jar a lot, it also talked about which practice of empathy was right or acceptable or most efficient in the social work career. So, I’m not quite sure how I feel about it or if I can use it.

I might read and annotate another criticism in case I cannot use the third one I read, but since my other two are over 20 pages and my brain might explode, I’m going to do that at a later date. 

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Research is Hard

When I say research is hard, I’m talking about both finding the research AND understanding the research!! Everything about it feels so unnatural to me. Going to the OU library was such a tough experience that I even said while I was there, “I feel so offended and betrayed that Mr. Kreinbring would ever make me do this.” The research desk was closed of course so I tried to ask for help, but ultimately I did most of the searching on my own. I was quite troubled that the articles I wanted still had to be paid for because OU didn't have the women studies journal that I needed. I did find some good online articles, but when I think about those I think about the WEPA printer which kind of makes me want to cry (my bank account lost $20 to that thing)! 

When I got home from the library, I thought it was time for the easy part. I’m a really quick reader, and reading and comprehension usually comes so easy for me. Yeah, not for literary criticisms apparently. The first one I read was “The Feminist Discourse of The Bell Jar” and it was so freaking difficult for me! I found myself having to google MANY words, and the writer phrased things so professionally that I felt like I was reading the work of a Nobel prize winner, or just someone extremely extremely EXTREMELY intelligent. But the language she used and even just the fact that it was a literary criticism (my first one especially) made it feel foreign to me. So, it was like reading the work of a Nobel prize winner in physics. After a long and strenuous reading session, I feel like I understood it as best I could. I really hope the other ones are easier, but I kinda doubt it

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The Bell Jar #7

Sadly, I just finished The Bell Jar. The book ends with Esther walking into her interview with the head doctors, a formality before leaving the mental asylum. I usually hate the endings where the author leaves you to imagine the future of the characters, but this time, I liked it. The future I imagine for Esther in my head is promising, and this gives me joy. I have bonded with Esther throughout the reading of this book, and her journey was so insanely eye opening. I don't have much experience or even knowledge about mental illness, and this book was almost a first hand account of someone who has actually struggled with mental illness (since Plath struggled herself). Before this book, I couldn't even begin to imagine what dealing with severe depression would be like. Through Esther’s words, accounts, and descriptions of her feelings and emotions, I have gotten so much closer to understanding even a small portion of what mental illness is like. It was an incredibly hard book for me to read at parts, especially through Esther’s decline and the way she was treated. I felt real sadness for her and for her journey that seemed to be going nowhere. When the book took a turn to the private mental asylum, and Esther's rise to wellness, I felt so incredibly happy for Esther!!!! 

One remaining question I have is about the author, Sylvia Plath. Obviously Plath death with mental illness herself in order to be able to write about this book. Mr. Kreinbring told me today that Plath ended up killing herself. This was really devastating news, because although I knew of her struggle, I always hope for the best. The Bell Jar ended on a positive note, with Esther being released back to college life. Esther seems hopeful and looks forward to the future. I have always thought that Esther was a reflection of Plath herself. If so, did Plath start on the road to recovery at some point in her life (like Esther at the end of the book), and then become unwell again, which caused her suicide? The whole idea makes me very upset. 

I am so glad I chose this book for my final project. It exposed me to topics that I have never known about in depth before. Plath’s bluntly honest writing, although it made me sad, made my learning about mental illness so much more real and accurate. 

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The Bell Jar #6

My book has picked up rapidly in plot, and I can’t put it down! I only have one chapter left, and I am anxious to see how it will end. But I figured I should blog since I have many, many thoughts and only 8 pages left. 

A lot has happened with Esther since my last blog, where she attempts to kill herself. She gets moved to a private hospital, where nothing particularly eventful happens. She is still mentally distraught, and the focus of this mental hospital seems to be more about preventing suicides than helping the patients get better. The environment of this hospital is really not conducive to Esther’s healing. She almost seems to be getting worse. Because she broke a mirror at the hospital she was sent to after her suicide attempt, she was sent to a more secure hospital for “difficult” patients. The nurses at this hospital are rude and awful. Esther breaks things, doesn't cooperate in therapy, and rarely gets out of bed. At this point, I had an overwhelming feeling of hopelessness. 

The book takes a dramatic turn when Philomena Guinea, a writer, sees Esther’s story in the paper. She pays for Esther to go to a private hospital that she stayed at previously when she was having mental troubles (there seems to be a reoccurring pattern of female writers in asylums). This hospital is the exact opposite of the previous ones Esther has stayed at. It has badminton courts, green fields, and patients walking outside. Esther is skeptical at first, as she always is. But, she meets Doctor Nolan, who is her lifesaver. During her stay, she finds out that her friend Joan is also in the asylum. Her and Joan have a complicated relationship, as sometimes Esther thinks Joan is only there to “rub her wellness” in Esther’s face. Sometimes though, Esther is fine with Joan’s company-another example of Esther’s complicated relationships. Esther soon gets moved to Belsize, which is the lowest security home in the asylum. Esther doesn't believe she is “well enough” to be there, but Doctor Nolan assures her that it is the home for her. She begins to improve in Belsize. At first, she is annoyed with the woman there and believe they are always out to get her, or making fun of her. She slowly starts to improve. A large part of this improvement is because of Electroshock Therapy that is actually administered correctly. Esther is terrified to get ECT again, but Doctor Nolan promises to stay with her all the way through it. The treatments change Esther completely!!!!!!

I was so relieved and happy to be reading Esther’s thoughts and narrations of events after her treatments. She is a million times better than she was. She is acting normally, and going out in town. She even meets a boy who she goes on a date with. This boy has everything she wanted to have in the boy who takes her virginity, so Esther loses her virginity to him. After, she bleeds a lot. She is embarrassed, so she tells him to take her to the house in the town where her friend Joan is now living under supervision. Joan helps her get to the hospital and all seems well. Esther is beginning to feel normal again, her friend Joan is getting better, and the story seems to be looking up.

After the night out on the town, Esther returns to the hospital and Joan does as well, although Esther doesn't know why her supervised living privileges were taken. One night, Joan doesn't return from town. A nurse finds her dead, by hanging herself, in the woods outside of the hospital. 

I fear this will affect Esther's mental improvements. I really hope it doesn't, because I have been loving seeing Esther’s gradual improvements during her time at this hospital. I only have one chapter left!!!! I am honestly a little sad about that, The Bell Jar was so eye-opening for me. Let’s hope for a good ending. 

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The Bell Jar #5

This book makes me so sad. The past couple chapters have just been about Esther’s suicidal thoughts and suicidal attempts. If reading her conversation to the doctor made me want to cry, I’m sure you can imagine how reading her suicidal attempts makes me feel :((( The strange thing though, is that Plath writes about them so matter-of-factly. In the beginning of the book, a lot of events were narrated with emotion, almost too much emotion. Esther would get “too mad” at Doreen, or “too panicked” about the nightclub. The transition from Esther being “too much” to nothing is so depressing! But it definitely catches the readers attention. Esther has no emotion anymore... no cares or worries or plans. She is just breathing and walking basically. Esther even says herself that she is “walking around without a brain”. 

She has tried to kill herself several ways so far (it feels so wrong to even type that), by cutting, drowning, and hanging. Her human instincts prevent her from actually succeeding though. Her hands go limp just as she is hanging herself, the water “shoots her up to the surface” just before she breathes in, and “her veins look too innocent and defenseless”. Esther having these instincts must mean that although she is in bad shape, she has not gone completely crazy! She is still human! But yet, she resents herself for being human enough to not be able to go through with the suicides. She keeps newspaper cut outs of suicide stories in her pocketbook, and asks her date how he would kill himself if given the chance. I know that people with severe depression and mental illness see suicide as the only escape, but it is so devastating to actually read about someone going through that experience, their inner thoughts and psyche. 

I just finished the scene where Esther tries to kill herself for the final time, with sleeping meds that her mother has hidden from her. The day before she decides to actually go through with the suicide, she visits her dad’s grave. She mentions that her mother never let her or her brother grieve their dad’s death. They never even cried! When Esther gets to the gravesite, she cries and cries for the death that she was never allowed to grieve. This event, going to her dad’s gravesite, seems to be the final force that pushes her over the edge. I can't seem to put my finger on why that would be. That was one of the first times Esther has felt real emotion in the book, maybe as much as she hates feeling “dead”, feeling sad is worse. 

I know Esther makes it, because the book has a lot left. I assume she will be put into a mental institution after the attempt. I feel even more sorry for Esther knowing she will be put into a place that I can't imagine will be able to help her. I really really really hope the book surprises me and Esther somehow finds peace or maybe even happiness. But I can't really see this book having that kind of ending, I feel as if that would almost hurt its effectiveness and purpose. 

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The Bell Jar #4

I am devastated and heartbroken for Esther. I could tell in the other chapters that she wasn't happy, just going through life day by day. But her mental state has rapidly declined... and I feel like I could cry. The way Plath describes it is so hauntingly real that I feel what I believe Esther is feeling. Esther has gone home from her internship and is staying at her childhood home. She hasn’t slept in a week and can’t seem to do anything- shower. eat, read, or write. Her mother takes her to a therapist, and Esther says about the therapist that she imagined, “...and then I would find words to tell him how I was so scared, as if I were being stuffed farther and farther into a black, airless sack with no way out.” This line hit me so hard. I felt like I got punched in the gut. I think it made me so sad because I know that Plath must have been in that mental state at some point in her life in order to be able to write about it like that. I feel so upset and distraught that people have to live their lives feeling that way. Esther doesn’t like Doctor Gordon because she feels he is conceited. And also because he has a photograph of a beautiful woman, two children, and a dog. The picture is facing her, which she believes was on purpose to show her and his other patients that he has a perfect life and is above them in some way. This analysis also speaks towards her mental state. The next week, when Esther goes back to Doctor Gordon, she shows him a letter to Doreen that she couldn't send due to her handwriting. Doctor Gordon then asks to talk to her mom, and tells her mom that she needs shock treatments at his private hospital in Walton. 

The next chapter us about the shock treatments, and I almost don't want to read it because I feel like it might break my heart. A book has never hit me this hard before. Ive never felt for the characters the way I feel for Esther. 

Electroconvulsive therapy could be a possible influence. I could be wrong, but I believe ECT was very much abused by health professionals in the 40s and 50s, which is when the book takes place.

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The Bell Jar #3

I am kind of confused with my book right now. I have read three chapters past my last post, and the book seems to be progressing but very randomly. Plath has included some seemingly random events that I can't seem to make sense of or get any valuable insight out of, which is very frustrating since I know she must have included these events for a reason! I feel kind of like an AP lit failure at the moment, so I’m really trying to make sense of these last three chapters. As Mr. Kreinbring says, “Write to figure out what you think,” and since I have no idea what to think- I am going to write it out.

The first seemingly random event is Esther’s date with a UN Interpreter that Buddy’s mom set her up with. I feel like I could have read that wrong because why would her ex boyfriend’s mom be setting her up? Anyways, the date lasts a whole chapter and is very anti climatic. First they go to the UN, where Esther sits between her date, Constantin, and a Russian interpreter. Esther focuses a lot on the way the Russian girl keeps translating idioms from Russian to English, which Constantin says is the hardest part of interpreting because idioms don’t directly translate. Esther than lists all of the things she can’t do like cook, knowing shorthand, and dancing. You can see where these thoughts must hurt her mental state. She then goes into this long metaphor about her life and a fig tree. She essentially is getting at how she has no idea what she wants to do with her life and how if she picks one thing she has to neglect all the others, which she just can’t sit with. Then she decides she wants to sleep with Constantin because he is a decent man. After she decides this, she likes the idea more and more. Constantin though, is evidently not interested in that type of relationship, but Esther blames the lack of interest on herself. Throughout this  date Esther often refers to her mom’s teachings on men and sex and chastity. I am beginning to think the date was just “background noise” and the important part of the chapter was how Esther’s upbringing on these topics caused unhealthy gender expectations on purity and emotion and love and marriage. This could be a factor influencing her mental state. 

The next chapter is about Esther’s visit to Buddy Willard in the TB sanitarium. During this visit he asks her to marry him, and she tells him that she never wants to get married because Buddy asked her one time where she wants to live, city or country, and she said both. Then Buddy told her that was a question from his psych class and she has the setup of a neurotic. And then she goes on a whole spiel about how if wanting two mutually exclusive things at the same time makes her neurotic then she is “neurotic as hell” because she will want that for the rest of her life. Then her and Buddy go skiing. She is afraid to go down from the top of the hill. Everything in her body is telling her not to, and this upsets her greatly, so she “digs the spiked of her poles into the snow and pushes herself into a flight she knows she can't stop by skill or any belated access of will.” This seems to be a very destructive behavior... She ends up breaking her leg in two places because someone got in her path. But she says she felt free as ever during the expedition. I guess the purpose of that anecdote was to show a history with destructive tendencies. I don't know if the “someone getting in her path” was a metaphor for people besides herself being at fault for her destruction, or if im over analyzing lol.

Lets hope the next chapters are easier for me because my brain hurts a little.

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The Bell Jar #2

The plot of the book is picking up fast!! Esther talks a lot about her past throughout the book, specifically about a boy named Buddy that I presumed was an ex boyfriend of hers. Well, I was right, and I just read two chapters completely detailing their relationship. Esther was in love with Buddy for years before he even noticed her, and once he did, they started dating. It was hard for them to see each other though because they went to different colleges. Esther was totally head over heels for Buddy and he seemed just kind of interested in her. Until one day they went to the Yale prom and he kissed her. They were very close after that, which made Esther obviously very happy. Esther’s hall mates respected her a lot more that she, a freshman, was dating a junior at Yale. But one weekend when Esther went to visit Buddy, she found out he had cheated on her the previous summer, numerous times. She says in the book that she wasn't even mad about the sex, but about the fact that he had pretended to be so innocent and pure, while treating her like she was experienced because she had went out on a couple dates. She got even more angry when he told her that he didn’t tell his mother about the affair. Esther says in the book, “Well, I had decided to ditch Buddy Willard once and for all, not because he'd slept with that waitress but because didn't have the honest guts to admit it straight off to everybody and face up to it as part of his character...”  

This tells me that Esther values honesty and character a lot. She hates when people do things that are different to what they normally do/act like. For example, when Doreen got really drunk with the boy at the nightclub. When Buddy calls her later with the news that he has TB. Esther doesn't feel a BIT of remorse, she says she feels relieved. She also notes that the TB is probably a punishment for being so dishonest. I can tell that Esther also values the idea of fairness (Buddy treated her wrong, so he gets a punishment, TB. Doreen leaves her for a boy at nightclub and wakes her up at 3 am, so Doreen has to sleep in the hallway). This is also another example of Esther dramatically switching her loyalties to someone after one event, although I suppose this one is much more valid of a reason than when she decides to not like Doreen anymore. 

Esther has very complicated relationships with people, that is for sure. I’m guessing this will be a big theme in the book. A possible influence could be TB, since this is how Buddy is “punished”. I’ll have to see if TB is mentioned further or effects future events though. 

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The Bell Jar #1

I am just starting the Bell Jar, and the first two chapters were both interesting and boring! What I find interesting is the narrator. Esther has a very strange inner dialogue. It is obvious that she does not find the high class lifestyle and bright lights of New York City as fabulous as all the other girls that she is interning with. The actual plot events that have happened so far, getting ready to go out to a nightclub, being at a nightclub, and going to a boy’s house after the nightclub with her drunk friend, were quite boring. But, the way Esther narrates these events is what keeps drawing me to the book. You can already tell that her mental state is... different. She describes things in a very odd way. She calls her drink “dead water” and says she feels as if she “is shrinking into a small black dot”. Her relationships with her friends are also strange! Her closest friend seems to be Doreen, yet when Doreen wakes her up by coming into their hotel room drunk late at night, Esther decides that she is so mad at Doreen that she will be loyal to Betsey (Doreen’s “enemy”) and she will have nothing at all to do with her anymore. She also decides to leave her drunk and passed out in the hallway outside of their room all night. To me, it seems that you must be in a fragile mental state if you suddenly despise a friend because she wakes you up at 3 am. I hope the plot gets moving some more, but I will admit I’m a little afraid of seeing Esther’s mental state decline further as she already concerns me a little. 

Influence: I’m not entirely sure what this has to do with the book yet, but the first line of the book is, “It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenberg, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.” Esther is referring to the execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg by the US Government for being accused of giving nuclear weapon information to the Soviet Union. I did some research and the Rosenberg sons believe that their father did not deserve the death penalty and that their mother was wrongly executed. Historians generally have varying opinions. Some believe they were guilty, and some believe they did not deserve the punishment they got. I feel like this is important since it is how Esther classifies the summer and the first line of the book. I guess we shall see.

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My first taste of The Bell Jar

Before I bought the book on amazon, I figured it might be a good idea to read the first couple pages. After reading the first couple sentences, I know that I am going to love the voice of Esther, the narrator. 

She uses very descriptive details and many personal anecdotes. Her narration is honest and casual, and I have already laughed out loud. Reading the first chapter, I already feel like I know the personality of Esther. The storyline is very interesting as well, it is about Esther and her friends as they live in New York and try to be successful. A poor girl in New York who wears fancy stuff to try to fit in... I have a feeling this may have to do with Esther's future insanity.  I blew through the first chapter, so I think its safe to order the book. The first chapter ended with this, “I certainly learned a lot of things I never would have learned otherwise this way, and even when they surprised me or made me sick I never let on, but pretended that’s the way I knew things were all the time.” Everything Esther says allows me to go deeper into her personality and inner mind, and that is why I am so drawn into the book. 

Anyways, I blew through the first chapter, so I think its safe to say I can order the book on Amazon now :)

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Picking My Final Project Book

I had absolutely no idea where to start on picking a book that was both fiction and ap level (since I usually only read John Green and other YA novels), so the first thing I did was google “AP level books about murder”. It sounds morbid, but the topic of murder and the psyche of serial killers is so intriguing to me! That led me to a couple books, but they didn’t pass the google scholar test. So I found myself on Goodreads exploring their “AP literature list. I was getting a little worried when I kept seeing Shakespeare, Catcher in the Rye, and war books (they aren't my fave), but then I came across The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath!!!! I am SO excited to read it! 

After reading the Goodreads summary, I gathered that it is essentially about a woman’s decline into insanity. Goodreads says, “Sylvia Plath brilliantly draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that her insanity becomes palpably real, even rational—as accessible an experience as going to the movies.” Reading a book that feels as real as watching a movie?? I am so here for it.

It also says, “A deep penetration into the darkest and most harrowing corners of the human psyche, The Bell Jar is an extraordinary accomplishment and a haunting American classic.” Darkest, harrowing, human psyche, haunting.... all of my favorite words!! It also passes the google scholar test with flying colors, so that was good news. 

I’ll keep you updated!!!

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Indie Write #3 (7 Minute Observation)

I am sitting in my kitchen (my favorite room in my house), on my favorite barstool (the one all the way to the right). My writer’s notebook is surrounded by many random items; lululemon shorts, scented gel pens, my dad’s blood machine, and spare change. My parents are shuffling around as always, putting away groceries and writing out the weekly calendar. The TV is playing in the background, and the sound of sports announcers fill my ears. The wind is coming through the windows and our screen door- it reminds me off the fall Saturday’s dedicated to Michigan football. These traditions are my favorite. It’s very nostalgic, the fact that next year I won’t be around to experience these daily traditions.

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I was too lazy to retype both my Indie writes, especially because they both revolve around my dream school, U of M. I wrote about how while I am unsure of a lot of things, I am sure that U of M is the place for me. I wrote about the struggles I have constantly trying to make the "perfect" decisions that give me the best chances of admissions. I also struggle with knowing that even if I get good grades, good test scores, do extra curriculars, and write amazing essays, there is a large chance this dream will be taken from me. Everyone tells me I have to have backup plans, and while I do, I can't imagine giving up my dream. I'm the type of girl that can't give up ANYTHING. I never want to stop watching scary movies even if I know I won't be able to sleep for days, I can't leave relationships even if they're toxic, and I certainly will struggle with attending a different school than the one I have pictured myself at for 8 years. I guess I should be more open minded and willing to accept change. But shoot, change is the scariest thing in the world. I like comfort zones, and I have a feeling I'll have to be moving out of a LOT of my comfort zones pretty soon.

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Poetry Indie Write #1

The only poetry I have been exposed to is the kind I was told to read in school, and poetry accounts on Twitter and instagram (basic I know), so looking for a mentor poet was super hard! This might sound a little depressing, but “sad poetry” has always touched me way more than poems with a happier tone. The fearlessness in which these poets talk about the hardest struggles they’ve faced is so inspiring. These poems are often very blunt, but that is what makes them SO powerful. I hope to be able to write poetry like these poets. I want the poems I write to be extremely powerful and extremely me. This unit will be really out of my comfort zone (id almost rather write a research paper), but I’m excited to learn!!!

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Transcending the teen genre - 13 Reasons Why

I think it's pretty obvious if you've watched the show 13 reasons why that it transcends the teen and drama genre, but if you haven't watched it, I'll explain. The show takes place in a typical American high school and is primarily about a boy, Clay, listening to 13 tapes his friend Hannah left him on the reasons why she killed herself. While he is listening to the tapes, the show illustrates high school life for the rest of the students in the school, whether they are affected by Hannah's suicide or not. The show does involve the typical teen roles in a high school; jocks, nerds, outcasts, sluts, etc. But these stereotypes are illustrated to show the audience how these stereotypes can really affect someone's life, and how they aren't really true. The show discusses so many topics that are deeper than just the typical teen movie (suicide, depression, bullying, and rape). Through her tapes, Hannah Baker tells Clay and the shows audience how much the little things you do affect other people whether you realize it or not.

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I was going to do Rosa Parks for my original person because she was the first black woman to refuse to give up her seat on a public bus.. but then someone informed me that she wasn't the first person!! It was actually Claudette Colvin who was the first black person to refuse to give up her seat on a bus when she was 15! Rosa Parks got her inspiration from Claudette, a teenager, and everyone gives Rosa Parks all the credit. But anyways, I don't think anyone can argue that Claudette is original because what is more original that being the first one to have the courage to stand up for what you believe in, even if it is against the law and you know you will get in a lot of trouble for it.