Kendra Lee’s Weblog

Kendra McCurdy

Mrs. Robinson

Honors English 3

22 Sept 2008

I can be your Super Man: The heroes unaffected by Kryptonite

John Proctor and Nelson Mandela

Would you risk death or a lifetime in jail for the feeble and invulnerable? John Proctor and Nelson Mandela may be opposite in what it real and fiction. Despite this they are similar with combating a cause, being dedicated to their goals, and being a hero.

John Proctor from The Crucible and the famous Nelson Mandela of South Africa are both leaders in their community. John Proctor is a leader without followers. An example is when at the end of The Crucible John Proctor says “because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!” (Miller 62). This signifies his portrayal as a rejected leader opposing the controversial hangings in Salem. Nelson Mandela on the other hand organized a paramilitary branch of the African National Congress to carry out revolutionary warfare against the government (“Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.”). With this he gained the support of thousands of people to overthrow the government.

Another similarity between John Proctor and Nelson Mandela is that they both are dedicated to the goals, no matter what the consequences shall be. Both ventured penalties to themselves for the actions that they committed. John Proctor and others who were condemned were hanged. John Proctor was hanged because he truthfully stated that he was working with the devil. John Proctor stated: “…I hear the boot of Lucifer, I see his filthy face! And it is my face, and yours…” (Miller). He probably strategized before that if he continued with this statement that he would save those who would be condemned in the future. Nelson Mandela got a different yet just as ruthless punishment. He was “sentenced to life imprisonment and started his prison years in the notorious Robben Island Prison, a maximum security prison on a small island seven kilometers off the coast near Cape Town” (“Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela”).

However, even though John Proctor and Nelson Mandela can both be considered heroes. Only Nelson Mandela has supporting evidence that his people respect and honor him. Nelson Mandela was released in 1990 as an expression of President de Klerk’s commitment to change and Nelson Mandela was elected July, 1991 as African National Congress president (“Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela”). Conversely John Proctor was hanged as the play ends never stating if the Salem Witch Trials ended because of his self-less deed to die upon his claim of not working with the devil.

In conclusion, Nelson Mandela and John Proctor may be on the opposite ends of what is considered real and fiction. They both are leaders in their actions attempting to take a stand. Both made a difference to their society by standing for what they believe in and combating their challenge to the end.

Works Cited

Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2005.

“Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.” African National Congress. 22 September 2008.

<http://www.anc.org.za/people/mandela.html>.

My mother said,

    Go sleep and dream
    of dreams one night.
    And let that dream come out of you–
    Then, it will come true.

I wonder if it’s that simple?
I am young, naive, born in the middle of nowhere.
I went to grade school, then middle, now here
to this high school infront of the Bogue Sound.
I seem to be the only dreamer in my class.
The 10 miles I drive from the school lead down into Star Hill,
to the right, then I cross Pine Lake Road,
Make a right, straight, and I come to the driveway,
the driveway of my house, where I take my bookbag
up to my room, sit down, and type this page:

It’s not easy to know what comes true for you or me
at the beach, East Coast. But I guess I’m what
I want and dream and desire, Med School, I need you:
need you, need me–we two–you, me, dream on this page.
(I dream Pre- Med, too.) Me–who?
Well, I like Biology, Anatomy, Children, and encouraging hope.
I like to work, read, learn, and understand life.
I like the stethascope from Health Carreers Camp,
and discovery of–X-rays,first aid, and therapy.
I guess being a dreamer doesn’t make me not share
the same dreams other folks dream who are other dreamers.
So will my page be just a dream that I write?

Being me, it will not be a dream.
But it will be
the real deal reality, Mom and Dad.
You are hope–
yet a part of me, as I am a part of you.
That’s family.
Sometimes perhaps you don’t want encourage my dreams.
Nor do I often want to be heart broken.
But we dream, that’s true!
As I dream for you,
I guess you dream for me–
although you’re older–and tad bitter–
and somewhat more wise.

This is my dream to be a pediatrician.