Student says assignment was inappropriate (Write about selling soul to Devil)

reply to post by iamsupermanv2


The kid would have still gotten a F or 0 because the kid didn't do the assignment as assigned. If I tried that tactic with the assignment knowing I would fail anyhow, I would have entered my own personal religious views on God.

If the school is allowing a child to write about a character in the Bible, then whats stopping the child from writing about other characters in the Bible that could be referenced back to the Bible?

You want to keep religion and God out of school, then don't bring in his adversary.

It is not right to force someone to write about anything against his/her beliefs. It could be anything from an atheist having to write about a god in any religious system. A Muslim abiding their extremely strict laws where women have no rights being forced to write about woman's rights and how they came about in America. Those are just a couple of examples. I'm sure there are more.

There are plenty of people who believe the devil and his demons are real including myself. It is not fun having to personally deal with one of the devil's minions. There is no way I would touch that assignment with a ten foot pole. I rather fail the entire course.

I'm glad she stood up for her rights and what she believes in. Amen sister.

Originally posted by iamsupermanv2
reply to post by Hazystars

 

You know what, I'd venture to say that reading these pieces of literature as children do more to help them understand their own personal faith (not some religious doctrine that is fed to them) a little easier. I remember reading books in school and it was clear the characters had an opinion on faith, but were not banging people on the head with it. Yes, it is masked, but it seeps in to the kids who actually read and understand the stories.

The teachings of Atticus Finch lead me towards my personal beliefs more then any person I've known.

There is a major difference between having a story helping you understand your faith better, and having to write about having to sell your soul to the devil.

Writing about selling your soul to the devil doesn't help you to understand your own faith, it only leads to the dark side. Because I believe there is a devil, then I also believe all those children just gave him ammunition to use against them.

Originally posted by Taupin Desciple
reply to post by TheOneElectric

 

If this kid knew he was going to have an ETHICS assignment in an ETHICS class, how did he NOT expect to have to write something dealing with the differences of good and bad. THAT WHAT ETHICS ARE!!!!!!!!

Peace

I wouldn't have had a problem if the assignment was would you sell your soul to the devil? Why or Why not? The person has to write about how they would sell their soul. The assignment left no room for not selling your soul under any circumstances.

reply to post by SaturnFX

3) Allow me to demonstrate the example of how this is a potential christian ploy Hey everyone, lets start learning about biblical creatures...well, we must know the bible in order to write down the concept...and yep, since the selling of the soul is a negative thing, then we have to accept a christian based devil. Now then, we have the understanding of the devil being bad, giving up the soul is bad, and the temporary gain of materalistic profit followed by the falling away from God is a bad thing because life is a fleeting experience. Yes children, I hope you learned by the end of this report that no matter how you sell your soul and at what price, it is a bad experience...Go with God, accept Jesus and you will not have to sell your soul.

Ok, I'm gonna seriously need you to be familiar with this text. Jesus and God and all of that christianity themes are not present in this text. I read this text once in high school and once in college and wrote similar assignments and it was never some ridiculous ploy that you have just pulled out of your hole. You write about what do you think on this earthly realm that you love enough that you would give up eternity for?
I wrote a paper before on how if I were Persephone in Greek Mythology, how would I try to convince Hades to let me go. I'm sure red flags are going off in your head SaturnFx. Surely the teachers were secretly conspiring us to believe that the greek gods exist and are preparing us for combat against Hades if we ever run into him. Literature is literature and no matter what the heck you believe in, it influences each and every one of us.

Originally posted by crimsongod21
It sounds to me like she just didnt want to write the paper not out of some moral indignity but due to the fact that she is lazy.

Wrong, if you took the time to read or watch what was being said, the student is an honor roll student. They work their butt's off. After many go a rounds with the principle and teacher, the student did finally accept an assignment that she said would be harder than the original assignment. She isn't lazy just trying to get out of a writing assignment.

I wonder what would have happened if someone had said that they wanted nonstop a... and o... sex with Brad Pitt and John Bon Jovi and Richard Dean Anderson and John Barrowman and David James Elliot and Matt Damon and Simon and Simon and Simon and Garfunkel and the Bay City Rollers and the Backstreet Boys and Alice Cooper and and the cast of the Rocky Horror Picture Show movie and Spike the Vampire and Herbert Hoover and Smokey the Bear, etc, etc with lots of whips and chains and zebras and lesbians and kangaroos and horse and maryjane and doodoodoo and dahdahdah. Would they have gotten an "A" or expelled?

reply to post by christianpatrick


The kid would have been removed from their parents, because the school called Children and Youth Services as soon as the essay was read. The parents house would have been raided, and computer taken with a warrant to find out how the kid knows about BDSM and bestiality. The parents would have been interrogated.

I don't know who looks more foolish: the student that threw this little rebellious tantrum or those trying to use this as evidence that religion is being forced upon students at school! To those in the 2nd group, two words: Fiction Writing.

As others have said, she probably could have written a decent paper arguing against the ethical dilemma she feels the topic brings forth. Even those with strong beliefs should be able to separate fiction from reality.

[edit on 24/2/2010 by Dark Ghost]

To the openminded: imagine yourself as a true christian, you now have a choice between the world (take the assignment, get grades, be like the others) or God (Follow his holy word and "Neither give place to the devil."
Ephesians 4:27, KJV)


4Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

reply to post by Dark Ghost


No, you're not understanding what people are concerned about. Most people anyway.

It's not that I'm concerned that "children's souls are at risk", or some baloney like that. I'm just dumb-founded on why so many books make it into grade school that deal with the devil, and all things dark like it. It's a hypocrisy, and it's obvious to most of us. You know damn well that no book ever dealing with "heaven" or "dealing with God" in an intimate manner as some books, will never make it into grade school. Too many uptight educators make "God" a taboo, but everything "Devil" or "Dark" is okay, because it doesn't bring 'controversy' and it doesn't oppose their personal ideals.

I mean, I don't keep a catalog of every piece of literature that grade schoolers read, but I'm pretty sure anything dealing with "angels" or a "god-like figure" is probably not a common thing. It's too 'mystical', and it's ridiculed out of the selection even it's incredible literature. Though, anything to do with a "mystical devil", or some malevolent bogeyman from the depths of Hades, then that's just never a problem.

Why? I'm not insinuating some satanic school conspiracy, but come on now, what's going on here?

Ok

If you're going to do ANY literary work in school you're going to read about the devil or God. This is because pretty much ALL literature over 100 years old has something to do with, or some mention of, God or Satan. This is a plain and simple fact. If you want God out of the classroom then make sure your kids never study classical music, classical literature, classical art, and don't spend any money at school.

It's like that school that was going to play Ave Maria for graduation and it caused a big stir; so what it's freaking music.

People are so touchy.

This would be an interesting assignment, a college level assignment almost. You should be happy this teacher is trying to get kids to think outside the box.

I think this assignment would be a dream for any student that does any kind of guitar based singing and songwriting.

I mean the devil already did come down to Georgia
And all he wanted was to bet a fiddle of gold against a musician's soul

reply to post by dragonsmusic


Wow-how ridiculous!!! Seriously though has anyone in here who believes that this teacher has an "agenda" taken an Ethics class? or Literature? I applaud the teacher for using this example/metaphor...if you have ever tried to get students to open their minds to things--I have found that if you use something sort of shocking, as this teacher did--they will listen!! What was the teacher to do, bore them with Ann Rynd?

On a side note, in a college Anthropology class, we had an assignment to write down, who in our household we would choose to die if we had to choose--now this was Anthropology, so I never did see the point of that assignment--but luckily my father-in-law was living with us at the time, so it wasn't very hard for me

*edit to say I wasn't replying to dragonsmusic--just replying to the thread in general--- to dragonsmusic O Brother Where Art Though though (sp?) whatever

[edit on 24-2-2010 by mkultraangel]

reply to post by The Protector

EMPIRE, you aren't getting it, let me demonstrate something.

No, I clearly get it, I just don’t agree with the girl or anyone else who finds this assignment wrong or attacking religion.

The question: "How would you sell your soul to the devil?" - Not Okay
Without "How": "Would you sell your soul to the devil?" - Okay

Both are perfectly ok as both pertain to the previous reading.

Why does this lady find this offensive? Because she is not asked IF she would sell her soul to the devil. She is asked HOW her she would sell her soul to the devil.

"How" you would do it is acceptable. Again, it goes back to being relevant to the original reading.

"If" gives this person a choice to fall to the temptations of the Devil.
"How" does not, it simply asks them how they will fall and what for.

“How” does give a choice. Who is to say that you can’t trick the Devil? Also, this is important, the article states, “Trough says when the teacher told students to write an essay on how they would sell their souls - or what trade they would make with the Devil.” What trade they would make? Sounds like a choice to me. Ok Devil, I’ll trade you five packs of Now & Laters for an acre of land, how’s that?

Someone mentioned Jesus being tempted which apparently made this question fine. Those of you who don't know about the story, in the story Jesus does not give in to the temptations of the Devil. Jesus, in the story, was given the choice to choose whether he would fall to temptation or rise above it. The assignment we're all talking about does not allow for the person to be the type to overcome.

Yes it does. A person could easily say they would sell their soul if it meant world peace or harmony amongst man and that Jesus would have compassion on them for sacrificing their soul for the sake of humanity.

Plus, if all of that isn't enough, here's this next thing:

In general religion, there is a God figure and a Devil figure. If the God figure is not going to be allowed in school, then why can his adversary? If God is a academic naughty word, so should Devil. Worst, the question itself implies that Satan or the Devil actually exists, but yet, if you mention God's involvement in creation your either told to be quiet or your told that God doesn't exist.

Was God in the short story they read? A simple yes or no will suffice.

What's next? Can't fold your hands and bow your head to pray, but you can yell "hail Satan!"? I'm dead serious, it's these types of things that stack up like domino's and lead to things like that.

You’re taking things too far now. This was a writing assignment based on a short story where a man sold his soul. This is not going to stack like domino’s and lead to some rebellion against religion. In college, you are going to have to write about things you may not agree with. It’s LIFE, people must deal with it.

A few years ago I did a test. I picked two days out of a year, distanced by 2 months. One day I went in with the Holy Bible and read for reading time so everyone could see. People looked at me strangely, made comments to inappropriateness and so on. The other day I went into school with The Satanic Bible, no response.

So...what exactly is your point? That one day people said things and the other day they didn’t? On each occasion were the same people involved?

I am not trying to create a conspiracy, I'm just saying people are acting in a backwards manner. Whether you recognize the existence of God and Satan, you still have to admit that the Holy Bible should raise less flags than the Satanic Bible..

Why should the Holy Bible raise less flags than the Satanic Bible? Has the Satanic Bible been used to justify slavery and/or racism? Has it been used to justify the bombing of sovereign nations?

EMPIRE


[edit on 24-2-2010 by EMPIRE]

reply to post by Mystery_Lady

There is a major difference between having a story helping you understand your faith better, and having to write about having to sell your soul to the devil.

It's all what you make it.

Writing about selling your soul to the devil doesn't help you to understand your own faith, it only leads to the dark side.

How do you know? Have you spoken with every single person on this planet who had to write something similar? How do you know the person who wrote the original story wasn't examining or trying to understand his own faith?

Because I believe there is a devil, then I also believe all those children just gave him ammunition to use against them.

You are entitled to your belief. It could also be used as a way to examine their lives and what they truly value.

reply to post by Mystery_Lady


Sorry for the misinterpretation. My Bad.

But still, how would I sell my soul to the devil? [assuming I believed in him] I would give him my soul in exchange for world peace. That's a sacrifice I could live with.



Peace

What if the child is pagan and doesn't believe in the devil?

How would Christians like it if the title of the assignment was
"Which God(dess) in the Egyptian Pantheon is most worthy of my Worship"

(I'm trying to think of some sort of comparison that might help Christians to understand why it would be objectionable to my family from a pagan standpoint.)

Seems like an assignment that goes over the limits to me, if it were public school.

[edit on 24-2-2010 by hadriana]

Originally posted by hadriana
What if the child is pagan and doesn't believe in the devil?

]

I am confused--do only Pagans not believe in the devil in your opinion? What is your definition of Pagan exactly?
2nd line same as the first

So what other books and ideas do the far right extremists want to burn?

I think we have already learned what comes out of book burning. Whatever your doomsday scenario / final solution is forget about it. It has already been done. Taliban, Nazi's , Christ Cultists etc have tried to purify the world and it does not work. It will never work.

Peace begins with tolerance of all ideas.

reply to post by hadriana

What if the child is pagan and doesn't believe in the devil?

So? Being pagan or not having a belief in the devil should not excuse one from the writing assignment.

How would Christians like it if the title of the assignment was
"Which God(dess) in the Egyptian Pantheon is most worthy of my Worship"

I'll ask a Christian. However, if the title of the assignment was
"Which God(dess) in the Egyptian Pantheon is most worthy of my Worship" it wouldn't have very much to do with the previous reading the assignment was based on.