Marissa SantaMaria

Mrs. Thomas
UWRT 1102-021

December 16, y
Who is to blame?
The feedback I received from my peers and Mrs. Thomas helped me get a better
understanding of what I need to focus on and what I need to take away. I seemed repetitive in
some of my ideas so I cut some out and replaced them with less lengthy examples. I didn't want
to lose my readers attention by talking about a topic for too long. From this point I am going to
research more on the topics I have chosen and dig a little deeper into answering the inquiry
question.
Compassion. Showing concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others. Its not an
emotion that everyone may feel, but it sure does show you care. Hans showed compassion for the
Jews when he painted over the terrible things the Germans wrote on their homes and stores. He
could have looked the other war but instead he chose to help. Why do some people choose to
ignore acts of injustice while others try to help or stop acts of injustice? What made me think of
this is during World War II many Germans did not believe in what Hitler was doing to innocent
people, yet most of them kept their mouths shut and had to go along with the charade. This still
happens today in many different forms whether it be watching a friend getting bullied or standing
by a girl too drunk at a party and guys are trying to take advantage of her. Can we have an affect
on what people do by reacting?
I believe this question is important to everyone because we have all been in a position
where we have witnessed something happen and maybe if we acted upon it we could have

UWRT 1102 INQUIRY QUESTION

changed the outcome of the situation. In high school and even younger grades we were taught
that if we dont say anything to the bully and just act like nothing happened, we are just as much
to blame as the kid doing the bullying. It doesn't have to start or stop at bullying that is just one
example. Sexual harassment, racism, religious discrimination, and gender discrimination are all
types of injustice. People are either made fun of or discriminated against by anything that may be
different than the so called average person.
This topic is very broad because there are many different topics embedded in the
question. I don't know much about the question other than the facts I have already shared in my
previous paragraphs. What I do know is that all throughout school we learn about history and
how people have changed so drastically since then, women were treated worse in the eighteenth
century because they were seen to be the cooks and caregivers to children but nothing more. It
has changed since then and I can only think the reason for that is because someone stood up for
what they believed in and made a difference. So in us doing something out of the norm of society
and by standing up instead of standing by, we could either make a difference or be punished.
To research more information I am going to have to focus in on something specific so I
am not confusing my reader with multiple examples and too many topics. I can get research from
many different areas, obviously the internet is a major source of information but I think going
through newspaper articles and books might help benefit me better so I can really learn more
about it myself. I have one source already which is the book we are reading in class, The Book
Thief. In the book there is a great example of my question. Leisels papa, Hans Hubberman, is a
German man who doesn't believe what Hilter is doing is right in any way. He is a painter and he
has been helping the Jews in small forms by painting over the mean things Germans wrote on
their stores and buildings. Even though that painting over something isn't a huge task, Hans and

UWRT 1102 INQUIRY QUESTION

his family could get in terrible trouble. The other thing they did is hide out a Jew in their
basement. Nazi soldiers check homes to make sure no one is protecting Jews and thankfully they
haven't found him yet but its little acts of kindness that make a difference. Hans is still doing this
even though he knows the consequences of his actions.
After writing out my thoughts on paper other valid questions have come up. Some of
them we discussed in class such as are people born evil or does the society around them shape
them that way. People can be very influenced if they are told what they want to hear. Elections
for example, people running for office tell you all positive things they will do when they are
elected to get you to favor them and they may not do the things they said they did in the first
place. People love having someone to follow and sometimes it isn't always for the right things.
Manipulation is the finest form of getting what you want, but if you don't act upon what you said
or promised, thats when you loose trust.
At the end of my research and after perfecting my inquiry paper and topic I want people
to gain a sense of pride and confidence. I know I've been in situations where I have to decide, do
I get involved or just let it happen and I never know if I made the right choice. Im not sure why
we stand by and watch bad things happen but if we learn how to take the initiative then maybe
we can change the way society is. The world is always changing day by day, new people to
follow and things to watch happen but maybe its better to say or do something and have more
purpose, than to do nothing at all.

UWRT 1102 INQUIRY QUESTION