Is Reading Phony? by Emma

Is Reading Phony? by Emma - April 2023 Scholarship Essay

Holden Caulfield leaves Pency Prep casting all people there as phonies and continues to call people phonies if they do not live up to his expectations. Oedipus blinds himself with a lust for power, not knowing how he would be able to live without it. Hester Prynne is cast off as a scapegoat until the idea that others are sinners are among all of them. Gastby’s love for Daisy led him to his death. Reading is power. With unlimited time and money, I would provide books for more people as well as help more people become literate. Reading creates endless possibilities for people so that they are able to succeed as well as understand human nature.
People will not be able to learn anything without reading. For centuries, we have used writing to record history, events, and stories. The Odyssey was originally a spoken legend yet as it was adapted to be a story, it has been able to reach more people. With learning about The Odyssey in my freshman year of high school, I also learned about the ways of the Greek. I learned about Greek mythology which helped me understand the ancient Greeks more than I did before. As I read more books and increase the diversity in my bookshelf, I am able to understand the experiences of other people that I would not be able to have had I not been able to read. Across the world, many people are unable to read and if I had the time and money, I would start funding so that everyone would have access to reading lessons in their desired language, books, and education.
Books are so powerful that in the past they have been burned--such as by the German Nazis--and in the present, they are being banned. Nothing else can hold the weight that books do. 1964, Catcher in the Rye, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Books most of the time are not anything to worry about because although they may touch on things that are hard topics for people but they teach about perspectives.
One of my favorite books I have ever read is Impulse by Ellen Hopkins. I liked it because it taught me so much about an experience that I have not had myself. It discusses three teenagers who all meet in a mental hospital all for different reasons. Although they have different backgrounds, they all bond over one shared thing: the fact that they all tried to kill themselves. Although heart-wrenching, it was a powerful story that taught me about how everyone handles their stress and emotions differently, their religious or economic background doesn’t matter. It tore down the stigma that comes with mental illness, showing people that they are more than their mental illness and although they may believe to be broken and unloveable, that they all are worthy and deserve love. Books teach lessons that can help people from re-experiencing problems that they read.