Blog Carnival Edition #1: REBEL

This first edition of the Zerwin SLCC Blog Carnival was an interesting exploration through different aspects of rebel, rebellious, rebelliousness...

It was clear how much Chris McCandless was attached to this concept for many of the bloggers who responded to the call for submissions. Many (like Dana) pointed out details from his life that make him rebellious, except for Esther who wondered if maybe Chris wasn't a rebel actually--just really selfish (and be sure to check out Dana's post for a link to a very cool video someone did while hiking the Stampede Trail). There were lots of thoughts about what kind of rebel CM was. Tristan found him a stubborn rebel (after some compelling reflections on rebels in Syria--what is the planet to do about Syria, people?). Ryan asks his readers (that's YOU in case you're wondering) if CM's death was justified because of his discontent with his family or if we can just explain it by his naivete (answer his questions in the comments after his post). And Max traces how CM's rebellion had significant effects on other people and still does to this day.

Beyond the world of the book, there were some interesting reflections on rebellion. Owen shows how rebels have improved humanity and makes me think about how I believe love is the most rebellious act there is. Don't you think? Isn't that what Harry Potter is about? Harry wins in the end because he fights for love, right? And Voldemort is incapable of acting through love so he cannot beat Harry in the end. (Are you people Harry Potter fans? Or is this the last time I should bring that up in this class? Please advise.) Fenno discusses several rebels in history who have made things better for people and makes me wonder if rebels must by definition be visionary. I've been pondering that since I read what Fenno had to say. Erik suggests that teens rebel because they learn rebellious behavior from adults. Very interesting. What do you all think? Do teens get called out for the same rebellious behavior that adults show all the time? 

Good or bad, rebellion IS popular, as Madelyn points out with connections to three compelling articles she found on the internet. Cool stuff. And Addie's post takes on rebellion within a very specific context: the traditions and trends surrounding makeup. More cool stuff.

Finally, Ms. Maytum's post contains a hilarious list of rules that she wrote for her room when she was 6 and a half and talks about how rebellion worked in her life as a teenager and how it shows up in her life as an adult. There are contradictions--she reflects over them to arrive at her own understanding of what it means to rebel.

Thanks for your thoughtful submissions to the first edition of the blog carnival!

p.s. Here's Jake on rebellion in a rebellious world. And Colman. And Daelin on punk rock. And Riley on Fat Amy. And John's thoughts on CM. And Ian's thoughts on the various types of rebels in the world.