English DBQ
Bayan Mizyed
Ms. O’Connor
English 1
February 19, 2015
Environmental Influences Values are things that you believe are important in the way you live and work. People believe that knowing your values will help you make the right decisions about how to live your life. On the other hand, people argue that one’s values may change depending on the environment they are in. Values can change due to the government, during survival situations, and based on the people around them. One’s values can change due to the government in which they live under. During WWII, the Soviet Union wanted to scare private citizens. Soviet propaganda reminded ordinary citizens to keep an eye out for enemies. The people were told to denounce anyone who seemed like a threat. In “Denunciation: Pavlik Morozov” it states, “Pavlik denounced his father …went so far to testify him in court” (Document A 6). Pavlik was influenced by the government and went so far to denounce his own father to the authorities because he was siding with the enemies. Due to the government that Pavlik lived under, his unexpected decision went against his personal value: his family. The government influenced Pavlik to be aware of his enemies and Pavlik did, even if it happened to be against his own father. His fear of the enemies led to the decision of denouncing his family member. In the novel Between Shades of Gray the author tells the story of Lina Vilkas, her mother, and her brother in a gulag in Serbia. The NKVD are the prison guards at the gulags. When Lina’s mother has been shot by one of the guards, Lina tells the guard “I hate you” and Kretzsky, the NKVD guard, responds, “Me, too” (Document E 14). Kretzsky, the NKVD guard, responds to Lina’s hateful comment with “Me, too” to show that he doesn’t like what he’s doing either. His fear of the government influenced his decision to becoming an NKVD guard. Kretzsky was forced to go against his value: being compassionate. Even though Kretzsky was a guard at the gulag,
Ms. O’Connor
English 1
February 19, 2015
Environmental Influences Values are things that you believe are important in the way you live and work. People believe that knowing your values will help you make the right decisions about how to live your life. On the other hand, people argue that one’s values may change depending on the environment they are in. Values can change due to the government, during survival situations, and based on the people around them. One’s values can change due to the government in which they live under. During WWII, the Soviet Union wanted to scare private citizens. Soviet propaganda reminded ordinary citizens to keep an eye out for enemies. The people were told to denounce anyone who seemed like a threat. In “Denunciation: Pavlik Morozov” it states, “Pavlik denounced his father …went so far to testify him in court” (Document A 6). Pavlik was influenced by the government and went so far to denounce his own father to the authorities because he was siding with the enemies. Due to the government that Pavlik lived under, his unexpected decision went against his personal value: his family. The government influenced Pavlik to be aware of his enemies and Pavlik did, even if it happened to be against his own father. His fear of the enemies led to the decision of denouncing his family member. In the novel Between Shades of Gray the author tells the story of Lina Vilkas, her mother, and her brother in a gulag in Serbia. The NKVD are the prison guards at the gulags. When Lina’s mother has been shot by one of the guards, Lina tells the guard “I hate you” and Kretzsky, the NKVD guard, responds, “Me, too” (Document E 14). Kretzsky, the NKVD guard, responds to Lina’s hateful comment with “Me, too” to show that he doesn’t like what he’s doing either. His fear of the government influenced his decision to becoming an NKVD guard. Kretzsky was forced to go against his value: being compassionate. Even though Kretzsky was a guard at the gulag,