Choose one of the following reflections questions to facilitate your thinking through our review of "The Great Debaters." Feel free to comment on the responses of others within your response (300 Words):
- "Do what you HAVE TO do so that you may do what you WANT to do." How does this story teach that lesson?
OR
- How does the film Great Debaters represent the culmination of Black History up to the WWII era?
14 comments:
Do what you HAVE to do so you can do what you WANT to do? How does this story teach that lesson?
I believe the film The Great Debators shows the true meaning of the quote first stated by a real life character Forest Whitaker portrays, "Do what you HAVE to do in order to do what you WANT to do" by the way the director and writers show the different real life characters in the movie's portrayel. For instance with the female chracter played by actress Jurnee Smollett, Samantha
Book with an e (Booke), she repeatedly states how she wants to become a lawyer and that is why she has joined the debate team. That is Ms. Samantha's way of doing what she needs to do in order to do what she wants to do. She WANTS to become a lawyer but she knows she NEEDS to be in the debate team first (which is a decision chosen by herself completely) to give her a first hand practice of how she will go back and forth in conversation which is in itself like a debate between others to get your point across just like being in a debate team in the court room whether it be with the judge or an inmate/criminal. Also, she is the first and only at that time, woman joining the debate team, she knows this will be a hardship along the way even when she attempts to become what she wants, a lawyer. That is something she also chooses to overcome, her being the only African American woman in an all male debate team competing against other all male debate teams and she does all of this and is successful in overcoming the hardship while influencing other young African American girls from that time and for the generations of girls to come, showing that she has the confidence to stand up for what she believes in and what she wants to do,to in the end achieve what she desires which is that one goal that got her there from the start, becoming a lawyer. That is one way I believe the great debators teaches this quote "Do what you NEED to do in order to do what you WANT to do", which was by how they showed the portrayel of the different characters in the film and one character I believed showed this and chose to write specifically about is Samantha Book with an e (Booke).
And isn't crazy just how close to enslavement Sam Booke is.... Her grandmother, her mother Very possibly could never have dreamed of becoming lawyers. Not many blacks did
especially black women...
How does the film Great Debaters represent the culmination of Black History up to the WWII era?
The Great Debaters involves depicting the debate team as precursors to the civil rights movement a decade later, a link that James Farmer makes clear. In the movie, he is shown witnessing the racism of Jim Crow, and then, in the last debate, defending nonviolent protest. At the end of the film, we are told that he was a leader of CORE, an early civil rights group.
Do what you HAVE to do so you can do what you WANT to do ? How does this story teach that lesson ?
In the movie The Great Debaters teaches this lesson to me because of the lessons that are learned in this film. I have already seen this movie before so I already know the ending. Forest Whitaker plays the character Dr. James Farmer Sr. a well known and very loved man of his community , he is known to be very knowledgeable and very humble. During a graduation speech the movie stops at a scene where Whitaker announces the qoute, " DO what you have to do so you can do what you want to do ! " Many of the characters in this film learn this lesson through hard work , struggle , pain & racism . I believe that through the hiccups of members of the team leaving & relationships fall apart in the end they all worked hard for a reason because they all achieved their dreams.
Shemila Gibbons said...
"you have to do what you have to do, in order to do what you want to do."
-what this quote means to me is that education comes first and once you get that done, then you can do the extra. Also it means that hard work comes first and fun times later. in order to have fun, you need to do what you need to do or it will block the fun times sooner or later.
It shows this in The Great Debaters by when Dr. James Farmer (Henry's dad) stated this he was telling Henry that he had to do his homework first before he could do anything of the debate team. Another example is when the team worked hard to get to the top. They practiced and studied until they was one of top debate teams going. Then when they were alone without Melvin, they may have crumbled a little but they finally came back together and made their debate team the one and only top best, beating Harvard's team. So to conclude this do what you have to do first in order to get what you want because it will all pay off. (just be patient!)
Many people in this world sacrifice for their own sake, just like “The Great Debaters,” we see this happening various times. “Do what you have to do so that you may do what you want to do,” is one of the ongoing lessons that are shown throughout the whole movie. For example, James does something he has to do so that he may continue what he wants to do in his life.
James comes home late one night and his dad asks him “why?” James doesn’t respond because he knows if he does, Mr. Tolson might get into serious trouble. So what does James do? James lies to his father to cover up for Mr. Tolson. James has to cover up for Mr. Tolson, because he knows that there will be serious amount of consequences for Mr. Tolson once they find out that he is part of the secret group that comes and meets up. He also covers up for Mr. Tolson because he knows if he doesn’t his father might force him to resign from the debate team.
So as many of us see James sacrifices for the sake of not only his benefit, but for the benefit of Mr. Tolson. James wants to continue on with debating with the team, so he lies in front of his father knowing that he will get in trouble for lying. He lies to his father so that he may continue to do what he loves which is debating.
April..Do you think that him lying to his father is immoral?
Do what you HAVE to do so you can do what you WANT to do? How does this story teach that lesson?
I have seen the movie The Great Debaters several times and each time that I watched the movie, I learned something new. I agree one hundred percent with the quote above; I feel like it is only right that you do what you have to do so you can do what you want to do. For example, Samantha Booke stated in the movie that she wanted to become a lawyer and in order to reach her goals she joined the debate team to help further her education. James Farmer Junior was the youngest debater on the team at age fourteen. He attended Widley College along with the rest of the debaters. This quote was first introduced by Mr. Farmer, when his father asked him what he had to do. James understood that in order for him to be successful in school, that at that time he had to complete his homework. James’ father, Dr. James Farmer Senior taught his son values and morals that he hoped would last him a lifetime. He was one of the few intelligent men in their city. Mr. Melvin Tolson, the leading professor of the debate team had high hopes for his students. Although they did not always comply or get along, he still had faith in them. With the events in the story, he character has overcome an obstacle. The events leading up to the obstacle included things that had to be done in order for them to do what they wanted to do in the end. For example, in the final debate against Harvard, Henry Lowe decided to give his spot to Mr. Farmer. I think Lowe knew that he had to give someone else a chance because he had already did what he had to do in order to do what he wanted to do.
Do what you HAVE to do so you can do what you WANT to do? How does this story teach that lesson?
This quote teaches us something, and that some thing is, if we do what we have to do we can then do what ever we need to do. In the movie, The Great Debaters, Samantha knows in order to be a future lawyer she has to be in the debate team to experience how it feels to argue what her defending side is. If she did not do what she needed to do then she would not be able to do what she wants to do. Henry did not want to put James as one of the debaters. But once he did his team won. He had to put James up there in order for the team to win. In the beginning of the movie James, had to do his homework that way he has permission to join the debate team. He had to do what he had to do so he can do what he want to do. This quote is used in everyday life, such as, when our mom tells us to wash the dishes before we are allowed to go out or do what ever we want to do. We basically live this quote every since day. This quote saws the struggle and hardship the characters go through.
"Do what you have to do so that you may do what you WANT to do" How does this story teach this lesson?
In the movie the Great Debaters, the students attend Wiley College, full of young educated smart black students. Each coming from different backgounds. One student James L. Farmer Jr who is a 14 year old student at the college. Aswell as the son of James L. Farmer Sr who plays the most well known man in the neighborhood and possibly smartest. James dad is the type of parent that wants to keep his son focused on school and school only. So he teaches him this quote " Do what you have to do so that you can do what you want to do".
This quote can mean alot, one being James Sr, wants James to stay focused on his school studies and get the most fullest education he can get. Once you have an education, this allows you to go on and do bigger things. Like, own bussiness, become doctors, lawyers, etc. He wants James to be able to provide for he self so he will be able to do the things that he wants to do and not have to struggle for a living. The story teaches this lesson because throughout the movies James dad constantly makes him fell like he has to make his dad proud. By dong this its actually motivating James to do things like joining the debate team.
Another meaning for this quote is that James Farmer Sr. wants James to get all the important stuff out the way so that he can be able to do the things he wants for example start a family, go places and travel the world. Hes reminding him that to do these things and have these luxuries you must work and get all the important stuff done first. I believe this story teaches the lesson do what you have to do so you may do what you want to do. All the students on the debate team Samantha Booke, Henry Lowe and James Farmer all make sure that there school studies are first. There determine to be something in the world and do something with there life, which they did. They were the first African American team to compete against the smartest white college at the time Harvard and won. This shows you something right there, that the were able to come together and use there education and make a difference and change the worlds outlook on them.
Do what you HAVE to do so you can do what you WANT to do? How does this story teach this lesson?
This quote is completely true. I do believe that there are sometimes tedious tasks and things that you have to complete before you have fun, or do what you want to do. James Farmer is a prime example of that. This young man was always taught to do what you have to do so you can do what you want to do. He was to do his homework and complete his studies before he was to participate on the debate team. James also demonstrates this quote by lying to his father. James came into the house at one in the morning, was asked by his father where he was and he could not tell him. Of course his father, Dr. Farmer was angry, but nevertheless James continued to tell his father he could speak of his whereabouts. James was dishonest with his father so he could continue to participate on the debate team, but also to cover for Mr.Tolson. James Farmer did what he had to do, to continue to do what he wanted to do.
Kennay DeShields
"Do what you have to do so that you may do what you want to do." How does this story touch this lesson.
This quote was in the very first scene of the movie when the preacher was talking. This quote means that in order to do what you want by following your dreams or doing other activites, you need to do what is required for you to. One example so far is with the character James Farmer. He was a fourteen year old who wanted to be apart of the debate team. He ran into an accident where he was being too curious and seen his debate coach doing something. However, James father wanted to know where and what he was doing.
But, he did not tell him at all. This is a good example of the quote because in order for James to stay on the debate team with his coach, he had to lie and never tell his father. If he would have told, he would have gotten his coach put into jail. Another example is about Samantha Booke. She wanted to become a lawyer and in order to reach her goals, she joined the debate team to help further her education. This was her doing what she had to do in order to do what she wanted to be in life. Mr. Tolson knew what he did was wrong and he did not feel that he should have went to the final round with the team. That was him showing the team that they had the power to do what they want if they put their minds to it. Finally, this quote teaches the lesson also by showing leadership. For instance, Henry Lowe was a very good speaker. He decided to give his turn up and let James have it. He had faith in him that he knew what he was doing. He knew that he had to give up his spot in order for them to get what they wanted, which was to win.
Najeebah Beyah said ...
"Do what you HAVE to do so that you may do what you WANT to do" How does this story teach this lesson?
Most people do things they do not feel like doing, but have to in order to reach a higher goal. These things are usually not up for discussion, so if you do not do them you would not be able to advance onto your next step. For an example, if you want to be a lawyer you have to go to law school, you cannot skip law school because you do not feel like being there, and doing the work. In the film The Great Debaters, some of the main characters had to do what they had to do in order to do what they wanted to do.
For instance, in the movie when the students on the debate team was practicing enunciating their words, their teacher made them say the same phrase repeatedly, until he felt as though they had enough. You could tell by the look on one of the members of the debate team face that he did not want to be doing that, but he did want to be on the team so he did what he had to do. Their teacher did not take disrespect or ignorance, so if he would not have went along with the exercise the teacher would probably thrown him off the team .
Another example in the film that showed somebody doing what they had to do in order to do what they wanted was when the father killed the pig, and wanted to stay alive. He did not want to suck up to the farmers, but he knew he had to do what he had to do in order to move on with his life, so he offered the man the money he knew he would need, in order to move along peacefully. He knew if he would have tried to move along without coming to a truce with the man he would have died.
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