On The Fringe: A Letter From the Fringe 10-15-13

Describe the most important event. Give at least three reasons why you think it

is the most important event.

Pages read- 1 - all

A Letter From The Fringe Page 181-191

   So this story, one of two favorites since "Standing On The Roof Naked" (The other being "Guns For Geeks" which I didn't choose because it didn't have as strong of a message in my opinion,) is about a group of kids who sort of bond together, similarities being that their all the victims of other people. It's from the POV of Dana, who's friend Sally gets harassed in the first couple pages.

"TODAY THEY GOT SALLY.

   She wasn't doing anything. Just eating a cookie that her aunt made for her. It was a serious cookie too. She'd given me one. It was still in my mouth with the white chocolate and pecans and caramel all swirling together.

     I saw Doug Booker before she did.

     Saw his eyes get that hard glint they always get right before they say something mean. Watched him walk towards us squeezing his hands into fists, getting psyched for the match. He's a champion varsity wrestler known for overwhelming his opponents in the first round. He was joined by Charlie Bass, brute ice hockey goalie, who was smirking and laughing like the mere sight of her hurt his eyes. Get The Geeks  is a popular ritual among the jock flock at Bronley High.
    I swallowed my cookie. Felt my stomach tense. It was too late to grab Sally and walk off.
    "Fun company at four o' clock" I warned her. 
     Sally looked up to smirks. Her face went pale."

    So to summarize their encounter with the jocks Sally is called fat  (on her birthday, how rude is that!?) and Dana tries to comfort her. At the end of the story Dana contemplates writing a letter to the group that bully  all the kids she sits with at lunch, which is without doubt  the most impacting, and to me, the most important part of the story. 

"'This letter could be from the nerd with thick glasses in the computer lab. It could be from the 'zit girl' who won't look anyone in the eye because she's embarrasses about her skin. It could be from the guy with the nose ring who you call queer, or any of the kids whose sizes don't match your ideal."

 This is all a great start but later in the letter is what really stands out, which is why I'm skipping a little in order to get to it.

"I think of the butterflies in the science museum. There are hundreds of them in different cases. hundreds of different kinds. If they were all the same, it would be so boring. You can't look at the blue ones or the striped ones and say they shouldn't have been born. It seems like nature is trying to tell us something. Some trees are tall, some are short. Some places have mountains, others have deserts. Some cities are always warm, others have different seasons. Flowers are different. Animals. Why do human beings think they have the right to pick who's best-- who's acceptable and who's not."

This is something humans in general, but kids our age and a bit older really need to get a grasp of, which I why I think that schools need to read this book in all classes if they want to minimize bullying because of the fact that you hear the stories from the victims points of view. You can understand what's going through their heads. Not only should the students read it though, but the entire staff of the school should too, from the principle to the janitors, because some just need a better understanding.  Another reason this part is so important is because its the main idea of the whole story, it's in the title that there's a letter involved! The last reason the letter is important is in the story it's self. Remember how I mentioned in parentheses that it was Sally's birthday? Well Dana puts a copy of the letter in a late card and puts it in an envelope with her friends name on it to give to her as a little mood pick me up, which is what friends are for in this kind of situation. I just thought it was a cute ending.