Cool? Identity, Drugs & Fitting In.
Thirteen Reasons Why
What does it mean to be cool?
We think that being cool means that you have all the names brands and you look down upon the people that are not like you. Being cool means that you have to be mean to the people that do not have all the name brands and all of the newest things. In our story Hannah would feel the same way because this happened to her. She was looked down upon for not being like others that she was around.
How important is it to be cool?
We think that being cool is not that important. It isn’t about how cool we are its about how comfortable we are with who we are and who you’re around. In the story Hannah feels that it is not that important to be cool because she didn’t constantly try and change herself to be friends with the “cool” people. She stays herself throughout the entire story, no matter how many problems she runs into.
What does it mean to fit in and why is it so important?
We think that fitting in is that you are able to fit in with people you don’t feel strange being around them. You deserve to be their you don’t really feel excluded when you’re with them. You can talk to whoever whenever you want. We think its important because it helps you stay away from problems. You don’t really feel lonely. You have people to talk to when you’re down. Its just a good thing to be able to fit in with others. In our book Hannah has her friends and she likes them a lot.
What’s the advantage of being around people who have similar outlooks and interests?
We think the advantages of being around others who have similar outlooks and interests are the fact that you don’t have to change your opinions or your outlooks on things for your friends to like you. Some people say they like something but they really do not. They lie about their own interests and opinions so that they will fit in with that group. In our book Hannah doesn’t change who she is so the people around her will like her. If the person doesn’t like her she shrugs it off and carries on as her self, not what others want her to be.
Why do you think young people use drugs/alcohol?
We think that young people use drugs and alcohol because they don’t think of why it is bad for them they think its just a cool thing to do. They don’t realize how it affects their reputation or how harmful it is for you lung/body. In our book they do these things we think they don’t to it to be cool though they just do it because everyone else does it so they decide to do it to.
Are drugs/alcohol a problem for teenagers ?
We think it is a problem for teenagers because its just not a smart thing to do. Its killing your body especially at a young age. They shouldn't be do things like this. The more and more teens do it its going to get other teens to do it because they think it is cool when it’s not at all cool its just stupid.
One teen said she “swears 90 percent of this population smokes dope.” Is this true in your school? Why might have she have said this ?
We think it is not true in our school. We think it a very low number of people who smoke in our school that is not even close to 90 percent. We think she said this because she might have a lot of friends and they mostly all smoke but she doesn’t realize there are a lot more people in this world that don’t smoke. In our story 13 reasons why some of Hannah’s friends that do smoke but there is also some that don’t.
At what point does using drugs or alcohol become a problem?
We think that using drugs and alcohol becomes a problem after you start. The first time you even want to try smoking or drinking as a teen. It may seem like a cool thing to do but it isn’t a lot of people don’t realize how much it affects them. In our story Hannah will go to parties buy beer and alcohol but not drink it, she wants to blend in with the others by having a bottle or cup of alcohol but she won’t drink it.