Picking Cotton Analysis

Forgiveness is what holds and brings relationships together. If you stay angry for long, your heart stubbornly hardens. But if you choose to forgive, you will be filled with the grace of God. We are all sinners and should never carry a

Forgiveness has a different context depending on where the person is from or what he believes. Religion places a great emphasis on the view of forgiveness.

In her book “Picking Cotton,” Erin Torneo address problems that came across Jennifer Thompson and Ronald Cotton like Eyewitness Testimony, the power of Forgiveness, and Race play in Justice System using Ethos, Logos, and Pathos to express credibility, trust, logic reason, proof, and emotion. Torneo states how these circumstances can be a problem because it can create a change in people’s life whether they’re good or not. She argues that Eyewitness Testimony can be inaccurate which can cause wrongful conviction just by looking through how Jennifer make a rash decision when she identify the culprit when her memory was being contaminated, which then lead her to send an innocence man to prison. According Elizabeth Loftus, she gives a demonstration

Forgiveness is very important throughout life. If people don't forgive, they are going to be stuck in the past always remembering about the mistake that person did. Forgiving someone can make yourself feel better because you know you forgave that person and there's no negativity between you and that person.

To begin with, forgiving people who wronged you comes in handy since it helps you live a longer and healthier life. According to the informational text “Understanding Forgiveness” written by PBS, it states that people who forgive have “ [f]ewer stress-related health issues” and their

I had a hard time picking my Mercy Moment, but after reading this article on Ronald Cotton and Jennifer Thompson, I knew this would be a good topic. Ronald was charged of an act he never committed. He served eleven years behind bars for no reason at all. One thing that made Cotton seem more suspicious was his previous relations with a white woman. He was in a relationship with a white woman for a couple of months so, to the police he seemed even more guilty. Ronald was then convicted to serve life in prison with fifty-five plus years. He then was convicted of another rape that also happened that night and was punished with two life sentences along with one-hundred and eighty plus years. It was not until eleven years served, 1995, that Cotton was founded not guilty after taking a DNA test that was just newly founded. Thompson grieved for picking Cotton, she felt horrible. She was happy to see him behind bars, the man she believed hurt her. But, after cops showed up to her door to tell her Cotton was not the one who raped her it was Poole, she immediately felt terrible. She then approached Cotton and told her how sorry she was and how terrible she felt. Cotton, with the heart he has, forgave her. They then went out to write a book together titled, Picking Cotton. In this book it talks about the trial, how Thompson felt after

As I sat and began reading Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption, I was flabbergasted by the subject matter and storytelling. I had never heard of the book before in my life, but as I read the description on Google and other sites, I expected a book dominated by prejudice and hostility, but as I began to read, even with a biased mindset I was amusingly surprised. I found myself observed in the epic retelling of justice, hatred, love and the power of forgiveness. In the book, two different people, Jennifer Thompson and Ronald Cotton have their lives thrown together into a mixer of stout confusion and emotion leading to Ronald Cotton going to prison for the rape of Jennifer Thompson, a rape he didn’t commit. I found the topic of the book to be sort of difficult to process due to the reality in it, a reality of both rape and wrongful imprisonment (especially of blacks), both things that are unfortunately highly prevalent in our society, yet seem to be ignored as our culture does not wish to deal with them. In the book the respective perspectives of both Ronald Cotton and Jennifer Thompson are given as they describe how the trial changed their lives forever.

In the past decade, eyewitness testimonies have cast a shadow on what is wrong with the justice system in today’s society. Before we had the advanced technology, we have today, eyewitness testimonies were solid cold-hard facts when it came to proving the defendant was guilty. However, time has changed and eyewitness testimonies have proven to be the leading causes of wrongful convictions due to misidentification. The Thompson and Cotton case is a perfect example of how eyewitness testimonies can put an innocent man behind bars.

Forgiveness can be a simple gesture. Either way it’s a difficult task to complete. Nevertheless it’s easier to pry forgiveness from certain groups of people; especially children. Children tend to easily forgive since they do not fully comprehend the severity of a situation. This theory especially applies to the parent-child relationship where the child feels the need to forgive their parents no matter the situation. Forgiveness for the parent seems mandatory to the child considering the parent is the teacher of life to their child; what the parents say and/or do is all their knowledge of how the world goes. In The Glass Castle Jeannette Walls proves this theory correct. Numerous times Jeannette forgives her parents for their wrongdoings and

You have to question whether you are forgiving the person because they are sorry and you are capable of moving forward or you are forgiving them because you are still left with some feeling of attachment and that’s what is holding you back. For example, in the memoir, Jennette continued to forgive her parents particularly because they were her parents and her blood. That got her nowhere. She was left in an endless circle of forgiving yet receiving the same mannerism back. However, once Jeannette decided enough was enough, she moved to New York City, away from her parents, began accomplishing her goals and overall Jeannette became so much more liberated. This example goes to show my point exactly. Forgiving and forgetting will leave you with too many toxic people in your life. You must know when to set an endpoint and cut people out of your life because it will benefit

After reading a number of articles, and attending the “Picking Cotton” lecture. I have come to the conclusion that, without the breakthrough of DNA extraction technology. Many people would still be convicted of a crime they never committed.

One scary night, Jennifer was going through an event where her body was taken by force in the book, “Picking Cotton”. Would you be able to pick out a face from a line up? The biggest issue is putting together the puzzle pieces of the crime that took place when you’re the one who is experiencing the traumatic event. We all have been scared before but, if you really think about it do you really see the small details or the big picture? The law enforcement works hard to make sure common mistakes don’t take place during these investigations and assure we don’t send away the wrong person away for the crime. After, attending a seminar at Somerset Community College on February 7, 2017, we can now understand a little more about memory and how’s it’s processed during a traumatic event while also, learning about Jennifer’s story.

Also, understanding is the key to forgive someone regrets his immoral acts against you. The story of Albert Speer reveals the sorrow and compassion of one of the culprit find himself face to face with a victim. Mr. Albert was supporting the Nazis against Jews during the Holocaust. He acknowledged his responsibility and guilt for the mass crime. With the guilty verdict, he imprisoned for twenty years for his legal inhuman acts. When Simon Wiesenthal met him, Albert considered his eyes to find compassion and humanity inside (The Sunflower 246). Thus, I believe that when victim lets down the revenge, he also removes most of the barriers for a substantial correction. In the meantime, if you forgive, you can stop the stupidity of haters and prove that you are much stronger. Besides the world has a lot of evidence proclaiming that the desire for revenge disappears even after a long time of reciprocal violence, but only the people who forgive are the last standing. Overall, to forgive is to build bridges between victims and culprits for a healthy

Forgiveness is a hard thing to give because forgiveness of another human being involves having you to forgive yourself. It seems a lot easier to withhold forgiveness and remain a victim. The forgiveness that I have given away or I have received has shaped who I am today, therefore becoming a part of me.

The cotton plant belongs to the genus Gossypium of the family Malvaceae (mallow family); the same family as hollyhock, okra and hibiscus. It is generally a shrubby plant having broad three-lobed leaves and seeds in capsules, or bolls; each seed is surrounded with downy fiber, white or creamy in color and easily spun. The fibers flatten and twist naturally as they dry. There are different species of Cotton - Gossypium hirsutum, Gossypium barbadense, Gossypium herbaceum and Gossypium arboreum, the first two species being the most commonly cultivated.