Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

What does it mean to be a citizen Essay

Good Essays
1026 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What does it mean to be a citizen Essay
The word “citizen” is defined as a native or naturalized member of a state or nation who owes allegiance to its government and is entitled to its protection. To be a citizen of the world, we owe our allegiance to the earth and what she brings us. We rely on her to bring us wood, air, water, precious metals, soil, coal, plants, animals, and to keep us safe from the dangers of the outside solar system. In order to be a citizen of the world, a person must contribute to their own community, keep the earth well and clean so that she will be able to provide us with everything we need, and a citizen of the world must also help others learn that contributing to the earth is important.

To be a citizen of the world, one must contribute yourself to your community. You got to do your part to add to the community. In Erich Maria Remarque’s book, All Quiet on the Western Front, he shows Paul and his comrades doing their part by going the war. They are doing their part by serving the country. In the Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Pa, Ma, and the rest of the Joad family do their part by growing crops. They are doing their part by feeding America. We all need to do our part that will contribute to the society so that all of us can benefit from it. A citizen of the world also keeps the earth healthy.

To be a citizen of the world, you must help keep the earth healthy. No one wants to be walking knee-deep in trash. There are many benefits to keeping the world healthy. First, you would be able to breathe easier because there would be more oxygen in the air. Second, you will keep the beaches where we have our vacation getaways clean for years to come. Third, if we keep the earth healthy, the next generation will be able to enjoy the world we have lived in. We want our children to be able to not worry about smog and landfills causing them to wear oxygen masks. If we start now, we will be able to live healthier as well as the earth. In the Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, he explains that farmers caused the Dust Bowl in the midwest by over cultivating. If the farmers didn’t irrigate the way they did during the Great Depression, there probably wouldn’t have been a great move to the West such as the move to California and that much Hoovervilles. The farmers would have been able to grow crops and been able to pay the tenants. Due to the farmers over cultivating the land, the Dust Bowl happened and cotton was the only thing that grew, Not being able to pay for their farms and land, farmers were forced out of the land causing most to head up to California. A series of problems can happen just by a small thing. This is known as “the domino effect.” The domino effect is a series of related events; an event that follows the preceding one. Today’s problems are a result of the domino effect. During the Great Depression, Hoovervilles were caused by moves to California which wouldn’t have happened if farmers were able to pay their tenants and been able to grow crops. In the Grapes of Wrath, Ma and Pa Joad leave Granma’s body in a coroner’s office due to not having the money to bury her. They rejoin the family at Hooverville, a large, crowded, and dirty camp full of hungry families unable to find work. To be a citizen of the world, a citizen must also be able to help others in their time of need.

It is essential that a citizen of the world teaches others why contributing to the community is important. Contributing to the community helps keep the earth a better place to be. Either by doing community service or by simply by not littering would help keep the earth clean. The earth is a delicate place. Today, we are suffering from global warming and the earth’s axis shift which are causing a lot of problems. Some of them include the glaciers melting faster, ozone layer diminishing, and weather changes. Humans caused all these problems themselves. If we had taken a little bit of effort to keeping the earth healthy, we probably won’t have some of the problems we have today. As simple as planting a tree will help contribute the earth. The architectural magazine, eVolo, holds a competition every year on creating something to contribute to the earth. Some of the ideas they have gotten are vertical landfill skyscraper which is a skyscraper that holds all the trash in a city, polar umbrella buoyant skyscraper which helps slow the melting of the ice caps, soundscraper which harnesses all the noise highways make and converts it into energy, and a pH conditioner skyscraper which places plants on the roofs of buildings to create a cleaner air. These are some of the ideas that people have come up with that they thought will influence the world to make it a better place to be. Others are also building wind farms and solar fields. These are also a good start that will help everyone to build a green earth.

A person who contributes to the community, keeps the earth clean, and helps teach others why cleaning the earth is important is a citizen of the world. A citizen of the world contributes to the community. Everyone has to do our part so that everyone can benefit from it. A citizen of the world keeps the earth well and clean. If the earth isn’t healthy, problems will start to happen causing a lot of trouble on humans. A citizen also teaches others why keeping the earth healthy is important. Helping the community is important due to the problems humans have caused. It is our fault and we have a responsibility to fix it. All these things make a person a citizen of the world.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    If you surveyed one hundred people and asked them the question “What does it mean to be an American?” Chances are you would get one hundred different answers. There is no definite clear-cut definition of an American. To solve this burning question, a lot of information has to be brought forward to the public regarding what is means to represent the United States as a citizen of the country. If one truly wants to know what being a true American exemplifies then they must go to limits beyond their deepest thoughts imaginable to find their answer.…

    • 811 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Civics Midterm Study Guide

    • 2093 Words
    • 9 Pages

    2. Define a citizen. Someone who is born in the U.S. or someone who goes through the naturalization process.…

    • 2093 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Law and Responsibilities

    • 292 Words
    • 2 Pages

    3. Citizenship is important. Citizenship is a legally recognized subject or national of a state or commonwealth, either native or naturalized. In conclusion, these are my rights and responsibilities as a U.S citizen.…

    • 292 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ensuring full citizenship promotes the idea that students with disabilities are entitled to full participation in American life. This is saying no matter what or who you are everyone is treated equal. As people in this world we need to accept others opinions, beliefs and lifestyle because not everyone is the same. In this day in age everyone needs to accept people for who they are and not judge them just because we think we can judge them.…

    • 2051 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sons of Liberty

    • 333 Words
    • 2 Pages

    A good citizen is some who respects others and their property. He/she is helpful and considerate, willing to put others first. He/she listens to the views of others and thinks about what they have to say. He/she helps people who are not in a position to help them. In my opinion the sons of liberty were good citizens because they fought for what was right.…

    • 333 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Great Citizenship

    • 664 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Doing things out of the kindness of my heart to help another, as well as obeying laws, are things I consider good citizenship. To be a good citizen is to have good intentions. "By "Citizenship" we do not mean legal documentation status. We mean living in a pro-social way at every scale of life. We mean showing up for each other" Eric Liu and Nick Hanauer. Great Citizenship. Being a citizen is much more than person who legally belongs to a specific country with legal rights. It involves random acts of kindness not only when it’s convenient but also when it’s inconvenient. Partake in good acts even when others aren’t around such as recycling, throwing misplaced trash in nearby trash cans, helping elders with their groceries, so on and so forth.…

    • 664 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Constitution Cafe

    • 618 Words
    • 3 Pages

    What defines an American citizen? Loosely, it is an individual of a state or nation, whom is obligated to its government and then is offered protection. As an American citizen, the assumed outlined duties to uphold would include: voting, paying taxes, and being involved with the community. Due to the fact that American citizens contribute to paying taxes, they expect for the government to manage their money securely. Also, citizens expect for the government to protect them, as well as their constitutional given rights. .…

    • 618 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Right to Bear Arms

    • 2073 Words
    • 9 Pages

    What exactly are the requirements of being a ‘good citizen’? Although the definition varies according to an individual’s beliefs and the country they reside in, the most universal component of good citizenship is abiding strictly to all laws and conditions of the government while enjoying the rights endowed to them. Being mindful and obedient to society is crucial to achieving a world of “liberty and justice for all”; however the institution of democratic law in the United States has extended the typical guidelines of citizenship to produce a social order far more utopian than any other throughout history thus far. Subsequent to officially establishing…

    • 2073 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Citizen responsibilities are responsibilities that citizens have in the US. The text U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services it says, “By applying, you are demonstrating your commitment to this country and our form of government.” This means that you are dedicating yourself to the US and our type of government. Two examples are that we must serve on a jury when called upon and defend the country if the need should arise. Without these responsibilities citizens wouldn’t do anything for the…

    • 438 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Citizenship in the United States means that a person is a legally recognized member of the nation. Each citizen has equal rights under the law. All citizens have certain rights, privileges, and responsibilities.…

    • 430 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “To be an American for me means freedom and justice. I also think being an American is a big responsibility.” This is the response of 10-year-old Neil from Wisconsin when asked the question, “What does it mean to be an American?” Neil is right; Americans have responsibilities that are imperative to living in America and helping the United States be prosperous and successful. If everyone were to learn and follow these obligations, America could be the utopia it was meant to be. These certain responsibilities are: teaching responsibility, participating in voting, and supporting and defending the Constitution.…

    • 527 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Citizenship Paper

    • 1522 Words
    • 7 Pages

    President Roosevelt’s speech on the duties of citizenship is a speech that asks United States citizens to be more involved in the political aspect of the country. The speech also shows the common traits that all citizens should share and it shows the difference between good citizens and bad citizens. In the second sentence of the speech President Roosevelt says, “No man can be a good citizen who is not a good husband and a good father, who is not honest in his dealings with other men and women, faithful to his friends, and fearless in the presence of his foes, who has not got a sound heart, a sound mind, and a sound body.” President Roosevelt quickly separates the role of citizenship and gives it completely to men and while doing this he sets out a basic list of things that makes a man a good citizen. A man of good morals and strong character is considered a good citizen, he must be the head of his household and he has to be a good friend to others. To Roosevelt, a man…

    • 1522 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Spanish-American philosopher George Santayana once said, “A man’s feet should be planted in his own country, but his eyes should survey the world.” To me, global citizenship is the outlook that I strive to possess, while American citizenship is the root from which I grow. Moreover, there is a misconception that a proper American stays in America, that it is somehow unpatriotic to spend anything more than a vacation away from this country. I believe differently; I believe that a global perspective is indispensable in making me both a good global and national citizen.…

    • 486 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mankind Is Our Business

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages

    "It takes a village to raise a child", a famous quote with much more truth in it than may be realized. As a person, being part of a family, community, and country in the world is so mandatory for survival, that not making mankind part of our business is not an option.…

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Black Youth Citizenship

    • 987 Words
    • 4 Pages

    There are different types of citizenship that demonstrate the type of character an individual is and can be influenced by different stimulus, which was interesting to learn. As Dr. Jagers mentioned, there is citizen-consumer, global citizen, personally responsible citizen, participatory citizen, and justice-oriented citizen. So, through this discussion of the type of citizenship, it made me wonder what type of citizen I am and whether citizenships can be limited to only these five types. It seemed like the categories of citizenship is quite narrow because there only five types and there is possibility that some individuals do not fit into any of the categories or fit into more than one type. In addition, it may be difficult for an individual to identify their citizenship because some categories are quite broad, such as a citizen-consumer has to “invent and re-invent self through patterns of…

    • 987 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays