Research Paper on the Five People That Inspire Me

Ashley Pierce

Cindy Walker

English 11

May 16, 2011

The Inspiring Five

Have you ever sat down and really thought about who has inspired you, and why they were the person that inspired you? Well, I have sat down and thought about it for a while. I came up with a few names. The names of the people that I am about to mention are the people that have inspired me to do better and be better. They are all inspiring because each and every one of these people have struggled in some way, and they always seem to try to make things better. They always keep their heads up and stay positive. The five people that inspire me are Harriet Tubman, Hillary Clinton, Lance Armstrong, Ray Charles, and Taylor Swift. This research paper is going to tell you a little bit of history about these five people, things that they have accomplished and overcome, and the reason that these five people are inspiring to me.

The first person I would like to tell you about is a very brave and courageous woman. Her name is Araminta Ross, also known as Harriet Tubman. Harriet was born in 1820. Records about slaves were not well kept back then, so no one knows the exact day that she was born. She was born into slavery because both her mother and father were both slaves.

When Harriet was about five years old, her owner rented her to a local couple named Cook. At the Cook's home, Harriet slept on the kitchen floor, poking her feet under the fireplace ashes when the nights grew cold. For meals, Harriet would share table scraps with the Cooks' dogs. When Harriet was seven years old, she was sent to the Brodas's house to be a housekeeper and a baby nurse. One day Harriet got caught trying to eat a sugar cube and ran away. She stayed in a pig pen for four days, was very scared of the mama pig, and didn't eat much. Harriet knew that if she didn't return to her owners that she was surely to starve to death.

When Harriet was eleven, one of her owners threw a stone at her and hit her in the head with it. This sent Harriet into a coma, and she was sent back to her mother to be taken care of. When Harriet came out of the coma, she still suffered from sleeping fits. Harriet would be sitting somewhere and just fall asleep. She suffered from sleeping fits for the rest of her life.

After Harriet came out of the coma, she heard about slaves that had tried to run away but were killed. From that day on, she realized that slaves were not worth anything to most white people. She decided that if she was ever going to be put on the boat to be sent south that she would run away. Harriet was sold to Thompson Stuart after her previous owner had grown ill and died. In 1844, John Tubman asked Harriet Ross to marry him. She said yes and that is how she became Harriet Tubman.

In 1849 Thompson Stuart died and Harriet knew it was time for her to go and find her freedom after two of her sisters were sold to the south. She convinced three of her brothers to run away with her. After her and her brothers started walking, her brothers decided that they should go back before they got caught. Harriet's brothers made her go back to her house with her husband. Harriet knew that freedom was only for those who were brave enough to go out and get it.

The night after her brothers had made her turn around and go back she set off to find freedom. Harriet stopped at houses and acted like one of the slaves that way no one would expect that she was a run away slave. Harriet traveled 90 miles in the swamps, usually at night to get to freedom. When she finally crossed the line and knew that she was free she took a deep breath and felt relieved. Harriet soon became a conductor of the Underground Railroad and started saving her money to go back and rescue her family in Maryland. She went back to Maryland to get her family and went to get her husband. When she got to her husband's house he already had another wife and told Harriet that he was not going to go with her. She never looked back or thought about her useless husband anymore(HARRIET TUBMAN).

Harriet Tubman is an inspiration because she went through so much when she was in slavery and still kept hope and still knew things could be a lot better. She makes me think that no matter how bad things get, that things can always get better. She was a very good person for being a conductor of the underground railroad and helping all of the people that she helped. She is a big inspiration to me and I am very honored to have been able to tell things about her and her life. You can tell that she was an unselfish person because she risked her life trying to get other slaves the freedom that she thought they rightfully deserved.

The next person that I would like to tell you about is Hillary Clinton, also know as Hillary Diane Rodham. Hillary was born on October 26, 1947. She was the eldest daughter of Hugh Rodham, a prosperous fabric store owner, and Dorothy Emma Howell Rodham.

As a young woman, Hillary Rodham was active in young Republican groups and campaigned for Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater in 1964. Hillary was inspired to work in some form of public service after hearing a speech in Chicago by the Reverend Martin Luther King and became a Democrat in 1968.

Hillary married Bill Clinton on October 11, 1975. In 1998, the White House was engulfed with the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal. Though she publicly supported her husband, Hillary reportedly considered leaving her marriage. In early 2007, Hillary Clinton announced her plans to strive to be the first female president. During the 2008 Democratic Primaries, Senator Clinton conceded her nomination when it became apparent that nominee Barack Obama held a majority of the delegate vote. In 2009, Obama nominated to become Secretary of State. Hillary accepted the nomination, and was officially approved by the senate on January 21, 2009(Hilary Clinton).

Hillary Clinton inspires me because she was strong enough to strive to be the best and the first female president. I am sure that a bunch of people told her that a woman was not strong enough to handle the spot of president, but she still went for it and did what her heart told her to. She didn't let what anyone said keep her from trying to become president. Hillary was also a good sport and knew that she had lost the election. I believe that if she was not a good person she would not have taken the spot of secretary of state because of losing the election.

The third person that I would like to talk about is someone that has not only inspired me, but has inspired a lot of people in this world. His name is Lance Armstrong. He has had a lot of struggles and has overcome every