From the time the Europeans discovered America, there were always people of multiple nationalities living in America. However, in the time following the Revolution leading up to the Civil war, the people living in America became more, well, American. American culture as a whole became more developed. However, in the years preceding World War I, Immigration into the United States rapidly rose. From this point, America started developing into the melting pot it is today.
America is a melting pot in that there are a multitude of people of multifarious nationalities living here. These people have brought aspects of their culture here to America with them. In Charlotte, if you go to a specific area of the city, you can easily find Chinese Dim Sum, Vietnamese BBQ, and lots of Mexican restaurants within walking distance.
Just as not all ingredients mix together, America is still struggling to accept and incorporate all the nationalities, partially due to stereotyping and discrimination, and just plain ole' superiority. Some nationalities and cultures are looked down upon, which can cause massive amounts of tension. Another example: Mexicans and Latinos. Due to the mass influx of illegal Mexican and Latino immigrants, some Americans look down upon these people. Centuries of superiority starting in America's age of Imperialism have engrained the idea that other nationalities should follow our cultural traditions, and racial tension will always exist, but hopefully with time, these tensions can be lessened.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
positions and views
"How does your position in the world shape the way we think about identity, society, and culture?"
change we to you, and that's the question I'm answering. my favorite type of blog: an open ended question.
My position in the world is as follows: I am a 5 ft tall half Asian girl from the deep south. I also have this tendency to defy stereotypes(I'm the asian with a southern accent who can't do simple math, and the girl that's willing to try almost any videogame)
Identity: The short half asian part of my identity was cemented into my mind from an early age. Realizing just what being from the South meant to my identity didn't really come until high school. Because of these things, I view identity as a perpetually changing set of key characteristics that loosely define a person. I take interest in people who are of non-American nationalities. Identity is partially something given to you and partially something you choose for yourself.
Society: A society is a group of people. Once again, there are some societies you are born into and cannot escape, and others that you voluntarily join. You may be more involved in one society than another.
Culture: Culture and Society are very similar. Culture is the traditions of a society. Cultures are inherited upon entering a society. One may reject or adopt certain elements of a culture.
My position in the world, as well as my own identity, have ultimately impacted my views on identity, society, and culture by making them far more flexible. I generally don't put much specific thought into these things; I accept them as key defining factors of human life and move on.
change we to you, and that's the question I'm answering. my favorite type of blog: an open ended question.
My position in the world is as follows: I am a 5 ft tall half Asian girl from the deep south. I also have this tendency to defy stereotypes(I'm the asian with a southern accent who can't do simple math, and the girl that's willing to try almost any videogame)
Identity: The short half asian part of my identity was cemented into my mind from an early age. Realizing just what being from the South meant to my identity didn't really come until high school. Because of these things, I view identity as a perpetually changing set of key characteristics that loosely define a person. I take interest in people who are of non-American nationalities. Identity is partially something given to you and partially something you choose for yourself.
Society: A society is a group of people. Once again, there are some societies you are born into and cannot escape, and others that you voluntarily join. You may be more involved in one society than another.
Culture: Culture and Society are very similar. Culture is the traditions of a society. Cultures are inherited upon entering a society. One may reject or adopt certain elements of a culture.
My position in the world, as well as my own identity, have ultimately impacted my views on identity, society, and culture by making them far more flexible. I generally don't put much specific thought into these things; I accept them as key defining factors of human life and move on.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Chapter 6 synthesis
The pages we had to read in Chapter 6 focused on 4 things: outlines, the argument, integrating research sources, and beginning to write the essay.
An outline is basically a structured summary of a paper, and when well done outline is a very useful tool. Outlines are the first real form that papers exist in. When writing an outline, you begin to really think about how exactly you will present your argument. Putting a lot of thought into the outline makes writing the paper a lot easier. I, however, use an outline as an organization/brainstorm method. I never really know what I want to write about until I start the paper itself. Once I start the paper, I go back and strengthen my outline.
As a result of writing an outline, you must put thought into your argument and the manner in which you want to present it in. There are a few different ways to present an argument. 2 are focusing mainly on the research sources and using your own words to tie them together, or creating the argument mostly by yourself and using research sources to support your arguments. A good way of learning how to present arguments is analyzing other published arguments and looking at the way those are written.
One of the most important skills to have when writing research papers is the integration of quotes and sources into the paper. Integrating quotes is important because it helps keeps the paper flowing rather than just having random blocks of text in your paper, that are not in your distinct writing style. One way of putting information from your sources into your paper is summary and paraphrase. The two, while being extremely similar, are not the same thing. Summary is more general, while paraphrase is a distinct rewording of a quote. Paraphrase is often chosen because a quote is difficult to understand. Summary allows synthesis of a lot of information. However, when using summary or paraphrase, all information must still be cited. When using direct quotations, it is important to integrate quotes: introduce them, and make them flow seamlessly into what you are saying. It is important to cite everything you summarize, paraphrase, or quote as you put them in your paper or outline. Doing so will help prevent accidental plagiarism.
The last topic covered in the selected pages is the process of beginning to actually write the first draft. There are many ways to begin to write the first draft; you don't always have to start at the beginning. It's important to keep the same level of passion throughout the entire writing process. Passion often equal vivid language, which makes the paper a lot easier to read; it makes the paper less drab. Peer review is a useful tool when writing a paper. Peers can tell you if your paper is going in the right direction, help direct an argument, and point out any major flaws. It's important to just keep going, even if the paper is of absolutely horrible quality. It's better to force yourself to write when you have time to think and rewrite than it is to write at the last minute and have no time at all.
Once you finish the first draft, it must be revised. The first attempt is far from ready to be submitted. Revisions will turn the paper into a very polished product, ready to be shown off to the world.
An outline is basically a structured summary of a paper, and when well done outline is a very useful tool. Outlines are the first real form that papers exist in. When writing an outline, you begin to really think about how exactly you will present your argument. Putting a lot of thought into the outline makes writing the paper a lot easier. I, however, use an outline as an organization/brainstorm method. I never really know what I want to write about until I start the paper itself. Once I start the paper, I go back and strengthen my outline.
As a result of writing an outline, you must put thought into your argument and the manner in which you want to present it in. There are a few different ways to present an argument. 2 are focusing mainly on the research sources and using your own words to tie them together, or creating the argument mostly by yourself and using research sources to support your arguments. A good way of learning how to present arguments is analyzing other published arguments and looking at the way those are written.
One of the most important skills to have when writing research papers is the integration of quotes and sources into the paper. Integrating quotes is important because it helps keeps the paper flowing rather than just having random blocks of text in your paper, that are not in your distinct writing style. One way of putting information from your sources into your paper is summary and paraphrase. The two, while being extremely similar, are not the same thing. Summary is more general, while paraphrase is a distinct rewording of a quote. Paraphrase is often chosen because a quote is difficult to understand. Summary allows synthesis of a lot of information. However, when using summary or paraphrase, all information must still be cited. When using direct quotations, it is important to integrate quotes: introduce them, and make them flow seamlessly into what you are saying. It is important to cite everything you summarize, paraphrase, or quote as you put them in your paper or outline. Doing so will help prevent accidental plagiarism.
The last topic covered in the selected pages is the process of beginning to actually write the first draft. There are many ways to begin to write the first draft; you don't always have to start at the beginning. It's important to keep the same level of passion throughout the entire writing process. Passion often equal vivid language, which makes the paper a lot easier to read; it makes the paper less drab. Peer review is a useful tool when writing a paper. Peers can tell you if your paper is going in the right direction, help direct an argument, and point out any major flaws. It's important to just keep going, even if the paper is of absolutely horrible quality. It's better to force yourself to write when you have time to think and rewrite than it is to write at the last minute and have no time at all.
Once you finish the first draft, it must be revised. The first attempt is far from ready to be submitted. Revisions will turn the paper into a very polished product, ready to be shown off to the world.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Bigger, Stronger, Faster poster analysis
Analyzing a theatrical poster.... this is a first for me. Typically when I see these posters I'm on my way out of the theater and don't pay them much attention. I may exclaim that I want to see the movie being advertised or make note of the graphic design if I find the poster especially aesthetically pleasing, but normally I look at them and continue on with life. However, I now realize just how much planning must go into making theatrical posters, having to essentially summarize the entire movie in a single picture.
The first poster, chosen for the DVD release, makes the movie appear to be more of a documentary due to its simplicity. 4 people are depicted against a white background; a sticker stating the name of the movie along with the credits covers their faces. Covering the people's faces gives them a sense of being the everyday man: you don't know exactly who these people are, so they could be anyone from the most powerful boxer to your next door neighbor. Using this more simple poster as the DVD cover more immediately gives the consumer a true sense of what the movie is. When looking to buy or rent a DVD, the consumer often has a sense of what they're looking to watch. People probably are more inclined to watch a documentary via DVD rather than in a movie theater. A more simple DVD cover works well because if a person wants a particular DVD, they will get it at that moment in time when they see it.
In contrast, the second poster portrays Bigger Stronger Faster as being a superhero movie. The strong focus on well built people and the American flag, as well as the storm clouds and lightning add to this effect. The text is done in the classic superhero movie style. Film festivals this movie has been played in are shown at the top, separated by Greek (I think it's Greek...) style leaves, demonstrating power. The people are standing on a mountain of pills, giving the consumer a sense of what the movie deals with. This poster needs a more strong approach because it likely was placed in theaters and people saw it as they were walking out of the theater. This poster is more memorable and will likely stand out longer in the consumer's mind, making them want to research the movie and view it. People in theaters are more likely to want to view big ticket movies and this poster markets Bigger Stronger Faster as being one.
The first poster, chosen for the DVD release, makes the movie appear to be more of a documentary due to its simplicity. 4 people are depicted against a white background; a sticker stating the name of the movie along with the credits covers their faces. Covering the people's faces gives them a sense of being the everyday man: you don't know exactly who these people are, so they could be anyone from the most powerful boxer to your next door neighbor. Using this more simple poster as the DVD cover more immediately gives the consumer a true sense of what the movie is. When looking to buy or rent a DVD, the consumer often has a sense of what they're looking to watch. People probably are more inclined to watch a documentary via DVD rather than in a movie theater. A more simple DVD cover works well because if a person wants a particular DVD, they will get it at that moment in time when they see it.
In contrast, the second poster portrays Bigger Stronger Faster as being a superhero movie. The strong focus on well built people and the American flag, as well as the storm clouds and lightning add to this effect. The text is done in the classic superhero movie style. Film festivals this movie has been played in are shown at the top, separated by Greek (I think it's Greek...) style leaves, demonstrating power. The people are standing on a mountain of pills, giving the consumer a sense of what the movie deals with. This poster needs a more strong approach because it likely was placed in theaters and people saw it as they were walking out of the theater. This poster is more memorable and will likely stand out longer in the consumer's mind, making them want to research the movie and view it. People in theaters are more likely to want to view big ticket movies and this poster markets Bigger Stronger Faster as being one.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Avoiding Plagarism
One of the most important things I learned in high school was to cite absolutely everything. The greatest evil of IB was plagiarism and we were all terrified of being caught. We never lost the terror of submitting papers to Turnitin.com. The best way to avoid plagiarism is to take very careful, specific notes. I do all my note-taking in a marble composition notebook, so that I don't lose anything. I label which chapter each group of notes comes from, as well as what page. Sometimes I use a color coding method, especially if I'm looking for many different things. I almost never actually write full quotes; I use a lot of ellipsis because I'm too lazy to actually write down the entire quote. Also, when I take notes I almost never paraphrase. I only paraphrase when I'm actually writing the paper. This makes the research process move a little more quickly. When I utilize pictures, I either bookmark the page I pull the picture from for future reference, or, if the picture is from a book, make a note of what page the picture is on.
The best way to avoid plagiarism is to take careful notes according to what citation style is being used. I found the table comparing the different citation styles interesting. I hadn't ever thought about the reasoning behind each method, or why there are so many. Also, the correlation between MLA in-text citations and the work cited page was a major lightbulb moment.
So basically, Chapter 7 summed up in a sentence: Note carefully and note often to be able to create specific citations.
The best way to avoid plagiarism is to take careful notes according to what citation style is being used. I found the table comparing the different citation styles interesting. I hadn't ever thought about the reasoning behind each method, or why there are so many. Also, the correlation between MLA in-text citations and the work cited page was a major lightbulb moment.
So basically, Chapter 7 summed up in a sentence: Note carefully and note often to be able to create specific citations.
Monday, October 10, 2011
The different interviews
The first interview was a little difficult to follow. There were no questions; it was more of a simple dialogue centered around military and technology.
The second interview is structured more like an interview. Thought provoking questions about Ritzer's views on the "McDonalised society" were asked. These questions were obviously prepared in advance, and it's possible Ritzer's responses were as well. This is a more structured interview than the first was.
It appears that the New York Voices interviews would follow a middle ground between the first 2 interviews: a sort of directed dialogue. This allows those being interviewed to truly put their personal touch on the interview. The goal would be to make an impact on the person watching the interview. My computer refuses to let me watch these interviews. It's telling me a plug in is missing but won't tell me which one.
When I interview someone in person, I generally prefer to just allow that person to talk about their area of expertise. I ask some questions to guide them onto the topics I need more information about. If something they say sparks a question, I ask it. I also like being able to go back and listen to the interview and have a follow up in the instance listening to the original sparks questions. When I conduct interviews via email, I create specific questions because emails aren't very conducive for rambling thoughts.
I use interviews as quick ways to gain lots of information from an expert.
The second interview is structured more like an interview. Thought provoking questions about Ritzer's views on the "McDonalised society" were asked. These questions were obviously prepared in advance, and it's possible Ritzer's responses were as well. This is a more structured interview than the first was.
It appears that the New York Voices interviews would follow a middle ground between the first 2 interviews: a sort of directed dialogue. This allows those being interviewed to truly put their personal touch on the interview. The goal would be to make an impact on the person watching the interview. My computer refuses to let me watch these interviews. It's telling me a plug in is missing but won't tell me which one.
When I interview someone in person, I generally prefer to just allow that person to talk about their area of expertise. I ask some questions to guide them onto the topics I need more information about. If something they say sparks a question, I ask it. I also like being able to go back and listen to the interview and have a follow up in the instance listening to the original sparks questions. When I conduct interviews via email, I create specific questions because emails aren't very conducive for rambling thoughts.
I use interviews as quick ways to gain lots of information from an expert.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Viewpoints on Stereotypes
Almost all types of media form viewpoints on issues. In the reading, there were newspaper articles, excerpts from books, and a few transcripts that take deeper looks into many modern stereotypes. The first article about stereotypes in sports promoted the message that we have stereotyped black basketball players and made them into the former black vaudeville, where white actors would paint their faces black while portraying a black person. The author argues that todays black athletes are beginning to behave in a black vaudeville manner--the manner society thinks they should behave. The next article argues that hip hop is driving the stereotypes of athletes, especially basketball players. Hip hop and basketball have become intertwined, and hip hop has become associated with black culture as a whole. The third article changes the focus from black athletes to Latin American baseball players. He argues that young dominican boys are having their dreams made to seem a bit too easily accessible. They are told of all the players that make it to the US and play in the major leagues; however they are not told few of these players actually get any play time.
After this, the focus shifts to women, first in sports, then in gaming. 2 Sports Illustrated covers were shown featuring women. These women are depicted as strong, yet still maintaing a sex appeal. In the transcript of the news report, an interesting point was made: women are followed outside of the athletic field more than men are, mainly because of their sex appeal.
The next 3 articles are about gaming and are an article or excerpt from a book. The first focuses on female gamers and the fact that young girls don't really have any games to grow up to. Society expects girls to basically stop playing video games around the pre teen age. There could potentially be a large market of females looking to buy video games if the right games are developed. The second is the article in this group. The author argues that females within games are not properly portrayed and are there mainly for sex appeal to males. The challenges of making practical female characters are discussed.
The final article we had to read discussed the effect of violent games and was basically promotes video games, especially the cultural aspect of the games, that is, they unite people and bring them together.
So basically, information about stereotypes is being thrown at us from all angles and all media types, even if we don't quite realize it. Every word written and every picture published has a specific reason for being there.
That was a massive amount of reading for this blog.
Also, foo fighters and system of a down rock. that is all. goodnight.
^I'm sitting next to Rooks as I type this blog and he hijacked my computer to type that in; I decided to leave it as a personal touch.
After this, the focus shifts to women, first in sports, then in gaming. 2 Sports Illustrated covers were shown featuring women. These women are depicted as strong, yet still maintaing a sex appeal. In the transcript of the news report, an interesting point was made: women are followed outside of the athletic field more than men are, mainly because of their sex appeal.
The next 3 articles are about gaming and are an article or excerpt from a book. The first focuses on female gamers and the fact that young girls don't really have any games to grow up to. Society expects girls to basically stop playing video games around the pre teen age. There could potentially be a large market of females looking to buy video games if the right games are developed. The second is the article in this group. The author argues that females within games are not properly portrayed and are there mainly for sex appeal to males. The challenges of making practical female characters are discussed.
The final article we had to read discussed the effect of violent games and was basically promotes video games, especially the cultural aspect of the games, that is, they unite people and bring them together.
So basically, information about stereotypes is being thrown at us from all angles and all media types, even if we don't quite realize it. Every word written and every picture published has a specific reason for being there.
That was a massive amount of reading for this blog.
Also, foo fighters and system of a down rock. that is all. goodnight.
^I'm sitting next to Rooks as I type this blog and he hijacked my computer to type that in; I decided to leave it as a personal touch.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Synthesis of Chapter 5
Chapter 5 is about the beginning of the research process: finding and evaluating sources. I liked the comparison of research to a conversation. When you research, you add to the wealth of knowledge about a particular topic, drawing your own conclusions about what you have read, and perhaps making new discoveries. These is nearly infinite research that can be done about any given topic, even new ones. Research on newer topics primarily takes shape in the form of experiments. With the advent of the internet, access to resources has quickly multiplied. If you know where to look and what to search for, you can find vast knowledge about a topic at the click of a button.
Because we are able to access so much information so quickly, we must determine the quality and relativity of our sources. Primary sources generally are more accurate and reflect on the viewpoints taken in the midst of an event or era. Examples are journals and pictures. Secondary sources are more widely used in student research and are analyses of a topic. Good points of secondary sources are that they may lead to other sources if a bibliography is included, and that they are a bit more widely focused than a primary source. However, relying on secondary sources involves trust in the author to have used reliable sources. It is important to evaluate the reliability of sources, especially internet sources. Some websites may seem to be reliable at first glance, but further investigation reveals that the website is not well suited for research purposes. Properly evaluating sources is a skill which must be fine tuned over time. Field research (experiments and interviews) are also highly useful forms of research as they allow you to gain knowledge that has not been published.
Before beginning to write, it is important to create an annotated bibliography. Preferably, this is done as your research. Annotated Bibliographies, while nightmares to create, prove to be useful once you have acquired many sources and need to recall what each source is specifically about. Now the writing process may begin. Hopefully the final product contributes to the ongoing conversation about the topic, while interweaving your conclusions with your findings from research.
Because we are able to access so much information so quickly, we must determine the quality and relativity of our sources. Primary sources generally are more accurate and reflect on the viewpoints taken in the midst of an event or era. Examples are journals and pictures. Secondary sources are more widely used in student research and are analyses of a topic. Good points of secondary sources are that they may lead to other sources if a bibliography is included, and that they are a bit more widely focused than a primary source. However, relying on secondary sources involves trust in the author to have used reliable sources. It is important to evaluate the reliability of sources, especially internet sources. Some websites may seem to be reliable at first glance, but further investigation reveals that the website is not well suited for research purposes. Properly evaluating sources is a skill which must be fine tuned over time. Field research (experiments and interviews) are also highly useful forms of research as they allow you to gain knowledge that has not been published.
Before beginning to write, it is important to create an annotated bibliography. Preferably, this is done as your research. Annotated Bibliographies, while nightmares to create, prove to be useful once you have acquired many sources and need to recall what each source is specifically about. Now the writing process may begin. Hopefully the final product contributes to the ongoing conversation about the topic, while interweaving your conclusions with your findings from research.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Avatars
In today's culture, avatar has 3 different meanings. Most recently, and for the most people, Avatar refers to the blockbuster James Cameron movie. For those of us who used to enjoy cartoons, Avatar refers to the animated Nickelodeon series. My wild guess is that most people who used to enjoy the Avatar cartoon series also recognize avatar as a word used in the gaming community. In the gaming community, an avatar is a representation of yourself used in a game or online community. More often than not, the player can earn points or buy customizations for these virtual characters. Some people choose to make their avatar similar to themselves, while others use their avatars as alter egos, such as the girl in the article who plays as a guy. Using an avatar as an alter ego allows the creator to have qualities they might not otherwise have, such as super strength. Avatars allow their creators to create customizations essential to the environment they're in, especially in game settings. In Call of Duty, players don't create full avatars; the general player looks the same, but the creator can choose weapons, camouflage, and face paint. In other games, customization of avatars allows players to easily identify themselves and others. If avatars weren't customizable, everyone would look alike.
Using avatars in the classroom..... that's an interesting application I've never thought about. I guess avatars could be used to have a semi anonymous online discussion, or do anything online with a degree of anonymity, if the right medium is chosen.
Using avatars in the classroom..... that's an interesting application I've never thought about. I guess avatars could be used to have a semi anonymous online discussion, or do anything online with a degree of anonymity, if the right medium is chosen.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
How well do we know our friends?
I'm new to social networking. I completely missed the whole Myspace fad, and joined Facebook in November of 2010, shortly after new privacy changes sparked widespread controversy. The Facebook I joined is more or less the same Facebook we have now, except for the the changes to the chat and message systems. I can't imagine a Facebook where there is no news feed; the news feed is the heart of Facebook. That is what truly allows us to know everything our friends post.
Within two days of creating my profile, I'd added close to 150 people; I was amazed I knew that many people. It did help that my finally creating a profile was major social news. At the time, I personally knew and interacted with each of these people frequently. As time progressed, I began adding people I was familiar with but did not personally know. After I joined the Clemson Class of 2015 Facebook Group I began adding people that I interacted with on the group page. At that point, my friends list began increasing exponentially as my personal connections to these people began decreasing exponentially.
However, the title of this article, I'm So Totally, Digitally Close to You holds special meaning to me because Facebook is my primary method of communication with several friends. Facebook has allowed me to "meet" members of the Clemson Class of 2015. Through our group, which has over 2,000 members, we've found roommates, had questions answered about orientation, move in, and Clemson Connect stuff. Now, we're using it to make connections and seek homework help. Facebook allows me to keep up with what my friends are doing, even those who live hours away. Over the summer, I was able to reconnect with 2 childhood friends I hadn't talked to in 10 years. I have several friends that live many hours away; I have almost exclusively digital relationships with these people and have Facebook to thank for that.
One year ago I didn't have Facebook. Nearly a year later, I've reached the point where I'm constantly checking it, making sure I keep my notifications clear and my messages read, reading nearly everything which comes into my news feed. Facebook is a social networking tool; it's up to the user to decide how to use it. It's experienced massive growth and essentially led to the death of Myspace. Facebook has changed from a small social circle of close friends to a large tangled web of people all over the world, allowing users to utilize it to the full potential, finding people from all over, or simply "friend" those that are present in their lives.
While our friends lists are rapidly growing, and our intimate knowledge of these people is decreasing, we are using Facebook for its intended purpose: true social networking, becoming aware of and familiar with people who will be useful in our lives for some reason or another.
Within two days of creating my profile, I'd added close to 150 people; I was amazed I knew that many people. It did help that my finally creating a profile was major social news. At the time, I personally knew and interacted with each of these people frequently. As time progressed, I began adding people I was familiar with but did not personally know. After I joined the Clemson Class of 2015 Facebook Group I began adding people that I interacted with on the group page. At that point, my friends list began increasing exponentially as my personal connections to these people began decreasing exponentially.
However, the title of this article, I'm So Totally, Digitally Close to You holds special meaning to me because Facebook is my primary method of communication with several friends. Facebook has allowed me to "meet" members of the Clemson Class of 2015. Through our group, which has over 2,000 members, we've found roommates, had questions answered about orientation, move in, and Clemson Connect stuff. Now, we're using it to make connections and seek homework help. Facebook allows me to keep up with what my friends are doing, even those who live hours away. Over the summer, I was able to reconnect with 2 childhood friends I hadn't talked to in 10 years. I have several friends that live many hours away; I have almost exclusively digital relationships with these people and have Facebook to thank for that.
One year ago I didn't have Facebook. Nearly a year later, I've reached the point where I'm constantly checking it, making sure I keep my notifications clear and my messages read, reading nearly everything which comes into my news feed. Facebook is a social networking tool; it's up to the user to decide how to use it. It's experienced massive growth and essentially led to the death of Myspace. Facebook has changed from a small social circle of close friends to a large tangled web of people all over the world, allowing users to utilize it to the full potential, finding people from all over, or simply "friend" those that are present in their lives.
While our friends lists are rapidly growing, and our intimate knowledge of these people is decreasing, we are using Facebook for its intended purpose: true social networking, becoming aware of and familiar with people who will be useful in our lives for some reason or another.
Friday, September 9, 2011
1500 words on an ad.....
When we were first given this assignment, I was a bit shocked. The idea of writing 1500 words about an ad -a single picture- terrified me. However, now that I'm 2/3 done with the paper, I'm realizing it's not quite as difficult as I thought it would be. That, in combination with these blogs, are a good introduction to college writing. This essay is manageable enough to be the first major assignment, but is still definitely a college assignment. It has purpose and does not seem to be randomly chosen. The topic of the essay ties in with the class discussion material.
This class in and of itself is definitely not what I was expecting from my first college English class; this is a good thing. I was expecting this class to resemble my high school english classes, not realizing just how focused on writing it would be; I imagined another semester of perpetual reading. I'm glad someone realized you can write about more than books. It's much less time consuming to write about an ad than it is a 200 page book, even if it is more difficult. This is college; difficult is to be expected. At this level, writing becomes a fine art, like learning difficult pieces of music. Actual teachers are useless; the writing style hopefully has been developed by this point. Higher level writing isn't something that can really be taught; it must be developed. Teachers become mentors, providing tips on how to refine writing style and transition to college level writing. We need practice in order to utilize these tips, and these blogs as well as the rhetoric essay are excellent opportunities to practice.
This class in and of itself is definitely not what I was expecting from my first college English class; this is a good thing. I was expecting this class to resemble my high school english classes, not realizing just how focused on writing it would be; I imagined another semester of perpetual reading. I'm glad someone realized you can write about more than books. It's much less time consuming to write about an ad than it is a 200 page book, even if it is more difficult. This is college; difficult is to be expected. At this level, writing becomes a fine art, like learning difficult pieces of music. Actual teachers are useless; the writing style hopefully has been developed by this point. Higher level writing isn't something that can really be taught; it must be developed. Teachers become mentors, providing tips on how to refine writing style and transition to college level writing. We need practice in order to utilize these tips, and these blogs as well as the rhetoric essay are excellent opportunities to practice.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Critical Response to Orbach's essay
Young children are very impressionable people. They imitate who and what they see; they are sponges. Boys see the men are all strong; they begin to imitate them and want to become strong. When girls see that the girls on TV are all slender, naturally, they will want to be slender. They want to look like the girls on TV and in magazines. Girls who are younger siblings often want to be exactly like their older sisters. Beauty and teen clothing companies have realized this and are using this to their advantage. Teen clothing companies such as Aeropostale and American Eagle have created clothing lines for children. Bonne Bell makes Lip Smackers as well as other cosmetics for children. It's no wonder young women have eating disorders and low self esteem. In a society that is promoting what seems to be perfection, good will never be good enough. There are a plethora of ways to explain why this is, but that's the simple truth.
While some companies exploit women's' insecurities, Dove decided to take a radical path, which I believe was a genius move. The people at Dove realized the power they have to start change and decided to utilize this power. I commend their efforts to change the conception of beauty and make it more applicable to the general public, not just the top percentile that's beautiful enough to become supermodels. I really appreciate the fact that Dove's team began to ask and seriously think about how TV ads impact the females close to them and take a personal approach to their advertising rather than simply trying to make money. Step by step, Dove is changing the picture of beauty.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Chapter 14 synthesis part 2: Technology and Photography
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Synthesis of Reading
Some see photography as an art; others see it as a means of self expression. The advent of technology allows photography as an art to be offered to the masses rather than the select few who can afford the equipment. The iPhone 4 recently because the most popular camera used to take pictures submitted to Flickr. This shows just how diverse and accessible photography has become. The iPhone 4 camera can be used to create almost professional looking photos as well as typical "taken in the bathroom mirror" blurry pictures. It all depends on who has the camera. Also, the fact that good cameras are so accessible means that more photographs are being created; more people are calling themselves photographers. Also, mass pictures combined with mass media means that anyone with an internet connection can access and critique these photos. The range of quality of photos has increased dramatically as more people gain access to cameras. Some people take a multitude of pictures of almost anything; others take a select few of a select few subjects.
Before photography became available to the masses, photographers had to carefully select their shots. Everything had to be set up; nothing was automatic. Some argue that automation of photos takes the life and spirit out of them. However, others argue that automation of cameras allows greater access to good photography. The photographer is allowed to focus solely on how the photo will look rather than what must be done to achieve this look. The advent of digital photography means that certain moments in time can captured just as easily as they can be deleted. It has become so much easier to delete a photo. Before digital photography, each picture had a cost associated with it. Now, that cost only really kicks in once a print is made, and one can choose to only make prints of specific photos. Digital photography means that the photographer has multiple chances to get that one, special shot. The photographer can also get rid of undesirable shots. This reflects the human desire for perfection and happiness, the desire for all things to be good and none to be bad.
In addition, photo editing software is becoming available to the masses. Piknic allows users to edit pictures online. Programs such as Picasa allow amateurs to learn how to properly enhance (without over editing) their pictures. Technology and photography now go hand in hand; most of the photos we have today would not exist without modern technology.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Analyzing an Ad
This is a TV ad trying to convince the audience to buy Pepsi Cola rather than Coca Cola. It is from the Summer 2011 Pepsi ad campaign in the US. The creators of the ad capitalized on the fact that it is summertime and on the general attitude of summer, utilizing pathos. The Pepsi is given to the bear that is on a party boat, while the Coke is given to the bears that are sleeping on a beach. Logos is utilized here; those who drink Pepsi will have fun. Also, the Coke is shown in a glass bottle, whereas the Pepsi is shown in a can. This implies that Coke is old fashioned, and the Pepsi is the more current drink. Progression to modern times is demonstrated as the polar bear tosses away the Coke and drinks the Pepsi. The tagline at the end “Summertime is Pepsi time” gives Pepsi the carefree feeling of summer. The informal, singsong voice used also enhances the carefree summer feeling. The theme is that drinking Pepsi will lead to good times with family.
This ad features two families of polar bears. One family, the one consuming the Coke, is white and has been in the artic all summer long. The other family, consuming Pepsi, has been on a boat and is tan. These two are part of a larger family unit, as the cubs exclaim “Uncle Teddy!” at the sight of the tan polar bear. This ad is a play off of the Coca Cola ads featuring the polar bears; classically, polar bears are depicted drinking Coca Cola. Spoken words and images are interdependent upon each other to make the ad a success, though the ad would still be effective without the spoken words due to the written words at the end and the labeling of the Coke and Pepsi bottles. At the end, “Summertime is Pepsi Time” is both sung (spoken) and written. “Summertime is” is in a flowing, cursive font, maintaining the feel-good, carefree mood. “Pepsi Time” is in a simple, bold font, reinforcing what the commercial is promoting. The Pepsi logo is also shown, doing the same thing. These rhetorical strategies work in tandem in an attempt to convince the reader that buying Pepsi will result in fun, carefree times.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Analysis of a Cartoon
Aptly named "Tech Support", this cartoon addresses the nightmare that is calling technical support. The customer is having problems with his modem and knows exactly where the problem is coming from. However, the person helping him has to follow a script. The customer is put on the phone with a very smart woman who immediately solves the problem and gives the customer a secret password that will get him to someone who “knows a minimum of two programming languages”. These are the types of people who are really useful for tech support. However, the customer then wakes up and realizes it was all a dream.
This cartoon was produced in the United States online in the last few years. The cartoon has nine frames that are all sequential. The first eight are part of the dream, while in the last frame the main character wakes up from the dream. The use of multiple frames allows the conflict to be more clearly developed. Many of the xkcd comics deal with current issues. The cartoonist, Randall Munroe, emphasizes the words by making the images extremely basic. Most of Munroe’s comics have a similar format (emphasis on words with basic images). According to his biography, he lives in Massachusetts. He has worked on robots for NASA and also occasisonally writes comics for IBM.
The primary message is that technical support is horridly unhelpful. The people on the other end need to take a minute to listen to the actual problem rather than simply reading their scripts. The dialogue in the cartoon demonstrates this. The cartoon does have a fairly serious tone, as it mainly shows conflict. The use of serious tone makes the comic relatable to everyone who has had to call tech support. The cartoonist relies on empathy to convey the message of the cartoon. This use of empathy means that the cartoon will have the strongest effect on those who have had bad experiences with tech support. However, the general public will appreciate the comic.
The characters are drawn as stick figures; they have generic features. Some stereotypes of people who would be helpful are created, such as the engineer wearing cargo pants, or the girl with the poster. These types of people could be classified as geeks. The customer shows movement between each frame, while the first tech support person is lazily sitting in his chair. Because the customer has an experimental operating system, it can be assumed he is an intelligent person. The female tech support person is sitting upright in her chair, leaning over her computer. These characters are probably entirely fictional, but the cartoon is based on a real event. The computers and desks drawn are very basic, adding emphasis to the dialogue.
Munroe uses empathy, dialogue, and basic imagery to describe the nightmare that is tech support. The fact that the secret word found in the 7th panel only exists in a dream implies that tech support will forever remain a bad experience.
This comic can be found here: http://xkcd.com/806/
This comic can be found here: http://xkcd.com/806/
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Examples of Rhetoric
Examples of Rhetoric
Rhetoric is everywhere we go and is in a multitude of forms from TV commercials to posters. The main purpose is often to convince a person to join a group or buy a product.
I have seen many brightly colored posters around campus encouraging students to take part in events or join organizations. These posters often include promises of free t shirts or free food. Posters asking students to audition for musicals promise students do not need very much previous background and promise that students will have good times while involved in the musical. I have received many emails from Greek Life encouraging me to rush for a sorority, promising me I will make close friends and may gain power. TV commercials combine the best of words, images, and music, such as those pesky infomercials. One such infomercial is the one for the PillowPet.
However, the art of rhetoric is not new. During both of the World Wars, short phrases combined with powerful images are highly memorable examples of rhetoric. The Committee on Public Information was created to convince Americans to support the First World War; it was so successful support of the war grew into hatred of the Germans. This committee created the infamous “I want you” poster.
In the same manner, the War Production Board utilized the “Rosie the Riveter” posters to convince women to participate in the war effort at home in factories, on farms, etc.
Rhetoric comes in many forms, from short, to-the-point posters, to long, eloquent speeches, such as those given by people in positions of high power. However, it all still serves the same general purpose: to make you believe in a position or product.
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