Blogging Around

This entry is in response to Graicey's iMedia post about the Charlie Brown Christmas and the meaning it brings to the holiday.

This is totally something that you would write about! Charlie Brown totally provides backing and meaning towards the ever cheesy 'true meaning of Christmas.' The holiday has evolved hand in hand with society, becoming more and more focused on the commercial edge rather than family and togetherness. Now that we are nearing the big day, its easy this taking place. For example, think of 93.9 on the radio. Every night at seven, the station streams Delilah, a popular talk show. As corny as it sounds, every caller on the show is told to slow down and take a break from the stress of the hectic holidays to appreciate the simpler things. Although her message is often repeated and easily gets old, it is an important one that brings us back to the real essence of Christmas.

This entry is in response to Chelsea's iMedia post about how one can find meaning in cliches.

I definitely agree with you! The repetition of cliches often get old and boring very quickly, which makes them painful to listen to. But when these sayings were originated, the meaning was fresh. These meanings are now hidden behind words that people don't even think about anymore. Because of the season, a common example of this is the phrase 'the true meaning of Christmas.' What does this even mean anymore? It is difficult to see the true meaning of Christmas in our society today, but this phrase can help us find it. When you think about what this season is all about, what is true, you get past your commercialized surroundings and see real joy. Even though the actual words are over used, the meanings behind them never grow old.

iMedia: Holst's The Planets

Being a relative of the famous composer Gustav Holst (he dropped the von off of his last name), his powerful music has always been of high importance in my family. In his most known work, The Planets, the Jupiter movement in this link is truly inspiring in our everyday lives.

This movement progresses through many different stages, each one bringing new feelings and emotions. The piece starts off very bold with all sections of the orchestra blaring. Towards the middle (around minute three on the link) of this movement we hear calmness and tranquility. Smooth rhythms and slurred notes allow the audience to feel at ease. Yet the piece ends with a bang (around minute six), bringing back the power of the horns and strings. This can most definitely be considered an emotional roller coaster.

The planet of Jupiter itself is one of raw power, with its enormous size and breathtaking color. It is frequently viewed in the night sky, its light casting all the way down to earth. It may be difficult to relate to something as vast as Jupiter, but the emotions the piece creates are more important than the reference to the planet. The Jupiter movement matters because it illustrates our lives today. As humans, we experience many different things, each creating their own set of emotions. They greatly vary, as we see in the movement of Jupiter.

People today often underestimate the power of classical music and prefer the modern sounds of today's pop culture. Yet classical music has always been there, inspiring the many generations that have been lucky enough to hear it. Sometimes its nice to take a step back from the rush of today and simply listen to the sounds of the past and let your mind wander.

Connection: King Lear and King Triton

The king of the sea in The Little Mermaid and the king of Britain possess many of the same qualities. The contexts of the two might seem hard to compare, but the relationships with these leaders and their daughters can put things in a new perspective.

Both kings have great power and both want the very best for their daughters. Yet with this power comes many rules, rules that can easily be broken by rebellious daughters, in this case both Cordelia and Ariel. In The Little Mermaid, Ariel disobeys her father when interacting with the humans, something forbidden for the merpeople. In King Lear, Cordelia rebels against her father by refusing to express her love to him merely for the purpose of inheriting his wealth.

Despite the actions of these daughters, both Kings still have love in their hearts. These relationships matter because by examining the fatherly side of these powerful leaders, we can better understand their actions, which will ultimately help us comprehend the whole story. Triton is willing to give his life for his daughter despite her actions because of love. Lear feels immense regret from his rude actions towards Cordelia because of love. Even the power of being a king cannot harm the father and daughter relationships of King Lear and King Triton.

When we compare King Lear and King Triton, we can see that the unrealistic situations in The Little Mermaid show how unreal and abstract the events are in King Lear. The rash actions and decisions of the characters in King Lear can be hard to imagine, but when we consider the similarities to those of children's stories, it gives some meaning and reason behind them. Actions like this include when Gloucester's eyes are actually pulled out of his head, when Kent is willing to disguise himself to retain a relationship with Lear, and when Edmund betrays his brother and turns him into a beggar.

Despite this being my second Disney blog post, the characters in their films are full of problems that can be compared with the problems of characters in almost anything, including Shakespeare. They give an abstracted view of reality, which is often the very subject of great pieces of literature.

360 Degrees: Party in the U.S.A.

Party in the U.S.A. is currently the number two song on iTunes, and has been for quite a while now. The play count for this song is currently 129 on my computer. It's on every girl's iPod. It's played at every party. But why is a teeny bopper song like this dominating the radio? What makes this song so special?

People constantly criticize Miley Cyrus for her inappropriate and trashy behavior, myself included. Maybe some people are drawn in by this, wanting to make fun and laugh her. They use her songs as an outlet for frustration and disgust. I am guilty of this too, for one can always find something to laugh at in her music videos or shows. If you just read some of the iTunes comments on Party in the U.S.A., you can find plenty of examples of this.

It is difficult to take anything Hannah Montana or Miley Cyrus seriously. Listen to some of the lyrics:

So I put my hands up
They’re playing my song,
And the butterflies fly away
Noddin’ my head like yeah
Moving my hips like yeah

What does "like yeah" even mean? And how can you rhyme with the same word? If this is what music has become, then that is pretty sad on our part. What does this say about our society?

I am curious about the other perspectives of this song. As I listen to it right now, I realize that it has a catchy beat. It can put you in a good mood, pump you up for a party, or simply make you want to dance. This is why it has become so popular.

This song can be viewed as a sad representation of the youth, a feel good pop tune, just another Miley song, or anything in between. These views relate because they represent different people and different moods. They show how people both blend and clash. I'm not saying that life can be viewed as a Miley Cyrus song, god no. How you view it is your own choice, your own perspective. And that's all that anyone can ever do.

Metacognition: Kite Runner Essay

Chronological order has often been difficult for me to follow. In turn, while writing my Kite Runner essay, I struggled to write the essay in a correct order of events. I was surprised to find out that my mind often doesn't think in sequential order. Sometimes thoughts come in a random string, all relating to one another rather than coming in the order the author presents them. From this, I speculated whether there actually was a "correct order" of thinking. I find that the author spits out their thoughts in a pattern that makes sense to them. From there, the reader can then judge and rearrange their thinking to fit into their own individual logical mindset. This is a skill that allows any piece of writing to be universal, for the reader can make the ideas and their sequence all their own, which is very effective. I have come to appreciate this quality of my thinking, for putting your own twist on the ideas presented in the book can make the whole story become new again.

Yet when one changes the order of events, the flow and rhythm can often be obstructed. This is something that I would like to improve on in my own writing. Transitions are key to having good beats and pulses in writing and there presence in every paragraph is paramount. In the future, I hope to be able to have more efficient and powerful transitions from paragraph to paragraph and idea to idea. This should enhance the overall progression of the paper, making it more pleasing to the reader.

Blogging Around

This entry is a response to Sam's Blog, the post about the connection between artwork and writing.

I totally agree with you! In fact, many people consider writing a form of art, for the two share countless similarities. In third grade, our class worked on artist project. Each student chose an artist to research, write a small paragraph, and then imitate a piece of their work. I chose Jackson Pollock for his unique work. Ever since then I have been a fan. The thing I love most about his paintings it that every time you look at one, you find new meaning. You see a new splotch of color or a vivid stripe, and the whole painting becomes new again. That is also how one can describe a great novel. You are constantly discovering new things and making new observations. There are hidden meanings, words, and even emotions inside every page. When these small details are brought to life, new substances are found. This makes rereading a book or gazing a painting again even more exciting then the first time around, for you now notice the little details that really matter.

This entry is a response to Mackenzie's blog, the post about the importance of one's geographic location and its affect on one's life.

Your post reminded me of the Marc Gold assembly last year. In his talk, he reminds us of how lucky we really are. This luck is based on our geographic location. He brought up an important issue towards the end of his lecture that has really stuck with me. He simply asked us what the difference was between all of us sitting in this theater and the poor and suffering African children in his powerful slide show. The difference was simply luck. Luck defined by where we live. Our circumstances are represented by our location in the world. They can create problems or give us advantages, allow us to live freely or restrict our feelings, and determine the way we carry out our lives. Your post is an important example of the way our world effects our lives.

Connection: The Kite Runner and The Lion King

Disney movies are often criticized for their stereotypical depiction of women and unrealistic relationships. Yet some, including the Lion King, are true classics with nice kid friendly lessons and addicting songs. These lessons may seem simple on the surface, but when they are evaluated, we can see that they pertain to the issues of stories aimed for the older generation.

Amir viewed Baba as a superior human being. Baba was an extraordinary man who accomplished much in his life, and Amir wanted more than anything to become like him and constantly yearned for his love and affection. Simba also views his father, Mufasa, in the same way that Amir does. Mufasa is the king of the Pride Lands, a position of high respect. And Simba wants nothing more than to follow in his father's footsteps, steps of success. Yet both of these relationships are dysfunctional for reasons that may not be so obvious.

Both Amir and Simba see their fathers as highly regarded people/animals. When one views a family member in this way, they put themselves on a different level, one of a lower class with less value. This causes the person to feel intimidated and almost frightened by their so called superiors. Amir constantly compares himself to Baba and therefore always is disappointed that he is not more like his father. Simba also struggles with the same problem, for Simba yearns to be king like his father one day. But Simba worries that he is not worthy to be king, for he could never be as powerful as his father, never live up to his greatness and legacies. For example, after Mufasa's death, Simba views him as a powerful god like creature in the sky rather than a lion like himself.

This is an important element to evaluate because it helps us to better understand the actions of both Amir and Simba. Simba hesitates to return the the Pride Lands when his homeland is in need because he fears that he won't be able to save his father's land and control it with the grace and success that Mufasa had. Similarly, Amir frames Hassan for stealing his money and watch partly to force Hassan and Ali to leave, and partly to become closer to his father. Having Baba to himself is just what Amir wants. And with that comes more attention, more love, more affection from his powerful father.

In short, both Simba and Amir's feelings towards their fathers are feelings of intimidation, fear, and a yearn for their affection. With a better knowledge of these relationships comes more understanding of the motives for the actions of both characters, which ultimately helps us better understand the message that the author or screenwriter is trying to get across.

Best of Week: Nature vs. Nurture

During class this week, we discussed the nature vs. nurture principle and applied it to Assef in the Kite Runner. Most all of the readers of Kite Runner are thoroughly disgusted with the character of Assef the first time the book mentions him. His cruel thoughts and unbelievable actions make him the most hated character in the novel. In order to get to the roots of Assef, we discussed a very difficult issue. What made Assef this way? Was there something truly abnormal with him and his health? Or was it the unique way in which he was brought up, the way society has shaped him? This questions brings up the nature vs. nurture argument.

Assef has never known discipline. He has managed to obtain the ability to control everyone around him, from his obedient followers as friends, to even his parents. He acts with no consideration towards others, not understanding the feelings of guilt or sympathy. And the sick part is, he enjoys every minute of it.

There is another side to Assef's personality. The cause of his actions could simply be nature, the way he was born. Amir labels Assef as a sociopath, someone who was born differently than everyone else, someone who has a mental disability. It's not Assef's fault that he acts the way he does. He's just different.

After listening to this discussion and hearing both sides of the argument, I have come to the conclusion that Assef is not a sociopath, but instead a fully functional human being. His upbringings and overall weird lifestyle have contorted Assef into a disturbing human, one who laughs at other's pain and scoffs at hurt feelings. This is because Assef is not stupid, but rather quite intelligent. He knows every action that he takes and understands it, for the adult Assef becomes a very powerful member of the Taliban, a position with high respects.

We'd all like to say that we don't care what other people think about us. We'd like to think that our lives are not determined by what other people say, that they don't have an affect on us. But we do. It's a fact in every one's lives, and we must understand both the nature and the nurtured side have affected who we are today.

Change of Mind: The Blue Sweater

In this week's issue of Time Magazine, there was an intriguing article titled 25 Responsibility Pioneers. The article listed twenty five companies, nonprofits, and activists that are really making a difference in the world. Included are powerful individuals, large corporations and innovative thinkers. As I continued to read the article, I discovered a photo of Jacqueline Novogratz. Next to her picture was a brief summary of her work and accomplishments with the Acumen fund. After seeing this article and reading Novogratz's book, I really changed my opinion of her life and the achievements that followed.

While reading The Blue Sweater, I often questioned how unique her story really was. I mean, there must be other do-gooder global citizens out there, right? People who are constantly working to better their global community and dedicate their whole lives to the cause? These questions ultimately made me belittle Novogratz's work, for I assumed that there were more Jacqueline Novogratzs in the world who we weren't hearing about. I also wondered why it was this particular book we were assigned. Why her work? Why her story?

Yet after seeing Novogratz's work in a popular magazine, many of these questions were answered, forcing me to reevaluate the judgement that I had made about The Blue Sweater. The Time article allowed me to see the Acumen Fund's originality along with Novogratz's individuality. We read The Blue Sweater because of the author's new and unique perspective on charity work. We discussed her story because of the difference it was making in the world, and how the future would be affected by her work.

Seeing Jacqueline Novogratz's face outside of The Blue Sweater allowed me to view her work in new way. I was able to appreciate her unprecedented thoughts and her bold approach to improving the current methods of charity. I gave more credit to the discussions and class time we spent discussing the book. The Blue Sweater illustrates a powerful example of what a strong individual is and how they live their life, something we should all strive to be. After reading the book and have realized the connection with it and the public world, I have realized that Jacqueline Novogratz is truly a global citizen and that her work is touching the lives of millions around the world.