Finding Mr/Ms Right

This week’s lesson, unlike others, was very easy for me to make connections between all the texts and videos that were received. What theme I noticed in the first video was carried out or continued through the other videos or texts. I noticed that the key theme or concept was gender issues. Within this theme, I noticed that problems arise that make finding who is right and who is wrong difficult. For example, within the video “Woman creates monstrous dating profile,” I noticed that they were almost putting the blame on men. In a sense, this can be true, but what else is a man supposed to do when the first thing they notice is a very good-looking woman? Although this columnist did not expect much of a rise from this experiment, what else could she have expected when she posted an image of an Australian model? However, what I found interesting was her answer to the question of what surprised her the most. She said that she was shocked with the amount of nonsense that some men are willing to put up with for a pretty photo. When I reached the end of this video, I was wondering whether the women columnist that started this experiment is the wrong one, or if the males are to blame.

What related to that video was the “Hanging Fire” piece by Audre Lorde. Even though the narrator in this poem does not mention a gender, we can assume that it is a girl because the narrator says, “the boy I can’t live without.” However, that is not what sparked my interest. What I noticed was that she said “wearing braces,” or “I should have been on math team.” As a male, or anyone in general, having braces is viewed as unattractive. While being on a math team is “nerdy.” Now I am not saying if you have braces you are unattractive, I just think people would prefer to not have them on. Although this piece of writing makes it hard to identify gender differences, we are drawn in to the unattractiveness of the girl. What also related to this theme was the “It’s Not About The Nail” video. This video was very entertaining, and yet portrayed a very true interaction between a male and a female. I think the not so hidden message was the fact that males like to work things out and fix the problem, when females are more about sharing their story and wanting others to listen. That is what I found comical, other than the nail in her head.

The last few are very tricky, yet they all match up to the theme in a very odd way. “Women and Marriage at Princeton” opened my eyes to realize that women are often times interested in attractiveness and money (I guess becoming an educator wasn’t a good choice after all). Unlike women, men seek a higher education and looks, which I have to agree with. On another tangent of odd statistics, the NCJRS article states that although women commit to more minor crimes, men crimes are more serious and lead to more investigations. This is another interpretation or view on the way men and women are viewed. The last text is hard for me to touch on, but I do know that “Trifles” seemed to touch more on gender and the sides that people select. However, I was curious if the men’s choice of picking of sides was due to their places within their group or the comments that were made towards them throughout the piece.

In the end, the right from wrong can’t be determined, but within certain situations we can see what side would be easier to support. Although this lesson was a bit of a curve ball, I was thankful that I was able to find easier connections between the texts.

In Search of a Hero

Well, what is your favorite superhero? We have all heard this question, yet how many times have you heard the answer of Wonder Woman or the Muslim Green Lantern? Based upon these readings, I noticed that often times we perceive superheroes as strong, manly, victorious, and masculine. However, majority of these readings opened my eyes to realize that comics and superheroes can often times be very sexist and even racist.

What immediately puzzled me were the videos and articles on Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the Camelot trailer, and “The Crowning of King Arthur.” Because this early time period is something that I am not interested in and know little about, I searched through some other student’s blogs for help. For example, within the Camelot trailer, Lancelot was expressed as the perfect knight, while King Arthur was shown as a clean-cut white male (a typical superhero look). Within Monty Python, I noticed that the King was almost disrespected. For example, he was not admired or looked up like a typical superhero because he was placed within his position. One of the lower class individuals even said, “well I didn’t vote for you.” Then the man next to her continues by saying the king can’t wield supreme executive power just because some watery tart threw a sword at him. What I realized was there is an obvious separation between classes that separate the heroes from the non-heroes. They are not as admirable, or they do not wield qualities that a typical superhero would.

Which leads me to my next point, do superheroes need to be strong and manly and victorious? Alternatively, I ask, what makes a superhero? Tying back in to my initial statement, “Meet the new Muslim-American Green Lantern” shares racial biases. They even started the article by saying that the comic-book world has taken bold steps to diversify its landscape.  What I found particularly interesting was how this superheroes first major obstacle was not a super-villain, but a “federal agent who deems him as a terrorist.” What I also found quite strange was how one of the categories within this article was asking if this comic is any good. Is this because of racial prejudices because the superhero is Muslim or because the writers did a poor job? Similar to this article, “Who Gets To Be A Superhero?” and “What If X-men Were Black” also deals with race and identity. The main comic within this article is the X-men. Their first example of racism came when they mentioned that Wolverine’s snarling and predatory aggression resembles the stereotype of an angry black man. There were many more examples, but I guess without even noticing it myself, I believe people over analyze things that could possibly continue or move on without discussion.

The last two articles seemed to relate to one another, but some may disagree. What I noticed within “Superheroines” was that more often than not, female superheroes are changed or altered to newer generations. They seem to fluctuate, rather than stay the same character or withhold the same qualities throughout time. This article was expressing that some people want to steer away from the typical white strong and victorious male, but they can never seem to hold onto a female superhero because they are always changing. Within “Superman and the Jumper,” I noticed that the typical white male was depicted. I do understand that it is Superman, but is it a coincidence that I enjoyed this article the best?

By the way, mine is Batman.

Back to the Future

Speaking of zombies, the TV show “The Walking Dead” just returned on February 9, 2014, and I could not have been any more excited. Now getting back on track, many of these texts share the common themes of government control, zombies and technology, and even I guess, the future. What I initially found intriguing was the similarities between the YouTube video, “Why Do We Love Zombies?,” and the article of the Dystopian Timeline to The Hunger Games.  I noticed that within the YouTube video the guy was saying that we are attracted to zombies and such monsters because they symbolize something in real life, or something we are not fond of. He also continued his spiel by saying that we all feel a little threatened or pursued by technology. To really connect the themes I mentioned above, the book The Hunger Games is very about a higher power or government that has way more technological advances than the other districts. These two can relate because not only are we scared of zombies or are the people within The Hunger Games threatened by the capitol, we notice they both symbolize scary parts of good things or scary parts of scary things. This is exactly what the man said within his YouTube video.

Another theme that was common within majority of the texts was a controlling government or a higher power that is threatening. Night of the Living Dead shows the government taking control and administering the people around them. They seem to be in charge of the zombie killing, but within the last scene, they mistake the protagonist for a zombie and decide to burn him as well. This in a sense makes the government the enemies just as much as it makes them the hero’s or higher powers. Similar to this, Harrison Bergeron is a short story about a dystopian area that creates everyone as equals, however, although this seems like a good idea, the story was cut out to make the government as the antagonists or the enemy. Once again, the government seems to be in control although they seem to be hiding behind their so-called “good idea.” What is also very similar to these two texts was the podcast Welcome to Night Vale, episode 1. It describes a town that seems to have odd occurrences or paranormal activities that are being transformed or reversed by the government. Whatever the citizens see or believe as signs of hope, the government keeps tearing down.

The last point that needs to be addressed can be seen on the graph within the Dystopian Timeline To The Hunger Games. Whenever dystopian books seem to become popular within modern culture, a war or dramatic event happens, or is it the other way around? Do wars or dramatic events influence writers that later on tend to sway the thoughts of people or draw readers in? We may never know. However, with dystopian books on the rise within the past few years, should we as citizens be afraid of a war, a dramatic event, or possibly the government taking control and only protecting themselves?  We may find out sooner than we can expect.

Just Dreamin'?

One theme that I noticed within The House on Mango Street, “For Poor, Leap to College Often Ends in a Hard Fall,” Chris Rock’s Tupac Shakur Boulevard, and Green day’s “Wake Me Up When September Ends” is the concept of dreams. Although dreaming is often associated with a happy message or a frightened moment, each of the texts all tie in with low socioeconomic status or a specific society that may be judged or not accepted based upon their goals or motives.

The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, dives into the life of a young girl named Esperanza and how she grows up. To set up the theme of dreams, the author focuses on this narrators rough childhood and how she struggles with life issues, gender roles, and how even her ethnicity also brings her conflicts. Through her struggles and conflicts, Esperanza seeks to break away from Mango Street and how she has dreams to remove herself from these hard times. What I found particularly interesting was how persistent she was in leaving the street while she went through trust issues with her family and friends. Her dream was always kept alive.

Similar to Cisneros book, “For Poor, Leap to College Often Ends in a Hard Fall” included the theme of dreams when they deliver the experiences that students with low socioeconomic states push through. This writer intends to capture the reader when starting the article with “I don’t want to work at Wal-Mart.” In a way, that is a dream or goal within itself. I have witnessed people say that they go to college because they do not want to be flipping burgers for the rest of their life or working the drive through at McDonalds. This related to this article because this personal story shares about a girl that pursues college after high school, but seems to suffer through school after she receives a job. What is very interesting about this article is the fact that attending college is a dream for majority of high school students, yet we fail to realize that school can be very tough for specific people; often times people with a low socioeconomic status or students that pay for their own college.

The next text was hard for me. Although I understand the goal or motive behind Chris Rock’s petition to name a boulevard, I am curious if this ties in to class division or again, socioeconomic class. What I found interesting was that Chris Rock seems to interview or question white individuals. Was this because they are considered the higher class in this area, or because they more likely to deny the petition because Tupac is a black rapper? This video was difficult for me to analyze, but I may understand the point of this text if we were supposed to identify the dream of this video as Chris Rock’s petition to change the boulevards name.

Lastly, “Wake Me Up When September Ends” seems to go within its own category. The beginning of the music video did mention dreams when the young male said, “You know our life is short. They say you wake up one day, and, on that day, all of your dreams and everything you would wish for and wanted, gone, just like that. People, people get old and things change and situations change.” This quote is very important. The writer or director of the music video implied that dreams may disappear or be washed away with age. Sometimes, dreams can also be altered. Although I went through a high school Green Day phase, I never once realized what this song was implying before I listened to the start of the music video. The idea and concept of dreams was very evident. However, are there any kinds of dreams that may stick with you for a lifetime?