tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33965370772183768092024-03-04T22:53:09.644-08:00Becca American StudiesBecca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-66511037270002171942015-06-01T17:01:00.002-07:002015-06-01T17:01:55.974-07:00Emma Sulkowicz's “Mattress Performance (Carry That Weight)”<h1 dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Columbia University student Emma Sulko</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">wicz has been hauling a mattress around campus in protest to how her sexual assault case against student Paul Nungesser was carried out. Her alleged attacker was cleared of responsibility. I was recently talking to my brother about Emma Sulkowicz and her “Mattress Performance” that she has been doing since last fall. My brother goes to Columbia University, and has seen Sulkowicz carrying this mattress on campus. I learned that on her graduation day, which was just a few days ago, May 19, she carried her mattress on stage with her to receive her diploma. And the president of the university did not shake her hand. Her choice to carry her mattress onstage is very controversial. After all, commencement means to start, or to begin, so perhaps this would have been a good time to try and relieve her burden, and start fresh. However, this burden will never really leave her, and while she could have put down her mattress, the weight of the burden will sadly stay with her forever. </span></h1>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I then became interested in how this all happened and started researching about the case. I came across a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New York Times Magazine</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> article by Emily Bazelon entitled, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/29/magazine/have-we-learned-anything-from-the-columbia-rape-case.html?_r=0" target="_blank">“Have We Learned Anything From the Columbia Rape Case?”</a> This article looked at the story through different lenses, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sulko</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">wicz’s and Nungesser’s, to provide a more complete story of what happened.</span></h1>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sulko</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">wicz and Nungesser were engaged in a relationship prior to the assault, which is part of what makes this particular case not so black-and-white. But despite this, she has chosen to take a stand against what she knows is a serious issue, both personally and for all victims. The “Mattress Performance” was a “</span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">powerful image of a woman publicly shouldering the burden of a violation she felt in her bedroom” (Bazelon).</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> She felt violated and felt the university did not properly handle her hearing, and she dealt with her burden in a way that made the issue unable to be ignored any longer. It demanded to be talked about, because she was carrying around a 50 pound mattress to all her classes.</span></div>
<br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sulko</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">wicz did was a brave act, standing up for sexual assault victims everywhere, and highlighting the sad fact that universities often deal with these cases poorly, not hearing the victim out. Perhaps her bravery will even inspire other victims to speak out. </span>Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-19830635009508173632015-05-27T16:34:00.001-07:002015-05-27T16:34:22.345-07:00The Problems with the "Abortion Roadblock"<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Twenty-six states have now imposed a mandatory waiting period between the day when a woman first visits an abortion clinic and the day she is actually allowed to get an abortion, according to an article in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Atlantic</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> entitled <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/05/waiting-periods-and-the-price-of-abortion/393962/" target="_blank">"Waiting Periods and the Rising Price of Abortion," </a>written by Olga Khazan. This ends up raising the overall cost of having an abortion, because women must make now arrangements twice in order to have one. As Khazan puts it, it is just "another attempt by pro-lifers to bring about the end of abortion by a thousand restrictions."</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It brings up a point we discussed today in class. To what extent can the government get involved in the choices that people make? For instance, the government regulates the restrictions on tobacco, creating a sort of "sin-tax" (a heightened price on the product in the hopes to discourage people from "sinning"). The "sinning," i</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;">n this case,</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> would be getting an abortion. It is clear that these pro-life lawmakers imposing these laws feel this way, based on their language alone. In </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Atlantic </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-indent: 36pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">article, Missouri state Senator David Sater said he is "sure that the unborn child would like to see an extra 48 hours for the mother to decide on whether or not to have the abortion." He turns it around on the woman, questioning her right to make the decision herself. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This waiting period is yet another hurdle women are now forced to go through. A woman who goes to an abortion clinic has already made an incredibly difficult decision. She does not need yet another hurdle in her way. If she has other children, she must make arrangements for them, like childcare. She would have to take off from work, most likely losing pay for that day. She would also have to make arrangements to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">get</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to the clinic, which can be hours away, and expensive to travel to. Once she actually gets to the clinic, she is told to think about it and come back in 2 or 3 days, having to endure it all over again, which is emotionally and financially draining. This waiting period "made abortion more expensive by 48% for poor women" (Khazan). Abortion now has a sin-tax that is affecting women, especially poor women, who have even more trouble getting past these financial hurdles. </span></div>
<br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Aside from the financial part or this issue, are women gaining anything from this mandatory delay? 75% of women said they "couldn't name a single benefit of the waiting period" (Khazan). I would argue that the majority of women who seek out and travel to an abortion clinic have already come to their very difficult decision. But that decision gets questioned as soon as they walk in the door. Shouldn't this just be a choice a woman gets to make?</span>Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-68382242401919958152015-05-19T09:05:00.000-07:002015-05-19T09:05:11.061-07:00The Working Mother<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I recently came across a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New York Times</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> article entitled “Mounting Evidence of Advantages for Children of Working Mothers” by Claire Cain Miller that displayed a shocking statistic: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">41% of adults think the increase in working mothers is “bad for society.”</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I was stunned. Nearly half the population still thinks mothers should be kept out of the work force. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> However, there is evidence that being raised by a working mother has enormous benefits for children. In the United States, “daughters of working mothers earned 23% more than daughters of stay-at-home mothers” (Miller). And it wasn’t just daughters who were impacted: “sons spent seven and a half more hours a week on child care… and were significantly more likely to have a wife who worked” (Miller). So that 41% who claim that a working mother has a negative influence on her children and therefore on society may have failed to think about the impact that a strong female role model will have on children. It is undeniable that having a mother in the workforce sets a good example for impressionable children. These mothers serve as role models who are combating gender stereotypes and encouraging their kids to do the same.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Some question the correlation in this study. Does a working mother actually</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> cause</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> her daughter to work? There are are most definitely other factors that go into this, like education for example, or where a child is brought up. Harvard Business School professor Kathleen McGinn is the author of the study, and has controlled the data for factors like “age, education, and family makeup,” but the effects do not shrink significantly at all. Miller claims that “either way,” the study is a “shift away from focusing on whether working mothers hurt children;” we are moving “toward a richer understanding of the relationship between work and family.” Even if there are other forces impacting the data, the study has put to rest the falsehood that a working mother is “bad for society.” It’s really just about a tolerance we need to develop for different choices people are making regarding their family life. It is not about discouraging stay-at-home moms; it's about encouraging a mother's </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>choice</i></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to work.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-50618413908637312642015-05-17T16:19:00.001-07:002015-05-17T16:19:53.204-07:00America and The "Middle Class"<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Recently in class we have been discussing the topic of class and classism. I came across an article a few days ago in </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Atlantic</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> entitled<a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/05/what-does-middle-class-even-mean/392471/" target="_blank"> "What Does 'Middle Class' Even Mean?"</a> written by Gillian B. White. It talks about class perception and how people choose to identify to one particular class. We discussed in class how it is the American way to identify as Middle Class, but what does that term really mean? Some would argue it is the middle 50% of Americans (their income is more than the bottom 25% and less than the top 25%). In 2013, the Survey of Consumer Finances stated that these are families with incomes "between $24,000 to $90,000." But if you take into account other factors besides solely income, like property or "liabilities," this same "middle class" expands to an enormous spectrum. This would mean the middle class would have "anywhere between $9,000 to $317,000." Families within this range would lead entirely different lives. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So maybe class is not about dividing up people based on income. Class can be </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"as much about perception and comparison as it is about measurable metrics, like money"</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (White). It's not just a socioeconomic matter, it's a way of life. Class does not just mean money, it's largely about self-perception and comparing yourself to those around you. In class, we were asked to try to place ourselves into one class category. The fact that we live in a very wealthy area definitely had an impact on people’s own perceptions of their class. A similar survey has been going on at a national level: Gallup began collecting data in 2000, inquiring what class people identified as. Here are the results:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyqGYLyDKYR_H7trBiLOI7bl1lwJ21uCiW4Idurdsa13PipegNBWozURGDYF-CdL_fPvucUwg9mrTgU56sMC1aJIkEubNyWkzkPupR8UgY139Zrso9FMP4l_ZmgWI0bPt9cUKt-GEK1A/s1600/mmmmm.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyyqGYLyDKYR_H7trBiLOI7bl1lwJ21uCiW4Idurdsa13PipegNBWozURGDYF-CdL_fPvucUwg9mrTgU56sMC1aJIkEubNyWkzkPupR8UgY139Zrso9FMP4l_ZmgWI0bPt9cUKt-GEK1A/s640/mmmmm.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Michael Kraus, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Illinois gives an explanation of this graph. We are facing a growing gap between the rich and the poor, and this inequality often results in a tendency for people to compare themselves to one another even more. So, while someone may actually be closer to middle class income-wise, they identify as lower because of this enormous gap between the rich and poor. More and more people are perceiving themselves as "falling out of middle class." This is a problem for America because it affects people's view of social mobility. They have less hope that they can move up classes. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We see this theme of social mobility throughout</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The Great Gatsby</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, as well. The "American Dream" narrative arc is one that is at the core of our country, which is why Gatsby is so fascinating to us. We find out his parents were actually poor farm people and "his imagination had never really accepted them as his parents at all" (Fitzgerald 98). He chose to not "accept" this class he was born into; he rejected it entirely. He created a new persona he aspired to become and "to this conception he was faithful to the end" (98). He did all that he could to achieve his dream, the American Dream, and ended up succeeding, moving from lower, to middle, to upper class.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-33798960899680991162015-04-21T08:35:00.000-07:002015-04-21T08:35:25.271-07:00An American Narrative<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> While researching my junior theme topic, I came across another reason why there exists such a fear of aging in America and why there is such a huge market for things like Botox treatments or "anti-aging" face creams. It all has to do with America's beloved narrative arc. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Earlier in the year, our class studied Kurt Vonnegut’s piece “A Lesson in Creative Writing” in which he maps out the narrative arc that America loves to see in television and films. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small; line-height: 20.7000007629395px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Man in a Hole Narrative Arc</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This arc is also referred to as the “Redemptive Arc,” and it goes back to the roots of Christianity. This is likely a subconscious factor that is playing into peoples’ decisions to get plastic surgery in order to look younger. In the book “You’ve Come a Long Way Baby,” edited by Lilly J. Goren, there is extensive research on what is referred to as “sacrificial atonement.” The book states the “promise” of sacrificial atonement is that </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"through suffering, death has been overcome”</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and that these surgeries promise “the illusion that </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">decay can be ‘treated’</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">” (24). This "suffering" is referring to the actual physical pain of a cosmetic surgery, or perhaps the cost. And while the idea of cheating death, or "treating" it, is impossible, it is something that people, especially women, are continuously trying to achieve. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This psychological reasoning behind wanting to look younger perfectly follows the narrative drawn above. From "Beginning" to "End" on the graph: A woman starts out healthy and youthful; as the woman ages, she feels her looks are fading; she undergoes a painful procedure to "fix" this problem, and is back where she started, in "Good Fortune", looking and feeling youthful. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="line-height: 20.7000007629395px;"> We see this archetype in television all the time too: the woman's goal is to look as young as possible. A character that comes to mind is Madame Lalaurie from American Horror Story: Coven, who was obsessed with looking youthful. There weren't face-lifts during the time that she lived, so she resorted to a horrifying method. She murdered her slaves and used their blood as a sort of anti-aging skin product: she would spread it on her face each night. Her extreme and sickening measures she went to in order to feel young "payed off" for her because she felt it made her skin look young again. This character would do anything to maintain her youthful complexion.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This is also why America is obsessed with "makeover" shows. There is a "man in a hole"(a person who is not conventionally attractive), and the show helps this person to get out of this "hole," and discover their true beauty. "The internal self is matched with the external" (Goren 25) is something we love seeing on television. Our psychological attachment to this narrative is playing an enormous role in our everyday lives. </span></div>
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Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-90950807169119107482015-04-18T15:02:00.001-07:002015-04-18T15:02:42.899-07:00Older Women as Role Models<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> While doing some research for my junior theme </span>earlier in the week<span class="s1">, I started looking at TED Talks and began taking notes on one I found interesting, entitled <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/megan_kamerick_women_should_represent_women_in_media#t-25103" target="_blank">“</a></span><span class="s2"><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/megan_kamerick_women_should_represent_women_in_media#t-25103" target="_blank">Women Should Represent Women in Media.”</a> I found the topic interesting, but realized it did not in fact relate to my junior theme. The TED talk sounded promising at first, since the speaker opens by talking about why she joined the Journalism and Women Symposium: “I wanted female role models.” While the Talk <i>is</i> about women in the media, it focuses on the “incomplete story” we are getting because of the underrepresentation of women as news reporters and sources. This might be too much of a leap to try to work this in to my paper, which is about the underrepresentation of older women in television and films. </span></div>
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<span class="s4"> But when the speaker said the words “female role models,” it made me think of another way this misrepresentation of women in television and films has an effect on our society. Girls and women need olde</span><span class="s2">r female role models to look up to, and there are almost none. <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/media/2011/10/miss-representation-doc-shows-ugly-side-women-media)" target="_blank">An interview was conducted by “Mother Jones” magazine with director Jennifer Seibel Newsom (director of the documentary Miss Representation.)</a> Seibel says that <b>“aging is a beautiful thing; wisdom is a beautiful thing. Frankly, as a woman who's getting older in our culture, I want to see stories about women who are before me, so I can be inspired—because someday I'll be there.”</b> The effects of this underrepresentation of older women does impact women of all ages.</span></div>
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<span class="s2"> I also began looking at some new books that related to my junior theme topic this week,“The Girl on the Magazine Cover”<i> </i>by Carolyn Kitch explores the stereotypes of women in the media. This book will provide more of the "historical look-back" part of my paper. A passage I found very interesting was about the changing times which seemed to bring about this obsession with youth. On a cover of a 1925 <i>Good Housekeeping</i>, showed a mother reading to her child. The mother was "no longer a Victorian matron, the Jazz age mother was slim and pretty, a youthful woman urged to follow the advice of a 1927 Palmolive Soap ad... that reminded readers to 'Keep That Schoolgirl Complexion' long 'after school days" (145). It will be interesting to delve deeper as to why America is fixated on youth. I also began reading a book this weekend called “You’ve Come a Long Way Baby,” edited by Lilly J. Goren, which is about women in popular culture, which will offer a more current view on the subject. I found that the indexes were very helpful, but when I began reading the book without using the index I also found I was able to read about topics that related to my “why” question, just not as specifically. </span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-74977273108536010962015-04-12T17:23:00.001-07:002015-04-12T17:23:34.367-07:00Age and the Entertainment Industry For my topic for Junior Theme, I wanted to focus on portrayals of women in television and movies. As I narrowed down my "WHY" question, I decided to look at the reasons why we seem to only be seeing young women in films and television; why is aging in the entertainment industry a positive for men, but a negative for women?<div>
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I watched two documentaries that dealt with this topic of portrayals of women in the media. The first was called "Miss Representation," available on Netflix. The documentary interviews several women and men on this topic. A quote stood out to me as I was watching. Gloria Steinem, a feminist organizer and writer and the cofounder of Women's Media Center, said that <span style="font-size: large;">"a male-dominant system, a patriarchal system, values women as child-bearers, period</span>. So it limits their value to the time that they are sexually active, reproductively active, and become much less valuable after that." I had never really thought about age this way before, and why youthfulness is so valued in our society. It could really be as primal as the fact that there exists a window in which a woman is fertile.</div>
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Later in "Miss Representation," PhD Martha Lauzen discussed a striking statistic that </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">women in their 20's and 30's make up 71% of women on TV.</span> </div>
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"What we see on broadcast television is that the majority of female characters are in their 20's and 30's. That is just a huge misrepresentation of reality, and that really skews our perceptions." It is saying something interesting about our society that women who are over 40 actually account for 47% of our population in the U.S, but are only making up 26% of women on television. Why are only young women given the spotlight?</div>
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I watched a second documentary titled "Killing Us Softly 4," available on YouTube. It made me think about cosmetic surgery being an aspect of an answer to my "WHY" question. I learned that 91% of cosmetic procedures are performed on women, and from 1997 to 2007, there was a 754% increase in non-surgical procedures like botox and laser treatment. Botox makes the face look tighter, and more youthful. What sparked this intense need for women to look younger? Jean Kilbourne, the writer of "Killing Us Softly" explores this when she says that "This contempt for women who do not measure up is waiting for all of us of course eventually as we age, so no wonder there's such a terror of showing any signs of aging." Women in America seem desperate to turn back the clock and look like a younger version of themselves, why is this?</div>
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Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-26501013809299993322015-04-05T20:02:00.000-07:002015-04-05T20:02:14.501-07:00The "Blurred Lines" Copyright Issue<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> A couple of weeks ago in class, we discussed the “Blurred Lines” copyright issue. We listened to clips of the songs “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke and Pharrel Williams and “Got to Give It Up” by Marvin Gaye side by side to determine if we thought the songs were a bit too similar and if it really was an issue of plagiary. The jury who was deciding the verdict; however, was supposed to make this decision based only upon sheet music of both songs. But with only a number of chords out there to work with, the line between whether or not a song is "plagiarizing" or not becomes <i>very</i> thin. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> The whole discussion in class reminded me of a video I had seen a couple of years ago. A comedy rock band “Axis of Awesome” performed a funny skit in which they demonstrate how so many of our beloved pop songs are, in fact, just made up of the same four chords. It's pretty eye-opening. Here’s the video: </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> I was amazed when I first watched the skit. All of these songs can be played using only four chords, but are all widely accepted as totally different songs. But isn't it the artist's spin on these same four chords really what makes each song unique? The court ruling seemed to suggest otherwise, since </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/11/business/media/blurred-lines-infringed-on-marvin-gaye-copyright-jury-rules.html" target="_blank">Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke now owe 7.3 million dollars to the Gaye estate on the grounds of copyright infringement. </a>The reason I take issue with the verdict is that there seems to be no clear line between taking inspiration from an artist and actually copying an entire song. “Got to Give It Up” and “Blurred Lines” may sound similar, but so does every pop song!</div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-43665645637866638542015-03-22T06:30:00.001-07:002015-03-22T06:30:36.857-07:00Meghan Trainor’s Contradictory Messages<div class="p1">
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Meghan Trainor’s recent single “Dear Future Husband” has sparked a minor outbreak across the internet; people are ranting about the fact that the song (and the song’s music video) are deeply sexist. The song has a few lines that made me raise my eyebrows, but there was also some pro-feminist language in there. To give an example of the former, here is a short clip of Trainor in her new music video:<br />
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<span class="s1">In case you couldn't catch the lyrics, she is singing "</span>cause if you treat me right, I’ll be the perfect wife, buyin’ groceries, buy, buy what you need” while cleaning the kitchen floor. Trainor is essentially giving us a definition of the “perfect wife,” and in 6 seconds has managed to reduce women down to the person who does the shopping and the cleaning in the house. Her definition of a perfect wife seems to be all about pleasing her husband. The music video seems to be reminiscent of the 1950’s, with the costumes and the set, but the actual lyrics sound about as sexist as many people were in those days. The story her song is laying out is heteronormative and only reinforces gender roles. However, the line <i>directly</i> after this one was one that was pretty clearly trying to break gender stereotypes…<br />
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<span class="s1">Trainor uses the phrase “9 to 5” and claims that both she and her husband will be in the workforce, and that he shouldn’t expect her to be cooking for him. This showed more empowerment of women, that the perfect wife is not defined by whether or not she’s at home baking pies all day. But then why did she just give us this basically opposite idea 1 second before, with her very retro definition of what it means to be the perfect wife?</span><br />
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<span class="s1">This isn't the first time it's been unclear to me whether Trainor is trying to promote feminism or not. In her song "All About That Bass," she offered even more contradictory lines, saying "don't worry about your size" and "every inch of you is perfect from the bottom to the top" but then proceeds to talk about "skinny bitches." So is the song really about accepting yourself and loving your body? Or is she really just putting down <i>all</i> body types in her attempt to celebrate one? If Trainor <i>is</i> aiming to empower women, she might need to take a better look at her lyric choices.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-9095537403126206192015-03-14T13:57:00.001-07:002015-03-26T20:19:57.097-07:00The Shocking SAE ChantWhile watching a <a href="http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/riop51/the-brotherhood-of-the-traveling-chants---to-catch-a-prejudice" target="_blank">Daily Show clip</a> regarding the recent SAE University of Oklahoma fraternity chant scandal, I was in awe when I saw some of the media's reactions. A video was recently leaked of a chant that SAE fraternity members at University of Oklahoma were singing. The chant describes their rush policy, and goes, "You can hang them from a tree, but they will never sign with me. There will never be a n***** SAE."<br />
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The chant was so shocking to me; it brings into question just how far we really have come from the racism that existed about 100 years ago. The chanters refer to the atrocious, primitive times of racial terror lynchings that went on, saying you "can hang them from a tree." I found this word "can" to be a particularly unpleasant. The chant is implying that you (as a white male SAE member) are not only capable, but are being<i> permitted</i> to hang a black person. This chant is unbelievably backwards.<br />
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While some media coverage has called the video "racist" and "disgusting," there are a lot of commenters who think otherwise. USA Today broadcasters blamed the situation on "hip-hop," since the listeners hear this word over and over, will obviously start repeating it. Not true. This is one of the most naive and ignorant conclusions to draw, that racism today is a product of the music we listen to... Here's a clip of John Stewart's reaction to this.<br />
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There is just no excuse for the racism that is going on here. When the leader of the chant finally apologized for the incident, he said that "alcohol" had something to do with his decision-making that night, which I still feel is an entirely unreasonable excuse. The chant wasn't made up on the spot. So whether or not alcohol was hindering the chanter's judgement, these racist words existed before the incident, but this was the first time it was brought to the public's attention.<br />
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This whole situation is also relating to what we've been talking about regarding who is "allowed" to say the "N" word, and I think it was certainly inappropriate in this case because not only are the chanters saying this word, but the actual intent and message they're getting across is that they will never allow black people to join SAE, and that they condone the atrocities that occurred during the racial terror lynchings. And the media making excuses for this indisputable racism is only furthering the problem. This is the kind of backwards thinking that is pushing America in the opposite direction it needs to be going.Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-75088222255351710922015-02-19T12:15:00.003-08:002015-02-19T12:15:28.312-08:00Disney Princess's Impossible Proportions<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">While scrolling through Buzzfeed, I found a picture that made stop and take a second glance. The article was entitled<a href="https://www.blogger.com/(http://www.buzzfeed.com/lorynbrantz/pop-princesses-photoshopped-to-have-disney-princess-proporti)" target="_blank"> "Pop Princesses Photoshopped To Have Disney Princess Proportions."</a> This is what singer Taylor Swift would look like if she had the same body proportions as a Disney animated princess.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As you can see, a real-life person looks laughable with these proportions. Her waist is basically the same size as her neck and her eyes look about the size of tennis balls. After I got over how ridiculous she looked, I started to think about the implication this has. These animated princesses are drawn so unrealistically and it's sending the wrong message. I thought Barbie proportions were bad, but these princesses are on a whole different level. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What young, impressionable kids are seeing on screen really does impact them later on. It has an influence on beauty stereotypes they'll grow up thinking, because their favorite Disney princess has an impossibly thin waist, toothpick legs and arms, and gigantic eyes. Parents are feeding their children these beauty standards without even realizing it. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And we don't really see the same thing with men. The Guardian had an interesting article about this topic regarding male love interests in Disney animated films, saying they <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2013/nov/28/frozen-disney-female-body-image" target="_blank">"may have puffed-up chests and broad shoulders, but their proportions are at least feasible. Half the male Olympic swimmers could pass for Disney princes." </a>It might be a little more understandable if characters were </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">all</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> being drawn so exaggerated, but it's only the women! It seems like men's bodies are being exaggerated with the large muscles and broader shoulders, while</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b> women characters are exaggerated by being made extra meager and small.</b></span></div>
<br /><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why are these princesses being drawn like this? Is Disney afraid if they put a princess on screen who has a normal woman's body proportions that the kids won't enjoy the movie? It seems like a terribly easy fix. Disney has the power to influence kids, and they could use this power in a really good way (like drawing princesses who have a healthy person's waistline), but they're using it to do the opposite. They're enforcing these impossible beauty standards when it seems so easy to just draw a princess with a waist a few inches thicker.</span>Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-33169930662245065322015-02-15T15:11:00.000-08:002015-02-15T15:11:10.730-08:0073 Years of Lynchings<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/us/history-of-lynchings-in-the-south-documents-nearly-4000-names.html?_r=0" target="_blank"> The Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama recently released a report that uncovered the astonishing number of victims of "racial terror lynchings" from 1877 to 1950 in 12 Southern States. The number: 3,959. </a></span><br />
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<span class="s1"> It’s such an astounding number and seems even more appalling to me once I learned there are <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/us/history-of-lynchings-in-the-south-documents-nearly-4000-names.html?_r=0" target="_blank">only a few markers acknowledging lynching sites in the U.S.</a> We need to make more of an effort to acknowledge and attempt to make reparations for the horrors that took place in this country at that time. I think learning the actual number of victims will push us in the right direction.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> The timing of the release is also interesting. The report being released in February (Black History Month) I’m guessing was no coincidence. Maybe this report was released at the time when most people would be in the right mindset to hear it, and perhaps take action to do something.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama, says that the lynchings<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/us/history-of-lynchings-in-the-south-documents-nearly-4000-names.html?_r=0" target="_blank"> “were not about administering popular justice, but terrorizing a community."</a> I believe what he is saying has a lot of truth to it, not just relating to the lynchings, but a larger theme: using fear (terror) to show who is in control in a society. Stevenson says these lynchings were really about <span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/us/history-of-lynchings-in-the-south-documents-nearly-4000-names.html?_r=0" target="_blank">“</a></span></span><span class="s2"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/10/us/history-of-lynchings-in-the-south-documents-nearly-4000-names.html?_r=0" target="_blank">executing people for violating the racial hierarchy.”</a></span> </span><span class="s1">Speaking to someone the wrong way could mean life or death for African Americans at this time. It wasn't about whether they really committed a crime or not; it was about white supremacy. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">This is so similar to Arthur Miller's <i>The Crucible</i>, with people being lynched if they were suspected of going against authority. In times of fear and change, a lot of people felt they needed power and this was their way of showing which race was in control. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I hope more actions are taken in an attempt to make people more aware of these tragic times. They can serve as a reminder of what we need to work on as a nation.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-32297370710922299772015-02-02T16:34:00.001-08:002015-02-02T16:34:30.902-08:00The Measles Vaccine: Personal Beliefs versus Science<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">A recent outbreak of measles has many worried. We thought the disease was essentially gone; but it is making a fast comeback, with over 600 cases in the U.S. in the last year. So why are so many choosing not to vaccinate their children? People are led to be afraid of vaccines. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/02/us/a-discredited-vaccine-studys-continuing-impact-on-public-health.html" target="_blank">In a video on the New York Times website, they beg the question: how did we get to a point where personal beliefs can triumph over science?</a></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Some believe that vaccines cause autism, a claim that actress Jenny McCarthy has been a part of making popular. She claims her son became autistic as a result of the vaccination. Her proof, her “science” as she says in an interview with Oprah, is her son. But we can’t take these stories and accept them as scientific proof. And we tend to do this a lot when we’re talking about celebrities. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">There is also the issue of the way the science community is communicating. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/02/us/a-discredited-vaccine-studys-continuing-impact-on-public-health.html" target="_blank">Seth Mnookin, teacher at MIT and author of “The Panic Virus,” says,“there’s the language of science, and then there’s English.” In the language of science, phrases like “to the best of our knowledge” must be used when presenting their conclusions, but people have trouble accepting these phrases, since they are not definite.</a> We need to become better at listening to the science community and not taking everything they say and spinning it off as a news story. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/02/us/a-discredited-vaccine-studys-continuing-impact-on-public-health.html" target="_blank">About 94% of the population must be vaccinated in order to keep measles from spreading.</a> We need to keep in mind the affects disease has when it spreads. Though some think it is a personal choice not to vaccinate their child, they really are in danger of harming the larger population by allowing it to be spread.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-36440851305932775812015-01-14T18:16:00.001-08:002015-01-14T18:16:11.309-08:00A New James Bond<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">A Sony email was recently leaked suggesting that Idris Elba, a black actor, was up for the role of James Bond. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">This sparked some controversy. Rush Limbaugh went on a rant against the idea of a non-white Bond, saying, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2886662/Rush-Limbaugh-says-Idris-Elba-t-play-James-Bond-black-declaring-ridiculous-George-Clooney-playing-President-Obama.html#v-3960245958001" target="_blank">"</a></span><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2886662/Rush-Limbaugh-says-Idris-Elba-t-play-James-Bond-black-declaring-ridiculous-George-Clooney-playing-President-Obama.html#v-3960245958001" target="_blank">James Bond is a total concept put together by Ian Fleming. He was white and Scottish. Period. That is who James Bond is."</a> He later says, in frustration, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2886662/Rush-Limbaugh-says-Idris-Elba-t-play-James-Bond-black-declaring-ridiculous-George-Clooney-playing-President-Obama.html#v-3960245958001" target="_blank">"We have 50 years of white Bonds because Bond is white!"</a> And while the actors in the past who have played Bond have all been white, not all have been of Scottish decent, so it why does it matter if the actor has a different color skin?<br />
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<span class="s1">Limbaugh also went on to say that Elba playing the role of James Bond would be like if George Clooney and Kate Hudson were cast as President Obama and Michelle Obama. This is an absurd thing to say; James Bond is a fictional character. Actors cast for these fictional characters can be anyone; it's a creative decision made by the director. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Private Eye, a satirical magazine (sort of like a U.K. version of The Onion), published this spoof letter about the suggestion that Elba may play James Bond. Viewers can sit and watch all of Bond’s crazy endeavors (like defeating an army while only being armed with a pencil), and find them believable. But if a man with a different color skin were to play the role of Bond, it would be ludicrous?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">This would be a great step if Idris Elba was cast as James Bond because it would show that you can replace a cast member with one of different ethnicity and it would still be the same story. It’s the same concept as the remake of Annie, with two African-American actors cast as Annie and Will Stacks (main characters in the movie). Minorities should be given more of these lead roles. We need to see more diversity on the screen.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-23770040584910565632015-01-13T14:34:00.001-08:002015-01-13T14:34:06.050-08:00The “Token” Black in Sitcoms<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">When I told my brother about what we were learning about in class (TV Tokenism), he immediately thought of this character on South Park. He is an African-American character named “Token Black,” with a big “T” on his shirt reminding viewers he’s there to be the token black. While I don’t watch the show, many high schoolers watch or have heard of the show South Park, an animated adult sitcom. I have only seen about an episode's worth my entire life, but I do remember one scene specifically where Token Black is made fun of for having expensive clothes, or being the "best dressed minority" as we discussed in class.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> We saw a clip in class of the show 30 Rock, which had this same idea of the making it clear the black character “Toofer” was there to be a token black character. Sitcoms often use stereotypes that we are familiar with to make us laugh. One of the sitcoms I do watch, Modern Family, has made quite a few of these exaggerated stereotype jokes about Asians specifically, for example being bad at driving. I was laughing when I watched that scene, but my little sister wasn't, and asked me to explain it to her. She hasn't been as exposed to stereotypes, so the joke went over her head. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I wonder if by using this as material for comedy it shows progression or not. We find them funny because they’re so exaggerated, but is it just further enforcing these stereotypes? If we’re laughing at them does that make them okay?</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-2592189056779007772015-01-12T20:51:00.002-08:002015-01-12T20:51:47.856-08:00Where Are All the Female Directors?<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">On Sunday, many of us sat down and watched the Golden Globes. The nominees for best director had me thinking a little bit. Here were the nominees:</span></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Boyhood</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Richard Linklater (winner)</span></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Birdman</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Alejandro González Iñárritu</span></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Gone Girl</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">David Fincher</span></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>The Grand Budapest Hotel</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Wes Anderson</span></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Selma</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Ava DuVernay</span></span></a></div>
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<span class="s1">Last year, the nominees were the following movies:</span></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Gravity</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Alfonso Cuarón (winner)</span></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>12 Years a Slave</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Steve McQueen</span> </span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>American Hustle</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">David O. Russell</span> </span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Captain Phillips</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Paul Greengrass</span></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Director" target="_blank"><span class="s2"><i>Nebraska</i></span><span class="s1">- <span class="s3">Alexander Payne</span> </span></a></div>
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<span class="s1">I noticed a trend (almost all men). I never really noticed before that I scarcely ever saw a woman in this category. It seemed normal to me that a man was a director. Though Ava DuVernay did not win best director, it certainly sparked my attention when she was nominated. Why don’t we see more women directing these critically-acclaimed films just as much as men?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I started doing some research, and found an interesting article about women in the directing business. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/28/movies/in-hollywood-its-a-mens-mens-mens-world.html?_r=0" target="_blank">The researcher Martha M. Lauzen, executive director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film, found that </a></span><span class="s4"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/28/movies/in-hollywood-its-a-mens-mens-mens-world.html?_r=0" target="_blank"><b>in 2013, female characters made up <span class="s1">just 15 percent of protagonists</span> and 30 percent of all speaking characters in the top 100 grossing movies.</b></a></span><span class="s1"><b> </b>Female directors generally direct more movies about women than male directors do, but they need the means to do so. It becomes a vicious cycle where a woman can’t get hired because of her lacking credentials, and then as a result is unable to build her resumé, meaning less women in this field. Women can’t prove they are equally qualified for the job if they aren’t given the opportunity in the first place. We need to diversify the voice that tells us stories in America. If the people making decisions about movies continues to be all male, we’re only getting one angle. Something has to be done about diversifying the directing industry. </span></div>
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Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-81385035228073485712014-12-27T13:26:00.000-08:002014-12-27T13:26:43.490-08:00The Problem With Gendered Products<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Over break, I was talking to my older cousin, a 1</span><span class="s2"><sup>st</sup></span><span class="s1"> grade teacher in Colorado. She said she tries to be very sensitive to gender stereotypes in her classroom. In the beginning of the year she hands out pencils as a gift to her students. Some have dinosaurs or rockets and some have flowers or butterflies. She noticed the girls and boys trying to trade with one another, and then gave them a talk about how you shouldn’t care which pencil you recieved. There </span><span class="s3">are no “boy” or “girl” pencils. This got me thinking about how so many products are needlessly gendered. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Upon searching “gendered products” in Google images, I started coming up with some absurd results. These were a few of the images.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkzISkbr01F4uEb3CekdrXCGchncjQEBsOjiaZzduHz0qRlOF4zN50shexTLBFufkkzD_YzEk__tr9aNMAXTXZ-EOwXJImPy7zN9kkB-R85rI_2tWkoJoK7Zt2Xne522i9wreVYt1LB-E/s1600/d.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkzISkbr01F4uEb3CekdrXCGchncjQEBsOjiaZzduHz0qRlOF4zN50shexTLBFufkkzD_YzEk__tr9aNMAXTXZ-EOwXJImPy7zN9kkB-R85rI_2tWkoJoK7Zt2Xne522i9wreVYt1LB-E/s1600/d.png" height="239" width="320" /></a><span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>The language that was used to market the earplugs was very telling about how the market sells to women. The Women’s ear plugs say, “Beauty sleep is always in fashion.” A few other words I picked out right away were “pretty,” “pink,” and “silky.” The men’s ear plugs send a different message; they are “skull screws,” not just ear plugs. In the upper left corner they are named “hi-tech” ear plugs. The graphics are interesting to compare, too. A butterfly and a sleeping woman on the women's and a skull and screws on the men's. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>Companies do this to make more money off the same product, splitting their shoppers into two groups, boys and girls. This only is enforcing gender stereotypes we have. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVX0hyphenhyphenAHak7-IwYb1h-OJmpam-XzJ-NaIQPcI39D5e4lQLLyG5xqEGyLS2iGph8lhP5msJW2r6zZ29mZVb2YMs5NdwfwK9ZK6xi6wAl_TWprVDAFOxTTpO9jrb2KF5NYUe6wXOzOAeXvY/s1600/dove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVX0hyphenhyphenAHak7-IwYb1h-OJmpam-XzJ-NaIQPcI39D5e4lQLLyG5xqEGyLS2iGph8lhP5msJW2r6zZ29mZVb2YMs5NdwfwK9ZK6xi6wAl_TWprVDAFOxTTpO9jrb2KF5NYUe6wXOzOAeXvY/s1600/dove.jpg" height="244" width="320" /></a><span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>Another picture I found was gendered deodorant, another product that is gender-specific for no reason. The women’s deodorant is a light pink color and has a smooth look to it. The men’s has hard lines in the design and packaging and is taller and wider than the women’s one. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>These products could so easily be unisex, yet the market is taking advantage of our preexisting gender stereotypes and making a “boy” and “girl” version of every product out there. We see these issues with gender roles when we are kids: with boy and girl aisles in toy sections of stores. But they continue to be present afterwards in our products we choose to buy as adults. </span><br />
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Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-25478186664823277672014-12-02T20:12:00.001-08:002014-12-02T20:12:56.597-08:00Domestic Violence and the NFL<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> If any of you have been following the Ray Rice scandal, you know the Minnesota Vikings player was recently reinstated after his suspension which was due to a video released of him physically abusing his now wife. I wrote a</span><span class="s1"> <a href="http://beccaamericanstudies.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-nfls-callous-approach-to-domestic.htm" target="_blank">blog post</a> earlier going into further detail on this if you’d like to check it out. To summarize what happened, Rice punched his fiance in the face, knocking her unconscious, then dragged her out of the elevator. And now his wife finally speaks up in an interview with <i>Today</i>.</span></div>
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<span class="s2"> In this <a href="http://www.today.com/news/ray-rices-wife-elevator-incident-battle-we-just-cant-win-1D80327938" target="_blank">interview</a>, we see her defending her husband relentlessly. </span><span class="s1">She became the face of domestic violence in this country when this tape came out. And the way she is handling it I would argue is just not telling women to be strong. This was an opportunity to make a difference in how we see domestic violence and women not being victims; she didn't take this opportunity. She says “I’m not going to sit there in silence and let something happen to me.” But that is essentially what she was doing. She was defending him by staying silent this whole time (the incident happened 10 months ago). </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> She continues to advocate for his supposedly good character when she says that the leaked video “didn’t make [her] rethink her relationship” and that she “knew [their] relationship wouldn’t be over.” She did a lot of the apologizing in a public apology Rice and her recently held; she said she was sorry for the “part she played in this.” She admitted the public apologies were not her idea exactly; someone at the Ravens “suggested” she do this and gave her and her husband a “general script” of what to say. It was a publicity stunt, which she acknowledged. <a href="http://www.today.com/video/today/56532470#56532470" target="_blank">Had the Ravens not urged her to do the press conference, she would not have been there</a>, so she says. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> Another concern Ray Rice apologized to the Ravens team and fans in this press conference...and not to his wife (the one who suffered from physical and emotional harm that night). Football seems to be the main priority in his mind. I think it would be devastating to see an NFL team pick him up for another season. We can learn from this whole incident if we can see how Rice’s case is played out. Domestic violence is never okay; there needs to be consequences. Standing behind her husband during all of this shouldn’t be rewarded in my opinion.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-33739950063449141502014-11-12T20:30:00.000-08:002014-11-12T20:30:08.924-08:00Lyric Choices<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> Recently, we discussed song lyrics and whether we are listening to the actual words and what they mean. Rappers pay special attention to the words they choose, trying to string them together in a way that works rhythmically, like poetry. But the specific words rappers choose do have an impact on listeners. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">(Watch 3:59-4:08)</span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/cRbIp66VwY4?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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“I’ll punch Lana Del Rey right in the face twice, like Ray Rice in broad daylight in the plain sight of the elevator surveillance/ ’Til her head is banging on the railing, then celebrate with the Ravens.”</div>
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<span class="s1"> In a freestyle video that came out a couple days ago, rapper Eminem offers this verse. For those of you who haven’t heard about the Ray Rice scandal, the now former Ravens player assaulted his fiance in an elevator, knocking her unconscious. The NFL handled the situation poorly, suspending him for only 2 games. Eminem references this case, using it as a simile. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> This is a man with three daughters, who should be especially sympathetic to this issue of domestic violence. Yet he uses this Ray Rice incident that happened for material in this freestyle rap. Here we have a musical icon, remarkably talented, yet he uses his gift to send messages to his listeners, kids and adults, that speaking about domestic violence like this is ok.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> Eminem’s lyrics have often been under scrutiny for being so controversial. </span><span class="s2"><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2830397/Eminem-says-ll-punch-Lana-Del-Rey-face-twice-like-Ray-Rice-new-controversial-rap-video.html" target="_blank">He told CBS back in 2010: 'I don't have any problem with nobody,' His music is just his art form.</a> </span><span class="s1">But how much of it should he be able to get away with? It’s my opinion that he isn’t actually out to get Lana Del Rey by saying this line; I don’t think he actually does want to physically harm her. But then why does he say it? Just for a rhyme? Whether this is true or not, it’s irrefutable that he is sending a message to his listeners. And it’s not a good one.</span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-12647286901689708622014-10-31T03:47:00.002-07:002014-10-31T03:47:37.618-07:00A Live To Work Nation<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> Why is it that the U.S is such a developed country, but can’t allow for paid maternity leave? This practice is most definitely speaking to our American values: we’re a “live to work” society. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> After having a class discussion about American values and how we reward productivity over all else, I saw a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ziPPItLiSY" target="_blank">Buzzfeed video</a> which caught my eye: statistics about maternity leave here in the U.S versus in other countries. The part I raised my eyebrows at was this graph.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> Even France, the developed country that (next to the U.S) has the lowest amount of paid paternity leave, still gives off 16 whole weeks. Estonia gives over 2 years. I found this chart incredible. The U.S is at the bottom, not allowing any paid leave whatsoever, while a mother in Estonia can stay at home with her child until he is a <i>toddler</i> before going back to work.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> What does this say about America if we aren’t giving any slack to women in the workplace who choose to have children? I’d argue it’s pushing them out of them out of the workforce. I know so many women, my own mother; for example, who decided to quit their jobs so they could raise children. I also know women who choose not to have children because it could mess up their careers. I’m not saying either of those are bad decisions, but I am saying these other countries so clearly sympathize with women needing those first few months to focus on their child while still earning money. The U.S forces them to make a choice: be a mother or a working woman.</span></div>
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Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-25864468398100789862014-10-21T17:45:00.002-07:002014-10-21T17:45:28.713-07:00Would You Rather Spend Your Money on Experiences or Tangible Things?<div class="p1">
This week in class, we touched on a topic I find so thought-provoking: how Americans are always so focused on money and tangible items. I would definitely agree that most Americans are like this, but I do not think it’s an effective way of spending money to enrich a person’s life.<br />
<br /> <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/10/buy-experiences/381132/" target="_blank">I read an article this week that showed how buying “experiences” instead of buying “things” will actual benefit your overall happiness. </a>What this basically means is, people gain more happiness from having experiences (like a trip to Greece) than they would gain from buying, say, the newest iPhone.<br />
<br /> Waiting for that trip to happen, planning the itinerary for that trip is said to bring a person so much more excitement since it’s an experience you are waiting to have.<br /> <br />
After awhile, our tangible possessions we have bought <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/10/buy-experiences/381132/" target="_blank">“become background.”</a> We stop appreciating them because they are just <i>there</i>, part of our everyday scenery. When we create experiences for ourselves, we’re stepping outside that scenery we are so accustomed to: talking to different people, eating different foods, etc. <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/10/buy-experiences/381132/" target="_blank">"Even a bad experience becomes a good story."</a> When we go on a trip and have an embarrassing or funny experience, it becomes a great story to tell. When we get frustrated or something goes wrong with the technology in our lives or our belongings, it doesn’t amuse <i>anyone </i>and no one really wants to retell that story.<br /><br />Learning to reflect on these bad experiences we’ve had on trips is a skill we develop. It’s far enough away and has enough nostalgia tied with it that we can find some sort of good from it no matter what. This is the opposite with material possessions, they’re too close for us to still see them as a satisfying purchase when something goes wrong. Maybe it’s time to stop investing so much in material items, and go seek out some real experiences, almost buying yourself some stories to tell<i>.</i></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-32754254305911814552014-10-13T12:34:00.002-07:002014-10-13T12:34:41.037-07:00Sayreville High School: Should They Play The Next Season? I'm sure a lot of you have been hearing about the Sayreville High School football sexual assault situation. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/13/nyregion/arrests-divide-a-town-that-lived-for-football-sayreville-war-memorial-high-school.html?hpw&rref=nyregion&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpHedThumbWell&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well&_r=0" target="_blank">As a form of "hazing" the young players, members of the team sexually assaulted their fellow teammates. A 14 year old boy on the team claims the upperclassmen have been participating in this ritual for quite some time. Sayreville High School's superintendent is considering not allowing the team to play next season. Some parents of players are distraught about this since many of their children's futures rely on being able to play football after high school.</a> In my opinion, the whole team, and town, needs a break from football.<br />
<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/09/us/nfl-players-domestic-violence-accusations/" target="_blank">With everything going on in the NFL with domestic violence and abuse</a>, we are now seeing that it's not just an NFL issue. This incident speaks volumes about the whole sport of football. The lines are too blurry for these young players: what is okay to do on the field versus off the field? These players are being taught to be aggressive when they're playing. It's drilled into their heads that they must overpower their opponent and "win" all the time. This is a terrible a message to be sending.<br />
Football, in this town in New Jersey, means everything. One coach said that football, in their town, is almost a "<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/13/nyregion/arrests-divide-a-town-that-lived-for-football-sayreville-war-memorial-high-school.html?hpw&rref=nyregion&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpHedThumbWell&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well&_r=0" target="_blank">religion</a>." I found this word choice to be interesting, that someone would go as far as to say this game is similar to spirituality. I know people obsess over football and for many people, it is an enormous part of their lives. It's America's sport. It would be un-American not to like football. But the players of this violent sport need to set a good example. They need to be demonstrating that violence off the field is not acceptable. And I think they're doing the exact opposite.<br />
Players know what they're getting themselves into when they sign up for a sport like football; it's violent. But if they do choose to partake in it, I think they have the right to feel safe once they come off the field. The victims of this crime are traumatized. What's worse is that one of the victims of assault (14 years old) said he thought it was just "<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/13/nyregion/arrests-divide-a-town-that-lived-for-football-sayreville-war-memorial-high-school.html?hpw&rref=nyregion&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpHedThumbWell&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well&_r=0" target="_blank">normal...locker room antics</a>." The fact that this boy was confused about whether being overpowered by a teammate was just standard shows that this sport is really messing with people's sense of what is ok and not ok.<br />
I think this town needs to set a good example by not allowing the team to play the next season. It will force them to take a step back and assess the situation so that it does not happen again.Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-25812469841322592782014-09-28T16:05:00.000-07:002014-09-28T16:05:16.607-07:00Paris Plans to Eliminate The Love Locks<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"></span> Over the summer, I went to Paris and fell in love with the city. I was taking pictures the whole time. One of my favorites is the one below. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> I’m sure many are familiar with the famous bridge in Paris with the “love locks” attached to it (Pont des Arts bridge). Couples will go and attach padlocks to symbolize their love for one another. The bridge is riddled with locks, each one representing a different, unique relationship. Paris is the city of love, and yet they plan to take down this enormous symbol of love that has been a site for couples to visit for such a long time. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/19/opinion/sunday/the-locks-on-pariss-bridges-represent-a-misunderstanding.html" target="_blank">The tradition of putting a love lock on a bridge goes back 100 years. Now, Paris has plans to demolish the ritual for a few reasons, one being that the bridge is actually getting too heavy with all the added locks. Another reason is how the people of Paris feel about the bridge. Once Paris native says he finds the locks “‘ridiculous and ugly’” and “‘a bad excuse for tourism.’” Paris plans to take down some of the siding of the bridge and replace it with glass to make sure people cannot secure new locks.</a></span></div>
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<span class="s1"> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/19/opinion/sunday/the-locks-on-pariss-bridges-represent-a-misunderstanding.html" target="_blank"> One maintenance worker on the bridge feels the bridge will “lose some of its charm when the locks are gone.”</a> I would entirely agree with him on this. Without the locks, it’s just another bridge. I find this so sad that the City of Love is giving up on such a beloved tradition. This is bridge has, in a way, turned into a public piece of art, with more and more people adding to it, attaching their locks to other locks. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"></span> While I understand that many think it’s cheesy, if you really think about it, the whole concept is very powerful. Couples have come to that very spot from all over the world to solidify their bond. Knowing that their love is “forever” locked on that bridge is something really special. The bridge is a place so beautiful and unique to Paris, and it baffles me that they would want to defile it. Does Paris have the right to just wipe out this tradition that has such deep rooted history?</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"></span> It got me thinking about how the situation would be handled if we had a similar situation in the U.S. What if the government said, “no more taking selfies in the reflection of the Bean in Chicago”? There would be an uproar.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>It almost seems unpatriotic for the City of Love to be erasing part of a landmark that has represented that very idea for so many years. I think people in support of taking the locks down don’t realize what they are really destroying. It’s more than just some tourist attraction. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"></span> Is this really something the city needs to take control of and try to maintain? Can’t Paris have some sympathy for the tourists who want to participate this great display of affection? The same maintenance worker mentioned prior posed the question that I’m sure many of us are wondering: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/19/opinion/sunday/the-locks-on-pariss-bridges-represent-a-misunderstanding.html" target="_blank">“‘Why do they have to take the romance away?’”</a></span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-21400689167614312952014-09-21T16:25:00.001-07:002014-09-21T16:25:04.299-07:00Urban Outfitters Making Profit Off of Tragedy <div class="p1">
<span class="s1"> At first glance on the website, the sweatshirt seemed to fit the normal “look” of Urban Outfitters (distressed, worn-in clothing). Once I heard the story behind this clothing item, though, I was appalled. </span></div>
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<span class="s2"> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/09/15/urban-outfitters-red-stained-vintage-kent-state-sweatshirt-is-not-a-smart-look-this-fall/"><span class="s3">In 1970, four students from Kent State University in Ohio were killed and nine were wounded in a shooting during a peaceful student protest over Vietnam. The National Guard fired on unarmed kids.</span></a> It was a tragic event for the families and friends of these students, as well as the nation as a whole. Neil Young later wrote a song called “Ohio” about the tragedy.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> Four lives were lost that day, leaving so many individuals in emotional distress, and Urban Outfitters decides it’s okay to make a “loose slouchy sweatshirt” representing what happened that day in a tasteless manner. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"> This is apparently not Urban Outfitter’s first run-in with this kind of an issue. When I talked to my friends about the sweatshirt I learned there have been several other offensive clothes they have had to issue apologies for, one being <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/20/urban-outfitters-jewish-star-tshirt_n_1441731.html" target="_blank">a t-shirt that had a star on the pocket which resembled the badge Jews were forced to wear during the Holocaust</a>. It’s really unbelievable what this company thinks it can get away with. They are a tasteless, exploitative, and nihilistic company that would do anything to make a profit. Exploitation of such an event should result in a financial punishment, so this company can really learn its lesson.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"></span> I cannot fathom how anyone would think this is acceptable to try and make a profit off of. Obviously they knew they would get publicity for being “controversial.” It could all be for attention. But does this really relate to what people always say that “no publicity is bad publicity”? Or is something else going on here? Why is Urban Outfitters so dead set on pushing the boundaries?</span></div>
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<span class="s1"> Clothing often gets scrutinized when it’s seen as controversial by the general public. <a href="http://www.vogue.co.uk/spy/biographies/vivienne-westwood-biography" target="_blank">Vivienne Westwood’s 1970’s era was seen as outrageous to so many people</a>. But there’s really a difference between Westwood, who was a great influence on the “punk” era of fashion, and Urban Outfitters, who is making a statement in a much different way. Fashion is an art form, and there are no rules in art. But we have to draw the line <i>somewhere.</i></span></div>
Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3396537077218376809.post-83645634253734006852014-09-15T21:12:00.001-07:002014-09-15T21:12:59.049-07:00The N.F.L's Callous Approach to a Domestic Violence Case<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Football is America’s sport. It’s no wonder we will put it before so many other things in life. The weekend of Superbowl Sunday, several of my teachers did not assign homework. It’s important to America; it’s tradition. But the game should never come before a person’s well-being.<br /><br />When I came home from school, my parents were talking about this “Ray Rice” incident. It related to what we had been discussing in class that day about Adrian Peterson, a player on the Minnesota Vikings, <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/15/us/adrian-peterson-child-abuse-charges/index.html">who “disciplined” (beat) his son with a tree branch repeatedly. He was released on bail and the Vikings seem to be standing behind him. </a><br /><br />I went to go check out some more details on my own. I was horrified at what I saw.<br />When you google search “Ray Rice” one of the first things that comes up is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbwTMJroTbI">a video with over 8 million views within the past week. </a>The video was astonishing. The caption reads “This is what a two game suspension looks like -- Ray Rice delivering a a crushing punch to his fiancee's face, knocking her out cold ... and TMZ Sports has the shocking video.” Rice punches his fiancee in the face and proceeds to drag her unconscious body out of the elevator, stepping over it quite angrily. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/16/sports/football/ray-rice-is-expected-to-appeal-suspension-by-nfl.html">This gets him suspended for 2 games. Once the public got a hold of the video; however, N.F.L commissioner Goodell modified his punishment to an “indefinite suspension."</a> Goodell is reacting in such a manner now because of the public outcry over the horrifying video. </div>
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Once I watched the video, I was outraged to find out that his fiancee (now wife) is actually standing by his side in all of this. In this picture, she holds his hand while walking into court with him.<br /><br />I think the N.F.L’s attitude towards these types of situations are appalling. They don’t seem to particularly care what their players go home and do to their wives and kids. It speaks to how they feel about women and about domestic violence. What does this say about how America views child abuse versus spousal abuse? Is one more “tolerated” than the other? It seems that the N.F.L feels this way, since Peterson had much less of a punishment for beating his 4 year old defenseless child than Rice had for knocking out his fiancee. These 200-300 pound men are abusing their loved ones who have no defense. In my opinion, both certainly deserve more of a punishment for abusing another person than just a “suspension.” </div>
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Becca Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17045033245870088002noreply@blogger.com2