i'm so stressed and nervous about this whole speech thing... AHHH! it's strange, i've been through scarier, more nerve racking, life changing moments in life but this one's really kicking my ass today for some reason.... it won't kill me. i'll be fine... right?
what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger... i've always thought this phrase was a load of bull, but may apply to this situation... we shall see
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Our Time
Page 689: “My senses at times tingle and itch with my romantic, idealistic outlook on life.” I love this line. It perfectly describes how I feel at times.
I love the metaphors he uses, so descriptive! With his Ichabod Crane and describing Gar’s arm disintegrating, “like a long ash off the end of a cigarette.”
The comparison of the pall bearers’ gloves and the gloves doctors use to do a prostate exam were great. Really illustrated the disgust he felt about it all.
Page 694: “[Garth would] Wind up killing some innocent person or wasting another nigger.” Ouch. Sly way to separate the two.
The voice of Robby was done well and quite different that his own voice. I like it.
I think he captures the essence of his mother very well. I hope to be able to describe my parents in a similar way in my essay.
He had to beg to get paper from the guard cuz they wouldn’t let him bring it in. Ah, I know these stupid rules all too well.
It makes me feel weird to see the atrocities of the prison in print cuz I immediately wonder what would happen to Robby if they had known that he was the one to leak that information. It ties into the whole scared into silence mentality that I’ve had for the last year.
I can relate to the part about Robby reading to the fellows in prison: “What else you gonna do but think of the people on the outside….Just the same old sad shit we all be thinking all the time.” The laments in jail all start to sound the same on the inside. Who still loves them and writes or visits. Dramas you have no control over. Court talk. But mostly about our loved ones that are still free.
I really liked this line too: “I listen to my brother Robby. He unravels my voice.”
The part about Robby already doing his time in the hole for a crime he was found innocent for is again a great illustration of the injustices that go on in the legal system that you have no control over. They should give him some free time or money on his books for the lost time in the hole, but yeah right. Only in a just world, huh?
I’ve met quite a few people named Squirrel. Funny.
My mom left me in jail. She didn’t have that soft spot in her heart at all; but it all turned out for the better I think. My dad on the other, he definitely had that soft spot and bailed me out.
I really like this essay. Partly because I could relate in a lot of ways. Also cuz the voice in this essay was so different than most and it read like a story.
I love the metaphors he uses, so descriptive! With his Ichabod Crane and describing Gar’s arm disintegrating, “like a long ash off the end of a cigarette.”
The comparison of the pall bearers’ gloves and the gloves doctors use to do a prostate exam were great. Really illustrated the disgust he felt about it all.
Page 694: “[Garth would] Wind up killing some innocent person or wasting another nigger.” Ouch. Sly way to separate the two.
The voice of Robby was done well and quite different that his own voice. I like it.
I think he captures the essence of his mother very well. I hope to be able to describe my parents in a similar way in my essay.
He had to beg to get paper from the guard cuz they wouldn’t let him bring it in. Ah, I know these stupid rules all too well.
It makes me feel weird to see the atrocities of the prison in print cuz I immediately wonder what would happen to Robby if they had known that he was the one to leak that information. It ties into the whole scared into silence mentality that I’ve had for the last year.
I can relate to the part about Robby reading to the fellows in prison: “What else you gonna do but think of the people on the outside….Just the same old sad shit we all be thinking all the time.” The laments in jail all start to sound the same on the inside. Who still loves them and writes or visits. Dramas you have no control over. Court talk. But mostly about our loved ones that are still free.
I really liked this line too: “I listen to my brother Robby. He unravels my voice.”
The part about Robby already doing his time in the hole for a crime he was found innocent for is again a great illustration of the injustices that go on in the legal system that you have no control over. They should give him some free time or money on his books for the lost time in the hole, but yeah right. Only in a just world, huh?
I’ve met quite a few people named Squirrel. Funny.
My mom left me in jail. She didn’t have that soft spot in her heart at all; but it all turned out for the better I think. My dad on the other, he definitely had that soft spot and bailed me out.
I really like this essay. Partly because I could relate in a lot of ways. Also cuz the voice in this essay was so different than most and it read like a story.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
“Indians”: Textualism, Morality, and the Problem of History
Textualism: Strict adherence to a text, especially of the Scriptures
When Tompkins uses the words “In simpler language” it made me feel like I wasn’t smart enough to understand her first sentence. That’s probably not what she intended (or maybe it was) but I would have said, “To extrapolate…” or “To specify…” etc.
Page 656: “This was the kind of past ‘mistake’ which, presumably, we studied history in order to avoid repeating.” This theme is a common one in some of the essays we have read.
The word ethnography has become ubiquitous….
I am impressed with the objective viewpoint Tompkins is able to take (given that I can believe what she writes) in analyzing the different accounts and it is cool that she thinks this is an important subject enough to find the truth.
So far, this essay flows nicely and is easy to understand.
I wasn’t aware that whites were taken captive by Indians so often. I’ve seen Dances With Wolves but I didn’t know it actually occurred.
Page 666: “Kupperman’s book marks a watershed in writings on Euorpean-Indian relations…” I had to look up ‘watershed’ cuz I’ve never heard it used in this context:
Watershed: A critical point that marks a division or a change of course; a turning point
This essay is so in order and flows neatly. She thought this, so she did that and discovered this and so on.
I liked the ending. It’s progressive and leads me to think that she will continue to try to solve this problem.
When Tompkins uses the words “In simpler language” it made me feel like I wasn’t smart enough to understand her first sentence. That’s probably not what she intended (or maybe it was) but I would have said, “To extrapolate…” or “To specify…” etc.
Page 656: “This was the kind of past ‘mistake’ which, presumably, we studied history in order to avoid repeating.” This theme is a common one in some of the essays we have read.
The word ethnography has become ubiquitous….
I am impressed with the objective viewpoint Tompkins is able to take (given that I can believe what she writes) in analyzing the different accounts and it is cool that she thinks this is an important subject enough to find the truth.
So far, this essay flows nicely and is easy to understand.
I wasn’t aware that whites were taken captive by Indians so often. I’ve seen Dances With Wolves but I didn’t know it actually occurred.
Page 666: “Kupperman’s book marks a watershed in writings on Euorpean-Indian relations…” I had to look up ‘watershed’ cuz I’ve never heard it used in this context:
Watershed: A critical point that marks a division or a change of course; a turning point
This essay is so in order and flows neatly. She thought this, so she did that and discovered this and so on.
I liked the ending. It’s progressive and leads me to think that she will continue to try to solve this problem.
The Loss of the Creature
It’s true that a tourist will never experience the awe that a discoverer would. But is there a solution to this problem? Of course not. Besides, it’s a great thing when a human being has found something or created something beautiful and wants to share it and spread the beauty.
‘Value P’ is a strange way to name this abstract. It makes me want P to stand for something.
Percy almost sounds like a stuck up, gung-ho hiker type to me that abhors campsites that come with outhouses and shops at REI.
I totally disagree that the average tourist can’t appreciate the natural beauty as much as one that would choose the ‘beaten path.’ It depends on the tourist and his or her viewpoint of nature. There could be likewise a hiker that is more concerned with the sport and physical aspect of hiking than the views offered.
Parts of this essay are very wordy and repetitive. Other parts seem extremely pointless. What does this line on Page 477 mean? “The dogfish, the tree, the seashell, the American Negro, the dream, are rendered invisible by a shift of reality from concrete thing to theory which Whitehead has called the fallacy of misplaced concreteness.”
Everyone learns differently and a dissection in a classroom could be just as rewarding or more so than on the beach for someone. I don’t understand his argument.
‘Value P’ is a strange way to name this abstract. It makes me want P to stand for something.
Percy almost sounds like a stuck up, gung-ho hiker type to me that abhors campsites that come with outhouses and shops at REI.
I totally disagree that the average tourist can’t appreciate the natural beauty as much as one that would choose the ‘beaten path.’ It depends on the tourist and his or her viewpoint of nature. There could be likewise a hiker that is more concerned with the sport and physical aspect of hiking than the views offered.
Parts of this essay are very wordy and repetitive. Other parts seem extremely pointless. What does this line on Page 477 mean? “The dogfish, the tree, the seashell, the American Negro, the dream, are rendered invisible by a shift of reality from concrete thing to theory which Whitehead has called the fallacy of misplaced concreteness.”
Everyone learns differently and a dissection in a classroom could be just as rewarding or more so than on the beach for someone. I don’t understand his argument.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Grief and a Headhunter’s Rage
There were times in my life after losing my closest that I felt the rage in the ‘anger stage’ of grieving (that’s what I was told anyway) to the point of headhunting (in my head).
I liked the part about Rosaldo trying to impose the exchange theory to make the headhunting seem more noble and acceptable in his mind. This read is intriguing to me thus far.
Wow. The part about Christianity relieving the bereavement process is so true. Grief over a death would be so much more without an afterlife as a possibility.
He mentioned Clifford Geertz!
I found it odd that he called his wife by first and last name through the beginning of the essay. I think I know now why (after reading the abrupt story of how she died). I think it was a respectful way of presenting her to the world. My boyfriend of 3 and a half years died in a motorcycle accident last April and I find myself talking about him with his full name also. Josh Cornell.
I was watching Last One Standing on the Discovery Channel and they showed a ritual that the tribe members mourned for their lost ones. Rosaldo talks about ritual dancing to express mourning. I almost wish that our society did some sort of symbolic ritual like that without it being weird. I can totally see the cathartic value of it.
I liked the part about Rosaldo trying to impose the exchange theory to make the headhunting seem more noble and acceptable in his mind. This read is intriguing to me thus far.
Wow. The part about Christianity relieving the bereavement process is so true. Grief over a death would be so much more without an afterlife as a possibility.
He mentioned Clifford Geertz!
I found it odd that he called his wife by first and last name through the beginning of the essay. I think I know now why (after reading the abrupt story of how she died). I think it was a respectful way of presenting her to the world. My boyfriend of 3 and a half years died in a motorcycle accident last April and I find myself talking about him with his full name also. Josh Cornell.
I was watching Last One Standing on the Discovery Channel and they showed a ritual that the tribe members mourned for their lost ones. Rosaldo talks about ritual dancing to express mourning. I almost wish that our society did some sort of symbolic ritual like that without it being weird. I can totally see the cathartic value of it.
Arts of the Contact Zone
I found the beginning of this essay entertaining and endearing but the voice and tone changed immediately when she started to get historical. I don’t think it was a smooth transition. I feel cool when I say ‘autoethnographic.’
So Adam and Eve appear in an Inca drawing? Interesting…
“Communities are distinguished…not by their falsity/genuineness, but by the style in which they are imagined.” This applies to more than the speech community. We live in a society that puts a lot of blind faith in people being honest and not cheating. Again, a style that is imagined.
Page 527: “…from the point of view of the teacher and teaching, not from the point of view of pupils and pupiling (the word doesn’t even exist, thought the thing certainly does).” I love this. She could’ve just said nothing and I wouldn’t have known any different but it is true. Although “learner” could have been used, but not as effectively.
So Adam and Eve appear in an Inca drawing? Interesting…
“Communities are distinguished…not by their falsity/genuineness, but by the style in which they are imagined.” This applies to more than the speech community. We live in a society that puts a lot of blind faith in people being honest and not cheating. Again, a style that is imagined.
Page 527: “…from the point of view of the teacher and teaching, not from the point of view of pupils and pupiling (the word doesn’t even exist, thought the thing certainly does).” I love this. She could’ve just said nothing and I wouldn’t have known any different but it is true. Although “learner” could have been used, but not as effectively.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense
The opening to this essay reminded me of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Further on it seems like pointless rambling when he discusses the stone being hard…. Who cares? Subjective stimulation? What’s the point of language then? So, yes, I agree, words are metaphors, but again, so what?
I just realized this author is Nietzsche and that compels me to change my viewpoint and how I read this essay but I don’t want it to. I’m going to attempt to pretend I don’t know the author, to be objective.
“…a leaf is the cause of leaves”??? what does that mean? I know what he’s trying to say but he’s being a dumbhead and wordy.
Metonymies: a figure of speech consisting of the use of the name of one thing for that of another of which it is an attribute or with which it is associated (as “crown” in “lands belonging to the crown”)
I found Pascal’s theory very interesting: “…if the same dream came to us every night we would be just as occupied with it as we are with the things that we see every day.” Dreams are a different animal though… everything in a dream is fascinating and in your face.
So, Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense should have told me it was going to be pointless to me...
This was a difficult read. I don’t think I liked it.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Haunted America
I wonder if Limerick talking about her experience with finding themes in graduate school was a way to give her validity so we believe what she is about to say… I think this essay would be more helpful to me if she mentioned how these patterns apply to other wars also.
Page 419: The first acts of violence usually were more accidents of impulse and passion than the considered and chosen opening acts of an intended war. That sucks. Tragic. Wasn’t there a battle in the Civil War that started that way too?
Limerick states that “…the terribleness of violence may seem to be shrinking over time.” I’ve never thought of this but it is certainly true. Crimes are less gruesome than the torture that occurred back then.
I wonder what factors it takes for an incident to be labeled a massacre. Number of people killed on one side?
Earlier, Limerick stated “historians are quick to make cheerful remarks about how the understanding of history will help us to understand ourselves and to cope with the dilemmas we have inherited from the past…” It is also said that if we don’t know our history, it will repeat itself. I don’t how true this is. Looking back, people have been oppressed and tortured and land taken away throughout history. On the other hand, knowing the horrors of the past does bring more tolerance today.
Duplicity: contradictory doubleness of thought, speech, or action; especially : the belying of one's true intentions by deceptive words or action. Cool new word!
I like how she goes into the history of the pioneer woman. It’s a viewpoint we don’t hear often. I wonder if they objected or were supportive or if they even had a choice.
“We live on a haunted land…” what a great line that ties neatly into the essays title.
“The light of the sun seems fresh and innocent, as if it knew as yet but few of the secrets of the world and none of the weariness of shining.” This too would go in my Book of Quotes. There have been many morning where things were fubar-ed but the sun still shone bright and uncaringly.
Page 419: The first acts of violence usually were more accidents of impulse and passion than the considered and chosen opening acts of an intended war. That sucks. Tragic. Wasn’t there a battle in the Civil War that started that way too?
Limerick states that “…the terribleness of violence may seem to be shrinking over time.” I’ve never thought of this but it is certainly true. Crimes are less gruesome than the torture that occurred back then.
I wonder what factors it takes for an incident to be labeled a massacre. Number of people killed on one side?
Earlier, Limerick stated “historians are quick to make cheerful remarks about how the understanding of history will help us to understand ourselves and to cope with the dilemmas we have inherited from the past…” It is also said that if we don’t know our history, it will repeat itself. I don’t how true this is. Looking back, people have been oppressed and tortured and land taken away throughout history. On the other hand, knowing the horrors of the past does bring more tolerance today.
Duplicity: contradictory doubleness of thought, speech, or action; especially : the belying of one's true intentions by deceptive words or action. Cool new word!
I like how she goes into the history of the pioneer woman. It’s a viewpoint we don’t hear often. I wonder if they objected or were supportive or if they even had a choice.
“We live on a haunted land…” what a great line that ties neatly into the essays title.
“The light of the sun seems fresh and innocent, as if it knew as yet but few of the secrets of the world and none of the weariness of shining.” This too would go in my Book of Quotes. There have been many morning where things were fubar-ed but the sun still shone bright and uncaringly.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
States
This world Said speaks about is so foreign. Refugees and exiles and such. Such a contrast from Utopia Achieved. Nicely foiled! (Juxtaposed)?
History is forbidden. Flag is forbidden. No free travel. And here I am bitching about my civil liberties.
Page 623: “I heard it said in Lebanon that Palestinian children in particular should be killed because each of them is a potential terrorist. Kill them before they kill you.” How horrid.
I appreciate how the pictures show happy faces even in their situation.
It’s interesting that Said suggests that a person’s physical surroundings, (i.e. misplaced state or home) directly affects his writing.
I admire his lack of resentment in his voice. He does a better job than Harriet Jacobs in this aspect. He presents the facts in such a way that the reader doesn’t question its validity. It also helps that the Palestine issue, even today, is so hidden and foreign to us.
History is forbidden. Flag is forbidden. No free travel. And here I am bitching about my civil liberties.
Page 623: “I heard it said in Lebanon that Palestinian children in particular should be killed because each of them is a potential terrorist. Kill them before they kill you.” How horrid.
I appreciate how the pictures show happy faces even in their situation.
It’s interesting that Said suggests that a person’s physical surroundings, (i.e. misplaced state or home) directly affects his writing.
I admire his lack of resentment in his voice. He does a better job than Harriet Jacobs in this aspect. He presents the facts in such a way that the reader doesn’t question its validity. It also helps that the Palestine issue, even today, is so hidden and foreign to us.
Panopticism
I had to look it up; never heard of the word before. I couldn’t find it in Merriam-Webster online but there was this blurb on Google that I believe came from this essay itself: The panoptic mechanism arranges spatial unities that make it possible to see constantly and to recognize immediately… I guess it has to do with surveillance?
The scary panopticon reminds me of jail. Ada county specifically has these huge two way mirrors at the top front and center of the dorms that I guess is the break room for dorm officers. They can see all four tiers (at least in the female dorm) at all times. It’s eerie and perverted somehow. I liked how he compared it to the dungeon. I had forgotten older ways of imprisonment.
Foucalt stated that “in order to make the presence or absence of the inspector unverifiable….” They made the the central tower not visible to the prisoner. This same method is used in Canyon county with the use of 2 way mirrors that look into a central officer’s pod.
It’s crazy that plague regulation is applied to prison systems. They treat the criminal like a deadly disease.
This essay is really hard for me to get through. It’s interesting material for me but it’s so dry and lacks voice completely. It almost read like a manual. Boring. It reminded me of scary big brother and retina scans and such.
The scary panopticon reminds me of jail. Ada county specifically has these huge two way mirrors at the top front and center of the dorms that I guess is the break room for dorm officers. They can see all four tiers (at least in the female dorm) at all times. It’s eerie and perverted somehow. I liked how he compared it to the dungeon. I had forgotten older ways of imprisonment.
Foucalt stated that “in order to make the presence or absence of the inspector unverifiable….” They made the the central tower not visible to the prisoner. This same method is used in Canyon county with the use of 2 way mirrors that look into a central officer’s pod.
It’s crazy that plague regulation is applied to prison systems. They treat the criminal like a deadly disease.
This essay is really hard for me to get through. It’s interesting material for me but it’s so dry and lacks voice completely. It almost read like a manual. Boring. It reminded me of scary big brother and retina scans and such.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Utopia Achieved
Whew! This read is chock full of big words (-isms and such). Very dense!
Calling Japan a satellite of the earth (moon, right?) is interesting. I hope he expands cuz I’m curious as to what he means.
Page 111: “that it [United States] is the realization of everything the others have dreamt of-justice, plenty, rule of law, wealth, freedom: it know this, it believes in it, and in the end, the others have come to believe in it too.” This is key to why I believe this country is great. Baudrillard has such a wide viewpoint, to be able to state this sentiment in one sentence is amazing to me. It’s like he’s talking from a really tall ladder overlooking the U.S.
Oh! He’s not an American. Maybe that’s why he can have that far away viewpoint.
Some of his lines sound like he just likes hearing himself say big words that don’t mean anything (when he’s discussing the utopia paradox and Americans’ beliefs in facts and facticity).
It sounds like he’s describing animals in a National Geographic documentary when he is describing the French and the American families at the beach. Seems a little silly to me and stuck up.
It’s cool that he likes America; but he seems a little long winded and though the things he says are flattering and inspires feelings of patriotism for the United States, he lacks love for his own 'homeland' and it seem strange to me. Not exactly sure why...
Calling Japan a satellite of the earth (moon, right?) is interesting. I hope he expands cuz I’m curious as to what he means.
Page 111: “that it [United States] is the realization of everything the others have dreamt of-justice, plenty, rule of law, wealth, freedom: it know this, it believes in it, and in the end, the others have come to believe in it too.” This is key to why I believe this country is great. Baudrillard has such a wide viewpoint, to be able to state this sentiment in one sentence is amazing to me. It’s like he’s talking from a really tall ladder overlooking the U.S.
Oh! He’s not an American. Maybe that’s why he can have that far away viewpoint.
Some of his lines sound like he just likes hearing himself say big words that don’t mean anything (when he’s discussing the utopia paradox and Americans’ beliefs in facts and facticity).
It sounds like he’s describing animals in a National Geographic documentary when he is describing the French and the American families at the beach. Seems a little silly to me and stuck up.
It’s cool that he likes America; but he seems a little long winded and though the things he says are flattering and inspires feelings of patriotism for the United States, he lacks love for his own 'homeland' and it seem strange to me. Not exactly sure why...
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Beauty (Re)discovers the Male Body
Bordo (funny name hee hee) called the new advertising a “cultural permission to be a voyeur.” Nicely put. I love that she argues with the ‘biology’ of males being wired to respond visually more than females. I’ve always wondered how true this is.
The way she describes the first calvin klein ad almost made me blush.
It’s funny. I used to have such strong, irate feelings about this issue. I think I’ve gotten older. It’s refreshing to hear again.
It’s interesting that ‘overexposed’ male photography is considered gay when female photography is not considered lesbian.
It’s so true that a female had to be in the picture of an ad promoting a male’s vanity. Homophobia can be silly.
Men are viewed in action and women are looked at. She gives a great example with the Pompeian cream and how it promises to ‘beautify and youthify’ women but helps men ‘win success’ and ‘make promotion easier’ on the job.
I wonder what men of today would think of this essay. I would like to think that they agree…
On page 207: “I never dreamed that ‘equality’ would move in the direction of men worrying more about their looks rather than women worrying less.” This is great. Equality in more misery. How human.
She says that we ‘pay constant lip service to beauty that is more than skindeep” harsh but true. I found the ending of this essay a little weak.
The way she describes the first calvin klein ad almost made me blush.
It’s funny. I used to have such strong, irate feelings about this issue. I think I’ve gotten older. It’s refreshing to hear again.
It’s interesting that ‘overexposed’ male photography is considered gay when female photography is not considered lesbian.
It’s so true that a female had to be in the picture of an ad promoting a male’s vanity. Homophobia can be silly.
Men are viewed in action and women are looked at. She gives a great example with the Pompeian cream and how it promises to ‘beautify and youthify’ women but helps men ‘win success’ and ‘make promotion easier’ on the job.
I wonder what men of today would think of this essay. I would like to think that they agree…
On page 207: “I never dreamed that ‘equality’ would move in the direction of men worrying more about their looks rather than women worrying less.” This is great. Equality in more misery. How human.
She says that we ‘pay constant lip service to beauty that is more than skindeep” harsh but true. I found the ending of this essay a little weak.
Our Secret
I love how the author uses a fact as a sort of metaphor to preface the story line.
The little excerpts talk about the tiniest thing, the cell and RNA, etc. the smallest molecule of life then she throws in the excerpts about the weapons of mass destruction. A large, evil thing that destroys life. It’s an interesting foil (I think that’s the right term). Makes the reader think really tiny then really big and she throws in normal (?) everyday life in between.
I had no idea that there was child abuse in german history. I think that’s a very stupid reason and a cop out to say that was what led to the holocaust.
Page 341: “To a certain kind of mind, what is hidden away ceases to exist.” This reminds me of the human defense mechanism of blocking out traumatic memories. Griffin goes on to explain that these memories still exist and ‘nothing really ever disappears.” It reminds me of chilson’s essay on memories and the question of memories creating a person’s character.
I like the Self Portrait pieces. She describes the physical aspect then lets the reader come to her own conclusion of where she is at in this point of the story. I love metaphors!
The little excerpts talk about the tiniest thing, the cell and RNA, etc. the smallest molecule of life then she throws in the excerpts about the weapons of mass destruction. A large, evil thing that destroys life. It’s an interesting foil (I think that’s the right term). Makes the reader think really tiny then really big and she throws in normal (?) everyday life in between.
I had no idea that there was child abuse in german history. I think that’s a very stupid reason and a cop out to say that was what led to the holocaust.
Page 341: “To a certain kind of mind, what is hidden away ceases to exist.” This reminds me of the human defense mechanism of blocking out traumatic memories. Griffin goes on to explain that these memories still exist and ‘nothing really ever disappears.” It reminds me of chilson’s essay on memories and the question of memories creating a person’s character.
I like the Self Portrait pieces. She describes the physical aspect then lets the reader come to her own conclusion of where she is at in this point of the story. I love metaphors!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
John Berger
Ways of Seeing
Berger states that the invention of the camera ‘destroyed the idea that images were timeless’ I disagree. Photography is just as timeless as any art. I prefer this medium.
The charts on 147 are interesting. The more educated seem to appreciate art more. It’s funny that museums remind people of church. This is probably a dated view.
I don’t really understand the point of this essay. Is he saying that reproductions can’t be as good as the real things? Why the hell not?
On Rembrandt’s Woman in Bed
It’s funny how berger talks about it being strange that historians speculate the age of the model, and yet he does it himself.
“They are paintings which speak of his love, not of hers.” Descriptive and beautiful concept.
Writing about art is weird. It’s his opinion and again I don’t see the point really.
On Caravaggio’s The Calling of Saint Matthew
Berger’s writing is easy to read, but who reads it? Why do people want an interpretation of art and not just create the story in their own minds? Are the stories he puts behind these pictures accurate, or is he just guessing?
Berger states that the invention of the camera ‘destroyed the idea that images were timeless’ I disagree. Photography is just as timeless as any art. I prefer this medium.
The charts on 147 are interesting. The more educated seem to appreciate art more. It’s funny that museums remind people of church. This is probably a dated view.
I don’t really understand the point of this essay. Is he saying that reproductions can’t be as good as the real things? Why the hell not?
On Rembrandt’s Woman in Bed
It’s funny how berger talks about it being strange that historians speculate the age of the model, and yet he does it himself.
“They are paintings which speak of his love, not of hers.” Descriptive and beautiful concept.
Writing about art is weird. It’s his opinion and again I don’t see the point really.
On Caravaggio’s The Calling of Saint Matthew
Berger’s writing is easy to read, but who reads it? Why do people want an interpretation of art and not just create the story in their own minds? Are the stories he puts behind these pictures accurate, or is he just guessing?
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Sources
Words to look up: boletus, bladder-campion, Irasburg 1968, Ashkenazi, lox
Stanza III: From where does your strength come, you Southern Jew? split at the root, raised in a castle of air? I wonder what this means. It intrigues me. Castle of air?
Split at the root – white skinned social Christian, neither gentile nor jew.
When I first read ‘vixen’ I thought she meant cunning female but later realized she meant mother fox.
Castle of air – rootless ideology. Thought system with no basis?
Stanza XXII: To say: no person, trying to take responsibility for her or his identity, should have to be so alone. Is she saying that everyone has the right to voice their opinion without feeling bad or alone?
“When I speak of an end to suffering I don’t mean anesthesia. I mean knowing the world, and my place in it, not in order to stare with bitterness or detachment, but as a powerful and womanly series of choices: and here I write the words , in their fullness: powerful; womanly.” This quote would go in my Book of Quotes if I had one.
Looked up the words:
boletus - mushroom that can be poisonous
bladder campion - a plant
Irasburg 1968 -The incident started out as a drive-by shooting which damaged the windows of a private home, but mushroomed into the public eye as law enforcement scrutinized the victim's background, rather than going after the shooter.The victim was a black ordained minister who moved to Irasburg with his family and a white woman and her children about 14 days earlier from Seaside, Calif. The shooter turned out to be a white Glover resident who reportedly had told others before the incident he intended to "scare" and "harass" the (racial epithets). -www.caldonianrecord.com.
Ashkenazi - descended from medieval Jewish communities of Rhineland
lox - salmon that has been cured in brine and sometimes smoked.
Stanza III: From where does your strength come, you Southern Jew? split at the root, raised in a castle of air? I wonder what this means. It intrigues me. Castle of air?
Split at the root – white skinned social Christian, neither gentile nor jew.
When I first read ‘vixen’ I thought she meant cunning female but later realized she meant mother fox.
Castle of air – rootless ideology. Thought system with no basis?
Stanza XXII: To say: no person, trying to take responsibility for her or his identity, should have to be so alone. Is she saying that everyone has the right to voice their opinion without feeling bad or alone?
“When I speak of an end to suffering I don’t mean anesthesia. I mean knowing the world, and my place in it, not in order to stare with bitterness or detachment, but as a powerful and womanly series of choices: and here I write the words , in their fullness: powerful; womanly.” This quote would go in my Book of Quotes if I had one.
Looked up the words:
boletus - mushroom that can be poisonous
bladder campion - a plant
Irasburg 1968 -The incident started out as a drive-by shooting which damaged the windows of a private home, but mushroomed into the public eye as law enforcement scrutinized the victim's background, rather than going after the shooter.The victim was a black ordained minister who moved to Irasburg with his family and a white woman and her children about 14 days earlier from Seaside, Calif. The shooter turned out to be a white Glover resident who reportedly had told others before the incident he intended to "scare" and "harass" the (racial epithets). -www.caldonianrecord.com.
Ashkenazi - descended from medieval Jewish communities of Rhineland
lox - salmon that has been cured in brine and sometimes smoked.
When We Dead Awaken: Writing as Re-Vision
What does misogynist (male critics) mean? Merriam Webster: woman hater
Page 540 “The awakening of dead or sleeping consciousness has already affected the lives of millions of women, even those who don’t know it yet.” Powerful. Knowledge is the first step to change. I love the ‘dead or sleeping consciousness’ as describing the complacency of one’s own situation. “The sleepwalker are coming awake, and for the first time this awakening has a collective reality; it is no longer such a lonely thing to open one’s eyes.” How motivational! It reminds me of Tool’s Third Eye “That we are all one consciousness..."
Jane Harrison states that women are written as a dream or a terror but not vice versa. We had a similar discussion about Anzaldua and Adams Virgin and Whore theory.
I think her theory on women being represented the way they are is true for our current music industry. I can’t find female artists I like. They are all sex icons with no truth in their lyrics. Ugh.
Page 542, Rich talks about men writing for men and women writing for men also. I have never considered the gender of my audience when writing. How annoying this must be.
Page 543: “These women [in poetry written by males] were almost always beautiful, but threatened with the loss of beauty, the loss of youth-the fate worse than death. Or, they were beautiful and died young….” This essay was written in 1971 and these beliefs still apply. Beauty and youth is still considered so important in women. It’s gotten better, I think. Well, I heard someone once say that feminism has turned into the woman’s right to be as ‘slutty’ and blatant about her sexuality as she wants and nobody can say anything. This same person said that this was a step backwards in women’s liberation.
Page 545: “If there were doubt, if there were periods of null depression or active despairing, these could only mean that I was ungrateful, insatiable, perhaps a monster.”
This is great stuff. It could be applied to recovery beliefs. One must always be grateful. This is not always true, however. We should not be sheep. If we are not angry, how can things change? They tell us not to play the 'victim role' but damnit, sometime we are the victim.
Rich mentioning Caroline Herschel in this essay is a perfect example of the inequality in our culture. I hope to find similar examples that will back up my essay.
Rich states that we (women) should write with anger (if need be) and not be detached or objective. I don’t think this would apply to my essay, but we will see.
Page 540 “The awakening of dead or sleeping consciousness has already affected the lives of millions of women, even those who don’t know it yet.” Powerful. Knowledge is the first step to change. I love the ‘dead or sleeping consciousness’ as describing the complacency of one’s own situation. “The sleepwalker are coming awake, and for the first time this awakening has a collective reality; it is no longer such a lonely thing to open one’s eyes.” How motivational! It reminds me of Tool’s Third Eye “That we are all one consciousness..."
Jane Harrison states that women are written as a dream or a terror but not vice versa. We had a similar discussion about Anzaldua and Adams Virgin and Whore theory.
I think her theory on women being represented the way they are is true for our current music industry. I can’t find female artists I like. They are all sex icons with no truth in their lyrics. Ugh.
Page 542, Rich talks about men writing for men and women writing for men also. I have never considered the gender of my audience when writing. How annoying this must be.
Page 543: “These women [in poetry written by males] were almost always beautiful, but threatened with the loss of beauty, the loss of youth-the fate worse than death. Or, they were beautiful and died young….” This essay was written in 1971 and these beliefs still apply. Beauty and youth is still considered so important in women. It’s gotten better, I think. Well, I heard someone once say that feminism has turned into the woman’s right to be as ‘slutty’ and blatant about her sexuality as she wants and nobody can say anything. This same person said that this was a step backwards in women’s liberation.
Page 545: “If there were doubt, if there were periods of null depression or active despairing, these could only mean that I was ungrateful, insatiable, perhaps a monster.”
This is great stuff. It could be applied to recovery beliefs. One must always be grateful. This is not always true, however. We should not be sheep. If we are not angry, how can things change? They tell us not to play the 'victim role' but damnit, sometime we are the victim.
Rich mentioning Caroline Herschel in this essay is a perfect example of the inequality in our culture. I hope to find similar examples that will back up my essay.
Rich states that we (women) should write with anger (if need be) and not be detached or objective. I don’t think this would apply to my essay, but we will see.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
Her reason for writing this essay is so noble. She states that it is essentially not to talk shit, which is incredible, considering what she’s been through, but instead to let the women in the north know what her sisters are going through. I plan to hopefully write a similar essay for my personal essay assignment concerning the state of our justice system and the cops, and I hope I can keep my resentments and personal anger out of it.
Jacobs states that she is uneducated, but she has such an expansive, well used vocabulary, that I don’t see it.
When she’s talking about being weaned at 3 months, so the master’s daughter could be fed, that really struck a chord. How f**ed up.
Page 371, she uses the bible verse Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself to illustrate the hypocrisy of the mistress’ actions. Love it. She doesn’t come out and say it exactly, she just says, “…I suppose she did not recognize me as her neighbor.”
I hear no resentment in the author’s voice; she almost gives credit for the slave owners behaving the way they did (not paying back the $300 loan, counting out the number of biscuits made, etc.). This allows the reader to feel his or her own horror and indignation at the stuff that happened. I find this technique is quite effective.
I really liked this line on page 379: “The war of my life had begun; and though one of God’s most powerless creatures, I resolved never to be conquered.”
Jacobs states that she is uneducated, but she has such an expansive, well used vocabulary, that I don’t see it.
When she’s talking about being weaned at 3 months, so the master’s daughter could be fed, that really struck a chord. How f**ed up.
Page 371, she uses the bible verse Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself to illustrate the hypocrisy of the mistress’ actions. Love it. She doesn’t come out and say it exactly, she just says, “…I suppose she did not recognize me as her neighbor.”
I hear no resentment in the author’s voice; she almost gives credit for the slave owners behaving the way they did (not paying back the $300 loan, counting out the number of biscuits made, etc.). This allows the reader to feel his or her own horror and indignation at the stuff that happened. I find this technique is quite effective.
I really liked this line on page 379: “The war of my life had begun; and though one of God’s most powerless creatures, I resolved never to be conquered.”
Monday, September 17, 2007
Free Write Personal Essay
i know what i want to write about, need to write about, but it's a rather lofty endeavour and i'm not sure where to focus. i want to write about the complacency of americans concerning the judicial system and cops. it's an important issue to me for a variety of reasons. my mother insists that if i'm not involved in the criminal lifestyle, it should be of no concern to me. i come back with "That's not the American way!" and "Checks and balances, damnit!" My dad has the opposite view, sort of. He sees the corruption and hates the fucking pigs, but i think it stops there. I believe that him being a vet has something to do with the feelings of injustice. He loves this country with all his heart, so the shit that happens does piss him off. i feel the same way. when i had my run ins with the law, i was greatly disillusioned and felt like i was on some foreign planet. everything i had been taught in american history and about justice and freedom was a crock of shit. i don't want to be preachy in this essay, however. i want to present my ideas so the reader can decide. i have such strong feelings about this that it's going to be a challenge. we'll see how it goes...
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Houdini's Box
'dangeroos' on page 488. that one made me laugh out loud.
on 492, Phillips talks about houdini parodying the Christian 'Do unto others' this is great! He says ' perform other people or they will perform you, prejudge you.'
boasting was a big part of his act. i gather that he wouldn't be as popular without him talking himself up. it reminds me of the celebrities of our time that are scandalous and get themselve in the papers and brings them more fame.
on 492, Phillips talks about houdini parodying the Christian 'Do unto others' this is great! He says ' perform other people or they will perform you, prejudge you.'
boasting was a big part of his act. i gather that he wouldn't be as popular without him talking himself up. it reminds me of the celebrities of our time that are scandalous and get themselve in the papers and brings them more fame.
Free Write Topic 3
Internalize identity. Whenever i go to a Korean friend's house of my mom's, there's always bounds of food and drink offered. It's the polite Korean hospitality that i have learned to show to my friends and visitors. The acrid smell of kim chee makes my mouth water (and also reminds me of the embarrassment my mom feels if americans are around to smell it). Whenever i smell the leathers of shoes lined up outside of a house that reminds me of my home as a child (no shoes inside!).
Classic rock songs, Creedence Clearwater and Zeppelin, always make me smile and think of my harley riding, bad ass, anti-authoritarian father and the rebellious streaks he unknowningly instilled in me.
Classic rock songs, Creedence Clearwater and Zeppelin, always make me smile and think of my harley riding, bad ass, anti-authoritarian father and the rebellious streaks he unknowningly instilled in me.
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