Blog Post #7

Summary:
In the article "Master's of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising," Jack Solomon talks about all the different types of desires people have and ways that they are used in advertising. He claims that the American Dream has two faces: "the one communally egalitarian and the other competitively elitist," also allowing us to take account that we are living in this paradox. Solomon takes to account that even the finest details put into these advertisements affect the viewer and consumer. He mentions that what an individual wears, the shape of their face, and even accent or voice, can instantly create a “social status.” These advertisements are made to make the viewer feel fear, sexual attraction, or giver viewers hope by feeling better.

Response:
The topic that Solomon talks about that most got my attention was the “Live The Fantasy” topic. The reason is because searching through advertisements I found how well the ad makers apply sexual desires into products.The ad I found is called “Fiat 500 Abarth.” In this ad all men can live their fantasy through a car. This commercial taps into the idea of how in all men’s “sexual desires,” there is the dream of a beautiful, foreign model. With this car now all men’s “subconscious dreams and desires” are fulfilled and can have a beautiful, sleek, foreign vehicle, just like they could as if it was a woman. The women who is wearing a sleek, black and red dress (just like the sleek, black and red, leather seats in the car), uses her sexuality to make the scene climactic, by noticing an average looking guy, who seems like the opposite of a womanizer.

"Is the American Dream Over?" Blog post #6

Summary:
In the passage "Is the American Dream Over?," by Cal Thomas, Thomas questions whether the American Dream is over. He begins to explain how he believes that it is over and the government is to blame for it. Thomas believes that "self-reliance, individual initiative, and personal accountability" are all the things that we as Americans are missing in order to achieve the American dream. According to Thomas, the government needs to stop providing us with benefits such as, welfare, financial aid, etc. because we are abusing it by not working hard enough to attain our own things. It is making us lazy and keeping us from pushing ourselves to achieve the American Dream.

Response:
I mostly disagree with Cal Thomas. Thomas’s passage was to biased. He believes that the American Dream is over because of the way the government gives out benefits such as financial aid, welfare, food stamps, etc. He believes that the “government is out of control and thus out of touch robs every citizen, preventing fulfillment of the original American Dream.” In other words, the government is making us all lazy because they are handing us free stuff, making us not work hard enough for what we all really want. I couldn’t disagree more because as bad as our economy is and our government sustaining a lot from being able to work, I think that benefits such as, financial aid, welfare, etc. are great because they give us all a way to start from a place so low.

"2b or Not 2b?" blog post #5

Summary: In the passage “2b or Not 2b?” by David Crystal, he begins by quoting Jhona Humphrey’s argument about how he believes that texting is wrecking our language, “destroying it: pillaging our punctuation; savaging our sentences; raping our vocabulary. And they must be stopped.” Humphrey believes that texting is making society’s linguistics go downhill and making everyone illiterate. Crystal opposes by pointing out the fact that the idea of sending out a text message, technology, and the way we utilize it is new, but the actual texting isn’t new. In one American study, less than about 20% of text messages looked at showed abbreviations. Abbreviations have always existed ever since the English language was written. For example, a man named Eric Partidge published a dictionary of abbreviations in 1942 that “contained dozens of of SMS-looking examples, such as agn ‘again,’ mnth ‘month,’ and so on. Crystal explains how texting isn’t meant to be “attractive.” It is a strategy meant to reduce time.

 

Response: From the passage “2b or Not 2b?”, I agree with Crystal. I can definitely see why Humphrey would make an argument about how texting is ruining our language because to some, texting isn’t making a benefit on the way they speak or write. It can very likely mess up the way one thinks and writes. On the contrary I do agree with Crystal’s argument more because I do believe that texting is a just a quicker form of communication. I do not think that there is anything wrong with abbreviating to get your point down quicker. Although there is an extent to the form of texting, I believe that one should just be aware of how and when to use it. For example, if one is writing an essay it is not to be used because you are trying to write your point down and be clear and if you are writing a text message then you want it to be quick and easy. When it comes down to it, I think that it shouldn’t affect anyone. It is more depending on their level of education and whether they know when it is okay to be used.

"Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted" blog post #4

 

    In the passage “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted” by Malcolm Gladwell, he starts off by telling a story about some freshmen from a black college in the sixties. The kids sat down on a sit-in lunch counter that was only made for white people and the waitresses refused to attend them. The kids refused to move from the spot and the next the protest had grown. As days past by the protest got bigger and bigger and sit-ins spread throughout different states. This protest spread within days without having social media. Nowadays we have social media and “it is easier for the powerless to collaborate, coordinate, and give voice to their concerns.”  Most of these activist were “critical friends” and were likely to join in protests with each other. In social media it is different because almost all the people who are your friends are acquaintances which gives the greatest source of new ideas and information. Traditional activism and social media activism are not the same because unlike traditional, in social media there are no rules or procedures and networks aren’t controlled by a single central authority.

    I agree and disagree with Gladwell. I can say that I agree with him that activism is not the same and that it had somewhat of more of an impact when it was traditional because there is a lot more personal interaction going on. Like the kids that were at the sit-ins, they were able to gather people as days passed by because the interactions and connections were stronger because there was actions going on and it wasn’t just something roaming around the internet. There is a lot more authority and rules or procedures than just making a Facebook group page. The reason I disagree is because I feel that in social media there is strength when it comes to advertising, promoting, and getting the word around. It can be very helpful to anything, whether you are looking for people interested in a protest or looking for a “bone marrow donor.”  

"Two Years are better Than Four"

Summary:

In Liz Addison's "Two Years Are Better Than Four", Addison begins by mocking a man named Rick Perlstein. Perlstein wrote an article about how college isn't the same anymore and it doesn't matter. Addison strongly disagrees with his claim that "the college experience. a rite of passage as it was meant to be, must have come to an end" (212). She feels that Perlstein has never set into an American community college and that he is "stuck in his own nostalgia, looking for himself" (212). Addison feels as if this is an insult because community college means to her a lot because it was a place where she found herself and experienced new things.

 

Response:

In Liz Addison's "Two Years Are Better Than Four", she says, "I is here that Mr. Perlstein will find his college years of self-discovery, and it is here he will find that college does still matter." Addison feels that Perlstein has a different perspective on college because he spent his at the "University of Privilege" in the sixties. I agree with Addison because going to a four-year and a community college can be a very different experience. College isn't for everybody, but to me it does still matter because it is a place where you can explore your won interests and find yourself through a future path.

 

Blog Post #2

                                                                          Blog Post #2


Summary:
One of the essays that I revised was the "Mastery Essay" by Douglas Ross. In this essay Ross talks about how in society today one of the major problems is that thousands of kids are born and not wanted. The reason for this problem is because people are irresponsible and choose to not take birth control. In most cases nowadays young couples are unable to raise a child and refuse to use birth control because they believe pregnancy would never happen to them. Then Ross mentions how most teens choose not to use birth control at the same time of not wanting a child because in most cases they were raised irresponsibly. Advertisements also give the impression that one should live in the moment and not worry about other things.

Response:
At some points I can say I agree and disagree with this essay. I think that Ross left out many key ideas to why couples choose not to use birth control when neither parents wants a child. In my personal opinion, I do not like certain things about birth control. A lot of then contain many chemicals and substances that aren't very good for the body. I have a friend who takes birth control and ever since then she has gained lots of weight because of it, also it gives her mood swings because the substances in the birth control mess with her hormones. I definitely do agree that responsibility is a big part. I think that if you don't want a child and are going to have sex, then you must be responsible about it and think ahead of time. If you are going to be irresponsible then just don't have sex. In most cases for teens, it is an awkward situation to talk about using birth control with parents.  

                                                                             Blog #1

Summary:
This week I read a "This I Believe" essay called "Love on Four Feet" by Sarah Culp Searles. One fine afternoon Sarah had come home from college and had come to realization of something. She was having a bad day and had an emotional breakdown. She explains how her parents had a great big cat at home named Comet. The cat was very big and had a very mellow personality. They had brought him home from an animal shelter when she was she was just a kid and the cat was just a kitten. Before she went off to college, she never really like that cat or cared for it much. That afternoon when she had come home from college, she felt like her whole life was upside down and needed some guidance and answers. Later that day she found Comet in a pile of laundry and he had been asleep. She decided to scratch his back and sides and the cat gave her looks of absolute adoration. At some point it hit her an she realized that the cat loved her. The cat loved her unconditionally, no matter how she failed, and no matter what was going on in life. Now when she comes home to this cat she does not take it for granted, and she appreciates his love because it is true for his owner.

Response:
This essay really caught my eye  because it is about a girl and her cat. I have always had a deep affection for animals. Iv'e had cats, dogs, turtles, hamsters, fish and more. I can relate to Sarah because some times I feel like I am so caught up in the tangle of my own life that I don't pay attention to my pets. I currently have a terrier named Bacon, a German shepherd named Lucy, and a cat named Trixie. I love all my pets very dearly. This essay has made me realize to not take my pets' love for granted because they are always there for you. Every single day when I come home from school, even when I'm not paying attention, Bacon follows me everywhere I go around the house. Bacon will bark at the door whenever there is a stranger near my house. That is recall love because I know my puppy is always looking out for me and trying to protect me. And when I am having a bad day I know that I can come home to my cat and pet her an tell her all about my problems without being judged.