There were three, Disney sponsered teenage-hanson- brother-wannabes in ridiculously tight pants on stage. Their songs were essentially all the same, but somehow I doubt the thousands of pre-teen "future Mrs. Jonas's" cared to notice. Yes, unfortunately, it is all about the pants. We fought our way to 3rd row and secretly all believed at least one of us was going to be chosen to go on stage. Unfortunately, we hadn't realized that they had arranged who to call on stage prior to the actual show, and all the screaming, jumping, and shoving was for nothing.
Yes, we are seniors, and yes, we went to a Jonas Brothers concert this summer. Most people get their boyband obsessions over with by age 10, but I suppose there are always the exceptions. I am incredibly thankful to have such an amazing group of friends. You know you have a solid group of friends when they have witnessed dimensions of your personality, which, if anyone else, would otherwise serve as potential black-mail material. Embarressment, humility, hilarity. Friendship. I have always felt that I can be myself completely around these individuals without fear of ridicule. I would trust these girls with my life and defend them to the death. I know this sounds dramatic, but it is the truth. I don't know what I'd do without them and am terrified about having to face this reality next year, as we all sprint off to college in different directions. I haven't yet been able to fully accept this fact. Yes, I'm legally recognized as an adult, yes the applications are being sent, yes I'm going to college. Yes, I'm going to college. I don't know how it happened, but somehow we have all broken our promises and have grown up. I have never been more scared in my entire life. I hear constantly the " I cannot wait to get away from this cultureless, cow-infested county." But I can wait. It's already Thanksgiving of my senior year, and I'm still waiting for this mythical "easy" senior year to commence. I'm not ready to leave, whether or not my siblings have already begun to fight over my soon-to-be-vacant-room. Time has no sympathy for emotional stability(or lack thereof), so the fact remains that next year I will have to part with the best friends I've ever had. I will not be able to see them everyday, make them laugh, or laugh myself, until I've lost muscle control. Sadly the nights of watching Anchor Man until 4'o clock in the morning, drawing on the face of whoever fell asleep first, making jokes about John Cusack, and quoting Dane Cook after eating a whole package of pixie stix aren't going to occur on a regular basis. But I don't want to miss the beauty of the present because of my sadness for the end of the past and my fear of the future. I am thankful for sharing so many memories with my friends, but I am even more thankful for the times ahead of us. There are movie nights to be had, inside jokes to be made, Gov. homework to complain about. And, of course, there is a list of outrageous things to do this summer. Whatever the future holds for us, I know that we will always remain friends and am forever grateful for having met these incredible individuals. Thanks for putting up with me guys-
ksmat<3
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Monday, November 19, 2007
HA and the headline makes sense!
So, this post is incredibly irrelevant, but I have realized I do not have a "writer's" name (You know what I mean, looks good on covers, sounds intimidatingly intelligent) and at 10:17 when I am working on my POW, I needed someone to know. My future has been shot down.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Rant on Prostitution
Prostitution is defined as the act of engaging in sexual intercourse or performing other sex acts in exchange for money, or of offering another person for such purposes OR the use of a skill or ability in a way that is considered unworthy, usually for financial gain. According to Peter Williams' Ain't Nobody's Business if You Do, everyone is a prostitute because everyone does something with their body for money that they would not do normally had they not been paid. I believe that prostitution is wrong, whatever your definition. Selling yourself on any level is incredibly degrading and saddening. As we found in our research, individuals turn to prostitution for a variety of reasons. I find it incredibly hard to believe that many people become prostitutes purely because they like money and sex, as some of our sources indicated. Prostitution is an act of desperation. Many individuals who are abused or impoverished turn to poverty because it is their only option. Many are dragged into prostitution unknowingly and are then unable to liberate themselves. Overall, I think it is impossible to determine exactly why people turn to prostitution.
In the Glass Castle the women of Green Lantern wear elaborate costumes and makeup and lie around on the porch, waving to passing cars and welcoming men in. Brian's encounter with Ginger leaves him with a hatred for prostitutes and a view of prostitution as easy money. These women, it seems, viewed prostitution as simply an occupation, and represented the view that it is easily gained and desirable money. This is shown when Brian tells Jeanette regarding Ginger “She makes a lot of money,” he said, “and she should buy her own darn comic book.” (79). Every case is different, and I think it's unfair to label every prostitute as the Green Lantern stereotype, a woman who prances around in lingerie and makes "easy" money for selling herself. There was a case in Alabama where a 62-year old Grandmother and her daughter engaged in prostitution, charging $15 each. This is clearly an act of desperation. To me, prostitution is one of the saddest instances of human desperation and self-esteem. These women were willing to sell themselves for only $15; they were willing to degrade themselves in order to make a small sum of money to keep food on the table. In the Glass Castle, Ginnie Sue Pastor is described as “any other mom” (Walls 160). She is working as a prostitute in order to feed her children. It is merely her means to earn money to keep her family alive. I think Ginnie Sue is the perfect example of a woman who is driven into prostitution by her desire to feed her family, whether or not she finds the money easy, her motives are not occupational and she is not the typical "glamorous" prostitute of the Green Lantern. I think no matter what social state a prostitute comes from, they are desperate in some way, if not financially then perhaps emotionally or physically, and in some cases, in all three.
Prostitution is the third most lucrative trade in the black market(behind drugs and the selling of fire arms), and while we pride ourselves in being a highly civilized and moral society, prostitution is popularized in society today. Whether in the form of 50 Cents' P.I.M.P. or scoring points for running over, picking up, raping, or shooting a prostitute in a number of lovely video games, prostitution has become a joke of sorts amongst popular culture. A term once used exclusively to describe prostitutes, girls are called whores on a regular basis. It's incredibly easy to judge a person's life style from a distance and label it disgusting or abominable, or even[on some occasions] humorous. However, these portrayals are cruel and inaccurate. While I don't agree with prostitution, I sympathize with these individuals greatly and think its a truly tragic profession. I think society as a whole tends to view prostitutes as subhuman. It's just easy money gained through manipulation and sex. I think in the Glass Castle Walls attempts to humanize prostitutes, portraying them being kind to Brian on their first encounter and showing Ginnie Sue providing for her family. It's impossible to know definitively the motives behind prostitution, but I think in most cases the individual doesn't want to be doing what their doing but feels they have no other choice.
In the Glass Castle the women of Green Lantern wear elaborate costumes and makeup and lie around on the porch, waving to passing cars and welcoming men in. Brian's encounter with Ginger leaves him with a hatred for prostitutes and a view of prostitution as easy money. These women, it seems, viewed prostitution as simply an occupation, and represented the view that it is easily gained and desirable money. This is shown when Brian tells Jeanette regarding Ginger “She makes a lot of money,” he said, “and she should buy her own darn comic book.” (79). Every case is different, and I think it's unfair to label every prostitute as the Green Lantern stereotype, a woman who prances around in lingerie and makes "easy" money for selling herself. There was a case in Alabama where a 62-year old Grandmother and her daughter engaged in prostitution, charging $15 each. This is clearly an act of desperation. To me, prostitution is one of the saddest instances of human desperation and self-esteem. These women were willing to sell themselves for only $15; they were willing to degrade themselves in order to make a small sum of money to keep food on the table. In the Glass Castle, Ginnie Sue Pastor is described as “any other mom” (Walls 160). She is working as a prostitute in order to feed her children. It is merely her means to earn money to keep her family alive. I think Ginnie Sue is the perfect example of a woman who is driven into prostitution by her desire to feed her family, whether or not she finds the money easy, her motives are not occupational and she is not the typical "glamorous" prostitute of the Green Lantern. I think no matter what social state a prostitute comes from, they are desperate in some way, if not financially then perhaps emotionally or physically, and in some cases, in all three.
Prostitution is the third most lucrative trade in the black market(behind drugs and the selling of fire arms), and while we pride ourselves in being a highly civilized and moral society, prostitution is popularized in society today. Whether in the form of 50 Cents' P.I.M.P. or scoring points for running over, picking up, raping, or shooting a prostitute in a number of lovely video games, prostitution has become a joke of sorts amongst popular culture. A term once used exclusively to describe prostitutes, girls are called whores on a regular basis. It's incredibly easy to judge a person's life style from a distance and label it disgusting or abominable, or even[on some occasions] humorous. However, these portrayals are cruel and inaccurate. While I don't agree with prostitution, I sympathize with these individuals greatly and think its a truly tragic profession. I think society as a whole tends to view prostitutes as subhuman. It's just easy money gained through manipulation and sex. I think in the Glass Castle Walls attempts to humanize prostitutes, portraying them being kind to Brian on their first encounter and showing Ginnie Sue providing for her family. It's impossible to know definitively the motives behind prostitution, but I think in most cases the individual doesn't want to be doing what their doing but feels they have no other choice.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
The Effects of "He" and "I"
3. The Man He Killed (From "The Dynasts")
"HAD he and I but met
By some old ancient inn,
We should have sat us down to wet
Right many a nipperkin!
"But ranged as infantry,
5
And staring face to face,
I shot at him as he at me,
And killed him in his place.
"I shot him dead because—
Because he was my foe,
10
Just so: my foe of course he was;
That's clear enough; although
"He thought he'd 'list, perhaps,
Off-hand like—just as I—
Was out of work—had sold his traps—
15
No other reason why.
"Yes; quaint and curious war is!
You shoot a fellow down
You'd treat, if met where any bar is,
Or help to half-a-crown."
This poem by Thomas Hardy is drastically different from O'Brian's chapter "The Man I Killed" despite the clear parallel in the action and time depicted. The author and the reader are separated from the action in this poem, primarily because it is not a personal account on the author's part. The author quotes a conversation with a war veteran but leaves himself out of the dialogue entirely. By having the man's story told from his perspective, a distinct connection between author and reader is lost. There is little intimacy present between the writer and what he is portraying because it is not depicted as his own experience. This is an occasion where I think the author should have taken on the perspective of the war veteran. His use of colloquial language does personify the man and does create a closeness between him and the man, unfortunately, this excludes the reader. The poem serves as a vague account of death and war and conveys the irony in shooting a man you may have other wise bought a drink for or demonstrated some act of kindness towards out of sheer human decency. In class we discussed how many war veterans, when they go to write war stories, write in the third person in order to separate themselves from the different person they became in battle. I don't know if this is the case with Thomas Hardy, but it is my opinion that his use of "he" instead of "I" in the title(whether or not it is his own experience), caused his work to be less effective than O'Brian's account.
In Tim O'Brian's chapter "The Man I Killed", he brings his emotions directly to the conscious of the reader. By retelling the events following the murder of the young man, rather than Hardy's mere "I shot at him and he at me". The young man becomes almost a tangible entity, as O'Brian repetitively describes the star-shaped hole where his eye used to be, his thin eyebrows, the cowlick in his hair, "the slight tear at the lobe of one ear", and the opening of his neck at the spinal cord. What makes this chapter so effective is his invention of the person behind the soldier, the mathematician, scholar, lover, son that wore the mask of an enemy. Although these descriptions are mere inventions, the fact remains that this person had a history, had a life. O'Brian's description breathes life into unimaginable guilt he feels. The chapter becomes not so much about O'Brian, but about the man he killed, unlike Hardy's poem which is primarily about the speaker. Although it remains unclear whether or not O'Brian actually killed a man, placing himself in that position grants a greater enormity to his action. The death of this young man becomes incredibly real to the reader because it is told as if it is happening in that moment, unlike the poem which separates definitively between past and present. It is this inclusion of the reader that makes The Things They Carried a true war story, which evokes the emotions of the reader simultaneously with that of the author. Whether any of it actually happened is irrelevant.
While I appreciate the idea represented in Thomas Hardy's poem, I found it inadequate in appealing to an audience that hadn't actually been in the war. I couldn't relate to the poem in any respect. It is melancholy and saddened me to an extent, but I felt like the poem captured a conversation that came with the prerequisite of understanding, rather than attempting to capture the turbulant emotions present at the time.
"HAD he and I but met
By some old ancient inn,
We should have sat us down to wet
Right many a nipperkin!
"But ranged as infantry,
5
And staring face to face,
I shot at him as he at me,
And killed him in his place.
"I shot him dead because—
Because he was my foe,
10
Just so: my foe of course he was;
That's clear enough; although
"He thought he'd 'list, perhaps,
Off-hand like—just as I—
Was out of work—had sold his traps—
15
No other reason why.
"Yes; quaint and curious war is!
You shoot a fellow down
You'd treat, if met where any bar is,
Or help to half-a-crown."
This poem by Thomas Hardy is drastically different from O'Brian's chapter "The Man I Killed" despite the clear parallel in the action and time depicted. The author and the reader are separated from the action in this poem, primarily because it is not a personal account on the author's part. The author quotes a conversation with a war veteran but leaves himself out of the dialogue entirely. By having the man's story told from his perspective, a distinct connection between author and reader is lost. There is little intimacy present between the writer and what he is portraying because it is not depicted as his own experience. This is an occasion where I think the author should have taken on the perspective of the war veteran. His use of colloquial language does personify the man and does create a closeness between him and the man, unfortunately, this excludes the reader. The poem serves as a vague account of death and war and conveys the irony in shooting a man you may have other wise bought a drink for or demonstrated some act of kindness towards out of sheer human decency. In class we discussed how many war veterans, when they go to write war stories, write in the third person in order to separate themselves from the different person they became in battle. I don't know if this is the case with Thomas Hardy, but it is my opinion that his use of "he" instead of "I" in the title(whether or not it is his own experience), caused his work to be less effective than O'Brian's account.
In Tim O'Brian's chapter "The Man I Killed", he brings his emotions directly to the conscious of the reader. By retelling the events following the murder of the young man, rather than Hardy's mere "I shot at him and he at me". The young man becomes almost a tangible entity, as O'Brian repetitively describes the star-shaped hole where his eye used to be, his thin eyebrows, the cowlick in his hair, "the slight tear at the lobe of one ear", and the opening of his neck at the spinal cord. What makes this chapter so effective is his invention of the person behind the soldier, the mathematician, scholar, lover, son that wore the mask of an enemy. Although these descriptions are mere inventions, the fact remains that this person had a history, had a life. O'Brian's description breathes life into unimaginable guilt he feels. The chapter becomes not so much about O'Brian, but about the man he killed, unlike Hardy's poem which is primarily about the speaker. Although it remains unclear whether or not O'Brian actually killed a man, placing himself in that position grants a greater enormity to his action. The death of this young man becomes incredibly real to the reader because it is told as if it is happening in that moment, unlike the poem which separates definitively between past and present. It is this inclusion of the reader that makes The Things They Carried a true war story, which evokes the emotions of the reader simultaneously with that of the author. Whether any of it actually happened is irrelevant.
While I appreciate the idea represented in Thomas Hardy's poem, I found it inadequate in appealing to an audience that hadn't actually been in the war. I couldn't relate to the poem in any respect. It is melancholy and saddened me to an extent, but I felt like the poem captured a conversation that came with the prerequisite of understanding, rather than attempting to capture the turbulant emotions present at the time.
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