FINAL PROJECT

I believe in non- conformity, to remove yourself from the realm of restriction.  To denote own thoughts without concern for other’s and their perception.  Innate in anyone’s mind is to fit in, to long for companionship, but is it worth the price of giving up yourself, and your own will?

As a younger child conformity means everything, to fit in and be accepted by your peers.  Middle school was treacherous battle between self pleasing actions, and pleasing the whims of the so called “popular crowd”.  To be trendy, witty, thin, and pretty.  This seemed necessary for success.  As I have grown into the person I am today I have realized what a useless struggle this has been, that adds anxiety and self loathing to your being.  To break free from this internal conflict is to hold the key to happiness in life.

As I have grown into my own person, I still struggle with this, but being conscious of it has helped to control it.  Why suppress myself to please others?  I believe in the glorification of out of the ordinary traits, and to uphold the individual genius rather than drag them down.  

Friedrich Nietzsche once said “The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself ” .  Although you may suffer through being yourself, it will never be to the magnitude of not being yourself.  Being true to yourself will set you free, and I whole heartedly believe that.   

A MODEST PROPOSAL CONCERNING BEAUTY STANDARDS

In America today beauty is a highly emphasized quality that people, mainly young girls, strive to achieve.  One wants to pretty and thin, these are the requirements for ultimate success in America today.  Girls are directed to have these qualities as prompted by the media.  Models, dancers, actresses, and musicians are all among the elite that are idolized, yet they propose a standard often times unachievable to the average everyday girl.  Most of these women at the forefront of media displayed are 25% below average weight, and because the standard is set so high the beauty industry in America generates $ 1 billion dollars.  Women today look to be these women and in the process they are losing themselves to illnesses such as bulimia and anorexia.  Many suffer from depression and poor body image, because a standard of beauty is set to an unachievable standard, and women are failing in their quest to be like those they see on TV and in magazines.  In America today 80% of women are dissatisfied with their bodies and 35% of girls ages 6 to 12 have been on a diet, and 50% to 70% of normal weight girls believe they are overweight.  The problems with girls and their body image can definitely be blamed on how the media portrays beauty.  

In this problem I have found the ultimate solution, although I am sure they will be met with some critique.  In order to stop this problem of girls having low self esteem and poor body image, I propose the government, become involved to help this ever growing problem.  The government’s Department of Health needs make food rations to all the adolescent girls in America, while also mandating beauty classes, where they will learn the fundamentals of “looking good”, such as makeup application, hair styling, and wardrobe styling.  Classes will start as young as 10 in order to mold the mind of the youth, when it is most malleable.  The department will also have the power to give out diet pills to the women who are struggling with weight issues.  This will allow the media to project the image they like while also assuring the women of today’s youth can be helped to reach this goal.  

Food will be set at a very low amount for these girls so they can not become overweight, and they can ultimately be in the 25% below average weight elite.  Beauty classes will be mandated so each female as the proper tool in order to be good looking, as set by the media.  They will learn to dress in the latest trends, and have the latest hair style.  Although some girls may rebel against these government mandates, after realizing the stress put on them by the media is so great, they will eventually succumb to their help rather than doing it on their own.  Plus, no one will want to be “ugly” , because clearly that is the ultimate punishment in life. 

Some may disagree with my harsh measures in ultimately leveling the playing field of beauty standards for women seeing it as beauty communism reform, but in that their are reasons that will benefit the whole of society. One is that girls will learn the tricks of the trade to be skinny early in life, so anorexia and bulimia will no longer be prevalent in our society. If everyone knows how to keep their weight down, then no girl will ever have to resort to extremes measures like self starvation, bingeing-and-purging, or over exercise.  

Two, women will no longer have to suffer on their own quest to beautification alone. They will have a support system among the rest of adolescent girls.  Each will be able to help their peer, while helping themselves. The beauty plan would help to unite the women of America.

Three, America would be superior in beauty standards to the rest of the world, therefore giving them more power.  Being beautiful by today’s standards is having an unspoken power, and with a whole nation of women that are beautiful, America will have the rest of the world at their feet.  World control will be so much easier to achieve.

Many of my critics will have alternate ideas on solving the beauty crisis of America today.  Some will say we should revamp the media, and unite under the idea, that underweight women should not be popularized.  Milan fashion shows recently banned models that were underweight, but this trend did not ignite a change in the rest of the fashion world.  Other critics would say we should uplift the girl for other qualities that are far more less superficial, like intelligence or generosity through the media.  And other critics say we should simply place less emphasis on beauty as a whole in our culture, saying we need to move away from the mass communication of these ideals, and move closer to a society were loving yourself is advocated and because of that more important traits are emphasized. They say we should promote a beauty that is achievable to the everyday girl, and we should tell young girls to love themselves for who they are, and realize that everyone is different in their own respect.  To my critics I acknowledge your ideas, but I do not see them as effective.  

As I propose these ideas I wish to make note that I will not be effected by the situation in that I am passed the prime age for the development of poor body image problems, as that the onset is usually at the time of puberty, and that is about the age the rations and classes should be mandated to the young women of America.  

BRAVE NEW WORLD

Looking at society today leads me to believe that Aldous Huxley's novel A Brave New World has more relevance then George Orwell's 1984. Many points of A Brave New World seem like they have a connection in modern day society's while 1984 is seemingly less connected.

Postman' s assertion of our culture "becoming more trivial" leads me in short to my reasoning. Today it seems that the average person is not concerned with the problems of our society or the making better, but they are more concerned with the pursuit of what makes them happy in the here and now.  Were all not striving for a common goal of the greater good, but we look to material pleasures and physical pleasures that will make us happy for the moment, that will give us the quick fix if you will.  Our culture has less and less people caring for major issues such as the economy and our repression, and more and more people are looking for something to mask our problems, to simply hide this from us in the moment. Our society is now putting more emphasis on the less important.  In the modern day it seems that we look towards appearance, and material possessions, trends and copy cat thoughts to guide us.  Like in A Brave New World many did not have concerns for the long term, but they were more focused on the pleasure in life like sex.  We have left behind our values of problem solving and the uphold of the individual genius because we look to other things which we hold more importance to like those who are the best looking or have the most money.  

We have seemed to stop caring about these important things, because we are satisfied with what we now know and what we do not want to know.  Our society seems to turn the other cheek to important ideas and questions, almost like the of A Brave New World.  The society no longer looked to seek knowledge, because they had been given much information and now none of it mattered, they were almost overwhelmed with it. Postman writes "Huxley feared those who would give us so much [information] that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism".  Huxley worries that we will be given so much information at our finger tips that we will only be driven by self interests and not the interest of our society and we will allow whatever others want us to do to happen.   If you think about modern society we have an abundance of knowledge that can be accessed from almost anywhere, the Internet.  This wealth of information almost replaces the human mind of the user. We do not allow ourselves to come up with our own thoughts, but we take the information already given to us and we accept it as truth and we believe it.  

Today I feel that today's society grows closer and closer to that of A Brave New World, that much farther from 1984.

Toulmin's Model of Argument

 Driving to school is a right of passage at High Point Regional High School. Each student awaits the day when they become seniors and they too can drive to school like the class before them. Allowing only seniors to drive to school is a privilege, but a necessary precaution to keep the students safe.  With all this in mind,  seniors should only be allowed to drive to school.

Seniors are the top of the totem pole, on their way out into the real world.  They need to take necessary steps to prepare them for their lives outside of high school, but the steps must come systematically.  Allowing just seniors to drive goes along with the systematic plan.  Seniors are the most mature in the school, and they realize the major responsibility it is to drive.  They understand the conditions that come along with driving, because they have been doing it the longest theoretically.  Seniors, in preparing for their lives after high school, realize that this is a major event that should not be taken lightly.  Although some would say that many students of different grade levels could understand the responsibility of driving to school, they are not the ones that need to be prepared, yet.  The seniors should be focused on as the ones that need to be built up into mature adults, while the other grade levels have more time.  

One has to also think about the amount of room in our school parking lot.  Although there could be more room for students of other grades, is a packed parking lot really the safest?  By keeping the student parking lot only for seniors, it ensures safety, but it also ensures that all seniors will have a spot.  Seniors are the ones who should be getting the spots, and if underclassmen were to drive there would not be enough room for all of the senior class. Also one could assume that seniors probably hold more working positions versus the other grade levels.  They are the oldest, and most independent so it seems logical that most would be of the working force.  The senior class needs to be able to drive, so they can go to their jobs, which further prepares them for the next phase of their life, which is leaving home and being on their own.

Seniors have the most driving experience.  Seniors have had their licenses the longest and know how to be cautious drivers.  If anyone could just drive to school when they received their licenses surely the amount of accidents in the parking lot would go up.  All seniors also have to take the Defensive Driving course  in health which makes them more knowledgeable about driving situations.  Safety is the most major concern of the administration and by preparing the seniors with these classes, they are helping to keep the student body safe.  The other grade levels do not have these training classes therefor are more ill prepared for driving to school.  

It is clear that students should be allowed to drive to school, but having only the senior class able to makes the students better prepared for the real world, while keeping them safest.  

MOVIES

Hello everyone!

I wish to take this time in my blog to address some films that have recently peaked my interest.  Last year I had American Film class so I had an outlet for such movie discussions, but now I have a blog which i can serve this purpose rightfully.

In Sociology we have recently watched the Michael Moore (2002) documentary Bowling for Columbine. Using the Columbine school shooting of 1999 as his starting point, Michael Moore investigates our nations obsession with guns and violence. He focuses on many points in the documentary such as our nation's history, the media and news, gun murders, Marilyn Manson and music, government backed violence, and organizations such as the National Rifle Association. Before seeing the film I knew that I was not very pro-gun. I am not sure why, but guns give me a feeling of anxiety. I do not even have to see them in person to put myself into a panic. Something that comes to mind is the scene in Goodfellas (1990) where Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) is threatening his wife with a loaded gun in their bedroom. I could not even watch the scene with getting "freaked out", for lack of a better phrase. So naturally I know that I lean to left on issues like gun patrol (but not limited by). I do not feel guns to be a necessary, and they only seem to cause trouble. The film brought many interesting points up, but did not come to a definite conclusion. Some points that stood out in my mind were the fact that our country has a total of over 11,000 murders by gun a year. Where as other countries have significantly less. For example I recall Japan had less that 29. Canada, just north of us and a nation of hunters with quite similar gun laws, has much less murders than us. They watch the same movies, and play the same video games. so why is this such a problem for our country? The film was trying to explain the epidemic of violence that has arose in our country, but we agreed in class that they did not come to a definite conclusion. All countries have violent histories, many watch the same movies and listen to the same music, so why has this occured here. I keep thinking about this, I too cannot come to a conclusion. There is one theory I have come up with, and it stems from a 60 Minutes episode I saw sometime last year, that named the Danish the happiest people in the world wheere as we were ranked 23. The Danes had stated in their interviews that they feel less pressure to succeed. They put less emphasis on achieving beyond their limits, and because of this when great things happen they are happy and when bad things happen they are not devastated. Maybe as Americans we have too much pressure in areas like competition, this leads to great stress. Not everyone that is stressed out is going to kill someone, but I think one can loosely draw a parallel. Also was Americans our highs or happiness are great, and our lows are also monumental. Maybe this could be a reason. I think people more need to see things for the bigger picture, rather than the here and now. These are just my thoughts, but I would advise you all to see the film and make your own theories on the matter! Either way you stand on the matter I think it is very interesting.

Okay, here is something else I would like to address. Has anyone very seen the movie trailer for the new film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Its directed by David Fincher, who also did Fight Club, and stars Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, and Tilda Swinton. It is based off a short story by Francis Scott Fitzgerald, about a boy who is born an old man, but ages younger through his life. It seems to be a love story where they both meet in the middle if that makes sense. It comes out December 15, and reviews already written think it has the possibility for being up for 11 Oscars. It looks like its going to be epic. Brad Pitt, director of Fight Club, Francis Scott Fitzgerald, and a fantasy plot wrapped in a love story, everything I would want in a movie!

Check out the trailer at this link

http://www.apple.com/trailers/paramount/thecuriouscaseofbenjaminbutton/

Okay everyone that is all I have for now! Happy Thanksgiving!

THE THINGS THEY CARRIED RESPONSE

I do agree with Tim O' Brien that "human life is all one thing, like a blade tracing loops on ice..."(236).  I agree that while a person grows in maturation and reasoning skills and other qualities we do still hold certain qualities and characteristics that are stagnant and always present.  Often times these qualities come out in different scenarios as we grow older, but they stem from the same quality that is ever present throughout our lives.   In the case of Tim O' Brien he feels that he still has the same look in his eye that he has as a fourth grader, and this I believe to be true.  

One seminole point in the novel is the repeating theme of guilt for not standing up for what you think is right.  Tim O' Brien no matter if he was watching the girl he loved being bullied as a young boy or not objecting to fight a war he believed to be unjust, has this conscience quality of remorse.  This is just a piece of his personality that he would let certain things stay with him, and think and rethink them over and over again.  I do not think this is a type of quality everyone possesses, but it is an example of a piece of Tim O' Brien that is "absolute and unchanging" (236).  I think that as one grows older they still have a piece of them self that is the same as when they were young.  Although they become more mature and reasonable as an adult certain pieces of them will never differ, and they rear their heads in different scenarios that go along with the age and life of the person. 

O' Brien's nature is to rethink, revisit, and reevaluate events that have occurred in his life.  This can be seen through the fact that some chapters are written more then once, the fact that he is writing his story in a novel, that he does go back to Vietnam to visit where he lost one of his best friends and comrades, and that he still talks about his childhood girlfriend he lost to a brain tumor.  He is just one of those people that tend to swell on things, be it not bad or good, but it is an example that is true to the fact that people, though they look very different physically over the course of their life, they are still the same as they were when they we children.   

WHY I WRITE By Jon Krakauer

I write because I like to find the truth.  I like to dig deep into unexplainable events and try to get the truth out of them to enlighten my audience.  As a journalist I like to report on the truth, and sometimes I feel a short magazine article does not fulfill this instinct I have.  I must search for the answers when in some cases there are none to be found.  As a human being we are all curious in nature, but most people do not have the will to take their curiosity to the next level. Such ambition has always been instilled in me and clearly shows through all the challenges I endeavour to take.  In the case of Chris McCandless I felt I had to find the answers, because no one else would have.  His story would have compelled some to, but I had to take it to the next step, and I feel this determination is what makes me a good author.  I do not speculate, I do the research and find the facts.  By researching these unique people's stories I hope to learn about myself in some regards.  I often times see myself in people like Chris McCandless and by learning about them I can better understand my being.  In the same respect I hope for the reader to share in the experience, and find some of themselves in the truth of these real life stories.  I write because it is my job, for myself and my audience, to know the true accounts of these peoples lives, and by finding out their story I hope for us to better understand ourselves.