Graphic Organizer

Introduction: The media has produced a false image of ideal women and therefore, has led numerous teens to take extreme measures to achieve this ideal image.

Area of support 1: Media portrays this ideal image to enable companies to make a profit. Businesses have such items as weight loss pills, weight loss programs, beauty products, clothing, and aging products. These are all products sold to the public to “help” women achieve this ideal image and also helping businesses by making large profits from these sales.

Area support 2:  The ideal image leads women to suffer from emotional distress. Because they don’t feel like they are good enough, they find themselves feeling hopeless with los self esteem.

Area support 3:  Now children as young as 5 years old are affected by this media ideal.

Area support 4: Women take extreme measures to achieve this ideal image. These measures are plastic surgery and eating disorders.

Conclusion: Media plays a large role in the lives of the young which affects them throughout their lives. They try to make a large profit through the expense of women’s psychological development.

Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich

Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed shined a light on the hardships encountered by the average low wage worker. I admire Enrenreich for giving up her comfortable life as a middle class citizen with a stable job, cozy home, and a car, to experience living as an unskilled low wage worker.

            I find it astonishing how people have the assumption that just by having a job, everything else will miraculously fall into place. In the passage Ehnrenreich writes, “… is that work will lift poor women out of poverty while simultaneously inflating their self esteem and hence their future value in the labor market”. This belief that dwells in the minds of many people, clearly portray their ignorance toward those who have to work one or more full time, minimum wage jobs, in an attempt make ends meet.

            In the passage, Ehrenreich tells about her experience during a “meeting” that the restaurant managers held. She spoke about how the managers, lacking respect, spoke distastefully. She also spoke of how it was just the managers that were talking. The staff was not given a chance to provide any sort of input. There was a point in time when Ehrenreich attempts to give some input, expecting the rest of the staff to support her. Unexpectedly, the staff stood silent. In the passage Ehrenreich writes, “… and I throw in my two bits about the vacuum cleaner. But I don’t see any backup coming from my fellow servers”. This showed her “middle class” thinking. In a middle class instance, employees would willingly speak up about issues that they have in terms of the workplace. However, these unskilled workers know how hard it is to find a job and therefore, would prefer to deal with their unpleasant working environment; rather than speak up and risk losing their job.

Visual Argument

I chose an environmental advertisement to be my visual argument. I found this advertisement very convincing and my primary reaction to this visual was “wow! That’s a problem!”  The use of black and white lettering and grayscale provides the picture with a sense of dreariness. The use of red lettering signifies a warning of the dangers of pollution. I found it very interesting how the "love" and "kill" are in red coloring because if you certainly loved something, you definitely would not kill it; which is what I feel the advertisement is trying to articulate. This environmental ad was very successful in conveying its message about the harmful effects of pollution.

The Veil by Marjane Satrapi

Similar to “Setting the Record Straight” by Scott McCloud, “The Veil”  written by Marjane Satrapi  combines the use  of visual art and dialogue to enlighten her readers with a story.  Through the use of comics, Satrapi is able to share her experience of being a young child during the Islamic Revolution through the perspective of a child rather than an adult. During that time, Satrapi and many others had a portion of their freedom taken from them when they were forced to wear a veil in school.

Through the use of depictive visuals and small vocabulary, Satrapi is able to portray her naivety and that of the other children towards the Islamic Revolution. For instance, Satrapi speaks of how no one really understood the reasoning to why they had to wear veils in school. To further signify the children’s lack of understanding, she shows a drawing of children using the veil to play jump rope and the use of the veil to play horseback riding. Because of the Revolution, boys and girls were separated and compelled to attend different schools.

            Satrapi truly demonstrated her naivety when she spoke of how she wanted to be a prophet. In the pursue of becoming a prophet, Satrapi had a Holy Book where she made rules. In the comic, she tells her grandmother of the rules in her Holy Book, “Rule number six: Everybody should have a car. Rule number seven: All maids should eat at the table with others. Rule number eight: No older person should have to suffer”. When her grandmother asks Satrapi how she plans to prevent the old people from suffering, she replies “it will simply be forbidden”. Due to the great influence of  religion and the Islamic leaders, Satrapi came to the assumption that her rule can be enacted by simply forbidding the existence of affliction.

Regarding the Pain of Others

War has always played a role in almost every country’s history. countries use all the resources they can acquire to build an army ready to defend its country whenever required to do so. Unfortunately, war is a violent solution to resolving disputes amongst countries. The outcome of warfare can be very tragic. Thousands and thousands of people die, buildings and homes are destroyed, and in the end, more problems are created.

In the passage “Regarding the pain of others”, Susan Sontag explains how those who are not on the frontline during times of war can view the disastrous effects through photography. Thus, people can gain a perspective and witness the pain of those who are experiencing the war firsthand. Photographers develop these pictures and present them to the public, hoping to open the eyes of people to the severity of war; As a result, motivate society to put an end to war and attempt at other means to solving disputes peacefully rather than violently.

Given that the photos can be quite explicit, the government made the decision to place a censorship on the kinds of photos that can be published and the number of photographers than can capture the battle through their camera lenses. Therefore, are able to filter out any pictures that can have an exaggerated emotional effect on the eyes of the public. In the essay Susan Sontag writes, “The first organized ban on press photography at the front came during the First World War; both the German and the French high commands allowed only a few selected military photographers near the fight”. This just goes to show how significant censorship was during times of war that even the commanders were instructed to stress this restriction. I feel that the censorship should be more lenient on the kinds of photos that can be published. Those who are not serving in combat have the right to witness war for what it really is; That is, a catastrophic approach to solving quarrels.   

Dispatches from Iraq

Reading “Dispatches from Iraq” brought a large sense of remorse for the courageous men and women who are in the Middle East fighting for the wellbeing of our nation. The experiences that these soldiers have documented remind me of the constant dangers they must endure on a daily basis. The location of these soldiers does not guarantee them a “safe zone” by any means. They constantly have to be aware of their surroundings and instantly react to any slight chance of possible danger. I can only imagine how difficult it must be living in constant awareness that there may not be a tomorrow. In the passage, Commander Edward W. Jewell writes “On deck is a different world. For safety we are on the “darken ship” status now. This means no external light, and all windows are covered to block transmission. The goal is to make the ship invisible or nearly so to evildoers trying to locate the ship in the dark” (326).  To insure their safety, the soldiers must always be a step ahead of the enemy.

            An additional element that completely bottled my mind was the fact that many of these soldiers have tolerated all these traumatic experiences for such a long period of time; they become accepting of their surroundings. Clinical psychologist Captain Lisa R, Blackman writes “It was as if they didn’t remember how hard and unusual it is to be at war. They’re used to the danger” (330). Funerals become part of the daily routine and the only way to cope with this ill-fated circumstance is to accept it. The soldiers do not only have to suffer from physical pain, but they also undergo psychological distress. As a result of war, the soldiers return home suffering from Depression and other war-related disorders. War redefines the meaning of a normal life. The significance of peace becomes nonexistent. 

Reading these documentations from the soldiers at war flooded me with guilt. We take so much for granted. For instance, although we are not guaranteed a tomorrow, unlike the soldiers, we expect that we will wake the next morning.   We have easy access to heat when the weather becomes cold and air conditioning when it becomes hot. If we want water, we can simply turn a knob and lo and behold, running water! We can walk out of the house without fearing that we will be attacked. All these luxuries go unnoticed. The simple fact that these soldiers put their lives in jeopardy in every way, shape and form for the greater good of the nation, is the flawless example of heroism.

Text Redesign

Personally, I feel that aural modality is not as effective as visual modality. With that being said, aural modality does not allow the audience to create a perspective. Thus, they must view the situation through the eyes of the author; therefore, the audience’s viewpoint becomes absent.  Through aural modality, the author would need much description in his writing to enable the reader to create a visual in his/her mind. On the contrary, a visual modality is the strongest element in conveying a message.  Rather than just seeing, the audience can also feel what the author is trying to portray. Taking the following into account, I have concluded that a comic strip would best represent my Wires Narrative. The strip does not only contain a visual but also some script, making the message being conveyed more effective.

Thinking in Pictures by Temple Grandin

To many, autism is viewed as an unfortunate circumstance that some people must endure for their entire lives. Interestingly enough, “Thinking in Pictures” written by Temple Grandin writes about her experience with autism as if looking through the other side of the glass window. Rather than seeing her autism as nothing more than a nuisance, Temple uses her autism to her full advantage.

Because of her autism, Temple was able to acquire a skill that many regular people lack; that is, the skill of visualization. This very skill helped Temple succeed at her job designing equipment for the livestock industry. The ability to visualize her designs before she makes them into a reality is quite extraordinary. When Temple first attempts at a design, she imagines the design in her head and how it will function in every possible scenario. Thus, she is able to envision potential defects and tweaks them in her mind. When the design is finally physically constructed, it works just as well as it did in her imagination.

Being that most people use verbal skills to process their thoughts, I like how temple tries to help us better understand her experience with autism by comparing it to a VCR tape or a CD-Rom disc. In order for her to evoke information, she must play a video in her head pertaining to the information she is trying to recollect. Temple repeatedly plays the “tape” in her mind until she successfully retrieves the information. I find it amazing how she can take a mental shot of a piece of writing in her mind, store it, and recover the writing whenever she desires to do so. In the essay she writes “When I retrieve the material, I see the photocopy of the page in my imagination. I can then read it like a teleprompter.” This is an attribute I, and surely, many others would love to obtain.

From reading this passage, I was able to conclude that regardless of what obstacles can comes one’s way, one can always find a means to overcome those obstacles and achieve success. All it takes is the willpower to turn what may seem as an inconvenience into a full force advantage.

Ways of Seeing by John Berger

“Seeing comes before words. The child looks and recognizes before it can speak.” John Berger’s statement clearly emphasizes the value of eyesight. It is one of the first abilities given to us at infancy, allowing us to interpret the world in which we are surrounded by. The gift of sight combined with speech helps us gain our beliefs and from our beliefs, stems our perceptions.

Being that every person holds a different set of believes, we as an entire can gaze at the same fixation and encompass different perspectives. John Berger enlightens this truth through art. As a painter begins to paint the portrait of his chosen subject, he will involve his perspective in the painting through the use of specific details. Later on, the spectator will most certainly gain another perspective from the same work of art, and the cycle continues.

Although I disagree, Berger feels that the invention of the camera and reproduction has depreciated the value of art. He justifies his belief by stating that because a piece of art is able to be reproduced, it can be combined with other artworks and texts; in effect, altering the meanings. I would say that this is ludicrous. The reproduction of art enables artworks to not only be made accessible to the elite few but more so to the general public who take interest. This generates a means to a wider range of viewpoints, making popular paintings increase in value. Because of our present society, we determine an object’s worthiness through its market value. A piece of artwork’s market value does not necessarily have to hinder its social and spiritual value. It just so happens that our society in the past years has deterred from the appreciation of the arts. This loss of admiration should not be blamed on the production of the camera but more so, on the fact that people’s interests simply put; have changed.

Setting the Record Straight

As I turned to page six hundred and ninety three to begin reading “Setting the Record Straight” by Scott McCloud, I was shocked to discover that this was not like our standard readings. This reading was written in the form of a comic book.
Although comic books are not a component of my selected reading, McCloud did a wonderful job in assisting me gain a better perspective on this form of writing. McCloud began the comic explaining the various stereotypes placed on comics. “Comics were those bright, colorful magazines filled with bad art, stupid stories, and guys in tights”. I found it very interesting how McCloud breaks down the idea of comics into simple elements and eventually, as the comic progresses, illustrates the big picture ; comics are not just those magazines filled with bad art, but can be associated all the way back to ancient times which use illustrations as a way to convey information. McCloud also wanted to inform us that we should truly take an appreciation for comics because in history, they were only read by the rich and powerful and due to the invention of printing, that kind of luxury has been made accessible to the average person.
Another point which I found to be very interesting was how we view comics as being only for young children and yet, hundreds of years ago, all that was used to communicate to the reader was illustrations. We have become so advanced in writing that we want to communicate as much as possible in as little of a space as possible. Thus, the invention of words came to play allowing us to do just that. We have now gained the ability to communicate all that a thirty-six foot long screen-fold can converse in just a few sheets of paper. Reading “Setting the Record Straight” by Scott McCloud has certainly made me grasp the broader idea of comics. The manner in which he utilizes his words and illustrations reaches out to those readers who consider comic books as being nothing more than just colorful magazines with bad art.

Shooting an Elephant by George Orwell

“Shooting an Elephant” by George Orwell is the most significant story that we have read so far. It sends a clear message to its readers. The message being that pear pressure is a powerful mechanism. Orwell was a British officer in Burma, Asia. Because of his background, he was not recognized by the Burmans in a positive light. He was ridiculed by the Burmans and yet, when the elephant escaped and wondered aimlessly destroying almost everything in his view, it was Orwell who they turned to for help.
As Orwell started his journey in search of the elephant, the Burmans that he encountered along the way had different accounts about the elephant’s whereabouts. In the story, Orwell writes, “… A story always sounds clear enough at a distance, but the nearer you get to a scene of events, the vaguer it becomes. Some of the people said that the elephant had gone in one direction. Some said that he had gone in another and some professed to not even have heard of an elephant.” As I read this paragraph, I noticed the great correlation it has to rumors. A rumor always begins with one story and as it makes its way from a person’s ears to the person’s mouth, it changes. By the time the rumor reaches the last person, the information becomes completely altered.
What intrigued me most about this story is the point in time when Orwell finally locates the elephant. He was faced with a decision of whether to kill the elephant or let it live. Orwell did not want to kill the elephant for the reasons being that it was doing no more harm and will only attack if one came close. However, because there was a large crowd lurking about and encouraging him to kill the elephant, Orwell felt that he had no choice but to bring an end to the elephant’s life so he would not be perceived as a fool. I was very surprised to discover that Orwell cared so much about what the Burmans thought of him. For one, he was hated by the Burmans. Secondly, he held a superior position, so why was he so concerned of how he was perceived by the Burmans?
This circumstance just goes to show how influential peer pressure can be. It takes a great affect on a person’s decision making process regardless if the person is a high powered official or just a regular human being.

Homecoming, with Turtle

Many people from all parts of the world migrate to America in search of a better life. Junot Diaz was one of those people. Junot and his family moved from the Dominican Republic when he was only six years old. I can only imagine how difficult it must be; having to pack your essential belongings and relocating to an unfamiliar area, leaving everything else behind. When Diaz and his family settled in America, the challenge had only just begun. Junot left his friends behind and was given no choice but to make new ones. Diaz was accustomed to speaking Spanish in the Dominican Republic, but now he had to learn the English language. To make it all worse, Junot had family troubles. He was burdened emotionally and financially due to his father’s abandonment and his brother’s battle against Leukemia.
After years spent in America, Diaz returned to the Dominican Republic in an attempt to reconnect with his roots. Diaz was disheartened to discover that he was unfamiliar with his native land. His ability to speak Spanish was poor and he was not able to knowledgably use public transportation to travel from one location to another. Also, there was no one available to guide him through his trip since all of his relatives came to the United States at that time. In the reading, Diaz says “ Traveling the third-world is challenging enough…..a boyfriend who is worried that he no longer “fits in” at “home” that every little incident and interaction is sifted for rejection”. I can definitely recognize the great disappointment he must have felt; the sense of belonging he so badly wanted and yet, could not attain.
I commend Diaz for using his past experiences in his writing. I like how he made his essay “Homecoming, with Turtle” not too lengthy and not too short. It was long enough to provide his readers the information needed to be able to comprehend his story and short enough to prevent them from becoming weary and losing interest. I also liked how he uses Spanish dialect in “Homecoming, with the Turtle”. To help his non-Spanish speaking readers understand the story, Diaz translated the Spanish vocabulary at the bottom of each page. His use of both formal and informal writing brought more practicality to his essay and gave me a greater connection to the story.

Unspeakable Conversations

Unspeakable Conversations by Harriet Johnson brought much debate not only amongst Johnson and Peter Singer but in my mind as well. The debate concerned infanticide. Singer believed that infanticide is a great solution to children born with a disability while on the other hand; Johnson felt that infanticide was completely cruel and immoral. To say the least, I am torn between these two points of views.

For one, Singer’s reasons to why infanticide should be legalized were quite comprehensible. It is evident that a disabled child will have much more difficulty throughout his life than a child who is born without a disability. It will be much more challenging for the disabled to receive an education and have the ability to work. Even simple tasks such as using the bathroom, eating, and walking becomes a challenge and sometimes, impossible to the disabled. They become very dependent on others to be able to function throughout their daily lives. For instance, Johnson relied on her assistant, Carmen, to help her do the morning stretch, comb and braid her hair, and switch on the motor to her wheelchair. There were even instances when Johnson needed Singer’s assistance. During the meal in Princeton, Johnson’s right elbow slipped away from its comfortable position and Johnson required Singer to return the elbow back to its original location. This enabled Johnson to reach her fork and continue with her meal. Because of such instances, Singer felt that the best way to save these disabled children from a lifetime of agony is to have them legally killed during infancy.

Jonson’s counterargument was that killing an infant just because he or she has a disability is an utterly prejudice act. I can definitely see Johnson’s perspective. Who are we to decide who and who cannot live? Why should we have the right to take a person’s life just because he or she is not up to par with society’s idea of what a regular human being should be? It is not up to us to decide. Above all else, a disabled person can still live a regular, happy life. Of course, it will be more challenging, but it can be done. For example, Johnson was born with a disability, but yet, was able to live a normal life, receive an education, and become a lawyer. She even tried to make a difference by becoming a disability rights activist and educating the public about the disabled. Her disability served her as an inconvenience but it certainly did not obstruct her will to succeed.

This delicate issue of infanticide can be understood from both Singer and Johnson’s point of view. Consequently, it will forever be a continuous battle between human rights and factual reasoning.