hamlet

why i wont be buying your girl scout cookies.

2008-03-10T23:38:00.001-07:00

It's not personal. really. They seem nice enough. what I find most creepy is the beaming mother standing next to you. why is she so proud of you? You really arent doing anything... what your doing requires no effort from you. You simply stand and bank on your cuteness or your brand to sell for you. wheres your business strategy? im not going to give you a free pass, a handout. Also, if asked simply why you were selling the cookies, for what cause, you couldnt answer the question. Because the selling of the cookies is not about where the money is going, or what fund they are benefitting. Its all about who's mommy can sell the most boxes of processed baked goods.
The side of the box states, "you'd be suprised what a girl scout cookie can build: strong values. strong minds. strong bodies. strong communities." wow, all that from thin mints?I guess I better get eating.

Deconstruction of Laurene

2008-03-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

Laurene was the perfect candidate for this experience, because ive often thought of her as a deep thinker who could give me a few good answers before she was reduced to nothing. i stumbled in the house after work on sunday, slightly annoyed and very hungry. before i can make my way to the kitchen, laurene stops me and begins in on her latest harassment. she has decided we must go on a family trip this summer, me her and the boys, and she made the reservations. i shrug, as long as i dont have to camp, im fine. then she flashes me a mischevious look and asks what are my thoughts on air balloons. i stare blankly at her and my first reaction is to ask her why she is simply so odd. what are air balloons, i ask her. she stares at me with a confused look. oh you know what they are, those big balloons in the sky that you go on rides in. oh, right. so whats the sky? now shes obviously annoyed and restates her original question. i repeat mine. fine lauralee, i wont make you an air balloon ride reservation is her reaction. she stomps in her bedroom. i guess she dosent like it much more than i do?

The Space Between

2008-02-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

In Literature, and Fictional Storytelling, the point of view is the related experience of the narrarator, not of the author. Authors rarely in fiction, insert or inject their own voice, as this challenges the suspension of disbelief. the ability to use viewpoints effectively provides one measure of someones writing ability. recognizing bias is the first step toward critical thinking in academic work. yet, by their very nature, biases can be so intergrated, one does not see them even if they are staring them right in the face. I think that in all writing, it is difficult for the writer to take a step back and not interject somewhat the biases that they hold to. especially in fiction, when the author is given creative room, they write what they know, and what they believe. I believe that biases can be overcome. yet i believe it is a skill that most, even skilled, writers do not have.

who gets to decide?

2008-02-12T22:44:00.000-08:00

When Picasso was asked the question, "what is art?" he simply replied, "what is not?" There is no definition for art. I believe art is purely objective. If at that time, a man made object is invoking feelings in the observer, for that person, that is probably art. Art is way too diverse by nature to admit to the unification of a single definition. Art is as difficult to define as it is to evaluate. This is mainly because each individual artist chooses the rules and parameters that guide their work. it can still be said that art is the product of choosing a medium to express one self, a set of rules for that one medium, and a set of values that determines what needs to be expressed. of course art is completely objective. we like certain art for objective reasons. reasons we study in books, see on tv and are taught through cultural bias.

from sand creek

2008-02-11T10:09:00.000-08:00

This poem is incredibly postmodern. I first noticed the fragmentation of the story. Each line is carefully placed, separately from the rest. There is no system to the placing of the lines. Its sparatic and follows no grammical rules. The story as a whole is also simply about nothing. The setting is at the salvation army where the author states he was "wandering among old spoons and knives, sweaters and shoes." The author also states that he doesn't have a life. he says,"i couldnt have stolen anything; my life was stolen already." he states that his life is not his own, that it was stolen from him.

breakdown of words and meanings

2008-02-06T13:20:00.000-08:00

Where does the breakdown of words and meanings lie? Personally, I believe this breakdown lies in the inadiquate system of language. Language is used to live. This introduces a complexity in the description of language and argues for a weakening of boundaries between various systems for communication. Margaret Atwood writes, "what is flour? we'll skip that part, its too complicated." Ths is very symbolic. Mrgaret is pointing out the obvious that of course everyone knows what flour is, but if she was to go in depth and start to explain what flour is, it would mean nothing to us. we wouldnt understand her because of the inadiquate system of language set before us. Margaret then says at the end "toast is me, I am toast." at first, this means nothing to the reader. of course she isent toast! but then one begins to think more deeply about the meaning of this word toast. and this is where the breakdown of word meanings lie. toast is just a word set up to describe a thing. Margaret points this out, the lack of meaning of toast and the lack of true meaning in words in general. The exhaustive description of language is an ideal, which may perhaps never be achieved , but there will certainly be much less change of it's being achieved if language is separated from the living of life totally. The structures of language is not absolutly unrelated to the total meaning structure availiable to a community.

hyperreality and its effects on love and relationships

2008-01-27T20:42:00.000-08:00

The term hyperreality characterizes the inability of conciousness to distinguish reality from fantasy, easpecially in technologically advanced postmodern cultures. hyperreality affects the perception of relationships and love in many ways. According to famous hyperreality theorist Jean Baudrillard "hyperreality tricks the counsiousness into detaching from any real emotional engagement, instead opting for artificial stimuation". This is a serious issue. With this thought alone, many people carry on with their lives with the notion that aritifical is simply better then having the real thing. fulfillment and happiness is found through stimulation and imitation of reality, rather than having interaction with any sort of "real" reality. many people live their whole lives this way, so long that they easily lose sight of what is really real in their lifes and what is simply a facade. Baudrillard suggests that "the world we live in has been replaced by a copy world where we seek stimulus and nothing else". this would also effect relationships and love. as soon as a relationship becomes slightly less stimulating, it is considered bad and is ended so one can search for that feeling of stimulus once again.

source: http:/en.wikepedia.org/wiki/hyperreality

how is jack sparrow postmodern?

2008-01-16T15:49:00.000-08:00

Captain Jack Sparrow, first a foremost represents an ethical pirate, which is completely postmodern. the order is that pirates are evil, unethical, and coniving, but with Jack Sparrow it is not so. adding to this, jack sparrows motivations are usually not completely reveled to the audience, leaving it to the invidual to make that decision on their own. Jack sparrow also moves away from the typical pirate actions with the way he gets himself out of trouble. he is not dumb witted or violence hungry. he is simply smart and seems to trick his enemies with nagotiations in his favor. he is not the typical pirate, nor does he deserve to be called one.

Why on a ship?!

2008-01-13T23:59:00.000-08:00

Almost all of Act III takes place on board of the ship to England. The boat is used to reflect the experience of living in a universe that is beyond our control. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern originally respondle positively to being on the boat, because they like not having any responsibilities and being able to "float through life". They believe this is freeing because they can no longer worry about making the wrong decisions, but instead just go along with wherever life takes them. Guildenstern then realizes that getting on the boat was a mistake because when they gave up all their freedom they also lost all control over their lives. this is so symbolic and right on with the entire play, and the characters of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

The Life of an Ant

2008-01-13T23:53:00.000-08:00

Ii had never really thought about this until this video clip brought it to my attention. i work at starbucks and do alot of that sort of human interaction, in such a hurry that i almost forget im talking to another person. so on thursday evening, during my break i made my way out to the lobby and a found a lady sitting in a chair by the fire reading a book. i sat next to her and asked her how her day had been so far. she looked up, a bit startled and said the usually, oh good and yours. i stopped her right there and asked her how it had really gone that day. she set down her book, which i now noticed seemed to be some sort of self help book. she looked me in the eyes and simplysaid "you really want to know?" i nodded and she laughed a little "you asked for it". this woman was probably one of the lonliest people i have ever met. in the last year, she had lost her husband to cancer, her best friend to cancer, and her son and daughter in law had had a miscarriage. she told me of her everyday struggles just to get out of bed in the morning, and how she leaned on God for help when she needed it, which she assured me was always. the tears welled up in her eyes and i gave this woman i had just met a tearful hug. she smiled once more as it was my time to leave and told me how much she had appreciated our little talk, and what a fine young woman i was. and then she sat back down, picked her book up, and began again to read.

assignment 1.5

2007-12-03T20:23:00.000-08:00

Personally,Ii prefer the play. The movie seems ridiculous, almost comical, andIi dont seem to get as much out of it asIi do from the book. I think the director of this play assumes a lot of things, and because he was short on time, left important sections out, and pushed together certain scenes in the play to make the movie run in the alotted time. Because the director did this, I believe he lost the true integrity of the play, he lost Shakespeare's vision and voice, and turned it into his own. I respect that he has his own artistic style, so there of course will be some changes, but I tend to stick to originals, and the book is as original as it can get.

Assignment 1.4

2007-12-03T20:18:00.000-08:00

Ii believe that art definitely holds a mirror up to society. But I also think that art can influence a society. When you look at art, whether it be a piece of literature or a painting, you often understand the art better if you understand the context in which it was created. In art, things are often magnified to make a point, or cause a change, this is called satire. Shakespreare is hard to understand, but once it is explained and the content and word choice are understood, you really understand what shakespeare is trying to say. He is critical on the country of Denmark and the behavior of their royalty. Art reflects life, in my mind, and life is society. That's why it is constantly changing and forming into different era's and styles.

To what degree does Claudius believe Hamlet is a threat to him?

2007-11-28T13:03:00.000-08:00

Claudius sees Hamlet as a huge threat. The reason I think this is because of King Cladius's behavior regarding Hamlet. In Act 2 Scene 2 when King Claudius was confronted with matters of foreign affairs and instead wanted to know the reasons for Hamlet's behavior, it causes the reader to wonder about King Claudius's priorities. King Claudius is a selfish man, and does not worry about the well being of others, but instead focus's on the well being of himself and furthering his personal desires. Because of King Claudius's extreme distraction with Hamlet's erratic behavior and obsession with the cause of it, it leads me to believe that King Claudius knows Hamlet is up to something, and considers him a great threat to everything he has recently gained.

Does Hamlet really love Ophelia?

2007-11-27T12:55:00.000-08:00

In my mind, Hamlet did not love Ophelia. For the most part the reason I think this is based on Hamlet's encouter with Ophelia in Act 2 Scene 1. Shakespeare did not even give us the firsthand account of the interaction, instead the reader was told through Ophelia's conversation with her father Polonius. For this reason, i think Hamlet's odd behavior toward Ophelia was because he knew Ohpelia would tell her father, and it could help further his case of madness. Hamlet also knew that after Ophelia told polonius about the encounter, the first thing he would do was go to King Claudius. To really understand this, you have to think about Hamlet's motivations, what he is untimatly trying to do throughout the play, and take that into consideration when judging his actions.