Blog 12: Gattaca Response

Throughout history there always has been one group of people that has been considered “the other.”  No matter what we do as humans discrimination will exist and will continue to exist if we continue to thrive for a better and more superior human.  I believe that if history is a guide, the genetically enhanced “better” humans will seek to control and perhaps eliminate “the other” which would be normal and natural humans.

In the film, Gattaca, they show a world where naturally conceived and delivered babies are a dying breed.  Once a baby is born they can see the life expectancy, the diseases he/she might be prone to, and any other disabilities or factors that may affect the child’s future.  After giving birth to one normal son, Vincent, the family decides to genetically pick their next son so he will have a better and happier future.  They can pick the sex, eye color, hair color, IQ, etc. for their next son, Anton.  Throughout the brothers lives there is constant competition.  However, Vincent is always losing to his younger brother because they didn’t get to decide on his makeup.  Vincent love of space drives him to do well in school and work towards being an astronaut his whole life.  One day at dinner his father says, “The only way you will see the inside of a space ship is if you’re cleaning it,” which showed a young Vincent what he might expect from people for the rest of his life.  He was just as capable of being an astronaut as anyone, but he was still susceptible to heart problems and a short life expectancy.  Thus Vincent and the rest of the natural born babies became “the other” people in society.

In the essay, “The Man on the Moon” by author George Annas, he talks about

TO BE CONTINUED

Blog 11: The Concept of Other

In today’s society, no matter what society you are a part of, there are always groups or minorities that don’t fit in with the rest of the population.  These groups are referred to as “the other” and can have negative connotations.  Personally there is one group that is considered “the other” that I don’t particularly agree with and that has no connection to me whatsoever.  This group would be the Nazis.  We all know that Nazis were the group of a World War 2 Germany who followed the dictator Adolf Hitler and thrived for genocide of Jewish Europeans.  It took six years and the massacre of over 6 million Jews for the world to realize how to put a stop to it.  And although Germany received harsh punishment back in 1945 and struggled with a new government for so many years, they are now working their way to a better Germany.  Last year Germany celebrated the 20^th birthday of the “Republic of Germany.”  And although times have changed and relationships have been mended, there is still animosity towards Germans. 

                We constantly make fun and call people “Nazis” as an insult when really we need to be worried about the Nazis in the states.  Nazis still exist all over the world, but the United States is probably more famous for them, second to Germany.  The idea of the original Nazis was to promote an Aryan Nation of blonde haired, blue eyed children.  Hitler was all about “survival of the fittest” and he wanted a new Germany to represent this.  In the United States the meaning of Nazi is the idea of white supremacy very similar to the Ku Klux Klan.  I feel such a great opposition to these groups of people because I hate the message of hatred that they are spreading.  Children grow up in these cult-like atmospheres and are exposed to a lot of violence and hatred.  Every time we progress in America, it’s this “other” that brings us 2 steps back after we take 1 step forward into the future.

Blog 10

       The content of the course so far has been very interesting.  The movie the Matrix was fun to watch and analyze.  And I’m excited to watch the other movies we will watch in class.  So far I think I have learned a lot in this course.  My introductions and conclusions are really improving.  I am always thinking of a thesis and topic sentence for my other classes, but this class really showed me the right things to do.  Learning how to write an essay properly and cite everything is something I have learned so many times over the years, but in this class I feel like we really break down the concepts to make it easier to write.  The themes that we have discussed so far (illusions, ignorance, bliss, and knowledge) are all engaging topics that can be argued any way that seems fit.

       So far I think my strength on my blog would be how I personalized it.  After the class is done I want to continue to take pictures and write pieces for my blog whether they are poetry or just creative writing.  I love the idea of having my own blog but my weaknesses would probably be updating and editing my blog.  I am not as technologically savy as most people and I’m usually very confused by my own blog.  I think the blogs help me a lot more that just writing papers all the time because it allows us to use our creative side.  Even though the whole world can see my blog, it doesn’t feel as formal to me.  I feel more comfortable knowing that its my own blog and I can update as I please.  I have always wanted to start a blog and now I can use this to show my family my progress with school and my writing. 

       
      My strongest pieces would probably be my essays.  My first essay was very strong and so was my Matrix essay (even though I haven’t posted the rest of it yet).  I am sort of a perfectionist and I don’t like posting my blogs unless I know they’re perfect.  I am going to spend some time over spring break to update everything and make my blog something I am proud of and willing to show everyone.  My family has yet to see it, but I want to make it something my family, friends and professors love.  

See you all after Spring break :)

-Shan

Blog 9 Media Paper Draft

Blog 8

Should someone be happy and ignorant? Or unhappy and knowledgable?  This is the question asked by each of the main characters, Neo and Oedipus.   Both The Matrix and Oedipus the King have similar themes about ignorance and knowledge.  In The Matrix Neo is living in a world that isn’t real.  It’s a world where the people believe something to be real when in reality they are in a horrible world where they are being used for their energy power.  Once Neo meets Morpheus and the rest of the gang they introduce him to reality.  He learns that everyone is believing a lie and he questions if he even wanted to know this world.  Oedipus seriously doubts the truth for

They both also followed the path set by the prophet in the stories.  Oedipus unawaringly kills his father and marries his mother, and Neo was told he was the one.  All of these things came true for them.

Some of the differences between Neo and Oedipus were the way they handled their knowledege.  Neo took responsibility and tried to learn their ways, while feeling the pressure of being the one.  While Oedipus poked his eyes out and tried to find ways to punish himself.  Neo accepted his fate while Oedipus just couldn’t bear the thought. 

Blog 7

Thesis:
I will show that the influence of Television in our society does not directly affect our behavior and the rise in violence, but it does affects those who choose to watch it and what they choose to watch.

Supporting details:

1. The people who allowed access to television in their households; overexposure
   
2. The original stars on TV in the 1960's were modest and humble.
   
3. Violence, crime, war started way before the invention of television.
   
4. The demographics were completely different back then.
   
5. Television opened up a different world to people, instead of drilling violence into their minds.

MLA Annotated Bibliography


Dubner, Stepehen. Steven Levitt.  Freakonomics. New York City: Harper Perennial, 2005. Print.
Felson, Richard. "Mass Media Effects on Violent Behavior." JSTOR. (1996): Print.

Blog 2 Make-Up