Month: October 2019

PASSION #8: Bye Bye Castro

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Fidel Castro was a Cuban dictator who instilled deep fear in to the hearts of US policy makers. The reason for this was because he was a Communist and had successfully established a Communist state in the Western Hemisphere. He took power during the Cold War and was cooperating with the Soviet Union, the United States’ greatest enemy. The fear of a nuclear attack became so much more real, as shown in the Cuban Missile Crisis due to Cuba’s close proximity to the United States south. Castro ruled in Cuba for nearly 50 years and during that time dealt with many attempts to take his life. In 1975, an United States congressman was investigating activities of the CIA in Cuba, and uncovered at least eight “plots” that the CIA had put together in order to assassinate Castro between 1960-1965. Between March and August 1960, the CIA had a plan to ruin his speeches by putting an LSD-like chemical in the air in his broadcasting studio. Ultimately, they chose not to as they hadn’t done enough research on the chemical. On November 22nd, 1963, a CIA official ordered for a poison pen to be used in order to kill Castro. The CIA also frequently targeted cigars and there are notes saying that on one occasion, they injected the cars with a chemical that causes temporary disorientation, in hopes that Castro would smoke one before a speech. In 1961, an unidentified person in Cuba was given a box of Castro’s favorite cigars that were injected with a toxin so strong, they would kill a person the minute the cigar was put in their mouth. Although, the cigars were clearly never delivered to Castro. There was also a plot to destroy Castro’s iconic beard using thallium salts, although it was set to occur while he was on vacation, and he ended up cancelling his trip. The threat of Communism made US officials go a little crazy, and led to the planning of plots such as the ones above. They would do anything to ruin Castro’s reputation and get him out of power.

 

 

 

 

RCL #8: TED Talk Outline

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  • Social Media Apps
    • Instagram 
    • Snapchat
    • Twitter
    • Tumblr 
    • Tinder 
    • Facebook 
  • TED Talk 
    • Focus on one app: Snapchat 
      • How it has changed the way we communicate 
        • Sending pictures of our faces with no words 
        • Picture disappears after a certain amount of time 
        • A more casual feel than texting or calling 
      • Language 
        • Snapscore 
        • “Leaving on Delivered/ on Open”
        • Friends List 
        • “Add me on snap”
        • Snap filters 
        • Snap maps 
        • Private Story 
        • Streaks 
      • Romance with Snapchat 
        • How many teens and young adults communicate when they are causally talking 
        • Many different things that teens do on Snapchat such as leaving someone on open in order to play hard to get 
          • Playing hard to get is nothing new, but the way that people do it now has shifted 
      • Casual Nature of the app
        • For many, it is a lot easier to ask someone for their snapchat than their number 
          • For some reason, it feels easier and more casual 
            • From there, you could start a streak with them and then transition to actually talking on the app, then maybe move to texting 
        • TED talk would be explaining the shift but also could be very informative to older generations who know nothing about how we communicate on these apps or what the apps “norms” are

PASSION BLOG #7: Out the Window

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Today, we are talking about religion. I know, what a bore! Although, back in the day religion was something the caused massive wars; most of them being the most passionate, divisive, and bloody in history. The Thirty Years War is probably the most well known of the most religious conflicts that occurred mainly throughout Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. This war was caused by a religious split between the newly formed Protestant faith and the old Catholic faith that ruled over Europe. The events, that led to this war breaking out, are what we will be talking about today. In particular one event, the 1618 Defenestration of Prague was quite the skeptical. Basically what happened was that, the Protestants in Bohemia (A territory in the Holy Roman Empire) started building Protestant churches because they wanted somewhere to practice their religion. The only problem with this was that the Holy Roman Empire was ruled by the VERY Catholic Hapsburg family, so obviously they were not chill with that at all. Therefore, officials in the area began closing these churches and ordering the people to stop. The Protestants were like yo, we can do this because of The Letter of Majesty which was a agreement that granted them some religious liberty. The issue with this was that that Letter was written by the previous leader and the current Hapsburg leader was like nah fam we are not doing that. Now, we must remember this is the 1600s, so they called an assembly together and the Protestants were all “We just wanna talk”, but when the Catholic officials arrived they definitely did not talk. This meeting, called the Defenestration of Prague saw three of those officials chucked from a window of the building by angry Protestants. Although none of the Catholic officials died, they did sustain injuries and the event fueled the fire that ended up lighting the fuse of the Thirty Years War.

RCL BLOG #7: Favorite Ted Talk

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I chose a Ted talk called “The Psychological Impact of Child Separation at the US-Mexico Border”. Immigration is an issue that I am passionate about, and I thought that it would be interesting to hear what the speaker, Luis Zayas, had to say. He begins with talking about him growing up and his parents. This is a great way to start because he is talking about familial connections in his talk. I like this Ted talk because it is informative but also a call to action. He says that no matter what you believe; whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, this should be an issue you care about. Zayas has had personal experiences with the children at the border and he talks deeply about two boys who left the biggest impact on him. He talks about a drawing that one boy, Danny makes that depicts the violence that the “rebels locos” inflicted on the people of his town. I think this was a smart choice because a drawing is usually an innocent activity that children partake in, yet for Danny; his drawings represent something much less innocent and much more dark. He goes from talking about the horrors he witnessed at the border to the medical argument of the talk. He explains how a child’s brain is weakened in an environment like the camps they live in. They are under extreme stress, and many have night terrors, depression, anxiety, a hopeless feeling and PTSD. He then asks what we should do to solve this? He lays out his points in an organized manner and establishes his credibility as a medical professional once again. Throughout the speech, he addresses the audience directly and this works well because it connects him to the listener and makes him points come through clearer. I enjoyed how he varied his voice and moved around the stage as he spoke. He took many pauses in order to make certain points stand out. For his ending, he qualified by saying “while we may differ in our opinions on immigration…” and followed with that we all must come together to protect children. This was a good way to end because it came off as less of an accusatory argument and more of a call to action for the betterment of the children’s lives.

RCL BLOG #6: Paradigm Shift and Ted Talk

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When brainstorming paradigm shifts throughout history, I began to think if maybe there had been a shift that occurred within my lifetime. The internet and subsequent rise of social media is probably the biggest development within my lifetime so far. Social media has changed the way we, as humans interact with each other and how we view ourselves. It has changed how we spend our time, and for many; it is a way to escape the difficulties of real life. Social media apps such as Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter are, in many cases, the sole form of communication between two people. The rise of “internet friends”, “cancel culture” and “trending hashtags” are all very recent developments. Social media is controversial, as it has allowed for an interconnectedness that has pros and cons. Social media can be good in the way that it allows for a quicker spread of information and allows for many to become more informed on current events. Unfortunately, the internet has led to the rise of “internet trolls” who harass other users on social media. They often are the ones who are engaging in online bullying that takes a form of harmful comments, hurtful DMs and negative posts. Preteens are where social media starts, as many get their accounts by age 12. 

A shift of a world with and without social media is a very large topic, although for a paradigm shift, it can work. A Ted talk is a more condensed topic though. I had to think about what made the most sense within the social media topic. I thought I could talk about one specific platform and see what goes along with it, such as norms associated with it, how people communicate and how it has changed interactions. If not a specific app, I would probably take the route of explaining different trends that have come out of social media. The talk would be somewhat of an informational talk, although I am not sure if it would match my audience — college students use frequent social media often.

 

PASSION BLOG #6: Jaws was Real?

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Jaws was one of the most popular movies of the period it was released and continues to be a cult favorite. It has created a fear of sharks in everyone who watched it. The scary and tension-inducing music, the image of the giant shark swimming towards the small human, and the wide and unforgiving ocean all factor into the deep fear of sharks. But where did Jaws draw their inspiration from?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In July of 1916, a series of shark attacks in New Jersey terrorized swimmers and killed many. Sharks generally avoid human interaction and keep to themselves, although the shark in these attacks was different than the usual. The people in the water were doing nothing to bother the shark; them being in the water was enough. The first death did not make as big a splash (see what I did there) as perhaps it should have. People on the beach heard the man being attacked screaming from the water, but they thought he was screwing around and ignored it. His body drifted below the waves and no one thought anything about it. This was the first recorded shark attack death. The second swimmer that was attacked ended up washing up on the beach, their half eaten body mauled and deformed. The beach-goers, seeing this, ran from the beach in terror. From that point on, sharks were demonized in the media. The wild shark killed five people in total, and the story lived on in infamy. In 1975, Spielberg released the summer hit “Jaws”, which was based on the events of the summer of 1916. Knowing what we know about sharks now – that they are relatively docile when it comes to humans – makes Jaws look like a fictional and maybe even a little obscure story. Although, Jaws was dramatized, the story it told was not too far off. The maulings of the five swimmers on the Jersey Shore on that fateful summer will forever live on through Jaws, and Jaws will continue to scare the hell out of anyone thinking of taking a visit to the beach.

http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20160713-the-true-story-of-jaws

 

PASSION BLOG #5: Wars Over?

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World War II was a long and bloody war that left many changed forever and upset the traditional balance of power of the international system. If concentrating on the East Asian theater of war, there were two sides; the United States and their allies versus the Japanese. In today’s society, one would not look at Japan and think that they have immense military power, and that is because their military was dissolved by the allies at the end of WWII. Yet, in the 1940s, Japan launched one of the deadliest attacks on U.S soil by bombing the military base at Pearl Harbor. This tragic event threw the United States deep into the war and troops were deployed to east Asia to fight the Japanese army. One place where a lot of fighting occurred between these two powers was the Philippines. There, the Japanese had to be creative in order to compete with the strong US army, therefore; they often resorted to using Guerrilla war techniques in which their soldiers would camp out in the forest. One particular solider, Hiroo Onoda was ordered to go into the forest and use guerrilla methods where he saw fit against the enemy forces. Onoda was very committed to the Japanese cause and believed that they could win the war. So after months of living in the forest and surviving of of food stolen from farmers, Onoda could not believe it when American planes dropped pamphlets that stated that the war was over and a resolution had been forged between the two countries. In fact, he thought that it was propaganda and promptly dismissed it. He carried on in the forest, while terrorizing the local people of the small island he was residing on. Later, Japanese officials found out that he was still in the forest along with a couple other men and released more papers with pictures of their families on them begging them to come home. Although the result stayed the same, as Onoda figured his family was under US captivity and was forced to take the pictures. There was nothing that was going to get Onoda out of those woods, and he was becoming more and more of a problem. He ransacked houses and farms and killed many innocent people who lived on the island, as he thought it was still wartime period. The only option left was to pull one of his commanding officer out of retirement and ask his to give the orders. The man, who had since then become a bookkeeper agreed and orders were given for Onoda to come out of hiding and end the madness. Hiroo Onoda finally surrendered in 1974, 29 years after the Japanese surrendered! He came out of the forest still wearing his uniform from so many years past. His arrival back in Japan caused for celebration of a committed war hero, but Onoda could not understand what was going on. What had happened while he was in the forest for 29 years? So much had changed and he did not understand why or how Japan lost the war. He could not bring himself to accept the new Japan, so he moved to Brazil and ran a farm. Eventually, he returned to Japan where – at the age of 91 – he passed away due to heart failure. Onoda is not a character that taught about, especially in American schools, when discussing WWII. Although, he was a stubborn but committed soldier who gave away 29 years of his life for his beloved country. This is an amazing story, and not one often taught or told, but one that is worth knowing.

Works Referenced:

Meet Hiroo Onoda, The Soldier Who Kept Fighting World War II For 29 Years After It Ended

 

RCL BLOG #5: Draft of Essay/ Revised Outline

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Essay Draft

If you follow music in any capacity, you probably have heard of the breakthrough artist, Lizzo. She first came on to the mainstream radio with her hit single, Truth Hurts. Although this song promotes a lot of important themes, I want to analyze a different song and accompanying video from Lizzo. The song ‘Good as Hell” was released on October 7th , 2016; although, it did not become very mainstream until recently. Now, this song is one of Lizzo’s most listened to tracks. I want to look at the themes present within the lyrics and music video, how they work to produce ethos and pathos, and the Kairos of the timing of the release of the music video and why it became more popular two years after its initial release. Also, I will compare it with Childish Gambino’s “This is America” music video and analyze the audiences the songs targeted and how their objectives differed. Lizzo’s song “Good as Hell” serves as a civic artifact through its ethos, pathos and logos that are exemplified by the themes of body positivity, acceptance and diversity that are expressed in the lyrics and music video. 

Music videos can often show what lyrics attempt to convey. The imagery narrows the   listeners interpretation of what the artist is trying to get across. The entirety of the video for “Good as Hell” takes place in a salon. This is to keep the viewers focus on one area, therefore, showing the importance of the salon. Throughout the video, women are shown getting their hair, nails, etc. done in the salon. In one specific scene that stood out, a woman walks into the salon; her hair is messy, and she covers herself as she walks in. She sits in a chair and is spun around to reveal a new hairdo. Later in the video, she is shown alone in front of the camera, showing off her new look and smiling with confidence. This scene expresses the theme of body positivity, with the woman’s confidence having increased with a simple hairdo. The actual women in the video are also important. They are all women of color, including Lizzo herself, and they all have different body types, fashion senses and hair styles. Although they are all so different, they share the same confidence and happiness that comes with acceptance of oneself.  

Throughout the video, ethos and pathos are heavily relied on while logos is not drawn on as much. Pathos, in a way, refers to the emotion that the video makes the reader feel. The song is upbeat, fast and fun. The actual video uses bold colors and imagery and depicts women in a community environment (ie the salon). The different women are transformed from being insecure and covering themselves to being confident and smiling and dancing in front of the camera. Today, women are too often shut down and shamed for being too confident or for wanting to show off. Sometimes, these criticisms come from other women themselves. Lizzo showed in her music video, that instead, women should lift each other up, and encourage each other to be comfortable in our bodies and bold in our endeavors. Now, the ethos of the video comes directly from Lizzo. She is a body positivity advocate and often speaks to the crowds at her concerts on how they should love and accept themselves. During her 2019 VMA performance Lizzo addressed the crowd, saying “I’m tired of the bullshit. And I don’t have to know your story to know that you’re tired of the bullshit too. It’s so hard trying to love yourself in a world that doesn’t love you back, am I right?” “So, I want to take this opportunity right now to just feel good as hell. Because you deserve to feel good as hell...”. She quoted her own song, while connecting with the audience on an issue that she is clearly passionate about. Lizzo has been very vocal about the struggles she faced in the music industry because of the way she looks, therefore, she is the perfect person to create content that reaches out and empowers women.  

The song “Good as Hell” was released in October of 2016 and the music video in May of 2016, although; the song did not hit mainstream media until 2018-19. Why is this? For one, after Lizzo’s single “Truth Hurts” went mega-viral and shot to the top of the billboards, people started to explore the other music that Lizzo had produced. Yet, a listener must connect with an artist for them to continue listening. Lizzo has a mainly female fanbase because women connect with Lizzo’s lyrics and her experiences. They understand what it is like to be constantly judged for the way you look and compared to impossible-to-achieve standards of beauty. The other reason why “Good as Hell” may have become so popular so long after it was released is because of the current political climate in the United States. The president is often criticized as being ‘sexist” with many of the things he has said being deeply hurtful to women. This has stirred up the feminist and women’s rights movements significantly. Also, social issues such as the #METOO trend has led to women banding together more and sharing what they go through. As the internet allows for people to become increasingly interconnected and the tensions in the country give rise to women’s empowerment movements, it’s no wonder why Lizzo has become so popular. These factors all give way to create the Kairos of the song and help to explain its sudden mainstream status.  

 *Add comparison paragraph and conclusion in final

Outline for Speech Revised

  1. Introduction 
    1. Attention Getter 
      1. Music as a force that has brought people together since the beginning of time 
    2. Topic
      1. “This is America” by Childish Gambino music video
        1. His opinions and experiences and how they shape the content of the video
    3. Hook
      1. Addressing the audience directly and making sure that whether they listen to rap music or do not, they will still be able to receive a meaningful takeaway from the video 
    4. Establishing Credibility 
      1. Why I chose to analyze this specific video as a civic artifact 
        1. Rap is one of my most heavily listened to genres, I have watched the music video many times over 
    5. Thesis // Preview 
      1. In one sentence, explain what I am going to be talking about 
        1. General topics 
          1. Style, themes, how it functions as civic artifact, ethos, pathos, kairos
  2. Themes // Style *** LARGEST CATEGORY 
    1. Standout moments in the video
      1. The very beginning when Gambino shoots the man playing guitar 
        1. Music is happy and upbeat 
        2. Gambino walks up while dancing to the music 
        3. Pulls a gun from behind his back and shoots the man in the back of the head 
        4. Gunshot signifes shift from happy music to rap as the phrase “This is America” is said for the first time 
      2. The black church choir being gunned down 
        1. Clear reference to the Charleston shooting in 2015 
        2. Their bodies lay lifeless as the gun is carefully placed on a red cloth 
          1. Shows how America values protecting guns over protecting human lives
      3. Other symbols 
        1. Four horsemen of the apocalypse with the hell following being the police 
          1. THEME: Police Brutality 
        2. Confederate Pants that Gambino wears 
          1. THEME: Racial Tensions 
      4. Overall theme is racially motivated violence and police brutality that african americans are forced to endure every day while society only focuses on the parts of african american society that they can consume as entertainment
        1. ie). Music, dancing
  3. Pathos // Ethos // How it functions as civic artifact
    1. Pathos 
      1. African American schoolchildren are used to illustrate a loss of innocence 
        1. They experience this as they realize that the world will treat them differently because of the color of their skin
        2. Children evoke a lot of emotion 
      2. Examples in Lyrics
        1. “You just a Black man in this world, You just a barcode, ayy”
          1. Evokes emotion from the watcher of the video in whether this is true in their experience or if they sympathize with it 
            1. Racial tensions theme
        2. “Police be trippin’ now, Yeah, this is America , Guns in my area (word, my area), I got the strap, I gotta carry ’em”
          1. Expresses that because this is America, guns are everywhere and you have to have a gun to protect yourself because gun violence is so likely
            1. Critical of the police 
              1. Reference to police brutality within black communities 
    2. Ethos 
      1. Gambino is able to convey and explain the struggles of growing up black in America because he did 
        1. His credibility 
          1. Grew up in a white suburb of Atlanta and was one of the only African American families in the area 
            1. Parents were both Jehovah’s Witnesses 
              1. Religious mentions in the video 
    3. Serves as a civic artifact in a time capsule sense 
      1. The black American experience in the year 2018
  4. Kairos in This is America 
    1. Video was released May 5, 2018
      1. On this specific day, Joe Biden talked to the media about his visit with John McCain, who was battling brain cancer
        1. McCain said he was concerned for the state of the country and talked about the need for people to stand up and speak out 
          1. Childish Gambino did exactly that in his music video 

 

  1. Conclusion 
    1. Emphasize points in each body quickly 
      1. Styles, Themes, Ethos, Pathos, Civic Artifact, Kairos 
    2. My personal connection to the issue 
    3. Catchy closer 
      1. Protest Quote “If you’re not angry, you’re not paying attention”