Final Brave New World Blog

1) Could the World State exsist without soma?
Soma to the people of the world state represents instant gratification. In the novel the only reason that humans have essentially given up their humanity is for this reason: their desires are always met through the soma. Although one could make the arguement that it could exsist because of the genetic engineering, I still believe that without this drug, people wouldn't accept the state. They would want something deeper in their lives as is this the case with John.

2) Can people be truly happy living like the people in Brave New World?
I think that it is possible for most people living in the world state to be happy according to what they believe is happiness. They have never experienced anything but instant gratification. No true complex feelings like John has. Because of this, they are completely ignorant to people like John's (our) view of happiness and therefore, are as happy as they can be.

3) Both novels are of course portrayals of utopias turned dystopia but what are the purposes of the books really. Were they both warnings to humanity or more to point out the flaws of human ideology?
I think that 1984 was more of a warining to its audience than in Brave New World because of the stictness of its rule. The brutality seen in 1984 can be linked to brutality that was going on in the world at that time. Brave New World on the other hand I believe was more of a criticism of humanity, but still a warning of how absolute power is dangerous. In that novel, I believe it is more of a criticism of instant gratification and how humanity is slowly creeping towards that area of thought. Both books I would consider criticisms of humanity but only 1984 as a true, loud warning call.

Communist Utopia

It indicates that Communism is a government system that has complete control over its people with little freedom for the people. This is displayed through the eyes that are watching the man as he walks by.

It is a sinister practice because he paints such dismal, depressing colors yet calls the piece a communist's utopia or perfect place.

The title is "Communist Utopia" because the author believes that the ultimate form of communsim is one where there is no freedom whatsoever, which is expressed through the eyes.

Don't You Want Me

A man wants to be with a woman and she likes him but feels like it's time for her to move on.

The man sees himself in a better light and the girl is somewhat indifferent to him. This is displayed in the line "but even then I'd knew I'd find a much better place." So despite the man's pleas which are the chorus of the song, the woman doesn't feel as strongly for him as he does for her.

I have to side with the girl because she probably needs to move on if she doesn't love him like he loves her. I still feel sorry for the guy though.

Brave New World Post 2

What is the signifigance of the use of Shakespeare as the one work John receives?

Of all the pieces of literature that Huxley could have used for John to have read he chose the works of Shakespeare. This I believe stems from the fact that Shakespeare is a stark contrast to life that people live now compared to before Ford. When John quotes The Tempest at the end of chapter eight Bernard remarks, "You have a most peculiar way of talking sometimes," (Huxley 139). Thus I believe Shakespeare is used to emphasize the barrier between our world and one with the moral values of Brave New World.

Why have the moral values completely changed in the World State?

In the utopia that Huxley has created, the moral values seem to have taken a huge regression backwords. This is exemplified through how much sex the wemon of the utopia have. What fascinates me is that John, the one who is considered the savage, has more restraint than a person like Lenina. When John finds himself lusting over Lenina while she is passed out on soma he thinks ,"Detestable thought!He was ashamed of himself," (145). The idea of sex has become the idea of an act of pleasure and not intimacy that someone not apart of the society holds more values than someone apart of it. The only exlanation is people no longer need sex because of cloning so they accept it more than someone from our society.

Why do the words father and mother now take on a pornographic connotation?

Father and mother, people we think as caring, loving people have become nowhere short of scandelous in this world. While seeing the director for the first time John shouts out my father which is taken as a gross, smutty word which humiliates the director immensly (Huxley 151). It is understandable that the director would be embarressed for no one has children in this society, but what the author emphasizes is the use of the word father. In this case, being a father is an insult! The most plausible explanation for the negative connotation of this word is that fathers were only present in savage tribes and not "normal."

Brave New World Post 1

They have created equality and confromity in several ways. Most importantly they have used cloning for three of the five classes so that equality and a collectivist attitude is promoted. Not only that but they genetically engineer people to be skilled for their future careers. They also utilize hypnopaedia which is drilling messages into children's brains as they sleep. This spreads the same messages and ideas into the minds of the youth which affects their mental processing and their individuality. Finally there is the soma which is a drug which is the perfect drug. Using this, the society ensures that people can always feel good and youthful, emphasizing how good their way of life is.

I would say through what I've read this is a utopia. Despite having many moral flaws in regards to our society, most people are content with this world and there seems to be little suffering meaning that this could be a "perfect world".

Final 1984 blog

I believe that Big Brother has won because that would prove the point Orwell was trying to make when writing this book. If the party, which was representative of totalitarian rule and oppression, didn't win through in the end, the book would not send as clear a message as Orwell wanted to communicate. It would just be another phase of humanity.

I suppose if the state were to be brought down in would be from the way that the party gradually decreases rations, which could eventually provoke a rebellion. Even this is unlikely though because the party alters history so no one knows the rations lower dramatically.

As soon as he started loving Big Brother, it doesn't especially matter when he actually dies I think. The instant he gave into the party and its demands, his old self, the person that was a rebel and a freethinker, "died" and he became a puppet of the party like most of the population. Whether he lived on or was shot the next day doesn't make much of a difference seeing as how his ideas about resistence, life, and all other things not relating to the party were crushed.

Sign Language Video

The girl can hear, but she either can't hear him because of her headphones or is ignoring him.

Yes, the culture of the Deaf and the culture of the people that can hear.

The man trying to get the girl's attention.

The man's decision to stay in the relationship despite the fact that they are from two different cultures and it will be difficult.

The conflict was resolved because they were able to communicate.

Individualism vs Collectivism

Collective: Loyalty, dedication, and selflessness.
Individual: Competitiveness, originality, achievement.

I think that it tends to be more towards the collective side of the spectrum because an idividualistic society will in the end do what betters themselves the most.

If a student is assigned to write a paper by himself, he might find this difficult because he has always had a group in which to rely on.

I believe the word has a neutral connotation because it basically means someone you know but aren't close personal friends with.

Islam conflict

The conflict is that people wearing the headscarf are wrongfully judged. This is an external conflict because the conflict derives from a certain Islamic custom.

People see other views/customs than their own and they don't like it, so they create stereotypes within societies relating to those views they don't agree with.

It gives people role models that they normally wouldn't have; her example is Oprah to people from her culture.

The Qu'ran and the Constitution

This Land is Your Land

Gutheries message is individualistic because although he is saying that the land is made for all of us, he is talking about it in an opportunistic manner. Stressing the beauty and possibilities for the individual citizen.

The song is anti government because of the line that details how no one will stop him on that road to freedom. Also when he ignores the sign that says no trespassing.

American Friendships

Americans view asking others for help as a sign of weakness since we live in one of the most individualistic countries on earth. Thus we do not reach out to many people beyond our close family members.

We don't go deep into relationships because our hectic schedules often don't allow us to take the time to enjoy life or establish meaningful relationships with acquaintances.

The Egg

1) The father was content where he was in life being a farmhand, but when he marries his wife pushes him to do more with his life.

2) The egg symbolizes how he is tired of his life and hates eggs and doesn't like what he does.

3) They are used in order to entertain the man who comes to the cafe. The father thinks if he treats the man well then he might spread the word and more people will come as a result.

4) It displays that that period of his life is going to end soon.










0

Aristotle Quote

I agree with this idea because there are normally two sides to an idea or conflict and if one can learn to think about both ideas equally, it offers more of an opportunity to learn.

1984 Reading Journal #2

Winston is having a difficult time believning in Big Brother because he is curious of other ways in which life could operate. All of his life that he can remember, Winston has had to obey whatever rules Big Brother imposes and there has simply been no other way of life. Unlike today where we have democracies, republics, communisms, monarchies, oligarchies and more all of which are varieties of rule and operations for a country. In his world there is just one and he understandably questions whether this way is the right way to run Ocenia. His small protests such as keeping a diary or having an affair are indeed acts of protest. With so much monitoring conducted by the thought police in Winston's life, almost everything he does is normal and not unique in any way. So in an effort to break away from the pack, Winston purchases and writes a diary. This was a way for him to voice his complaints with the party for the first time with no scruitiny. Next he has an affair which is a way to share his hatred of the party with another human. Although mainly for his benefit, both acts are forms of protest. His actions are similar to the Occupy Wall Street movement in the sense that they are both purely demonstrations of discontent rather than actually inconviencing anyone in either scenario. They are dissimilar because Winston's protest is more secretive and doesn't directly confront the government, while OWS is a clear demonstration against corporate greed.

2+2=5

The song is talking about being trapped in a world where everything is wrong, but no one stands up for what is right, or a dystopia.

Some lines are repetitive symbolizing how he feels trapped by a dystopia.

It is a reference to 1984 because in the first few lines, the speaker describes how he would stay at home where two and two makes five as in the book.

1984 Reading Journal

The utopia has created conformity by forcing all members of the party to wear blue overalls, regulating the diet, education, exercise, and most other aspects of daily life. They have resolved conflict by rewriting the past, putting themselves in the right light while placing the blame on an unvanquishable enemy in Eurasia and Goldstein. They also have ended religion, put away love in relationships, and limited individual rights. THey have forced conformity because the people feel nothing which stems from the fact that they have nothing to compare their lives to. This is due to the fact that the party rewrites history to show false improvement over time. The society is a dystopia because success and growth ins't promoted: it is discouraged. Newspeak is an example where the people will gradually speak less and less, eventually becoming non-human in nature.

Utopia

A utopia is an idealistic world where everyone is content and there is no conflict.

My idea of a utopia would be Greek island where everyone would have some sort of job that they loved, and it would be a small community surrounded by other small communities.

Michael Buble/ Jack Johnson/ Phoenix/ Hip-Hop

Reading critically response

I thought that this reading process made many valid points of how people don’t always read critically when they need to, and the author gave many viable options to become a better critical reader.

Summarize: After reading a piece, the author recommends righting a summary of the paragraphs in the piece, and then writing a summary of the essay itself, in order to obtain a better understanding of the author’s message.

Think Critically: The author of almost every essay written has had a clear message that they wished to express. The process then calls for one to think why the author wrote what he did; what did certain happenings in the piece mean, or what was the author trying to demonstrate.

Analysis: Here is where one looks for ways in which the author expressed his ideas through the essay. Whether by tone, plot, etc. there are always different ways in which one expresses his ideas.

Inference: Now, one makes an assumption of what the author’s message was. This can be accomplished through looking at their background, lifetime, beliefs, or anything about the author’s situation that caused him to express the ideas he has.

Synthesis: Then one must think about how the elements of the essay fit together to represent the author’s message. How did the relationships between the characters

Evaluation: Finally one must evaluate how the author presented his message by contemplating the tactics he used, and determining whether or not it was truly effective.

You Were Right

The speaker got out of a hard relationship and is venting to his former girlfriend. The repetition of the phrase "you were right" represents frustation of the speaker.

The repetition and depressing tone of the song symbolizes the author's blatant frustration.

THe combination of loud guitars and the use of other song lyrics.

Young Life

Claims:
The child isn't loved enough.
The man and woman are either married or in a relationship.
The boy wants to be like the man in the picture.

Paragrah:
The painting "Young Life" depicts a scene in which a young couple, passionate though they are for each other, neglect their young child. Through the position of the two adults in the portrait, it can be inferred that they are in love. However, the boy is seperated from the lovers by an enormous gap of space, suggesting a distance in the boy's relationship with those people. Whether or not the two adults are the boy's actual parents, it doesn't particularly matter because the boy is mirroring the man's gun with his stick. Proving that although the boy aspires to be like his father, there is a significant detatchment from him and the adults in this scenario.

Shame

Subject: a man who only cared about himself hurt a woman, and he feels horrible shame for it.

Tone: sorrowful.
Untender: demonstrates how little he cared about the girl's true feelings.
Boatloads: describes how guilty he feels through a figure of speech, and also has a sort of southern feel to it.
Overwhelming: expresses how he feels so guilty he cannot live with it; it consumes him.

Voice in Literature

1) Voice in literature is the way in which the story or message is presented or how the writing has its own style.

2) Are y'all going to the party? This sounds like me because I mix the words you and all, and I don't mean to it's just the way it comes naturally to me.

3) I would probably talk around any bad or awkward news in a conversation.

4) Voice in nonfiction is the way in whcih the facts are presented to the audience and if the writing contains any biases.

5) We could read different literature and familiarize ourseleves with different subjects and ways of going about communication.

Subject: The subject of Dave Barry’s “Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out” is to point out the differences between men and women. These distinctions between the sexes are illustrated by when the men of several families snuck away to watch the World Series while their wives gossiped with each other. Because the fathers care more about different things than their wives, this displays how men are dissimilar to women.

Occasion: “Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out” was written during in 1988. The essay’s time of creation is conveyed when Barry uses the World Series on the television as an example to prove his point. This evidence points the audience to a place where a majority of people watched sports on television, which was from about the nineteen sixties onward.

Audience: Barry’s specific audience for “Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out” is the average American citizen. The author’s target is exhibited when he talks about how women see dirt that men cannot, and through his mention of the World Series. When he mentions a game only played in the United States, it is obvious this piece was meant for Americans. Also his comments about men and women suggest this was made for average Americans.

Purpose: Dave Barry’s purpose in “Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out” is to distinguish the differences between men and women and to present them in a humorous manner. These distinctions are manifested when he recalls his wife saying, ‘“I hate to rush you, but could you do Roberts bathroom. It’s really filthy.” She is in there looking at the very walls I just windexed, and she is seeing dirt!”’ In the situation there is an element of irony because Barry cleaned the bathroom but his wife couldn’t tell the difference, and this makes the piece funny. At the same time the author points out a difference between men and women by displaying his wife’s obviously high standards of cleanliness.

Speaker: David Barr, Pulitzer Prize winner, believes that men and women have very different opinions of life. This value is illustrated by when Barry thinks the bathroom is clean but his wife thinks it’s dirty. Thus, the author demonstrates how men and women have different ideals of certain things.

Barry, acclaimed comedian and writer, also believes that men are much more in tune with sports than women are. This value is illustrated by when one of the wives of the party he goes to schedules a party on the night of the World Series, a major sporting event. In this the author is proving how women do not care as much as men do about sports, which is to say that men and women have contrasting values.

David Barryarticulates a comical and cheerful attitude about the differences between men and women. These attitudes are expressed by words such as “zinging” or “jovial” which give a sense of happiness to the reader. This serves the purpose of the author by displaying how comical the differences between the sexes can be.

Eleanor Rigby

I like the original version the most because it had more of a rythem than the other two. I also like the instruments the way they are used more in the original.

I think the original is also more aesthetically pleasing because the pain version is just a bunch of screaming, and the dubstep is a little better but still isn't as whole as the orginal.

Sign Language

I think the message was be and kind and have a posative outlook, and people will be kind in return.

He says that he points out theless obvious things when he's suppossed to pointing out something obvious.
When he doesn't realize what his friends have planned for him, he gives them the benefit of the doubt.
All of his friends remember him and help him at the same time in the end by getting him to talk to the girl.

I would have had him have dialogue with someon to get someone else's opinion of him.

Good Old Desk

Subject- his desk
Occasion- the 1960's
Audience- people listening to his music
Purpose- to show everyone hos his creative process works.
Speaker- Harry Nilsson
Tone- upbeat

"such a comfort to know dependable and slow"
"I've never once heard it cry"
"We never say a word but that's prefectly alright with me"

Shooting an Elephant SOAPSTone

The subject of George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” is that people will do shameful and wrong things in order to not be humiliated. This brand of cowardice is illustrated by the protagonist’s actions when faced with a pressure filled situation. It is because of his failure to do what is just, and attempt to make himself look better, that demonstrates his spinelessness.
“Shooting an Elephant” was written in 1936. The story’s time of creation is exhibited when Orwell details that he was a British officer working in Burma. This clearly demonstrates that it was written during the era of British Imperialism in the early part of the twentieth century. The time and place of this story’s creation is influenced by portraying the story as if the Burmese were inferior to the Europeans. If it had been modern times where the British are no longer ruling, the piece would have been written in a much different style.
Orwell’s specific audience for “Shooting and Elephant” is probably middle to upper class Englishmen. The author’s target is displayed through when he talks so much about Imperialism. This means he wrote this for other British men to observe his thoughts and maybe speculate about his behaviors. Orwell’s general audience for this essay is people who are in positions were pressure is involved. This is exhibited by when he details in his paper that if he did not shoot the elephant, the entire village would have probably laughed heartily at him. So he is using his situation and the lessons he learned from it as advice to people in similar situations.
Orwell’s purpose in “Shooting an Elephant” is to advise the reader not to back down in times of pressure or possible humiliation. His experiences are communicated to the reader in the last line of the story where he says, “I often wondered whether any of the others grasped that I had done it solely to avoid looking a fool.” Here he explains that his actions throughout the entire novel were completely motivated by the fear of humiliation. The purpose is further revealed by when he explains that the last thing he wanted to do was to kill the magnificent giant. However because of the pressure he was under, and the possible humiliation, he backed down.
George Orwell, famous for novels such as 1984 or Animal Farm, believes that cowardice is pressure can make a person do wrong, sometimes terrible things. This is illustrated by when he express his clear desires not to shoot the elephant, but caves under the stress, and slays the gentle giant. Because of Orwell’s belief that he should have left the elephant alone, the story has a more resentful attitude towards his actions. Orwell also believes that the fear of humiliation is a strong motivator for wrongdoing. It’s because of this belief that Orwell’s piece takes a sort of sorrowfulness belief, especially when the elephant lingers between life and death for thirty minutes. Orwell uses the use of imagery to evoke strong feelings of his wrongdoing. When he details the bloody and tragic way in which the elephant died, Orwell is painting an awful, tragic picture of the poor animal’s death. This is a way in which Orwell conveys his obvious guilt for the slaughtering of this elephant.
Finally Orwell indicates a remorseful and guilty attitude about not caving into the fear of humiliation in “Shooting an Elephant.” This tone is expressed most accurately when Orwell laments that the sound of the beast’s labored breathing resembled that of a ticking clock that would soon die out. This blatantly shows his terrible sorrow for the elephant and his guilt about unnecessarily slaughtering it. Because his tone is so grave however, it is insight for the reader to demonstrate how regretful he is about caving into pressure, and how it caused regret in his life.

Across the Universe

Rain falling into a cup, a sunny field, a broken lamp with a little flicker of light at the center.

I think that the American flag is a symbol of freedom and democracy to ourselves and to other countries.

Rockwell painting

THe 1950's were the beginning of a socially, ethically, and culturally different era of the United States. The adolescants of America had begun to rebel against their parents and form their own identity. Norman Rockwell, a prominent painter at that time, observed this and merely passed it off as childish exuberance. Thesis Statement.

Groovy Song

It feels upbeat, smooth, and gives a happy feeling.

The guitar is pleasant sounding and the base is funky.

They chose to include the guitar and bass and a mellow tempo to give the song a cool, happy feel to it.

Diego Rivera Painting

He wanted to make the audience think about how hard farm labor is.

He chose earth colors for the whole painting except for the farmer's white shirt which I think symbolizes his spirit. Also the farmers face is hidden from view which could mean how unimportant he is.

Wilco Band Response

They use all of the band members' ideas to make songs, but then deconstruct them in order to improve them.

I usually just think and write as I go and then look back over and edit my papers.

I establish what I'm going to write about, write most of it, and when I'm done I'll go back over and edit it.

Song from American Graffiti

Nostalgia is when people vividly remember things from their past and long for them.

I imagine a myself in my sixth grade play singing the songs of grease.

I think of the sounds of trains, owls, and other birds, and I also think of Winnie the Pooh because that was a good part of my childhood right there. I feel pretty happy and contented when I think of my childhood.

The Pinch of Poverty

1) Lack of sufficient food, clothing, shelter, a steady job, family size, and social cast I believe are the main contributers to poverty.

2) The artist paints poverty in a depressing light because of the dreariness of the town in the background and also by the way the mother and two of her children are sitting. The third child however in a way gives a sense of preserverence because she is standing away from her gloomier mother and siblings and holding bright yellow flowers, which I take as a sign of hope.

3) It is cruel and depressing to witness.

4) The colors I believe play a big role, but also the position of the whole family I think make a difference in the painting.

Poverty

In "Live Free or Starve", Divakaruni explains that although the United States may have good intentions to help those in need, sometimes we don't fully consider all of the factors involved. Specifically the author details how Congress passed a bill to eliminate business with Asian companies that use child labor. While one living comfortably here in the United States could assume that child labor is cruel and unusual (which it often is), we don't especially think as to what would happen if the children working were kicked back on the streets. Without pay, most kids will starve to death; it happens all too often. The author I believe made her best point when she stated, "...and when many of these children turn to the streets, to survival through theivery and violence and begging and prostitution... are we ready to shoulder that burden?" Unless we can back up our bill with guarenteed aid to these children, I don't think we are in a postition to affect their lives. I think I was biased in some ways towards the children because I think starvation is one of the worst things that can happen to humans, so in that way I looked upo this bill more harshly.

In Peter Singer's arguement of how people always have a direct choice to help kids who are starving, I wasn't so convinced. Singer argues in his "Bugatti" example that Bob, who doesn't save the life of a child to protect his car, that we are all faced with basically the same challenge but in a different format. He argues that we all have Bob's choice, but we just can't see the actual child we could save. We should send money to help some kids, that is plain and true, but it doesn't compare on a level to condemming a child to death like Bob. In the example, Bob basically gives the child the death sentence. We in America are helping children who desperately need it and not instead deciding through our generocity who dies and who doesn't. That is mainly why I disagreed with the author. The biased I found in this for me was the fact that he described us all as being in Bob's situation and I found this just wrong. We all do not have the option to let a kid live or not. Our donations could help the kid and even if we donate it could be too late, so I don't think the example applies to the situation at all.

Round and Round Song response

I enjoyed this song because I liked the style and upbeat nature of the synthesizer instruments. The song had several changes of pace, one sped it up and one slowed it down considerably, and several refrains back to the chorus. I like variety in my songs so I was intrigued by this. The main thing that I enjoyed with this song was the harmony. Especially in the chorus the harmony was amplified by the use of synthesizers and several volcalists, which I thouroughly enjoyed. I believe I do have a biast sort of view to songs with extraordinary harmony and upbeat tempo simply because I think they make my day just a little brighter. And if an artist is trying to make a cheery sounding song, I'm usually all for it.