History Homework #25

Brittani,

I enjoyed reading your story. It was original and the plot was interesting. i think you conveyed the idea of how what may be cool in some areas is not necessarily cool in others. I think this character is considered cool because what he does comes of natural, he goes to private school but pays no tuition because he has a gift in basketball. That is cool. Nice to see you have a creative side!

Bryanna,
I like how you showed how being mean and rude to other people makes you cooler as a whole. Joe is the type of character who doesnt take shit from anyone. he doesnt respect women since he gets so many. He may be careless but that is exactly what makes him so cool in the long run. He is also cool in our society because he creates drama in peoples lives.

Arden,
Your story about Dakota changed the idea of cool because you had him start off as a nice respectful guy and show how by becoming popular he became this arrogant guy who does not care about any one. Its funny that the better guy personality wise is the one who isnt popular but the major jerk gains popularity for his carelessness. interesting.


Sam,
Unlike a lot of other stories your character of cool was a respectful guy who had a passion for a girl and was not afraid to show it. The main thing i realized about your character that relates to the main character of my cool story is that both do not fear what other people in school will think of them and what they are wearing. It goes back to being careless or coming off as having a careless image yet still pulling off being "fly"

Omar-
Jim comes off as a cool character because he is faced with a problem and an awkward situation and is able to deal with it. Jim is straight up and doesnt beat around the bush. That is a character trait that falls under the idea of cool because he can help solve problems instead of just complaining that the situation is wrong. cool story, very realistic.

There were many patterns I noticed in a lot of the stories. One trait that came off interesting to me was the idea of effortless. All of these characters that the story was based around, mine including, featured a character that was cool without any effort. He or she manages to give off a "cool" appearance without showing any effort. Cool must be natural or the person will be considered trying too hard. The character also often had a problem showing affection since that may be categorized under uncool.
In Brittani's story the main character, Daishawn was a basketball player that did not fit into his new school. It was obvious that he was from a different social class. Daishawn though, being the cool guy that he is refused to conform to the style of his upper middle class peers because that was not who he was. People respect this because it is considered staying true to your roots.
Many of the characters in peoples stories feautred them walking down the hallway and showing any care for anyone or anything. This idea of hard to get is a trait of cool because it shows that this given cool person is not dependent on anyone else, all they need is themselves.

HW: 24 History Short $tory

As a student, Pascal was lazy yet he still got good grades. He was one of those students rarely said something in class but when he did it was earth shattering. it changed the point of view of the entire class. He would rarely do his homework yet he would pass all his classes effortlessly. He was a natural. Nothing he did came off as forced and on purpose. He was so suave with the women yet at the same time a bit mysterious.
As the varsity cheerleader team tried to start up a conversation with him at lunch, he kept his eyes glued to his book with the title that no one had heard of. The book described him, unknown yet so cool. It was not like he was trying to play hard to get with these girls. He was just merely "too good" for high school girls.
On weekends Pascal didnt bother going to the high school loft parties out in Brooklyn with his peers. Pascal would hop on the uptown 1 train to Columbia university and attend those frat parties. He did not bother with girlfriends. He did not have the time or patience to deal with women for more than one night. He was a heavy drinker yet he never got drunk. Yet through all this he had one problem. Pascal only didnt get involved with people because he had major trust issues. He was beaten as a kid by his father and was fucked over by his mother. He did not know how to trust people and feel safe around them because all his life he was around people who could not be trusted. This prevented him from having close friends.
Soon enough Pascal himself realized it and knew he had to do something about it and he met Roxy. A college girl who had similar problems to Pascal. Her mother passed away and she lived with her aunt. She on the other hand had an ex boyfriend who beat her. Pascal came to realize how what they had in common made him closer to her and gradually came to trust her. Pascal still kept his cool ways and trends after overcoming his problem.

Homework #23 History-Cool

Where did cool start? Thats what i am most curious about in this topic. Cool to me, being a teen means almost the same as hip. Cool to me is referring to what is currently in style and cool to wear. What was cool and in style last year could be totally out of style and uncool now. The only things that remain cool are personality traits. It also seemed to be cool when the look is effortless. A cool person is never cool on purpose. It is supposed to come off as being all natural. Nothing was ever forced, it just happened. If this was the case no one would be truly cool.

This cool we perceive in todays society is an image or side of a person that has little to do with their actual personality. In the majority on New Yorks young hip kids wear what they see worn by the celebrities. In New York though, it is not quite as bad. Kids here take what they see worn by others and put there own personal spin on it making it some what original. In suburbs across America, it seems like each person looks like the next, making no one individually cool.
There is no single cool for everyone. Every group has a different image of cool, but they all have a higher image that they look up to. Regardless if the member of the group or a celebrity they all strive to be like this person. For example, for a period of time i loved the oceans 11 movies. I wanted to be like George Clooneys character because he was such a suave character. It seemed like he was careless yet at the same time he cared so much. He was able to stay calm regardless of the situation. Nothing could rattle him. Looking back i realize how stupid i must have looked trying to be like a 40 year old casino thief. Although i wasnt trying to have the same story as him, i really wanted to be that careless mysterious member of the group that no one could figure out. Cool differs by group.

History Homework #21 art project

This a sketch I did of an older man, that sort of looks like my uncle who has not kept up with the digital revolution. He is staring at digital objects in distress because he is baffled by them and has no idea how to function them. He is unaware of their purpose and is frustrated by this. My piece of art makes me think of what the pros and cons are of not following and staying up to date with all the latest digital representation devices. On one hand he is very stressed about it but on the other he views things in a very different way and makes more out of his life. I think the most interesting part of aspect of my art is the fact that it is based on someone I know and what it is like for them to go through there lives using minimal digital representation devices. My art is a hammer because is goes against this digital revolution and portrays a man who lives successfully using digital equipment minimally.

The stranger post #2

At first, i wondered how a book like the stranger was popular book. It seemed to have little plot. Now though the Stranger has become very appealing to me. I am curious to know what Mersault is thinking and what his beliefs are. I want to know his past life and why he has so little ambition in life. Something must have happened to him at some point along the way. He seems to have intimacy issues because every time someone attempts to get close to Mersault he backs them away. Marie, is interested in marrying him but he claims to not love her. At this point she may be wondering if he even has the inner ability to love and show affection for someones personality. He continues to go back to Maries physical features and his sexual desires with her. It seems as though every time he mentions something about her, he moves on to her physical attributes.
Mersault killing a man threw me off completely. It brought excitement to the book out of no where. It is ironic how the reader gets so into the back and even more so after the shooting but Mersaults personality remains the same throughout. He some how finds a way to enjoy being in prison. He uses his time sleeping and pacing around his cell thinking about random furniture in his house. Yet through all this, i still do not think that Mersault is crazy in the head.
The incident where Mersault killed the Arab man is questionable only because of the mere fact that he shot him five times. He claims his reason for doing it is because he was scared. Even if this was the case, he shot the man 5 times. I think if it was purely fear he would have only shot him once. Mersaults real reason for it remains unknown to me because he shows so little emotion in jail and in the court case. He shows little emotion on how he feels with the court case and is more interested in how a court room actually works. His state and outcome of his case means very little to him because he can accept being in jail.

History HW #20 Big Paper revised

History: Big Paper

Digital Representation devices have provided a distraction from boredom through their stimulating entertainment in both adults and children, and are a primary reason of our societies failure and ignorance. From day 1 of any person’s existence on earth they are surrounded by digital representation devices. We are brainwashed from the start to think certain things, not all of which relate to digital representation devices. When a child is born it is dressed in a pink outfit if it is a girl and a blue outfit if it is a boy. We conform to this because this is all we know. To a certain extent, the same applies to digitalization. We buy mobile phones but rarely use them for their original purpose. I for one, rarely talk on the phone and spend all my time sending text messages because everyone else does it, not necessarily because it is easier. When asked by my parents why I choose to send text messages over talking on the phone I realize that I conformed to doing it because everyone my age does. The main reason for the decision of teens to text message goes back the digital representation devices as a method for people to prevent boredom. A conversation on a given topic that can be completed through talking on the phone in a matter on minutes can last for a span of numerous hours through text message, which provides stimulation for someone over a longer period of time.

Stimulation comes into play at a young age and is almost an addiction. The common situation for children is video games. Often times, primarily in America but also in many other countries, children are left at home while parents are at work. They spend their time watching television while simultaneously playing handheld video games. They use this as a way to alleviate boredom because it is easier than going out and socializing face to face with friends or being active. Even at times when parents or siblings are home that could provide a different form of entertainment or stimulation, the child often chooses to play his video games or watch his television because it is effortless on his part and the decisions he makes in his forms of digital representation devices will not nearly have a similar affect on him as the decisions he will face in real life. This does not only apply to video games with children. Families in general use digital representation devices to avoid boredom or awkwardness. An example is my extended family. Every thanksgiving we get together to see one another and end up watching a movie together. We almost use the movie as a way to make it seem like we all get together and enjoy doing things together. In reality though, during the movie everyone is glued to the television screen and no one talks to each other. The movie in a given situation can be a tool to avoid getting into a personal conversation with a person or group of people. After the movie though, we all talk as a family, but strictly using the movie we all just watched as the base for our conversation. This is how hidden and unintentionally most of these digital devices can be. They affect the way we socialize and behave. My family as a whole would have gotten into more arguments and fights if it weren’t for television because we would not be avoiding things. On the other hand our family would be a lot closer because we would know more about one another’s lives. I personally know very little about how my cousins are doing because of the mere fact that our relationship is so weak and the memories we have are just of us and the rest of our family huddled around a box of moving motions silent with our eyes glued to the screen.

Digital representation devices are the easiest way for us to escape reality for a while. Often teens and even adults go to movies on dates. Usually they do it for sexual pleasure and sometimes even for the excitement of the actual movie. But they often take their “dates” to a movie theater because this is the easy escape to an experience where little talking is done. Friends of mine have admitted to bringing a girl to a movie because they felt unable to hold a decent conversation with the girl. This is an effect of the aftermath of spending too much time isolated alone playing video games.

One of the worst problems with all of this is that we are unable to face it and are in complete denial of it. If would not be quite as bad if we were universally able to point out this mistake and its affects and do something about. The reality is completely different as we think we are fine and it has little effect. I often hear an argument for video games and other digital media representation devices as being a good thing. Whether the argument is good or not becomes irrelevant when you realize how many people fall for it. This just puts us into deeper denial of the situation our society is in as a whole.

Over stimulation from digital media representation devices can cause ADHD in children. When they stay put in one place watching television and simultaneously playing video games they are unable to focus as well. Excessive amounts of electronic media often can exacerbate the ADHD behaviors in children. They are over stimulated and at points overwhelmed with how much is going on around them. They could be chatting on instant messenger while playing music and video games. This causes them to shuffle between media activities and prevents them from showing and concentrating their full attention on one device.
I can personally say that as a child I spent too much of my time using digital representation devices. Whether is have been television, computer or video games, I let it eat up too much of my childhood and now may be the reason I have trouble focusing on something without getting distracted. It can be argued that this digital media revolution has helped us and benefited us because it has for the most part. It provides simple entertainment and a convenient way to communicate instantly. It has helped us develop new ideas and make things easier for ourselves. Its importance to the real world is important, as almost every person in the world has been affected in both negative and positive ways. We have all come in contact with it at some point and form our own opinions on whether it has helped us or set us back in the long run.

HW#18 Big paper rough draft

Digital Representation devices have provided a distraction from boredom through there stimulating entertainment in both adults and children, and are a primary reason of our societies failure and ignorance. From day 1 of any persons existence on earth they are surrounded by digital representation devices. We are brainwashed from the start to think certain things, not all of which relate to digital representation devices. When a child is born it is dressed in a pink outfit if it is a girl and a blue outfit if it is a boy. We conform to this because this is all we know. To a certain extent, the same applies to digitalization. We buy mobile phones but rarely use them for their original purpose. I for one, rarely talk on the phone and spend all my time sending text messages because everyone else does it, not necessarily because it is easier. When asked by my parents why I choose to send text messages over talking on the phone I realize that I conformed to doing it because everyone my age does. The main reason for the decision of teens to text message goes back the digital representation devices as a method for people to prevent boredom. A conversation on a given topic that can be completed through talking on the phone in a matter on minutes can last for a span of numerous hours through text message which provides a stimulation for someone over a longer period of time.

    Stimulation comes into play at a young age and is almost an addiction. The common situation for children is video games. Often times, primarily in America but also in many other countries, children are left at home while parents are at work. They spend their time watching television while simultaneously playing handheld video games. They use this as a way to alleviate boredom because it is easier than going out and socializing face to face with friends or being active. Even at times when parents or siblings are home that could provide a different form of entertainment or stimulation, the child often chooses to play his video games or watch his television because it is effortless on his part and the decisions he makes in his forms of digital representation devices will not nearly have a similar affect on him as the decisions he will face in real life. This does not only apply to video games with children. Families in general use digital representation devices to avoid boredom or awkwardness. An example is my extended family. Every thanksgiving we get together to see one another and end up watching a movie together. We almost use the movie as a way to make it seem like we all get together and enjoy doing things together. In reality though, during the movie everyone is glued to the television screen and no one talks to each other. The movie in a given situation can be a tool to avoid getting into a personal conversation with a person or group of people. After the movie though, we all talk as a family, but strictly using the movie we all just watched as the base for our conversation. This is how hidden and unintentionally most of these digital devices can be. They affect the way we socialize and behave. My family as a whole would have gotten into more arguments and fights if it weren’t for television because we would not be avoiding things. On the other hand our family would be a lot closer because we would know more about one anothers lives. I personally know very little about how my cousins are doing because of the mere fact that our relationship is so weak and the memories we have are just of us and the rest of our family huddled around a box of moving motions silent with our eyes glued to the screen.

  Digital representation devices are the easiest way for us to escape reality for a while. Often teens and even adults go to movies on dates. Usually they do it for sexual pleasure and sometimes even for the excitement of the actual movie. But they often take their “dates” to a movie theater because this is the easy escape to an experience where little talking is done. Friends of mine have admitted to bringing a girl to a movie because they felt unable to hold a decent conversation with the girl. This is an effect of the aftermath of spending too much time isolated alone playing video games.

     One of the worst problems with all of this is that we are unable to face it and are in complete denial of it. If would not be quite as bad if we were universally able to point out this mistake and its affects and do something about. The reality is completely different as we think we are fine and it has little effect. I often hear an argument for video games and other digital media representation devices as being a good thing. Whether the argument is good or not becomes irrelevant when you realize how many people fall for it. This just puts us into deeper denial of the situation our society is in as a whole

Homework #17

RIchie,

After reading your post i realized how strong your ideas were. I think if you organize your ideas better in your outline it will in turn improve not only the outline but your entire essay as a whole because you will be able to easily refer back to it hen you are moving from one argument to another. I think that your third argument, the one about finding an easy way out of things is very interesting. I think you should explain in detail though how you plan to carry out this argument. Besides that though i think you are on the right track to writing a very good essay about this topic.

keep up the good work

Hey Arden, I think your outline is a very good start to your essay and will make it more simple to structure your essay in an organizing way. Your thesis is short, which is not necessarily bad because in this case it goes right to the point of what you are trying to tell us. Trouble in the economy, your 3rd and final argument is most appealing to me. I look forward to seeing the rough draft of your essay and how your carried out your three arguments.

Good luck writing your essay!

Homework #16: Outline

Thesis: Digital Representation devices have provided a distraction from boredom through there stimulating entertainment in both adults and children, and are a primary reason of our societies failure and ignorance.


Main Idea for Intro: Children and Adults everywhere with access to forms of digital representation devices use them to alleviate there boredom and therefore waste there lives away.
We spend too much of our time communicating via text message and facebook and the youth today is unable to hold a educated conversation because of the mere fact that we are to used to communicating in other digital forms. Our society has become ignorant and in denial of the whole situation. We all point the finger on how other people are addicted to media but are often unable to face it ourselves.



Arguments:

Children being left home alone spend there time playing video games to avoid boredom and too get some form of stimulation. No longer spend time outside as much.

We are in denial about how corrupt our societies have become through digital representation devices and how they affect our daily lives in negative ways.

The raise in levels of ADD over the past 10 years because of over stimulation between television,video games, and computer use. Children cannot focus at so many loud things at one time as it becomes distracting later in life.


Evidence: The ammount of revenue that video game companies earn per year through children buying video games. The decline in children's outdoor activity. Mostly adults live off their mobile phones and are fully dependent on them. Prime example: my father. Online data that shows increases off ADD in the past decade. Sources that talk about how video games can cause distraction and over stimulation.