Reel Works: Happy Ending and I Wish

The two videos I watched were Happy Ending and I Wish. These stories were about a young man growing up in a home broken by drugs, and a young ladies struggle with her fathers terminal cancer. Both of these were unbiased, well presented documentaries.

The first video, Happy Ending, told the story of a fifteen year old African American male growing up in a broken home. Both his mother and father started taking drugs when he was young, and the incident caused his life to be changed forever. The title of this documentary, Happy Ending, is contrary to the documentaries content. Even after his mother was released from prison and rehab, things never turned out the same.

I beleive this story explains exactly why individuals rarely change social classes. The child's future being overshadowed by the parents problems lead to a vicous cycle; a cycle in which only a small percentage overcome. To take care of his mother, the young man was forced to drop out of high school and work at a local gas station. The lack of social class change can be attributed to instances such as this.

The second documentary, I Wish, tells about a young lady who wishes she could take back the last couple of years of her life in order to say goodbye to her father. The story goes into a timeline of the illness and the effects on the family. The biggest concept that I gained from this story was that death is different than what is seen in the movies. The dying person does not always act brave, and sometimes things do not work out for the best. Sometimes the death is overwhelming for both the dying patient and the family.

Reel Works

This particular Reel Works documentary was interesting but biased. The population sampled for the interviews came from a limited region and gender was disproportionally represented, both of which could potentially lead to inaccurate ideas.

The region and socioeconomic status led to an innaccurate portrayal of youth. The majority of the kids seen in this documentary came from divorced, lower middle class inner city homes. The kids that were interviewed talked about the big problem that sex and alcohol was within their community, and most admitted to participating in both. If this same interview was given to kids in an upper-class suburb of Hollywood, the results would likely be different. The conditions in which these kids were brought up in more than likely led to a majority of the behavior seen.

Gender was unequally represented in this documentary. With a total of around 10 individuals being interviewed, only two were males. The message conveyed was that males are emotionless, and only concerned about one thing: sex. Both sexes interviewed shared the beleif that relationships were not worth the pain that they would potentially cause, proabably a direct result of divorce within their own homes.

This documentary was inaccurate and biased. The purpose of this documentary was, in my opinion, to give the appearance that all young teenagers were sexually active and males are insensitive; both of which suggest youth that are spiraling out of control. In order to make a more accurate arguement, the author should have gotten a more diverse, universal pool of interviewees.

Halloween: A form of visual rhetoric

The types of costumes that people wear are forms or visual rhetoric and gender. Each costume has a particular purpose behind it, and each costume fits a particular gender. Halloween is full of examples of visual rhetoric.
Halloween weekend displayed a variety of examples of visual rhetoric. Costumes ranging from witches and warlocks to Stewie and Peter Griffin could be seen everywhere on campus. The type of costume that an individual wears conveys a certain message. For instance, the young man wearing the Stewie Griffin costume was suggesting a sense of humor, while witches tells of a more traditional, conservative attitude. Some particularly revealing costumes display the purpose of getting attention. Visual rhetoric could be seen everywhere on Halloween.
Gender is also a part of Halloween. In general, the types of costumes males and females wore differed significantly. In the portion of the population I saw, females tended to have more revealing clothing, while men tended to have humorous costumes. It was uncommon to find a female wearing a costume that was not revealing or suggestive in any manner, but males tended to be completely covered. Several reasons could account for these differences. First, females would be hard-pressed to find a costume store at the mall that sold non-revealing clothing. In contrast, the male costume tend to be much more modest and conservative.
Halloween is full of examples of visual rhetoric and gender. Every costume tells something about the person who wears it, and even involves gender.

Halloween

I have never been a big fan of Halloween, even as a kid. But even if I was, I still would not like it at my age. I believe that the holiday is for kids, and that the popularity among older people is really just a cry for attention. Every year, certain kids decide to dress up. Some just wear a half-assed costume they put together at the last minute simply because they feel obligated to dress up. Others take time finding the loudest, most unique, and sometimes most revealing costume they can. This is how Halloween is rhetoric. The way people dress for Halloween says something about who they are, even if they dress a different way than usual. I think that a lot of times people wear costumes that reveal how they are in social situations or at parties, but they wear them to school, where people might have a completely different view of them. The obvious example is the way girls dress, buy guys are guilty, too. Many guys will dress up in something outrageous; the costume really seems to scream, "look at me!" Also, I have seen people dress up as something really obscene or offensive. In high school, I saw a kid dress up as a penis one year. Sometimes, they are people who do well in school and never get in trouble. When that day comes around, though, all previous impressions of someone might be lost when that person shows up in a revealing or offensive outfit. Costumes can give the wrong impressions of those who wear them due to that visual rhetoric.

women cont.

It just happens to be much harder for women to get along in the sports industry because the stereo type is men a better, faster, and stronger. When you are a woman and you want to be recognized it becomes much harder to overcome all these stereo types. But I think that women should be the ones to get the most respect because they seem work harder to get where they are now. I am not 100% sure but to me it seems like men get it easier and that they do work exteremely hard when they are competing, but they have an up on the sports world. There are also more men in the world that are intersted in sports, so this makes it rare to see a lot of females in this industry.

Women in sports

I think that women in sports most of the time looked at as a joke. But women also seem to always have to work harder at what they do to make it in the sports industry. If we talk about women that are participating in male dominated sports they seem to be made to look much more sexy. We can use Dannica Patrick as an example. When she was first introduced to the public as a professional race car driver she was not really looked at as an important figure in the industry. So she proved that she was worth something when she started to win races and when she started to dress more provocatively and appear on the front covers of sports magazines. To me it seems like to be important or interesting in the sports world you need to become a sex symbol. I guess this is what makes the whole sports world interesting so why change it, but this kind of makes woman look bad because they have to dress in provocative ways to be noticed. I would also personaly like to seem sports allow men and women teams combined.

The Difference is not so Big...

A persons first thought of women in sports is one of sex appeal. During the sport they engage in, she is sweaty, her hair a mess and cloths dirty. But take her out of that leading sport role and put her in a commercial or advertisment of some sort, and watch her transform into a beautiful sex goddess. Her hair is all done up, her cloths are neat and stylish, and she has on makeup brings out the accents in her beautiful face. Our first impression when we see her is not what sport she plays or how good she is, but how much we want to be like or with this girl. The thought of her playing soccer in the mud or shooting a three pointer to win a basketball game is almost an afterthought. But in the same respect, if you see a male in advertising, they are clean cut, well dressed, and the thought of him as an athlete escapes you’re mind only for a second. If you're a female, you want to be with him. If you are a male, you want to be like him, not because he is an athlete but because of the way he looks and dresses. Our infatuation with these male athletes is not that we want to preform like them, but that we want to be in the spot light. We want to be known by everyone, and respected by everyone, not as an athlete but as an icon.

I’m not sure if society is ready to see females compete against males. With the few exceptions of athletes such as Danica Kertpatric and Michelle Wie, who can and have competed on a professional level with members of the opposite sex, females are restricted to competing against other females. But in the same respects, men are restricted to compete against other men. Viewers, for the most part, think that male sports are more competitive and interesting to watch then sports featuring women. Why are there no female hockey leagues. Why are there no female football leagues? Society is not ready to see females get down and dirty, and almost aggressive, with these sports. Who want's to see females, dressed in pads and jersies, play with a football and tackle each other. More and more opportunities are available for women, but we still have a long way to go until women are represented as equally as men.

Racism and Sexism at Home

I was completely oblivious to the issues discussed in class. It’s shocking to think that we as a society still have to deal with racism and discrimination between sexes. In the four months of living in West Lafeyette, I have yet to see an incident involving race. I could be wrong, but I do not feel that Purdue University is diverse enough to have the problems that other colleges experience. If incidents of this nature occur on our campus, as I’m sure they do, I have not seen it.

While in the Air Force, I did however notice that, in a workplace full of male’s, the talk tended to center around the degradation of females. As I sat in the room and listened to the disgusting comments the other guys and girls would say, it made me blush. Granted the male to female ratio is roughly twenty to one, the topics were so grotesque that I would have to leave the room. The few females in the room would sit back and engage in the conversation, often times making worse comments then the males.

One part of the reading I’d like to comment on is the issue of the drunken girl on LSD. In no way do I defend the males that could have or did take advantage of her, but this is a complete lack of intelligent decision making on her part. If anyone should partake in alcohol, they should always be aware of their surrounding. The person should always stay with his or her friends, keeping a sober driver in the group. But not only do her friends leave her, this drunk female in on LSD. She is in no condition to make a smart decision. I am always careful with the new friends I make, never to leave the two of us alone away from the rest of my friends.

Unfortunately we still have to deal with these issues, not only on collage campuses, but in the everyday work place. Will racism ever end, or will the generations to come still feel the hatred born so long ago.

Women in Sports

Women in sports don't get very much recognition. Some believe that women shouldn't play sports and that they aren't capable of playing them. I would agree that the level of play is not always the same. This is mainly due to the fact that men and women are built differently. Unfortunately, I have noticed first hand the favoring towards male sports. In highschool, I played on the women's varsity soccer team. We had a pretty good record and made our mark in our area. But even still, we were unable to get the attention of our school. We barely had any fans that weren't parents, or boyfriends. The school never gave us money, we had to raise it all on our own. While the basketball and football team got whatever they wanted. A lot of the attention the basketball team received was due to the fact that we had the number one draft pick playing for us. Even between the mens and womens soccer team, there were differences. The mens team thought they could make us move to the crappy field, so they could have the whole game field. They thought they were superior to us, even though we had the better record. We quickly but them in their place, and did not allow them to push around. The athletic department appeared to greatly favor the male sports. The difference in mens and womens sports is still noticiable are a larger scale. Basketball for example, mens basketball is definitely more popular than womens basketball. I can see how this could be, because I personally believe that male sports appear to be more intense. The physical contact is at a greater degree, making the game more interesting. This reminds me of a movie 'Love and Basketball', were the female player is constantly getting in trouble for physical contact. The main character even states, that because she is a lady she is told to calm down, while if a male does the same thing he gets a tap on the ass. The portrayl of the female plays a large role in the differences between men and women sports.

Women in Sports

Women athletes have never been given as much recognition and support as male athletes, especially in male dominated sports; nor have their number of spectators ever been as high. I think one reason for this is because male sports have been around longer than female sports. For example, the NBA has been around for decades whereas the WNBA was established just a few short years ago. Women are also portrayed differently than men when discussing sports. When you watch a commercial on T.V. or flip through a magazine it is quite easy to pick out the male athletes. On the other hand, the female athletes are much harder to find. As we mentioned in class, Danica Patrick is often times seen posing in very sexy, provocative, model-like way for various advertisements. Usually the advertisements she is posing for have nothing to do with the sport she participates in. Normally only attractive female athletes will ever be shown on commercials or in other advertisements. However, when you see male athletes in advertisements they are most often wearing their team uniforms and promoting their sport in some way.
Even though I wish that women would receive more recognition for the hard work and dedication that they put into their sports, I can, in a way, understand why they do not. For example, at my high school our girls basketball team has always been really good but rarely ever has a large student crowd at any of the games. The boys basketball team has been horrible for years, but they always have a good number of fans at their games. Even I had never been to a girls game until my senior year.

Women in Sports

If you were to compare the ads and commercials for sports between men and women, you would probably notice a large difference between them, especially if the sport was male dominated. Let's take baseball as an example. Say you were looking through a magazine and you saw an advertisement for men's baseball. The article would probably show a player sliding to home or swinging a bat to hit a home-run. Now let's change focus to a women's baseball article. What's that? You mean you don't remember seeing one? Oh, you probably have, it just looks nothing like the one we just saw, and they are also much harder to find. Just like with other male dominated sports, when it comes to showcasing the female version, it usually resembles a soft core porn ad. Usually the athlete would be dressed up with fancy make-up to make them look like the models from Victoria Secret. They would also be wearing their team uniform, but with them looking like sex icons, no one ever really notices that they are actually an athlete. When it comes to the income made from games, the male versions of these sports make a lot more than the female counterpart to the sport. Because of this, it is only reasonable that the marketers would try to increase their amount of viewers, and as we all know, sex sells. Also, since the male versions of these sports are more popular, the marketers tend to place more of the marketing income into the men's sports. This of course equals an increase in the number of ads, which can effectively drown out any of the few female sporting ads. This is of course a shame because I have seen female athletes and, in my mind, they seem more into the game than the male athletes are.

Women in Sports

Now that women playing sports is more accepted, the media portrays women in these sports in various ways. If you watch your local news station they have a sports section, but they usually do not say much about women’s sports. They occasionally say how well the Fever, Indianapolis’s women’s basketball team, played or their season record. They do not get as much media attention as they should. On the contrary, Danica Patrick receives extreme amounts of attention. When I googled Danica, she was in numerous pictures that you might see in Maxim or other similar magazines. She’s usually publicized as being sexy, yet this has nothing to do with her racing abilities. Another example of a famous women’s athlete is Maria Sharapova. She is one of the top women’s tennis players, and her sexiness is also played up in the media. She has numerous commercials and picture adds that have her with tennis accessories but she is in a sexy pose or playing with the camera.
Women’s sports do not receive as much media attention as they should, but I understand why they do not as well. I never watch women’s basketball because I find it extremely boring, along with tennis, and women’s hockey. The media does not want to put sports on air if no one is going to watch it. If they put a women’s basketball game on at prime time when a men’s team was playing many viewers would be aggravated and in turn the station would lose ratings. The media is not being sexist against female athletes, they just need to keep their ratings up. As for playing up the sexual image of female athletes, it helps to gain more viewers’ attention to women’s sports when they are physically attractive.

Coverage in womens sports and womens sports in general has always taken a back seat to male sports since the beginning of time. Although there have been certain advances over time with women in sports, they still are no where near the level of male athletes. All of the coverage on t.V. is mainly male sports and when there is womens sports, they are usually broadcasted at strange hours and are on channels that aren't very popular. Also, you never see women doing gatorade commercials or advertising for most sports equipment. Instead, they are often subjected to do commercials that use their bodies to sell a product. An example would by the sony cybershot digital camera where maria sharapova is dressed in her sexy tennis outfit and acting subliminally permiscuous. On the other end, males are doing all the intense sports related commercials like underarmor and gatorade. This is extremely unfair to female athletes because they have worked just as hard as any other male to reach the top and they do not receive nearly as much as attention as male athletes. One thing i have also noticed is that there ar never nearly as many people attending womens sporting events through all levels of competition. from high school to pros, there is always a discrepency between the amount of fans attending a male event and a female event. This topic of how women are treated in the professional sports world will never be solved because for some reason, many people do not feel that women are as intense or as good at sports as males. This may seem harsh, but a majority of society feels this way including many women.

Women's Athletics

In the media today, athletic women are portrayed as “sexy” and model-like. One rarely sees a female athlete that is not considered at least “good-looking” featured on television or commercials, unless it is the Olympics. Male athletes get all of the publicity, with extensive media coverage, because of the premonition that athletic women can not sell television unless they are good looking. Is this true? It probably is, since what man does not want to check out the sexy women on television. Who, in today’s media and standards, would want to see an endorsement done by a relatively “ugly” woman?
Women, professionally, are considered to lack the extra competitiveness that makes male dominated sports popular. For example, in basketball, dunks and the legacy of the NBA make it a very entertaining and popular sport to watch. In contrast, I never hear anyone talking about the WNBA or any players from the WNBA. As my friend once said, “The WNBA is the NBA without dunks.” Even in high school and other levels of sports, women’s sports are considered to be secondary to male played sports. I remember everyone talking about the football and basketball teams in high school, yet all I heard about women wise was volleyball. Women in sports are thought to be too gentle and “touchy-feely” to play what many consider the entertaining sports like football and basketball.
Many of the now famous female competitors, like Danica Patrick, would definitely not be as popular as they are now if they did not have the looks to back up their talents. If a male driver had the same amount of wins and talent she has, the male driver would definitely not receive such national attention. Looks can easily accelerate a female athletes popularity quickly, yet there are many women with great talent who receive little or no attention. For example, Anna Kournikova, a famous female athlete, is good looking yet has no where near the skill that other tennis players have, yet she is a household name when it comes to women’s tennis. Can a normal person even name a great current women’s tennis player? For now, women athletes in the media are dominated by the better looking women, often overlooking their skills. Women’s athletics has improved in variety and respect, yet it is still no where close to the expectations and turnout of men’s sports.

Gender in Sports

Sports are generally seen, in our society, as a male dominated. Sports such as basketball, football, soccer, and baseball get significant attention because of male involvement, but female athletes in these same and other sports receives little attention. For instance, Purdue University has had a formidable female basketball team for a number of years, and the mens program has been mediocre for a number of years, but the mens team receives a much larger fan base and even television appearances.

The reason for this interest in male versus female sports is probably a result of our past. Because it has been in the last couple of decades that female sports have really come into existance, we still follow the trends set by those before us. It is more socially acceptable to watch football versus the WNBA. Also, some argue that male sports have a more intense, aggressive nature. I cannot argue 0n either side of this issue because I have not, as far as I can remember, every attended a female sporting program and actually watched the event. This is not because I do not like watching female sports, but because most of my friends do not attend female sporting events, giving me no particular reason to go.

As far as I have seen, female athletes are not given a negative appearance by the media or public. It is not an issue of whether or not the female athletes are respected, but more of an enterainment issue; most Americans are entertained more by male sports versus female sports.

Women in Male Dominated Sports

Women participating in male dominated sports have becoming increasingly more expected throughout the past few years. However, women are still not given the same recognition as men. I will even admit, although sports have never been a major part of my life, in high school I went to boy’s basketball games, but not to a single girl’s game. I have occasionally watched men’s sports on television with my brothers, but they never seem as interested in the women in these same sports. When it comes to women in sports, it is me and my mom watching the women participate in sports such as ice skating or gymnastics. So, when asked the question “How are women portrayed in men’s sports?” it takes me some time to consider this, as I generally do not watch their games. I think that women are portrayed as less then men in male dominated sports; many men seem to think that they are more athletic than any girl. Women are also portrayed as tomboys; if they are good at sports such as basketball, football, and racing, then they are generally compared to men. They are not thought of as graceful and pretty, as they would be considered if they participated in gymnastics or ice skating, but considered tough and strong, like the stereotypical man. Yet, even these tough women are portrayed as less then men. Some men do not want women playing on their sports teams or even practicing with them, it is as if they feel like their team will be lessened by a woman’s presence. Or is it just they feel their manhood being threatened? What if a girl beat them? Whatever the reasons for this portrayal of women as being inferior in men’s sports, it is very prominent in today’s society and should be examined more closely.

Women playing sports.

To begin with, I don't think that women recieve as much coverage as they deserve when playing sports. I know that daily, there is a football game on t.v. They even have entire channels dedicated to male nfl football. But, I do not know when or if a woman's basketball game is playing at any time during the week. I think this is a result of how society depicts both men and women and what playing sports means to each gender. Before explaining how women are depicted, I think it is necessary to say that playing sports is a sign of masculinity in males. Playing sports is a way of showing that one is not a homosexual or is not labeled "faggot." But on the other end of the spectrum, because sports is a sign of masculinity in males, women are frowned upon when engaging in such activities, especially when a sport is male-dominated. From youth, people(society) are brainwashed into thinking that men are simply better at sports. Don't "throw like a girl." Although this may be a common saying among many generations of people, I am awed by watching a softball game and seeing the pitcher throw an underhanded fastball (faster than I can). I am not of course implying that I think their fastball is fast for a girl but that their fastball is just simply fast. I think most people, however, are unable to accept that women, like men, have the potential to excel in sports. For this reason, I think that female athletes or particpants are looked down upon as if they will never be as good as males. I believe this attitude stems from the phrase "throw like a girl" and others like it that children are bombarded with at youth. Afterwards, I believe that people can carry these stereotypes for the rest of their lives. Because of this, many women achieve publicity by becoming sex symbols. Think about it, the Williams sisters, Danica Patrick, Anna Kournikova. I do not think that these athletes, no matter how good they are, would recieve as much attention had they not made an extra effort to be as attractive as they could for the male users. For example, my own father hangs a Danica Patrick poster in our house but I do not believe he would have been pulling for her during the Indy 500 if she wouldn't have been attractive. In the end, I think that female athletics has come very far and still has a long way to go until athletes, both male and female, recieve credit not for their gender but for their ability.

Women's Basketball

Basketball is really the only sport that I watch. Therefore, when I think of women playing in male dominated sports I think of the WNBA. The Women’s National Basketball Association has not been around for too long. It was approved in 1996 and the games actually started in 1997. Now a days, woman are receiving more chances to exercise some of the same rights as men. However, that does not mean that everyone agrees with it or even cares about it. More than likely if you go to a men’s basketball game you will have a hard time finding a seat, but if you go to a women’s basketball game, depending upon where you go, there might be hundreds of seats left. It is a big change for women to play “male” sports. I do not think that women who plays such sports are portrayed badly though. I just feel as if they do not get as much attention or publicity. I do know people that watch women’s basketball. My Grandma is a huge Notre Dame Women’s Basketball fan and my aunt and uncle attend the Purdue Women’s Basketball games. Although, myself I have only been to one women’s college basketball game and it just was not the same as watching men out there hustling, pushing each other around, and dunking. Nevertheless, I do give the women props, they are doing a lot more than what I could do. To close, women can do pretty much anything that men can do these days; they have come a long way. However, maybe one day the only difference will be the 1-inch smaller Spalding ball the women use.

Women in Sports

Womens sporting events will never be as big as mens. To give you an example from our own school, Purdue Women's basketball has an amazing group of talent, but yet it is the mens team who gets the bigger crowd. The mens team, who have never really been that good in recent years, are the ones with the screaming crowds, and packed arenas. If the womens team is more talented, then it seems logical that people would flock to see them play, but sadly that is not the truth.
The media, such as ABC, NBC, and especially ESPN focus mainly on men performance. If you watch ESPN for only a few minutes, you will notice that they are mainly focused on sports such as Baseball (all men), Football (all men), racecar driving (mostly men), Golf (only mens golf is shown on television) and basketball, where women are viewed as non comparable. The media is what drives people to believe that women sports are not as big of a deal. I have done sports my whole life, including cross country, swimming, and track, and have seen the results of being a women in the sport world. It is the mens race that happened to be published in the local newspaper, the Mens sectionals that poeple flock to come and watch, and the Mens relay that matters more than the womens. Women should not be treated inferior for doing the exact thing that those men go out and do everyday. Not only is it just as tough for women, but i would argue that it is even tougher because they have to endure criticism, and inferiorism.

latent racism?

The issues portrayed in "The Conflict Within the Ivory Tower" are not easily visible in this time and day. However, they still are there. It is not difficult to find racial issues in Purdue. The biggest issue that i see is the way that fraternities and sororities are still split up by race. We discussed today in class why this is still so and the answer was quite simply that because that's the way it used to be". I think this is not a good enough reason at all. We are all living in a country that promotes liberty and equality for all, but yet people are dividing organizations that are supposed to be for everyone by race. In purdue today, one can find white, black, Asian, Hispanic, etcetera, fraternities and sororities who openly declare their preference for a race or ethnicity. I think that this is the mosty deeply rooted problem in the US. Allowing this sort of division only allows room for more racial issues to develop.
I do not think Purdue promotes diversity at all. It does not inhibit it either, but makes no effort to heighten it. I for one had to come from overseas and i have never seen a more complicated process for going anywhere. There is no help provided for international students coming to Purdue such as school sponsored loans (because foreigners cannot take out an alternate loan with an American bank) or a help hotline. There isn't even so much as a new student FAQ. I, for instance, did not know about orientation, did not know if my loan was approved, and did not even know if i was registered when i got here. Information has definitely got to be made more accessible and understandable for foreign students.

Purdue and "Conflict Within the Ivory Tower"

I found the readings we discussed in class today very surprising. As I already realized racism existed, it seemed more real to me after reading about very recent accounts in which universities have had to deal with it. This article made this issue much more clear to me as it concerned university life, the life I am currently living. I found the raping even more surprising. It seems, in a way, like a less talked about topic than racism and I did not know it existed at such a horrible degree. I found it very disgusting that fraternity men would take turns raping the same woman, as others would stand by and watch. I also found the songs they sang very repulsive and I had no idea this existed. It really upsets me that they have such little respect for women. I have not seen anything like what we read about at Purdue. I think for the most part, people here are open to all races, and except them. Sometimes it is just the few who are not, who tend to make it look worse. I am sure there are problems at Purdue with racial interactions, although I have just not personally witnessed any yet. I think Purdue does a pretty good job of promoting diversity. As Purdue is a large college, I see many people from different cultures everyday. I also see these people learning about each other. During Boiler Gold Rush we had countless discussions and activities to promote diversity. We even had a diversity activity at my meeting for the School of Science at the beginning of the year. I think as a whole, Purdue is trying to promote positive interactions among races.

yes

I have never had the notion that Purdue was a very racist campus. I grew up going to public schools where I was the majority most of the time. I did not really see race until middle school. At that age, people would just fight if they were looked at wrong. I do not see that at Purdue. Walking the streets I do not feel that I make harsh judgments of people on the color of their skin. The people that seem to upset me the most are white people. Although, I had quite an up waking this Monday. I am part of the pro-life club here at Purdue and we happened to be having a conference/debate on the issue of abortion at the BCC (Black Culture Building). Needless to say, the whole thing turned into a big racial argument about how black women were having three times as many abortions based on their race. This shook me pretty hard because it was my first experience of serious racial tension in college. Purdue does not really promote diversity very well. The campus is pretty much based on everybody just doing their own thing. In class today, we had the discussion of the sororities and frats that were all white or black. By having so many of these houses around campus, it is easy to tell who their friends will be. When I started classes here at Purdue it seemed really laid back and did not appear that there was going to be any racial instances like what I had back home.

Readings

While reading our assignment, there were many issues that caught my eye. I could not believe the racial discrimination that is still taking place. A lot of the issues we read about were fairly recent. I knew there were still racial issues, but I didn't think they were still this severe. I thought that we had overcome this difference to a certain degree, but I guess I was wrong. In class while we were discussing the KKK, I found it amazing that here in Lafayette there are still some active KKK members. I understand that this is some peoples belief, and I can't make them change their mind, but times are changing. These people should try to open their minds and try accepting people of different cultures and races. Everyone could learn a little from everyone else. As a white American, I even feel threatend by the KKK. Concerning fraternities, I was amazed by what I read, but at the same time I wasn't all that surprised. A classmate commented on how fraternities and sororities are suppose to be leaders, but in this article they portrayed themselves as no better than anyone else. If anything worse than those that aren't in a fraternity or sorority. My mouthed dropped as I read the songs that some of these fraternities sang. On the topic of all black fraternities and sororities, I think that if the individual is interested in that certain fraternity, why shouldn't they be allowed to join, just because they are of a different race. I understand the reasoning for the founders wanting to maintain the original reason for creating the organization. But I believe fraternities and sororities are for you to find a new family, a place where you feel comfortable, a home away from home. This shouldn't have anything to do with race. Because making this a requirement, could also make it a barrier and possibly cause even more issues between races.

Class readings cont.

fix this problem. Now as for this problem happening in our school, I think that is in full affect right now! It just might affect more people than others. I am always thinking that eveything is peachy and everyone is nice but that is not the case. Things like reading stories about people that have been around this and have gone through this really help me understand. I think that Purdue could be one of the main schools with racism issues since it is not very diverse. Purdue is trying to become more diverse but it is hard to just accept people for their skin colors. This is discouraging because you think your are getting into a school because you are qualified but you are just helping the race scale go up. I wish we could all love each other

From these stories the most surprising thing that stood out to me was the types of colleges and universities discussed. I was expecting these schools mentioned to be little, unheard of school. I did not expect to read those very degrading songs by the U.S. Naval Academy. Before when I would think of the military I would think of things such as respect and honor, nothing as disgusting as this. Personally, I have not seen anything to this extent at Purdue. I don’t think it would surprise me, however, to hear something like this here. With the amount of different cultures presented I could see how groups could gang up among one another. Being as recent as the issues were, this could easily still happen now. I have seen a few counts of racism, such as walking down the street and hearing some one yell out the car to an oriental person “fuck Vietnam.” It surprised me to hear something like that, when the conflict in Vietnam was so long ago. I might possibly not see as much stuff here because I grew up in this town. Almost everything I see is very natural so I might unintentionally block some things out. As I mentioned in class earlier about the KKK coming to my elementary school, I have seen some cases in this area before. Purdue does a good job of supporting diversity, and in my eyes has done good about keeping conflicts to a minimum.

Diversity and Other Issues

I was totally astounded by the things that were discussed in the reading. I have never heard of such things or been around them. I know about the KKK and rape and I realize they are both still around and are a serious problem. However, here at Purdue I have not seen any such things. It is hard for me to imagine someone being so degrading, selfish, close-minded, and prejudiced as the people in this text were. I cannot even begin to fathom a situation where people are sitting around cheering on a guy who is raping a girl. I have witnessed racial stereotypes here, however they were nothing to the extremities of these stories. I argue that Purdue does a very good job of making its campus diverse. Compared to other universities Purdue is amazingly diverse, especially with its Asian population. Purdue could be more diverse, but really it’s the students that decide that.
In class we were talking about how fraternities and sororities receive special treatment and can get away with things. Then athletes were brought up. That was very interesting to me because I have seen that first hand. My high school basketball team went 23-2 last year and I was and still am dating the “star” of that team. The guys had a losing season the year before, but it was amazing as soon as they started winning just how they received such a different treatment. They could walk around school whenever, get away with pretty much anything, they got free shoes, shirts, and warm ups. They definitely live the life.

I was totally astounded by the things that were discussed in the reading. I have never heard of such things or been around them. I know about the KKK and rape and I realize they are both still around and are a serious problem. However, here at Purdue I have not seen any such things. It is hard for me to imagine someone being so degrading, selfish, close-minded, and prejudiced as the people in this text were. I cannot even begin to fathom a situation where people are sitting around cheering on a guy who is raping a girl. I have witnessed racial stereotypes here, however they were nothing to the extremities of these stories. I argue that Purdue does a very good job of making its campus diverse. Compared to other universities Purdue is amazingly diverse, especially with its Asian population. Purdue could be more diverse, but really it’s the students that decide that.
In class we were talking about how fraternities and sororities receive special treatment and can get away with things. Then athletes were brought up. That was very interesting to me because I have seen that first hand. My high school basketball team went 23-2 last year and I was and still am dating the “star” of that team. The guys had a losing season the year before, but it was amazing as soon as they started winning just how they received such a different treatment. They could walk around school whenever, get away with pretty much anything, they got free shoes, shirts, and warm ups. They definitely live the life.

Class readings

I was definetly shocked by the readings but I have heard these things before. What shocked me more were the responses from class today. I really appreciate being able to read all of these stories and learn about the racism everywhere. This also helped me open my eyes because I realize that this creulty is everywhere and that it is not just everyone being racist towards me but I also have some racist qualities. Reading about these stories makes me really think that I am not even safe in an environment that would seem to have higher values. This whole race issues just seems to bother me, because it has been going on forever and I know that it is never going to go away. But I know that I am not the only person that has a problem with this issue so why doesn't anyone want it to

In my particular case, I do not see the topics covered in our reading at Purdue. I have not experienced a single incident involving racism or descrimination against females. The most prominent area that I see at Purdue is homophobia. Nearly every day I hear people directly or indirectly making fun of homosexuals. But even in this case, I have never seen the harrassment escalate into violence. As we discussed in class, certain sororities and fraternities do show racial/gender discriminance. But even though chants and signs may be unacceptable, I have not even heard of racial/gender violence like those we read about in the passage. Although significant evidense suggests that these problems occur at nearly every university, I have seen little evidense of this at Purdue.

Purdue University does a very good job at promoting diversity. Although African American numbers are somewhat low, Purdue has several ways in which they promote diversity. First, the campus has formed a wide range of cultural centers and clubs. In just the small area I cover walking to class each day I pass the Black Cultural Center and the Islamic Center. Also, Purdue does a very good job accepting students from out of the country. The percent of out of country students is one of the highest in the nation. In addition, Purdue attempts to promote acceptance of different cultures through teaching. For instance, during the first week of Boiler Gold Rush the university invited several speakers to present cultural diversity performances which were created to help students gain perspective. Purdue does a very good job of promoting diversity.

Class Readings and Purdue

Many of the things discussed in this week’s class reading were very shocking to me. In particular, the songs created by men in the U.S. Naval Academy and the description of the group fraternity rapes of women. What shocked me more about the songs, that were created to dehumanize women, is that I would expect men from the Naval Academy to be of a higher standard than what is portrayed by those songs. I think most people would expect shady situations and activities to take place on any normal college campus. When talking about Purdue I do believe that some of these things are prevalent. There have been numerous stories of fraternities being put on probation or kicked off campus for doing certain inappropriate activities. Also, as I mentioned in class, there is at least one fraternity on campus that has songs similar to the ones mentioned in this article. In the class discussion today people mentioned instances involving the KKK on Purdue’s campus but before that I had not heard of any racial conflicts or concerns that have happened here. In a way Purdue has to promote a certain level of diversity; seeing as how they are one of the most internationally diverse campuses. However, when you walk down the street there are most definitely more white students than there are black students. I do believe that this university can do a much better job of promoting diversity among its students.

thursday. reading. thoughts.

while reading this latest article, i was appalled at some of the behaviors ir ead about. the most shocking and terrifying to me was the stories of the rape and the way the fraternities went about them. it was like they dehumanized women. i have not personally seen this played out at purdue, but i have heard stories of which frats have been known to be dangerous to girls. i don't see too much of a racial segregation at purdue, but i'm sure if something happened and a racial fight did break out, we would have similar results, atleast for awhile. i do feel that purdue has many opportunities for learning and becoming involved in other cultures activities.

The Simpson’s just happens to be one of the best shows and is amazing that we get to watch it in class to relay little things we have been learning. There are several things in the episode that we watched that portrayed some of the things we had discussed in class. Mimetic desire, happens to be the most prevalent of the things we have learned in the show. For instance, when Bart dumps Greta and she starts to date Millhouse; Bart gets really upset and wants her back for the sole reason of having her because Millhouse does. Bart only wants her back because he really starts to realize that she liked him along with the fact that she is rich. The other occurrence was in the other episode when Lisa wants to go to the private school because all of the other students are. Another form is the homological bond between Homer and Greta’s dad. Homer is always around her dad because he is an actor and is extremely rich. Money is a big deal to Homer, which is why he tries to make as much as he can.
Scapegoating is another big issue. When the children are stranded on the island from Auto wrecking the bus; many of the kids start to blame each other for little things. A boar had eaten the food out of the cooler and everybody tried to blame it on Millhouse. Nelson, the big bully, threatens to kill him just because he can. This is also a form of mob violence. All the kids join Nelson or else he will pulverize them.

This episode of the Simpsons is a great example of mimetic desire. Bart starts hanging out with McBain’s daughter. He does not realize that she is practically in love with him. He treats it as a normal friendship, probably because she has an awesome dad. He never catches on to what she wants. When Lisa explains to Bart that she is in love with him, he wants to end it because he doesn’t want a relationship. She takes it very hard and starts dating Millhouse. Only when Bart sees that they are together does he want to be with her. This is an example of mimetic desire. The only reason Bart wants to be with her now is because Millhouse has her. Bart didn’t like her at first but now would do anything to steal her from Millhouse. Lisa even has to use examples to show Bart that the only reason he wants her is because of Millhouse. She takes the ball from Maggie, but Bart doesn’t see the point, as he wants the ball also. The audience for this show is for everyone. Older people understand the points behind the show and can get a good laugh. Younger people will find many things humorous and may possibly learn a few lessons. This episode may be problematic to young ladies. It makes it seem that guys only want to be with girls because of who they are with. It shows that guys compete for her, just to compete with each other.

First Simpsons Episode

Although meant for older kids and younger teenagers, the first episode of the Simpsons contains deeper themes and topics that extend to a much older age group. There were many social stereotypes represented in the episode, from rich people being a weak, snobbish group, shown by the bumper car collision, to the racial stereotypes of Germans, where Marge cooks every type of German meat and type of sausage for dinner for the girl’s dad. Not only social stereotypes are shown, but many gender stereotypes are displayed in the episode. When Bart and his girlfriend go to the basketball game or some game, all the men, Bart, Homer, and the girl’s dad all cheer and stand up for a score, while the girl sits there staring blankly at the game. Girls are shown to unable to comprehend sports, while in contrary, boys are shown unable to understand relationships. Later, Lisa explains to Bart about how much the girl loves him, yet Bart seems clueless about the subject. After Bart leaves the girl because his lack of relationship understanding, his friend Millhouse takes the girl as his own girlfriend. Bart begins to regret his decision to break up with her, because now he has suddenly fallen in love with her. The idea of a mimetic desire is shown here, with Bart only wanting the girl now because his friend has her in his hands. Although aimed towards a relatively younger audience, the Simpsons episode contained much deeper themes. I can not really say that it is not problematic to show and introduce such themes, since they might actually shape and show to the younger viewers social and gender stereotypes which they might undertake themselves. Maybe it did not do anything other than show to the older viewers the problems existing in our society, but I think that a show like the Simpsons is generally not taken seriously enough to have such mental effect on the target audience

What's UUPPPP with The Simpsons

To begin with, there is a struggle with masculinity between the boys at the start and the girl whose bag they have stolen. It seems to me that they have stolen her bag in an attempt to prove that they are strong individuals since men are supposed to be strong and powerful. When Bart comes to aid the girl, whose name I have forgotten, he exhibits a struggle with adolescence. He is not old enough or mature enough to know what to do when he meets the girl. He is completely "oblivious" to the advances made by the girl. When he makes the decision to dump her, he does so because he does not know what else to do. Before I go any further, I must comment on Arnold's (the girl's father) stereotype of the masculine. Arnold (Arnold Schwarzeneggar) is big, dumb, and always ends up having to kick some ass. I think it is a very comical embodiment of the "perfect" or most masculine male. Anyways, after Bart has dumped the girl and goes back to remake their friendship is when Milhouse is thrown into the mix. This is where the erotic triangle form; mimetic desire. Bart arrives at the mansion to find Milhouse smooching on his woman. He dumped her but because Milhouse is going out with her now, he wants what Milhouse has because Milhouse has it. The girl becomes the objectified third and the fun begins. The triangle differs in that Bart is already friends with Milhouse and they begin to fight immediately. Everything becomes a competition and their friendship is on the ropes. Finally, at the end of the show, the objectified third; the girl decides to end the relationship with Milhouse and now both Bart and Milhouse cannot have the "object". Here, they are able to blame the girl by saying "we are friends until the next one," placing the blame on the object. After this happens, they are able to be friends again. The show is over until the next one.

Bart wants what it wants

In the Simpsons episode where Bart dates Mc Bain's daughter several of the themes we have discussed in class were represented. First off, the title of the episode "Bart wants what it wants", is an automatic clue as to what it's about. When Bart realizes his new girlfriend is in love with him, he finds every excuse to get rid of her. Once he breaks up with her, his best friend steps in and becomes his ex's new boyfriend. Suddenly Bart wants nothing more than to get back with Greta. This is an example of mimetic desire. Bart only wants her back because he no longer can have her, not because he truly wants her. With this, Millhouse, Greta, and Bart are put in a situation called an erotic triangle. This plays out throughout the episode. Once Bart loses Greta, then wants her back only because he can't have her, he begins to hate his own best friend because of his mimetic desire for what Millhouse has. In the end, once Greta chooses neither, they become friends again and blame her for their problems, making her the scapegoat. The audience the Simpsons is aimed at primarily is teenagers/young adults through 30's and maybe 40's. It appelas to both genders, although maybe more so males than females.

The Simpsons

The show Simpsons seems to display a very heteronormative society, focusing on many aspects we have discussed in our English class. The first concept that was apparent through the first Simpsons episode we viewed was performativity between Bart and his new girlfriend Greta. Bart seems kind of unsure about how he feels about Greta, yet he acts as he knows he is expected to according to society, by displaying his feelings as if he likes her even when he seems unsure. Next, we see mimetic desire, after Bart decides to break up with Greta, his best friend (Milhouse) starts to date her. Bart now decides he wants Greta back and his feelings increase for her as he sees Milhouse with her. He wants Greta because Milhouse has her, and he knows she is now unattainable to him. We see an erotic triangle form between the three as Milhouse and Bart the subjects wanted Greta the object. They start out friends, but eventually become violent and are fighting over a girl. In the end, Greta decides she does not like either of the two, and after she leaves their friendship is reunited and we can once again observe the homosocial bond between Bart and Milhouse, as they agree to be friends that is until the next girl.
I think the Simpsons is geared towards adults and teenagers, however, I know many children watch it as well. They see that it appears to be a cartoon, and therefore watch it and generally like it although they do not always understand what is going on beneath the surface. This is problematic as I know many parents do not like their children to be exposed to everything in the show and therefore do not like for their children to watch it.

Simpsons

There was a lot going on in the first Simpsons episode we watched. One of the main ideas was mimetic desire. This desire was brought about because Bart unknowingly got a girlfriend, Greta, and then decided he didn't want her anymore. He was happy with this decision, that is until he found out Milhouse was Greta's new boyfriend. He previously did not care that she was not his girlfriend, but as soon as he was no longer able to have her, his desire for her was uncontrollable. Only because he couldn't have her anymore. An erotic triangle also formed between Milhouse, Bart and Greta. Bart and Milhouse shared a homosocial bond, they were good friends and did a lot together. Once Milhouse was Greta's boyfriend, Bart and Milhouse didn't get along so well. They began fighting and arguing over her. They began to fight over her because she was the object of desire. Then Greta broke up with Milhouse, and also rejected Bart. Now the homosocial bond between Milhouse and Bart was restored, and they both hated Greta, the object of desire. This episode also demonstrated heteronormaty in a society. Masculine figure at times was viewed as a little extreme. Greta's father, was extremely masculine. He had a deep voice, big muscles, and control. He was portrayed as Arnold Schwarzeneger, but this portrayal was taken to the extreme. His Hummer was super sized, greatly exaggerated larger than it's actual size. You notice his control when he says that it is time to stop laughing. His masculinity rubs off onto his daughter Greta. For when faced with the two boys, Milhouse and Bart, says that they simply are not manly enough for her. She received this image from her father, he has unknowingly set standards for what Greta will look for in a male. She will want someone that will be able to care for her like her father has been able to. Seeking similar features in her mate. This television show at first appears to be geared towards younger children, early teens. I would mostly say even males. But once you watch the show, the humor in this show is above the comprehension of a teenager. There are life experiences that a younger audience might notice, but wouldn't understand the humor that goes along with it. I can honestly say, I remember watching the Simpsons from time to time when I was younger. And often times, I didn't not fully understand the context of the episode. I laughed because I thought things were funny. But looking back now, I really didn't fully comprehend the humor that was portrayed in this television show. Because I didn't fully understand I never had a great appreciation for it. Now I am able to understand, I have developed a different view towards the Simpsons.

The Simpsons

The first episode was about memetic desire. Bart had his girlfriend but he was't really ready for the relationship thing so he broke up with her. He thought that breaking up with her was going to be the answer to his problems since he really liked to hang out and do other things with his friends, but then his best friend became her boyfriend. He was completely surprised that Milhouse could get the same girlfriend as he had. So now that Bart was feeling funny about not being with her anymore, Lisa told Bart that the only reason that he wants her now is because Milhouse has her. When he realized this he started to like her even more. Bart was so much in like now that he went all the way to a different country to try to win her back from Milhouse. In canada Bart and Milhouse were acting as if they hated each other and they fought over this girl. After she had realized that both boys were reacting this way for her, she dumped Milhouse and then bart asked for her back and she told him he was to late. So after all the confusion over this girl they rekindeled their homosocial bond and they were not mad anymore.
The second episode went hand in hand with our novel. They played the story line out perfectly. They had Milhouse as Piggy, Bart as Ralph, the bully kid as Jack, there were the two different groups and they tried to make everything about rules. They even played out the monster they had the boar on the island that eventually captured and had for dinner.
I think it is funny how there is a simpsons episode for everything. The simpsons is a comical show that I think should be geared towards adults but really isn't. I think that the people that published the show tried to gear it towards them by making the show come on at night but that isn't stopping any children from watching it. It is a funny show but there is alcohol in it and the usage of language makes it seem like it is geared towards adults eventhough that is not only watches it.

First Simpsons show

The first Simpsons episode that we watched showed many of the ideas and themes that we have discussed in class. This episode was about Bart and his girlfriend Greta. She liked him a lot but he really was not that interested in him so he broke up with her. After they broke up she started dating one of Bart’s friends. Because of this Bart then wanted to get back together with Greta. This situation deals with the ideas of the mimetic desire because when Bart was dating Greta he did not want her but once his friend starting dating her Bart was upset and wanted her back. These circumstances then turned into an erotic triangle with Bart and his friend being the subjects and Greta being the one in the middle. The two boys are trying to win her over but she has no control over what they do or how they act.
Another scenario that was evolving in this show was the idea of the heteronormative society. Quite often throughout the episode they would portray the more masculine man, Greta’s dad, having the big car and being tough and strong. Also in the show Greta claimed that she did not want to be with Bart’s friend because he was not masculine enough. Portraying the idea that there is an obvious view in society of what defines masculine and normal for a man.
Before watching these two episodes in class I had never watched the Simpsons before. However, it is still quite easy to tell what type of audience they are gearing this show towards. For the most part the main audience is men, which you can see by the overwhelming emphasis on masculinity in this episode. This can be problematic because men are watching these episodes believing that this is how they must act in order to be considered masculine in our heteronormative society.

Behind the Humor of The Simpson's

The main focus of the episode of The Simpson's we saw in English class this past Thursday was mimeicdesire, or the the desire for what someone else has/wants. In the episode, Bart got a girlfriend without knowing it, broke up with her so as they could just be friends, but when his best friend Milhouse became her new boyfriend, he wanted her back just because he no longer "had" her and Milhouse did. Another focus of this episode is masculinity. In several instances in the episode, scenes were shown depicting Milhouse doing feminine things, such as playing with a girl's toy doll, and the comment that he had a scrunchie in his hair. When Greta decided to break up with Milhouse, she basically commented that he wasn't masculine enough for her. Now, not to copy from Chris Causey's post about Reiner Wolfcastle, Wolfcastle is the biggest focus of ultimate masculinity in The Simpson's series, what with the Hummer and big bloody action movies he makes, and it may be that since Greta is his daughter, her want of a more masculine boyfriend is due to how she sees her father, what her view of what masculinity truly is and how important of a quality it is for a male to have.
Audience wise, preteens and children seem to watch this show the most, but many what once were children and re-teens have grown up making the audience very wide range in terms of age. While the show portrays a lot of child like humor with the occasional prank phone call to Moe's, there are a lot of hidden meanings to the episodes, much like the focus I listed earlier. Unfortunately, since a large portion of viewers for The Simpson's are preteens and/or children, many of these meanings go unnoticed, hidden by the other more simple cases of humor.

The Simpsons

While viewing the Simpsons episode on Thursday, I noticed several aspects we have covered in this class. The stereotypes between males and females were exaggerated greatly. First, McBane played the apotheosis of masculinity. Driving a huge SUV, being muscle bound, and exhibiting violence show masculine heteronormativity; societies set of social norms for each gender. His presence evoked acquiescence from everyone present. Also, the confrontation between Bart and Milhouse is an example of a generalization pertaining to male relationships. Initially in Bart's relationship, the suggestion was given that men are oblivious to body language and indirect nuances. Then, the stereotype was given that males are emotionless and unempathetic. After being told by Lisa that Mcbane's daughter had feelings for him, he decided it would be best to just break the relationship off. While she cried at the news, Bart sat in stolid silence. In return, she decided to date Bart's best friend Milhouse, another generalization about females. This led to a competition between Bart and Milhouse which led to neither of them getting the girl.

During the making of this episode the audience was kept in mind. This episode was made to make people laugh, as all Simpsons episodes do. The audience was considered in that the use of exaggerated generalities about different genders is something that most audience members can associate with. The jokes are formed so that the younger audience will laugh at the humor associated with the simplest level of understanding, while the more mature audience will appreciate the deeper, satirical meanings.

You Want What you Can't Have

The first Simpsons episode that we viewed in class was so applicable to any heteronormative human being. Humans want what they can't have. A perfect examample would be my roomate. She is only attracted to the guys that she knows she can't have, and once she can have them, then it isn't fun any longer, and she is no longer attracted to them. Humans have an odd attraction to people when they know that they are unattainable. There is no fun, if we always get what we want, and when someone else wants them too, then it makes it someting to fight for. Bart didn't really want Greta, until his best friend had her. To quote Lisa, "You only want her because someone else wants her", and that is exactly right. The fight is what is thrilling, and the idea of never knowing what might happen next is so heart racing for some people.
Also, parallel to what Bart was experiencing throughout the episode, his father was mimicking the same. He was drooling over Greta's father posessions. The hummer, the mansion, the big screen television, and the pool. These are things that Homer would love to have, but can't. Let's face it, humans will always envy what other people have, and will never be satisfied with their lives. We as humans are alwaye wanting more, and trying to fil in voids with posessions in hopes for happiness.

The Other Simpsons Episode

The episode of The Simpsons we viewed in class the other day had many themes in it that we discussed in class. I'll avoid the really obvious ones, like the erotic triangle, and try to find some less blatant examples. One example was the exaggerated Hummer that Reiner Wolfcastle drove. He is a parody of Arnold Shwarzenegger, a model of many masculine stereotypes. Many of Wolfcastles actions are suggestive of those stereotypes, and the Hummer is no exception. It is an example of the alrge, gas guzzling, powerful vehicle that guys like to buy in order to show off. The idea is to make the other men jealous, proving their masculinity. Other men get a mimetic desire to have their own big muasculine car, and feel insecure if they can't. Another example is all the tough guy sayings, such as, "laughing time is over." All men feel the pressure to be tough; it is evident in many activities boys participate in while growing up. From that, the image of the ideal man becomes like Wolfcastle: big, tough, mean, and muscular.
The Simpsons has grown to include an audience of just about everybody, but overall it is for the most part still geared towards young men. This was the origional audience, and probably still the largest. The funny thing about it is that this message about masculinity is aimed at them; it is these young men who all try and become their own Arnold or Reiner. Messages like that are common in this V show, but often overlooked or underappreciated by a majority of people.

Male College Guide

With the remaining four male colleges left, I can honestly say I don't see the significance. Colleges survive by having people continue to want to attend them. I do not find it hard to believe that males want to be around females. This happens to be the reason why I chose to live at Earhart, a co-ed dorm. I can understand why these colleges still exist. There are some males out there that wish to study undistracted by females. I also thnk the reason that there are a lot more female colleges out there is because females are more likely to not want to be around male college students. I think stereotypes and heteronormativity play a very big role in the choices made by both males and females when choosing a college. For the most part, men are expected to try to mingle with as many ladies as possible. However, females are expected to and thus more likely to be much more selective in their choice of male minglage. Think about both a male and a female that "gets around". The male is usually someone who is admired in the male community while the female is frowned upon for her choices. Even though both the male and female counterparts made the same choice, they are seen differently. Because of the expectations that society expects, I can clearly see a connection between the availability of same-sex colleges based on those expectations.

Male Colleges

Through much research I found that only four all male colleges remain in the United States. As reading through other articles I found that the number of women in college is now 56%. This increase is due to the feminist movements in the 70s that gave women the ability to reach greater education. With this number continually growing, the need for all male colleges would decrease. None the less, I'm sure the interest for most males in an all male college is relatively not that appealing. I have never been interest or understood the reasoning for gender separated colleges. To my understanding college is suppose to prepare students for the real world. I may be mistaken, but I believe in the real world, women and men are not separated. In my opinion this separation, would only contribute to the thought that men are above women. Not that all men think this way, but there are those that still have a machonistic view. Seeing the separation as the way it should be, because females are not good enough to earn the same education. I was unable to find the article about the male student that wanted admittance to an all female school. Therefore, I do not know the reasons this student had for wanting to attend an all female school. Most males might like this idea of being in a school full of women, this could be one of the reasons. But if he had a legitimate reason for wanting to attend this particular school. Such as, for educational purposes, feeling this school had the best to offer. There should be no reason to turn down an eager student wanting to expand their knowledge. As I searched for this article, I came across an article stating that Oxford college for women, would begin to allow men into the undergrad programs and as well as teachers. This change could possibly bring about good changes, an improvement to the college at hand.

All male colleges

I found that there are only four all male colleges left. The New York Times article says Hampden-Sydney, Wabash College, Morehouse College, and Deep Springs are the only colleges left. The article also says that there are not many males left that would like to be in a single sex school, but the article also says that this is wierd since there were about 250 all male schools left in the mid 1960's. But I think that it is a good and bad idea to have schools with only one sex. It is good because the focus level will be better and the pretty girls won't be keeping the good boys from working hard. But I know that I would hate to be at an all girl school so that could be bad for the part of college that is supposed to be fun. What was the purpose of creating the separations? I think that if the original reasons for having these schools were found and held to again I think that more people would have attended the schools before they were turned into coed schools. But soon I think that all the single sex schools will go away.
I was not able to find the article on the boy who wants to get into the all girl college, but I am wondering what he is thinking. I was wondering if he is feminie so he thinks that he should be with females or if he is just impressed at the level of the school. Just putting myself in his situation, I would never want to go to an all boy school. I would feel wierd and completely out of place. I also asked myself if he is just uncomfortable with being around boys and would feel better around girls. Asking myself all of these questions I still wouldn't accept him into my school unless he had some type of serious issue with himself or if my school was his last resort.

Male only colleges

As I searched for how many male only colleges were left I could not come upon an exact number. But as I read articles it was clear the number has dropped quite a bit over the years. This was really not surprising to me since more and more women are now going to college then they did twenty years ago. Years ago women rarely went on to get a higher education it was the men that were supposed to go to college, but that idea has changed a lot. In an article from USA Today, they stated that women now make up 57% of all the college students in the United States (Marklein). So when you hear that there are not as many male only colleges left that is because there are not as many men going to college anymore, and the demand for all male colleges has diminished.
The CNN story about the guy that wants admittance in an all girls school was surprising because I have never heard of that happening before. Even though I cannot relate to this story I feel as though if someone is trying to further their education in anyway then why not let them go to an all male or all female college. I personally do not think that all girls or all guys schools are that good anyways because in the real world men and women are not going to be separated. So why would you create a college where men and women would not be interacting with each other.

All Male Colleges

After looking on several different news sites and search engines, I found neither the number of male colleges nor the news article. But in the search, I came across several related articles in which females tried to get into male colleges. In one case, a female fought for 2 years in an attempt to get into a prestigious military school. The courts finally found that she had the right to attend the college, and she was admitted. Surprisingly, she dropped out after several weeks, claiming that the work was to hard. In this case I can understand why the woman wanted to attend this college. Society in general tends to focus on the ways in which females are discriminated against, so we tend to find women fighting for equality much more than men. For instance, it is not uncommon to hear about females wanting to join male sports and colleges, but not often do we hear of males trying to join female sports and colleges.

In the case involving the male trying to join the female college, I feel the male has an equal right to join a female college. If females are admitted to all male colleges, then the opposite should be respected as well. But in general, I have no strong views regarding whether or not all male and female school should exist. Although some view seperating schools as sexist, others feel that perhaps such a system could lead to a better education for both sides. All-male and female schools are less prevalent than they used to be, so perhaps the trend is leaning toward eventual all co-ed education.

Decline of the All Male College

As I looked into how many all male colleges there were, I knew it would be a low number. When I saw that as of 2005, only 4 official all male colleges existed, I was very surprised. I often hear of all female colleges and high schools, but rarely if ever have I heard of an all male college. Considering the social expectations and reality of males and females in schools, the number might actually not be too surprising. Females today are pushed to do more math and science, and being in an all girl school would seemingly mask and hide the fact that they are a male subject. On the other hand, males in schools are pushed to do nothing, exceeding in only math and science, left out in the cold when it comes humanities classes, thus a less social pressure bound all male school is left as an afterthought if that.
Today, more females are graduating from colleges than males, and in general are earning higher grades. An all male school seems to me to be thought of as, “uncool,” in the way that someone in an all male school could not show off to “chicks,” tool them, or any activities in a normal school that would be considered “hotshot” or cool. Without the social pressures, males would probably exceed in school greater than their counterparts, yet men seem to have to be with girls to be cool.
Since males are not pressured to do well in school like the girls are, there is less pressure to attend a school that would reinforce these ideas into the male. Because of this, social pressures tend to be the dominant factor in not choosing an all male school. Society today has forced out the all male school because of the new social and grade expectations reinforced on the male. On the other hand, females who have social pressures to look good for the man, yet are also pushed into and seem to always have better grades than males, look to an all girls school in order to concentrate on their studies. So, I expected that the number of all male colleges would be low, but I did not think that there would be as few colleges as the number of fingers on one hand.

All-Male

It was hard to find information about the number of all-male colleges. I found two results. One stated that there are four institutions in the U.S. that are all-male. Another said that there are 66 colleges. I think the difference is the size; institutions are very large with a good size of undergrad students, while the colleges listed were all under 2,000 students. Also, of the 66, most are Jewish Rabbinical colleges, which I believe are for studying to become a rabbi. This explains why they are so small, all male, and for the most part located around New York. The four institutions, then, are an exception. Most colleges of decent size switched to co-ed programs long ago. In an age where equality is becoming more and more important, it makes sense that most colleges would allow women. An intersting thing I found is that there are a few more all-women colleges. I suppose its easier for an all-women college to stay that way. An all-male college might be accused of sexism by not allowing women, while a women college would not recieve nearly as much pressure to allow men in. I guess an exception would be that story about the guy who wanted to enroll at an all female college, but I could not find the article about that, so I cannot really discuss it. Overall, I see no problem with the fact that a vast majority of colleges are co-ed, mostly because I cannot think of a reason for any college to not allow both genders, with the exception of schools like the rabbinical ones I mentioned earlier.

One Gender Colleges

According to an article on the New York Times webpage (found here http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/23/education/edlife/menscolleges.html?ei=5088&en=3b5ef346fa79415b&ex=1303444800&adxnnl=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1160764885-8dPaKlH6cVf7SM6y6XirxQ), there are only 4 all-male colleges left in the United States. To me, this is good. I've always thought that one gender schools were bad in the sense that by going there, the student only really gets experience dealing with his or her same gender. Unless a teacher or faculty member, or even a retailer of a close by convent store, is of the opposite sex, the students do not really get much interaction with members of the opposite sex. Once they graduate, and enter the real world, some of them may not know how to interact with a member of the opposite gender, which could pose a problem if the have to work closely with one at their job. I'm sure there are some advantages to a one gender school, but I think this reason is more than enough for them not to exist. This of course is my opinion, in which everyone is entitled to, I mean no disrespect to anyone who has gone to one of these schools and came out perfectly fine. Turning my attention to the guy who wants to enter an all girl school, plan and simple, he shouldn't be permitted to go. It is the same thing as if a woman wanted to go to an all boy’s college; she wouldn't be able to enroll, so he shouldn't be able to either. Not to mention that all the girls who are currently enrolled there were never told when they entered that a male may enter if he wishes it. This goes against what these women were told when they sought this school out while choosing a college. Nothing against this guy, he should probably just find a co-ed college or maybe try to track down one of the few remaining all male schools.

Sunday's Blog: The Simpsons

In the first episode of “The Simpsons” that we watched in class on Thursday both Bart and his best friend Millhouse were fighting over the same girl, Greta. Bart and Greta were boyfriend and girlfriend, but Bart lied to Greta so he could get out of going to her dance to go watch his principal at open mic night. When he came back later on that night Bart’s sister asked him why he lied to Greta and he said “I only lied to get what I wanted.” So Bart broke up with Greta and then Millhouse was her boyfriend. So automatically Bart wanted her back because he couldn’t have her anymore. However, once Greta said she did not want to be with either of them, they both gave up and were friends again. They actually said they were friends until the next one came along. Here in this episode you can see an erotic triangle was formed between Greta, Bart, and Millhouse. Both Bart and Millhouse only wanted Greta when the other had her. They even resorted to literally fighting in the end over her.
The audience for this show is presumably for an older crowd. The language can be crude and the situations aren’t easily understood for those younger. However, this is problematic because it is a cartoon and it is usually safe to assume cartoons are for kids. I was not aloud to watch it when I was a little kid and I do not think most parents would let their little kids watch it.

All Women?

Randolph Macon Women’s College in Richmond, Virginia is being sued by nine of its students over the issue of making the school co-ed. The girls wish for them to not change until 2010 when they would have all graduated. They complain that when they applied to the school no one told them that there was any contemplating about making the school co-ed going on. There are still many all women colleges left, but there are only four all male: Hampden-Sydney, Wabash College, Morehouse College, and Deep Springs.

I have never wanted to go to an all women’s college so it is hard for me to say how I feel on this issue. However, it is a women’s college and I’m sure that was a big deciding factor for the women who chose to go there. So for them to have that suddenly taken away from them without any warning is not very fair. However, it is not very fair for men to be declined to a school just because they are a male. If this school wishes to start accepting men I think it would a good idea for them just to make a brother school that would be just for the males. Having the opposite sex around can sometimes make a distraction and I’m sure many women feel more comfortable in a setting with all women where they feel they do not have to compete with males. I can understand both sides here therefore it is hard to say, but I can say that no way should be denied an education because of their sex or race.

not so coed

"As a New York Times article points out, there are only four all male college left in the Unites States as of this year: Hamden-sydney, in Virginia; Wabash College, near Indianapolis; Morehouse College in Atlanta; and Deep Springs, a tiny, two-year college located on a cattle ranch in eastern California." This was taken from the following website: http://www.universities-weblog.com/50226711/allmale_colleges_few_and_literally_far_between.php

It is suprising that there are only four all male colleges left in the nation. The website states that in the mid 1960's, there were around 250 all male colleges, but with womens rights on the rise, universities started acceping women and going co-ed, in fear that they would be accused as being unfair. Colleges felt the pressure to accept women during this uprise and colleges all over the country were forced to include women into an all male cirriculum. It is also suprising that we are almost neigbors with one of those four colleges. Wabash college, close to Indianapolis, is not a far drive drive from Purdue.
In reguards to the recent news article about a man trying to get into an all womens school, He should be treated in the same way that a women would be treated if she were trying to get into an all male school. He should not be admitted, because there are all male schools, four to be exact, that women are not allowed in to. There are plenty of other choices for that individual, including all male schools if he likes the one gender kind of school. He is not the minority in gender, and has more oppurtunity provided to him than any women has ever had, so he should direct his interests elsewhere, and try a new school.

Simpsons

The Simpson’s episode viewed today is based loosely on Lord of the Flies, yet did not seem to completely match the book for various reasons. Having not enough time to display the whole story, to having a different audience than the book, the Simpson’s version could not have matched the real book. Millhouse, the geeky boy who is picked on and the scapegoat for the group’s problem, and Lisa, the genius and smarts of the group, combined to form the character of Piggy. Ralph is apparent in Bart, who takes the lead with the conch, and tries to restore and create order within the group. He helps out Millhouse and Lisa, helping the Piggy type character, yet gradually degrades as a character. He goes from a confident leader, to suddenly giving up and joining the rest of the group to try Millhouse for stealing. Nelson plays the role of Jack, who constantly picks on Millhouse, always bullies and blames others for the problems of the group, and eventually leads a savage group after the geek group of Lisa, Bart, and Millhouse, just like the book without the deaths. Not exactly Sam and Eric because they did not follow the lead of the geek group, the twins in the Simpsons did not represent the twins in the book, who followed Ralph’s commands until the very end. Ralph in the Simpsons acted just as an extra who did not have a counterpart in the book.

Storywise, the story seemed to follow the book decently well for the amount of time given, yet unlike the book, there were no deaths and the group joined back together in order to survive. The hunt in the book led to Ralph running into the naval officer, while in the episode, the hunt led to the group joining together as one against the monster, the boar in the cave, to survive by running away and eating together. They do not get rescued officially like in the book, rather the narrator says, “Let’s just say they were saved by Moe.” In general, the episode matched the story of the Lord of the Flies for the given time and audience, yet differed in the violent and deeper nature of the true story.

The Simpsons

The Simpsons episode showed a satirical version of The Lord of the Flies. Each of the characters directly correlated to a different main character in the book, with only slight deviation. Bart took the role of leader of the island after he blew the conch, showing similarities with Ralph from the book. From initially calling the first meeting to being outcast at the end of the episode, Bart's character followed this role very closely. Nelson appeared to be very similar to Jack. Nelson was the first to show signs of aggression towards Milhouse and was also the first to question Bart's authority as leader just as Jack did. The charachter that most closely resembled Piggy was Milhouse. Milhouse had a geeky, whiney personality that caused him to be the scapegoat of the group. He wore glasses that were eventually broken in the process of trying to start a fire, and, along with Bart and Lisa, ended up becoming a pariah in the end. A difference that Milhouse showed when compared with Piggy is that Piggy, although whiney, never did anything against the group. Milhouse was caught stealing from the rest of them, which deviates from the charachter of Piggy in the book. The character that I could not identify with anyone from the book was Lisa. Lisa appeared to be a mix between Ralph and Piggy, showing intellect, a desire for order, and geek charcteristics, yet did not show a significant trait for either one. The rest of the group fell into the category of Jack's followers. They listened to whatever Nelson told them in the end. The characters from The Simpsons episode follwed, for the most part, the characters from The Lord of the Flies.

Book vs. TV Show

The writers of the Simpsons drew off the theme "lord of the flies" when they created this episode. On the Simpsons their bus crashed off a bridge and into the water. The kids were forced to swim to an island and naturally were stranded. In "lord of the flies" a plane crash left the kids stranded on an island. Right off the bat, Bart uses a conch to bring everyone around and establish himself as the leader, just as Ralph does in the book. Lisa demonstrates characteristics of Ralph when she tries to enforce the "United Nations" rules on the group. Piggy is naturally portrayed my Millhouse. Not only do his glasses give him away, but everyone looks at him as a scapegoat. Millhouse is the weaker of the characters and is blamed for eating the food. When Nelson puts the black paint on his cheeks, we instantly see Jack. Both get their way using force and both had their "following.

Any audience can enjoy watching the Simpsons. Every episode is geared toward an event in someone's life. Every age is represented from as young as baby Maggie all the way to grampa simpson. The family is semi-normal. Homer is a working father and Marge is a stay at home mother. Bart and Lisa are in high school and are always dealing with issues between each other and their classmates. People can relate to the family is the show. Kids like the comedy the show offers while the more mature audience can recognize some of the hidden humor. I read once that at one time that the cartoon was one of the most religious shows on TV. Ned Flanders, the father next door, is often seen praying to god, or taking his kids to church. Every so often the simpson family is seen attending church. Homer can always be found at Moes where he and the guys drink beer and talk. The show isn't necessarily wholesome, but the Simpsons is a show that can be easily enjoyed by all ages.

The Simpsons

Today in class we watched an episode of The Simpson’s television show. This episode was very closely related to the book we are currently reading, The Lord of The Flies. The first similarity that I noticed was after the kids got stranded on the island Bart stood up and blew into a conch shell to gain the attention of everyone. This is exactly what Ralph would do in the book to call an assembly of the boys. The group consisted of older kids and younger kids but no adults or parents, which is consistent with the book too. Towards the beginning some of the kids discussed the fact that there was a monster on the island. However the one idea that is different from the book is that the monster turns out to be a pig/boar, whereas in the book the monster was the dead man with the parachute. The characters in The Simpson’s show were also representative of the characters in The Lord of The Flies. Ralph is represented by Bart because he is the one who tries to call the group together to figure out a plan. There is also a power struggle between Bart and Nelson, the bully. Milhouse, the boy with the glasses, symbolizes Piggy because he is one of the smarter kids and the one that the other kids automatically start picking on when they arrive at the island. They also stole his glasses just like they did to Piggy in the book. Jack is represented by Nelson, the bully. He is the mean one of the group who does not want to listen to Bart or anyone else tell him what to do. In the television show Nelson is the one who creates a more savage attitude in the group by putting on the war paint and talking about hunting. Lisa, Bart’s sister, symbolizes Simon in the show. She sides with Bart and Piggy, which you can conclude when all three run away towards the end. At the conclusion of the episode they show a pig, or also known as the monster, being roasted over a fire as the children ferociously eat away like savages.

Simpsons

After viewing the show in class today, there was one really obvious connection that no one has made yet. Sheri and Teri were quite obviously placed there to represent Sam and Eric. They were twins and, well, thats it. Seriously, though, the overall theme of the book and of the episode were the same. They both implied that human nature is essentially volital and wild. Even before the kids set off on their UN trip, they all got wild and argued. Even in the safety of civilization, they act upon their primal nature. This foreshadows the events on the island, and I can imagine the kids of the book acting similarly at their own homes. The rhetoric of the arguements suggests that people, not just kids, all have that internal tendency to turn savage. It is civilization, enforced by rules and punishment, that suppresses that tendency. That is the message that both the books try to portray. Of course, there are many parallels that are very obvious: Ralph and Bart, Milhouse and Nelson, the conche, the monster, etc. Overall, though, I believe it was the message that was the same. I don't know if The Simpsons was actually trying to portray this message themselves, or if it is just because they are trying to parady the book, but the same idea about human nature is there.

Simpson Satire

The episode that was viewd in class today of the Simpsons, was a satire for Lord of the flies. The similarities were so noticeble between the two. The characters in this episode were so closely related to Lord of the Flies that you couldn't not make the connection.
As soon as the kids arrived on the island in the Simpsons, Bart immediatly blew a conche shell and the children immediatly were quiet. Quickly roles are assigned, Bart and Lisa quickly assume the leadership roles as Ralph and simon. Bart holds the conche shell which asumes him to the good power. Neson immediatly taked the role of jack as the "evil" leader. The group is immediatly split due to the short nature of the show. There is a "monster" the the children later found out was a pig, and there are even milhouses glasses. Milhouse assumes the role as piggy, who wears the glasses and holds the power of fire and rescue. The Island on the simpsons even has the two twins like samneric in the book. The Characters and the plot of the two are so close, and in both of the plots thee is a struggle to keep a "society like" order. The power stuggles in both are also still very relevent. The struggle is between Nelson and the painted kids, and bart and Lisa. This is representitive as good and evil.
Satire in this episode, like most of the epsodes of the Simpson's, is very noticable when viewing the episode, especially after just finishing Lord of the Flies.