Brave New World Post Three

-What does Huxley hope to achieve with his writing?
-What purpose does John's death serve to the message of the novel?
-What common themes between 1984 and Brave New World define what a utopia or dystopia is?

Brave New World Post Two

-How critical is soma to the survival of the one state?
-What does Bernard want from Lenina?
-What impact will John have on the World State?

Soma is the basis for everything in the society, and without it the "perfect" society will cease to function. Soma relieves people of the thoughts that Bernard loves to entertain. It relieves unhappiness and with it, the risk of discontent rising among the populace towards their superiors. It also gives the added benefit of making the government necessary to the people for their drug supply. Without it, the people feel miserable and their psychological addiction is not satisfied.

Bernard, despite his claims otherwise, seems to want Lenina in the way his society dictates to him. Despite attempting to engage in a forbidden romantic relationship, to me it appears that Bernard wants what the rest of society has, and most prevalent among that is his choice in sexual partners. From what's been stated about her by former partners, Lenina seems to be the standard, incredible even by Alpha standards, despite being a Beta.

John will cause more of an upheaval than Bernard realizes. While his mothers claims will be water cooler gossip for a short period of time, the savage will be a source of fascination and disgust among every person living under the World State. It will vault Bernard into the position of a circus master and perhaps only serve to alienate him more, being the guardian of a "freak."

Brave New World Post One

In Brave New World, equality and conformity have been achieved through a trained contentment and genetic manipulation. With people having hundreds of other exactly like them, individuality and thus conflict are completely erased. I would say that Brave New World does in fact create a sort of utopia, because decisions are made by your own free will. The problem is that "your own free will" has been influenced and manipulated from birth to guarantee that you choose what the government wants. The process of hypnopædia controls the mind for the remainder of the person's life and thus eliminates free will at birth.

1984 Post Three

That Big Brother wins is undebatable. Without Winston to fight, Big Brother is left unhindered in it's/his absolute control. To me, Oceania is undefeatable except by the most extreme of means - a population-wide realization of the dictatorship they live under. Without such an occurrence, the society is stable and controlling enough to last for millenia. After the book ends, I imagine Winston to be subject to the same fate as all who came before. He will one day disappear, killed someway by his government. He is too dangerous, even in his "neutralized" state, for the government to not do so. Winston knows more than almost anyone in the nation about the nature of his government. His job and his experiences in the Ministry of Love make him privy to the horrendous and compromising practices of the One State. In the interests of totalitarianism, Winston would have to die.

1984 Post Two

I believe the biggest thing impeding Winston's ability to trust in the One State is his job. Winston sees the lies the government is spreading every day in his task to change history. Winston is one of a handful of people who know the truth: the One State is not infallible, nor is it eternal. Winston knows that the One State makes mistakes - they rely on him to correct them. Winston knows that what he's being told is a lie, and as a rational man he can't force himself to believe a known falsity. I think Winston's actions are a protest on a more personal level. It's not that he wants to take down the government, but more like he needs an outlet for his confusion. He wants to belong and conform to the pressures of his government, but given his job, he has doubts. His escapades with Julia and writing in a diary are not attempts to take down Big Brother, but merely endeavors to satisfy his curiosity about a world without Oceania. Winston's actions are a form of protest not seen in modern times. He doesn't just speak out, he acts out. He does things against the will of the empire. Modern protesters (at least in America) focus on marching, speaking their opinions, but rarely acting upon them. They rely on others to institute the reforms, but don't reform things themselves. The tradition of complacency in this country permeates even into their dissatisfaction. However, saying America has become Orwellian is incredibly extreme. While our government does have powers that extend well into our day to day lives, we still maintain a respectable level of privacy, freedom, and individuality that distinguishes us from Orwellian society.

Cultural Conflict - Individualism vs. Collectivism

1. In a collectivist culture, what personality traits are likely to be considered ideal? What about in an individualistic culture?

In collectivist cultures, traits such as loyalty, cooperation, respect, obedience, and other interpersonal, communicative, or socially beneficial traits are held in high esteem. In individualistic cultures, characteristics like perseverance, independence, and ambition are seen as ideal.

2. In some societies, your opinion is less likely to be challenged if you are from the oldest family in such a community or if you are the PhD with the most published books in your university. Do you think this is true for both individualistic and collectivist societies? If so, do you think status is defined the same way in both types of cultures? Explain.

For the most part, yes it is true.  Status is defined by accomplishment in both cultures, but the key is what type of accomplishment. For individualism, it's entirely about self-promotion and self-worth. However, collectivism focuses on society as a whole, and those with higher status are those who have provided for the entire community best and have given more to help society.

3. Create a specific conflict that may occur when a teacher from an individualistic culture goes to teach in a collectivist society or when a teacher from a collectivist culture goes to teach in an individualistic society. Identify the conflict as internal or external. Explain what clash of values caused the conflict and how it may be received.

An individualistic teacher might feel it fitting to congratulate individual members of a classroom on a test they scored particularly well on. However, other students and parents will most definitely be offended by what they perceive as a lack of respect and recognition for the rest of the class, which they see as sharing in the student's accomplishments.

4. What is an acquaintance? Does the word have a positive or negative connotation?

An acquaintance is an individual one knows on a casual basis in that while one is not close friends with them, they are (for the most part) on a first name basis and comfortable interacting. It's not a strong connection, but retains a positive connotation in that it still implies a certain level of friendship and trust.

Cultural Conflict - Introduction Blog

 Identify the conflict. Is this an internal or external conclict? How/Why does globalization create conflict? In the speaker's opinion, globalization has flown in only one direction what does she mean by this? Although the speaker feels globalization has been one-sided, she notes there has been one benefit related to the process. What benefit dies she mention? The speaker says muslims and westerners live by/are obligated to two different sources of truth. What two sources (two texts) does she mention?

The conflict is external, leading to internal. Society's inability to accept other traditions and practices leads to a conflict inside oneself over the value and importance of tradition and faith in one's life: is it better to live under the social norm or to retain the ideologies that have defined one's family and people for centuries. Globalization is a process that takes other cultures and Westernizes them. It's the process of taking unique "backwards" countries and righting them so that they mirror that of western Europe and North America. Those two regions, however, rarely incorporate the unique aspects of other cultures during this process. One great benefit, however, is the opportunity for Muslim women to gain powerful female role models in influential Western women. The role models give oppressed Muslims the drive to push forward and achieve what was once inconceivable for women of the Islamic faith. The Koran and the Constitution are the two primary sources of truth for Muslims and Westerners.

1984 Post One

Conformity is achieved in Orwell's society via two means: the threat of the Thought Police and government control over culture. The most powerful of the two is the Thought Police - an all pervasive force dedicated to the eradication of dissent with the totalitarian government. The Thought Police exist everywhere, from the minds of one's children to the surveillance apparatus in the telescreens. The added fear of not knowing if you've done something worth reporting only adds extra pressure towards conformity and complete subservience to the will of the dystopic ideals of the Oceanian government. Next most prevalent is the government control over culture, and its establishment of one set of beliefs. With no religion (save faith in Big Brother), no relationships, no opinions, no individuality, there is no conflict. No differences in opinion mean no arguments, nothing to differentiate between people. The simulated joy and contentment they have fostered also contributes to Oceania, specifically Airstrip One's, control and facade of utopia.

"Inspiration Information" by Shuggie Otis

The song is laid back and funky with short and soft vocals. The keys, guitar, and especially bass are what really push that feel across to the listener. The constant underlying bass rhythm lays the foundation for the entire piece and soothes the listener with the deep consistency. The lyrics are kept short and nearly indecipherable, as if the goal was to lose yourself in the music, not the words. If that had been change, the whole feeling of the song would be lost while the message the lyrics contain would become the centerpiece of the entire song.

Semeadores by Diego Rivera

S - Hispanic farmers and workers
O - Early 20th century (1930's) during the Communist movement
A - The Mexican people
P - To emphasize the benefits of communism and the cruelty of capitalism
S - Diego Rivera
Tone - Sympathetic, supportive

It shows the oppression of everyday workers, with a dark sky and the swaying lines, the people's backs bent over in hard labor, almost to the breaking point. Rivera's commenting on the plight of workers in a capitalist society, claiming they are abused and under appreciated by those who essentially have total control over them.

Creative Process

Wilco's approach is to break down the elements of their message and craft a specific piece of music to fit the theme. The then work on individual pieces until the feel satisfied with their work, then put it back together and polish it up into one piece. When I go to write, I think about my topic until I find an idea or a phrase I particularly like and can work with. Next, I write the piece as I go, and what I think is exactly what I right. I then re-read my piece and edit it so it fits the appropriate tone and theme. I then do my best to clarify and blend my writing to where it flows easily and is not so difficult to read and understand. I feel that if I try to push my thoughts and opinions into a preset mold I lose any freedom or flexibility I may have had to manipulate the piece into something completely different than the idea I may have started with. I feel it takes away from my ability to push across my opinions to the audience.

Nostalgia Response

Nostalgia is the feeling of remembering things of the past, specifically positive memories. This song reminds me of the period of time I lived with my grandparents. I remember that my grandmother would play songs from a similar time period all the time, and each year she'd pick a "theme song" for my birthdays. We'd often go on long car rides from our home in Arizona across the Hoover Dam to Las Vegas and visit my cousins while listening to her music. Strangely, the song reminds me of the taste of mint. My grandparents kept a little garden with mint leaves in it, and so I always associate my memories of them to the taste of mint...

The Pinch of Poverty

Poverty is caused by a number of environmental and internal factors including education, single parent families, a lack of opportunities, laziness, or a large family or group to support. This artist chose to display poverty in a negative light, showing a desperate family sitting on a street corner. One glimmer of light does shine through, however, in the form of the girl selling her flowers in an attempt to support her family that seems to have given up. It seems the artist is trying to convey that poverty does not effect just adults or individuals, it effects whole families. The artist's choice of deep colors and a rainy atmosphere show a somber feel over the piece. However, around the girl there seems to be more color, namely yellows. The brightness represents the girls hope. She steps forward towards the viewer and seems to make eye contact - she has not given up, in fact she is still working, even at her young age. Behind her, the sky casts a yellow glow, brightening a relatively dark landscape as if it were a sunrise, yet another hopeful symbol.

Poverty Response Post

Divakaruni and Singer both have some fairly unique ideas and beliefs when it comes to the issue of poverty and all the other problems it creates (hunger, forced labor, homelessness, etc.)

Divakaruni's essay focuses largely on an issue that has arisen from the much wider problem of poverty: child labor. The majority of America would agree that such practices are disgusting and unethical, yet most of the industries in America import goods from countries with these practices still in use, and thus they inadvertently support it. For years people have been calling to end the importing of goods manufactured by children (or for that matter, slave labor, which accounts for nearly all the cocoa production in the world.) Divakaruni shows us a different side of the issue, though. She demonstrates how for these children working in the harsh environments, the choice is between factory work or starvation. She tells the story of a young boy who was hired by the author's mother, and says of him,

"Every year, when we went to visit our grandfather in the village, we were struck by the many children we saw, ... their ribs sticking our through the rags they wore. Whenever Nimai (the boy)passed these children, he always walked a little taller. And when he handed the bulk of his earnings over to his father, there was a certain pride in his eye. Exploitation, you might be thinking. But he thought hi was a responsible member of the family."

Nimai's choice was to be one of the children on the street starving and begging, or as a ten year old be put to work doing physical labor in an attempt to help support his family. It's a choice every child in that world must face. Divakaruni goes on to say that banning practices like child labor by refusing to import the goods does nothing if it just puts them our of work and costs them their food. Other actions must be taken, such as the establishment of public education. Divakaruni's unpopular opinion shows what is true, not what we feel is "right." Or immediate judgement is to try and "free the slaves." But as she aptly puts it, the choice is between forced labor and food, or to "Live Free and Starve."

 The more mainstream of the two is Singer's opinion, or rather his critique of the way most of the western world lives their lives. He laments the fact that in our culture, people would much rather spend their money on extravagances like dining out or entertainment when across the world, children without the chance to have such a life are starving. He focuses on the fact that one if one family gave up dining out for one month, the money saved could support a child through the most crucial four years of development and keep them fed. He likens the situation to the following theoretical scenario: 

"Bob ... has invested most of his savings into a ... valuable old car, a Bugatti. ... One day when Bob is out for a drive, he parks his Bugatti near the end of a railway siding and goes for a walk up the track. As he does so, he sees a runaway train ... running down the track. Looking farther ahead, he sees the small figure of a child very likely to be killed by the runaway train. He can't [save] the child, ... but he can throw a switch [to] divert the train down the siding to his Bugatti. Then nobody will be killed-- but the train will destroy his Bugatti."

 In what seems to be a rather extreme act, Bob lets the train kill the boy to save his expensive car. However, Singer shows us his actions are not so extreme. Every time we splurge, we make a decision that the fulfillment of our desires outweighs the life of another child somewhere in the world. Honestly, he's correct. It's not something anyone enjoys thinking about, and it's certainly something everyone avoids discussing. The computer I am using right now to right this costs what could have been a decade of freedom from starvation for a needy child. The clothes I wear, the books I read, the food I eat, yes, all of it could have possibly saved a life, and at this point I will never know.

Round and Round - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti

My facts throughout the analysis tend to highlight strong moments and positive elements about the song. My observation of the fact that the song is soft, mellow, etc. are especially notable in that my favorite songs are smoother, softer songs. Obviously I'd notice something like that first out of all the traits in the song. It's safe to say I am quite biased, mostly because my personal musical preferences that were created through being brought up in a very music-oriented environment, so I tend to notice and appreciate more instrumental songs with multiple styles interlaced into one piece, however, I feel that I have less bias than many other people. The fact is that I don't identify with one genre. I like a certain song based on it's individual qualities, and I don't identify with one genre more than another because within each type of music. There is enough variance between one song to the other that I don't like music just because it is this genre, or so on.