Matt Cunningham

Perceptions of the Self

2004-11-29T07:54:00.000-05:00

There is no doubt that the images we encounter throughout our society have a significant effect on our perceptions. They change the way we perceive our surroundings and most importantly ourselves. Throughout this class, we have read texts that toyed and played with this characteristic of our society in order to bring us to an awareness of the effects images have upon us. Truly, our society has become engulfed with and formatted by images. What we are today is because of the images we saw, heard of, or imagined yesterday.

The most obvious example of this is the monster from Frankenstein. Here we find a technological creature that is for all intent and purpose a human being. He was no more monstrous than any average human creature; the only true difference was that this “monster” was a creation of science. However, his amiable and childish character became dangerous through an evolution of images. What he perceived in the faces and reactions around him eventually altered his character. Simply, the images that society, books, and the like created for him encompassed what he thought it was to be human. He became the monster that others expected him to be because this was the gap society created for him to fill. Images essentially created what the monster in Frankenstein believed to be himself.

A lighter example of how images change what we perceive to be the self can be found in the poems by William Blake. Although these poems do not deal directly with the sense of self we often imagine in society, the characteristics of the poems are strikingly similar. Uniquely, these poems are often dwarfed by the artistic decoration that surrounds them. In fact, the assessment that one may have of these poems is often drastically different if merely the words are provided. In this format, all the reader has to interpret is what the Blake has written. However, in Blake’s original publishing of the poems, there is a detailed picture that supplements each of the poems and changes our experience with them. Essentially, how we interpret the words with the images is entirely different than how we interpret the words alone.

Moreover, the core competencies of Frankenstein and William Blake’s poems are effortlessly paralleled with one of the most controversial arguments of modern culture: models’ effect on society and women especially. It is no surprise that the models in magazines are continually portrayed in a more and more slender frame, and our society decides to follow suit. It has reached a point where models must adopt an unhealthy life style to maintain their body frame: a lifestyle that most can not survive on. However, young girls still try to achieve that “perfect body” and ultimately fail. As a result, their perceptions of themselves change. They begin to think they are fat or ugly because they do not look exactly like the women from magazine articles. Images made this young girls change their perceptions of themselves just as society did to the monster in Frankenstein. Ultimately, there can be no doubt that images have a significant effect on our own perceptions of ourselves.

Internet Rape??

2004-11-21T14:15:00.000-05:00

Is it possible to be raped without physical presence? Is rape a mental crime or one of physical oppression? These are several of the questions that are discussed in Julian Dibbel’s article “A Rape in Cyberspace”. The article converses about an incident that occurred on Internet technology known as a MOO in which several women claimed to have been raped by a fellow user. When I first read the title, I was certainly skeptical about the possibility of such an incident; however, I gave the idea a chance and listened to Dibbel’s argument. I can now whole-heartedly say Dibbel simply argues the most illogical proposal I have ever heard. The idea of cyber rape is about as irrational as the claim that the world will be ruled by apes in a matter of years. Moreover, throughout the article, Dibbel alludes to the exact reasons for why these incidents can not be considered rape.

There is frankly a very simple reason for why it is not possible to be raped across the Internet; there is no physical presence. In order to be raped, an individual must be forced to have sex against his or her own will, which may also include physical aggression. However, when a person is in a MOO, it is impossible to make them have sex because participants have no contact outside of the written word. There is no doubt that Internet communication can be prone to sexual harassment but not rape. It is simply impossible to be physically violated when the only means of connection is a system of cords and cables.

Certainly, I can apprehend, although not understand, how a “character” on the MOO can be raped by another “character”; however, all of these actions are not real. Nothing that happens in a MOO is a reality. There is no living room, and the people only exist under factious masks of there real identities. The entire idea of the MOO is a conglomeration of dreams and imagination. Moreover, even if some treat MOO’s as reality, they are still able to escape them. If a person does not approve of what is transpiring inside the MOO, he or she is more than welcome to leave the room or MOO entirely: a luxury most rape victims do not have in reality. The only true reason why anyone believes that it is possible to be raped through a MOO is that the individual is unable to separate reality from fiction.

Rape is certainly as much a mental crime as a physical one. An individual who is raped often acquires an alternative identity after the crime because of its mental effects. The criminal uses physical means to modify the identity of self the individual once had. However, it is also possible to accomplish such results through sexual harassment. Therefore, it is impractical to label an incident as rape because an individual’s identity is altered by the incident. The physical body is certainly more connected to the identity than is the mental, as is evident by the more evident affects of sexually violent crimes, yet sexual harassment and rape both have the ability to be to adjust an individual’s identity.

Online Personalities

2004-11-18T22:03:00.000-05:00

When the Internet was invented, it provided the world with an entirely new and unique form of communication. The Internet has provided society will a slightly less personal form of communication as compared to the telephone. We are now able to communicate without even hearing the voice of the person we are talking to. As a result, a person can not even be sure if the individual they are communicating with is actually the person he or she says they are. Identities can be created and altered to fit the needs of their creator. To some extent, the Internet has created an imaginary world in which we can be who we want to be and no one questions it, which is exactly what Sherry Turkle implies in “Aspects of the Self”.

In this article, Turkle describes a method of Internet communication known as a MUD or MOO, which is basically a more advanced form of instant messaging and chat room technology. Furthermore, the text revolves around the methods that we use to recreate ourselves on this technology to be someone other than ourselves. Under many circumstances, individuals use MUD’s as an opportunity to become someone they wish they were: “I am a lot more outgoing (when online), less inhibited. I would say I feel more like myself. But that’s a contradiction. I feel more like who I wish I was.” (179) The barriers of society are vastly mitigated on the Internet, which allows people to say what they would not say and do what they would not do under ordinary circumstances. We are no longer afraid of the possible results because at any time the MUD window can be closed and we can escape our imaginary personality. Moreover, Turkle alludes to a variety of individuals who use MUD’s as a mean of “testing” out particular fantasy personalities that would not otherwise be accepted by society: “I remember doing that before tests. I would go to the MUD, pick a fight, yell at people, blow a couple of things up, take the test and then go out for a drink.” (189) Essentially, they use Internet technologies to fill the gaps in reality that they are unable to fill on their own: solve the problems they can not solve alone.

These core aspects of Internet communication are exactly what we experienced in our class on the MOO. We found that although our class is normally very quiet they were extremely talkative during this class because many of the boundaries were eliminated. It was no longer inappropriate to be off task because it is more difficult to control others and enforce punishment. There is really nothing that can be done to control what others say accept ignoring them. This is especially apparent when one witnesses how off task our class was during the entire discussion.

Moreover, our discussion was far different from those described by Turkle. Turkle made it seems as if those she spoke about used MUD’s as a crutch. They were dependent upon these forms of Internet communications as a way of becoming what they were not. I am not entirely sure that this was the intention of our class and that is where the true difference between the article and our class lies. Regardless, there is no doubt that we adopt alternative personalities while online then we do in person.

Multiple Personality

2004-11-14T15:26:00.000-05:00

One of the many aspects of our character is the ability to change it when we are in different situations. A person does not act the same when having fun with friends as he or she would in a business interview. Different situations are simply socialized to have alternative modes of action. We act in the manner that is expected of us because if we did not there would be reactions from the various people around us. For example, no person goes to a funeral dressed in a bathing suit with a towel; it would simply be perceived as disrespectful and out of the ordinary. This is no different in my interactions with others.

I tend to be very light-hearted and boisterous when I am with friends. However, as soon as I step into a classroom, I mitigate this aspect of my character, and I become more serious and thoughtful. These different situations merely enlist different types of actions. If I was to act as I do with my friends when I came to class it is likely, I would not be successful or at least would be frowned upon by teachers. Moreover, when I engage in some type of business meeting or seminar, I am even more refined and professional because of the stipulations of that particular situation. Essentially, there are hundreds of different categories of situations and each of them requires a different demeanor and persona.

Therefore, when asked which of these personas are most representative of who I really am it is tough to say that any one is truly me. It is incorrect to say that when I am with my friends I am the most like myself because that is only one aspect of my character. As much as I love to have fun, I also have a much more serious side which is not as noticeable when I am with my friends. Accordingly, there is no time when I am truly myself because self is a combination of multiple demeanors. I am myself all of the time. The difference is that particular parts of my character are more emphasized at particular moments than at others. I still have the ability to have a good time when I am in a business meeting. I simply mitigate that part of my character because it is not appropriate for the situation.

Socialization in Society

2004-11-10T15:15:00.000-05:00

How we perceive ourselves and believe we should act is based on a variety of different factors of socialization. Moreover, we do not acquire these beliefs upon our own accord because they are the result of a conglomeration of aspects in the environment that surrounds us. Two of the most significant factors in this socialization process are human interaction and literature. The two combine to account for the majority of what we do every day. Consequently, they also have a drastic affect upon the monster in Frankenstein. In fact, the two are almost solely responsible for the transformation of the monsters character.

The monster begins his life with a relatively normal outlook. He believes himself to be no more different than any of the individuals he first encounters. However, as the story progress, he is met with more and more hostility by the each individual he encounters. The monster is rejected from society and fails to be accepted because of his appearance. As a result, his character begins to change and initiates an understanding of his place in society. He is socialized by those around him about the manner in which he should act. The monster becomes violent because he is expected to be violent by society. He is merely living up to the expectations of those that surround him.

Moreover, it appears that he gains an even greater understanding of his role in society from literature. He reads books about monsters and observes how they are treated by those around them and then begins to relate to their situation. Rather than associating himself with those who are frightened, the monster associates himself as another monster and is thus socialized to act in that particular way. He mimics what he reads and relates to the roles of the characters that seem most similar to him. He sees his experiences mirrored in those which the characters of the novel experience. Again he is socialized by what he reads because literature sets a standard for how we should act under certain circumstances. Therefore, the monster begins to understand that because of the way he is treated he is expected to act violently. It is the lack of acceptance from society that eventually leads the monster to act the way that he does.

This idea is somewhat similar to the situation for Pip in “Great Expectations”. Here the young boy is first able to recognize himself as a self when he is aggressively confronted by a poor and homeless man in a graveyard. Although the alteration in the character of the boy alters only to a minor extent, his character does change as a result of this interaction with poor man. The boy begins to steal from his sister’s family because the man has told him to do so. However, it appears that the boy steals more out of pity and fright than anything else which is why his situation is somewhat dissimilar to that of the monster. However, the imaginary voices Pip hears as he steals the food are very similar to what initially caused the monsters particular actions. They represent the “great expectations” that society has of us. Pip is expected not to steal and is socialized by society as viewing the action immorally, but the simple fact is that the boy is simply too frightened to follow the norms of society. Essentially, the norms, values, and actions of society have a significant affect upon our character and how we eventually perceive the correct actions to be.

Frankenstein Again

2004-11-09T15:08:00.000-05:00

As a society, we are prone to make assumptions about individuals based on their appearance nearly everyday of our lives. As the saying goes, “You have seven seconds to make a first impression,” and to a great extent, this statement is true. Our minds are programmed to take the information and observations of the environment that surround us and make sense of it. Often in order to do this, we must make assumptions and rely on stereotypes that are frequently incorrect. Moreover, to some degree, this instinct is necessary for survival; we need to make quick decisions in pressure situations. However, these notion that we create of other people are often difficult to debunk, and therefore, they often become the characters personality. We treat them in a particular manner, and they act accordingly. This semester we have encountered a perfect example of this process when we read Frankenstein.

In this novel, the monster is created with a relatively personable and peaceful persona despite his external appearance. However, over the course of the story, his persona changes, and the monster become more violent; he parallels what would be expected of a creature with his physical characteristics. This is not because he “grows into his body” but more a result of the reactions he receives from society. He begins to understand his role in society. The monster is socialized to act the way that he does because he is not accepted by any group of society. He is shunned, beaten, and degraded every time he shows his face in broad daylight. Therefore, he begins to understand aggression and violence as standards in society, and he believes that is how one is expected to act. He begins his life a relatively human, and within months, he is transformed into a monster. However, he is transformed not by the same methods as he was created, but rather by the socialization of society. Essentially, society teaches him how he is expected to act by projecting reactions to him that encourage a particular form of actions from him. They react with fright and defense against the monster, and as a result, the monster believes that he must give society something to be frightened of. The monster fills the expectations of society.

A more uplifting representation of this same process occurs in many of the honors classes across the Miami University. Teachers expect students to perform better than average students because of the credentials that they entered Miami with. Accordingly, most of the students do perform above par although many no more talented than the students in the average courses offered across the University. In fact, one course I am taking is taught in two honors sections and one regular section all with the same professor. Although many of the students in the regular section, who I know personally, are more intelligent and dedicated than the students in the honors sections, yet they still performed more poorly on the same test. This is simply because these “average” students expected to achieve lower standards. When given a different test a month later, they performed exactly as they should have the first test, receiving better scores. The simple fact is that we act the way society expects to act. This is exactly why the monster’s character transforms over the course of the novel.

Metaphors of the Mind

2004-11-06T16:57:00.000-05:00

Metaphor One:

In this metaphor, the mind is compared to a washing machine. It relates water to the natural pain reducers of serotonin. Therefore, just as clothes are not cleaned without a correct level of water, this metaphor implies that a healthy brain must have correct levels of serotonin. Accordingly, individuals in depression are often treated in a manner that raises their serotonin levels. Essentially, the metaphot has made psychologists believe that correct levels of serotonin will eventually heal the individual.

Metaphor Two:

The human mind here is compared to a radio in the sense that we are depressed not because some aspect of us (or the radio) is broken but because we are not tuned correctly. Therefore, rather than treating the depressed with drugs as in the first metaphor, it would be expected that psychologists using this metaphor would more likely treat and individual through theropy, believeing that the individual's internal composition is correct but they are unable to adjust to it. Simple alterations in the "tuning" of an individual is hence viewed as the solution to the problem.

Metaphor Three:

The metaphor in this quotation by Sigmund Freud compares the human mind to a ruined structure that has been distroyed. Therefore, the solution to depression and mental illness from this viewpoint is to look through the rumble to determine what the monument once looked like. Accordingly, Freud believes that to solve a psycological problem one must look into the past and connect the pieces so that the source of the suffering can be discovered. It is only after this point is discovered that one is able to begin the healing process.

Metaphor Four:

This metaphor is significantly different than the previous three. Here the human mind is compared to a machine. It is believed that every individual has a machine within him or her that is the mind and can be used to benefit society. Individuals who employ this metaphor would likely disregard the relationship side of human interaction. Since our minds our viewed as machines, we are dehumanized by this metaphor. We are less like people and more like tools of the ecomony in this sense.

Metaphor Five:

The final metaphor is very similar to the previous metaphor from Freud. Both metaphors believe that one must look into the past to begin to understand how to solve the situation in the future. However, this particular metaphor says that the once the events of the past transpire we tend to represses these unpleasurable memories. This is an aspect of the third metaphor, but it is not as apparent as repression is this particular quote.

From Printing Presses to Computers

2004-11-06T16:56:00.000-05:00

Just as much of societies standards have evolved over time so to does the use of language. The definitions of words alter as time progress, and the metaphors we use to describe the environment that surrounds us change. The reason for this is simple as our culture evolves our understanding of the world around us evolves with it. We create new technologies and philosophical theories that allow us to perceive our surroundings in an entirely different manner. Essentially, technologies permit individuals in society a new lens with which to interpret the world. A perfect example of this evolution is apparent in the metaphors that we have used to describe the human mind.

Originally, there were authors and intellects that compared the human mind to a printing press in the sense that printing presses create impressions. As with all metaphors, there are certain aspects of the human mind that are hidden and highlighted by this comparison. The most apparent insight that this metaphor provides is the fact that much of what the human mind does involves creating memories, which are essentially impressions in our minds of the past. Just as printing presses replicate the images on the plate that is pressed, the mind creates a replication of what is perceived to be reality for an individual. In both instances, the eventual result is a lasting record of some form of information.

On the other hand, this metaphor hides the fact that much of what the brain does involves the processing of information, which is exactly what the mind is a computer metaphor highlights. Our intellect is far more powerful than merely creating lasting images of the events throughout our lives. We also possess the ability to reason, analyze, and assess a multitude of information as we receive it from our surroundings. In a sense, our minds are computers that are able to both record information and process it so that we are able to make informed and logical decisions.

Neither of these metaphors is entirely correct. In fact, both are very accurate in describing particular aspects of the human mind. The computer metaphor does not emphasize the process of creating memories as well as the printing press metaphor, but the printing press metaphor fails to introduce the sense of control that our human mind provides us with. Perhaps the most significant aspect of our intellect is our ability to reason and process information, but this characteristic is hidden in the metaphor of the mind as a printing press. On the same accord, we are not able to reason correctly or efficiently if we are not able to accurately remember prior experiences and recall the information from these events. Essentially, both metaphors provide some sense of understanding in regards to what the human mind truly entails. Therefore, both are useful in acquiring an understanding for what the human mind is.

Technology and Metaphors

2004-10-31T21:24:00.000-05:00

The source of metaphors come from a variety of different origins depending on the nature of the particular metaphor. Metaphors are essentially employed to describe abstract concepts that we are otherwise unable to comprehend. The idea of metaphors is to take concrete ideas and tie them to these abstract ones: take what we understand and relate to that which we are still grasping. Therefore, it is not uncommon that science is often used to create metaphors. In some sense, science is prone to such a method because it is based on solidified facts. It involves aspects of our environment which we have studied and come to understand completely. Science solidifies our understanding of the surrounding world, and accordingly, it is used to help formulate an understanding of abstract concepts. This is exactly the case with our study of bats and how they are able to fly in the darkness of caves. At first when Cuvier wrote his book on animals, it was believed that bats were able to complete such a feat by aerial impressions, some form of reading that bats could make from the air around them. However, as time pasted and scientists began to study bats to a greater extent, it was discovered that bats use radar and sonar to travel through the darkness. Therefore, it seems obvious that science is a familiar source for metaphors.

However, as technology changes, it is possible that our metaphor for bats or any other such relation may alter. This is essentially because of two reason: we will gain a more in depth understanding of bats and we will have new technology with which to create metaphors. The first affect that technology upon the bat metaphor is that is provides the opportunity for scientists to comprehend the essence of bats to an even further extent. Therefore, they may come to the conclusion that the previous metaphors of sonar and radar are not accurate enough or at least that there is a better metaphorical example. Essentially, there is the potential for new discovers to produce more hidden aspects of the radar to bats metaphor. On the other hand, new technologies also supply additional objects and ideas that can be related to. At this point, radar and sonar are the most accurate forms of metaphors for bats. However, if new technologies are developed, it is possible that these new technologies may be a more accurate way of describing how bats travel through the dark. Essentially, the bat metaphor to technology is a prime example of how metaphors develop over time and can be vastly different across cultures.

Alternative Metaphors

2004-10-25T21:25:00.000-04:00

This exercise is a perfect representation of how metaphors evolve over time. As our societies change so to do the metaphors that we use to understand the world around us and its difficult concepts. Imagine the metaphors cultures used to describe love when marriages were arranged. In comparison, the two different metaphors enlist extremely different reactions. The attitudes in society changed the metaphor that was most prevalent in the culture just as we have seen metaphors alter our perceptions. This is exactly the case in the reading for this assignment. The instances in reading represent an event that is describe entirely different by writers from varying time periods.

It is apparent after years of education and the intellectual development of our culture that my perception of what is described in this story is significantly divergent from the account created several centuries before. I relate the experiences of Margaret Cooper to biological and genetic reasoning. Instead of relying on the relatively inconsequential comparison of spirits as the drivers of behavior. In past civilizations, devils and God were considered to be the source of much of individuals actions. When an individual act poorly or in an odd manner, it was thought that a spirit possessed the individual and caused him or her to act in such a manner. The central reason for this is that they had o other explanation for the actions. Mental diseases were so abnormal and confusing that it was difficult for the people of the time to account and discover the source. As a result, they began to rely on comparisons of behavior to God and spirits. However, this is not how I chose to describe the story; rather than accredit a virtual unknown source, I understand that there is a distinct possibility that the Margaret is experiencing some sort of a mental disorder. Moreover, I understand that most mental disorders are the result of chemical imbalances in the brain. Therefore, my description of the circumstances describe in this story are far less metaphorical because I have an actual understanding. I have facts, studies, and others experiences that help me to obtain a more solidified representation of Margaret's problem.

Consequently, our two metaphor systems enlist entirely different treatments for the disease or spirit that Margaret possess. Those in the reading rely on prayer and other forms of drawing the spirit out of the system. They believe that there is a true entity in the body of Margaret that must be removed to in order for her to be cured. Upon the removal of this spirit, Margaret will return to norm of society. On the other hand, my metaphor is prone to a far different approach. Doctors may prescribe Margaret with drugs or psychological therapy to help her combat her difficulties. The drugs are intended to return Margaret to equilibrium by release or restricting the amount of particular chemicals to her brain while the therapy is employed to help Margaret understand and cope with the natural imbalances that her body creates. Moreover, the therapy is also used to target the source of Margaret's imbalances. In a sense, this source is really the "spirit" of her abnormalities. Therefore, this method of curing the disease is just another format for locating a metaphorical spirit that causes Margaret to act in particular ways. The simple difference between the two metaphors is that one relies on facts and observations while the other is created merely so that society has an explanation for particular situations.

War of Words

2004-10-24T16:56:00.000-04:00

It is certainly more important to win the war of words as opposed to the physical war. This is especially true with the type of wars that we are now engaged in as a country. The fact of the matter is that most wars begin as a disagreement of ideas between two governmental bodies. Therefore, winning the physical war without having any success in the ideological war simply does not make sense. The lives of thousands or millions of individuals are wasted if a country fights a war and then does not finish it by achieving a greater ideological goal. Moreover, most wars that our country fights are not on our soil. They are expeditions we make to protect a people in another portion of the world that are unable to defend themselves. Accordingly, if we do not pay attention to the needs of these individuals, we are not accomplishing the task at hand. In Iraq, we are trying to free an apparently oppressed people. However, if we accomplish this goal by removing one regime and replacing it with a similar one, we have lost the war of ideas. We have left Iraq with same ideas as it started the war with and we have wasted the resources of our country and theirs.

If the United States was to adopt this method in Iraq, it is probable that they would use far more propaganda on the citizens of the country. There is no doubt that our countries eventual goal is to create a world of democratic governments; however, this may not be the goal of the Iraqi people. Therefore, our government may use propaganda and other psychological tools to convince the country that our goals should be their goals. While this may sound superficially as if our country should invest in mind control to win the war of ideas, this is not the case. Essentially, all the United States government has to do is convince the majority of the population in Iraq that the American way of life or a variation of it is better than the conditions they are currently in. If the government is able to accomplish this feat, the overall war effort in Iraq becomes a far smoother and less costly task.

The War on Terrorism

2004-10-24T14:39:00.000-04:00

Since the attacks on the World's Trade Center and the Pentagon over three years ago, the phrase "the war on terrorism" as been spread throughout the news. It has become the major propaganda symbol of the government in its attempt to rally support behind the revenge of these attacks. It is a metaphor that the United States government is employing to help its citizens understand exactly what is happening overseas in regards to this incident. However, the war on terrorism is a mere generalization because it does not encompass all that the United States is truly doing. The metaphor serves to give a general idea to the public, but it not truly a means of describing the entire "war" effort.

As with all metaphors, there are certain aspects of the idea or concept that are hidden and highlighted. In regards to the war on terrorism, the metaphor is accurate because we truly are fighting a war against an enemy that has brought danger to our country. We are acting in defense of our country and its people by aggressively attacking those who have attacked us. However, unlike a conventional war we are not fighting another country or group of countries; rather, we are engaging in a military expedition against a band of insurgents. We do not truly know where they are from, and we are not combating them in ways that would often be considered traditional military tactics. While we are utilizing many of the same tactics that are portrayed in wartime activity, the "war on terrorism" is not truly a war in the whole sense of the word. The metaphor serves its purpose to define the parameters, but there are still characteristics of this war that separate it from the wars our country has been involved in the past.

Joe Klein in his article argues that the metaphor of war is not the most accurate method of approaching foreign policy. Since Jimmy Carter's presidency, it seems as if every president finds something to declare war against whether it be education or Iraq. Therefore, he recommends that we use viruses as a more accurate metaphor for many of the diplomatic problems that we encounter. This metaphor is beneficial in that it highlights the fact that many foreign disagreements are exacerbated by ignoring them. Instead, foreign policy issues need to be treated much as a viral disease is so that the effects can eventually be mitigated. However, the viral metaphor also implies that there is no direct cure for any diplomatic incidents that we must merely try to mitigate the negative affects. Extinction is impossible. This is simply incorrect because there are been numerous foreign issues that past presidents have solved. Essentially, each of the metaphors is accurate to some degree, but both are unable to truly describe the situations at hand, as is the inherent nature of metaphors.

I do not believe that war can be redefined to accurately include terrorism as a part of it. War is far too structured to be considered terrorism. Terrorists seems to act without any legitimate reason for their actions, whereas a war is usually the direct result of some diplomatic incident. Moreover, wars end with treaties and peace agreements: a characteristic that seems improbable with terrorism involved. If this was true, then the American Revolution would have considered the Americans as terrorists with the aggressive actions they took. However, this is not entirely correct considering the circumstance in which they were presented. Overall, the only way that terrorism could become a literal definition of war is if our society changed its perception of war. War would have to become a secretive plot that occurred without reason. Essentially, war would have to lose its structure and become a battle of loosely knit organizations with immoral goals.

Rabbi Moshe Waldoks uses a different metaphor to relate terrorism to war. He says that we should "bomb" Afghanistan with food and water as a means of turning them against the Taliban. The fact of the matter is that in war we use bombs to send a message to our enemy and achieve the eventual goal. Therefore, Waldoks believes that rather than killing innocent people with these bombs we should send the message in a more peaceful manner. He believes that we can bomb Afghanistan with food and water are convey the message we are trying to send more successfully than we could with traditional bombs. He believes that the war can be fought peacefully, which is certainly not an aspect of terrorism.

The War On Drugs

2004-10-21T13:59:00.000-04:00

By this point in the class, it has become particularly apparent that metaphors as a whole are useful to our society because they allow us to express ideas that are otherwise intangible. They provide our cultures with firm methods of describing the aspects of our environment that are not entirely concrete. However, at the same time, these metaphors are inherently imperfect because the two objects being compared are not synonyms of each other. Therefore, it is accurate to say that metaphors highlight certain aspect of particular ideas, but they as hide other characteristics. This is particularly apparent in the metaphor of "the war on drugs" that we have used for decades in regards to the prevention of illegal drug use.

While to some extent the laws and enforcement that we have enlisted against drugs is accurately portrayed trough this metaphor. There are also other features of this "war" that are obscured by the metaphor. In a war, there is always a good team and a bad team: the one that is trying to bring evil to the world and the protectors. While superficially the drug users could be characterized as the enemy, in many cases, this is not the truth. Drug users are not always able to control there reactions. There are often exceptions to this protector versus enemy relationship. Under some circumstances, drug users are unable to change their habits. Therefore, they are arrested, jailed, and returned to the street only to be arrested a few months later on the same charge. This is simply because the users are unable to find the help necessary to extinguish the habit and begin a new life. This is essentially what is provided to the individuals in California and other states as described in the articles from Nell Bernstein. There they have instituted a program that allows drug abusers to alter their current path and try to "clean" themselves up. As a result, the enemy is no longer the users themselves, but the drugs and environment that cause the drug abusers to engage in the habit.

Moreover, in the war metaphor, it is often assumed that there is a winner and a loser. However, in the war against drugs, there is no true winner or loser. Sure when a drug user is jailed there is one less on the street, but tax payers still have to pay for that person to live. The jailing of numerous drug offenders is expensive, and in the end, they are all returned directly to the streets. Therefore, the government never truly wins. Jails are overcrowded hence more jails are built; more money is spent to care for these new inmates; and in the end, the progress towards a drug free country is hardly noticeable. The United States is still among one of the highest drug using countries in the world. In fact, we seem to lose more through the enforcement of drug laws than they gain: more money is spent and the use of drugs only increases.

The war on drugs truly is not an accurate metaphor what the United States is truly intending to do. Families are scared, individuals lives are ruined, and money is illegitimately used that is how the "war on drugs" is truly a war. In the sense of a winner and loser or a true enemy, the war on drugs does not have one. It is not a war in the sense that we are truly solving a problem because in the end the problem only seems to grow. It is a war in the sense that we are losing millions of lives. Instead helping the diseased individuals recover, we continually send them away until they come back for treatment again in the form of an arrest. We should truly be fighting a war against the system for it is what brings about the evil and deteriorating situations. Once we solve the problem with the system, we will be able to begin to solve the problem with drugs.

Locke's Metaphors

2004-10-18T20:43:00.000-04:00

John Locke is famous for his theory in psychology regarding the state of the human mind when a baby is born. His theory is essentially encompassed by the Latin phrase tabula rosa, which is translated to mean blank slate (a metaphor in itself). This idea is the basis of two major metaphors that Locke mentions in his short statement. Accordingly, Locke relates the human mind to both a blank white sheet of paper and a vast store, which respectively represent different periods in an individuals life. While there are several other metaphors that are used to describe this relationship between the mind, these two characterize the two essential core metaphors. As with all metaphors, these two in conjunction as highlight and hide a variety of the aspects that are actually personified by the mind.

By stating that the mind is a blank white sheet of paper, Locke is referring to essentially the same idea as he is in the metaphor of a blank slate. He believes that we are born into the world without any preconceived notions of what we will encounter. Essentially, our personality, thoughts, and characteristics will be formed as a result of experience and observations. Accordingly, this is the aspect of our mind that Locke intends to highlight in his metaphor of the mind as a vast store. Locke believes that we are born into this world with a mind the equivalent of a blank sheet of paper. There is nothing that we know and all that we become is to be determined over the rest of our time on this planet. The blank sheet is then to become "busy and boundless" with the story of our life and experiences. The sheet becomes a vast store that offers all that an individual has observed in his or her life as the product.

This theory and metaphor of the mind highlights the fact that much of what an individual develops into is the result of the environment that surrounds them and the experiences they have in life. This becomes evident when one observes the inevitable changes to an individual's personality who is exposed to war. In fact, many of the psychological disease that are prevalent in our society are the result of the environments that individuals are exposed. Moreover, as we age and experience more, this metaphor exposes the fact that we are more knowledgeable and our personality. However, at the same time, these two metaphors also disregard some of the core characteristics of our minds. Our minds are not entirely blank we are born. We are still born with instincts and certain characteristics. There is certainly an aspect of our personalities that are based on genetics and aspects beyond our environment. This is essentially why identical twins can be separated at birth but still be very similar when they are reunited years later even though they were raised under entirely different conditions.

The core of Locke's argument is based on the fact that he believes that the human personality is solely the result of the environment we are exposed to. He does not believe that genetics have any role in the eventual personality a person has. Therefore, Locke placed a heavy burden upon governments and societies to present individuals with the opportunity to be mentally health. Locke was a strong proponent of the idea that many of the mental diseases that are present in our society are the result of our cultures' own faults. Society was believe to format the eventual product of the people it produced. While Locke's metaphor is certainly successful in explaining particular aspects of our mind, there are other elements that are excluded. Consequently, his theory can not be the only source for psychological study; however, it has certainly been influential during its over 300 year history.

Walden

2004-10-17T17:13:00.000-04:00

Technological Regression

Walden is one of the most popular and well-known pieces of literature in American history. However, it is also among the most unique. The novel is more of a self help manual than anything. It tells the story of Henry David Thoreau's one year trip to the woods near Walden Pond in an attempt to "live deliberately". Essentially, Thoreau was attempting to eliminate the complications, luxuries, and excess of the society that surrounded him. His novel is a recount of an experiment intend to prove that as a society we can live simply and rely only on the necessities of life. Thoreau simply used himself to convey to society the overindulgence that it participates in.

At one point in the novel, Thoreau mentions that individuals on a train are better off for having seen Walden Pond. The essentially message that Thoreau is referring to is the fact that society has evolved and developed to such a great extent that they have forgotten their roots. Society has become absorbed by technology and how it has improved their lives that our culture had changed. Thoreau lived at a time when the railroads were just beginning to expand and the United States was progressing into the industrial age. This is especially significant because it was at this time that our country began to move toward the character that it currently possesses. Railroads and trains made our culture reliant on time. No longer did our society rely on the sun as an approximation of the time; rather, we used watches with accuracy to the second. Meetings were no longer held at lunch time but set with specific times in mind. Hours were broken into minutes rather that quarters. Thoreau conveys his opinion on this evolution clearly when he states, " Time is but a stream I go fishing in." (64)

We were slowly progressing towards a society of individuals bent on success. Individuals were no longer satisfied with clothes that kept them warm and houses that protected them from the elements. Now we needed the best and most elaborate possessions possible. Society simply lost sight of what happiness truly was. We required a measurement of our happiness that was not present before the technological progression of our country. Material possessions became the barometer of success and happiness as our society moved closer to a conglomeration of robots lacking the ability to acknowledge true happiness. Therefore, Thoreau traveled to Walden Pond as a means of escaping technology and materialism. He went to Walden Pond to suggest to an evolving society that it may be moving in the wrong direction. Thoreau used Walden Pond as a metaphor for life before the Industrial Revolution. This pond was a metaphor for what was truly important in life, and it was intend to portray what was truly necessary in life.

Their is one point in the story where Thoreau meets and man in the woods who appears to be poor and unhappy. However, Thoreau notices that if this man stops measuring his success by societies standards he might find his life to be far more enjoyable. This is a perfect example of what technology is unable to provide us. While it certainly improves the conditions of our lives, it also alters the way we view society. It cause us as individuals to seek more and misjudge success. Technology does not provide humans with happiness. We are happy when our essential needs are meet both physically and social. Technology on the other hand meets a more luxurious need that is not necessary for happiness. As a result, individuals in society begin to judge happiness based on higher needs, which eventually results in a less satisfies population. While there is no doubt that technology has benefited our society, there are also some drastic consequences that we must take into account.

Love as a Metaphor

2004-10-12T14:34:00.000-04:00

We use metaphors throughout our society to describe a variety of different vague terms and ideas. Metaphors describe aspects of our society that are otherwise difficult to grasp. They allow individuals to relate concrete examples and feelings with ideas that are otherwise less solidified in the human imagination. Perhaps one of the most difficult emotions that we have to describe is love. Accordingly, there are numerous different metaphors that have been created to try and grasp the concept. However, one of the most common metaphors that our society uses is that of "falling in love". This metaphor, as do all metaphors, highlights and hides different aspects of what love truly is and how we understand it. The metaphor emphasizes and provides a better understanding of love under some conditions; however, it also mitigate particular aspects of this emotion.

The metaphor of "falling in love" provides the perception that one can not control love and that once a person falls in love there is really no way to stop oneself. Moreover, we do not possess any sense of choice about who we love and who we do not love. The metaphor suggests that we fall in love and that is it; there is no stopping the inevitable. Moreover, love creates a rush as is highlighted by the falling aspects of love. We can picture the metaphor of falling in love as a roller coaster with enormous hills, and the feelings that result from love are very similar to the those experienced during a roller coaster. Finally, there are, of course, the negative aspects of love highlighted in the collision at the end of love. A person falls in love and eventually if the fall is not continuous they crash and feel the pain and hurt of losing someone the individual loved.

However, there are also aspects of love that are hidden by this metaphor for love. For example, much of the metaphor described above pivots on the idea that we do not have control over love. It is an aspect of our lives which can not be fully understood or controlled. This is, of course, not the case. In fact, we make many conscious decisions about the people that we love and who we choose to share our love with. While there are certainly aspects of love that we can not control, the majority of love is characterized by conscious decisions that we make as individuals.

Possibly, the most significant role that metaphors have on our life is that they shape our thinking. Since they are used to describe aspects of our world which are otherwise difficult to grasp, they become a crutch to society. We employ metaphors as a means of understanding the environment that surrounds us. Therefore, they shape our perceptions. In the metaphor of falling in love, the highlighted aspects of the metaphor often lead society to certain assumptions about love. For example, individuals may come to believe that they have no control over love; rather, they should just wait to begin falling. Individuals in society eventually come to believe that their true loves will eventually run into them one day, and the process of falling in love will begin. Accordingly, most of society does not start the day with the intention of finding love. In fact, we would find it odd if someone said that was the case. Instead, we merely sit back and wait for love to come to us. Essentially, not only do metaphors help us comprehend our environment, but they shape our environment as well.

Anger as a Metaphor

2004-10-09T18:18:00.000-04:00

Metaphors are an essential aspect of our society. We use them everyday, and they are all around us. They create a deeper understanding of the feelings, emotions, and reactions that we have to our surroundings. Metaphors are a method of explaining a situation which there is no word in the English language for. As emotions are complex concepts, they are also difficult to describe and that is why metaphors are employed so often to bridge the gap.

One of the most common metaphors in our society is the comparison between anger and dynamite. In this metaphor, individuals are trying to relate the uncertain and explosive aspects of anger that might better represent a particular person's mood. The idea that a person holding the anger inside is like a ticking bomb just waiting to explode is also alluded to by this metaphor. Moreover, when the person does explode, it is certain that no one would prefer to be around them. This metaphor also alludes to the saying that this individual has "a short fuse", which is another allusion to explosives in regards to anger. There are numerous different metaphors that play off of the idea that anger is dynamite. The essential idea behind these metaphors is that anger is simply a bomb that is waiting to explode and can be very dangerous upon combustion.

However, William Blake in his poetry introduced an entirely unique and new metaphor for the emotion of anger. Rather than relating anger to explosions, pressure, and intensity, he conveyed anger as a tree in his poem "The Poison Tree". In this poem, Blake describes his anger for a friend which grow as as a result of Blake's inability to communicate his anger. Instead, Blake prefers to let the anger "grow" inside him. As a result, his tree of anger grows and bears a shining beautiful apple; however, this apple is poisoned because it was bore by the fears, frustrations, and heart ache of anger. Therefore, when his friend sees the tree and decides to take a bit of the apple, it is not surprising that he ends up dead under the tree the next morning.

This metaphor between a tree and anger is intended to enlist a different relation between the emotions of anger in our society. Blake is attempting to describe how anger grows inside of us if we do not tell others about it. Moreover, the fear of telling those who we are angry at only allows our anger to grow inside of us. As a result, our personal anger grows tall and bears fruit. Inevitably, this inability to communicate our anger extinguishes our relationships with the individuals we are angry at. The relationships are poisoned by our personal trees of anger. Therefore, if this metaphor created by Blake was commonplace in our society we would like talk about anger as follows:

"the anger grew inside"
"my anger poisons me"
"fear just watered my anger"
"my anger built a canopy over our relationship"

Essentially, this is an entirely different way of perceiving anger which allows us to view the emotion in an entirely different light, witnessing aspects of it that we may not have considered prior to this point.

Socrates and Goody

2004-10-05T23:00:00.000-04:00

There is certainly a difference between the perceptions that Socrates and Goody have of the technology of writing and speech. They both represent the exact opposite ends of the spectrum. Socrates encompasses the belief that writing has mitigated the importance of speaking. On the other hand, Goody is more optimistic about the role that writing has played in the overall history of the human species. While Socrates believes that writing essentially ruins the art of speaking, Goody perceives it as an advancement.

Socrates deems writing as a technology that has dumped much of society. Just as many have characterized the next generation as a lazier generation due to the availability of technology. Essentially, technology makes our life easier, and it simplifies our day to day activities. While under many circumstances the level of responsibility remains much the same, the necessity for certain tasks declines as technology increases. Socrates believes that as a result of writing our society will lose the ability to speak. We will only be able to create images through written words: "I mean an intelligent word graven in the soul of the learner, which can defend itself, and knows when to speak and when to be silent." (2) The idea that written language creates images comes from the belief that speakers are able to directly support their ideas once they are introduced to an audience; however, this is not the case with writing. What an author intends to say is on paper with writing and the audience engaging in the reading of it really has no real interaction with the actual creator of the argument. This is, of course, not the case in public speaking. Essentially, Socrates is worried that the human species will forget how to communicate through oral language. We will become a society of writers and a society of orators. One will only be able to accomplish perfection in one of the arts, and the two will be unable to communicate between each other.

Socrates argument does not, however, coincide with Goody's belief on the role that writing has had on human society. Instead of focusing on how writing has been detrimental to human society, Goody views the written word as an expansion of technology. He perceives each successive advancement in technology as an improvement upon a prior way of life. Before we had writing, all information was transferred through speech. The only problem with this is that the stories altered over time and lost their original meaning. However, once an individual has the capability to write down the information from the story it can be presented to future generations with the same intent, language, and ideas. Goody does not ignore that this new technology does change the way we view the story: "Of course, this is true to some extent of all technology that influences us an our actions internally in a variety of ways. With a pen in our hands, we are different..." (136) Goody embraces this change in comparison to Socrates. He understands what writing has provided our culture, and he comprehends how it has shaped the way humans are.

We have had writing for longer than most can imagine. The written word has become an essential characteristic of human society. We are not able to survive without it because writing has become us. It is our main source of long term communications. It allows us to take our thoughts and inscribe them in time. While Socrates may be right when he states that we will forget how to speak as individuals once did, he does understand what writing has provided us. We are not a society of verbal idiots. Writing has expanded our thoughts and allowed us to express them in a different manner.

Images vs. Text

2004-09-30T19:48:00.000-04:00

There are a variety of different media that are present throughout our society. Each of them is characteristically unique in the multiple different facets it presents. Each can communicate a similar message yet alter the intent and overall perception of it. A message that is transmitted to an audience through a newspaper is entirely different than one that is portrayed in a picture. Can the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center truly be encompassed in a narrative, or does someone need to see the shocking footage that was televised over and over in the days following the attack? There are certainly times when words are sufficient to reveal a message; however, under many circumstances, images can present and enlist far more emotion. They have the ability to show what is intangible with the use of words.

Essentially, images have an eloquent quality that is not characterized in text. It is an eloquence not in the sense of how one might use the word in conversational contexts, but rather images’ ability to create it. Images have the ability to tap into emotions that society retains but text can not touch. A perfect example is the numerous funds that have ads on television for children in Africa. These organizations are successful in raising money because society’s emotions are enlisted through the pictures and images of these ads. A written article regarding the terrible conditions existing in Africa simply does not possess the bargaining power of actually seeing a dirty child, naked, and hungry in the streets.

It is the images that make reality real. Images leave very little room for interpretation. We see it, and it happened. Instantly, the situation that surrounds us becomes believable. As the saying goes, “You have to see it to believe”. As elementary as that sounds, people are not as likely to believe what they have not seen. The last time we enlisted the draft: Vietnam. While there are certainly many reason why this is the case, it must be considered that Vietnam was the first war that was ever televised. Every night Americans could sit in front of a television and see what their neighbors, friends, and family were experiencing. Before this point, war was not real. We knew it existed, but it was over there. All that we heard of war was in the newspapers without pictures, which assumes that its audience must be able to read. However, images involve minimal intellectual ability. Children can understand images because images are universal. There is no language to translate. It is there, and it is real. Moreover, we hold on to our belief of what we see far longer than we do our belief of what we read. For proof of this, simply compare the number of individuals claiming to have seen UFO’s or believe in them because of some image in a book with those who read and believe. The results are astonishing.

While images and text are both media that convey a message, they do it in two entirely different manners. The information we receive from each is respectively unique. Images have the capability to draw more from an audience and create a belief. Essentially, images are real. Certainly, text is in no means fake, but falsifying an images is much more difficult than writing a lie. We believe most ever image that is ever presented to us; however, we are often skeptical of what we read, saying it is opinionated and propaganda. While images employ the same means of falsification, we as a society refuse to notice. Images create reality: false or true. Images enlist emotions: strong and established. Images speak to the part of us that wants to believe.

Change of Voice

2004-09-19T21:17:00.000-04:00

It is obvious that as the voice of a narrative changes so to does the message. Different viewpoints offer different perspectives and information. There are certain individuals who you will provide with particular information, and there are others that you will neglect to mention such knowledge. The effects of different perspectives of narrative are not all that divergent from effects of alternative media outlets. As the method of transmitting the story alters the intention, message, and character of the incident changes. Although each of the stories I wrote is based on the same basic source of information, the messages, voice, and intent of each is different. Essentially, there are diverse assumptions that are made in each which eventually alter the entire story.

In the letters I wrote to my mom and friend, Lizzie, there are entirely distinctive voices used. The voice I use with my mother is far more formal and addresses the situation in a more professional manner, although the letter is still considerably less formal than the autobiography version of the story. This letter also addresses the context and much of the setting as if my mom has never encountered it, which is exactly the case. On the other hand, I make a variety of assumptions when I write the letter to Lizzie. She is far more familiar with the friends that I describe in the story. Accordingly, I do not allude to many of the details in the story, and I emphasize different aspects of the incident. In addition, I add several jokes in my letter to Lizzie: humor which only my group of friends would understand because of the time we have spent together. Essentially, I write the story so that it has the most meaning for the individual I know will be reading it.

However, the published version of the story changes drastically from the previous two. In this form of the incident, I chose not to use names; rather, referring to myself as a member of a group of two in order to create a little more diversity in the stories. In addition, there was a greater concentration on the setting and general characteristics of the story. Whereas my mom and Lizzie have a general understanding of the location of this incident, the reader of an autobiography my not. As a result, many of the external characteristics of the Hayward we left out of the story because they would have no meaning to most readers. Accordingly, there were aspects of the story that were included in this version that were excluded from the others. It is the autobiographical version of this incident that truly yields an entirely different impression about the situation.

Narrative

2004-09-16T21:11:00.000-04:00

In both these readings, there is a variety of language that is thrown around in an attempt to better understand the construction and history of narrative. Narrative is essentially one of the first technologies that humans were able to create; however, there is still a considerable amount of disagreement in regards to its core characteristics. Regardless, there is no doubt that narratives certainly carry a distinct collection of characteristics that run throughout and can be compared to virtually every narrative.

An example of a term that is used by Marie-Laure Ryan and can be applied to all literature and narrative is the idea of metaphors. Virtually, every intellectual novel that has ever been written contains some extent of metaphors. Metaphors are a stable of intellectual art and can be found in every form of text. Moreover, these metaphors are often not entirely obvious. In many case, the symbols can be interpreted literally as an entirely different entity then their metaphorical intentions. A perfect example of this is the is the red letter A in The Scarlet Letter. While literally the letter is a symbol of adultery, it comes to mean much more to the main character of the story, who has to where it. In fact, it can be argued that one can not fully understand the intent of the novel without first understanding the metaphor of the scarlet letter.

Roland Barthes, on the other hand, introduces terms in his essay that are more descriptive of the different structural characteristic of narrative. For example, he uses the term sequence which is intended to exemplify the logical succession of events in a narrative. It is the basic structure of a novel as having a beginning, middle, and end. It is humpty dumpty sitting on the wall, falling off the wall, and being helped by all the kings men. In this example, it is obvious that the story has a beginning, middle, and end. Moreover, each of these progressions is connected to the previous one making the story flow and allowing it to be understood by the audience.

In addition to these terms that are introduced in both novels, Ryan also discusses the methods of how a narrative is portrayed to the audience. As she reveals, there is a great importance to the medium of a message and the overall impression that an audience receives, watching a movie about a book and reading the actual book are two totally different experiences for the audience. A movie about a book is really just an interpretation of a novel by the director. As she states, "Whereas language can easily zero in on objects and properties, pictures can only frame a general area that contains many shapes and features." (10) This is exactly the case with Blade Runner, the movie, and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Both are about the same story line, but leave the audience with two entirely different. Whereas novels allow the individual to interpret the meaning on his or her own, a movie does not provide this flexibility. The director structures the pictures and camera angles so that the audience is more inclined to believe his or her point of view. Moreover, Blade Runner even goes as far as to change many of the essentially aspects of the plot to make it more marketable to the Hollywood audience. While at times it is possible to create congruent stories through different medias, it is difficult and often impossible with many narratives. Essentially, different medias simply provide different impressions, emotions, and interpretations in the audience. Medias are different, and they portray similar aspects of narrative in entirely different versions.

More then Just a Yellow Brick Road

2004-09-13T20:09:00.001-04:00

The Wizard of Oz in a sense has two entirely different entities. There is the enjoyable movie that is adored by children and adults of all ages, and there is the somewhat scientific aspect of the movie. For years, critiques have been analyzing the underlying themes and meanings that are present in the movie, looking to uncover what the director was truly trying to convey to society. Through this process, they have emphasized both the social and cultural critiques that are present throughout the movie.

One of the most significant symbolic items in the movie is the yellow brick road that Dorothy must follow. It winds through the most dangerous terrains and takes her to exotic and unimaginable places. To be totally honest, I had never really considered the road past the literal role it encompasses in the movie. However, if I was to create a symbolic representation of the road, it would appear obvious to relate the road to life. It seems as if the director is attempting to convey to his audience that although life certainly travels an unusual path that presents times of uncertainty and astonishment there is always a guiding light. There is always some aspect of our lives that conveys to us what we must really do. Although at times this light may be difficult to see, it is always there. There is always some partition of our surroundings that is signifying the next step that fate has planned for us.

Moreover, an even more prevalent theme in the movie is that of "over the rainbow". There is that pivotal moment in the movie when Dorothy opens the door from her house in "Kansas" and enters a world of color. A world unlike any other that she can ever imagine. A world on the other side of the spectrum from Kansas. Many have related this symbolism to the role of television, movies, and the media in our lives. It appears that this relationship goes far beyond a mere theory. In fact, much of the remainder of the movie suggests that this is exactly the critique that the director is presenting the viewer.

The story of The Wizard of Oz begins in Kansas and is portrayed in black and white, as if the author is saying that our lives are boring and repetitive without the media. Moreover, he places us in a state that is not exactly known for its upbeat culture. The director is truly trying to personify what it is to live in a farm town separated from all the media and the rest of the world. The characters of this movie simply have no vision of the world outside of that which they see. They can not imagine what life is like in Europe because they have not seen it, and they have never been told about it. The role media actually personifies in our lives is that of an information router. With the television, we are now able to view events, places, and people that generations before us could only imagine. As a result, our lives, at least in the eye of the director, are brighter and have more enjoyment. Hence when Dorothy steps into the colorful world of Oz, she is really crossing over into the world that media presents to us.

The director is essentially saying that the media adds color to our lives, and inevitably, it changes the way we perceive the world around us. Do we truly see the environment congruent to our ancestors? Certainly, there are other factors that can be attributed to this change, but the media has enlisted a significant portion of this alteration. It has provided a new generation with information that was never obtainable by those before us. It has made us a more educated and more aware society, and in the eyes of the director, this has enriched our lives. It has added color to a world that is otherwise bleak. Moreover, this change remains with us. Even when Dorothy returns to Kansas her shoes are still red. She has seen and experienced aspects of a world that she will remember eternally and that will shape the way she lives the rest of her life. This is basically the position of the media in our lives today. The media shapes our lives and unconsciously affects our decisions.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

2004-09-09T14:35:00.000-04:00

At What Point is Human No Longer Human

If asked what we are, no one in society struggles to supply the answer 'human beings". The answer is standard and has no real substitutes. However, if we are asked to define what a human being is, the conclusion is obscure. No longer are the responses uniform. We struggle to give meaning to the concept which is often taken for granted. What if the world were composed of robots and humans? Would we be able to draw a line between the two entities? Is it possible to even draw a line? This exactly what situation Philip Dick creates in his novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? He creates a world were the only difference between humans and androids (robots) is not a physical, but one mental capability: empathy. Dick asks his readers to consider the question of how far technology can progress before we have evolved from a species to a machine.

To some extent, technology is what defines us as human. Our ability to create tools and think intellectually is what separates us from the animal kingdom. Moreover, Homo Sapiens are defined as "wise men". Technology is what defines the human race; however, there is certainly a point at which we are no longer human. This end is defined by the time when we no longer carry the characteristic flaws of being humans. We avoid all mistakes because we see them before they become reality. Our body does not fail us. We can avoid all calls of death. We have become a race of super humans. A time when the concerns we currently live with in daily life are no longer existence because science and technology have extinguished them. This is the point in which we move from a world of humans to a world of humanoids.

To a great extent, our society has already been perfected to a less human state. We are not as natural today as our relative before us. Technology has given us the opportunity to achieve feats that were not conceivable yesterday. While generations before us relied on their memories for recollection, society now has pictures and movies of occasions we can not remember. With this technology, we are able to remember more than ever before. This is not because our memory is any better; rather, pictures and technological images allow us to create memories from instances we would not have otherwise known existed. We now have more false memories than we have true. We have been exposed to technology to such a great extent that technology has become our source of reality. We rely on technology to fill the gaps in our lives and provide meaning. It has developed an entirely different world separate from reality although we regard it as such.

This is no different in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? The androids in this story have their memories created for them. Their pasts are composed and constructed by engineers. In fact, these androids are often unable to determine if they are artificial or not. Moreover, the humans of this story do not even know if they are truly human. The artificial memories are so real that no one of this future world is able to differentiate fact from fiction and reality from imaginary. Essentially, this is Dick's intent. He wants to expose his readers to a world the emphasizes what he sees in society. Dick portrays to us how we are slowly evolving from humans to machines. With every invention we utilize, our society is moving further from our natural being. Technology is an asset to our society, but at some point, we must sacrifice convenience for a sense of uniqueness and reality.

Blade Runner

2004-09-08T09:18:00.000-04:00

After watching the movie Blade Runner and reading Philip Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, it appears that the two texts have two very different intentions. While many of the scenes are very similar between the two, the underlining meanings are entirely different. The emotions and characterizations in the movie enlist different interpretations than the internal monologue that Rick Deckard exhibits in the novel. Many of the central themes that are present in the novel are blatantly disregarded in the movie. Essentially, the novel is made to cater to the agenda of Hollywood, and as a result, the original message is transformed and lost.

One of the most significant exclusions in the movie is the presence of the Penfield organ. This organ that can apparently control one's emotions is never present in the movie. Moreover, it was this particular section of the story that enlists a feeling of suspicion in the audience. Exactly how much of a person's physical make up must be his or her own for him or her to be considered human? Can a person replace all of his or her organs and still be human? What even defines humanity? These are the questions that arise in readers throughout the story as a result of the Penfield organ. Consequently, as Deckard begins to relate with the androids, it is perceived to be the consequence of his own android-like qualities. Accordingly, the author compels us to wonder if Deckard is a humanoid himself. The only allusion to this in the movie is a trifled comment by Rachael to Deckard in a scene that is intended to be intimate. Dick is essentially critiquing the role technology is beginning to satisfy in our lives. He has imagined a time in which technology has become such a dominant part of our society that it has dehumanized us.

Moreover, this theme is mitigated to an even greater extent by the alteration in the intentions of the androids that are present on Earth. While in the novel the androids appeared to be escaping slavery on Mars, the movie has them seeking immortality or at least a longer life span. This newly conceived theme dehumanizes the androids, which was opposite the intent of the novel. By characterizing the humanoids as evil machines that wish to attach and kill all they can, the director of the movie loses the sympathy of the audience. On the other hand, Dick's intention was to draw the audience to the humanoid: show that they are not that dissimilar from ourselves. By achieving this goal, Dick is able to craft a compassion in his audience, which eventually allows him to achieve his goal. If we can relate to the androids, then we are more adept to see the androids in ourselves. The movie director fails to generate this empathy and consequently pushes his audience away from the androids.

There is no doubt that the central messages of each of the texts possess entirely different interpretations. One is formatted to critique society and the path it is following. The other is produced to entertain the public and enlist its imagination. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of these variations is that they come from the same story line. Amazingly, two individuals were able to portray a story that is essentially the same with two entirely different meanings. Moreover, these feat was accomplished by the expressions of the actors in the movie and the exclusion of Deckard's monologue.

Assignment 2, Module 1

2004-09-02T18:59:00.000-04:00

Breaking the Mold

As children, we rely on our parents to teach us what is right and what is wrong. They teach us how to speak, walk, and most importantly how to comprehend the world around us. Parents mold their children into acceptable members of society. However, when these parameters are removed, humans must learn societal standards from what they witness around them. It is human nature to act as one is perceived to behave. We all conform to the social norms and expectations that surround us. Essentially, the human brain is a blank slate at birth, which is eventually molded by the experiences and interactions that define our lives.

In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley presents a character who has been removed from this traditional means of upbringing. Moreover, he is not a child, but a fully grown adult with abnormal strength and capabilities. Once he is disowned by Frankenstein the monster is forced to live alone, wondering the earth. Accordingly, he learns the expectations of society through the media that is presented to him. He reads novels and treats them as reality rather than fantasy. The monster relates to the characters in the books and excepts their stories as legitimate representations of the world that surrounds him. On several occasions, he alludes to lines, themes, or ideas that can be directly related to this literature.

Furthermore, the monster is also exposed to the life of one family which he watches through a hole in their house. Again although he observes them as a variation of a sitcom he regards them as his own family. His entire day revolves around their schedule, and he works for them as if he was their long forgotten child. At one point, the monster even shares that his feelings coincide with those of the family. The lives of this family are a mere play that shapes this monster's life. He learns language, understands poverty, and defines love based on the actions of these cottagers. When he eventually asks Frankenstein to construct a female form of himself, it is a result of his inevitable inability to interact with this family.

Therefore, it is apparent that the monster's violence is a direct result of how he is treated by the society that surrounds him. When he is stoned and rejected, it hardly astonishing that the monster builds up tension and rage: "for I saw the figure of a man at a distance, and I remembered too well my treatment the night before to trust myself in his power." (88) He witnesses how readily society is to resort to violence as a solution and accepts this behavior as customary. Just as a child begins to act like a ninja after viewing an episode of "Power Rangers, so to does the monster strangle those who he believes are grounds for his suffering. As Shelley writes, "I remember too well the treatment I had suffered the night before from the barbarous villagers, and resolved, whatever course of conduct I might hereafter think it right to pursue, that for the present I would remain quietly in my hovel, watching and endeavoring to discover the motives which influenced their actions." (91) Through this statement, the author makes it clear that the monster is comprehending the world from his experiences.

We are all molded by our surroundings. Our experiences shape our morals, feelings, and attitudes. Social situations are controlled by a series of norms and expectations that members acquire through repetitive encounters with similar events. Although it is difficult to conclude that the monster Shelley creates would have been different if he was accepted by Frankenstein, it is certain that his rejection is the source of his malice. Frankenstein is responsible for the death of his family and friends for the his inability to parent his creation. He egotistically wished to accept the role of God but failed to carry the responsibility.

Frankenstein (78-128)

2004-08-31T21:25:00.000-04:00

It is perhaps this section of Frankenstein where we begin to truly realize Shelley's position regarding technology's affect on society. For the first time, Frankenstein's creation is given a character outside of the scientist's description, and it is at this time that the author reveals the consequences of technological abuse. It appears at first that this horrible fiend described by Frankenstein is in fact almost human. He shows compassion, emotion, and the willingness to learn: "when they were unhappy, I felt depressed; when they rejoiced, I sympathized in their joys." (93) Accordingly, Shelley implies that the unethical employment of technology is at times reasonable and can possess spectacular promise. However, as genetic engineering has provided miraculous cures for diseases, it also carries drastic ethical consequences. The same is true of the seemingly perfect characterization of Frankenstein's monster. Just as the reader begins to believe that he may not be a horrific character, the monster inflames the house of those he seemingly loved or at least wished to be excepted by. Furthermore, he murders William out of spite for his creator, and we are remind of Shelley's initial representation. Technology has its limits and these limits are not always clearly defined. No one should be refused the opportunity to experiment, but when the perimeter of research begin to invade nature and the undeniable presence of destiny, it comes time to relinquish our quest for perfection.

Assignment 1

2004-08-29T20:18:00.000-04:00

We live in a time that is like none other in the history of mankind. Innovation, progress, and technology shape each of our lives. Man is now able to achieve pedestals that could not have been imagine a mere century ago. We live in an age in which knowledge is measured by discovery. However, with this immeasurable power, there is also a responsibility. Certainly, the vast majority of technologies and societal advancements are beneficial to greater mankind, but on the same accord, there are facets of nature that are not intended to be intruded by human progress. Men and women are born a particular way, and it is no person's place to invade that uniqueness or change its course. When science is no longer controllable, we have reached the limits of our expertise and should leave the rest to fate. No one has the privileged of altering another person's destiny in life that is where the reality of science and technology stop and chance begins.

While there are some who disagree with this assertion, Mary Shelley(Frankenstein) and Nathaniel Hawthorne ("The Birthmark") are not among them. In their respective writings, each contrives a fictional depiction of the future they believe mankind to be approaching. Although both wrote in time periods drastically different than contemporary society, their ideas are strikingly similar. Each story warns of a time in which mankind has lost control of its ability to innovate and set foot on uncharted terrain. Science is no longer controlled but left to chance. The technology of these stories do not enhance the world that surrounds us; rather, it attempts to alter nature's predisposition.

In Frankenstein, Shelley introduces the reader to a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, wise beyond his years with the abilities to do the unimaginable. His brilliance bestows him with prestige and utter fame until Frankenstein over steps his boundaries, pushing the limits of nature. He attempts to create an artificial man larger than any living human. While some would celebrate such an achievement, Shelley characterizes it as a collapse of the human intellect. Rather than portraying the culmination of Frankenstein's efforts a success, she inevitably condemns the man to misfortune. Instantaneously, after the success of Frankenstein's creation, the degree of his failure is made evident: "Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created." (42) Frankenstein sacrifices his health, family, and perhaps his brother for the creation of this ogre. In a matter of movements, Frankenstein's life is transformed into a conglomeration of hardship and disaster. He overextends his boundaries and is forced to live with the inevitable results of his one worst decision.

Hawthorne's story is no different than Shelley's. Here a scientist, Aylmer, attempts to achieve perfection in a place where it is not necessary. As Hawthrone writes, "We know now whether Aylmer possessed this degree of faith in man's ultimate control over Nature." (1) Aylmer tries to remove a birthmark in the shape of a hand on the cheek of his wife, Georgiana: a small blemish on one of nature's finest creations. However, in his endeavor Aylmer eventually sacrifices that which is most dear to him. By amending nature, he failed to realize that perfection is an insurmountable goal that we are created unique, and there is only so much control man can have over his life. Science is not always the answer to life's questions because some questions are intended to be unanswered. As Shelley writes, "Learn from me, if not by my precepts at least by my example, how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge and how much happier that man is who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow." (38) There is that which is ment to remain a mystery to eternally intrigue us. For if man knew all there was to know, there would be no reason to awaken each day eager to explore.

2004-08-28T12:05:00.000-04:00

I found that after concluding my reading of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" there were several conclusions to be made about the story's intent. It appears the Hawthorne writes this story as a reaction to the evident technological advances that have characterized our societies for the past century. On more than one occasion, there has be an individual who dreams of a day when machines, technology, and the human brain have created a world of imperfection. A world in which any disease is curable, and mistake is a word virtually eliminated from our vocabulary. This is exactly what Georgiana personifies. She is a woman that rivals Aphrodite's beauty, yet she has one flaw. It is this flaw that consumes her life and those around her and eventually leads to her death. Both her and Aylmer dream of the day when her face can be free of the hand that consumes it, just as society dreams of the perfect future. There is only one person, Aminadab, that realizes the hand's beauty without disgust: "If she were my wife, I'd never part with that birthmark." He understands that imperfection is what adds enjoyment to life that flaws are but a part of human nature. It is the imperfect world that allows us to dream of perfection, and when we are no longer able to dream life begins to lose its interest. While we may be able to correct many of the defects that engulf our lives, it may be better to leave them and relish their presence. Perhaps the world is better in the present than the perfect future.

Basic Info

2004-08-25T21:08:00.000-04:00

I am a sophomore here at Miami, and I am originally from Barrington, IL, which is a suburb northwest of Chicago. I have a younger brother who is a junior in high school and a dog named Oscar. I am majoring in finance and marketing here at Miami, and I also hope to get a minor in entrepreneurship. My hobbies among other things include watching and participating in sports of all kinds. Needless to say, I have hardly been able to pull myself from the Olympics the past week. On campus, I am involved in numerous different activities including Pi Sigma Epsilon, a marketing and sales fraternity, and Entrepreneurial Connection. Also this summer I hope to go abroad through the Miami School of business.