"Death to America!" - Amin

“It is okay for the government to mislead in order to promote security.”

It most certainly is not. Or at least mostly.

Before watching Control Room, I had a juxtaposing perspective on this prompt to that I have now. The way I saw it, in the case of an economic crisis or structural problems, the public should not be informed of the issue because something is only good for as long as people perceive it that way. Now I see that my scope was limited to viewing security as a sense that the public feels like there are no issues that can harm them. I still believe that in the case of internal issues, it is okay for the government to mislead to make the public think everything’s dandy, but have only recently realized the further extent of the prompt.

The 2003 invasion of Iraq was certainly not something that was an internal issue for America, and the danger (or at least alleged danger) to American security was certainly not hidden from the American public. This is an example of a different kind of misleading, where this “nonsense” as a Jazeera journalist calls it in the film is established to evoke fear in the Americans. This fear of being attacked causes the public to consider attacks and takeovers in Iraq to be acceptable and even respectable, for the sake of “freedom” and “security” as it is constantly reiterated by government officials and soldiers.

Ultimately, this allows the American military to act almost without boundaries, because as an Iraqi journalist stated, “What can we do? We just shut up.” I found it almost comical that President Bush took all but three sentences in this celebration of American success to suggest that the UN lifts economic sanctions in Iraq, pretty much confirming where his priorities are.

Many may look at this situation as having negative consequences limited to Iraq, delineated by the economic and political disarray they were left in and remain in today, but I believe the real issue lies in the social factor of this tragic story. In the end, the Americans got what they wanted, and left Iraq (but not really because they’re still there) with control over oil reserves and a radical view of the Middle East. Perhaps unintentionally, the American media radicalized the Iraqis and Arabs, even alienating them. Those within the American public who were left with the biased view of this conflict most likely have an alienated view on Middle Eastern inhabitants, and although being scared of everything and everyone is perhaps the way to security, it would be our failure as social beings.

What gives me hope is that AL Jazeera News came out of this story as the hero. I hope they can continue “ruffling a lot of feathers” and challenging ‘fact’, and break down a powerful statement by a journalist in the film: “Objectivity is a mirage”.

"Nobody builds walls better than me"

Original Article: http://europe.newsweek.com/2016-presidential-election-donald-trump-make-america-great-again-520289?rm=eu

it’s true: TRUMP is president

It seems that the nightmares of so many have been made true by the votes of a few more. Brash character Donald Trump triumphed over Hillary Clinton, the announcement of what many are calling the apocalypse coming by 2am on November 9.

Early polls proposed a comfortable lead for the democratic candidate but American and foreign onlookers were instead slowly lead to the realization that this would be the president of the most powerful nation in the world:

Regardless of flaws in both candidates and Trump’s consistent confidence in his victory even before the votes were casted, there was hope for many that the American voters would come through and make the right decision.

Once 2am rolled around and Wisconsin caused the Trump-meter to tick over 270, the number of electoral votes needed to win presidency, and all hope for those many was shattered as the most shocking and perhaps most consequential electoral decision was made.

With plans to evict groups of Mexicans, Muslims, and whichever other minorities he can get his unusually small hands on out of the country in a similar fashion as he did contestants on his show The Apprentice just last year, as well as to abandon the Affordable Care Act, it will be an interesting 4 years under the reign of Donald Trump.

Coriolanus Outline

Coriolanus Outline

• ·       Extract from Coriolanus
• ·       Specifically, this occurs after Coriolanus has been exiled from Rome and as a result has approached his former enemy Aufidius with plans of collusion in an attempt to take revenge
• ·       This leads to their temporary team0up only to end in Coriolanus’ mercy and death at the hands of Aufidius
• ·       In the passage, Aufidius is discussing with his lieutenant Coriolanus’ successes and his own reverence for the main character as he considers the collusion
• ·       The extract is organized so that Aufidius clearly overpowers his lieutenant in his abundance of dialogue, only interrupted by a single question

• ·       In this extract, Shakespeare firmly emphasizes Aufidius’ reverence for Coriolanus despite his consistent antagonism towards him (especially through the use of animal imagery) and effectively foreshadows Coriolanus’ ultimate demise.
• ·       Thematic approach

• ·       Large part of the passage seemed to be an appraisal of Coriolanus with minor hints towards the planned murder of him
• ·       Multiple references to dragon (Coriolanus), which is fierce and mystical beast. Doesn’t fit into the body motif societal system
• ·       Animal imagery (osprey simile)
• ·       Mutual respect
• ·       Fire drives out one fire (only someone as powerful as Coriolanus could kill him) – dragon also parallels
• ·       Tomb (foreshadows public death)
• ·       Refuses to call him by his awarded name (always Caius or him)
• Final line shows his plan to kill him and make him his (stand on his body sign of overpowering)

• ·       Through use of animal imagery among other literary aspects of the extract, Shakespeare is able to show not only Aufidius’ reverence for Coriolanus but also his continued antagonism towards him and plans of murder. Shown significantly through the metaphors of dragons/fire.

• ·       I found this extract to be  powerful in that it allows the audience to see an alternative perspective of the main character through its omniscient third person narrator and through the literary depth which Shakespeare employs in the use of literary devices and character complexities in these apparent soliloquys 

IOutlineC - Moons of Jupiter

Intro:

• Moons of Jupiter story
• Situated near the beginning of the story when Janet first talks to her father in his hospital room
• First reveal and development of the relationship between Janet and her father
• The story that incited her success this story unlike those before it aimed to include the complexities of a regular novel in spite of its condensed format
• The stylistic choices in which it was written, tracking back and forth from the future, to the present to the past.

• Munro manipulates time in order to juxtapose stereotypical short story structure and also express human complexity in the way that people typically don’t think linearly while also characterizing the relationship between Janet and her father through implicit communications.

Chunk 1 (1-7):

• First section focuses implicitly on the flourishing of relationship between the main characters
• Can be seen through the writing and beeping of heart monitor expressing life as a bunch of jagged lines (fluctuations like a rollercoaster) and a ticking timebomb (waiting for life to end)
• Perhaps defines life as a few jagged lines as opposed to one flat line
• Physical display of the room shows that her father’s most intimate and vulnerable sides are literally exposed, similar to his exposure of emotions in this tough time
• “I tried to ignore it” shows Janet’s ignorance to the situation and foreshadows the complexities of their relationship in her composure (where perhaps she should’ve showed more care)

Chunk 2 (8-30):

• Munro employs periphrasis at the very beginning of this section, tracing back to the events from the previous day, as starting in the middle of the story she is now beginning to build context for the reader
• Through her intentional way of retelling of previou events, the reader can infer that the narrator has seen her father in a similar state before, in addition to the father and her having a special, not very effusive relationship
• Munro then returns back to the present day to characterize the daughter and the father as being proactive, wanting to hear a selection of alternatives before reaching decisions (In tying with Munro’s style of capturing the essence of human life)
• Adds tension to the plot by stating that without the operation the father would only have 3 months to live, and that to in a bedridden state.
• Develops this theme of emotional intelligence as in spite of his situation Janet is trying to put a positive spin on an otherwise negative situation.

Chunk 3 (31-40):

• From advancing plot, Munro traces back to characterize and build context.
• She uses personal language to allow the reader to feel exactly Janet would be feeling at that time
• She then goes on to describe the relationship between Janet and her father as being not effusive and of too much approval but instead of tacit affection.

Conclusion:

Munro defies the typical conventions of short stories by employing periphrasis from the very onset of the story to build plot and context simultaneously - in a seamless fashion. This is effective in creating a story that is both centered and continually moving forward.

IOCan'tbebothered

https://soundcloud.com/user-875794494/ioc-practice-2

Gang Related

Gang Related is one of the top songs on American rapper Logic’s (aka Sir Robert Bryson Hall II) album Under Pressure. It is a powerful piece written in the perspective of his brother, attempting to subvert the glorification of violence common in hip hop by writing about the criminal activities (especially gang activity) that surrounded him as a child.

This is one of the most empathetic and hence heart-wrenching songs I’ve listened to. Similarly to a lot of literature designed to evoke a sense of undiscovered empathy, Logic chose to write the song from the point of someone experiencing hardship, and in this case, such gang violence and hardships primarily brought on due to economic conditions is experienced by so many yet not understood by many more.

Right from the beginning of the song, Logic comes out saying “Livin’ life like this, Gotta paint a picture when I write like this”, displaying his desire to bring about an empathetic mood through his ability to “paint a picture” of the actual life he grew up in.

This empathy is furthered by the fact that this is being told with reference to Bobby (Logic) as a baby among all this “hysteria”, surrounded by drugs and criminals. Because babies are associated with innocence, the listener is made to feel sympathetic towards Logic or those in a similar situation. In the song, Logic ensures to inform the listeners that this kind of life isn’t in fact a hobby or preference, but something forced on people by ‘the system’. This is emphasized through stating “If I sell a brick [of drugs] I can buy a house; if they find the key they might lock me up; but I take the chance cause I need that s**t and don’t give a f**k”, indicating the need for this lifestyle in order to stay economically afloat; Logic also focuses on the desire to escape when it is said “Hope my little brother make it out, every night what I pray about… Got a son on the way, but I cling to the streets even though I want to run away”, and Logic did in fact escape while many others aren’t quite as lucky.

This song can be used as an anthem of gang life and the struggles of escaping such a life and poverty. Logic’s ability to empathize with his brother and other people experiencing similar issues allows the audience to also empathize as he truly does paint a picture.

Logic's Gang Related

David Foster Walice Munro

Alice Munro is an award-winning Canadian writer responsible for the creation of a collection of short stories which have captured the attention of the world. Her international neighbor David Foster Wallace is a man of many works, be it novels, short stories or essays. One such essay is ‘This is Water’, where Wallace puts forward his theory about a higher education and what it can offer students.

One of the greatest praises of Munro’s stories comes due to the author’s ability to create a story out of ordinary situations or everyday life. Taking a look at one of the stories ‘The Moons of Jupiter’, Munro follows a character as she faces the struggles of a dying father and distant children; this is perhaps a situation which has been experienced by so many, as opposed to a UFO boarding or even a professional sporting career which are experienced by so few or none. Not only does this allow readers to gain empathy for something which many go through, but also displays the author’s ability to create so much out of something which would be considered by many as ordinary.

Already, we can see a clear link between Wallace’s theory and Munro’s stories. Wallace spends a great deal of his renowned essay focusing on a supermarket situation and the empathy that can be evoked if you open your mind to others’ lives and struggles. If it happened to be the woman from Munro’s story in the supermarket, and she was acting slightly out-of-line, someone who adopted Wallace’s theory and could consciously chose how to perceive others would be able to understand her problems or thought process without having to speak to her, thus achieving greater perspective of the world and of the people who are more than just obstacles (as Wallace extensively focuses on in the essay) than someone who finds themselves unnecessarily frustrated at the fact that the universe doesn’t centre itself around him or her. In such a situation, what is going on – or the plot – is secondary to the meaning which can be extracted, similarly seen in Munro’s publications where there is little actual plot or climax which would be expected in fictional writing. Both of these authors choose to derive as much meaning as possible out of something so ordinary, solidifying their positions as the world’s leading writers.

This is furthered by the employment of an omniscient narrator in most of Alice Munro’s stories which intends to make sense of the world beyond the perspective of a protagonist, creating extensive literary depth; such a depth is striven for in David Foster Wallace’s ‘This is Water’, with both writers hoping to see and share with their readers the beauty that can be found in the little things in life.