Splinters of the Branch

Review for Japanese Literature

2007-05-14T13:55:00.000-07:00

Intro to Japanese Lit.

What did Japan borrow from China?

What is Shintoism?

What is Feudalism and how does it relate to Japan?

Buddhism

What is the Eightfold Path?

Name several characteristics of Buddhism.

What is the Middle Way?

What is Karma?

What is Zen?

Tanka Poetry

Was haiku inspired by tanka?

Name several common themes in tanka poetry.

What is assonance? Give an example.

Haiku

What is the structure of haiku?

Does haiku have to follow that structure? What’s more important?

What is imagery and how does it relate to haiku?

Zen Parables

Give a quick overview of at least one parable.

What is a parable?

Give the morals of each parable.

“Nose”

What is the theme of “Nose”?

What makes others laugh at Zenchi?

What is the moral of the story?

Draft, Re-draft, Re-draft, and Re-draft

2007-02-14T10:02:00.000-08:00

In high schoool, re-drafting (or revising, if you prefer) felt like extra to work to me. Typically, re-drafting simply meant, as Harper says, an opportunity to recopy my work and change a couple of words. It seemed like mindless busywork. I do not know if no teacher explained what redrafting meant or if I simply could not understand, but I do know that my writing involved exponentially when I learned this skill in college.

Spandel seems to offer some decent advice when it comes to what she calls "writing badly." I'm still not entirely sure what that means, but it must have something to do with how chaotic one's first draft can be. Sometimes that first bad draft is part of good writing. I do not even know how many first drafts I've simply tossed away. That appears to be what Spandel is saying about writing. That a poorly written draft can be as helpful (if not more so) than a decently written one.
On a slightly different note, I have noticed that many of these readings are focused on a particular type of writing, seemingly more creative than expository. I myself have that redrafting is much more rewarding (and entertaining) when working with some sort of creative or narrative structure. But when I recall the types of writing I did in high school, I mainly remember writing reports, research papers, and other less-creative essays. I wonder if these readings are not too focused on a specific type of writing. I sometimes feel Spandel is too--what's the word I'm looking for--artsy in her view of writing. Perhaps what an English teacher defines as good writing (publishable and entertaining) is not what others would define as good writing. This is somewhat of a tangent but when English teachers are expected to teach more fundamental skills in writing, can we then focus so specifically on one mode? Perhaps there should be writing teachers in every field from English to science describing and teaching their respective modes of writing.

Here is my link for this week. It's from Princeton's writing resources. Basically it describes methods of revision and other hints at the revision process.
http://webware.princeton.edu/sites/writing/Writing_Center/handouts/html/Revision.htm

Five Paragraph Essay

2007-02-08T07:17:00.000-08:00

Wesley's view of the five paragraph essay is becoming more and more common. I agree that to some extant the FPE does inhibit an element of learning by placing too much emphasis on structure. FPE's, as Wesley puts it, do "stunt students' critical thinking abilities" to some degree. Confinement of any sort in writing does obviously decrease other freer modes of writing. That said, however, the FPE does serve a purpose when used effectively.
Wesley points out that we must maintain coherence and unity in an essay. Although creating the FPE originally perhaps served the purpose of being easily graded, the FPE also is clear and concise when responding to a topic. The FPE is a useful tool that can be used in numerous academic writings. The FPE teaches students to look at how one organizes paragraphs and thoughts, how to expand ideas, and how to concisely convey a point. Of course the FPE is not suited to 7-9 page papers; it was never meant to be used as such. Wesley sets up that argument even though it is unnecessary. No one, at least I hope no one, believes that FPE's serve all types of writing and topics.
I also disagree with Wesley's premise that the FPE denies students the ability to think for themselves. Borrowing a well-defined, histortically effective form is a great way to remove one obstacle from writing. For example, borrowing a poetical form, such as a sonet, can remove the necessary structure, rhythm, and rhyme search from the equation and allow a student to simply convey his or her thoughts, free of that obstacle. The FPE is similar. Use a form that is time-tested to convey one's thoughts and opinions with clarity and conciseness. Though perhaps not romantic or effective in every setting, it does not necessarily inhibit thinking.

Here is a link discussing the merits of FPE's.

http://www.msu.edu/~phl/phlskills/writing.htm

1st Resource Link

2007-01-24T21:14:00.000-08:00

All right, so I forgot to do the resource. We can't all be perfect.

Here is the link I wanted to post. This is a link to the Internet Public Library. Specifically, this site covers various methods and strategies for revision, including some helpful guidelines for peer-editing.

http://www.ipl.org/div/aplus/linksrevising.htm

Writing Workshops

2007-01-24T13:11:00.000-08:00

After reading Williams' chapter on classroom workshops, I felt compelled to write an entry on this strategy. First, I believe workshops are one of the greatest ways to help students improve their writing. Not only do they allow students to receive valuable feedback but provide students the opportunity to assess what works within a draft. Also, as Williams puts it, "Writing is a social action" (140). Persuading students to begin to discuss their own writing is a great way to make writing more a matter of habit rather than chore. That said, there are several problems I have seen with the implementation of writing workshops in the classroom.
First, while balancing the levels of student ability per group is a great idea, ensuring that each group actually provides insightful, and at times correct, feedback is difficult at best. Even working with college students in workshops of these sorts, I have found that many students will either provide pointless feedback (e.g. "It's good") or incorrect suggestions, usually gramatically corrections. Even with revision guides such as the one Williams offers, students will sometimes prefer to simple answer the quetions and finish the task as opposed to actually offer constructive criticism. I have seen this situation on more than one occasion in more than one setting.
Second, the other problem is that although the social benefits of these groups are important (especially to Williams, apparently), social interaction can only do so much. Just being a part of a group and discussing one's writing does not necessarily improve writing.
The most important element of these groups is providing a beneficial example of a writing workshop. Perhaps the teacher should take time to train several students in the art of facilitating these groups and place on in each workshop team. Or perhaps have a fake group set up in a fishbowl like discussion where the other students can observe how these groups should work. Too often I have looked over papers or participated in these groups that simply lack constructive feedback. Providing the right model is paramount when using this potentially beneficial strategy.

Integrating Media: Film, Literature, and Theatre

2006-12-13T21:51:00.000-08:00

There are many reasons to integrate media into the classroom: student interest and engagement, diverse learning environment, and more. Of most concern for me, however, is that students begin to examine the ways in which the media sphere shapes information, presentation, and to some extent reality. By successfully integrating various media into the classroom, I hope to teach students to more effectively and critically navigate their mediasphere.
First, nearly all media presented in class should go through some sort of deconstruction process. The best way to accomplish this task is to provide the students with many variations of the same story. For example, although some schools have difficulty with 'R' rated movies, Troy is a movie version of The Iliad that definitely sets for a different agenda than Homer's classic. Viewing these two together would allow the students to analyze the movie's agenda and consider typical movie conventions. The activity could lead to a decent discussion as to what Hollywood thinks America needs for its movies. This deconstruction will allow students to more effectively resist media images and persuasions.
To understand the differences in experiences between text, film, and theatre, students should attempt to decipher the intended goals and audience of each medium. This activity would involve viewing several versions of the same story. For example, The Wizard of Oz is a good example of how book, film, and play (Wicked) attempt very different goals. The activity would have to begin by reading the book version, which is a sort of analysis of capitalism, American society, and the gold standard. After deciphering what key ideas the book set forth, the students would then compare the book with the original film version. They would see the slight differences, examining how those changes create a different meaning. Finally, the play Wicked would allow the students to view the story from a postmodern view, which in turn would all the students to see both the book and the film in a slightly different light.
In addition, televison and other media would have to be a critical part of the classroom. Creating an environment in which the students could learn to think critically about all the images and advertisements presented to them each day is extremely important for students in today's world. Students must begin to analyze the way in which advertising shapes their world and their lives. One example may be to simply list all the fast food restaurant slogans on the board and have the students identify which slogan goes with which restaurant. The students will likely accomplish this quite quickly. Then the students should compare that experience to matching important scientific finds to their discoverors. For example, Marie Curie's discovery of radiation. Examining the way in which important scientific finds are less likely to be recalled than some food joint's slogan could lead to an important discussion on American reality.
Creating an enviroment in which students can increase their skill at navigating the great media sphere is an important task for any teacher. By integrating media and technology, teachers can hopefully allow students to critically anayze their world and begin to resist or accept that reality more consciously.

Who Owns Me?

2006-12-13T21:22:00.000-08:00

Television
My Name is Earl - NBC (GE)
The Office - NBC (GE)
Lost - ABC (Walt Disney)
The Dail Show - Comedy Central (Viacom)

Radio
NPR - NPR (NPR)
Drive 105 - 105.1 (Walt Disney)
Cities97 - 97.1 (Clear Channel)

Internet
Mediacom

I'm sure there's more to it than that, but those are the ones I really pay attention to. Ownership is a strange thing. I find it really odd that a corporation that sells ovens would own a TV station. I guess if it makes money then a corporation will buy it. This ownership is a large problem. First, censorship is an obvious problem. If a station is owned by GE, for example, then it's likely not going to air something that is negative to its owers, even if ovens are exploding all over the place. Worse, corporations, by their very nature, are more concerned with profit margin than anything else. That means that if something is bad for business, the customer won't have access to it. In fact, anti-trust suits are coming up all the time now with the fewer owners in today's political climate. My internet and cable provider is actually suing Sinclair for breach of anti-trust laws. The worst thing, however, is that this kind of influence is all very covert. You may think that you are getting a piece of information from a variety of sources but in fact it may all come from one source, a single corporation. For example, one may read in a magazine about how electrician unions are creating problems that are making the price of toasters go up. Now that may seem odd and at first you may simply pass it off. Then you see a similar story on NBC news. Then you hear it on the radio. Eventually you start believing that opinion because you think that it is coming from so many sources it must be true. In reality, the corporation may simply be telling its companies to run a certain story that will be good for the corporation's dealings with the electrician unions. I think the secrecy of it all is the worst part of all it.

Music Preference

2006-12-13T21:13:00.000-08:00

Music is an interesting topic for me. I have a hard time narrowing down the type of music I like. I do not tend to enjoy the newer music. It all sounds very similar to me, and not in a good way. It's a discomforting similarity. Mainly I listen to The Pogues, Flogging Molly, and other less known bands. They're not unheard of bands, but not ones people necessarily readily know. I guess the genre would probably something like alternative, though what that means any more I have no idea.
The song that sticks out to me as one taht reflects my taste in music is "Fairy Tales of New York" by The Pogues. I guess I like how different the song is from what I had heard before. I like the incorporation of the storyline, which is almost deconstructionist in tone, and the Irish influence. I spent three months studying in Ireland, and that sound just kind of stuck with me. As one professor told me, he can always here Irish music when it's playing. He just knew the sound. It made a home in him. I guess that's what happened to me, too. The music just sort of stuck in me.

Collegeville Documentary

2006-12-13T20:59:00.000-08:00

I would love to create a documentary about Saint John's University in Collegeville, MN. There are many things I would want the audience to learn about that culture. I found something very strange about a liberal arts college that basically catered to white, upper-middle class people and created a real secluded place to learn. The students even joked about how they were behind a "Pine Curtain." That, actually, would be a great name for the documentary. What I find so intriguing is the use of a euphamism reserved for Soviet Russia being used to describe the way in which these students are sheltered from the world, allowing only a filtered reality throught the treeline.
The main activity in the fall would have to be the Johnnie football games. There is a strange thing that happens there at that time. I find it hard to describe. It kind of reminded me of a high class party, a sort of balck tie affair where all the "in people" know everyone and the others do not belong. At least, that's the feeling I usually got from them. There's a real sense of connectedness, not only with other Johnnies but a sense of...I think what I'm looking for here is class structure. I was always well aware that my upbringing (farm boy, born and raised) did not fit with the class that attended that institution. I felt like I was sitting in at a secret society's meeting all the time.
Other activities would include the formal affairs such as the alum dinners and the senior dinner. Also, the mother/son dance would likely be a good place to get some insight into that world. I never attended that, but it seemed like a very "privileged" kind of activity. Something a cetain class of people would partake in.
The interviews would have to include students who were more than first generation Johnnies (of which there were many), varying social classes, professors, alums, and even the staff workers. I think with all those ideas and thoughts, one could create a decent view of that world.

Evening News

2006-12-13T20:49:00.000-08:00

The news is not really news. Typically, the news is simply filled with advertisements and fluff that makes us all feel better, a sort of habit that many peopel just get into. What I've tpyically noticed about news programs is that they are obsessed with getting ratings rather that reporting meaningful news. There is always a type of slogan attached to every news clip (which are typically short and superficial). The slogan is usually some sort of threat or cliffhanger that instinctively makes one curious to know what that could be. "Something in your home is potentially deadly. That story coming up in just a moment." These types of statements drive me insane. I do not care what is coming up. Just read the news. I'll listen to the story about the deadly household product when it comes, no need to throw in enticement.
Weather and sports appears to be the most important elements of the news program. I guess that makes sense since the news is rather meaningless anyway. For the most part it's just something people watch either while their eating dinner or before they go to bed. It's a sort of habit really, something that makes people feel better about themselves, as if they are keeping abreast of the world and are in the loop. And even though the actual news clips are relatively meaningless, they usually help support the mainstream idea of reality. Nothing too outrageous. Just enought to feel like we are up-to-date with the usual stuff and that everything is ok in our part of the world. I mean, at least we're not like the Middle East or north Minneapolis.

Xylofocor

2006-11-02T15:47:00.000-08:00

Xylofocor

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A double-blind trial showed that in 88.88% of subjects tested Xylofocor reduced A.T.S. by nearly 48.7%.
When taken out its packaging and hung above the infant’s crib, Xylofocor goes to work immediately, stimulating the child’s prefrontal cortex and eliminating many of those nasty A.T.S. symptoms.

“Xylofocor saved my baby!” says Wendy Nelson, of Lake Geneva, Wisc. “You NEED Xylofocor now!”

*Available at Walmart, Target, and K-Mart

Perfect Number

2006-10-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Media Identity Formation

2006-10-19T08:47:00.000-07:00

After viewing the the third episode of the television series Lost, I asked my wife a few questions about her experience. My wife does not usually get into television shows, so her connection with Lost is a rather rare occurence. After the interview, I believe I undertand her connection a little better. Viewing Lost creates a sort of pseudo-community for her (and me, I guess) by becoming a sort of ritual in our lives.
First, I observed my wife as she watched Lost. The first thing I noticed was that when more stressful events occured, she would pull closer to me. This tendency leads me to think that she feels a very real connection with these people, as though they were real people who are possibly friends or at least acquantances. I cannot imagine feeling that way without having some sort of relationship with the characters. The other tendency I noticed was that my wife sat still. This is actually a very rare occurence: she is usually running around, very energenic. She usually likes to be doing something else while watching TV, folding laundery or paper work, etc. But with Lost she is completely involved in the show.
These behaviors led me to think about what Lost has been for us the last couple of years. Lost became a ritual for us during her second year at graduate school. It was one time we set aside to with with us and not do anything else. It was one of those shows we both connected with, which is actually somewhat rare. I believe this tradition is a big part of her viewing experience, making it much more comforting and communal than other shows for her.
I asked my wife several questions about her experience watching Lost. What I gleaned from her answers led me to conclude that Lost is a ritualistic escape into a ready-made community. She said that it allowed her to relax and forget about the stresses of work for a while. I found this curious since Lost is not exactly a stress-free kind of show--people marooned on a desert island with enemies every. After I suggested the degree of tension in Lost didn't seem relaxing, my wife said that the stress in Lost was both very serious and yet completely fake. I think what she meant was that although the characters were trying to survive, they were just characters, which let my wife examine her own stresses (which become less important when faced with life and death choices in Lost) and yet feel completely safe and calm.
Another element of the experience my wife mentioned was the connection with the characters on Lost. She felt honest feelings for some of them, whether good or bad. She really liked some and wanted them to survive and flourish. Others she disliked or did not trust, adding to the complexity of her experience. I think her connection with the characters is a large part of her experience. They are not her friends by any means, but she does worry about them. I think that is simply a part of good storytelling. Any time one can create honest characters, whether in print or film, it is easy to feel connected with them. It may be a part of human nature to connect with the stories of others.
Through my observations and interview questions, I feel my wife derives a sense of community out of her Lost experience. The ritual-like viewing she and I share allows the show to become part of us. Her connection with the characters allows her to feel honest feelings. At the same time, however, Lost provides her with an escape from her life stresses. That may be what good stories are meant to do.

Elderly: Too Old to Do Stuff?

2006-10-12T12:50:00.000-07:00

My search turned up several images that reflect the "typical" elderly person. Interestly, the elderly are almost always smiling pleasantly. The elderly in these pictures are typically enfeebled in some where, usually in a wheelchair. They are found just sitting around usually or being helped out by some young whippersnapper. There are few pictures of them working or partaking in any activity (though I did find one of water aeorobics). The images seem to reflect the idea that many think the elderly are weak, need our protection, and should just sit there and be good.

To view my pictures, visit this poster.

My Poster Trial

Foucault and Semiotics: Political Ad

2006-10-05T11:57:00.000-07:00

After viewing a political ad for Mike Hatch, I began to take note of certain elements within the ad that lend themselves to analysis. Political ads are typically filled with rhetoric and other tools of persuasion, and MikHatch's is no different. The subtely with which this ad speaks, however, is rather intriguing. By exploring this ad through both Foucaultian and semiotic lenses, I hope to shed some light on the ad's intentions.

First, by focusing on the images present, some of the subtle aspects of the begin to come to light. The ad begins by showing Mr. Hatch in a field, decked out in full hunting gear. The meaning of this image begins simply: Mike Hatch is a hunter. But what does that mean in the context of a political ad about wanting to become governor? Mike Hatch is politically liberal, and therefore by showing his hunting practices he can connect with hunters, a typically politically conservative group. The image of Hatch and his hunting dogs persists throughout the ad, ending with Hatch petting one of his dogs playfully. Immediately following this image is one of Hatch's military career in the merchant marines. The ad continually discusses Hatch's toughness, an interesting contrast with a man playing with dog. Words such as "defended," "exposed" and "cracked down" are used to hope to show that Hatch would be a strong leader. The ad is obviously playing to a tougher, and possibly more blue collar crowd. It is likely that the ad is meant to reach out to disenchanted conservatives and pull them to his side. Interestingly, this creates a discourse between the ad and the people at which is it aimed.

Through analyizing this discourse, I began to find elements of Foucault. Foucault says that power is not possessed but used as tool in discourse. Thus, this political ad begins a discourse with its audience. Foucaultian analysis typically discusses larger, more abstract ideas, incorporating historical events and transitions. This ad shows the need to show a strong leader in response to earlier attack ads against other candiates showing either weakness or inconsistency. This ad becomes one more part of the greater discourse occuring throughout the country. The idea is that in a time of war, a strong and courageous leader is necessary. Those wanting to remain in control the government then create a war with seemingly no end in sight and connect the opposing party with weakness and indecision. Mr. Hatch's ad is a response to this change in discourse. Mr. Hatch reaches out to the other party's typical characteristics and tries to embody those while maintaining a "Minnesota nice" to maintain his liberal base.

These two lenses begin to show some of the messages hidden in the subtext of Hatch's political ad and examine the influence the larger discourse has had on the ad's creation. A more through analysis would likely bring even more curious ideas to light.

"First Ad" Mike Hatch for Governor 2006 TV Ad

2006-10-05T11:53:00.000-07:00


"First TV Ad" :30 09/06/06 Mike Hatch for Governor

Liam and a Girl's Imaginary Friend

2006-09-28T14:02:00.000-07:00

I met a man no more than three years old named Liam. I call him a man because he possesses the understanding I believe adult human beings should possess. But then, not many of us do.

With two hours free of college work and meetings, I sat alone in a small coffeehouse in middle Minnesota, Small-Town, USA—trying to pacify the stress, the ferret gnawing my stomach and lungs. This particular coffee house had come under new management lately, and the décor had transformed in a matter of days. It reminded me of Europe, casual yet deliberate lighting flickering brightly and tangled string lights wrapping around wooden ledges. Each table had a small candle, unlit, stranded in the middle. Classical music whispered in the background. At one of these tables, sipping Earl Grey tea, I hunched over my book of essays, distractedly reading of a life rejecting technology and making notes in the margins, when this little man sprang up and sat across from me. He introduced himself and asked my name.

“I’m Liam. Will you be my friend?” he asked, not as if he needed a friend but as though I needed one.

“Well, of course, I will, Liam,” I replied without comprehending the true meaning of his question, thinking he only wanted someone to entertain him while his mother ran errands. I even chuckled a little at his desire and unashamed self-assurance. We shook hands on our agreement to be friends. Liam then abruptly leapt from the seat across from me.

“I’m gonna go hide.”

“Okay.”

He tumbled behind a wall and hid. I laughed quietly and returned to my reading. In my younger years I would have known to seek him, but my child memory faded not long ago. A couple of short minutes passed. I had just finished reading the line “My wish simply is to live my life as fully as I can”[1] when Liam returned with a green balloon in his mouth. I could sense his mischievous grin lay behind the balloon. The green balloon shot past my ear. Liam laughed a boisterous laugh. I laughed, too.

Liam found the balloon, crawled underneath my table, and scrambled up onto the seat across from me again. I surrendered to Liam’s persistent exuberance. Liam devised a game we both could play with the balloon. I held up my hand and if Liam hit it I awarded him a point. Eventually we started devising odd rules for more points. The number 45 fascinated Liam so he designated most odd rules as 45-pointers. My favorite rule was the 60-point-off-the-head rule where if Liam managed to hit me in the head he received 60 points, the most of any rule. We played that game together for nearly an hour.

Liam’s mother arrived after that hour. She had always been there, in that coffeehouse, but she had been busy doing errands in other rooms. She was the new manager or owner. We shook hands as she introduced herself to me as Deirdre. I said it was nice to meet her. Then she turned her attention to Liam, who sat beneath the table as part of an odd rule where he could receive extra points if I could not see him. Deirdre told him to get out from under the table.

“I’m a bear in a cave, mom,” Liam explained bluntly, as if being under the table were perfectly natural for him. I felt two emotions at once: embarrassment and resentment. My embarrassment came from knowing Liam was acting unacceptably. My resentment came from wanting to crawl under the table, too. Perhaps the emotions and their reasons mixed a little.

“Remember the agreement we had about listening?” Deirdre replied. Liam apparently remembered because he started to emerge from his cave. Deirdre left again to do the last of her errands. Liam crawled back into his cave and shot the balloon at me. Liam’s resolve amazed me. At first I tried to tell him to get off the floor because his mom had asked it of him. He acknowledged me but remained under the table. I surrendered again to his enthusiasm, and we continued our game.

I complain about time. I do not have it. College students complain about time, about its pace and its scarcity. We utilize and worship every second of free time. We assign it slots in our planners and clock the minutes spent doing personal things like watching a movie or going out to the bar. Some go as far as to write what they plan to do with that time, rather than simply remembering it. Others who are not students seem to have less time, even with planners and electronic calendars. Even those who do not schedule time plan something to occupy the mind—television, video games, internet chat rooms. Perhaps we combat boredom with these seemingly infinite distractions. Somehow boredom does not seem dangerous enough to demand a constant bombardment of distractions.

There’s a three-year-old girl in New York with an imaginary friend. She’s like Liam, which makes me like the imaginary friend. This little girl’s friend has no time for her, stuck in meetings and ever-occurring business conventions. Eventually the friend needed a secretary to take the little girl’s calls. She tries to get her imaginary friend to play, but he never has the time. This story is from the New Yorker, from about a year ago. Perhaps this little girl created this friend to suppress her loneliness. Perhaps he’s like every other child’s imaginary friend, except he’s never around. He cannot cure her isolation when he too isolates her. This little girl created her imaginary friend for something very different, something more meaningful.

The father of this girl (the author of the New Yorker article) saw the positive effects this strange imaginary friend had on his daughter: the increased sense of self and the evolved imagination. He even notes that eventually his daughter, instead of explaining the exploits and missed opportunities of this imaginary friend, describes her day and her accomplishments—how she had been too busy to worry about her imaginary friend, though they grabbed lunch together. But does that not make her like her imaginary friend? Does that not mean that she will simply fall into the pattern and have no time for another three-year-old girl? The world seems horrendously backward when a child fills her schedule with imaginary appointments to pacify the loneliness of an imaginary friend too busy for her.

I did not finish my essay until Liam left with his mother. When I had finished my reading and my tea, I thanked the lady behind the counter and told her to have a nice day. I stepped out into the dreary cold, a miserable Minnesota fall day.

I checked my watch. Ten minutes until the bus left, ten minutes to get to my meeting on time. I cupped my hands and breathed hot life into them, as all cold fools do even though the sensation is temporary and of little use against the chill. No one else endured the sleet and gusts of wind. Only one car passed me, lights and wipers on low. And for some reason I noted the lack of animals even though squirrels and birds rarely scamper through town streets. Though almost late, I did not hurry. The little ferret in my chest had quieted. I crossed the nearly empty street, back onto campus. The wind picked up and sleeted hit harder against my face, but I did not put up my hood. Had I covered my head, I would not have seen out of the corner of my eye a small sparrow, with a broken wing. He stood alone in the middle of the road, either waiting for the storm to end or a car to end it for him. In either case, he did not seem to know or care which would occur. I took one step slowly toward him; he did not move. I took another step, and the bird jumped back. We stood staring at each for a while, seven minutes maybe, surrounded by wet dreariness and asphalt. He finally let me pick him up, and I cupped him in my hands. He bit me at first, though not convincingly, as I breathed on him with warm breath. I escorted him to a nearby pine tree, off the road and mostly sheltered against the weather. I’m not usually the type to save small woodland creatures, but I felt his lonely vulnerability as much as if it had been my own. For a moment, we were not lonely.

Being alone and being lonely do not represent the same state of being. How the words alone and lonely came to be related is not exactly a mystery. Alone actually derives from the words all and one. Lonely is the adjective form of lone, which is simply a shortened form of alone. Yet the two words have very little to do with one another besides their linguistic history. They differ distinctly in a couple of ways. Solitude, away from all humanity, on the Irish shores or in the Colorado Mountains rarely necessitates loneliness, and then only when isolation accompanies it. Indeed, solitude can be a solace for many, a reprieve from the chaotic world. Being alone does not create loneliness. And neither is the reverse true. Walk down a crowded street for an hour or perhaps through a mall. Look at the faces. Loneliness exists there. Loneliness does not require being alone. Third, loneliness comes from a feeling of loss, of detachment, of isolation from a loved—being alone does not.

I had reclaimed nature: the physical dirt and real air, the sleet in my hair. The loved ones I had lost or forgotten were earth, flora, and fauna. Liam’s play had reminded me of an old version of myself, a version I thought lost. He redeemed my child memory, a recovery that ended my isolation of nature.

That’s when I realized what Liam had understood and what the little girl tried to show her parents. They knew video games and televisions were only distractions. They knew schedules plans were not an attempt to utilize time but an attempt to stave off loneliness, loneliness created by isolation from nature. I had not gone to the coffeehouse to relieve stress but to forget my isolation. Liam’s and the girl’s loneliness had begun with busy parents who were too tired to fight their own disenchanted disconnection. The three-year-old girl had tried to communicate this to her parents by reaching out to an imaginary friend as Liam had reached out to me. Her attempt failed, and instead she chose the path of the parents, the path of distractions. But she still desired her imaginary friend’s attention. Every night she whimpered quietly his name, asking him to do lunch or to walk to the park with her. Even following the path of distractions, the girl wanted something else. Liam understood that something. He understood that to be distracted is still to be lonely. He felt my lonely vulnerability. He picked me up, cupped me in his hands, and placed me in a pine tree.

[1] Berry, Wendell. “Feminism, the Body, and the Machine”

Film 2

2006-09-28T12:37:00.000-07:00

The editing in my clip really shows the ability of a director to show a fairly complex idea with only repitition of simple techniques. The director uses many alternating shots to show the transition from one memory to another. The change is subtle at first, a brief cut to a small boy playing in a puddle. The boy sings "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," which is then played over the entire scene to provide adhesive to the transition. Even the characters begin to sing the song to signal the transition.

Then pieces of each memory begin to overlap into the scenes. The bike begins in the young boy's bike makes its first appearance in the young boy's scene. The bike then appears in the other scene, in the apartment. The shot begins on Joel, the protagonist, and then pans to the bike, creating a sort of normalcy for the bike's presence.

Then other pieces begin to overlap. The table that the older Joel crawls under mirrors the shed that the younger Joel plays under in the rain. It starts raining inside Joel's aparment to mirror his memory of that other day as well. Strangely, the scene takes another turn when the table apparently sparks a different memory of when Joel was four. The table becomes the kitchen table. Several alternating shots begin to overlap these two scenes together, creating a nicely choreographed dance between two very contrasting scenes.

Film Clip 1

2006-09-28T11:03:00.000-07:00

I have chosen as my clip as scene from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Eternal Sunshine is sort of an exploration of the breakup between two people, Joel and Clementine, and what would happen if one were capable of erasing that other person from one's memory. The scene I have chosen actually takes place within Joel's dream during the erasing process.

This scene occurs just after Joel thinks of a way to stop the erasers from deleting Clementine from his memory. The idea is for Joel to hide Clementine in a memory that she does not belong in. The first shot begins on a stuffed skeleton (a reference to an earlier scene) and pans over the window showing the rain. Then there is a medium shot of Clementine, a quick shot of Clementine's underwear, and then a medium shot of Joel and Clementine from the opposite angle. This sequence is characterized by the a shaking camera. The effect is that the viewer feels like an observer rather than a participant in the events. Much of the camera work centers around this idea of observing from the outside.

Directly afterward, there is a quick shot of a boy stomping in a puddle and then cuts back to Joel and Clementine back on the couch. This shows that Joel is changing to another memory. The next shot is of the boy, presumably a young Joel, looking at his bike. The shot is mainly focused on the bike itself. Then there is a cut to that same bike back in the apartment where the scene began. The quickness of the shots, as opposed to a dissolve shot, provides a sort of overlapping transition between memories. It gives the viewer a chance to keep up while still showing a radical shift in scene.

Joel then runs under a table to get away from the rain, which is now inside his apartment. The table looks very similar to the overhang of young Joel's memory. There is yet another cut to young Joel watching the rain from under the overhang. This then comes back to adult Joel under the table and cuts quickly to baby Joel running under a kitchen table. This sequence connects us the the scene in a very indirect, yet eerily memory-like, fashion. The effect is that the view feels like he or she is remembering yet is still outside as an observer.

Passing Along the Splinters

2006-09-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

During an arts festival in Clifden, Ireland, an erudite if not pompous genteman introduced Seamus Heaney and awarded him a prize in poetry. Dr. Heaney said during his acceptance speech that what one needed to write was the right place to put his lever to turn the world. Subsequently, he said that he was luck enough to have Ireland as his fulcrum. Lucky bastard. Suffice it to say, my fulcrum is nothing like Ireland. In my attempts to find such a place as Heaney implied existed for all good writers, I experienced what can only be described as utter failure. Failure, that is, until I learned how to use the lever's splinters and let others turn the world for me.
At first I had hoped to be as lucky as Dr. Heaney to have Ireland as my fulcrum, the beautifully green and sometimes drearily wet country in which I had so dearly fallen in love. This love prompted a writing dry-spell for nearly my entire stay--save several academically required essays, which felt horrendously beneath my talent. Love, it would appear, can inspire and diminish the writer.
But in my attempts to write, I discovered Ireland was the place I was to craft my lever. Ideas and theories were plentiful in Ireland. Equipped with a somewhat dull axe and weak arms, I scoured the land for a powerful tree from which I could craft this lever. Three months of searching led to my discovery, a great and powerful tree, bark too thick for my axe and branches too high for my arms. A druid's tree. I swung my axe wildly, desperately. Sweat ran into my eyes, my arms grew numb, and my axe's handle began to splinter. Greatness lay before me, but I was ill-equipped to manage such a tremendous task. Instead, I picked up a dried-out branch, which had broken off long ago either from storm or creature, and made my way home.
Having accomplished my first goal, attaining a lever--even if it had been less than a success--I returned to America. Now that I had my lever, I hoped to find my fulcrum. St. John's University of Collegeville was the first fulcrum I tried. I used my lever to write essays, poetry, short stories, reports, anything. The leer was brittle and nearly broke several times, but it managed to survive a year and a half of overexerted force. The world, however, did not turn with my lever as Dr. Heaney said it could. Even with teh assistance of some of the most capable and intelligent people I have ever met, the world did not turn. Failure gained another vistory.
Dismayed and depressed, I graduated. I attained work and moved to Moorhead, MN, the Red River Valley. Even if I had not lost the motivation to write, the vast emptiness that is Moorhead would have provided few places to put a lever. I could look to the horizon and see the back of my own head. Periodically, I still took up the old lever, which continued to dry and by then seemed nearly rotten, and attempted half-heartedly to gain leverage over the world. My writings were fiew and of little depth. At times I wondered if I had ever had talent or insight, or perhaps all was due only to asture assistance attributable to greater minds than my own. I set aside my lever and began the arduous task of learning not to write.
Soon I rarely wrote, opting to tutor others in the art I had foresaken, or had foresaken me. I taught students to utilize outlines, create theses, draft and redraft, revise and revise and revise. I taught students about adjectives and their differences from adverbs. Few of these students would write outside of college and so learning to write a paper was less important to them. But I tried to explain that the purpose of learning how to write is not to write but to develop a way to see the world, a way of thinking. Some learned; some did not. I decided, however, to count even the near-misses as successes.
And so it was a very small piece of the world moved. A very small piece. It did not move far but it moved. So long I had tried to turn the world with all the force I had, and suddenly, it had just moved. Anger struck through me when I first realized it. How dare the world move so easily! How dare it do so when all I wanted was to do my job! But it was then I realized my eariler error. I could never turn the world by writing to turn the world. And neither could Dr. Heaney. Instead, we write to teach, to show a way of seeing the world, to show how we see it.
I dug out that old, dried-out, rotting branch, broken from a druid's tree. I had hidden it away out of shame and disgust, but now I knew where and how to use it. Taking out my old dull axe, I struck the branch until it cracked and splintered into many pieces. Now when I tutor a student, talk to a friend or a stranger, or, yes, write an essay, I give a splinter, hoping others will make levers of their own and turn the world when I could not.
Still, the writer's desire never totally left me, and though one of my levers is shattered out of necessity, I have begun to craft new ones. They are made of lesser trees, but they may yet show their worth. I read as much as I can to sharpen my axe and write as often to strenthen my arms. Someday, perhaps when I think the axe is sharp enough and my arms strong enough I'll search out that druidic tree and craft the lever I had first sought out to make. Until then, I'll just pass along the spinters.

Teaching Media Literacy

2006-09-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

Neverexisted School District is beginning to emphasize what the school board calls "back to basics" instruction. Improving reading literacy and math compentency test scores is a high priority. As a result, many resources once reserved for media literacy courses are being funneled into other "more important" areas. One member even mentioned that media courses are a superfluous luxury because many students spend the majority of their time learning about technology and media independently. I, however, would tend to disagree.

With the recent trend in "back to basics" teaching, a very important aspect of our ever-evolving society is being ignored: media literacy. Neglecting this crucial and prevalent element of our world is shameful and possibly even dangerous. Our young people are deluged with advertisements, movies, television shows, music, internet websites, and other various media.
Teaching people, particularly our young people, how to manage this new, intense media super-sphere will be critical for the future of our world.

First, student-use of media is at an all-time high. And who can blame them? With all the new technology to connect people, students are finding new and exciting ways to socialize and entertain themselves. They are only responding to two of the strongest drives for young humans: socialization and stimulation. But how can we direct these uses in a manner that can aid these students when they reach adulthood? And how can we be sure to provide every student with access to this new technological world? A good friend of mine works as an engineer, and he says that over 50% of his job is spent communicating through various methods including emails, instant messaging, and online postings. Such a prominent aspect of the working world will certainly be useful for students to learn. Providing students a class in which they can study these elements and learn to communicate in the necessary multi-modal fashion will help provide some of the solutions to these problems.

Second, the all-encompassing media world is now no longer something to be sought out as it was in generations past. Now media is streaming straight into their bedrooms at cable modem and DSL speeds. Teaching our youth to comprehend the complexities behind media (motivations, methods, and biases) will improve their ability to make rational decisions rather than simply succumb to media influence. For example, certain advertisements suggest that every one needs an SUV because they provide the power, roominess, and safety crucial to living in America. A person could accept this assertion and go out to buy an SUV; however, minivans and larger sedans are typically more than enough for the average American. Investigating the truth behind the advertisement and connecting that with one’s actual transportation needs is an important skill, one that is not easily developed. Equipping students with the necessary skills to combat the overwhelming effect of media influence will help students make more rational decisions about their lives.

Third, media has had a powerful effect on our perception of reality. According to Dr. Richard Beach’s Teaching Media Literacy (n.d.), “Helping students understand the fact that realities of their lives are constructed encourages them to critique these constructions, for example racist construction of people of color” (p.4). Therefore, students’ ability to participate in critical thinking can be improved through analyzing media constructs. This effort will have the positive side effect of increasing societal awareness and improvement. De-constructing the media creations will help our youth see a different, and possibly truer, reality.

Finally, certain aspects of media can simply improve students’ literacy in other areas. Media is entertaining, and students are accustomed to these types of stimulations. Reading a book (particularly a textbook) does not necessarily provide the same level of stimulation necessary to spark students’ interest. Utilizing the various media to teach about literature, history, and other academic areas can help student gain a better understanding in those subjects.

Teaching media literacy provides students with many significant skills. First, guiding current student-use of technology down a constructive path is important for career success. Navigating through the media super-sphere will become increasingly vital to living as it continues to expand. Deconstructing media constructed realities will help students make more rational and informed decisions for the future of our society. Finally, media can benefit students’ learning in other areas of academia. Teaching media literacy is of the utmost importance in our ever-expanding media world.