Short Film: "Sign Language"

   (Strangely, there's two dates on this...) Friday 09/14/12 or Friday 09/21/12
   What is the single effect you got from this film? Give three specific reasons (of choices the director made) why you were persuaded to that effect? Change one aspect of the film (besides narrative and dialogue) and explain how would change the film and the single effect.

   Aww.
   Anyway, single effect. Watching this film, I felt as though the main character had figured out happiness in less-than stellar conditions. Lets consider some key components to this film, shall we?

• Setting: The film takes place on a cold day along a busy London street (I believe it was Oxford?). It's not a very comfortable place to be holding a sign, but somehow the main character, Ben, is able to find the light in it, calling it a beautiful and historic place.
• Shot choices: The majority of the film has one of two shots: the scene around Ben or close to him looking over at something. It keeps a focus on the previous effect and how he feels about them
• Dialogue: . . . . or lack of. For the first part of the film, Ben describes his co-workers on his own, with no interaction with them. When his shift ends, the communication between them (via signs, SIGN LANGUAGE) leaves a bigger impact because of it

   So what would have happened if we took one of those away? Let's take away the setting and put it at . . . a warm beach with ice-cream readily available should the weather get too hot. That would have taken away from my single effect because the man probably would be happy there, be it because of his job or not. 

Norman Rockwell: "Runaway"

   Friday 08/17/12
   Give three facts and three claims. Are any of those also opinions (if so, write an "O" beside it)?

   Facts:
   ~ The stool cushions are green (unless you are colorblind, then they are    
     either  blue, yellow, or gray. Either way, they are not red).
   ~ The artist's name can be found in the painting
   ~ Spaghetti is a special today (hooray!)
   
   Claims:
   ~ The time period portrayed is at least ten years before 2012 (Can be 
       supported by certain details, such as the rusted radio on the wall, the fact 
       the man behind the counter is smoking in front of the child, the child's 
       "classic" sack, etc.) *It should be noted that I don't have a very good 
       grasp of the past years
   ~ The man on the left is a police officer (Shocker, but still a claim that can be 
       supported by pointing to different details on his uniform) and he 
       represents authority *O* (you know, because you should always 
         listen to what an officer says) 
   ~ *O* The officer is scolding the child, while the man behind the 
          counter is amused at the situation (This one is mostly judged off of   
        position and facial expressions)

Opener 2

   Monday 08/20/12
   How do you define culture? Is it intrinsic or extrinsic? Explain.

    Culture is the term given to describe and categorize different ways of live (e.x., you have the "x" culture, "y" culture, "z" culture and so forth). There are a few factors that people use to help categorize said culture/lives, such as food, location, music, clothing, language, morals, religious beliefs - the list can go on and on. 
   I believe that culture mostly, if not completely extrinsic, only for the idea that it would be silly to imagine your preferences were decided before you even got to see the world. It really ties back to the nature v. nurture argument, and the question can be simplified to this:
   Is your culture decided from birth or your environment?
    I believe the latter is more accurate: just because you may appear to belong to one culture does not mean you are (That would be stereotyping). 

Thomas Benjamin Kennington: "A Pinch of Poverty."

   Tuesday 09/04/12
   SNAP this painting. Looking at this piece of art, how does the portray poverty (positive/negative light)? What's the artists vision about poverty (what's the message)? Identify two artistic techniques that helps achieve his/her vision, and explain how they do that.

   I'm almost positive that no females were named Thomas-Benjamin. But you never know. Onto the SNAP.

   S- A family of three - no, four - sitting/standing on a rainy, waterlogged 
       street.
   N- Anti-poverty, probably middle to high class.  
   A- Middle-High class people who look at art
   P- To express his opinion on poverty

   The artist expresses poverty to be a rather dark thing. There's a few things to show for this: 
   One, the color/value choice. Save for the baby wrapping and the follows, all of the colors in the picture are a variant of neutral colors. Neutral colors, especially in this particular painting, are not very bright and change the atmosphere around them to be equally dark. (One could make the argument that the bright colors from the flowers and the baby blanket symbolizes hope, but that seems slightly off-topic).
   The second choice is one of shape (or, at least, that's the best element I can use to describe this). Looking at the family's faces and how they are formed, one can easily tell that are fairly unhappy. 

Diego Rivera: "Semeadores"

   Thursday 09/06/12
   What is the meaning/theme/big idea behind the painting? Explain. What can you tell me about the artist's culture from the painting? Is that related to his theme? SNAP this painting.

   I would much rather do the last objective first, that is, if no one minds . . . 

   S- A pair of rather bent people in a farm-like environment
   N- Diego Rivera, that is, a famous Hispanic painter. Pro-labor
   A- People who still look at painting (tough/high class crowd). Possibly more 
       Hispanic people?
   P- To portray farmers/work

   The artist's big picture-idea-theme-doohickey is to cause appreciation for the hard work that some people do. One can infer that said work is difficult by observing the curves the farmers are drawn with. These curves make the farmers have a bent appearance, as though they have moved in such a way that would cause unnatural bends (i.e., hard work). 
   Mentioned above, the artist is Hispanic and pro-labor (unfortunately, these facts can't be inferred much from the painting without prior knowledge/using stereotypes). It can be inferred, however, that the artist may have been in poverty at some point of his life. We can point to the fact the farmers are using manual tools (as opposed to machinery) as evidence. 

Harry Nilsson: "Good Old Desk"

Wednesday 09/05/12
SNAP this song. What is he talking about in this song? What if I told you the that desk is a symbol for God, how does that change your impression of the song? Look through the song lyrics and find three instances 

   S - A man and his feelings towards his desk. 
   N - A man who loves his desk. Perhaps lonely but content?
   A - Any desk fanatics.
   P - Not really to inform, but more like announcing and/or expressing his           
       feelings towards his desk.

   Oh, Good Old Desk is a symbol for God . . . ?
   My impression of the song changes from comedic to slightly awkward, having grown up in an atheist home. I can tolerate and accept this symbol, but at the same time I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel. In any case, knowing that symbol makes the song make a lot more sense.
   
   Alright, Lyric-Support time. 
   
   Support One: "I've never seen it [the desk] tease." This is referring to the fact that God is benevolent 
   Support Two: "A giant of all times." God is (from what I've heard) a Brobdingnagian* figure who literally stands tall in front of everyone.
   *Brobdingnagian is a word meaning extremely large. I searched through a web-comic just to find it for you. You're welcome. 
   Support Three: "We never say a word." This is probably controversial, but from what I understand God (at least now) doesn't directly converse with individuals (who are alive?)

   Again, I wouldn't know, I apologize if I'm wrong about something.

Short Film: "Love Language"

   Wednesday 09//19/12

   What is the purpose of this film? How is the film effective or ineffective in achieving this purpose (be specific)? With what feeling are you left with and why?

   The purpose of this shamelessly-adorable short film is to raise awareness of deaf people (in this film, specifically adolescents and young adults) and how they are just as human as people who can hear. (I hesitate to say this film extends to all physically conditioned people, seeing as this specifically is about deaf people. In theory, though, it could work). 

   The purpose was rather effective, because although there were some hints about the girl's hearing impediment (such as "not having a number), one would just assume she was listening to music. Even at the "big reveal," the message "you're still beautiful" really shows that the guy in the film sees this girl as an equal.

   If you couldn't tell from my description of "Love Language," I thought that this film was cute and I was left with tender feelings. My mind just finds so many "aw" factors about the whole acceptance theme and unconditional love. This may be the human condition, I'm not sure. I haven't interacted with enough people to say for sure. I just know that thinking about the lives of those characters with their post-it note filled everything is cute to me. 

The Beatles: "Blackbird"

   Thursday 09/27/12

   Pick out three words or phrases that might not be literal and figure out for what they are symbols. Think about things like how they would work in conjunction to establish one single effect and determine what that might be. Also remember when the song was written (1968), and what may have been going on at that time.

   Symbols:

• Blackbird.
• Broken Wings.
• Darkness, Sunken Eyes.

   At this time there was an issue arising, and it was called civil rights and the struggle for equality. Specifically, the fight was for African-American rights, hence why the bird of choice for this song is Blackbird. The bird could have been a dove, a duck, or even a fruit (well, okay, maybe not a fruit), but the author chose a blackbird to symbolize the people who were fighting for their freedom.

   Speaking of freedom, I believe that is what the broken wings symbolize - sort of. More accurately, the broken wings are a symbol for the lack of freedom. Putting into a metaphor, freedom for the people of that time was very much like broken wings: they could still fly with some effort, but it was 'gonna hurt.

   Finally, we have a sort of darkness motive, added to with "sunken eyes." Literally, this is taken into a sort of blindness. Figuratively, this same blindness is actually inequality. Light, in this case, is the ever-wanted equality, however the bird is now just "singing in the dead of night."

Botticelli: "Loss of Innocence"

   Thursday 10/25/12
   Define Innocence. How can you lose it if it's intangible? If we assume the title of this painting is also the theme of this work,  discuss three specifics from the painting that supports the theme.

   No one minds if I refer to a tarot card, correct? Good.
   The card I'm thinking about is number zero, The Fool. It symbolizes a beginning, filled with naivety, a lack of knowledge and experience, and a lack of worry. I believe that this fits the definition of innocence. 
   So the way to "lose" this abstract thing is actually very simple. You gain knowledge. You grow. You learn. And as all of this happens, you begin to worry. You start planning for what will happen, and prepare for what is to come. You plan with the knowledge you've gained, and continue on with the journey of life. And you can't go back. You've lost the beginning, the naivety, the innocence.
   (I'm sorry about that, I made it sound too dramatic, at least in my head it did.)
   As for the picture itself, it does have a few symbols that carry the theme "loss of innocence." The first is the naked girl in the center of the picture (Venus, by the way), who symbolizes the aforementioned innocence. She's portrayed as a beautiful woman only slightly covering herself. She doesn't even seem to be aware of what's going on around her. This goes back to the definition mentioned beforehand, and is important seeing as innocence is the subject of the theme.
   The next symbol is the woman carrying the cloth over to Venus captures the image of an "corrupted" person. She is the opposite of Venus, seeing as the woman is clothed and concerned about her [Venus] standing in the nude (this is evident in the cloth she is carrying - it's spread out, ready to cover over any sight). 
   The third is more for extra effect: the sea in the background. On a quick glance, the sea somewhat resembles snake scales. Snakes are often a symbol for sin, which is a direct antonym for innocence.
   And that's how we became the corrupted bunch.

Human League: "Don't You Want Me"

   Monday 10/22/12
   "Don't You Want Me" by the Human League; what is going on in this song (describe the narrative)? Explain the two separate interpretations of the same situation. How is it possible that two people can have such different takes on the same situation? Give an example from you own life as evidence.   

   Ohhhhh~-- okay enough of that, let's get onto what's going on here.
   The narrative is as follows: The man (probably a manager of sorts) spots a waitress (at a cocktail bar). They start to date, and in some form or another the woman becomes famous. These events happen within the span of five years, and come the end of the five years the couple is breaking up. The song given tells this story and the thoughts of the couple themselves.
   The first interpretation is of the man: He's upset about the break-up, and wants to walk away with some pride. Therefore, he claims that he is responsible for the woman's fame (and can "put [her] back down too"). 
   The second is from the woman, who really finds herself not caring too much about the break-up (in the very least she admits she had fun and "still loves [him].") However, in her perspective she was going to be famous whenever she had met him or not. 
   In my personal opinion, I believe this "contradicting of perspectives" is produced from the human nature (or, more accurately, the "post-break up" nature) of wanting to gain more than the other person. As I've mentioned about, the man wants the pride of being able to say that this wonderfully famous woman was essentially his creation, seeing as he does actually know the break up is serious. At the same time, the woman wants to prove the man wrong and say that she got to this point independently (in all truth, what woman doesn't?). It's the concept of winning that is favorable to this former couple, and that is the striving force behind the contrasting perspectives.
   Very similar to how my classmates and I would play volleyball. It's not uncommon to argue about whenever the ball was in or out. The issue arises since either team would benefit point wise depending on the verdict. 

Bo Bartlett: "Young Life"

   Tuesday 10/02/12

   Art Selection: "Young Life" by Bo Bartlett: Make three claims about this painting. Support each claim with one fact about the painting. One claim should be about the culture of the artist.

   Claim 1: The painter is probably southern influenced.

     Fact to support: The man in the painting is holding a hunting rifle. (Hunting is   

      often seen as a southern label).

   Claim 2: The deer's placement is important and symbolizes the preservation         

   of the couple's culture.

     Fact to support: The deer is placed over the couple (like an arc).

   Claim 3: The couple is a happy couple.

     Fact to support: Body placement (close to each other, arm around each other,    

      woman resting her head on man, etc.)

The Avett Brothers: "Shame."

   Sept/25/12

   The subject of the Avett Brothers' Shame is a heartbroken man, reminiscing in his actions, and the tone is regretful. The word regret brings an image of someone who wishes that they can rewind time and do something different to bring a better outcome. One line that brings this image is in the chorus, wherein the author says he has "Shame, boatloads of Shame" [line 13]. The word shame implies that his actions (perceived by himself and others) were wrong and he would change them given a second change. Boatloads is a hyperbole that shows that the author feels this shame and the regret is overwhelming. 

Sincerest Apologies.

In all honesty, the phrase "this blog is overdue" is an understatement. As of this post, I have a lot of catching up to do. For convenience on my part, I'll be uploading the posts I'm missing newest to oldest. Once I've got all of the old posts that I missed up, I'll see if I can change post order (if anyone has any idea how to do that, please, do tell!). If I can't, well, I'm sorry.

Enough apologies, let's post!