Success.

Obviously, a lot of this class was spent discussing society in all it’s glory and shame; this including today’s society, yesterday’s, and even tomorrow’s. Some of the ideas we discussed were things that I’ve already put some thought into, sure, but I must admit that a lot of the ideas and all the literature for that matter was entirely new to me. Besides Fahrenheit 451, I had never read or even heard of any of the novels prior to this class. Reading the novels, short stories, essays, poems, ect. and discussing them with the class really made me open my eyes and help see the world as it exists today from more than just my own self-centered. I’ll be the first to admit that I can be pretty thickheaded at times and definitely find it much easier to deny and ignore my flaws rather than face them. . All the readings and discussions moved me in their own sort of way. Overall though, what I got most out of this class was a different perspective on society (more specifically, American Society) and my life in general as a part of it. I think about all the rights we are given as citizens here in America and ponder how we can all take them for granted. Those rights that were taken from characters like Winston and Katniss in their respective books are rights that we seemingly take for granted. Rights that, without them some day, would make the country that we all call home a very scary one. In that sense, the literature discussed has definitely moved and even angered me in ways; not only provoking anger at our society as a whole for pushing us towards those society’s discussed in the novels (which we did nothing less than prove during our discussions), but also provoking embarrassment towards myself for being a part of it. Then again, I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. Perhaps there shouldn’t be too much thought put into society and rather, we should just let things happen as they do. Yet, is this just another way of me (and society alike) blowing off my/our flaws as insignificant, instead of facing them? Possibly. That said, I wouldn’t necessarily say that this class has by any means helped me solidify my opinions and beliefs. In a society where you aren’t ever truly sure of what’s “right” or “wrong”, it can be difficult at times to “pick a side” in a sense (as we did in class that one day-choosing to stand on one side of the room or the other). Other than my own spiritual beliefs, I’ve never really been the type to take a stand for what I believe to be right or wrong. That’s simply because I don’t really think there’s an answer a lot of times. Everyone has their right to their own opinion and more than anything else, I’m just willing to hear it. Like I said yesterday in class, you don’t have to agree with another’s opinion, but you should at least respect it. Sure, I may not agree that spending eight hours every day playing video games is very productive, but if it makes you happy, then I respect you for figuring that out at least. Sure, I may not respect our decision to put down books and pick up a remote or laptop, but if it makes us happy, then I respect us for figuring that out. At the end of the day, a lot of the “flaws” we discussed about our society aren’t ever going to be fixed. Part of me says to just accept for what it is and move on. Then again, this is how we got ourselves into “trouble” in the first place, huh? That, and denial too of course. I think what I liked most about this course was our ability as a class to discuss our flaws, be open and honest about them, and even face them at times! (Those who participated in the Thoreau Challenge)

A Clueless Society?

A world without books would be, well, an unintelligent one; or even clueless at that. For me personally, when I first thought about it, a world without books seemed like it really wouldn’t be all that bad! Then again, I guess there’s more out there than just novels and textbooks. Even though I’m not the type of person that enjoys grabbing a book and sitting down to read it as a means of entertainment, I would be pretty “thick-headed” if you will, to sit here and say that I would be fine if they were non-existent. I mean, when I thought about it, I realized that books are what make me who I am entirely; or a single book rather. I’m speaking of the bible in this case, which, as I’m sure most of us are probably already aware of, is by far the best-selling book of all time. The bible in itself is what defines, well, a lot of the people who live here on earth. It’s what a lot of people basically live for in a sense. I started thinking about a movie that came out last year called The Book of Eli.

Hopefully you have all seen it (or don’t plan on it) so that I don’t ruin it for you. Basically it’s a story set in a “post-apocalyptic era where a man has to fight his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets of saving humankind”; which, sorry if I’m ruining it for you, ends up being the bible. The reason I bring the movie up is because it didn’t seem like anyone appreciated or valued the bible (or books in general) until they couldn’t get their hands on one. Now, obviously the bible in this context is an exception considering its significance. The point being made, however, can be made relevant to all books. I just don’t think we would realize the significance of having lost the books until we were actually taken away from us and we were forbidden to read them. I know that right now (to myself) it may not seem like that big of a deal if books were taken away from me, but that I truly would miss them if they were gone. The reason I mention the word “clueless” to describe a society without books is because without books, we wouldn’t have a past to learn from. Nothing would really make sense if we didn’t know our history. For example, we wouldn’t know why our continents are divided and separated into countries the way they are. We’d only be able to rely on the passing of word, which from what I learned during my days dealing with high school gossip, isn’t all that reliable.

As far as ways in which we metaphorically “burn books” every day, I think the list could probably go on and on. As a society I think we are gradually losing sight of both the factual and entertainment aspects of books. If we have a question now days, rather than referring to a book we refer to google. If we need something to do, rather than sitting down and reading a book we turn on the television or computer. We’re burning them in the sense that their significance and relevance to us is non-existent at times. We throw them in the back seat in order to welcome technology of sorts. Then again, can we really blame ourselves?

Mockingbird + Jabberjay = Mockingjay?

Yet again, Dr. Mortimore managed to fight fate and find a book that I genuinely enjoyed reading. Feed was the first novel that I didn’t have to struggle to read and get through since, well, I can’t even remember. Well, not only did I have to not struggle to get through the Hunger Games, but there were actually times where I couldn’t put the book down. I enjoyed reading this book. I can’t even believe that I’m saying this, but it’s the truth! At first, I must admit, I was skeptical. The whole idea of this type of lottery where someone from each town (or district) was randomly selected to go and basically get killed (assuming they weren’t going to win) was pretty disturbing. Once the game itself actually started though, and even the “pre-game” festivities and such, I started to really fall for Collin’s… imagination? It was one of those books (or movies even) that you look back on and wonder how someone just came up with that idea and concept and then actually made it seem appealing and entertaining to an audience; or in this case, the reader.
I can definitely see where some connections could be made and how the Hunger Games works “in conversation” with the other novels we have read so far. For one, the audience viewed the arena and participants within in the same way that Big Brother saw over everyone on in 1984 via the telescreens. In the same way that Winston had to “act” in order to please the party, Katniss had to do her fair share of “acting” to please the audience (including the sponsors). One of my favorite parts of the novel was Collin’s creation of the jabberjays and, consequently, mocking jays – basically, birds that can repeat sounds of sorts. Along with this was my interest in the mutant wolves that were chasing Cato, Katniss, and Peeta towards the end of the novel, which were actually the fallen tributes. Both of these ideas seemed really futuristic to me, which is why I liked them so much. Furthermore, a connection can be made to the technological advances in Feed. Both novels are clearly set in the future some time from now where technology has seemingly become something it wasn’t meant to be. I don’t think that the creators of the feed intended for it’s user’s to no be able to function without it. Likewise, the creators of the jabberjays intended for them to die off after the dark days when left in the woods. Instead, they mated with regular mockingbirds and, as a result, created what the districts called mockingjays. This proved to show a bit of the Capitol’s stupidity in their original creation. The point is that there is a similarity here in the way that technology sort of unraveled itself.
The character that I found myself connecting with the most throughout the novel was definitely Gale. It wasn’t that I could really relate to him in some way, but rather, I could just feel for him. I feel like he was probably watching the games and feeling left out in a sense, almost betrayed. Katniss found a new best friend, a new “lover” for that matter, at the games in Peeta. I couldn’t help but wonder what Gale was thinking as he watched everything unfold with his best friend, which I’m sure probably came of as having forgotten about her friend from home altogether.
Finally, it’s kind of funny that one of the requirements for this blog was to find a multimedia connection to the novel because the entire time I was reading I was actually thinking about a movie that had a similar idea or concept behind it. That is, the idea of sending people out on a mission (in both cases, referred to as a “game”) and then have an audience sit back and watch it unfold as if it were a television show. “Rat Race” is a movie that came out in 2001 where “a Las Vegas casino magnate, determined to find a new avenue for wagering, sets up a race for money.” The idea is basically to bet on a winner, then sit back and watch the race, or “game” for that matter, unfold as basically a form of entertainment. Sound familiar at all? Here’s a trailer of the movie: Rat Race

The "Situation" with Reality T.V.

I’m going to start off by being honest; I didn’t have to watch any extra television to get my fix of reality t.v. In fact, I get my fix of reality t.v. on a daily basis for the most part. As an avid viewer of the stuff, I definitely think that it’s a little bit harder to see the wrong in it all. Still, some of the questions proposed are very thought provoking. Even though it may be cliché to pick what seems to be the most popular reality t.v. show at this time, I’m going to focus my attention on The Jersey Shore. Yet, not just on the show itself, but the cast. And even more specifically, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino. I did some research and according to realitytea.com, “The Situation” has made an astonishing $5 million over the past year alone. So, to answer the question proposed, “is it ‘real’ people in real situations?”, the answer must be no, right? Just think, we are no longer viewing regular, real people just like you and me. We’re watching millionaires, celebrities at this point. I think it’s pretty fair to say that “The Situation” himself is well aware of his own situation at this point. He has been put in the position to make big bucks and has done nothing less than thrive on it, taking full advantage of his “fifteen minutes of fame” to make as much money as possible. It isn’t just about a reality t.v. show for him anymore. For example, consider his decision to further his career (as I would call it at this point, an acting career) and participate on one of ABC’s most popular shows, “Dancing with the Stars.” Do you really think that his decision was based on his desire to learn how to dance? Come on, let’s be honest here, he’s being smart and taking advantage of this glimpse of fame to make as much money as possible while he can. Gawker.com states that “everyone gets $125,000 for signing up and being on the first two episodes” of the show. Likewise, he has recently made a commercial with Vitamin Water, which, who even knows how much money he’ll get for that. The point being, it’s no longer the reality t.v. show (or even the entertainment aspect for that matter) that Mike Sorrentino is concerned about. So, that said, what’s making The Jersey Shore reality television at this point? I mean, aren’t we just watching millionaires and actors at this point doing their best to keep us entertained? As I watched this past season, I noticed “The Situation” doing his best to stir the pot in the house and keep things interesting: Jersey Shore. Let’s be honest, the guy’s pretty smart. The man is living the life right now, getting paid millions to do basically nothing, and he knows that the only way to keep his “job” at this point is to satisfy the audience. Ironically, the audience happens to be most drawn towards the violence, fights, and drama that he, himself (whether he wants to admit it or not), is seemingly starting on purpose. He knows what the audience wants to see and he knows what needs to happen for him to continue living the life he is now. It makes me wonder whether or not his actions are actually staged by his own self at times. Oh, and I forgot to mention one of Mike’s other major roles in the show. That is, bringing girls home (seemingly on a nightly basis) to sleep with. As Gabler mentioned, sex is a big part of what makes reality so captivating. At the end of the day, the question remains: why, as a society, are we so addicted to reality television? The concept is mind-boggling, especially while taking into consideration the discussion above. Clearly we aren’t watching The Jersey Shore because we can relate to the cast at this point, for that last I checked, most of our society didn’t consist of multimillionaires.
Here’s another link that I found while browsing that I thought was pretty interesting and, well, pathetic: 11 People Who Earn Less Than The Situation.

Exposed.

“The job-search website surveyed employers and found that 20 percent of companies admitted to checking out candidate's profiles on social-networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace before deciding to employ them. A further 9 percent said they planned to start reviewing potential employees social-networking pages in the future.”

When I read the prompt for this weeks post my thoughts quickly trailed back to a memory from this past summer when a friend of mine was stripped of her Miss Crawford County title after her Facebook profile was exposed to the officials in charge of the pageant. As if taking her title and simply “handing it” to the runner up wasn’t enough, the local newspaper found out about the incident and immediately posted an article that briefed the situation, advertising to the public that my friend was stripped of her title for having “inappropriate photographs” (or something of that nature) posted on her Facebook profile. Furthering my thoughts, I decided to do a little research on a similar subject; that involving employers checking candidates Facebook profiles during the hiring process. The quote above was taken from an article at PCWorld, an online business center, and was of the most shocking that I stumbled upon. The whole idea, process (or whatever you may call it) is completely absurd to me. Read the article here, listen to the story of my friend who lost her title because of something that had absolutely nothing to do with how pretty or talented she was and tell me that there isn’t a line that is clearly being crossed. It blows my mind when I think about it. Obviously, I believe that we, as human beings, have lost our right to privacy in this sense; but also in more ways than just those incidents involving Facebook. I must say, however, that we only have ourselves to blame. The only way that we can lose that which we consider our true privacy is by sharing it with others. If you truly cared about what other people thought and what the consequences may be if someone knew as much about you as, for example, what’s displayed on your Facebook account, then it’s our own fault for putting it all up there in the first place. No one can take our privacy unless it’s on display in the first place; or at least is the case with Facebook. If you wanted those pictures of you drinking last weekend to be something “private” from the eyes of the public, then why did you decide to post them in the first place? Anyway, obviously I got of onto a slight tangent here with the whole Facebook dilemma and how our “privacy” can be lost in that particular sense, but as far as whether or not privacy still exists in other aspects of “real” life, I think it does. Obviously, as Americans, we are limited by our rights and the law, but I don’t necessarily think that this conflicts with our privacy. For example, the government (comparing it to the Big Brother Party at this point, since it’s the closest thing to it) controls our income and the money that we make, but they don’t control how we spend it, where we spend it, or even how much of it we spend (at least to an extent). Those decisions are private and can be made without the consent of the “party” at this point. Yet, the banking system seems like the only logical way of handling your money, which happens to involve the government or “party” in some way or another. Then again, it’s through the government that we are able to make money in the first place. So, who really knows? Perhaps the government’s role in our lives is simply accepted as part of our subconscious. It’s a scary thought, but it may just be the answer to the question posed! All in all, I do think that we are willing to give up some of our freedom (subconsciously at this point) in order to feel “safe” as a citizen of the United States. I stress subconsciously though because most of us are born here and accept our government and the “rules” for what they are, often not even thinking twice about what life would be like without the current “party”.

Feed Me.

Choice #3: Choose and write about 4 advertisements that would be featured on your Feed. Link these advertisements in your blog. Write a paragraph about each one.

Prior to answering this question, I wanted to get a better idea of what types of ads were featured on the characters’ feeds in the novel. I wasn’t sure if the advertisements were more individualized (based on each person’s interests) or generalized (based on what was popular/trends at the time). So, I went back and reread the “release” section (Pgs. 68-72) to get a better understanding. This was the part of the novel where the characters’ feed’s started working again after they were hacked (in the hospital). It seemed to me like it was a mixture of the two. The feed fed both generalized and individualized ads to the characters. Anyway, here’s four advertisements that I think would be featured on MY Feed based on both my personal interests and some trends of today’s society.

StubHub

This is a website where “fans buy and sell concert tickets, sports tickets, theater tickets and Broadway tickets.” I’m a huge sports fan, so I’m always looking for an opportunity to attend a football, basketball, or hockey game at a reasonable price. The same is true for concerts; I love them and am always interested in going to see someone if they are going to be near by and I can afford it. I think the “stubhub” advertisement would be featured on my Feed because my Feed would know that I’m always looking for the opportunity to buy tickets to an event. Any time that my Feed knew I was stressed, or something of that nature, my feed would likely throw this advertisement at me as a way to “get away, relax, and enjoy a nice night away from all your stress with some friends!”

Olive Garden

“Olive Garden: When you’re here you’re Family.” Olive Garden is definitely up there on my list of favorite places to eat. In fact, it happens to be one of my family’s favorite places to eat as well when we’re all together. We used to go there all the time when we were all younger and still lived at home together. I think my Feed would throw this advertisement at me as not only a good memory, but also as an idea at trying to get the family together for a trip to Olive Garden sometime soon! I’m sure that my Feed would be able to recognize and notice that, being the youngest, I do miss having the whole family together, since I got to experience this the least growing up because my brother and sister were moving out and going to college by the time I was in middle school. All of Olive Garden’s commercials emphasize the great times that are spent in their restaurants with family and friends. So, I definitely think that my Feed would throw the ad my way knowing how much I value the times when my family can all be together in one place.

Verizon

Finally, the iPhone is now available through Verizon’s network and to be completely honest, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since it happened. I can’t wait until my current plan runs out at the end of March so that I can finally get my hands on one. It seems like the best and most popular phone out there at the time and, having had my iPod stolen from me last semester, there couldn’t be a better time. All my friends seem to have one and I basically drool at the sight of them having access to music, the internet, and one of the newest features: face-time. I currently own a MacBook as well. So, if my Feed new that I was interested in Apple’s products already, I’m sure it would be sending me all sorts of advertisements relating to how I can get my hands on their newest products. Knowing how important my phone is right now and how excited I am that Verizon is finally offering the iPhone, I’m pretty sure my Feed would be featuring an ad similar the one above!

Scion

I have a feeling that my Feed would probably know a lot about my life in general as well, considering all the research I have done using it to get the products that I currently have, which brings me to my car. This past summer, after doing tons of searching, I purchased one of my dream cars, a Scion xB. Since then, I have been obsessed with the company and am always looking into what new products and accessories they are developing for their cars. Even though I’m not necessarily interested in buy a new car at this time, I think my feed would probably throw an ad similar to this one in my direction, based simply on my interests and previous purchases; which I’m sure would be incorporated in my feed as well (i.e. my bank account). My car is such an important aspect of my life. I’d be willing to bet that my Feed would be able to recognize this and, as a result, fill me in with the latest advertisements relating to it!

Thoreau Challenge: Post #3

I made it, finally. My week without technology officially ends tonight at midnight and I’ll be honest, I cannot wait to check my Facebook and watch some T.V. before I go to sleep. Believe it or not, these last few days have been a lot easier than any of the others. I thought that maybe the anticipation would get to me, making this last day or two really difficult but in reality, I’m not as excited as I thought I would be to start reading my text messages and checking my Facebook notifications. It’s almost like this has become normal in a sense! But obviously it’s not going to stop me from hovering over my computer tonight and sending text messages like there’s no tomorrow, which poses an interesting question: Even if I’m not necessarily thrilled at the idea of getting back to technology, having realized how very possible it is to live without it, then what’s the big rush to get back to using it? It’s just a question that I’m asking to myself as my last day comes to an end. I know I can survive without the television and computer, so why am I likely to just go back to using them 24/7 when, like I said, I don’t NEED to. I’m realizing that the answer, for me at least, is comfort. Technology has become something of a comfort zone for not only myself, but also our entire generation. I think that each one of us would admit that we don’t always NEED the television on or Facebook open when doing homework, but that it helps create an atmosphere that we’re comfortable in. For example, sure, I could turn the lights off like I did this past week when it’s time to go to sleep and lay there in the silence of darkness but instead, it would be much more comfortable and therefore, preferable if the t.v. was left on for awhile until I was actually tired and ready to fall asleep. I realize I don’t necessarily need a lot of the technology out there, but that I use it because it’s comforting. It’s what I know. It’s what I’m used to. Anyway, the point is, I made it through the week and I’m glad I chose to partake in the challenge. It gave me time to just think, which can sometimes be hard in the world we live in. I partook in a similar “challenge” just over Christmas break when I left the country for a week; no computers, no cell phone, ect. I must say though that being on a vacation without the stuff and being here in “real life” are two entirely different spectrums. I’m sure you can guess which one was more of a challenge.