Today in class we watched a speech made by an introvert. She talked about how society, as a whole, tries to squash the traits of introverts-being quiet, enjoying solitude, working best alone, etc. She then claimed that though extroverts are important and needed in society, they are not necessarily the best leaders. Being loud does not mean you should be in charge. I completely agree with her.
See, the thing that's so cool about introverts, extroverts, and ambiverts is that personality is 100% needed and 100% important in society. Fact is, having different personalities is great! It's awesome having all kinds of people, who love different things and enjoy different hobbies. No one personality is better than the other, and no one personality should be enforced and seen as the norm.
It seems like a silly thing to be annoyed that the personality of an introvert is boring and dull. But what's really wrong with being boring and dull? That's not the point, however; the point is that when a large percent of the world has one general set of traits, and those traits are seen as negative, it makes a person not want to be themselves. Yes, it's not an issue like racism or sexism, but many people feel badly because they were born with a certain personality. And that is an issue.
Maybe if introverts were allowed to be alone and they weren't discouraged, systems and ways to combat serious problems like racism and sexism would have been created. But no use wondering about what something could have been.
Anyway, Ms. Amodie then asked us if people write to argue, or to persuade. What was the purpose of the video? In this case, I would say that the purpose was to argue on the side of introverts. She didn't try to persuade people that introverts were better, she argued that being an introvert is natural and shouldn't be something people look down upon. She argued that introverts often are natural problem solvers and that many people we look up to-Rosa Parks and Gandhi, for example-identified as introverts. She also provided a counter argument: extroverts are needed because they help with teamwork and the spreading of ideas. But she did not persuade her audience to see extroverts as less helpful, she simply argued that introverts and extroverts are both needed in society and in the workplace.
But what about other writing? Is it's purpose solely to argue, or to persuade? I don't think any piece of writing has one sole purpose, even the speech we watched in class. All writers who argue use persuasion to prove a point, and people are better persuaded when presented with clear, concise arguments. And then there's fiction. Fiction doesn't necessarily argue or persuade readers. Some work does-it encourages readers to look at different ideas and analyze their beliefs. For example, Harry Potter is very anti-racism and Animal Farm clearly is used to show the problems of communism.
However, some writing is simply made to entertain. All writing has a purpose, but the purpose is not always to argue or persuade.
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
SCWAMP: What Is It and How Does it Affect Our Media?
Well I'm doing this now, hopefully I'll still get credit because I wasn't in yesterday. Anyway.
SCWAMP.
It's a funny looking word, isn't it? SCWAMP is basically a power system. If you have all the qualities of SCWAMP, you have power. These qualitites are STRAIGHT, CHRISTIAN, WHITE, ABLE-BODIED, MALE, and PROPERTY HOLDER. Having these qualities mean's having privilege.
Because the people with this power have the ability to control and create the media we experience every day, these qualities are almost always written into the text as something good and something to pursue. This is wrong simply because the color of someone's skin, or their gender, or their religion has no emphasis on the quality of the content they may produce. It may influence it, but SCWAMP influences media too.
The example of media I chose to analyze was Disney's Snow White.
STRAIGHT-The movie is centered on the romantic relationship between Snow White and the Prince. However, certain unhealthy aspects of the movie come from the heteronormativity of the content. For example, Snow White is only fourteen. Um, hello? Why is it that pretty much the only personality trait of a FOURTEEN YEAR OLD is to get married to a man? It's horrifying.
How does anyone let that happen? There's also the fact that she is kissed while she is sleeping.
She did not give consent to being kissed.
These troubling facts don't come from heterosexuality of course, it instead comes from the strict heteronormativity which enforces gender roles and stereotypes: the male is dominant and takes what he wants, while the woman's only thought and dream is of marriage.
CHRISTIAN: There is never a direct connection to Christianity as the movie is technically fantasy. However, the name Snow White brings to mind purity. To me, this connects to the Church's demand for the pure, perfect woman. Snow also wakes up after being kissed by the Prince, which could connect to the Resurrection.
WHITE: Every person in this movie is white. Even the Magic Mirror. I get this was made years ago but to my understanding black people have always existed? Problem is that white people assume that a character is white because that's how media is presented. This is white superiority.
ABLE-BODIED: Alright, this one is tricky. While there are people in this movie who aren't exactly able-bodied, they aren't portrayed positively. In my opinion this is worse than not being included in media at all, because it creates and enforces negative stereotypes.
The dwarfs are dwarfs. Now just because someone is a dwarf doesn't mean they're not able-bodied! However this deviates from society's version of the perfect healthy body. The dwarfs are treated like children and are given jobs underground. They live in the woods. Why are they so far away from everyone? It's like they are being hidden from "normal" people.
The other character is the Evil Queen after she transforms herself. She uses a cane and has a humpback. The sheer fact that she is portrayed as murderous, jealous, and evil in the movie proves that being portrayed in content does not mean accurate representation.
MALE: I have a lot to say on this topic. It is important to point out how masculinity means power in society and in media and femininity means weakness.
Let's look at the Prince. He falls in love with a girl (without getting to know her-hello manic pixie dream girl fantasy) and then kisses her without her consent. He then gets the girl without really having to do anything, taking her away to his castle. In my opinion he sounds like a shifty piece of work but let's move on.
Then there are the dwarfs. While they are not able-bodied, they still have the privilege of being male. They don't have to cook or clean, they are shown as self-sufficient, and work in a diamond mine. I know they live in a cottage but I didn't see them trading any diamonds. I'm going to assume they keep them all for themselves, so they have wealth. (Seriously though, what do they do with all those diamonds? And now that I think about it, where does Snow get the food she cooks for them? Do they pay in diamonds? What kind of crazy inflation is going on in this fictional world?)
Some people would say that the stressing of wealth and power that these men are given puts too much of a stereotype on men-be strong, be a provider. However, these stereotypes are seen as positive personality traits.
Now onto women.
Let's talk about the fact that this was the first princess movie made and that there are only two women in it. (There are far more male characters, yet princess movies are only for girls?) And that to get an image of the movie poster cover, I had to google 'seven dwarves'. Not Snow White. 'Seven dwarfs.' Last time I checked the main character was Snow White, but whatever.
Okay, so there are two female characters-Snow White and the Evil Queen. I personally am a fan of how two women portray two opposite personalities, which creates the idea that there are only two types of women. Women aren't given personalities in media, they are given standards that they must live up to. They must be pure, and young, and beautiful, or else they are an evil, wicked woman.
There's also the idea that women are constantly fighting over trivial things. Like the Evil Queen is jealous of Snow White's beauty. Why is this such a common thing in media? I see so many girls supporting girls today. (I know this movie was made a long time ago, but I doubt that the "boy-crazy" stereotype that surrounded all girls has ever been true.) It's just being lazy. It creates this idea that you have to be the best woman, the most beautiful, to get your prince. If not, you get pushed down a ravine and crushed by a rock.
The traits the two have overall aren't very positive. Snow White is wimpy, naive, and scared by everything. The Queen is manipulative, selfish, and proud. It's normal for anyone to have these traits. I don't hate Snow or the Queen, I just hate the fact that these women were created out of stereotypes for women (docile vs bossy/mean/domineering) instead of fleshed out as real characters.
I'm fine having a female character who's afraid, but how are you afraid of a tree but absolutely fine living with seven random men and marrying a guy who took advantage of you?
PROPERTY HOLDER: This is obvious-the Prince is a catch because he owns property-a huge castle. And the dwarfs are successful because they have their own cottage (which they don't even take care of-Snow does. Real adult guys.), jobs, and tons of diamonds probably hoarded all over the place.
(Why else would they be afraid of an intruder? There are seven dwarfs; they could take someone on. Trust me, that cottage looks as lame as my pre-calc grade, so it wasn't the house they were worried about. It had to be the diamonds.) The possessions of these men are seen as attractive to Snow, who just can't wait to go to live in the castle with her Prince.
Keep in mind that I really love Disney movies, and I do like Snow White. I like Disney in general. However, I think that the most important thing about analyzing media is recognizing the problems of content. Just because something is good doesn't mean it's "good", is what I'm trying to say. And trust me, this movie had a lot of problems.
SCWAMP.
It's a funny looking word, isn't it? SCWAMP is basically a power system. If you have all the qualities of SCWAMP, you have power. These qualitites are STRAIGHT, CHRISTIAN, WHITE, ABLE-BODIED, MALE, and PROPERTY HOLDER. Having these qualities mean's having privilege.
Because the people with this power have the ability to control and create the media we experience every day, these qualities are almost always written into the text as something good and something to pursue. This is wrong simply because the color of someone's skin, or their gender, or their religion has no emphasis on the quality of the content they may produce. It may influence it, but SCWAMP influences media too.
The example of media I chose to analyze was Disney's Snow White.
STRAIGHT-The movie is centered on the romantic relationship between Snow White and the Prince. However, certain unhealthy aspects of the movie come from the heteronormativity of the content. For example, Snow White is only fourteen. Um, hello? Why is it that pretty much the only personality trait of a FOURTEEN YEAR OLD is to get married to a man? It's horrifying.
How does anyone let that happen? There's also the fact that she is kissed while she is sleeping.
She did not give consent to being kissed.
These troubling facts don't come from heterosexuality of course, it instead comes from the strict heteronormativity which enforces gender roles and stereotypes: the male is dominant and takes what he wants, while the woman's only thought and dream is of marriage.
CHRISTIAN: There is never a direct connection to Christianity as the movie is technically fantasy. However, the name Snow White brings to mind purity. To me, this connects to the Church's demand for the pure, perfect woman. Snow also wakes up after being kissed by the Prince, which could connect to the Resurrection.
WHITE: Every person in this movie is white. Even the Magic Mirror. I get this was made years ago but to my understanding black people have always existed? Problem is that white people assume that a character is white because that's how media is presented. This is white superiority.
ABLE-BODIED: Alright, this one is tricky. While there are people in this movie who aren't exactly able-bodied, they aren't portrayed positively. In my opinion this is worse than not being included in media at all, because it creates and enforces negative stereotypes.
The dwarfs are dwarfs. Now just because someone is a dwarf doesn't mean they're not able-bodied! However this deviates from society's version of the perfect healthy body. The dwarfs are treated like children and are given jobs underground. They live in the woods. Why are they so far away from everyone? It's like they are being hidden from "normal" people.
The other character is the Evil Queen after she transforms herself. She uses a cane and has a humpback. The sheer fact that she is portrayed as murderous, jealous, and evil in the movie proves that being portrayed in content does not mean accurate representation.
MALE: I have a lot to say on this topic. It is important to point out how masculinity means power in society and in media and femininity means weakness.
Let's look at the Prince. He falls in love with a girl (without getting to know her-hello manic pixie dream girl fantasy) and then kisses her without her consent. He then gets the girl without really having to do anything, taking her away to his castle. In my opinion he sounds like a shifty piece of work but let's move on.
Then there are the dwarfs. While they are not able-bodied, they still have the privilege of being male. They don't have to cook or clean, they are shown as self-sufficient, and work in a diamond mine. I know they live in a cottage but I didn't see them trading any diamonds. I'm going to assume they keep them all for themselves, so they have wealth. (Seriously though, what do they do with all those diamonds? And now that I think about it, where does Snow get the food she cooks for them? Do they pay in diamonds? What kind of crazy inflation is going on in this fictional world?)
Some people would say that the stressing of wealth and power that these men are given puts too much of a stereotype on men-be strong, be a provider. However, these stereotypes are seen as positive personality traits.
Now onto women.
Let's talk about the fact that this was the first princess movie made and that there are only two women in it. (There are far more male characters, yet princess movies are only for girls?) And that to get an image of the movie poster cover, I had to google 'seven dwarves'. Not Snow White. 'Seven dwarfs.' Last time I checked the main character was Snow White, but whatever.
Okay, so there are two female characters-Snow White and the Evil Queen. I personally am a fan of how two women portray two opposite personalities, which creates the idea that there are only two types of women. Women aren't given personalities in media, they are given standards that they must live up to. They must be pure, and young, and beautiful, or else they are an evil, wicked woman.
There's also the idea that women are constantly fighting over trivial things. Like the Evil Queen is jealous of Snow White's beauty. Why is this such a common thing in media? I see so many girls supporting girls today. (I know this movie was made a long time ago, but I doubt that the "boy-crazy" stereotype that surrounded all girls has ever been true.) It's just being lazy. It creates this idea that you have to be the best woman, the most beautiful, to get your prince. If not, you get pushed down a ravine and crushed by a rock.
The traits the two have overall aren't very positive. Snow White is wimpy, naive, and scared by everything. The Queen is manipulative, selfish, and proud. It's normal for anyone to have these traits. I don't hate Snow or the Queen, I just hate the fact that these women were created out of stereotypes for women (docile vs bossy/mean/domineering) instead of fleshed out as real characters.
I'm fine having a female character who's afraid, but how are you afraid of a tree but absolutely fine living with seven random men and marrying a guy who took advantage of you?
PROPERTY HOLDER: This is obvious-the Prince is a catch because he owns property-a huge castle. And the dwarfs are successful because they have their own cottage (which they don't even take care of-Snow does. Real adult guys.), jobs, and tons of diamonds probably hoarded all over the place.
(Why else would they be afraid of an intruder? There are seven dwarfs; they could take someone on. Trust me, that cottage looks as lame as my pre-calc grade, so it wasn't the house they were worried about. It had to be the diamonds.) The possessions of these men are seen as attractive to Snow, who just can't wait to go to live in the castle with her Prince.
Keep in mind that I really love Disney movies, and I do like Snow White. I like Disney in general. However, I think that the most important thing about analyzing media is recognizing the problems of content. Just because something is good doesn't mean it's "good", is what I'm trying to say. And trust me, this movie had a lot of problems.
Monday, September 28, 2015
Who Am I?
I'm Em and I'm doing this blog for AP Lang. I'm 16, a junior, and I really like pugs and cats. I really like art.
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