Final Project

Hey all,

I wasn't sure if we had to share our projects or if it was optional, but here's a link to mine (a magazine based on 1,001 Nights):

http://pdfsr.com/pdf/final-project-arabian-nights-magazine


It looks more magazine-y if you can view the pages next to each other, but this particular website doesn't allow that format so it's just one long thing (you'll see what I mean).

Anyway, it was great having class with you all and I hope you all have a great summer (and to my fellow seniors, best of luck out there in the real world!)

-Brittany

Helping out

Hey guys! I don't know if this will help anyone else out as much as its helped me but I began using APA.org which is American psychological association. So if your looking into the psychological impacts on people for certain things you can just type in the topic at the top and it sends you many useful articles! That is all. Hopefully this helps out some people :) Have a great day.

Interview Video

Hey everyone here is the link to the video!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gywBoBuA7dE

Thoughts on Paul Bunyan

I know this is a little late, but I thought I would give my thoughts on the stories. Paul Bunyan is one of the most famous folklore characters there is, and has been for quite awhile. I always look forward to reading folk tales like this because I always seem to enjoy them, and the Paul Bunyan stories were no exception. Reading these stories always keeps you entertained, because something always comes up that you didn't expect. The use of hyperbole always keeps the reader wanting to know what other ridiculous thing the author can come up with. One of my favorite exaggerations is "Well, he twisted out of his harness lickety-split and stepped over the mountain to introduce himself" when referring to Babe the Blue Ox seeing a calf on the other side of a mountain. Exaggerations like these always seem to keep the story moving along. Paul Bunyan tales are a very entertaining read.

Contemporary Connection- Expectation vs. Reality

I don't know about everyone else, but I hate reality TV.  I hate it and openly criticize it, yet I can't stop watching it. Maybe it's because after a long day I want a show that doesn't require me to think, or maybe I just enjoy watching shitty things happen to other people instead of me.  Whatever the reason is, I watch it often, and I know there are many people who watch it religiously. However, there are certain people that take what they see on these shows way too seriously. I'm sure you're all already aware of this, but reality TV is anything but reality; it's often staged and/or scripted. (If this is news to you, I apologize for shattering that beautiful dream of entertaining, trashy TV. Also, Santa isn't real).  People that are not a part of American culture or people that are extremely naive will take the things they see on theses shows to heart and think that they are accurate depictions of American society.

This reminded me of  "My American Wife" and the viewership that it has. Almost everyone behind who is a part of the creative team of "My American Wife" choose which families to show and stage how they want them to be portrayed. The producers behind "My American Wife" are trying to tell viewers in Japan that this is is how Americans are, and that this is somehow an "accurate portrayal of the ideal" life to live. I know so many people who think what they see on reality TV shows are real and try to live their life like that. A classmate of mine became obsessed with tanning and became a party girl because she thought Jersey Shore was an ideal standard to live by, that it was somehow the cool thing to do.

So with that being said, is reality TV a lie? Many people know that it is [mostly] fake, but there are people that don't.  Reality TV is supposed to be mind-numbing entertainment, so is it okay if a TV advertises something as reality, when it's not as long as it's entertaining? Or should they just market it as a regular TV show?



Relevant material:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bustle/i-was-on-reality-tv-faking-real-life_b_4823714.html

http://thoughtcatalog.com/charlie-shaw/2014/08/31-reality-tv-show-contestants-and-producers-answer-how-much-of-the-show-is-actually-scripted/

My Year of Meats Discussion Leading- Austin Curreri

 

Discussion Questions 
"'You'll never get it on TV, not in Japan anyway. It's much too...real." (pg.343)

In this part of the story, Jane, Suzuki, and Oh celebrate the documentary-to-be they helped to film about the meat industry. However, a statement Oh makes seems to imply that due to it's content, this will not make it on to Japanese television, to which Jane says probably not American television either. Why not? Is the media, if the documentary is too real, fake? And if so, why?

"Akiko had plenty of very good reasons for leaving, and she wanted him to know each one. Only then could she be done with him, once and for all." (pg. 347)

In any relationship, a breakup can be devastating, let alone an abusive one. Akiko, after contacting Jane, is directed to stay with Dyann and Lara in Northhampton.  As she was settling in, she decided to write John Ueno a letter. Why does Akiko decide to write this letter, despite what he did to her? What will this action allow her to do, and what does it indicate for her future?

Contemporary Connection

http://www.thehotline.org/2013/05/finding-closure-after-abuse/


The contemporary connection I made is a list of steps to help recover from domestic abuse, which Akiko demonstrates throughout the last chapters. Pain is something we as human beings have to deal with, and recovering from this pain is essential to growth, or at the very least, to enduring.






Opinon?
What do you guys think of this book?

Contemporary Connections- My Year of Meats and American Ignorance

The Meat Industry has been working in the shadows for hundreds of years. Animals that are raised for slaughter on factory farms, which is a large number of them, have been given antibiotics and hormones for much longer then we have all been alive. These animals are treated as if they aren't even breathing at all; tortured and beaten, and often being ripped apart in these factories while still alive. Regardless, millions of americans still ignore the fact that animals are treated this way and disregard the unhealthy substances the animals are given. According to the article I've provided, many americans simply aren't aware of where their meat is coming from, which is similar to what Jane discussed in Chapter nine of My Year of Meats. The author of the article interviewed many students on a college campus and many of them didn't seem to understand what the animals went through to provide them with meat. The ignorance of Americans on this issue is what fuels the meat industry to continue making their riches. If people truly saw what was going on inside of these factory farms and meat packing factories, then they might think twice before they tried the meat that comes from there. People simply have to educate themselves or horrible industries such as this one will continue to grow and prosper.

http://www.thecorsaironline.com/lifestyle/2010/05/04/ignorance-fuels-meat-industry/

Contemporary Connections: My Year of Meats and Infertility

Contemporary connections: My Year of Meats and Fertility treatments

In the novel “My Year of Meats” Jane and Akiko both struggled with not being able to have a baby. About 6% of married women in America are infertile. This leads to many alternatives to having a baby such as adoption or fertility treatments. Many of these fertility treatments have negative side effects and can even lead to birth defects. The most common fertility treatment is in vitro fertilization. In vitro fertilization is the process of manually combining sperm and an egg in a laboratory and then inserting the embryo into the uterus. The average cost of one cycle of this method of fertilization is roughly $12,400 around the United States. Other options include injecting hormones into the women's body to help start or regulate ovulation. While these methods are currently viewed as safe, we cannot determine the long-run side effects as they have not been around long enough.

Success rates of In Vitro fertilization

• 43% for women under age 35
• 33-36% for women ages 35 to 37
• 23-27% for women ages 38 to 40
• 13-18% for women ages over 40

Risks of Fertility Treatments:

Multiple Births

Having a multiple birth is the biggest health risk associated with fertility treatments. Having multiple babies at once can be a health risk to both the mother and the babies.

Ovarian Hyper-Simulation Syndrome

This is caused by an over-reaction to fertility drugs that are used to stimulate egg production. Ovarian hyper-simulation syndrome is when cysts form on the ovaries and fluid collects in the abdomen.

Ectopic Pregnancy

An ectopic pregnancy is when an embryo implants inside the fallopian tubes rather than the uterus. This can cause a rupture through the fallopian tube and internal bleeding.

Birth Defects

 Some research suggests that fertility treatments can lead to a higher risk of birth defects in newborn babies. 

 http://www.hfea.gov.uk/fertility-treatment-risks.html 

http://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/Infertility/Index.htm