Friday, August 31, 2007
myspace analysis
When analyzing this persons MySpace page I realized that the various applications that can set a page apart from the others. The person I analyzed was a girl from another country, who seemed pretty interesting. The first thing I noticed when I clicked on her page was the up-beat techno that was playing. Music alone can sometimes tell you about a person; from her techno music I could tell that she was fun loving and out going person. I also got that vibe from many of the other things on her page. The influential quotes on living life and what she says some of her values are portray that she is a believer in carpe diem. From that I take she enjoys living life to its potential, and generally having a good time. Her background consisted of various vintage and romanticist photos. When I think of vintage, I usually associate that with a person of relaxed personality and a “down to earth” mentality. Based on some of her own pictures, pictures of magazine covers and models; tell me that she is fashion savvy and into a unique style of dress. On her page she has a couple of comic strips that are pretty funny. Her sense of humor tells one about her and her personality. From all these applications on MySpace one can tell so much about a person, how they would like to be portrayed, what they value and how they live their life.
The Hours...the movie
If I were the director of this movie, I think it would be very difficult to portray the exact thoughts and emotions from the characters in the novel into a real-live format. Firstly, I would have to be very specific and cautious in my choice of the actresses who would play the roles of especially Clarissa, Laura, and Virginia, because these characters are so complex in the novel that it would be very crucial to choose talented actresses for these roles.
In order for the audience to understand the thoughts and feelings of these three women, I would try to create a movie in which the actual actress’s voice is heard from the background when she is in the scene, describing how she feels in one particular moment or about something she is remembering from the past. For example, for Laura Brown, I would show the audience the actress playing Laura, and I would have her voice in the background describing what she is thinking, such as her list of tasks to accomplish for her husband’s birthday. However, I realize that this would lose attention of the viewers if it were overused. So, in order to portray the rest of the characters’ thoughts, I would have them speaking out loud to themselves in simple, short sentences. This would not be so dramatic in which the audience might perceive these characters as mentally unstable, but a few audible comments from each main character, in solitude, would definitely help the viewers understand and connect with each woman on a more personal level.
Also, in order to follow the pattern of Cunningham’s writing in this novel, I would need to have my story bounce back and forth between the three characters and their settings quite often. To help the viewer understand and comprehend the frequent changes in setting, I would create each setting to be completely different from the others. For example, for Clarissa’s setting, I would have all of her surroundings resemble the fast pace and typical high class lifestyle of New York, in deep contrast with Virginia’s setting, which would be similar to a quiet house in England placed on a meadow where no other signs of life or society would be visible. Then, I would have Laura Brown’s setting as a middle class farmhouse located in the outskirts of Los Angeles, where the rush of city life is near, but she seems to be trapped in her home with her old fashioned house ware and outfits similar to June Cleaver.
In conclusion, I believe this film would be very difficult to create. Obviously, it would be easier than most, since the script is already written, but forming an accurate motion picture to tell this story would be a very complicated process since there are three different settings in different time periods, very little dialogue, and one day in time for every event, thought, memory, and reflection to occur. Considering these details, I am expecting to be slightly disappointed by the movie’s depiction of the novel. It very well could be an entertaining movie, but it is not possible to be as detailed and descriptive in a film than in a book.
In order for the audience to understand the thoughts and feelings of these three women, I would try to create a movie in which the actual actress’s voice is heard from the background when she is in the scene, describing how she feels in one particular moment or about something she is remembering from the past. For example, for Laura Brown, I would show the audience the actress playing Laura, and I would have her voice in the background describing what she is thinking, such as her list of tasks to accomplish for her husband’s birthday. However, I realize that this would lose attention of the viewers if it were overused. So, in order to portray the rest of the characters’ thoughts, I would have them speaking out loud to themselves in simple, short sentences. This would not be so dramatic in which the audience might perceive these characters as mentally unstable, but a few audible comments from each main character, in solitude, would definitely help the viewers understand and connect with each woman on a more personal level.
Also, in order to follow the pattern of Cunningham’s writing in this novel, I would need to have my story bounce back and forth between the three characters and their settings quite often. To help the viewer understand and comprehend the frequent changes in setting, I would create each setting to be completely different from the others. For example, for Clarissa’s setting, I would have all of her surroundings resemble the fast pace and typical high class lifestyle of New York, in deep contrast with Virginia’s setting, which would be similar to a quiet house in England placed on a meadow where no other signs of life or society would be visible. Then, I would have Laura Brown’s setting as a middle class farmhouse located in the outskirts of Los Angeles, where the rush of city life is near, but she seems to be trapped in her home with her old fashioned house ware and outfits similar to June Cleaver.
In conclusion, I believe this film would be very difficult to create. Obviously, it would be easier than most, since the script is already written, but forming an accurate motion picture to tell this story would be a very complicated process since there are three different settings in different time periods, very little dialogue, and one day in time for every event, thought, memory, and reflection to occur. Considering these details, I am expecting to be slightly disappointed by the movie’s depiction of the novel. It very well could be an entertaining movie, but it is not possible to be as detailed and descriptive in a film than in a book.
Household Death Climbs to One
Reading through the stories on TheOnion.com, I discovered one particular story that seemed extremely sarcastic and satirical, and I actually had to laugh out loud. The title of the story was “Household Death Toll Climbs to One.” This title is humorous to me because usually when news stories refer to death tolls, they are typically large-scale events; such as the death toll from a large hurricane, a terrorist attack, or a forest fire. The fact that this writer chose to use the phrase “Death toll” seemed to really draw out and almost mock the fact that there are so many events that occur every day where hundreds of people pass away.
In the actual news story, the truth of the incident was revealed in that a 68 year old man from Connecticut slipped while getting into the bathtub and hit his head, causing him to eventually die. Even though this occurrence is rather common, it is very rare that a person would actually die from falling into the bathtub. After the writer explained this tragedy, they wrote that the wife of the deceased man “Still resides in the deathtrap,” which I found very comical considering the fact that this was such a rare event to actually cause a person to pass away.
The language and rhetoric that were used to describe this story definitely add character and humor to something that would in most cases be an uninteresting news story. The fact that a man died in his bathtub would never make the front page of a national newspaper, but in this context, it would be something that many people would read and most likely enjoy. Even the word choice in the title contains a phrase that is seen in newspapers every day, but in a completely different form, which makes the story a must read.
In the actual news story, the truth of the incident was revealed in that a 68 year old man from Connecticut slipped while getting into the bathtub and hit his head, causing him to eventually die. Even though this occurrence is rather common, it is very rare that a person would actually die from falling into the bathtub. After the writer explained this tragedy, they wrote that the wife of the deceased man “Still resides in the deathtrap,” which I found very comical considering the fact that this was such a rare event to actually cause a person to pass away.
The language and rhetoric that were used to describe this story definitely add character and humor to something that would in most cases be an uninteresting news story. The fact that a man died in his bathtub would never make the front page of a national newspaper, but in this context, it would be something that many people would read and most likely enjoy. Even the word choice in the title contains a phrase that is seen in newspapers every day, but in a completely different form, which makes the story a must read.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Corey (without paragraphs)
When you load Corey's page the first thing that hits you is the blood splatter background but that is quickly trumped by the pikachu music. Corey is 17 and "hates the world." There are only two pictures that were placed on the page proper by Corey: a single picture of Corey and a picture of a very angry looking pikachu with the subtitle "sometimes, when I get mad...I kill people." The former photo is a little more interesting. The picture was taken at the same time as several other photos that I would assume were taken in Corey's room and I believe that it was selected above the others for the serious red eye that afflicts Corey in that photo and the plethora of writing and drawing on the furniture in the background. The only background drawing that has not been applied directly to the furniture is taped onto the door of either an entertainment center or an armoire (I can't tell which) and looks like something that you are more likely to find on the fridge of a family with a preschooler then in the room of a teenager. This picture within a picture is taped to the unidentified piece of furniture with blue painter's tape at about eye level for Corey. The drawing itself was done with, I would guess, colored pencils and has the setting of a brown pasture below a white sky on a not too cloudy day. The main characters of this artwork are placed quite confusingly on the line where the ground meets the sky which I would take to mean one of three things: the artist is trying to say something barely philosophical about the subjects, the subjects are placed at the top of a hill or (the one I lean towards) the author did not care to be bothered with perspective. The three stick figures that occupy the center of all that is the drawing consist of a tall blue figure on the right, a slightly less tall pink figure on the left and a small character in the middle that I would identify as Corey. Corey in the main picture is staring away from the camera lens and in the direction of little Corey who is flanked by people that I would term as parents with a look that seems to speak of something lost. I, of course, am unaware of the situation of Corey's parents (as they are never once mentioned) and all talk concerning them is wholly conjecture. An equally strong case can be made that Corey is looking forward and hopes to be one of the parents. Corey writes (I peeked at the text) on the subject of love and the prospect of having children someday but does not want to experience a broken heart "(again)." That can be taken any number of ways and I'm not even going to attempt to tackle the issue of Corey's ring finger which from the picture seems to deserve a great deal of writing in of itself. In conclusion, (lol) it is possible to look in great detail at something like this and try to pull great detail from it but in the end you gain only a vague understanding of how the person wants to be viewed and maybe from that a reflection of who that person is in life but the true core of who that person is most likely remains hidden even from that person. Is it obvious whether Corey is male or female?
HDB...
When I told a friend about my assignment to analyze some random person’s Myspace page, he immediately suggested that I use one of his friends as a subject. I obliged and found his page and then used the links to his friends’ pages to find a suitable candidate.
Expressions from a Troubled Mind
As I browsed through various Myspace users, I looked for a page that conveyed a clear message. I wanted something that expressed feelings, lifestyle, and view on life. After a few minutes of this I stumbled upon a page that does exactly that.
The owner of the page I reviewed assuredly was attempting to send a message and convey his feelings to the world. From the very beginning I could tell that this man needed light in his life. His username of “Tainted Soul” sends a message saying that he feels some sort of guilt or at least acknowledges some sort of wrongdoing in his life, but this is only the beginning. The second thing that jumped out to me as I viewed his page was a symbol that he used as his background image. This image contained a few mysterious items such as a snake, a throwing star, and some sort of sharp bladed weapons. The snake is intertwined around the other items. To me this says that the owner of the page might enjoy violent, magical, or mysterious subjects. Everything on his whole page depicts feelings of death, darkness, and depression. His icon is a black heart, symbolizing a possible relationship gone astray or just a general description of his heart condition. The pictures that have been added contain dragons, mythical creatures, and snakes, again pointing to a sort of dark lifestyle or pleasures, and in his section titled “Interests” he lists many things, among them being “thinking of ways to commit the perfect murder.”
The author of the page also has written a poem that speaks volumes about his views on life. His poem says, “I sit here lonely in my chair. Looking over the pieces of the puzzle of my life…..I put them together and what do i see? A picture of me and my shattered dreams.” Clearly the author is disappointed with the way that his life has turned out thus far and depressed about his condition.
A final thing that I noted about this page, and thus the author of this page, is that his last date of logging in was today. This tells me that he is likely a frequent user. In turn I jump to the conclusion that it is important for him to send this dark, depressed, and mysterious message to his friends. To me, he is crying out for help, and I pray that someday he finds it and is rescued from his present mindset.
The owner of the page I reviewed assuredly was attempting to send a message and convey his feelings to the world. From the very beginning I could tell that this man needed light in his life. His username of “Tainted Soul” sends a message saying that he feels some sort of guilt or at least acknowledges some sort of wrongdoing in his life, but this is only the beginning. The second thing that jumped out to me as I viewed his page was a symbol that he used as his background image. This image contained a few mysterious items such as a snake, a throwing star, and some sort of sharp bladed weapons. The snake is intertwined around the other items. To me this says that the owner of the page might enjoy violent, magical, or mysterious subjects. Everything on his whole page depicts feelings of death, darkness, and depression. His icon is a black heart, symbolizing a possible relationship gone astray or just a general description of his heart condition. The pictures that have been added contain dragons, mythical creatures, and snakes, again pointing to a sort of dark lifestyle or pleasures, and in his section titled “Interests” he lists many things, among them being “thinking of ways to commit the perfect murder.”
The author of the page also has written a poem that speaks volumes about his views on life. His poem says, “I sit here lonely in my chair. Looking over the pieces of the puzzle of my life…..I put them together and what do i see? A picture of me and my shattered dreams.” Clearly the author is disappointed with the way that his life has turned out thus far and depressed about his condition.
A final thing that I noted about this page, and thus the author of this page, is that his last date of logging in was today. This tells me that he is likely a frequent user. In turn I jump to the conclusion that it is important for him to send this dark, depressed, and mysterious message to his friends. To me, he is crying out for help, and I pray that someday he finds it and is rescued from his present mindset.
No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti
"No puedo vivir sin ti" is Spanish for "I cannot live without you."
I was drawn to this person's MySpace page for two reasons: The Spanish title caught my eye and I found the background fascinating. The creator of this page is a 19 year old woman, yet has a picture of a sexy model in lingerie with a provocative look for her background. I found this to be odd, as I thought that for the most part males would have such backgrounds. I thought this woman may be homosexual, but in her bio section she says she is straight. Also, she is pictured hugging her husband (I assume, as she says she is married and the title of the page suggests this.)
Compared to other MySpace pages I browsed, I found this page to be very simple but still just as difficult to read as any other. While the page lacks a very busy background, the transparency of the text boxes still makes the site painful to look at. I find that this is the case with nearly all Myspace pages and is one of the main reasons I do not use the site. The site itself is very lacking in any depth, as she hardly lets on to anything about herself on the page. Aside from the details section there is little else besides a song (which won't seem to load.)
On to the analysis: From the site's name and overall theme I can tell that this person is very much in love (or at least wants to appear to be) with her husband. The color scheme of purple and gold clashes somewhat (unless you happen to be a Laker fan) but gives off a female tone. Of course the main source of this tone is the background. While this is certainly not a photo of the actual woman, I believe it lends itself to describing how she perceives herself or how she wishes to be perceived by others. Still, I cannot stand how the actual page content is so difficult to read against the background. I find that this speaks ill of her effort in creating the page in that she did not bother to at least make the page readable. I find myself scrolling up down to get the text in the black margins to read it.
Overall, I would say that this person is using her MySpace page as less of a way to express herself so much as to simply stay connected with friends through the messaging system. Her page itself seems to be an homage to her relationship with her husband. Perhaps her background isn't for her so much as it is for him to look at.
I was drawn to this person's MySpace page for two reasons: The Spanish title caught my eye and I found the background fascinating. The creator of this page is a 19 year old woman, yet has a picture of a sexy model in lingerie with a provocative look for her background. I found this to be odd, as I thought that for the most part males would have such backgrounds. I thought this woman may be homosexual, but in her bio section she says she is straight. Also, she is pictured hugging her husband (I assume, as she says she is married and the title of the page suggests this.)
Compared to other MySpace pages I browsed, I found this page to be very simple but still just as difficult to read as any other. While the page lacks a very busy background, the transparency of the text boxes still makes the site painful to look at. I find that this is the case with nearly all Myspace pages and is one of the main reasons I do not use the site. The site itself is very lacking in any depth, as she hardly lets on to anything about herself on the page. Aside from the details section there is little else besides a song (which won't seem to load.)
On to the analysis: From the site's name and overall theme I can tell that this person is very much in love (or at least wants to appear to be) with her husband. The color scheme of purple and gold clashes somewhat (unless you happen to be a Laker fan) but gives off a female tone. Of course the main source of this tone is the background. While this is certainly not a photo of the actual woman, I believe it lends itself to describing how she perceives herself or how she wishes to be perceived by others. Still, I cannot stand how the actual page content is so difficult to read against the background. I find that this speaks ill of her effort in creating the page in that she did not bother to at least make the page readable. I find myself scrolling up down to get the text in the black margins to read it.
Overall, I would say that this person is using her MySpace page as less of a way to express herself so much as to simply stay connected with friends through the messaging system. Her page itself seems to be an homage to her relationship with her husband. Perhaps her background isn't for her so much as it is for him to look at.
Myspace Profile Page Assumptions
It is amazing to me how technology has changed our way of life. Just keeping in touch with friends after high school has become so much easier because of websites like Facebook, Myspace, Xanga, and LiveJournal. But these sites can also be extremely dangerous…just about anyone can see what you put on the internet. Once you put it there, it is no longer private. And while someone might think that only their friends are interested in their day-to-day activities, that is rarely the case. The internet has become a tool for people other than your friends, including universities and potential employers.
As I browsed through Myspace, I quickly came across a profile that drew my eye. The user is a teenage girl whose profile picture is a shot of her kissing another girl. And by clicking on the picture, her entire profile was revealed, telling the viewer everything about her from age and hometown, to family life and interests, to what she wants in the opposite sex.
Her profile wallpaper is very colorful with different polka dots of every shade of green, yellow, blue, and pink. This relays to me that she is a very outgoing person. There are several different quotes and sayings posted throughout the page, including “Love is giving someone the power to break your heart but trusting them not to.” This tells me that she is a girl who is full of emotions about love and finding “the one.” She also has taken several online personality quizzes and surveys, which to me means that she isn’t completely comfortable with her true personality and needs to have a childish quiz tell her about herself.
Overall, I don’t think there is anything listed on her profile that would make a potential employer turn her down, but I also don’t think that everything listed on her profile is actually true. Online quizzes can only tell you so much about a person, and until you personally talk to her face-to-face, I don’t think it’s possible to get a true feeling for what type of a person this girl really is.
As I browsed through Myspace, I quickly came across a profile that drew my eye. The user is a teenage girl whose profile picture is a shot of her kissing another girl. And by clicking on the picture, her entire profile was revealed, telling the viewer everything about her from age and hometown, to family life and interests, to what she wants in the opposite sex.
Her profile wallpaper is very colorful with different polka dots of every shade of green, yellow, blue, and pink. This relays to me that she is a very outgoing person. There are several different quotes and sayings posted throughout the page, including “Love is giving someone the power to break your heart but trusting them not to.” This tells me that she is a girl who is full of emotions about love and finding “the one.” She also has taken several online personality quizzes and surveys, which to me means that she isn’t completely comfortable with her true personality and needs to have a childish quiz tell her about herself.
Overall, I don’t think there is anything listed on her profile that would make a potential employer turn her down, but I also don’t think that everything listed on her profile is actually true. Online quizzes can only tell you so much about a person, and until you personally talk to her face-to-face, I don’t think it’s possible to get a true feeling for what type of a person this girl really is.
Why isn't everyone this irreverent and unique in real life?
To start off, I've never used myspace before. In fact I only used the internet as a means of communication through email until very recently(no AIM, facebook, ect.) and only if I couldn't contact someone directly first. So, I picked a random name and searched it and clicked on the first profile I saw. The profile was set so that I couldn't look at it, so I searched through this particular person's 3000 friends (3000, seriously, I doubt I could recognize 3000 people if I saw them on the street, much less call them my friend) and picked until I found a profile I could look at. The first one I found had little personalizations to it. The background was blank so I started reading into the interests of this person and they could be described as the most random list of thought possible. I skipped to someone else, hoping to find something I could more easily categorize and I'm getting nothing so my search has ended with Josh, 23, from Washington D.C.
The background is a checker pattern with a light and dark blue, which, while not immensely creative or edgy in any way, helps the page stand out from normal black and white. His interests are no shocker from my limited experience; a list completely unrelated items that seem to establish each users' individualism. The blurb is a quirky joke that I would have smiled at had I been 12. Could the motivation behind some of these things be an attempt at retaining some whimsical mental youth. Many of the posts are very childish in nature.
The picture for Josh is a head shot of himself in a black hooded sweatshirt. I think this picture, sets an early standard for how a person wants to appear in this medium considering it is the first thing you will see. I think that the sweatshirt with the hood up establishes that Josh views himself to be a part of a counter-culture, different from the norm.
I feel that through this page I don't know anything about this person. The only assumption I can make is that Josh is very adamant about not being cast into a particular social group, thus the reason for so many different and odd interests.
The background is a checker pattern with a light and dark blue, which, while not immensely creative or edgy in any way, helps the page stand out from normal black and white. His interests are no shocker from my limited experience; a list completely unrelated items that seem to establish each users' individualism. The blurb is a quirky joke that I would have smiled at had I been 12. Could the motivation behind some of these things be an attempt at retaining some whimsical mental youth. Many of the posts are very childish in nature.
The picture for Josh is a head shot of himself in a black hooded sweatshirt. I think this picture, sets an early standard for how a person wants to appear in this medium considering it is the first thing you will see. I think that the sweatshirt with the hood up establishes that Josh views himself to be a part of a counter-culture, different from the norm.
I feel that through this page I don't know anything about this person. The only assumption I can make is that Josh is very adamant about not being cast into a particular social group, thus the reason for so many different and odd interests.
36 going on 16
I chose the profile of a 36 year old man from Bloomington Indiana. The first thing visible on his page is “MySpace is dumb”. I wondered why, would he spend time creating something he didn’t care about. As I looked through his page I realized he really did care about the appearance of his page and probably just didn’t want people to think he did. Generally speaking, when I think of myspace.com the first thing that pops into my mind is not a 36 year old man. This man has chosen a profile picture of himself on the beach topless, wearing sunglasses and sticking his tongue out. He appears to me to be in his 20’s. Also even though he says that MySpace is “dumb” he probably checks it often because it just so happens, he checked it yesterday. He has slide shows with pictures, mostly of himself, in just underwear or a swimsuit, in between images of artwork. I think this man is the artist of the paintings in the slideshow. He also has pictures of his tattoos, and pictures of celebrities he admires and would like to meet.
This man seems very outgoing, life of the party type guy. On the other hand he is 36 years old and I am not sure I would take him very seriously if I simply looked him up on MySpace for a character reference. He seems to be stuck in his past, a college frat boy who never stopped partying. His teenage years are long gone but his photos show no seriousness, nothing mature, nothing “adult”. His “social resume” seems to appeal to a younger crowd.
This man seems very outgoing, life of the party type guy. On the other hand he is 36 years old and I am not sure I would take him very seriously if I simply looked him up on MySpace for a character reference. He seems to be stuck in his past, a college frat boy who never stopped partying. His teenage years are long gone but his photos show no seriousness, nothing mature, nothing “adult”. His “social resume” seems to appeal to a younger crowd.
Will will will will will will will will will will
Using a technique I call "Clicking wildly for one minute then stopping on the last page", I reached my ideal Myspace candidate. His name, apparently, is "will will will". Now, will will will is a fine, great name, but it is decidedly not the name his mother gave him. The picture, I'm assuming, is of him, and he is looking into the camera with a glare that conveys apathy in a way that only the most seasoned of goths (for the purpose of not enforcing stereotypes, assume I mean Visigoths) can pull of correctly. It is also startlingly blue, as if it were run through a filter made out of sad. The ability to have any name and picture that you want is a scary thing, and it's Myspace's ambiguity that allows sex crimes to occur so easily. However, it also allows you to make a profile for your cat, and I guess that totally makes up for it.
Will will will's profile background is something to behold. Brown flowers amid a field of blue and different color blue stripes adorn the page like some sort of simile. The flowers make it seem like he's bearing his soul, but it's all brown and shriveled, craving the gentle garden shears of death. Or I could be reading too much into it.
A blast of eerie electrofolk INVADES YOUR BRAIN when you first open the page. It's a song called "Bubblemen Are Coming" by, who else, "Bubblemen". Personally, it's not my bag, but it definitely says something about will will will, and the thing it says is "I'm insane."
In any case, will will will is a prime example of a person with a myspace page, and although I don't know him personally, I feel like I know him, y'know, spiritually. Or something.
Will will will's profile background is something to behold. Brown flowers amid a field of blue and different color blue stripes adorn the page like some sort of simile. The flowers make it seem like he's bearing his soul, but it's all brown and shriveled, craving the gentle garden shears of death. Or I could be reading too much into it.
A blast of eerie electrofolk INVADES YOUR BRAIN when you first open the page. It's a song called "Bubblemen Are Coming" by, who else, "Bubblemen". Personally, it's not my bag, but it definitely says something about will will will, and the thing it says is "I'm insane."
In any case, will will will is a prime example of a person with a myspace page, and although I don't know him personally, I feel like I know him, y'know, spiritually. Or something.
The Inner Workings of “oo-cha-che[dear...]”: A Stirring and Profound Analysis Performed by the Not-Yet-But-Soon-To-Be-Renowned A. E. Mik
The first thing that one notices upon entering oo-cha-che[dear..]’s space, whether one wants to or not, is the loud music. It appears to be some sort of alternative/rock band. It shows that oo-cha-chee[dear] is, to a degree, unique and different. Instead of having a pop song on her page, she chose a rock song; thus she is not part of the so-called mainstream, but part of a smaller, secondary sort of mainstream that sets itself apart from the primary, aforementioned mainstream.
The initial observations are enforced by further examination of the page: the background is a lively pattern of green, red, and yellow stars; words are replaced by symbols, punctualization is ignored, and capitalization is deemed irrelevant; fonts change drastically and images are pixilated as one scrolls over them; and a stick figure dances in the space normally reserved for a personal quote. Altogether, oo-cha-che[dear...] appears to be a person with a distinct style. Her image, it would seem, is important to her. She put effort into making her space. She not only made sure that there is a common theme (which there is) and that everything matches (which it does, albeit in an offbeat, unruly sort of way), but she also took note of little details such as the changing font of the links.
There is always more, however, to a person than what ones sees at first glance. In the case of oo-cha-che[dear..], it is her choice of background colors that shows another side of her character: the background stars alternate between being green, red, and yellow - the colors of the African flag. This shows that oo-cha-che[dear..] is not only a carefree, fun-loving sort of person; she is also patriotic and proud of her heritage. Upon reading her description, one also learns that she is religious. If one were to know her personally, one would certainly find out more surprising things about her.
Much goes into making a person, doesn't it?
A. E. Mik
The initial observations are enforced by further examination of the page: the background is a lively pattern of green, red, and yellow stars; words are replaced by symbols, punctualization is ignored, and capitalization is deemed irrelevant; fonts change drastically and images are pixilated as one scrolls over them; and a stick figure dances in the space normally reserved for a personal quote. Altogether, oo-cha-che[dear...] appears to be a person with a distinct style. Her image, it would seem, is important to her. She put effort into making her space. She not only made sure that there is a common theme (which there is) and that everything matches (which it does, albeit in an offbeat, unruly sort of way), but she also took note of little details such as the changing font of the links.
There is always more, however, to a person than what ones sees at first glance. In the case of oo-cha-che[dear..], it is her choice of background colors that shows another side of her character: the background stars alternate between being green, red, and yellow - the colors of the African flag. This shows that oo-cha-che[dear..] is not only a carefree, fun-loving sort of person; she is also patriotic and proud of her heritage. Upon reading her description, one also learns that she is religious. If one were to know her personally, one would certainly find out more surprising things about her.
Much goes into making a person, doesn't it?
A. E. Mik
At a Glance
There are many thing you can learn, or guess at, about a person from their my space even with just a glance. Just glancing at the page of a 21 year old Massachusettian (is that a word?) tells me that he is a proffesional chef and like all good chefs has alot of friends 230 of them to be exact, likes rock and alternative music, has a sense of humor and is at least partly computer savy.
He only has one picture of himself on the page and from that i can guess that hes both male and caucassian of soem sort. he also took the picture when it was cold since hes wearing some pretty heavy clothes and he seems ready if a sword weilding burgular breaks in since he's brandishing one of his own (swords that is).
He has several videos on his page all of them are music videos from youtube. That along with the fact that he has a large selectio nof music on his page tells me that he and the people who regularly look at his page like to listen to a varity of music and not just the same one over and over again like many of the profiles have. It also tells me that either he has a friend thats good with computers or that he himself is fairly good and cares about how his page is put together.
The background he has is of some indecipherable, at least to me, graffti. This could symoblize many things that he is in a gang, has an artistic flair, or even that a band he likes made some graffti wallpaper its hard to tell since i cant read it. Some of the other pictures on his page tell me that he drinks, both whiskey and beer, and has a sense of humor about drinking. One picture show homer simpson dancing on a chair with a remote in one hand and a beer in the other and above the picture it says "To Alcohol! The cause of- and solution to- all lifes problems."
So as you can see there is alot you can guess at about from a my space page. How much of it is true you will probobly never know. Still sometimes little is enough and you never how much you can get from a glance.
He only has one picture of himself on the page and from that i can guess that hes both male and caucassian of soem sort. he also took the picture when it was cold since hes wearing some pretty heavy clothes and he seems ready if a sword weilding burgular breaks in since he's brandishing one of his own (swords that is).
He has several videos on his page all of them are music videos from youtube. That along with the fact that he has a large selectio nof music on his page tells me that he and the people who regularly look at his page like to listen to a varity of music and not just the same one over and over again like many of the profiles have. It also tells me that either he has a friend thats good with computers or that he himself is fairly good and cares about how his page is put together.
The background he has is of some indecipherable, at least to me, graffti. This could symoblize many things that he is in a gang, has an artistic flair, or even that a band he likes made some graffti wallpaper its hard to tell since i cant read it. Some of the other pictures on his page tell me that he drinks, both whiskey and beer, and has a sense of humor about drinking. One picture show homer simpson dancing on a chair with a remote in one hand and a beer in the other and above the picture it says "To Alcohol! The cause of- and solution to- all lifes problems."
So as you can see there is alot you can guess at about from a my space page. How much of it is true you will probobly never know. Still sometimes little is enough and you never how much you can get from a glance.
MySpace,YourSpace
With the arrival of networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, the realm of the Internet just got a whole lot more personal. Armed with an e-mail address and password, one can submerge himself in a phenomenon that enables two-second judgments of any person from the comfort of a computer chair. Judgments of a certain 18-year-old Floridian female, for example.
A scan of profile pictures shows her to be a rosy-cheeked young woman, indecisive about hair color and seeming to prefer the left side of her face. Photos of being pushed in shopping carts or with her long, black hair spiked high in the air portray her as adventurous with little care of others’ opinions. Outfits, hairstyles, and accessories tend to be of the “Punk Rock” persuasion, full of contrasting colors and silver studs, and present her as someone who enjoys attention and differences. Four of the eleven pictures are black-and-white and artistically angled which suggests she has at least some knowledge of photography.
The main profile also contains artwork, and while it is not evident whether it was created by her, it is obvious she has a taste for bright colors and organic shapes. The fluid movement of lines in the semi-abstract pictures could suggest her own dislike for rigid confines. A majority of the pieces contain references to drugs including marijuana, acid, and magic mushrooms. Her friend is shown posing next to a refrigerator with magnetic letters spelling “BLUNTS,” and a recent mood update shows her feeling “high.” These instances again show that she is unconcerned with societal opinions and suggest that she is in favor of the legalization of marijuana.
The accessibility of MySpace allows millions of perusers to visit and judge the sites of users worldwide, learning about their lives without those pesky, face-to-face conversations. In turn, the users choose how to portray themselves in what they consider to be the best possible manner.
A scan of profile pictures shows her to be a rosy-cheeked young woman, indecisive about hair color and seeming to prefer the left side of her face. Photos of being pushed in shopping carts or with her long, black hair spiked high in the air portray her as adventurous with little care of others’ opinions. Outfits, hairstyles, and accessories tend to be of the “Punk Rock” persuasion, full of contrasting colors and silver studs, and present her as someone who enjoys attention and differences. Four of the eleven pictures are black-and-white and artistically angled which suggests she has at least some knowledge of photography.
The main profile also contains artwork, and while it is not evident whether it was created by her, it is obvious she has a taste for bright colors and organic shapes. The fluid movement of lines in the semi-abstract pictures could suggest her own dislike for rigid confines. A majority of the pieces contain references to drugs including marijuana, acid, and magic mushrooms. Her friend is shown posing next to a refrigerator with magnetic letters spelling “BLUNTS,” and a recent mood update shows her feeling “high.” These instances again show that she is unconcerned with societal opinions and suggest that she is in favor of the legalization of marijuana.
The accessibility of MySpace allows millions of perusers to visit and judge the sites of users worldwide, learning about their lives without those pesky, face-to-face conversations. In turn, the users choose how to portray themselves in what they consider to be the best possible manner.
"Crown Holder" and MySpace
First of all I would like to say that I’m not as up to date with technology as most and I don’t have a facebook or myspace account. Furthermore this is my first time perusing through this site. It was interesting to say the least and I didn’t have to look far for any surprising or attention-grabbing accounts. They seemed to be everywhere.
One of the first accounts I came across was titled “Crown Holder” and showed a picture of an 18 year old from Louisiana. It was quite obvious that “Crown Holder” had an urban style. The color scheme of the entire page was mostly black and pink, which gave it a feminine yet edgy look. The background consisted of pink cheetah print and “Easy” by Paula DeAnda was playing, both of which add to the urban image she is portraying. I would also say she is very confident in who she is and her nationality. The majority (if not all) of the pictures consisted of famous Africans like Nelson Mandela and African Americans like Alicia Keys, Outkast, and Martin Luther King Jr. You can also tell she is confident by her photograph. I’ve noticed many of the photographs of the women on myspace consist of provocative clothing or posing. “Crown Holder” however decided to use a relatively average picture. This tells me that she is confident in herself naturally and does not need to change how she looks so others will notice her. However it seems her confidence may be a tad overabundant. The quote “let them eat cake” was next to her page title, but I suppose she could just be a really big fan of Marie Antoinette. The overall themes of the page were young, lively, and bold.
After looking through the site I can see why sites like myspace and facebook have become so popular. People like to express who they are (or at least who they say they are) to other people, but the internet gives us a false sense of security. People are willing to say and do things they wouldn’t normally do offline. All in all I don’t think I will be getting an account any time soon.
One of the first accounts I came across was titled “Crown Holder” and showed a picture of an 18 year old from Louisiana. It was quite obvious that “Crown Holder” had an urban style. The color scheme of the entire page was mostly black and pink, which gave it a feminine yet edgy look. The background consisted of pink cheetah print and “Easy” by Paula DeAnda was playing, both of which add to the urban image she is portraying. I would also say she is very confident in who she is and her nationality. The majority (if not all) of the pictures consisted of famous Africans like Nelson Mandela and African Americans like Alicia Keys, Outkast, and Martin Luther King Jr. You can also tell she is confident by her photograph. I’ve noticed many of the photographs of the women on myspace consist of provocative clothing or posing. “Crown Holder” however decided to use a relatively average picture. This tells me that she is confident in herself naturally and does not need to change how she looks so others will notice her. However it seems her confidence may be a tad overabundant. The quote “let them eat cake” was next to her page title, but I suppose she could just be a really big fan of Marie Antoinette. The overall themes of the page were young, lively, and bold.
After looking through the site I can see why sites like myspace and facebook have become so popular. People like to express who they are (or at least who they say they are) to other people, but the internet gives us a false sense of security. People are willing to say and do things they wouldn’t normally do offline. All in all I don’t think I will be getting an account any time soon.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Clifton's Myspace Analysis
Myspace! Myspace, Facebook, Hi5, Tagged, Blackplanet, Migente, and Xanga have become the new voices of my generation. They tell people everything that we want them to perceive about us. Employers as well as school disciplinarians use them. The saddening reality is that more times none that perception is false. Some of us will feel as though our privacy is being invaded, but truth is; the Internet is the World Wide Web. Nothing is private on the web.
For instance, I went to myspace.com and searched for a random name. I found out more than enough information about that individual. Listed in an all but simple font was everything from their hometown, to their favorite foods, to their first kiss, to their address, to of course their name followed by every nickname they have been called since kindergarten.
The reason I chose this particular individual was because of their inviting, provocative profile picture. It appeared fun and the individual came across as a pure partier. Their lack of clothing and erotic body position as well as what they were positioned on allowed me to presume that this person was extremely carefree. Lack of responsibility and immaturity also floated in my thoughts. This individual was expose in every way possible.
Lastly was the profile itself. The colors were bright and sort of childish (lime green, orange, pink with swirls and crayon doodles). This meant to me that the person was either a very colorful being, reliving her childish at a questionable age, or just having fun with one of the many resources available to my generation. She had a popular song called “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” on her profile, which is again fun and childish. The bubbles and swirls in the background of the profile are unnecessary and misleading, one would think the person was 12 instead of 20. The theme of this profile is fun.
Fun, in this case, is a synonym for irresponsibility. If any employer saw this person’s profile they would be out of luck with working anywhere. In essence, this individual portrays a ditsy individual, which is probably a fifth of their actual personality. The only halfway descent aspect of this profile is that they made their comments private so even their friends cannot read them. Still, anyone could find this person and know more about them than their own parents do.
For instance, I went to myspace.com and searched for a random name. I found out more than enough information about that individual. Listed in an all but simple font was everything from their hometown, to their favorite foods, to their first kiss, to their address, to of course their name followed by every nickname they have been called since kindergarten.
The reason I chose this particular individual was because of their inviting, provocative profile picture. It appeared fun and the individual came across as a pure partier. Their lack of clothing and erotic body position as well as what they were positioned on allowed me to presume that this person was extremely carefree. Lack of responsibility and immaturity also floated in my thoughts. This individual was expose in every way possible.
Lastly was the profile itself. The colors were bright and sort of childish (lime green, orange, pink with swirls and crayon doodles). This meant to me that the person was either a very colorful being, reliving her childish at a questionable age, or just having fun with one of the many resources available to my generation. She had a popular song called “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” on her profile, which is again fun and childish. The bubbles and swirls in the background of the profile are unnecessary and misleading, one would think the person was 12 instead of 20. The theme of this profile is fun.
Fun, in this case, is a synonym for irresponsibility. If any employer saw this person’s profile they would be out of luck with working anywhere. In essence, this individual portrays a ditsy individual, which is probably a fifth of their actual personality. The only halfway descent aspect of this profile is that they made their comments private so even their friends cannot read them. Still, anyone could find this person and know more about them than their own parents do.
Myspace Mania!
MySpace is a great form of self-expression; you can tell so much about someone from what they choose to put on their MySpace page. Unlike Facebook, MySpace lets you add a lot of visual interest and individuality to you page. That “customization” feature makes MySpace a prime candidate for our study in how a person changes to appeal to a particular audience. I’m going to split the page into categories: pictures, layout, and music.
The picture on the page I chose is pretty simple as far MySpace pictures go. It is just a snapshot of a young woman sitting and smiling at the camera. Her hair is pulled back and she has on a black blouse with a simple silver necklace. She is not wearing much makeup, but she does have some on. There is also a wine glass sitting on the table in front of her. This picture tells me that she is easygoing and laid back. She care about what she looks like and prefers to look classy and natural. It also tells me she is older because of the wine glass; generally you don’t see many high schoolers drinking wine at dinner. She also has a lot of other pictures on her page of her with her friends. This tells me she is a social person who likes to be around other people.
Her layout also shows a lot about her. The background is purple with blue, yellow and light purple little swirls all over it. In the top right box there is a big purple flower with a yellow center and a blue background. Her “message me” box is the same flower with blue swirls on top of it. Her whole layout is very coordinated and unified. Everything matches and nothing looks out of place. This gives me the impression that she is very stylish and likes thing to look cohesive.
The music on her page is “ExFactor” by Lauryn Hill. I’ve heard of the artist, but she is not very mainstream. It is a jazzy, slow, R&B style song. Again, this suggests she is older and more focused on what she likes and not what is playing on the top-40 radio station.
I analyzed her page without reading the “about me” section and then looked at the end to see how close I was. She says she teaches art part time at an elementary school. This explains her beautifully adorned MySpace page. She also loves “pottery, painting, Art History, traveling and a nice glass of red wine!!”
The picture on the page I chose is pretty simple as far MySpace pictures go. It is just a snapshot of a young woman sitting and smiling at the camera. Her hair is pulled back and she has on a black blouse with a simple silver necklace. She is not wearing much makeup, but she does have some on. There is also a wine glass sitting on the table in front of her. This picture tells me that she is easygoing and laid back. She care about what she looks like and prefers to look classy and natural. It also tells me she is older because of the wine glass; generally you don’t see many high schoolers drinking wine at dinner. She also has a lot of other pictures on her page of her with her friends. This tells me she is a social person who likes to be around other people.
Her layout also shows a lot about her. The background is purple with blue, yellow and light purple little swirls all over it. In the top right box there is a big purple flower with a yellow center and a blue background. Her “message me” box is the same flower with blue swirls on top of it. Her whole layout is very coordinated and unified. Everything matches and nothing looks out of place. This gives me the impression that she is very stylish and likes thing to look cohesive.
The music on her page is “ExFactor” by Lauryn Hill. I’ve heard of the artist, but she is not very mainstream. It is a jazzy, slow, R&B style song. Again, this suggests she is older and more focused on what she likes and not what is playing on the top-40 radio station.
I analyzed her page without reading the “about me” section and then looked at the end to see how close I was. She says she teaches art part time at an elementary school. This explains her beautifully adorned MySpace page. She also loves “pottery, painting, Art History, traveling and a nice glass of red wine!!”
Myspace Analysis
First of all, I want to say that this homework assignment is one of the most interesting assignments I have ever had to do. I never realized how much you can find out about a person just from reading their profile. It’s actually quite creepy now that I think about it, but at least they’re giving all of this information out willingly. After spending a few minutes searching for an interesting Myspace profile, I found a profile that seemed to really stand out to me.
The title of her page was “Your Future Ex Wife” and the picture that this girl used to identify herself was an image of her, in a red bikini, holding a gun to her head. For clarification, it is evident that she is not planning on shooting herself, but the fact that she chose to have her picture taken in that way really drew attention to her. Judging by the look on her face and the way she is holding herself and the gun, the picture was obviously taken as a glamour shot, but I have never seen anyone use handguns for props, at least not in rural Indiana...(shotguns and deer heads, maybe, but never a weapon pointed at themselves.) Once I saw this picture, I instantly wanted to know more about this girl. After a brief view of her profile, it was pretty clear that she definitely loved being in front of a camera.
The layout of her page was an all black background with several pictures of her everywhere and brightly colored pink and blue text, which is pretty typical for a teenage girl. Since the background was black, the pictures really stood out and drew the focus in on her appearance. Several of these pictures consisted of her portraying a “sexy” look that clearly stated she was pleased with her appearance and wanted to impress others with her body. Also, she expressed herself rather freely through her pictures in that she had a different hairstyle and color in almost all of them (including hot pink and bright purple.) The music that she chose for her page was entitled “Sweet Escape” by Gwen Stefani, a rather popular song among teenagers.
In conclusion, my summary for this girl, who was born and raised in California (big surprise), would be that she is a college-aged girl who is desperate for attention. Her various looks and poses in her pictures definitely set her apart from most people and reveal that she is very comfortable with herself and doesn’t mind stepping out of the norm. Ironically enough, even though this girl has about 18 pictures of herself on this page, she only put four words in her profile. She describes herself as “Beautiful, smart, and humble.” She has obviously dedicated a large amount of time in her life to portray herself as a magnet for sex. In addition, almost all of her blogs from other people contain promiscuous material and sexual innuendos. This girl seems to have a one track mind. In contrast with the fact that she labels herself as “Your Future Ex Wife,” she seems to be asking for several one-night stands in my opinion.
The title of her page was “Your Future Ex Wife” and the picture that this girl used to identify herself was an image of her, in a red bikini, holding a gun to her head. For clarification, it is evident that she is not planning on shooting herself, but the fact that she chose to have her picture taken in that way really drew attention to her. Judging by the look on her face and the way she is holding herself and the gun, the picture was obviously taken as a glamour shot, but I have never seen anyone use handguns for props, at least not in rural Indiana...(shotguns and deer heads, maybe, but never a weapon pointed at themselves.) Once I saw this picture, I instantly wanted to know more about this girl. After a brief view of her profile, it was pretty clear that she definitely loved being in front of a camera.
The layout of her page was an all black background with several pictures of her everywhere and brightly colored pink and blue text, which is pretty typical for a teenage girl. Since the background was black, the pictures really stood out and drew the focus in on her appearance. Several of these pictures consisted of her portraying a “sexy” look that clearly stated she was pleased with her appearance and wanted to impress others with her body. Also, she expressed herself rather freely through her pictures in that she had a different hairstyle and color in almost all of them (including hot pink and bright purple.) The music that she chose for her page was entitled “Sweet Escape” by Gwen Stefani, a rather popular song among teenagers.
In conclusion, my summary for this girl, who was born and raised in California (big surprise), would be that she is a college-aged girl who is desperate for attention. Her various looks and poses in her pictures definitely set her apart from most people and reveal that she is very comfortable with herself and doesn’t mind stepping out of the norm. Ironically enough, even though this girl has about 18 pictures of herself on this page, she only put four words in her profile. She describes herself as “Beautiful, smart, and humble.” She has obviously dedicated a large amount of time in her life to portray herself as a magnet for sex. In addition, almost all of her blogs from other people contain promiscuous material and sexual innuendos. This girl seems to have a one track mind. In contrast with the fact that she labels herself as “Your Future Ex Wife,” she seems to be asking for several one-night stands in my opinion.
Myspace: Creatively Expressing Yourself to the Millions
Myspace, the website that that lets you creatively express yourself to millions of people, has become increasingly popular over the past few years. Browsing through peoples profiles you can gain a fairlygood sense of who they are. After ananlyzing one of the millions of profiles on myspace, I believe I gained an accurate sense of who she was.
I analyzed the profile of a 16 year old girl from Orlando, Florida. The first thing I looked at on her profile were her pictures. They were mostly of her friends and her boyfriend. Almost all the pictures were fun; everyone was smiling and or making goofy faces. This gave me the sense that the girl was very playful and full of life. I did not see any provocative picuters or pictures of her drinking. This makes me assume that she is a smart girl, who does not want to protray herself negatively over the internet.
The next thing I analyzed was the color scheme of her page. The colors that made up her page were very bright and girly; lots of pinks, greens, yellows, and blues. The color scheme enforced my notion that she is fun loving and possibly flamboyant. I even started to get the sense that she might not take things too seriously.
After ananlyzing the color scheme of her page I read her blogs. Most of them were original peoms dedicated to her boyfriend, friends and family. From this I deduced that these were the most important people in her life. The poems also lead me to believe she was creative and viewed life from a unique stance.
Her profile song was "Beautiful Girls" by Sean Kingston. From her profile song I assume that she might be arrogant or very confident. Its hard to deduce which one without personally knowing her. However, the song is very upbeat annd catchy. This reinforces my notion that the she is a fun person who absolutely loves life.
Although it is not possble to know everything about a person from myspace, it is possible to get a fairly good of the basic outline of their personality. I may not know the girl I analyzed, but from her profile I got the impression that she was fun loving, girly, dedicated to her family and friends, loving, and care free. My impression of her may be completely wrong, but that is the image she protrayed to the world. This is why Myspace can be a dangerous friend. Although being a member of myspace gives you access to express yourself to millions of people, most of these people will never personall meet you. What you put on your page is what people will judge you by. Althgough I have never meet to girl I analyzed, from her page I have already pre-judged her. Although my judgements may be wrong, I will never know because I will probably never meet her. Therefore, it is extremely important to protray yourself positively over Myspace, because you never know who is judging you from your page.
I analyzed the profile of a 16 year old girl from Orlando, Florida. The first thing I looked at on her profile were her pictures. They were mostly of her friends and her boyfriend. Almost all the pictures were fun; everyone was smiling and or making goofy faces. This gave me the sense that the girl was very playful and full of life. I did not see any provocative picuters or pictures of her drinking. This makes me assume that she is a smart girl, who does not want to protray herself negatively over the internet.
The next thing I analyzed was the color scheme of her page. The colors that made up her page were very bright and girly; lots of pinks, greens, yellows, and blues. The color scheme enforced my notion that she is fun loving and possibly flamboyant. I even started to get the sense that she might not take things too seriously.
After ananlyzing the color scheme of her page I read her blogs. Most of them were original peoms dedicated to her boyfriend, friends and family. From this I deduced that these were the most important people in her life. The poems also lead me to believe she was creative and viewed life from a unique stance.
Her profile song was "Beautiful Girls" by Sean Kingston. From her profile song I assume that she might be arrogant or very confident. Its hard to deduce which one without personally knowing her. However, the song is very upbeat annd catchy. This reinforces my notion that the she is a fun person who absolutely loves life.
Although it is not possble to know everything about a person from myspace, it is possible to get a fairly good of the basic outline of their personality. I may not know the girl I analyzed, but from her profile I got the impression that she was fun loving, girly, dedicated to her family and friends, loving, and care free. My impression of her may be completely wrong, but that is the image she protrayed to the world. This is why Myspace can be a dangerous friend. Although being a member of myspace gives you access to express yourself to millions of people, most of these people will never personall meet you. What you put on your page is what people will judge you by. Althgough I have never meet to girl I analyzed, from her page I have already pre-judged her. Although my judgements may be wrong, I will never know because I will probably never meet her. Therefore, it is extremely important to protray yourself positively over Myspace, because you never know who is judging you from your page.
Friday, August 24, 2007
One in a Million
The Page
So what can we deduce from this page? The music playing in the background is Christian - so it's probably safe to assume that the owner of this page is as well, and is focusing on reaching a Christian audience. She's got her pastor as one of her friends, so that bears this out.
If we ignore the obvious indications that she's female - such as her picture, or stat box, we can still tell this from the background that she has chosen. Admittedly, it's extremely hard to discern a person's gender from cues such as color, font, design, and etcetera, but the quiz posting calling herself "Cinderella" provides more than enough evidence to back up this guess. The background also marks her as young, and trying to be noticed. An older or more sedate person would have chosen a more quiet background.
She has an interest in sports - either playing them, or at least watching them. No less than three of her four posted videos involve sports in some fashion.
While she wanted to stand out and appear different, she didn't use any originality - her design is from a free layout site. The grey on grey design does cause some problems with contrast, and the background is far too busy for optimal viewing, so she obviously isn't much for design herself. The slideshow would bear out this theory - besides the fact that it has been placed in her interests box, it too is from a free site, and does not match the rest of the page's theme very well. The photos it displays aren't well composed either - so I have to guess that she is not extremely artistic.
So, to summarize: We have a young, outgoing Christian youth, interested in sports, who is trying to get noticed and stand out. She does not have much artistic skill, but has invested a great deal of time into her page. The main message is "Notice me!" - with a name like "One in a million", that message is far from subtle. (On a side note, her use of "Once in a million" as a name also implies that she feels like merely one in a million, or lost in a large group, and is trying to compensate. Could be a bit of a Freudian slip there, or I could just be making things up.) Her audience consists of friends in her area, probably mostly from her church.
I think that that is all of the information available on this page. I did not examine most of the written information on this page, such as her comments list or detail box, and I did not examine her friends list.
So what can we deduce from this page? The music playing in the background is Christian - so it's probably safe to assume that the owner of this page is as well, and is focusing on reaching a Christian audience. She's got her pastor as one of her friends, so that bears this out.
If we ignore the obvious indications that she's female - such as her picture, or stat box, we can still tell this from the background that she has chosen. Admittedly, it's extremely hard to discern a person's gender from cues such as color, font, design, and etcetera, but the quiz posting calling herself "Cinderella" provides more than enough evidence to back up this guess. The background also marks her as young, and trying to be noticed. An older or more sedate person would have chosen a more quiet background.
She has an interest in sports - either playing them, or at least watching them. No less than three of her four posted videos involve sports in some fashion.
While she wanted to stand out and appear different, she didn't use any originality - her design is from a free layout site. The grey on grey design does cause some problems with contrast, and the background is far too busy for optimal viewing, so she obviously isn't much for design herself. The slideshow would bear out this theory - besides the fact that it has been placed in her interests box, it too is from a free site, and does not match the rest of the page's theme very well. The photos it displays aren't well composed either - so I have to guess that she is not extremely artistic.
So, to summarize: We have a young, outgoing Christian youth, interested in sports, who is trying to get noticed and stand out. She does not have much artistic skill, but has invested a great deal of time into her page. The main message is "Notice me!" - with a name like "One in a million", that message is far from subtle. (On a side note, her use of "Once in a million" as a name also implies that she feels like merely one in a million, or lost in a large group, and is trying to compensate. Could be a bit of a Freudian slip there, or I could just be making things up.) Her audience consists of friends in her area, probably mostly from her church.
I think that that is all of the information available on this page. I did not examine most of the written information on this page, such as her comments list or detail box, and I did not examine her friends list.
"Mr. N's" Myspace
When I logged into Myspace to begin this blog, I immediately saw a section labeled "Cool New People." I decided that this would be the easiest way to select somebody at random who had a somewhat interesting Myspace site. There were three people to choose from: a girl named Emi, an older man named "Mr. N", and a woman whose name was a question mark. The older man grabbed my attention fairly quickly. After all, Myspace has a relatively young user base and I had rarely seen somebody this old with a profile. I clicked on his Myspace page and the first thing that I noticed was his background, a pattern of guitars. This detail immediately lead me to believe that this man had a passion for music. The next detail I noticed was his display quote. It said, "japanese,male,49years,3kids,separated with my wife for 1year". This man made a conscientious effort to get very basic but important details about himself out at the beginning of his profile such as his race, sex, age, relationship status, and parental status. These details are targeted towards his desired audience, people he wants to communicate with on Myspace. All these basic details appear almost like a classified ad. Scrolling further down his page, I noticed people that he is friends with. His top three friends are Eric Clapton, James Taylor, and the Eagles. While this further affirms his like for guitar music, it also makes me think that this man may not have very many close friends. Most Myspace users have their friends listed in an order that reflects how close they are with those people, so I think this man isn't close enough with anyone to put them in his top friend spots. The next thing I read on this man's page was his details column. The first detail, his "swinger" status, I didn't want to know. As soon as I read that detail, "Mr. N" became a creepy internet stalker who's target audience was younger women. Now granted, this thought had crossed my mind when I saw how old he was at first, but I thought I would give him the benefit of the doubt. I then notice that he is both a drinker and a smoker, that he likes "drinking with beautiful ladies", and that there are comments on his page from much younger women. These details strengthen my opinion that this man's target audience is younger women. Other then the things I have already listed, there is not much more content on "Mr. N's" page. His page setup is pretty simple, he has no music, and there is nothing written in his "about me" section. To sum things up, "Mr. N" is just a lonely 49 year old man who is trying to communicate with younger women on the internet.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Great Expectations
Throughout my life, I have never been one to enjoy writing, though I have grown to discover the importance of writing and realized the impact that it can have, both upon the reading audience, and more surprisingly, the author. Through written work lives can be changed, opinions conveyed, and voices heard. This is why I desire to acquire a love for writing and to become a more proficient author.
In this class I expect to be challenged and, therefore, to be stretched for optimum growth. By the end of this semester I expect to be able to investigate others’ works, learning and applying what I can from them, and also to be able to express myself more effectively. I expect to persuade through my writing, inform, and experiment. I hope to acquire the ability to vividly describe, distinctly convey, and genuinely portray my emotions and feelings in such a way that the reader understands the very depths of how my heart and mind feel. Through my work I want to send definite messages to my reading audience.
While acquiring talent and a love for writing, I also expect to improve my efficiency. Speed, accuracy, and methods must all be improved. I tend to take unreasonably large amounts of time on my written work, and this proves to be a problem with the full schedule that I always seem to attain. By the end of this semester I expect all of this to change for the better.
In conclusion, I do not enjoy writing, but I accept the fact that it is very important, and because of this I want to acquire both proficient skills and the ability to execute them in a timely fashion. By the end of this semester I expect to be able to captivate, persuade, and inform my audience. These are my great expectations.
In this class I expect to be challenged and, therefore, to be stretched for optimum growth. By the end of this semester I expect to be able to investigate others’ works, learning and applying what I can from them, and also to be able to express myself more effectively. I expect to persuade through my writing, inform, and experiment. I hope to acquire the ability to vividly describe, distinctly convey, and genuinely portray my emotions and feelings in such a way that the reader understands the very depths of how my heart and mind feel. Through my work I want to send definite messages to my reading audience.
While acquiring talent and a love for writing, I also expect to improve my efficiency. Speed, accuracy, and methods must all be improved. I tend to take unreasonably large amounts of time on my written work, and this proves to be a problem with the full schedule that I always seem to attain. By the end of this semester I expect all of this to change for the better.
In conclusion, I do not enjoy writing, but I accept the fact that it is very important, and because of this I want to acquire both proficient skills and the ability to execute them in a timely fashion. By the end of this semester I expect to be able to captivate, persuade, and inform my audience. These are my great expectations.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Title Thing
Writing has never been something in which I was endowed with an overabundance of talent. I have loved reading from an early age but my ability to communicate my thoughts in what could be called a skilled or even understandable manner is less than what I consider adequate. Part of the blame most likely rests with the ease that was everything else in my early life. When I have to write something I freeze up and procrastinate until the last possible moment and when I am writing my desire to have each sentence perfect coupled with my knowledge that writing could probably not be my day job slows my writing speed two a meager two words a minute ( I exaggerate and run on). In the past I have generally been able to tell how much my teacher would like what I wrote based on the fact that it was always inversely proportional to how much I enjoyed writing it. The sentences that I have liked the most in my writing have been termed quite negatively (I will spare you the details). This has led to me writing mostly for an audience of one, myself (it could also be that I am just self-centered like all males). All of my past and current writing problems aside, I am looking forward to this class; it appears that I will learn a great deal about writing for a certain demographic and the books and class discussions promise to be filled with interesting tidbits. I look forward to the class discussions most of all. People intrigue me. 264
Reflections of Past English Experiences
Looking back, English has always been my favorite subject (perhaps this is why I’m going into English Education). But going to English class wasn’t even “school” for me. I loved going just to read and write, and to sit with my peers to hear their opinion on whatever we were reading.
Even when I was in middle school, I would spend most of my free time making up my own song lyrics or planning out my first novel. Every night I would reflect on the day’s events, writing page after page in my journal. I was never as much of a reader as I was a writer. Don’t get me wrong…I love to read. However I’m just not the type of person who can walk into a library, pick a book off the shelf, and start reading. But put a book in front of me and tell me it’s good, and I’ll read it for hours until I’m finally done.
By the time I was in high school, I had started writing my own poetry, and English class was always the course that I looked forward to the most. I loved how teenagers could pick out so many different meanings in the same piece of work. I was amazed by the way we could walk into a 6th hour English class, sit down, and spend the entire hour talking about the 20 pages we had to read for homework the night before. Even so, it wasn’t until April of my senior year that I finally decided teaching a high school English course was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
The second I walked into English 108 two days ago, I immediately loved the atmosphere. I also look forward to the books we are going to read, and the discussions that we will have from each night’s reading. This has quickly become my favorite college course, and I look forward to a great semester!
Even when I was in middle school, I would spend most of my free time making up my own song lyrics or planning out my first novel. Every night I would reflect on the day’s events, writing page after page in my journal. I was never as much of a reader as I was a writer. Don’t get me wrong…I love to read. However I’m just not the type of person who can walk into a library, pick a book off the shelf, and start reading. But put a book in front of me and tell me it’s good, and I’ll read it for hours until I’m finally done.
By the time I was in high school, I had started writing my own poetry, and English class was always the course that I looked forward to the most. I loved how teenagers could pick out so many different meanings in the same piece of work. I was amazed by the way we could walk into a 6th hour English class, sit down, and spend the entire hour talking about the 20 pages we had to read for homework the night before. Even so, it wasn’t until April of my senior year that I finally decided teaching a high school English course was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
The second I walked into English 108 two days ago, I immediately loved the atmosphere. I also look forward to the books we are going to read, and the discussions that we will have from each night’s reading. This has quickly become my favorite college course, and I look forward to a great semester!
Expectations for 108
First of all I hope this will be accepted a few hours late considering I didn't have the link until today and my classes ended at 6:30.
To tell the truth, my hopes were low walking in to a 100 level composition class. Over the last two years I've taken some interesting courses that have involved a great deal of writing including creative writing, American literature, world literature, and two history courses that were graded entirely through essay. Just the title English composition is much more ambiguous than those classes, so I expected the class to be a loose mix of them all.
So far I'm pretty excited about the upcoming events in our class. I will enjoy discussing the particular issues surrounding Fight Club (can't figure out underline) and V for Vendetta because I know many people who have seen these movies, yet very few who can discuss either of their deeper meanings. I saw the films first and then read the book and graphic novel. I consider myself pretty knowledgeable in film, which leads me to my next question which is completely fine if it doesn't get answered, but I rarely get a good discussion about movies. When asked what your favorite movies were, Mr. Severe, you responded with The Goodfellas and True Romance. I'm not being negative about the films, I'm just curious as to why they are your favorites. I enjoyed both of them and would like to know why they stick out in your mind.
Nick Waldschmidt
To tell the truth, my hopes were low walking in to a 100 level composition class. Over the last two years I've taken some interesting courses that have involved a great deal of writing including creative writing, American literature, world literature, and two history courses that were graded entirely through essay. Just the title English composition is much more ambiguous than those classes, so I expected the class to be a loose mix of them all.
So far I'm pretty excited about the upcoming events in our class. I will enjoy discussing the particular issues surrounding Fight Club (can't figure out underline) and V for Vendetta because I know many people who have seen these movies, yet very few who can discuss either of their deeper meanings. I saw the films first and then read the book and graphic novel. I consider myself pretty knowledgeable in film, which leads me to my next question which is completely fine if it doesn't get answered, but I rarely get a good discussion about movies. When asked what your favorite movies were, Mr. Severe, you responded with The Goodfellas and True Romance. I'm not being negative about the films, I'm just curious as to why they are your favorites. I enjoyed both of them and would like to know why they stick out in your mind.
Nick Waldschmidt
The English Experience
Looking back through the years I can honestly say that English has always been one of my stronger subjects. Reminiscing, I begin to wonder where my English experience began. Like most children, my first taste of English came from my parents. Their words shaped my first, probably garbled sounds. From there the English language became more complex, more beautiful, more lucid to my ears. In preschool the concept of reading a book was introduced to me. This was when I realized that English could do much more than allow me to communicate. I began to realize that it could also open the doors to a wonderful world of color, sound, imagination, and understanding. The next step of my English Experience was in elementary school. These were the years that I realized the intricate complexities of the English language. Subject, verb, complex conjugates and clauses were words that rang out daily in my elementary school grammar classes. Up to that point I did not realize how much intricate detail was involved in shaping the language. However, I now realize that all the complex detail in the language is what makes it flow smoothly and beautifully. High school, the years I learned of Homer, Shakespeare and Whitman, was latest leg of my journey. During this time I cultivated my writing ability. After composing paper after paper I found a writing style of my own. From there I was able to use the English language to effectively express myself in ways I never thought possible.
In my college English course I am hoping to gain a deeper understanding of how books and their corresponding movies are related. I am looking forward to reading the novels and discussing them in class. I am also hoping to become more knowledgeable in the concept of rhetoric. Furthermore, I am hoping that I will not only gain further knowledge of the English language but that I will also be able to use what I’ve learned throughout my college career.
In my college English course I am hoping to gain a deeper understanding of how books and their corresponding movies are related. I am looking forward to reading the novels and discussing them in class. I am also hoping to become more knowledgeable in the concept of rhetoric. Furthermore, I am hoping that I will not only gain further knowledge of the English language but that I will also be able to use what I’ve learned throughout my college career.
My Thoughts
"Words don't have Meaning". I remember this phrase from an old friend in High School. As you can imagine, he didn't stay in honors too much longer. However, I think the point of this class is going to be to prove that quote wrong. As evidence of today's class, everything that we see has a significant and sometimes grand impact and yet is passed off in a discrete way. So, my hopes are that this class will explore the depths of the books/movies and find not just their entertainment value but the purpose of their creation.
Additionally, I expect that this class will help me hone my writing skills and to become an overall better writer. I have been considered a good writer in the past and took all the honors coursed and the AP course in high school and got an A in the Auburn basic english class. However, Purdue likes to take away credits, so I get to go for a round two! Additionally, I took 108 against the advice of my counselor because I saw an opportunity to improve myself. So I hope that this course will be not so much a challenge but certainly a learning experience.
In conclusion, the two things I wish to obtain out of this class is to have a good wealth of knowledge about the precision of using words and then to be able to write more persuasively and more concisely. Or in another word: Better. So, I hope that this semester is about proving that quote wrong and exploring the depths of creating a truly great argument.
Additionally, I expect that this class will help me hone my writing skills and to become an overall better writer. I have been considered a good writer in the past and took all the honors coursed and the AP course in high school and got an A in the Auburn basic english class. However, Purdue likes to take away credits, so I get to go for a round two! Additionally, I took 108 against the advice of my counselor because I saw an opportunity to improve myself. So I hope that this course will be not so much a challenge but certainly a learning experience.
In conclusion, the two things I wish to obtain out of this class is to have a good wealth of knowledge about the precision of using words and then to be able to write more persuasively and more concisely. Or in another word: Better. So, I hope that this semester is about proving that quote wrong and exploring the depths of creating a truly great argument.
My English Experience and Expectations
I've always done alright in English, but lately I really haven't enjoyed it. Don't get me wrong, there was a point where English may have been my favorite subject and let me start there. In middle school, I enjoyed English and I was even on the "Power of the Pen" team. Yeah, I know real cool huh. We even had shirts that said, "The Pen is Mightier than the Sword". Anyway, moving on, after middle school there was high school and that's when I started to lose interest in English. This loss of interest hit its peak last year during senior English when I was force-fed Shakespeare and other "classical" works of British literature. So, as of right now, English is at the bottom of my favorite class list. You could call me a "science guy" I guess, after all I am a Pre-Pharm student.
I really wasn't looking forward to taking college English this year, but after hearing about the class, I don't think it will be that bad. The books we will be reading will be much more enjoyable than what was shoved down my throat last year and I am really looking forward to reading "Fight Club". I've seen the movie and I really enjoyed it. Another thing that got me semi-excited for this English class was the fact that we will be discussing our opinions and sharing our views in the class. We all are diverse and we all interpret things differently. I love to hear what other people think and see how their interpretations differ from mine. We had discussions like this in high school, just never in English class.
I really wasn't looking forward to taking college English this year, but after hearing about the class, I don't think it will be that bad. The books we will be reading will be much more enjoyable than what was shoved down my throat last year and I am really looking forward to reading "Fight Club". I've seen the movie and I really enjoyed it. Another thing that got me semi-excited for this English class was the fact that we will be discussing our opinions and sharing our views in the class. We all are diverse and we all interpret things differently. I love to hear what other people think and see how their interpretations differ from mine. We had discussions like this in high school, just never in English class.
Some words on the subject of some things.
English has always been a passion of mine. Not just the language, although it being the only one I can speak fluently I've become quite a zealot of it's proper use. Books have always been treasures to me, and I can read some books repeatedly without ever getting bored of them, (anything by Neil Gaiman or Douglas Adams.) My dream has always been to become a famous writer, or if not a famous one, than a great underrated one. My only problem is that I'm never satisfied with my work, and end up giving up before the end.
I've had many English classes; all of them were enjoyable to me, but none of them were challenging. Don't get me wrong; I'm as lazy as they come. It's great to be able to glide through life, but sometimes you have to step up and do something that really challenges you if you ever want to become a better person. With me already being a pretty great person, I figured I'd go for the gusto and become the best person. Ever.
I'm looking forward to reading virtually all of these books. I've heard V for Vendetta in graphic novel form is at least a billion times better than the movie. Fight club should be good, because there's nothing wrong with organizations OR fighting. The hours sounds like a book about time, and I totally enjoy time. Brokeback Mountain is one that I haven't heard much about, except that it's about cowboys, and what could be wrong with that?!
I've had many English classes; all of them were enjoyable to me, but none of them were challenging. Don't get me wrong; I'm as lazy as they come. It's great to be able to glide through life, but sometimes you have to step up and do something that really challenges you if you ever want to become a better person. With me already being a pretty great person, I figured I'd go for the gusto and become the best person. Ever.
I'm looking forward to reading virtually all of these books. I've heard V for Vendetta in graphic novel form is at least a billion times better than the movie. Fight club should be good, because there's nothing wrong with organizations OR fighting. The hours sounds like a book about time, and I totally enjoy time. Brokeback Mountain is one that I haven't heard much about, except that it's about cowboys, and what could be wrong with that?!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Expectations
I have always thought of English as an “anything goes” class. Unlike in math or science classes, in an English class the student is allowed to have a different opinion than the instructor, and often times that variation of outlook is desired! Instead of plugging numbers into a calculator, English forces me to have a mind of my own, which can be both liberating and alarming. Furthermore, literature forces me to question my own beliefs and see issues from other points of view.
My expectations for this class are varied. Reading has always been a hobby of mine, a way to step out of my reality and get a small taste of someone else’s, and libraries have become my personal sanctuary. So I look forward to reading the assigned books. I expect to be challenged as well. Writing has never been a great strength of mine and I feel I have not quite accomplished a style of my own. My sister, an excellent writer herself, has always tried to assist me in finding “Sandy, the author”. She used to say that in order to write an exceptional paper the author had to truly want to write it, like nothing else mattered but getting your point across to the reader. For me this is a lot easier said than done.
As a pre-vet major it would appear that science and math classes would be much more important than an English class. So why choose to take 108 and not 106? It’s relatively simple – I love to read and I love to think, and I have a feeling that in English 108 I will be doing plenty of both.
My expectations for this class are varied. Reading has always been a hobby of mine, a way to step out of my reality and get a small taste of someone else’s, and libraries have become my personal sanctuary. So I look forward to reading the assigned books. I expect to be challenged as well. Writing has never been a great strength of mine and I feel I have not quite accomplished a style of my own. My sister, an excellent writer herself, has always tried to assist me in finding “Sandy, the author”. She used to say that in order to write an exceptional paper the author had to truly want to write it, like nothing else mattered but getting your point across to the reader. For me this is a lot easier said than done.
As a pre-vet major it would appear that science and math classes would be much more important than an English class. So why choose to take 108 and not 106? It’s relatively simple – I love to read and I love to think, and I have a feeling that in English 108 I will be doing plenty of both.
Rob Carney's Perception of English 108
With all the difficult math and science classes I signed up to take this year, I was a little apprehensive about taking English 108. Although I have always excelled in English classes throughout my schooling, a goal of mine is to have a 4.0 GPA (I want to get into med school). I didn't need a harder English class deterring me from that. However, after seeing our reading list, I couldn't be happier that I opted for the more challenging English. Two of my favorite movies, "Fight Club" and "V for Vendetta", are represented in the required reading. This is not to say that "Brokeback Mountain" and "The Hours" don't peak my interest, they both look interesting as well. I am just excited to begin class discussion, and hopefully by tomorrow. It will be hard not to have great discussion with all of the controversy presented within these selections.
To conclude, I'd just like to reiterate how glad I am that I decided to take this accelerated English course. Instead of this class being that "stupid English class" that is ruining my GPA, it could actually turn out to be the class I enjoy going to the most. This class will be my entertaining break from all of the number crunching required in my other classes. And from past experience, when I study something that I enjoy, it becomes much easier for me to excel and achieve my desired grade. In an ironic twist of events, the class I was supposed to dread will be my escape.
To conclude, I'd just like to reiterate how glad I am that I decided to take this accelerated English course. Instead of this class being that "stupid English class" that is ruining my GPA, it could actually turn out to be the class I enjoy going to the most. This class will be my entertaining break from all of the number crunching required in my other classes. And from past experience, when I study something that I enjoy, it becomes much easier for me to excel and achieve my desired grade. In an ironic twist of events, the class I was supposed to dread will be my escape.
Experience vs Expectation
Up untill about my senior year English has just been an easy but fairly boring calss for me. We read alot of books, did alot of grammer, and had endless vocab tests, o and poetry too. The grammer was repetitive and the vocab was annoying. Also almost all the books were, at least to me, dull, boring, and depressing. It seemed good liturature was all about the hanging and burning of women, "The Crimson Letter" i think, the tragic death of two lovers, "romeo and Juliet", and the killing of men who try to help women out, "The Great Gatsby". Personally i read fantasy and science fiction and like a book with a happy ending.
Then in my senior year we finaly got to the good stuff. We read "Beowulf" much more exciting if still depressing at the end and my favorite "The Canterbury Tales". It was the Tales that got my interest more than anything else they were funny, taught a lesson, and must have been extreamely hard to write. The Tales for anyone who doesnt know are all in rhyme and to write an entire book in rhyme is no small feat even compared to the monsterous task of writing a book in the first place. They inspired me and made english fun so much to that i wrote my own tale for the book all and rhyme and won a award from the national poet's society.
My expectations and reason for taking advanced english was because i hope i would get the better books and more fun papers to write. Its always been pretty easy but only if i like what i'm writing about. My senior year was the honors english and thats where it was good an i hope to keep it up now. so far 2 out the books look to be definate hits and the other two look pretty interesting. Anyway thats about all i have to say i hope its 250 words see you guys in class.
Then in my senior year we finaly got to the good stuff. We read "Beowulf" much more exciting if still depressing at the end and my favorite "The Canterbury Tales". It was the Tales that got my interest more than anything else they were funny, taught a lesson, and must have been extreamely hard to write. The Tales for anyone who doesnt know are all in rhyme and to write an entire book in rhyme is no small feat even compared to the monsterous task of writing a book in the first place. They inspired me and made english fun so much to that i wrote my own tale for the book all and rhyme and won a award from the national poet's society.
My expectations and reason for taking advanced english was because i hope i would get the better books and more fun papers to write. Its always been pretty easy but only if i like what i'm writing about. My senior year was the honors english and thats where it was good an i hope to keep it up now. so far 2 out the books look to be definate hits and the other two look pretty interesting. Anyway thats about all i have to say i hope its 250 words see you guys in class.
Nathan Hartman's Preseason Ramblings
Allright, it may not be preseason, but so far I have lost 0 points this semester. (After a year at Purdue, I no longer see points as opportunities, but precious lifelines I must cling to out of fear of losing them.)
I am a sophomore and still technically majoring in "First-Year Engineering," though I am CODOing (is that now considered a word?) into Biochemistry to hopefully pursue medicine in the future. However, I do not regret my year in engineering last year as I learned a few things: I hate math, and missed the sciences and arts more than I thought I would. Ever since I was young I was pegged as "creative" and "imaginative" and "gifted" and "special" and all sorts of flattering words. In fourth grade I was placed in a GT (gifted and talented) class in my school district and have been taking accelerated and honors everything ever since.
As English goes, I love reading good books that have a good tempo. I don't read much, but generally once I start an enjoyable book I can't stop reading. I like to write poetry and have written hundreds of poems (won 1st and 3rd place in a poetry contest in 5th grade,) but only so many are ever good.
As things pertain to this class I am very excited. I signed up for English 108 because I didn't feel like learning about prepositional phrases and direct and indirect objects for the thousandth time, and figured this would be more like my honors classes in high school. Things like discussions and higher thinking are a must for any English class.
I am very excited about these books. I've never heard of The Hours, but it won the Pulitzer so it must be good, right? As far as Fight Club goes, I had never heard of it until my sophomore year of high school when I saw the movie and I was blown away. It was everything I had ever wanted in a movie. The sarcasm, the humor, the bleak outlook and the mind-blowing plot left me a blubbering idiot as I told my friends in many more words that it was the best movie I had ever seen. Then I learned it was a book and read it last year, and I must say, the book is even better (just like Jurassic Park). V for Vendetta is another movie that was right up my ally and I am extremely excited to read the "graphic novel". (Sorry if I say those words with disdain, but after hearing so many girls in highs school talk about their manga graphic novel bull crap I have a small place in my heart devoted to the hatred of anything related to it.) However, I've always enjoyed comic books, and I expect it to be a great read. Concerning Brokeback Mountain, I don't really even care so much about reading, so much as the class discussions we're going to have. Hopefully everyone can be insightful, thoughtful, and most importantly open-minded. I am a person very closed-minded to closed-mindedness. Ah, irony: one of my favorites.
To sum it all up, I have written WAY too much, but that is just how excited I am about this class! Good luck to everyone, and have a great semester!
Nate (avid fan of parenthesis)
I am a sophomore and still technically majoring in "First-Year Engineering," though I am CODOing (is that now considered a word?) into Biochemistry to hopefully pursue medicine in the future. However, I do not regret my year in engineering last year as I learned a few things: I hate math, and missed the sciences and arts more than I thought I would. Ever since I was young I was pegged as "creative" and "imaginative" and "gifted" and "special" and all sorts of flattering words. In fourth grade I was placed in a GT (gifted and talented) class in my school district and have been taking accelerated and honors everything ever since.
As English goes, I love reading good books that have a good tempo. I don't read much, but generally once I start an enjoyable book I can't stop reading. I like to write poetry and have written hundreds of poems (won 1st and 3rd place in a poetry contest in 5th grade,) but only so many are ever good.
As things pertain to this class I am very excited. I signed up for English 108 because I didn't feel like learning about prepositional phrases and direct and indirect objects for the thousandth time, and figured this would be more like my honors classes in high school. Things like discussions and higher thinking are a must for any English class.
I am very excited about these books. I've never heard of The Hours, but it won the Pulitzer so it must be good, right? As far as Fight Club goes, I had never heard of it until my sophomore year of high school when I saw the movie and I was blown away. It was everything I had ever wanted in a movie. The sarcasm, the humor, the bleak outlook and the mind-blowing plot left me a blubbering idiot as I told my friends in many more words that it was the best movie I had ever seen. Then I learned it was a book and read it last year, and I must say, the book is even better (just like Jurassic Park). V for Vendetta is another movie that was right up my ally and I am extremely excited to read the "graphic novel". (Sorry if I say those words with disdain, but after hearing so many girls in highs school talk about their manga graphic novel bull crap I have a small place in my heart devoted to the hatred of anything related to it.) However, I've always enjoyed comic books, and I expect it to be a great read. Concerning Brokeback Mountain, I don't really even care so much about reading, so much as the class discussions we're going to have. Hopefully everyone can be insightful, thoughtful, and most importantly open-minded. I am a person very closed-minded to closed-mindedness. Ah, irony: one of my favorites.
To sum it all up, I have written WAY too much, but that is just how excited I am about this class! Good luck to everyone, and have a great semester!
Nate (avid fan of parenthesis)
Composition
I am a junior studying Political Science in the school of Liberal Arts. As English 106/108 is required of Liberal Arts students it seems I had no choice but to enroll in one of the two. In high school I was an honor student and completed A.P. composition. I am an honor student here at Purdue as well so I thought it logical to take this more challenging course.
I expect to sharpen my writing skills throughout this course. Politicians must be able to articulate their aims and platforms flawlessly. The ability to write pieces which are both compelling and intelligible is necessary. I was ready for a challenge when I signed up for this course and it appears it will be.
I am anxious to begin exploring the concept of voice throughout this course, and I am excited about our material. All of these novels/ films seem like important works and they will be new to me. I look forward to studying this aspect of composition, voice, in depth whereas previously it was only touched on in my studies.
I hope to leave this class a better writer and also a better thinker.
I expect to sharpen my writing skills throughout this course. Politicians must be able to articulate their aims and platforms flawlessly. The ability to write pieces which are both compelling and intelligible is necessary. I was ready for a challenge when I signed up for this course and it appears it will be.
I am anxious to begin exploring the concept of voice throughout this course, and I am excited about our material. All of these novels/ films seem like important works and they will be new to me. I look forward to studying this aspect of composition, voice, in depth whereas previously it was only touched on in my studies.
I hope to leave this class a better writer and also a better thinker.
Audacity.
Pedant.
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia.
My personal goal for this semester and for this class in particular is to use these three words as often as possible. "Audacity" has long been a favorite word of mine, and the latter two - well, I simply like the way they sound. What's more, I strongly feel that these words are grossly underused in the English language. I would, therefore, like to do all that I can (with my lack of a degree, fame, funding...) to change this. I would also like to use the semicolon more often, and the irony and sarcasm marks at least once in my life. I think that I already use the comma too much. Well, either way, I hope to improve my writing style through this class. I know that there certainly is a great deal that could use improvement: in previous English classes, my papers would be returned to me with the word "awkward" scribbled all over them. (I blame television and video games... Well, perhaps Monty Python and Miss Marple... Err, can I at least use "English is my second language" as an excuse?) Anyhow, I am looking forward to finding out what the topics of our three papers will be, not to mention the twenty four blogs that we will write between now and sometime in December. I am also looking forward to the books that we will be reading. Although I admit that I am a bit wary "Brokeback Mountain," all four of the books look to be interesting in their own right.
(Oi vey, what a terrible lack of formatting...)
Pedant.
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia.
My personal goal for this semester and for this class in particular is to use these three words as often as possible. "Audacity" has long been a favorite word of mine, and the latter two - well, I simply like the way they sound. What's more, I strongly feel that these words are grossly underused in the English language. I would, therefore, like to do all that I can (with my lack of a degree, fame, funding...) to change this. I would also like to use the semicolon more often, and the irony and sarcasm marks at least once in my life. I think that I already use the comma too much. Well, either way, I hope to improve my writing style through this class. I know that there certainly is a great deal that could use improvement: in previous English classes, my papers would be returned to me with the word "awkward" scribbled all over them. (I blame television and video games... Well, perhaps Monty Python and Miss Marple... Err, can I at least use "English is my second language" as an excuse?) Anyhow, I am looking forward to finding out what the topics of our three papers will be, not to mention the twenty four blogs that we will write between now and sometime in December. I am also looking forward to the books that we will be reading. Although I admit that I am a bit wary "Brokeback Mountain," all four of the books look to be interesting in their own right.
(Oi vey, what a terrible lack of formatting...)
Experience, Expectations
I’m used to the looks people give me when I describe myself as a Creative Writing major. There’s usually an eyebrow raise accompanied by the sort of facial expression that says, “And you expect to be paid for that?” But I’ve realized that, unless I talk with a fellow writer, it’s impossible to describe the love affair I have with words. Since the day I learned the alphabet I have saturated myself with words, either in devouring anything readable or attempting my own works. This love of sentences is my unbreakable addiction. Cut me; I bleed sesquipedalianism.
My expectation for English 108 is a stimulating and enjoyable class in which we will push past particulars like direct objects or comma placement to explore the actual core of these works. Rather than scouring texts for grammatical errors, I hope to pry them open to find hidden themes and meanings. I’m thoroughly looking forward to reading V for Vendetta; I read Art Spiegelman’s Maus last year and am amazed by a graphic novel’s ability to blend visual details with creative diction and syntax.
In addition, I hope to expand my writing skills. Since my amateur, third grade stories of Captain Bubblegum I’ve continued to move forward, and in a college-level class, I expect to see a great difference in my ability to convey my ideas in both formal and informal writing. At this point, there is not even the smallest portion of the class I am dreading – English has always stayed my favorite class, and I see no reason why this semester should differ.
My expectation for English 108 is a stimulating and enjoyable class in which we will push past particulars like direct objects or comma placement to explore the actual core of these works. Rather than scouring texts for grammatical errors, I hope to pry them open to find hidden themes and meanings. I’m thoroughly looking forward to reading V for Vendetta; I read Art Spiegelman’s Maus last year and am amazed by a graphic novel’s ability to blend visual details with creative diction and syntax.
In addition, I hope to expand my writing skills. Since my amateur, third grade stories of Captain Bubblegum I’ve continued to move forward, and in a college-level class, I expect to see a great difference in my ability to convey my ideas in both formal and informal writing. At this point, there is not even the smallest portion of the class I am dreading – English has always stayed my favorite class, and I see no reason why this semester should differ.
Background/Expectations
I have never been particularly fond of writing, but ever since the third grade I have been involved in some type of accelerated English program. I always showed up to class, but rarely paid attention, and always completed my homework, but never with enthusiasm. Math has always been my favorite subject, even though my English grades often surpassed those in math, and by the end of my freshman year in high school I noticed a correlation between the classes I liked and the grades I received: I always enjoyed the classes that challenged me the most. I was never really brilliant in music, or physics, or math, but I spent time outside of class working on those subjects (unusual for me) and ended up choosing acoustical engineering as a major - a discipline that combines all three of those.
My primary reason for electing to take English 108 was that I expected it to be challenging. I also expect, and hope, that this course will break up the monotony and boredom that have confronted me in every English class that I have ever taken. Judging from the first day of class and the reading list, my expectations seem valid. When I walked into class, I expected to hear that we would be reading Austen, or Shakespeare, or Tolstoy, but was surprised that we would be reading books that I might actually read on my own if not for class. I hope to gain from this class a deeper respect for modern literature and its adaptation to film.
Expectations
The word “expect”, according to the Meriam-Webster online dictionary, means “to look forward”. So, what am I looking forward to in ENGL 108?
Well, I can hardly wait to read and watch V for Vendetta. As an avid bibliophile, I can hardly wait to read all the books, actually, but that one more than the rest. I’ve been a fan of Alan Moore’s work for years, and I’m sure I won’t be disappointed now. It will be very interesting to see which version of the work – film or print – is better written. How did the transition to a movie affect the story? Will it still read like an Alan Moore, or will it resemble the movie director’s style?
More broadly, I expect to improve my writing skills a great deal with the large amount of practice I will no doubt be receiving in this course. I can write well – as can all of us, or we would not be in this course – but whenever I read a book by one of the master authors, I am always struck by how much more skilled they are than I. I constantly come up with ideas for novels, and just throw them away when I compare them to the work of others. Perhaps I can improve myself enough to actually finish one of them.
This course sounds like a great deal of work – no doubt there will be times when I regret having signed up for the advanced class, times when I wish I had taken the easier route – but I have no doubt whatsoever that it will be more than worth it in the end. I’m looking forward to Wednesday.
Thoughts from Brooklyn
Walking into English 108, my first college class ever, I had no idea what to expect. However, after listening to my professor and noticing only about twenty other students in the classroom with me, I developed a few expectations that were surprising as well as intriguing. I suddenly discovered that I was actually expecting to enjoy myself in an English class. Since I am majoring in pharmacy, this will be my only English class, and I had always thought of it as merely something to dread walking into three times a week. However, I have already found myself looking forward to my next chance to come to class.
Throughout my high school career, I have taken advantage of every advanced placement opportunity possible. However, since only approximately four hundred students attended my high school, seventh graders through seniors, my opportunities were always somewhat limited. Therefore, my options have not been as numerous as many other students. However, I have taken four semesters of Pre-AP English followed by two semesters of AP English and the completion of the AP English exam. While reading comprehension has not always been my strongest academic ability (especially when I am not interested in the material) and I have not exactly given literature the appreciation it deserves in the past, I do enjoy writing, and therefore I believe this class should be fairly enjoyable for me.
In addition to the small class size and the potential for a few extremely interesting discussions, our required reading actually consists of books I would enjoy reading on my own, which is very different from my high school English class. I honestly predicted we would be reading novels such as Brave New World and Great Expectations, and I was definitely not looking forward for this class to begin. However, when I saw that Brokeback Mountain was only fifty pages long and V for Vendetta was strictly a graphic novel, I decided that nothing is ever the same as what you imagine. In addition, I am anxiously anticipating several in-depth discussions over the topics discussed in these novels, such as the controversy over homosexuality. Coming from a small Indiana school, most topics that were considered secular or controversial were simply left untouched. Therefore, I am excited to hear the opinions of my fellow classmates on these subjects in a nonjudgmental environment. All in all, I honestly feel as if I will enjoy this class and I am ready to come back on Wednesday.
Throughout my high school career, I have taken advantage of every advanced placement opportunity possible. However, since only approximately four hundred students attended my high school, seventh graders through seniors, my opportunities were always somewhat limited. Therefore, my options have not been as numerous as many other students. However, I have taken four semesters of Pre-AP English followed by two semesters of AP English and the completion of the AP English exam. While reading comprehension has not always been my strongest academic ability (especially when I am not interested in the material) and I have not exactly given literature the appreciation it deserves in the past, I do enjoy writing, and therefore I believe this class should be fairly enjoyable for me.
In addition to the small class size and the potential for a few extremely interesting discussions, our required reading actually consists of books I would enjoy reading on my own, which is very different from my high school English class. I honestly predicted we would be reading novels such as Brave New World and Great Expectations, and I was definitely not looking forward for this class to begin. However, when I saw that Brokeback Mountain was only fifty pages long and V for Vendetta was strictly a graphic novel, I decided that nothing is ever the same as what you imagine. In addition, I am anxiously anticipating several in-depth discussions over the topics discussed in these novels, such as the controversy over homosexuality. Coming from a small Indiana school, most topics that were considered secular or controversial were simply left untouched. Therefore, I am excited to hear the opinions of my fellow classmates on these subjects in a nonjudgmental environment. All in all, I honestly feel as if I will enjoy this class and I am ready to come back on Wednesday.
Clifton Barney's expectations for Eng 108
First day of college classes have began. English 108 was the third installation in one of the most memorable days I will ever have. To some, the rainy day foreshadowed arduous labor and “wasted” time otherwise known as their academic school year. To me, the academic school year is a chance to excel, creating a foundation for a bright future and exploring the many career options presented for all of us at Purdue University. I chose to enroll in English 108 because of my previous exposure to IB English all four years of high school and my SAT scores. My English teachers in past years have always ranked among my favorites; so far this year seems to play follow the leader. Branches of English sit amongst the highest possible majors for me along with mechanical and aeronautical engineering. I enjoy writing poetry almost as much as I enjoy flight and computer drawing. Writing has always been a tool I used to express my deepest feelings, usually metaphorical. In taking this class, I hope to better my writing and polish my reading comprehension skills by gaining a greater sense of structure as well as experiencing a variety of new points of views. I can use this class as motivation and I anticipate a strong influence from great minds that may wane my feelings in engineering and send me down the boulevard of literature and creative writing. I am excited about all of the novels we will read and discuss because they all seem to be somewhat controversial, which mean more class discussion!
1st assignment, What do I think?
To tell you the truth, writing has always been a struggle for me. I'm told I'm good at it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. I've always waited until the last minute to write term papers and essays and I never write just for fun. I've never kept a journal or diary and I would never start a blog. Writing has always been a thing I have to do, not a thing I want to do.
Now let me clarify, just because I don't like to write does not mean I don't like english, because I do. I've always loved reading and will dive in to any book I get my hands on. I love discussion and debate and thinking about "big" questions; I just don't like translating those thought on to the written page.
I am excited about this class because I think it will give me lots of opportunities to do the things I love, like reading and discussing, and, since there is an abundance of those things, I think the writing I have to do will be more bearable. I will list my thoughts book by book:
1. The Hours - I think this is going to be the most challenging of the books to get through. I tried to watch the movie once and I only go halfway through. I don't even remember what it was about, so that's not a good sign. I hope by reading the book, I can understand the movie better.
2. Fight Club - This is the book I am probably most excited for. I've never seen the movie, but I know the general premise. The movie is so well known and popular; it has to be good. I didn't even realize it was a book before it was a movie, so I'm excited to read it.
3. V for Vendetta - I've never read a graphic novel before, so that will be a new experience, and I haven't seen the movie either, but I really like Natalie Portman, the actress that plays the main character. She seems like a smart woman that takes her acting very seriously.
4. Brokeback Mountain - I've also never read a novella before, and I really don't know what to expect. Is it just the movie put into book format, or a continuation of the plot? I don't know. I've never seen this movie either, but obviously I've heard of it and know what it is about. I like the actors and actresses that are in this movie too.
I am well over 250 words, so I will wrap it up. In conclusion, I am really excited for this class and am looking forward to reading all of these books.
E. Grimm
Now let me clarify, just because I don't like to write does not mean I don't like english, because I do. I've always loved reading and will dive in to any book I get my hands on. I love discussion and debate and thinking about "big" questions; I just don't like translating those thought on to the written page.
I am excited about this class because I think it will give me lots of opportunities to do the things I love, like reading and discussing, and, since there is an abundance of those things, I think the writing I have to do will be more bearable. I will list my thoughts book by book:
1. The Hours - I think this is going to be the most challenging of the books to get through. I tried to watch the movie once and I only go halfway through. I don't even remember what it was about, so that's not a good sign. I hope by reading the book, I can understand the movie better.
2. Fight Club - This is the book I am probably most excited for. I've never seen the movie, but I know the general premise. The movie is so well known and popular; it has to be good. I didn't even realize it was a book before it was a movie, so I'm excited to read it.
3. V for Vendetta - I've never read a graphic novel before, so that will be a new experience, and I haven't seen the movie either, but I really like Natalie Portman, the actress that plays the main character. She seems like a smart woman that takes her acting very seriously.
4. Brokeback Mountain - I've also never read a novella before, and I really don't know what to expect. Is it just the movie put into book format, or a continuation of the plot? I don't know. I've never seen this movie either, but obviously I've heard of it and know what it is about. I like the actors and actresses that are in this movie too.
I am well over 250 words, so I will wrap it up. In conclusion, I am really excited for this class and am looking forward to reading all of these books.
E. Grimm
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