Sunday, April 22, 2012

Cuckoo's Nest

1.Was Cheswick's drowning, intentional or accidental?
Getting his hand stuck in the grate was unintentional, but he left his hand in there intentionally. He did this because he saw this as an opportunity to end his life.
2. Do you think there could've been an ulterior motive to Chief smothering McMurphy?
No, I think the sole motive was to put McMurphy out of his misery because Big Nurse had turned him into a vegetable.
3. Does being at the mental ward actually make McMurphy crazy?
Not until the electroshock, then he starts to lose his mind.
4. Who is more to blame, the Big Nurse or Billy, for his death?
The Big Nurse because she shouldn't have put suicidal pressure on Billy by threatening to tell his mother.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Final Gatsby Reading

1. What do the eyes of Dr. Eckleburg symbolize?
We get one answer from George Wilson towards the end of the book after Myrtle dies he looks out the window at the eyes and says, "I told her she might fool me but she couldn't fool God. I took her to the window... and I said 'God knows what you've been doing, everything you've been doing. You may fool me, but you can't fool God!'" In this paragraph in Ch. 9 we get that the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg symbolize God.
2. Why couldn't Gatsby get over Daisy?
I believe if Gatsby would've tried hard enough and let time and fate run its' course he could've gotten over Daisy and settled down with a nice lady over seas. But he didn't want to move on. Daisy was his first true love and he wanted her and her only. But Daisy had moved on; and so Gatsby's recapturing of the past proved fatal towards him.
3. Why Jordan Baker and Nick didn't get married?
They never seemed completely comfortable around each other. They were a couple just thrown together for the purpose that Daisy and Tom could have another couple to hang out with. Jordan had her lavish and sports-minded life that she was living and Nick was still trying to find a life for himself. Even if they would've gotten married I don't think they would've lasted too long.
4.Why did Tom and Daisy stay together after everything had happened?
Because everything had happened. Both their lovers were dead; Myrtle for Tom and Gatsby for Daisy; and they still had money. So, that might as well just stay together and move to a different city to ruin other people's lives with their erroneous lifestyle.

Gatsby 2nd Reading

1. The purpose of Meyer Wolfsheim is to show Gatsby's connection to the gambling, bootlegging, underground, world. And also to defame some of Gatsby's esteemed appearance and prestige.
2. That Gatsby is just a lonely man trying to find the one true love he used to have.
3. Gatsby has lived a very eventful and mysterious life; fighting in a war, studying at Oxford, learning his trade from a famous bootlegger, etc. Because of his many endeavors I think the audience can relate to him and sympathize towards him, because all he wants is love.
4. I like Gatsby. But the hotel scene makes me like him a little bit less because I didn't like the way he put Daisy on the spot like that in front of everyone to tell her husband that she never loved him was a little harsh and rash.

Monday, February 27, 2012

"Black Bottom Stomp" Jelly Roll Morton

I would envision this music being played wherever the dance floor is. This is up-beat, jazzy, make you want to groove music.
A happy mood. The music is very up-beat and swingy; it's very fast so you don't have time to stop and be sad.
Dancing/grooving. Swinging. Tap dance.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Great Gatsby: First Reading

Villain: Myrtle Wilson and Tom Buchanan. "Tom's got some woman in New York." Tom is openly cheating on Daisy with Myrtle Wilson who also is cheating on her spouse with Tom. " 'Neither of them can stand the person they're married to... When they do get married.' continue Catherine, 'they're going West to live for a while until it blows over.' " Tom and Myrtle both can't stand the person they are married to and plan to divorce these persons and then marry each other, quite villainous.

Hero: Jay Gatsby. "I believe that on the first night I went to Gatsby's house I was one of the few guests who had actually been invited. People were not invited- they went there." Gatsby is so profound and admired that people all over New York, the country, and even the world to come to his parties even if not invited. But he's such a great man that he doesn't kick them out but gladly welcomes them to his abode.

"Race for the Prize"

The theme of this song is no matter how dangerous something or the sacrifices you have to make; it's the satisfaction that outweighs this all. We see this in the chorus: "Theirs to Win/ If it kills them/ They're just humans/ With wives and children."The scientists would die, leaving their wives and children to find this cure to save mankind. The scientists are just thinking if i can find this cure, the I'll be remembered forever. "Forging for the future/ But to sacrifice their lives."

Monday, January 16, 2012

Duck and Cover

Overt: Duck and cover when there has been signal of a bomb in the area. This was just an informational video. Even though they don't give information on the atomic bomb itself, they're just trying to give you an way to best protect yourself.

Destination Earth

Overt: Petroleum oil plays a very major part in American everyday life. With oil and competition you can make anything happen.
Covert: Competition in companies is what runs America. Communism leads to unhappiness, and incompetence. Competition is apart of Capitalism and destroys Communism.
Propaganda: Glittering generalities, bandwagon, and transfer.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

"Eat Less Bread"

1. Eat less Bread.
2. Overconsumption of bread is taking money away from the war.Soldiers will want to get the war over quickly so they can return home to a good, hearty meal made in a homely kitchen. Also it is implying that women are supposed to stay in the kitchen.
3. Because the covert message has really nothing to do with bread, that's why it's at the end and smaller.

"Clampdown" The Clash

1. "Clampdown" is a song directed toward Germans in the time of Hitler. "Blue-eyed man" Hitler thought of the perfect person as blue-eyed and blonde hair. It also mentions and makes references to Jews several times throughout the song.
2.They mumbled through the first stanza, because it was like the exposition (unnecessary information). It was up-paced and rock, reminded me of a rebel song.
3. Persuasion- They don't want to work for the "Clampdown" because of several reasons. "You're working for the clmapdown/ So you got someone to boss around/ It makes you feel big now... You made your first kill." Working for the "Clampdown" turns you into an oppressive monster.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Analyzing Quote


656. The vulgar crowd is always taken in by appearances, and the world consists chiefly of the vulgar.
NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI (1469-1527), The Prince, 1513.

Definition of vulgar (www.dictionary.com)- characterized by ignorance of or lack of good breeding or taste.
 Niccolo Machiavelli is saying that ignorant people can always be appealed to through visuals, and since most of the people in the world are ignorant they can be easily conquered. We see an example of this with Hitler and the Germans he appealed to their senses and was able to fully turn them on their fellow man just because of his race. He used the star of David and other symbols to mark Jews visually so that people would know who they were and to discriminate against them. I don't quite know to classify this as because there's basis to this; it's just, people are ignorant, there's a lot of ignorant people, and this is how you appeal to them.