Friday, December 4, 2015

Netflix and NO Chill {Macbeth Style}


1. How to Get Away with Murder
Macbeth would watch Viola Davis star in the highly acclaimed series centering around murder, guilt, and drama. Macbeth after committing more than one violent act on his own would watch HTGAWM in order to ease his guilt conscious and to get tips about how to deal with guilt. Also he is a fan of Shonda Rhimes because she gives him the major feels and as well as know Macbeth is highly emotional.

2. Gossip Girl
While you might not originally think Macbeth would watch such a girly show, think again cause he sure would. Macbeth {before he becomes a murderer} is quite in touch with his feminine side. He also relates strongly to the female centric plot of Gossip Girl where women manipulate, convince, and connive in order to gain more and more power.

3. Person of Interest
Although Person of Interest is a very modern and current show focusing on the power of technology to act as a big brother. But Macbeth finds solace in watching a show that has a similar level of paranoia as he does. POIs paranoia focuses on a God-like machine while Macbeth worries about the witches' prophecies and being dethroned.

4. Alias
Macbeth other than just adoring Jennifer Garner loves the premise of Alias with it's focus on the supernatural and corrupt leadership. He most identifies with the antagonist Arvin Sloane as Arvin kills anyone who gets in his way to achieving power. Additionally Arvin believes that killing his opponent's family {Jack Bristow} is definitely okay which makes Macbeth feel less guilty about the fate of Macduff. Also Alias relates to the premise that Macbeth is surrounded in of two sides and masks {Fair is foul and foul is fair}.

Monday, November 2, 2015

Blog 5: Swords + Epic Poems


No known artist (creator) - Western European 
Sword 
ca. 1400 
Steel, silver, copper, leather 
102.3 cm in length 

This sword was created in Great Britain / Ireland (more broadly known as Western Europe) in about 1400 AD. The culture surrounding this piece relates to values placed on being a chivalrous, valiant, sword wielding knight. 

The sword has the words (in Latin) "Here, too, virtue has its due reward", which is a line from the epic poem Aeneid about a warrior who became the ancestor of the Romans. The use of copper for the cross guard implies that it was for ceremonial not battle usage. The sword represents the profession of a knight as they were who would use swords and be awarded them ceremoniously. The poem line inscribed is meant to remind the knight who was give the sword that virtue is important. Perhaps this sword along with public recognition and probably a gift of land, was a reward for the knight's virtue on the battle field. This could possibly be considered a new treatment of the traditional theme of ceremonial swords. Often times symbols would be inscribed as oppose to words because some knights were not literate. The creator chose to inscribe words (in Latin) because he/ she believed that the recipient would be able to read them and understand their significance in relation to the Knight's own actions. 

The artist uses shape in order to look similar to swords of the time period as a ceremonial sword should be recognizably at that time modern. The art is organized to look like a regular sword with a bit of decoration. Knights while respected were not the highest social group and thus did not have the nicest swords or weapons. The relatively novel technique of using acid to inscribe the poetry enhances the meaning that this was a ceremonial gift and type of reward. Whoever commissioned this sword to be created wanted it be one of a kind and mean something to the recipient. 

The purpose of the work is to show the value of chivalrous knight-like behavior. The clues are mainly in the inscription being in Latin, being made using acid, and the usage of copper. Some implied themes include the value placed on specific (chivalrous) behaviors and the value (in a community) of a knight. The creator of this sword (as previously stated both the commissioner and the actual creator are being analyzed) aligned with pre-existing similar ideas regarding that virtue and chivalry is very important and that knights are valued (not most, but still a large amount). The title is Sword and thus is named by probably the museum so the title does not have any real significance. It is notable that the sword was regular enough to not garner a special name (Excalibur). The sword still signifies similar beliefs at the time it was created and now. In today's society the value of the art is mainly historical since it is one of the first instances of acid inscribing and the words regarding virtue from Aeneid are still significant as the epic is regarded as a important and telling work of literature. 

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/32.75.225

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Blog 4: Canterbury Tale's Rural Academy Theatre Performance

I was at the performance and thus don't have to write a blog :)
Thanks @ Mrs. Genesky for giving us this opportunity!

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Blog 3: Bed and Breakfast | Sloth and Gluttony

First off Blogger deleted my original version of this blog and I was unable to retrieve it so this blog is definitely going to be WAY less quality as I am trying to remember what I wrote before (oh and ya I did think it was my best blog entry... EVER). okay apologies. My rant is finished. 

This advertisement was created by Volker Schrader in Germany in July 2012. 

The advertisement is of mattresses | pillows | blankets arranged to look like toast with bacon and a soft boiled egg. The writing is very minimalistic in order to not draw attention away from the image. On a shallow level the audience will think the advertisement is cool as they probably thought it was real food at first and will admire the technique of the artist.

On a deeper level the advertisement relates to two of the deadly sins: sloth | gluttony. Sloth is defined as reluctance to work or make an effort. What is a better example of sloth than lying around in bed all day? Gluttony is defined as habitual greed or excess in eating. Eating a huge breakfast that you have been thinking about since you booked your vacation seems like a very good example of gluttony. 

The intended audience of the advertisement is middle class or wealthier citizens in anywhere that toast is a seemingly normal breakfast food (Europe and the U.S. to just name two). The audience is most likely middle class or wealthier because they are okay with spending money on a vacation. This advertisement is usable in a wide range of locations such as on a billboard, in a magazine, or on a website because it features not much about the B&B’s ideal guest (such as gender or ethnicity) which could narrow the market. The audience must have the cultural knowledge of acknowledging that bacon | eggs | toast are breakfast foods and thus this advertisement is hinting that the website is for a B&B. Schrader uses the layout of a large background image with very little text to make the advertisement look more like real food. He also uses colors that are close to accurate but not exactly in order to entice viewers to take a closer look. Honestly, it must have taken forever to find the exact shade of blanket and pillow to make a semi realistic breakfast food bed. 

Schrader deceives the audience with the breakfast food actually being bedding but other authors and artist deceive their readers and audiences with hidden biases. Schrader uses the stereotype of bacon | eggs | toast as breakfast foods in order to achieve the effect of the audience that when they look at the advertisement they instantly think of a delicious breakfast and then a good luxurious night's sleep. Additionally as mentioned before this advertisement is appealing to a wide and more diverse audience. This can be seen in mass media through either not specifying gender | ethnicity or specifying a "unique" gender | ethnicity (ie. mixed race family in cheerios' ad, or a hallmark ad featuring a domestic partnership [now most likely marriage] between two women). This type of "hip" "morally accepting" advertising can either represent the bias of the company or what the company thinks the majority of their customers' bias is.

Here are the two other images | advertisements in this set:
This breakfast assortment of eggs | sausage | spinach (?) looks definitely less normal to me (a North American)
Same as the previous image. Pickles | cheese | lettuce (?) on toast does not look appealing nor normal to this American. But I am sure that in the area that these advertisements was used [Germany (?)]. These two other images were of typical breakfasts.



Source: CreativeAdAwards.com

Saturday, September 19, 2015

Blog 2: Jenna and the Case of the Mysterious Venn Diagram


http://images.clipartpanda.com/overstatement-clipart-1.png

https://coolestfamilyontheblock.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/namemeaningcard-jenniferjenny-01.jpg

http://rlv.zcache.com/name_meaning_jennifer_tshirt-re3d86bf19ed6472bbc64c034788b2721_j2nhu_324.jpg
http://38.media.tumblr.com/53a5e909790bd7d7bddb86437c8abc6e/tumblr_n108g6RJxr1rlqu0zo9_250.gif
http://i.imgur.com/19gzriC.gif
http://images.sodahead.com/polls/003155249/3412730079_2344769612_YEAH_I_AGREE_answer_1_xlarge_answer_1_xlarge.jpeg
http://jokideo.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/292628_320517524688963_126894987384552_733750_1718577327_n.jpg
http://www.abetterbalance.org/web/images/stories/familiesforabb/fairness%20in%20the%20workplace%20icon%20-%20balanced%20scale.png


http://33.media.tumblr.com/759bb6cf098fbf1570c8492587e51854/tumblr_msw0sysd8a1setwdzo1_500.gif

memebuilder.com
http://www.memes.com/meme/458737

https://imgflip.com/memegenerator
http://www.egsd.net/HighSchool.cfm?subpage=1269290
http://www.egsd.net/HighSchool.cfm?subpage=1269290
https://imgflip.com/memegenerator/Chef-Gordon-Ramsay
http://cdn.meme.am/instances/500x/57609962.jpg


http://images.clipartpanda.com/overstatement-clipart-2.png
http://www.lifeleadership.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Helping-Others-11965733_s.jpg
http://www.katebeddow.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/lazy-teenager.jpg

from Facebook
http://www.pinkjooz.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/self-centered.png
From Facebook
http://www.augustana.edu/blogs/augieblog/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/images.jpg
From Facebook
http://whyareyoustupid.com/wp-content/uploads/Funny-Sad-Man-Microwave-Starts-Making-Noises-But-Still-Cold-First-World-Problems-Meme.jpg
http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0188/4122/files/box-box-toy-cardboard-cute-robot-robots-Favim.com-103826_large.jpg?3509
http://justsomething.co/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/tweets-first-world-problems-4.jpeg
http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/web05/2012/10/5/9/enhanced-buzz-32692-1349445559-4.jpg
http://i1.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/142/422/tumblr.jpg


Summary (with words)

My real name is Jennifer which is a cornish version of the name Guinevere which means "fair lady" and I do think that this name fits me because I try to be honest and fair. My name and use of a nickname defines me because I know in the real world (represented by substitutes who do not know me and college apps) I am legally Jennifer and that name defines me as being an adult.

The two me's that fight to co exist is the service oriented me and the self centered teenage me. I chose to make this a wordless blog because I knew I had many pictures of my trip this summer which reminds me to be self less and serve without ceasing and how that is true happiness. I am an individual who loves service but I sometimes am part of the collective selfish teenage larger whole.
 




Thursday, September 10, 2015

Blog 1: Customer vs Employee [the great divide]


Photo Name: Waitress, The Diner
Photo taken: 1997-2000 on Lake Street [Minneapolis, Minnesota]
Photographer: Wing Young Huie
Project Name: Lake Street USA

Zoomed In 
This photograph is of a older women and specifically her hair. Her hair is expertly pinned up with care. She is wearing a ironed collared shirt and a apron that says "The Diner". She is wearing earrings and glasses. She is photographed in the diner in which she works or so it appears. She is seated in a chair at a table with another cleaned and set table in the background. 

Zoomed Out
Waitresses are commonly young women working a job just for money, we assume looking at this employee that she has has somewhat of a difficult life requiring her to work as a waitress at a diner. Her hair is pinned up in a practical but pretty way which signifies that she is aware of the work she must do but she also cares about how she looks. The earrings, her unwrinkled collared shirt as well as her hair show that she takes pride in her appearance even with customers who do not respect her.  She wears glasses which shows she is practical and would rather not squint. She wears an apron which is probably required but also practical as she is dealing with food. She appears as someone who enjoys her job or at least sees herself as important despite her minimum wage position which implies that socio-economic status is not her primary concern. 

Connection [Wing Young Huie to The Handmaid's Tale]
Huie presents "othering" through focusing on the waitress's hair. It is inferred that her hair is what is interesting about her as the stereotypical waitress can not have nice hair or would not waste time to look nice. Atwood presents "othering" in a similar way as she discusses the societally made stereotypes. These stereotypes and rules mainly center around women being less than men. One example of this is how Luke treats Offred when she loses her job in the pre-Gilead days: "Hush, he said. He was kneeling on the floor. You know I'll always take care of you. I thought, Already he's starting to patronize me" (Atwood 232). Her husband was not overly concerned or outraged when the government stopped allowing women to work. He, even before the oppressive society was fully in control, did not believe that she as women was equally important to him which is adhering to a stereotype. In both these stereotypes are defied because the waitress does take time to make her hair look nice as a wealthy women would and Offred survives for a time while breaking the rules just like some of the fellow men did but, she survives for arguably longer than them which shows she is smarter and thus possibly more important.