Thoughts on Ferguson

I do not want to talk about the Michael Brown case in this post. I feel as if I do not have nearly enough information to be able to discuss it at all, outside of the racial injustice piece. Even then it might be best for me not to speak on it, as I am white. However, I do want to talk about the protests going on because of it.

Thinking about this whole thing brings me such immense pain. I hate the idea of how much people of color are hurting right now. It pains me to realize that we are still living in a world of racism. But I think this issue brings such an important reminder that this is still going on. As a white individuals, we do not have to even think about racial injustice. It doesn't happen to us. But that is absolutely no excuse to pretend that it doesn't exist. This issue is still very much alive. As unbelievable as it sounds, the KKK are still active. African Americans are arrested at six times the rate that whites are. We are among China, Brazil, and Mexico who are fighting against corrupt governments. America is held up to be one of the greatest nations in the world. Can you really still say that?

Is he really crazy?

It was very strange to me to be confronted with Hamlet's madness this week. Inside the text, I feel that Hamlet's words and actions are entirely justified. While many of them are not right, they are at least justified. All of his witty comebacks seem to be simply coming from a very intelligent mind that resents having to associate with lower beings. Perhaps even the real hurt and betrayal he feels towards his uncle and mother. But Hamlet's actions towards Ophelia right before the play, are ones that I simply cannot account for outside of madness. They are unfounded and the exact opposite of what he has told her in every other encounter they have had. I cannot make sense of it.

However this madness is suggested in every enactment of the play I have seen. It is startling to see the interpretation that this man is truly mad throughout. When we watched the film version with David Tennant, it was the first real enactment I had seen. While he performed it incredibly well in my opinion, it was just jarring for me. I'm not sure how to proceed with this revelation, especially as he seems to be slipping more into madness by the scene. We shall just have to see.

Family.

It is becoming more and more apparent to me that I have a very unique relationship with my family. As we trudge on through november, it seems that even parents have been on edge. It might just be in response to frustrated students, but I'm inclined to believe otherwise. I've been the quiet listener to quite a few rants regarding parents this week. I heard about numerous silly arguments that have boiled down to "I'm your parent, I get to decide. That's final."

I feel very blessed that I have a relationship with my parents (well at least my mother) that they are willing to sit down and have a reasonable discussion with me. It seems that other people don't have this relationship with their parents. It feels as though many teens don't have a mutual respect established with their parent. It is just very odd to me that the stereotypical teenager/parent relationship is very much a real thing, and that it is actually very prevalent. Just some food for thought this week.

A Play Within a Play? How Meta!

I would like to take a moment this week and talk about the play within a play contained in Hamlet. I think that Shakespeare employed a great plot device. It was tremendously clever, and I've seen it used so many other places. It's nice to know where all of these things come from. Especially the "The lady doth protest to much me thinks". That was also great. I would also like to take a moment to trumpet Adventure Time for having so many literature parallels. They employ a wonderful reference in the episode "Ignition Point".

In this episode, Finn and Jake venture off to the Flame Kingdom in order to retrieve Flame Princess' scented candles. While they are there, they get mixed up in in a plot to kill Flame King. They decide to take over the night's play and go on stage pretending to be the king's assassins. They watch the audience to try and discover who the real assassins are. However, before they manage to find them, the King has them captured. Finn and Jake then tell him that they overheard the assassins and their plot. It is then revealed that the guards holding the boys are the actual assassins,
and they are the King's nephews. They swear revenge on the Flame King for killing their father and taking the thrown.

It has been so enjoyable to find all of these older literature ideas represented in contemporary entertainment. It really solidifies the idea that it's hard to come up with new ideas nowadays. This frustrates me, but it also encourages me in that as long as you can spin something a new way creatively enough, that it doesn't really seem to matter that you're using and old idea.

Skills USA leadership

I was chosen to represent my school at the Fall Leadership Conference for Skills USA Nevada this weekend. I usually enjoy attending these conferences. They're a lot of fun. I get to meet new people, get some helpful information on how to be a better leader. But this year's conference felt like a mess.

One issue I had with the conference was how they decided to run workshops. These workshops split the large group into many smaller groups and offer short lessons on things like how to effectively run social media for a group, or even how to give better directions. However, instead of signing up for workshops ahead of time, you simply showed up at a workshop. This posed a problem, considering there were 300 of us. Each workshop had a limited amount of people that could attend, and once capacity was met, you were out of luck. That left a few people wandering around, trying to find a workshop when many of them were already full. We were never even given descriptions on what these sessions were about. We simply had to pick based off of the Disney song title that each session was given (the theme for the week was Disney. Leaders land, disneyland, get it?). I have an issue with this because as this is a conference intended to make us better leaders in our Skills Chapters and in our communities, I think that I should be able to attend the workshop that would most benefit me. It felt as though they treated these sessions as a time filler that just needed to be accomplished rather than something helpful that they were offering us. This was particularly frustrating, considering that they did take up a considerable amount of time, and it was entirely possible to get stuck in a boring session that didn't apply to you.

In years past this conference had been well organized and overall helpful to me as a leader. This year really fell short of the bar for me. It was disappointing, considering that it was the last one I would be able to attend. I hope that in future years they can get themselves together, because I truly believe that this kind of event can be a great benefit to students.   

Hamlet!

Oh, my gosh. Hamlet is amazing! I'm so excited that we started it this week. I love the language and all of the sass that Hamlet is throwing down. I am in the perfect mood for reading this play. While it deals with some dark subjects (cough death, suicide cough) the darkness seems to go well with the stress of November. I feel like Hamlet's unrelenting sass is my constant attitude right now. He seems like such a moody teenager. I was very confused when I was informed that Hamlet was actually 30 years old. It seems very odd that a thirty year old man would be so grumpy and moody, not to mention still in college. It's also very interesting that he would still be at odds with his parents at this age. That always struck me as a thing that one would experience in their teens, but once they moved out and away from their parents, the resent would lessen. That is what usually happens, at least in current times. I have found in my experience, that twenty-somethings usually find at least some appreciation for their parents, or the teenage sass and angst dilutes as they grow older and more mature.

Perhaps Hamlet's reaction is reasonable. His mother did remarry very quickly, to her former brother-in-law. Hamlet is very outspoken in his rejection of this new marriage, even calling it incestious (I wasn't aware that this was frowned upon, I actually thought this was the custom so that the widowed woman was still taken care of). His uncle has also taken his thrown, although I'm not sure how much Hamlet wants it in the first place, and brutally insults him infront of the court. If I were still grieving the loss of my father, I might be inclined to be very sassy as well. 

Bereft by Robert Frost

It's strange to say that such a sad poem was refreshing to read. But that is the only word I can find to describe my feelings towards it. Frost's imagery is what gets to me the most in this poem. His description of changing seasons evoked a powerful emotional response from me, a sort of identification with the speakers feelings. I'm a little startled, because I cannot say exactly where this identification comes from. Perhaps this poem is simply cathartic for me. I can feel the deep sorrow that is within it. However I still find a strange beauty in it. I especially enjoy the lines "What would it take my standing there for, Holding open a restive door. Looking down hill to a frothy shore". These lines really solidify the image for me. I imagine the speaker staring down at the shore, with the door trying to push him/her out of the way. I imagine their countenance to be one of pure awe at this terrifyingly beautiful scene.

The last four lines of the poem were also especially impactful for me. "Word I was in the house alone/Somehow must have gotten abroad,/Word I was in my life alone/Word I had no one left but God." Frost's imagery of this empty house reminds me of the song Little Talks by Of Monsters and Men.

I don't like walking around this old and empty house
So hold my hand, I'll walk with you, my dear
The stairs creak as you sleep, it's keeping me awake
It's the house telling you to close your eyes

This song is about the speaker, who has recently lost her husband. There are many references in the song to how creepy the house is without him, even with creeks dispersed throughout the song. The eeriness of that song is what I imagine when I read Frost's poem. I believe the speakers of both have experienced something very similar, some great loss in their lives. I imagine that they might even get along. 

In this autumn season, I can't help but identify with the darkness and sorrow that both pieces convey. I feel as if all three of us are struggling to get out of bed each morning, with the weight of the entire world on their shoulders. 

Over The Garden Wall

It is with my greatest pride and deepest pleasure that I introduce you to my latest obsession: Over the Garden Wall.

Over The Garden Wall is a Cartoon Network miniseries that has been airing all of this week. It follows the story of two brothers, Wirt and Greg, as they try to find their way out of a dark forest and back home. Wirt is a bit of a stick in the mud, and is constantly getting frustrated at his brother for running off and being silly. It gets in the way sometimes, but deep down Wirt truly loves his brother. Along the way they meet many interesting characters such as Fred the talking horse, (video)
some interesting pumpkin people, and a spooky woodsman who warns them to avoid the beast of the forest. Throughout their adventure, many of the people of the forest warn them of the beast. Will they ever find it? Will the beast find them? Will the boys ever get home? Go find out!


I do really encourage you to go watch this show. It'll only take out as much of your time as a movie would. The writing is amazing and very witty. When you think you've figured out what strange thing the boys are encountering, the writers pull the rug from underneath you with a creepy twist. I guarantee that you'll love it, and that's a rock fact!

On Blake

Reading William Blake's The Tyger and The Lamb in class was really enjoyable. The antithesis between the two were absolutely great. Even the color of the two pieces that accompany the poems exemplify the large difference between the two. The Tyger's main colors are a deep orange with highlights of black. The Lamb's colors are blue and yellow, which are psychologically calming colors to go with the peaceful nature of the poem.

It was also enjoyable to discover that they were printed next to each other in the original publication. I am curious to know what order though, because The Lamb seemed to be from the innocent perspective of a child, where as The Tyger is seems as though it is written by an adult that is questioning the world through examining the nature of evil. If The Lamb poem were to go first it would make sense, since it could be seen as a chronological progression of faith. With this mindset, the child would be in the state presented in the poem, one that is only seeing God as good and there being nothing wrong with the world. The child would then grow older and would begin to ask the bigger questions such as why evil exists, and how this benevolent God could create such a terrifying creature as the tiger. However, if these poems were published in the reverse order, it wouldn't present as clearly. There would be a very jarring shift from darkness back to innocence. Either way, Blake could be creating a very purposeful reaction by juxtaposing these poems, I would just like to know which.

The Tower - Part One

I had promised a few weeks ago to talk about Adventure Time. And that day has finally arrived. First, I begin with the episode "The Tower". For those of you who don't watch or haven't seen the episodes leading to this, this episode takes place directly after Finn goes on a search for his father. This adventure takes him to the space prison called "The Citadel". Through this, his father and some other baddies escape and Finn's father abandons him. In the process, Finn loses his arm. He is then left with a stump with a flower at the end of it. As he is dealing with the PTSD of losing his arm and his father, the princesses of the land are trying to help. They are making him prosthetic arms made from various things. However, Finn manages to explode each one. After the explosion of his most recent one, Jake gives him some advice:

This is the first piece of this episode that I think is really important. Jake gives us an important way of solving our problems, He gives the idea of a "Melon Heart", to suggest thinking with your brain, but also with your heart in order to deal with struggles and complex emotions. I point out again that this is a children's show, and the show uses this to its advantage. It presents this complex idea in a way that children can understand it and makes the show meaningful. This is also important to note as a parent, because they are being introduced to this idea, and can be a way to direct you child to help them deal with the struggles that they are and will be facing in the future.

Finn then decides to go and think about what "his melon heart is telling him". He lays in the grass and stares at the sky, thinking about space. He ponders that space is where his dad is, and wonders how he could get up there and find his dad again. He then begins to stack rocks. but not in the way that you think. Finn discovers that he is creating a telekinetic prosthetic arm. He sees this tower that his arm has made, and begins making a tower into space. When Jake returns later, he finds the tower to be much taller and with objects flying up to it, of their own accord. Princess Bubblegum is also there, deciding that she needs a way to get Finn down. 
Also really important. This is where it's important for parents to be watching with their kids. This scene discusses the dynamic between choosing to work through issues rather than just pretending that they don't exist. It is important for parents to recognize that stepping back and letting children work through issues themselves sets them up for a healthier future. But this part of the episode also points out the important piece of when it is okay to step back into the situation because your child isn't handling it in a productive manner.

We then learn that Finn has made his tower so large that it has made it into the clouds. While he's building, he is constantly singing this song:

Baby's building a tower into space
Space is where he's gonna find his dad
Daddy's got an arm 
and baby's gonna harm his arm by tearin' it off his dad

I find this song to be very representative of Finn's overall goal. The fact that he repeats it for the entire time that he is building the tower shows his motivation. He is driven solely be the idea of "eye for an eye" that he cannot see anything else. It also shows how little Finn has thought about his plan. Finn has a basic knowledge of space, enough to know that it's a pretty big place. His sole focus is getting just a little closer to where he thinks his dad will be, that he doesn't think about how to get around in space or that breathing will soon be an issue.

Finn then encounters a cloud person, by accidentally entering her house. She seems very alarmed and hits him with some lightning in order to get him out of her house. She makes some vague comments about how Finn must be a "swimmer", and how she's not water anymore, so Finn cannot get her up his nose any more. The cloud person then returns the next day and hears Finn singing his song. She introduces herself as Carroll and asks if Finn is really going to do those things. She tells him that revenge isn't the best way. "I get it, I get it. But let me tell you something. I used to be water. Like a pond or something real wet. I used to hate people swimming in me, kicking and stuff. So what did I do? I evaporated, I got myself out of there." She says. "Listen, you have to stop obsessing about revenge.  Be like me and run away, you have to run away and never stop hating your old life. You gotta really dwell on it."

Now Carroll presents Finn with some very important advice. She states that revenge isn't the best way. But she also presents and equally unhealthy way of dealing with issues. Carroll took one good step, and that was getting out of the situation. However, she never dealt with the trauma that it caused her and is still suffering as a result. She is even still paranoid about something like that happening again, like we saw in their first encounter. 

The next thing she says is representative of her pushed-down feelings. 

I find this wording to be incredibly clever. Carroll describes what it feels like to think about past hurts. When we don't deal with these hurt feelings, thinking about them can be like touching something hot and wanting to pull away. Sometimes the more we think about them, the more they hurt. But Carroll is an example of how we need to deal with these issues. Because if we don't they'll just fester and leave us afraid of new relationships.

That's it for part one! Stay tuned for the second half in the coming weeks!

Frankenstein

The ending of Frankenstein seemed oddly reminiscent of the ending of Othello. I was slightly surprised that the monster seemed so remorseful immediately following Frankenstein's death, which is similar to Othello immediately discovering that the death of Desdemona was unjust. After some reflection, I suppose that it would make sense that he would mourn the death of his creator. The monster was an emotional creature, he certainly wasn't heartless. However, he had seemed so bent on Frankenstein's destruction and knew the consequences of his actions beforehand, for him to turn around and immediately regret them. The ending also seemed anti-climactic with the return to the epistolary frame. It seemed to just end. I was hoping that the speaker would at least have continued to seek his goal or offer some sort of closure to the novel outside of Frankenstein's death. But perhaps that was Shelley's goal. Not all  stories are meant to have a satisfying ending and serve the novel better to leave the endings as they are.

SnafuCon 2014

I had the pleasure of attending this year's Snafu Con this past weekend. I had an amazing time getting to explore everything the convention had to offer. (For those of you who aren't familiar with the event, it is Sierra Nevada Anime Fans Unite, and takes place in my home town every year.) Everyone was dressed in fabulous cosplays, and was having an incredible time. I love that events like this because they bring so many amazing people together over a similar interest. It was like one giant geek fest, with no one looking down on anyone else. Everyone I met was nice and just excited to be there.

For a good chunk of the time, I was there to support my friend at her artist's alley table where she sold her artwork. She sold a variety of prints, key chains and even a bunch of stickers.

(If you see something you like, she has an online store that you should go check out!)

I also had the opportunity to cosplay for the first time! I made one for Mabel from Gravity Falls. It was so much fun, I can't wait to make another. I even got a few compliments, and asked for pictures.