Blog #7

Throughout the movie, The Social Network, all of the critical approaches appear. The two most noticeable ones were the feminist approach and the moral/philosophical approach. These two approaches show up a lot during the film and are displayed in many different characters.

From the feminist approach, the film portrays women negatively in many different ways. One example is when Mark makes Face Mash. Women are rated by men and compared to other women one by one. This upsets the women but Mark thinks they’re overreacting. Another example is when Eduardo’s girlfriend, Kristi, gets upset about him switching his Facebook status to single. She also gets mad about him not contacting her when he is away. This results in her setting a garbage can on fire in his apartment. I also noticed that the majority of women are partying, dancing on tables, and throwing themselves at men.

From the moral/philosophical approach, the film demonstrates many negative morals. Mark is really rude and patronizing towards every person in his life. Mark doesn’t respect powerful figures such as professors, the judge, and his friend Eduardo. Another example that I saw throughout the movie was when Mark hacks into websites and creates Face Mash.

When looking through these two approaches after watching this film, I realized that this film is very negative. There are many examples that display negative morals and gender differences. The film portrays Mark as being a very rude, condescending person. Although there are some positive morals and gender differences in the film, the negativity is more prominent.

Blog #6

This episode of House tells us that if you’re good at what you do, it doesn’t matter how you deal with people along the way. House doesn’t care about his patients emotions. He said, “Humanity is overrated”. However, he is the best doctor at the hospital and saves people’s lives.

I believe it is important for patients and families to be well informed and treated well throughout the treatment process. House doesn’t want to talk to his patients to hear what they have experienced. He thinks information coming from a patient is unreliable.  

There are many doctors who are good at their jobs but don’t take the time to read patients charts and pretend to treat them like an individual. I disagree with what House is portraying. I think doctors should show compassion towards their patients throughout their treatment process but I also am thankful for them saving people’s lives.  

Blog #4

The protagonists in the novel, Into the Wild, and the film, Fantastic Mr. Fox, both love adventure. Chris McCandless and Mr. Fox have very courageous, thrill-seeking personalities that fuel their adventures. Both McCandless and Mr. Fox partake on their risky adventures in order for personal benefit and thrill.

Chris McCandless grew up in a well-off family that provided him with many opportunities to succeed. Although it seems like he had a good childhood, his father's disloyalty to his first wife rooted a deep distaste towards his father. Chris didn’t agree with his family’s socioeconomic status. He believed that money shouldn't be a substantial part of people's lives, and didn't like how much it affected his own life. As a result, Chris left his family and identity behind and set out on his adventure across the United States. Before venturing into the wilderness of Alaska, Chris had little adventures along the way. Chris seemed unprepared, especially in his final adventure to Alaska. His adventures were very dangerous because of his unpreparedness, but he showed how important it was for him to seek adventure.

Also Mr. Fox is surrounded by caring family and friends. He is admired by several members of their community such as his son Ash. Even though he has a good life, he still feels the need to introduce some adventure into his life by stealing from the neighboring farms. Mrs. Fox becomes suspicious of her husband and begs him to stop what he is doing but Mr. Fox continues to steal from the farm. His robberies endangered his family and community. He also lost respect from everyone, especially his wife. I think Mr. Fox’s actions were definitely fueled by his thrill seeking personality. His need for adventure outweighed his wife's approval and keeping his community safe. This showed how important his need for thrill is.

Even though Chris and Mr. Fox have their differences, their thrill seeking personalities fuel their need for adventure. Also neither of them seemed to weigh the pros and cons for partaking in their risky tasks. Chris didn’t consider how unprepared and dangerous his voyage to Alaska was going to be and Mr. Fox didn’t consider how his robberies would result in a dangerous situation for his family and friends. The ignorance of others resulted in the death of Chris McCandless and the near death of Mr. Fox. Both of these characters had thrill seeking personalities that resulted in their thrill seeking adventures. 

Blog #1

As I read the book Into the Wild I came across some evidence answering the questions from the psychological critical approach.  Chris’s emotions and behaviors tell a lot about his psychological state and personality. “ He wasn't carrying anywhere near as much food and gear as you'd expect a guy to be carrying for that kind of trip" (Gallien, Krakauer, p. 4). Chris “Alex” McCandless did not take enough food to last him through his journey. He had to go through a lot of hardships such as the weather. McCandless didn’t even realize what he was facing. People began to think that he was stupid, unintelligent and ignorant. But they were wrong. Chris is a well-educated experienced traveler. It showed that Chris has a great desire to succeed.

Chris kept in touch with people who helped him along his journey. "Sometimes I wish I hadn't met you though. Tramping is too easy with all this money. My days were more exciting when I was penniless and had to forge around for my next meal" (Alexander, Krakauer, p. 33). Chris always wanted something more than what society presented to him. He always needed a challenge and change in his life. He hated having things planned out.

Most people thought that Chris was psychologically different. "Alex wasn't a total space cadet or anything doesn’t get me wrong. But there were gaps in his thinking. I remember once I went over to the house, walked into the kitchen, and noticed a god-awful stink. I mean it smelled nasty in there. I opened the microwave, and the bottom of it was filled with rancid grease. Alex had been using it to cook chicken, and it never occurred to him that the grease had to drain somewhere" (Westerberg, Krakauer, p. 63). In this passage it seems like Chris sees things from a different point of view or critical approach. I think Alex didn’t realize what he was getting himself into and what consequences he was going to have to face.

Blog #2

There are many similarities between Chris McCandless and Gene Rosellini. McCandless and Rosellini both came from wealthy backgrounds which allowed them to go to college. They also both love to learn, explore and push their limits. They both went on adventures into the wild which was hard work to succeed their goals and survive. Both men had natural talent, they were athletic and intelligent.  

I think Gene Rosellini influenced Chris McCandless to attempt his adventure. When Gene went on his adventure he took a slim amount of supplies. Chris may have thought that he didn’t need more supplies that he already had. Another thing is Gene survived 30 years in Alaska which probably gave Chris the idea that he could survive his trip. Although there are many similarities between Chris and Gene there are also many differences.

Blog #3

Throughout the novel I thought that Chris was a kind person who goes on adventures in hope to find answers about himself and society. After reading chapter 11, I thought differently about Chris. I think that Chris is a stubborn person who sought out adventure as an escape from his family. Chris’s independent behavior and distant relationships made it easy for him to decide to go on his adventures. I found an example of Chris’s emotion towards his parents on page 115 that states there were conflicts between Chris and his parent’s opinions. An example of Chris’s stubbornness is on page 111 when his father says how Chris doesn’t like to follow instruction and always wanted to do things his own way. As more information is revealed about Chris’s family and childhood, I perceive him as being stubborn, distant and independent.

Blog #5

I think Shirley Jackson wrote the story “The Lottery” to explore the idea that people are afraid of change and afraid of the consequences that might occur. I also think that she wrote this to get people to think about the culture we live in and our morals. I think this story teaches us that just because something has always been done does not mean it is just. The character, Old Man Warner is an example of this because he always states his disrespect towards young adults who oppose the tradition in neighboring villages. I think he is against the change because he has witnessed the lottery for 77 years and is against accepting the idea without the lottery. I thought the character Tessie represented the youth of society and Old Man Warner as someone who represents our elders. Tessie did not take the lottery very seriously. She didn’t believe that it was important to follow the ritual of it all because she wasn’t there when it started.