That's All Folks

I want to start this (FINAL YAY!!) blog by saying that at the beginning of this semster I signed up for Intro to Lit because I needed to finish off the last of my gen eds and heard it was an easy A. In no way has this class been "an easy A", and after looking back on how much I've learned I'm glad it wasn't. I feel that I got so much more out of this class then I have in some of my course classes even. Now I'm not going to say I've completely changed how I act and what I think because of this class, but it has made a difference in my life.


Through the issues we discussed this semester, such as Consumerism, Plentitude, Voyeurism, Censorship, ect... I now find myself thinking about and considering things that I hadn't before. Now when I'm shopping I try to think if I really need what it is I'm about to buy or if it's just a waste of money. I find myself trying to be more careful of what I put online because I'm not sure who is looking at the information.

I really enjoyed (most of) the nonfiction we read in this class. Although I had already purchased The Hunger Games over the winter and had planned on reading it once I finished my current series, I never would have read Feed. Even though it was an easy read, I feel that The Hunger Games was a great book. I finished the other two within the same week as the first. I noticed that I was thinking about the themes more analytically because of the dicussions we had in class and I was trying to figure out if the author had a hidden message or warning. And the rest of the material, even if I didn't like it as much, definitely taught me a lot and exposed me to topics I wouldn't have exposed myself to.

Thank you to everyone that contributed to my learning, and especially to Dr. Smith.

(And since I'm such an advocate of The Hunger Games now here is a clip I found)

Burn Baby Burn

The question asked in this blog could be viewed differently depending on the approach taken. If I consider a world without books, where books never existed, then I don't think anyone would notice the difference. But right now, if all of our books were taken away, I think it would have a huge impact on the world. All the written and shared knowledge that we share would cease to exist. The trend that each generation's IQ level increases over the previous would probably reverse, refer to the Flynn Effect. I know I personally would miss them because I enjoy reading a good book from time to time instead of always watching a movie or TV. The last part of the blog prompt took some consideration. Although we don't actually burn books everyday, we might as well. The number of people that actually use books for entertainment or to learn from seems to decrease with each generation. It seems that we ignore the opportunities that are right in front of us to be able to better ourselves and make the world a better place to be.

The Hunger Games: Survival of the Fittest

From the first word that I read from The Hunger Games I was hooked. I couldn't put the book down. It was funny because it was a book that I had purchased over the summer, intending to read once I got some free time. Now, after finishing the second book and starting the third I still can't stop reading. I finished the first two books in a matter of days and am on track to finish the third within a day. I absolutely became engrossed in the book and the story. I thought the story was easy to get caught up in and the characters were easy to become attached to. At numerous points through the first book I found myself hoping that events would turn on way even though I knew they wouldn't. Such as when Rue died, I was almost morning as much as Katniss. I felt like I knew the characters in the book as if they were my friends and felt the pain as each one of them died. 

Something that I immediately thought of when I found out what the Hunger Games actually were was the show Spartacus. In this show the gladiators have to fight each other, normally to the death, in an area with everyone watching. This just made me think of how the tributes had to kill one another with all of Panem watching. I won't give anything away, because I highly recommend reading the 2nd and 3rd books as they are just as good if not better than the fist, but especially in the 2nd book with everyone hanging on their every movement. Below is a clip from Spartacus: Gods of the Arena which was actually the unplanned prequel to Spartacus: Blood and Sand. The show received such high ratings in its first season that the producers couldn't help but make more episodes. This also reflects to how the people of Penam, even though troubled by the games, couldn't help but watch.

Is It Really "Reality" TV?

The article was interesting because it really made me think about voyeurism and the role I play. It made me think that I actually do enjoy the ability to watch peoples' private lives and their actions without having the risk of them knowing i'm doing it. 

After forcing myself to complete the "daunting" task of watching an hour of reality TV considering the questions asked in the prompt for blog #7, I must say that I realized I already knew a lot of what I concluded. The show I watched was the latest episode of the Jersey Shore. I actually enjoy this show and watch it on a weekly basis. I like the show because it is entertaining to watch a bunch of young adults basically do nothing but drink and be promiscuous. I think a lot of college students enjoy it not just because it's entertaining, but also because it makes them feel better about binge drinking and other things they may do in college. They see it on TV and feel that it is becoming more socially acceptable to do those things.

The clip I chose for this blog, because it was the only good one I could find, is from the Jersey Shore. In the episode, some of the main characters, Snookie, JWow and Sammi get into a physical cat fight with one another. The show draws viewers because it is known for having drama such as this. I did enjoy the episode but still 

realized what was happening was wrong. If it wasn't for the viewers that tune into these shows every week, the show wouldn't be popular and would be canceled.

Here is a link to the clip. Jersey Shore: Sammi vs JWow

BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU

In 1984, the theme is about a totalitarian government and the dangers it possesses. The character "Big Brother" is never directly in the novel, although the character has a major impact throughout it. The fact that the thought police know ever move that the party members make through the means of the telescreen may not be that different from reality. In our society, could Big Brother not be the face of corporation? It is present everywhere and always keeps a watchful eye on all members of society. Just like how the party members in 1984 have to act in a certain manner in order to be considered "sane", people in our society have to conform to certain norms to fit in. The telescreen is similar to our internet and how everything we do is tracked and monitored. The searches we do in Google and the items we "like" on Facebook are all stored and processed in databases. This information is used to profile us and is sold to corporations so they know what we are more likely to purchase. And to think, all this information is given willingly. I don't know if we have lost our right to privacy or if we have given it away in ignorance. 

Thoreau Challenge: My Final Hours

Sunday was my last day of the Thoreau Challenge. By this time I was feeling better and the weather had gotten cold again. I was missing my phone and TV, all I wanted to do was lay in bed and catch up on all the shows I had missed. I spent the day looking over the chapters of my textbooks for the week, and I felt like I had done all the extra school work I could handle. I finished my book "The Girl Who Played With Fire" and although it was a good book, I was all "read" out. I started counting down the final hours until I could go on facebook and see what I had been "missing". As soon as my watch said 12am I turned my TV on and played an episode of LOST while checking my facebook and email. I was definitely glad that it was over, but I did find out that I waste a lot of my time doing pointless checks on facebook. I think I will probably only check my facebook once or twice a day now, instead of constantly being on it. I want to keep up my productivity with my school work since it feels good to be ahead and not playing the catch up game.

Thoreau Challenge: The next 3 days

The next 3 days of my challenge were Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. By this point it was much easier to be without my cell phone or TV. I'd caught up, and even gotten ahead with most of my class work. On Thursday I had my club officer meeting at 3:30, and after dinner I played a couple board games with my roommates. I was still feeling a bit sick so I took medicine and went to bed early. Friday I worked, and was worn out when I got home so I napped. After I woke up I had a fraternity event that night that went until late. Thankfully when I woke up Saturday I was feeling a lot better. I had arranged to meet my parents at the Hershey outlets that day. We had breakfast together, went shopping, and had dinner before I went back to Ship. I spent the night hanging out with my friends playing cards and chatting, it was a good time. I remember thinking that I only had two more days to go until it was Monday and I could start using my phone again.

My Feed Advertisements

Ad #1:

Wal-Mart

I shop a lot at Wal-Mart. It is a convenient place to go and get my groceries, household products, and basic clothing. If I had a feed Wal-Mart would definitely be on my feed whenever I thought of something that I needed to get at the store. It would probably even automatically save the item into a shopping list and remind me I wanted it the next time I went to the store. 

Ad #2: 

Panera

I love to eat at Panera. Although it is a bit expensive for what it is, the food is great. The environment is also very peaceful which is great to relax and read a book, or take your laptop and get some work done. My feed would send Panera coupons to my feed and offer me promotional items with a purchase.

Ad #3: 

XBOX

I use XBOX live practically every day. I used to play online games a lot with my friends, but now I use it more for instant streaming of Netflix. Being able to watch movies on my TV without having to leave the house beats Blockbuster and even Red Box. My feed would keep me up to date with what all my friends were doing online and about new offers coming to the marketplace. 

Ad #4: 

iTunes Store

I listen to music constantly. Music is everywhere in my live, my iPod, computer, car radio, etc... I use iTunes to find new music and download it. My feed would have a profile of the types of music I like and recommend me artists and songs based on my preferences. Whenever a new song comes out that is similar to my taste I would be prompted with a preview and the option to download it instantly.

Thoreau Challenge: The first 3 days

So I started my challenge on Monday morning. Luckily I had put a sticky note on my phone to remind me that I wasn't to check my email, because the first thing I did in the morning was reach for my phone. I have a busy schedule, I work Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in Harrisburg, Tuesday I have 5 classes, and Thursday I have 4 classes. I usually don't listen to the radio on my way to work in the morning anyway since it's too early for me (7am) so that wasn't a problem. The hardest thing was not to text my friends and girlfriend while I was at lunch, so instead I took my book and read some of 1984. I have noticed that I get my work done a lot faster without the TV being a distraction. I had difficulty going to sleep without the "noise" from my fan Monday night. Tuesday I felt like I was starting to get a cold and I was pretty run down all day, so when the night came I took some NyQuil and feel right asleep. My work day Wednesday was terrible because I started feeling worse and worse throughout the day. I took NyQuil again that night as well. Hopefully I will start feeling better soon so I can enjoy the absolutely BEAUTIFUL weather. When it's this nice out, who needs technology anyway.

Man v. Wild or Man v. Technology

In class this week, we discussed several passages from Thoreau and had a lot of debate. The quote that remained in my mind even after class was the section about Thoreau’s Ideas on Modern Technology and Communication. He claimed that commerce and technology, which lead to the advancement of society, were unnecessary. I understand the argument Thoreau was making, he was trying to persuade us that if we lived more simply and concerned ourselves with less, then we would be happier. Maybe this was the case in 1845, but in today's society technology is a necessity in order to stay in sync with the world. 


The question of whether or not I would be able to give up all my possessions and live off the land for a year doesn't have a simple answer. If the questions is Could I?, then I'll say yes I can. I am an Eagle scout and have extensive knowledge in camping and survival. I don't know if I would learn anything else about myself, but I think if someone without my experience did it they would discover that it's not as hard as they originally though. If the question is Would I?, then I'll have to say no. I admit that I have become comfortable with the modern conveniences we have and wouldn't want to give them up. Why would anyone choose a harder life than they have to. It seems to me that people are constantly trying to find ways to improve their lives and make them easier.


I think all the texts have a common theme throughout them; that if we do not control the evolution of technology, it will eventually control our evolution. Technology is an exciting, but scary reality that we are living with everyday. The advancements in the past thirty years were undreamed of and I'm curious to see what the next thirty years will bring. 

Gen Y - The "Dumbest" Generation

In his book "The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future (Or, Don't Trust Anyone Under 30)", Mark Bauerlein, the 49 year old English professor at Emory University, makes the argument that Gen Y is the dumbest generation today. His bases the argument on how technology has adversely effected what we learn and know. I believe his argument is heavily flawed for numerous reasons.

One argument Bauerline makes is that "never have the opportunities for education, learning, political action, and cultural activity been greater". The point that he makes with this quote is that even with all the advances and opportunities we have to advance, they aren't being taken advantage of, and we are actually becoming dumber due to them. I don't know if he failed to realize the fact that IQ scores in every country that measures them have been rising since the 1930s (Sharon Begley, Newsweek article) or if he just decided to ignore it. I think he is basing his argument purely on what is relevant to him and his generation. Just because Gen Y doesn't know who Charlie Chaplin (English comic actor and film director during the silent film era) is or what Mark Twain's actual name was (Charles Clemens) doesn't mean that we are the dumbest generation. It is simply a matter of what we choose to absorb. With all the technology we have, it would take almost no time at all for me to look up what films Charles Chaplin was in or what other books Mark Twain wrote using Google on my Droid X. Maybe I shouldn't say Google and Droid X since if anyone Bauerline's age reads this blog, the chances that know what I'm talking about are probably lower than someone in Gen Y. If I were to wrote a report today, I have almost an  unlimited amount of resources available to my disposal via the internet and online databases. Even 20 years ago the number of available resources was significantly lower. So I could argue that with all the material available to me, I have the potential to be exposed to more information than someone writing a similar report just 20 years ago.

Another argument Bauerline makes is "Social life is a powerful temptation, and most teenagers feel the pain of missing out". I'm sure this argument is valid for any generation. When Bauerline was growing up, how would he have felt if he missed an opportunity to go with his friends to the movie because he simply didn't know? I'm sure he would have felt left out and somewhat upset. With the technology we have today it is easier to communicate than ever. If my friends want to hang out, we text each other. If I need to get together with a class group, we use Google Calendar to send each other a meeting request. There is almost no excuse "not to know" something is happening. I almost feel like Bauerline is just, for lack of a better way to express it, jealous that he didn't have the same privileges when he grew up. In class on Thursday Shannon said that when she was in line at Starbucks, she heard students talking about how classes should have been canceled due to the weather. Why should students want classes canceled when we are privileged just to have the chance at a higher education? I think it is because since we have been young, we have always seen a "Snow Day" as a personal day when we can do whatever we want, be it relax and do nothing or do something else on our "To Do List". I'm sure that even adults that are privileged to have a job wanted to be able to take a personal day due to the weather.

I think Bauerline is simply putting a spin on the tried and true practice of criticizing the generations after your own. Every past generation has done it, we're doing it, and i'm sure every generation to come will do it as well.

Blog #2

As I was reading Culture Jam I went through an array of emotions and thoughts at what Lasn had written. When I read the section about the Manchurian Consumer ( aka product placement advertising, pages 37-41) I was shocked when I realized how accurate some of the portrayals were. We are so accustomed to seeing product placements in our everyday lives that we have become numb, almost immune to them. I took a moment to look around my room at all the items I had, a min-fridge, TV, protein mix, shoes, etc... and tried to take in all the product logos. I was overwhelmed, almost every piece of clothing or electronics had a brand mark or logo prominently displayed on it. And without realizing it, everyday when I wear my Adidas backpack or my North Face jacket I am actually marketing those products for those companies without receiving any type of reimbursement. When I watch TV or walk around campus I see all these indirect advertisements and while I don't consciously respond to them, I'm sure that somehow subconsciously they affect my purchasing decisions. Shippensburg University has a partnership with Pepsi products, and because of that partnership I am only subjected to Pepsi products. Now that I think about it, I can't remember the last time I bought a non-Pepsi product at Wal-Mart or anywhere else the last time I bought soda.

While I progressed farther into Culture Jam, the next section that grabbed my attention was The Cult You're In (pages 52-57). In this section Lasn discusses how everyone in America has joined a cult at some point in their life, usually without even realizing it. He tries to tell us that although we don't wear robes or perform ceremonies, we are nonetheless a "cult". Our society judges us by the things we wear and who we associate with. I thought about how when I was in high school I would buy Under Armour to work out in because that was what you were suppose to wear if you played football. I realized that since I came to college I did less of what I would consider to be "buying acceptance" but I still did to a point. At my summer internship I wanted to be considered competent, but I was an intern with a three year old phone working at an IT consulting firm; how could I be taken seriously? So the first thing I purchased with my paycheck was a new, state of the art smart phone; now I would be taken seriously. But looking back on that decision I feel foolish. Why did I think that just because I had  a phone like all the consultants I would be taken more seriously?

The last section in the Culture Jam I will write about was the part about the Unofficial History of America (pages 65-71). It was during this section that I noticed I became angry at what Lasn had written. How could he allege that America had allowed itself to be taken over by corporations. But as I read more and more I found out that I was no longer angry at Lasn, but instead at America for letting corporations do that. While I had heard about the 1886 U.S. Supreme Court case, Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad, from my US Government and Politics class, I had never understood what the ruling what actually meant until today. Quoting what Lasn had said, "They could defend and exploit their rights and freedoms more vigorously than any individual and therefore were more free". This quote really disturbed me because I realized it was completely true. After the ruling, corporations could basically do whatever they pleased because they were protected by the Bill of Rights and could do or say whatever they chose to do.

I regarded the video clips from Second Skin as amusing but for some reason I felt empathy for the people. I could relate somewhat with the gamers, as I have played World of Warcraft and other MMORPGs before. However, the part that I can't relate with is when they become so caught up in the virtual world that they lose sight of the real world. While I used to play games up to ten hours a day before, I could never imagine doing that again. But even when I was at my worst I would still perform my other responsibilities such as going to work or class. I can't see how people can get so caught up in the game that they can't even tear themselves away to eat, sleep or even use the bathroom.

It occurred to me that the connection between the two topics was clearer than I thought. Both discuss the reasons people make the purchases they do or submerse themselves in a virtual realm over a real one; for acceptance. On one hand people may think that by having the right car or the best brand of shoes they'll be accepted. And on another hand people that aren't accepted in the "real" society look to their virtual world where they can be anyone they want to be.

Introduction

Hey all,
This is Rich Sopko, I'm 22 years old and I’m a senior Management Information Systems (MIS) major here at SU. I’m involved with the co-ed professional business fraternity, Alpha Kappa Psi (rush starts Monday the 24th), and I’m president of the MIS organization. I like to play pickup games of basketball, volleyball, racquetball, soccer, etc… I also like to play Xbox 360, mainly Halo Reach and CoD: BO. I’m interning at Capital Blue Cross in Harrisburg as a software engineer, but I have a job set up for after graducation with Deloitte Consulting. I’m in this class because I needed to finish off my category B general education requirements. I decided on this class when I heard about not having to write book reports and just blogging responses. I recently renewed my interest in reading a few weeks before the semester started, and the first book I read was “The Girl With the Dragoon Tattoo” by Stieg Larsson and it was excellent. I’m currently reading “The Girl Who Played With Fire” and can’t put it down. I listen to any type of music, and I mean any from oldies to country to rap. I don’t watch a lot of TV since I’m always busy with classes, clubs or work; but I do watch a lot of movies through Netflix or stream TV shows on my computer. I have to admit to watching Jersey Shore and I also watch Spartacus and Law and Order: SVU. My past experiences with literature include personal readings and assigned readings from classes. In my opinion literature can be anything that tells a story or provokes the brain into thinking about a subject.