Jean Kilbourne

This is just a thought I had about the essay that just never really came up during the class discussion. I was thinking that yes, advertising has become an especially obtrusive way of using women and turning the perception of women any way the advertiser wants to. However, I found it interesting that throughout the 1900’s women have strived to get equal opportunities, and to be seen in the public and to not be shut down by society. The sexual revolution in the 60’s, women wanted to show off their bodies and not be ashamed. Well…the times now are just an exploited version of what women wanted in the first place. I just think it’s funny that in ways this is what women wanted, we wanted to show off. Advertisers are just showing real life in a blow out of proportion way. Women continually use their sexuality to entice men, or manipulate; however when that is put up on a billboard all heck breaks loose. I’m not saying that I don’t get offended or think that exploitation of women in advertising is right, and I do believe that in some adds there are connotations of sex, abuse, violence, and what not, but I do think the people viewing the media especially women have kind of asked for it. We got ourselves here. There is no blame but look back in history and see how it dictates how we live now.

If possible I might want to explore this phenomenon further in a paper if the topic comes up or is able to be used. I would like to research how women have progressed in advertising and society in general.

English Class/Teachers

I have been in a fair amount of English classes, which the number is now up to 6 ½ since seventh grade until now, my second semester of freshman year in college. Over these six or so years, not much has changed. At the beginning of the class the teacher tells you, just speak your mind, no answer is wrong in a discussion. So time and time again, when the class is discussing a book, article, piece of art, what have you, I always say something and soon come to find my throat is being jumped down by seven of my peers and sometimes me teacher. So apparently you can’t speak your mind, and you especially cannot voice an opinion or just raise questions that may be deemed wrong. Generally, I can sneak around and say enough to get a “class participation” grade, but not to so much to be attacked. However, when people say something that I disagree with, or something I feel so inclined to argue about or ask about it suddenly becomes so wrong. Even if I am only asking a question which doesn’t reflect my opinion people assume that it is and say if the topic were racism then I must be a racist or Nazi or whatever. The only thing I guess you really can say in class discussions is what the teacher wants to hear. Forgive me for trying to ask something new and speaking my mind. I shall not do it again.

Just Walk on By

This piece was really interesting in that when it first began I thought the male writer was going to rape or violently harm the woman her referred to as “my first victim”. As I kept reading I realized that Staples was merely talking about being looked at as a stereotype. I have recently been thinking about similar situations. Staples talked about how when people especially women meet men in streets alone at night the hairs on the back of their neck rise and stand straight up. No matter what part of town they are in. I am wondering how to act myself. Should I always be kind to people I meet on the street even if they look suspicious and like they are thinking bad thoughts. Should I say hi? I don’t want to seem like I am racist or rude, but I also do not want to get raped. The thing I like about Staples piece is that he seems to understand that women may not be racist but are just worried because of the stereotype that certain black males represent. He understands that it isn’t him they are scared of necessarily, it’s the idea of what he potentially represents depending on is clothing or whatever. I ask again, what are women supposed to do. Follow our intuition to get ourselves out of situations and perhaps offend a black person? And they person doesn’t even have to be black. If I run across a beefy white male at night on a fairly deserted street, I’m going to get nervous. It is just one of those situations that will never stop because you can’t tell a person to avoid wearing clothes he likes or don’t take walks at certain times or whatever else. But if he doesn’t want to be looked at as a potential rapist then maybe he should. But I do not want to tell a person what to do. It’s their choice. I just don’t know what to do and I like how Staples talks about this issue a little bit.

Essay #1 Workshop

I really liked having the time to get with other students and hear their feedback about my essay. I have always had trouble sharing my writing with people other than my mom or people that I am really comfortable with. It was tough to share some of my more personal experiences with people where all I know about them is their name. Though I think it is good for me to open up with more people and let more people read the things I write. I am simply very self-conscience and it’s hard to hear if someone didn’t like what I wrote especially when I write poetry. However, this past class when people commented on my piece they seemed to like it. It definitely helps boost my depleted ego and self-esteem. I also had fun reading what other people had written about in their essays. I mean it is always fun to give a little criticism …haha just kidding. But it is good experience to be able to read other people’s work and make comments on it.

Nora Ephron’s writing is incredible. It’s kind of just a jumble of paragraphs about past memories and just random stuff. I like it. And as someone who is not incredibly bustful I can relate to her story. I have always been jealous of certain types of shirts, or dresses, and other clothing items that my sisters or friends, or just random women on the street can wear. I don’t think the piece was supposed to be particularly amusing but I found it very comical just thinking about her breast size being more of a difficult life experience then getting your period. I think I liked it so much because I did go through so many of the same experiences, minus the whole 1950’s thing. I am a tomboy who at times have wanted to be girly and be able to wear whatever I want and have been angry at the women who complain to me about having medium sized breasts saying how terrible it is. It’s hard when men will actually say that they wish that you had bigger breasts. Granted I have never thought about my situation as deeply as Ephron, however I feel like if I were to write something about my breasts it would turn out quite similar to this piece. I loved it, I don’t know why. I thought it was great for a woman to just come out and write about her body so bluntly. After reading this I want to research her and find some more things she has written, which is not something I say often after reading an assigned piece of reading.

The Body Collage

I am finding it really hard to get started on my essay. I am excited about writing it because it seems like a good topic and interesting to write about. Despite this I still am finding it very tricky to get started. I also have brainstormed a little bit and I’m also having difficulty on how to shift from vignette to vignette. I know that it doesn’t necessarily need to flow, but I feel like there should be at least a little connectedness and not just a big rumble of words all piled into sentences and paragraphs. I like the readings we’ve done because they have helped to give me ideas on how describe things, or how to transfer my ideas. I also am wondering if the essay needs to be really coherent or if it can go along with no real rhyme or reason. I’m also worried about if I can really come up with enough things to talk about. I guess I’ll just go for it and see what the peer editing does for my final draft. Last semester I didn't really need to write essays or think critically about things like this due to the classes I had which I think is part of the reason why I'm having so much trouble because I haven't written a real essay since my spring semester of my senior year of high school. I'll work on it and hopefully it'll be alright.

Free Union By Andre Breton

I really liked the way Breton wrote when comparing his wife to different things. For some of the lines he seemed as if he was trying to be romantic and sappy. For instance in the line, “Whose mouth is a bright cockade with the fragrance of a star of the first magnitude”. Whereas in other parts the writing was vulgar and not a typical way to talk about your wife, when he writes, “Whose waist is the waist of an otter caught in the teeth of a tiger”. Just the fact that he wanted to write a piece about his wife to me is wonderful. To have words put to paper describing your every inch of skin, your every flaw, and every mark of beauty. In ways it’s more romantic than a candle lit dinner with wine and flowers. If your man takes the time to critically consider your body, write it down coherently, and have it actually say something decent, I’d say you’d got yourself a pretty good catch. The writing was engaging and I wanted to keep reading. It wasn’t just another homework assignment, I really enjoyed the poem. It made me think of every woman and that it could describe every woman. Perhaps Breton wasn’t even talking about any particular person like his wife. Perhaps he was talking about all of us, all of us “whose rump is sandstone and flax…with the sex of an iris”.