4/23

As our technology advanced we switched from the metaphor of our brains as printing presses to our minds as computers. Before we had computers printing presses were the closest things to our minds complexities. Printing presses take information and print it onto paper. Our minds take information and print it into our memory. The bad thing about this metaphor is that it doesn’t account for our brains ability to save information. A printing press prints information but it can’t save data like a computer can. Computers are better metaphors because they can save new information and they never loose any information. The computer doesn’t fully explain how a brain works because a computer doesn’t have emotions. A computer does what it is told to do while the mind operates on its own. When the printing press came out it helped us better explain the mind and some of its basic operations, it gave us a good metaphor to use but it still did not do the mind justice. When the computer came out it replaced the printing press and it offered a more complex machine to compare the mind to. The computer is definitely the closest thing to our minds but it still cannot compare to the mind’s complexity.

4/21

In Women and Depression she used the metaphor of the brain as a washing machine. She said that the water in the washing machine is like serotonin in the brain. In Feeling Good he compared blue moods as scratchy music. When your feeling down you just have to retune the dials. In The Aetiology of Hysteria Sigmund Freud described how the mind works by exploration. He talked specifically about hysteria and trying to find its causes. Trying to find out how the mind works is like going on an exploration, it takes tools and a lot of hard work. Cecelia Tichi talked about humans as machines. She said that young men get an education to diminish force so that they can become a greater force in the economy.

I don’t think these metaphors have consequences for actions. I think that these metaphors are just explaining how the mind works. The metaphors are just explaining mental operations like depression.

4/19

I think there are different degrees to which you can blame strange actions on spirituality or lack there of. Many times strong spirituality can cause people to do weird things that a disease cannot explain. But also a disease can cause strange behavior, I think it’s easy to tell if a person has a disease and they cannot control their actions compared to a person who chooses to do strange things. I’m not sure about Eve because we haven’t seen the movie yet but I think that you should treat both her and Margaret the same because it sounds like both suffer from a disease. I think that in Margaret’s case she wasn’t treated correctly, the people just constantly prayed and they thought that would solve everything but it realistically cannot. I can’t answer the last part because we haven’t seen The Three Faces of Eve yet.

4/9

I think that anger and dynamite go well together because when you’re angry you get very excited and full of energy. When you’re really angry it sometimes feels like your head is actually going to explode. In Blake’s poem he used the metaphor of anger as a tree. As his anger built up the tree grew more and more. Blake’s metaphor highlights the aspects of built up anger and what happens when you don’t release your anger. Built up anger can take over a person and influence everything they do. In the poem Blake said he was angry with a friend and then he confronted his friend and it was over. He then said that he was angry with a foe but he kept the anger inside and it built up so much that he eventually killed his foe (I’m not sure about this interpretation). The message is that it’s important to get things out in the open and never keep your feelings locked up inside. If the poem was in ordinary language it would have said that he patched things up with his friend after they had an argument but he had a problem with an enemy but he never talked it out with that person. His anger toward the enemy built up and consumed him and he eventually killed his enemy.

4/4

I would define technology as anything new that helps you get things done easier. I’m not sure that writing falls into the technology category now but I think at one point it definitely did. When writing was first developed it was a technology because it was a new way of communication just like the telephone. New gadgets aren’t the only form of technology; technology includes concepts and other non-tangible things. New technologies are always influencing us, it’s impossible to go through a day without using some form of technology.

4/2-cinderella

In Anne Sexton’s poem, Cinderella she used very interesting language when describing some of the events. At one point she talked about a milk truck as being like an ambulance for the wealthy people. This was interesting because she is saying that the wealthy depend on luxuries like the milk truck when there are others who can’t afford milk. At the end of the poem Cinderella marries the prince and they live happily ever after. I think the ending is desirable because the two end up together and they live happily without anything coming between them. I think this is what most people hope for, getting married and living happily ever after. “Living happily ever after” seems to be a little unrealistic. At the end of the poem it said that Cinderella lived happily ever after without arguing ever. It’s impossible to never argue about anything.

In the poem Cinderella’s sisters cut of pieces of their feet to fit the slipper. I think that this definitely happens in our society. People are always trying to alter themselves to fit different molds. People often act differently to seem better and people also try and look differently physically. Our society has a strong perception of beauty and people are always trying to become better looking.

According to Sut Jhally advertisers convince people to buy things by showing things that will make them happy. This can be done several different ways by showing a happy family, a loving relationship or even just a relaxed atmosphere. Jhally also talks about the commodity-image system. The commodity-image system is Jhally’s theory that one cannot buy happiness. Advertisements cause us to develop an image of happiness which is then connected to their product. We as consumers then buy the product because of the image the ad gave us.

4/2

My advertisement is a picture of four guys drinking Canadian Mist whisky. In the ad the guys are sitting around a table drinking whisky and laughing together. The slogan of the ad is, “Nothing real heavy. Not even the conversation.” The message this ad is trying to portray is that if you want to relax and have a good time you should drink their whisky. While I was looking for advertisements I noticed that every alcohol ad had people in mid laughter. Alcohol ads always convey the message that drinking and having a good time go hand and hand. I definitely think that these ads have an effect on people. When people view these ads they see how happy the people are in the ad and they think that drinking will make them happy. I think it’s a little unreasonable how alcohol ads make it seem like you have to drink to have a good time.

3/7

In Frankenstein Mary Shelley’s monster feels very inadequate to the human race. I think he realizes that he is different not only by human interaction but also through the reading he did. In the readings he learned about humans and different values and morals and he realized that he was very different than the descriptions he read. The monster’s sense of loneliness was what led to his violent behavior. He felt that he would never fit in so he got very frustrated and he took his anger out on others.

I don’t think viewing movies makes people feel excluded. People are able to differentiate between reality and fiction. Movies offer us entertainment and they make us feel different but not excluded. A good movie will make you think a lot but eventually you get back to reality.

Pipp first finds his identity when he is met by the old man. Pipp was very frightened and he was unsure what to do and this is when he found his identity. This situation is sort of like the monsters. In both instances the characters were very frightened and also confused. The monster wasn’t really sure what to think of himself and he became very frustrated. Pipp’s situation wasn’t as direct as the monster’s but it was the same general situation of finding an identity. The monster’s lack of identity was symbolized by his hideous appearance as well.

2/21

The narratives are different from the real life experience because the actual experience wasn’t really as dramatic as the letter made it seem. In the real life experience other kids were talking and reacting to their own tests as well so it wasn’t as if everyone was staring at me. A published account would be different from a letter because published things are usually much more formal. Letters are just a way to communicate and people don’t really spend much time revising a letter. I don’t really think the “you” really differs in this case. In both letters the you in talking to the intended reader.