Blog 14

Consult at least two of the following three resources:

A People's History of the United States
Your Honors History book (or an honors book from someone in your group)
This online survey of US History

And answer the following, incorporating a quote or direct reference in each answer:

1. What major people, places, concepts, events or things would have influenced the lives of the people in your story? How or why?

The Vietnam draft would have definitely altered people's lives and their views on war/politics and the world around them. I don't think their would have been as much protesting in the .S. during the 60's and early 70's if the choice to go to war was voluntary, (as it is now) rather than a draft. "Do you really think that your American soldiers are fighting for democracy? They didn't choose, they were chosen." A quote from the The Quiet American, represents this view of voluntary versus draft.  

2. How might the people in your story have acted differently if they had more information about their setting? What information would have changed their personal history?

My father (the main character of my story) said that if he looked beyond himself and his beliefs more, he would have foreseen the outcome of the 1972 election at least from a more understanding perspective than he did. 

Using different sources that you found...

4. Post at least two pieces of media (or multimedia) that the people in your story would have seen, heard, or otherwise been aware of. How would they have interpetted the material?

These are two editorial cartoons from the 1972 election against the Nixon campaign. 

Families

 http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F70B1FF6395C1A7493C7AB1783D85F458785F9
 2. Milwaukee: not only were races usually separated by neighborhood, but political beliefs as well. Brady street was an area that was a clear anti-war area. My dad hung around there during the weekends. Fast food was extremely popular during this time in Milwaukee.

What stands out to you about the historical or cultural context of your family story?
I think the fact that political parties hung out in different parts of the city was a really cool thing. These days you won't find that kind of congregation.
What stands out to you about the setting of the story?
The coastal states and cities now-a-days are noticed for their political activism, but the mid-west during the 60's and 70's was a highly politically active place. Fact: it is and was always legal in Wisconsin to be able to drink alcohol at any age with your parents present. 
What about the historical or cultural setting seems most relevant to your story?
The political activism aspect

Artist statement

Noah Breslauer

Artist statement 1^st draft

(I will have a longer, revised draft up tonight)

“They don’t want communism…” I chose this quote because it relates so much to American ideas leading to war. I stole this quote from The Quiet American, a novel set during the Vietnam War and told the story of forcing democracy on others (along with other ideas).

I wanted to portray this concept of the U.S. forcing democracy and peace by putting the word democracy in the form of a gun. I thought that this would be the simplest way to describe this idea.

Blog 12

Ampersand: Internships is coming!

As you write your article, what is your engine?

What is the cliff? risk or opportunity?
How will he gain his motivation?

What are the key questions that you are answering for your readers?

What is an internship experience like?
Are all risks worth taking?

What are the key questions that you are answering for yourself as you write?

How can I understand more about myself while reflecting about experiences?
What is my motivation and does it matter?

If this were a more "standardized" writing assignment, what would the prompt be?

Write a three page essay concerning your overall growth through the internship experience. 

Noah Breslauer

Post your ideas for your first Literary Graffiti quote. Include the following, at a minimum:

"They don't want communism"

"They want enough rice", I said."They don't want to be shot at. They want one day to be much the same as another. They don't want our white skins around telling them what they want."

 

Source: Graham Greene's, The Quiet American

The context is as much the American views of democracy as anything else. It is set in Vietnam and the two characters talking are are in a watch-post of the government in the middle of the rainforest. During this time the main character, a journalist from England named Alden, and his "friend" from the U.S., Pyle, who is set on creating a democracy throughout Indo-China.

My favorite artistic style is stippling and I think I could do a good job with this quote using stippling. I will stipple the word "democracy" in the silhouette of a gun. I could possibly do this part on photo-shop and stipple the quote. I was also thinking of creating a boxing arena (stippled) Uncle Sam VS. the face of communism (Whoever was heading the communist movement at the time) and the prize money would be the actual citizens of Vietnam.

Blog 10

1. http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/03/01/should-college-be-for-everyone/the-working-class-gets-little-support-for-training

"But for now, white- and blue-collar workers and their families must pull together to provide equal opportunities for alltheir children to live the American dream." My first reaction was that there isnt an equal starting point for all children. The American dream is becoming harder and harder to reach because of the cost of a higher education. Also this article made an interesting point that we are getting enough money, we just arent spending it correctly.

2. http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/16/why-go-to-college-readers-weigh-in/?scp=2&sq=high%20school%20dropout&st=cse Steve Jobs and Bill Gates also dropped out of college at a young age but the probability of success is very narrow. Although a select few might not be meant for college, it is the gateway for opportunity for most of the population. My point is not that you couldn't learn more possibly outside of college, rather that a college degree sets you up for more opportunities.

3.Will this system ever change and how could it? is college meant for all of us? 

Blog 9

A great forum post would require an in depth understanding of the book to pose an in depth question or thought. Great questions always require knowledge when referring  to a book. 

A great conversation post would require a couple key elements. One would be answering the prompt correctly. Some people drift on about their own topic that they want to talk about when they should be answering the question. Also evidence. What good is an opinion without evidence? 

My responses have not been the longest ones on the forum page,but I did put thought into each one and tried to pose a different opinion than others. Also I tried to pose questions so others could become involved as well. I hope my forum question (or post) has been helpful to others to further understand the book. I put, "Who does a man like Gatsby trust?", a question that I have not heard yet so I thought it might be of some use to others wanting to talk more about Gatsby's character in relation to other characters.