Rap Music Messages

For the sake of decency I have linked to the clean version of the song. If you wish to find an un-edited version, it isn't hard to find.

Ok, lets talk about rap music. Rap and its overuse of the "N-word" as we discussed in class is obviously not a good thing, it's a misuse of such a terrible word. That isn't what I want to talk about though; what I want to talk about, is how rap as a genre is typically associated with "gangsta" and "ghetto" themes. This association given to rap walks hand in hand with a negative connotation. Yes, rap does have roots in tough urban streets, yes rap often uses many expletives, yes rap does typically objectify women, yes rap is often vulgar and violent. Despite all these negative things, rap can still teach us a lesson. It is inspired by the struggle, the work and the rough times faced by rappers. Rap is inspired by passion and yeah, sometimes that passion causes rappers to swear, or say vulgar things, but that doesn't mean we should count out rap as a genre. Lets examine the song "Runaway" by Kanye West. Runaway was released shortly after the Taylor Swift incident at the VMAs. While Kanye uses vulgar language in the chorus such as "a***ole" and "scumbag" and "do*****ag" he still wrote this song as an apology to Taylor. He uses such harsh language to highlight how he feels about his actions. "I I I I did it, alright alright I admit it, now pick your next move you can leave or live with it." Kanye, does his best to apologize in this line (he is highly egoistic and can't just say sorry but that's a different story)  and he succeeds in not only merging a meaningful message of sorrow but also creating a chart topping song. Kanye is a prime example of how rappers can mix foul language and insightful messages, showing that there is more to the genre than the words themselves. Much like an analysis of an essay, it is necessary to ask why the author uses certain rhetorical devices just like it is necessary to ask why a rapper uses certain curses and lines. Looking past the base level will reveal a deeper meaning that is trying to be conveyed. So give rap a second chance and look past the foul language, and find what the artist is really trying to tell you.

A Sorry Attempt at a Synthesis Essay

"Synthesize: v. to combine a number of things into a coherent whole." -Oxford Dictionary

This week we were encouraged to take a shot at writing a synthesis essay for our blog post. Before beginning such daunting task (how can I write something we haven't even talked about?!? Surely I will die trying) I thought I would ponder the ideas of synthesizing. To bring together and find an underlying meaning throughout multiple works is essentially a compare/contrast minus the contrast right? I simply am trying to make this as basic as I can so that I can understand what exactly I'm supposed to do, because I'm in need of guidance. Anyway here's my shot at an brief body paragraph for a synthesis essay we worked on earlier this week. (Also my picture is of my council from stugo camp this summer because I've never "come together" with a group of people like those and we became one close unit and I still talk to all of them.  It's kind of like a Synthesis since it was us coming together as a group, I had no clue of what to do for a picture so I did that.)

     Through the oppression of those seen as "different" a group can dehumanize themselves and create a "mob mentality" that essentially protects them from feeling guilty. This oppression is nothing new in our society, quite the contrary actually, even in the 1800's people like Edwards said that God would, "tread on" and "cast out sinners" (Source D). This ostracizing of those who are different leads to the group losing their single identity and being seen as the "Ideal" people. Just as Indians are cast out of white society, Alexie was cast out of Indian society because skin color, "doesn't make two men brothers" (Source E). This example of how the group that is being oppressed chooses to oppress one of their own shows how deep rooted the dehumanization can be. Alexie has nobody to relate to; not whites and certainly not Indians. The dehumanization of oppressed and oppressor is deep seeded in human nature and not likely to go anywhere anytime soon.

Scarlet Letter to Writer's Block to Dreams

This week was a relatively slow week in class due to the heavy load of Scarlet Letter analysis we did. This light week is leading me to have trouble thinking of what to write about. Yes, I have it, writer's block; the bane of every author's existence. As I sit and type this I wonder if any famous writers encounter writer's block in this same manner. A quick search of the interwebs (yes I say interwebs) revealed that many did. Ray Bradbury said of facing writer's block, "You can cure it this evening by stopping what you're writing and doing something you enjoy." (flavorwire.com) Bradbury goes on to say that his love of writing lets him avoid block because he writes about things he has passion for, thus he enjoys what he does. Isn't that all you can ask for in life? To do what makes you happy? My brother was home this weekend, and I had a deep conversation with him about following your dreams, one thing he told me was, "Forget money, forget success, if you peruse your dream you will achieve happiness." So I guess the real reason for writing this today is for me to tell you to follow your dreams. Just like Will Smith says in the clip, don't let anyone take your dream from you. It doesn't matter how big, how small, how strange, how insignificant others might say your dream is, it is yours. They can never take that from you. So let this be your inspiration to go change the world, invent something new, lead a revolution, or maybe become a teacher, or a lawyer or whatever it is. Just go do it. If you follow that dream, you will find happiness. (Also if you've never seen "The Pursuit of Happyness" you need to, its inspiring.)
Link to article on writer's block

Feminism or Chivalry?

Before starting I would just like to clarify that I am not anti-feminist. I agree that women deserve equal pay, equal rights and equal opportunity. The problem I have is with the way most go about fighting for feminism. They so often make use of harsh double standards and contradictions that I can’t not be bothered by the ignorance of what they say.  One of the most common problems I see is that women say, “Chivalry is dead,” see this one gets me angry. If I hold open the door for a girl, she tells me that we are equal and she don’t need the door to be held open; and if I don’t hold the door for her, she complains that I am not courteous enough towards women (yes this has happened to me.) I am not saying that all feminists act in this manner but there certainly are a decent handful that do, Tannen seems to me to be one of these “on the fence” feminists. Based on her essay it seems as if she wants the best of both sides and is just going to switch back and forth for whatever is best for her. This is present when she says, "have her cake and eat it too" (Tannen 391) she tries to make this cliché work for her but it just solidifies her wavering views of feminism. Tannen also never speaks about how in languages like Spanish there is el and la to represent gender, but she does talk about how a "doctorette" (Tannen) is less powerful than a doctor. I suppose that all people have this self-oriented drive, much like Chillingworth has demonstrated in the Scarlet Letter, he is only out to satisfy his own need for revenge and he cares for nothing else. Not really sure how I just related feminism to Chillingworth but yeah, that happened.