A U.S. icon that is known by many is the Statue of LIberty. This icon become iconic in the United States because it is a symbol of our freedom. People from all over the world go to New York to see this major attraction. It is known outside the United States because it was a gift to the United States from the people of France and ststes the American National day of Independence which is July 4th.
The cultural response to this usage was positive. The Statue of LIberty is well known and people love it. I really can’t think of any other icon that could be used in place of this U.S. icon. It stands for what we are and states our date of independence.
When seeing this assignment I thought it was going to be really boring and that I would not be interested at all. I ended up being very surprised that I was wrong about this. While I did not think that the 3D tour made me want to change my activity, it did give me knowledge that I did not know about that organ in body that is working for me every day, my brain.
Viewing the brain anatomy did not really persuade me to change any behaviors to improve brain function. I feel this way because even though the 3D tour of the brain did give me a lot of information about each part of the brain and what it does, it did not persuade me to do anything else that would improve the health or well-being of these parts of my brain.
Viewing the brain anatomy definitely helped me understand the function of the brain more than I did before. I had no idea what certain parts of the brain were even called, never mind what they did. Now I can definitely say I know what parts of my brain are where, even just from viewing the model for this brief assignment.
I do think that this is an example of the truth being made visible. I think this because I myself am a pretty visual person. If I am being lectured or talked at about a certain topic (especially if it is science related) then I tend to tune out and really have no idea what is going on. If I am shown or given the ability to be hands on with a topic, I find it much easier to grasp the concept of it. This 3D exploration definitely made “the truth visible” for me.
1. The ad does have a checklist of symptoms that interpolates the viewer. The symptoms shown are muscle aches, pain, and stiffness.
2. The condition the drug in the ad is intended to treat is fibromyalgia which is a leading cause of depression.
3. The side effects are not listed in the ad but the ad does say “Learn More.” Upon researching the side effects I found that Cymbalta can cause nausea, dry mouth, sleepiness, fatigue, constipation, dizziness, decreased appetite, or increased sweating. This list is definitely longer than the list of symptoms.
4. The ad promises the consumer that if they take Cymbalta, they will have less muscle aches, pain, and stiffness and that Cymbalta will make them feel better overall. The images and copy help to promote this promise because it shows a man who looks like he is in pain and that a dosage of Cymbalta will solve all his problems.
Overall I do not really like this ad or think it is a good ad for a consumer who is experiencing depression. The side effects are not even listed on the ad which is a little bit confusing to me. If I were the creator of this ad I probably would have used a different picture in the ad, such as a person being happy and energetic.
Pastiche Exercise 1
I had never heard of the word pastiche until this assignment. I had always thought it was always just called a parody. When watching Shrek in class, I realized that there are so many pastiche’s in that movie as well as many other movies. The first movies (or series of movies) that came to mind was the Scary Movie series. I personally enjoy watching them and seeing what they choose to return from the past and make a mockery of. These series are parodies, but a lot that is included is pastiche. I know that when I watch films or television I will be able to tell when there is a pastiche present.
The example of pastiche that I found in a film is in Scary Movie 3.
- This pastiche is a working of the past because it takes a few different older movies and bases the plot of the film around them. The older movies that are used in Scary Movie 3 are The Ring, Signs, The Matrix, The Matrix Reloaded, and 8 Mile. The movie takes certain scenes or plots from the movies listed and brings them back into one full movie that is actually very comical.
- This is most definitely a pastiche with a parody as well. This is because the whole movie makes fun of the movies mentioned above and exaggerates parts to make it comical.
- This work is a questioning of the status of the original because it takes what was supposed to me serious, scary, or suspenseful in the movies and instead makes a mockery of them by almost making what they say sarcastic throughout the film.
- Scary Movie 3 citation:
Scary movie 3. (2003, October 24). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0306047/
Pastiche Exercise 2
1. This pastiche is a reworking of the past because the individual graphs mimic graph we learned in school (pie charts, bar graphs, Line graphs, etc.) and make the graphs about everyday things that we as humans do. The site is a pastiche of a site that would give valuable and factual numbers about population, men to women ratios, etc.
2.This is most definitely a pastiche with parody because it makes fun of what we do and how little importance it has. For example, one graph that I thought was funny was the one below. It is funny because it is something that I know I do, and I am sure many other people do it as well, yet it is not something you think about every day.
3. This work is a questioning of the status of the original because it takes a pie chart and instead of giving the viewer data, it is giving the fewer a bit of comedy.
4. Some of the other graphs I chose to examine are below.
I actually enjoyed viewing this site. It was very funny and was a whole new way to look at charts and graphs as opposed to the typical mathematical or educational way.
I chose this ad because it is one of the most popular ads in the world. It is an ad for Apple IPod. This ad has been seen by pretty much everyone. It is seen on television, in magazines, on buses, and many other places ads are present. This is not the only version of this ad. The Apple IPod ads are somewhat different. They are all silhouettes of people (whether they are boys or girls) with white IPod headphones in listening to their music. No one knows what kind of music the people in the ad are listening to, but that is what makes the ad so great. No matter who you are, you are able to enjoy and IPod because you can make it all about you. You can download the music you like, and create the playlists you want to create.
I believe this ad is telling the viewer to go get an IPod. If you go and get an IPod, you can have as much fun as the boy or girl in this ad. The reason I chose to manipulate the ad the way I did is because it turns the message the ad was giving into something totally different. No longer is the ad simply telling the viewer that an IPod will make their lives so much fun and that you can be an individual with this iPod. The new, manipulated ad is telling the viewer that Apple carries more than just the fun IPod, it carries many more “fun” things.
I connected the original ad to the new ad very easily. I still used the basis of the old ad. I changed the slogan of “iPhone” to “iWantitall.” I changed the slogan because the viewer can see the girl with her IPod, but can also see an image of all other Apple Products under her right arm. The “iWantitall” slogan tells the viewer that once you have one, you are going to want the rest.
When I think about the ad that I created, I wonder how successful it may or may not be. Obviously, the old ad has been very successful seeing how Apple is doing very well and you cannot go anywhere without seeing an iPod or and IPhone, or even a Mac. The new ad does show the viewer all that he or she can purchase, but it does not really just focus on why one object is so great. Maybe the reason that the IPod is so successful is because the ad is simple. It shows a teen or young adult having a blast while dancing to their music. The ad I created may give the wrong message. It could imply that Apple wants you to go out and get everything they have because they want to make a profit. Either way, I do think that the reworked ad does provide an oppositional reading for the viewer. I never knew what culture jamming was, but now I do know that the manipulated ad does “expose the methods of domination” in the media.
The form of media I used the most these past forty-eight hours was the television. I watched the TV in the morning to catch the morning news, and at night to watch shows that I like. The total time that I spent watching television was probable about six hours in two days. The form of media that I used least was my email. It always depends on the day, but these past forty-eight hours I rarely had emails to check and didn’t get many throughout this time. My emails send directly to my phone, so whenever I get an email I will usually check it. Some days email will be my most used form of media, but for these couple of days it was not. The average time I would say I spent on the internet was two hours in two days.
When tracking how much time I spent communicating with others, it was a little bit difficult. I don’t have a great phone. My phone is very slow and I really don’t like texting on it. Once I upgrade to an IPhone, I’m sure I’ll be using my phone a lot more. I did however make plenty of phone calls these past couple of days. I also use an application called Voxer. It is basically like a walky talky. I can hold down a button on the application and speak into it, and my friend on the other end can hear my message as long as they have the application as well. All my friends from home have Voxer, and we communicate pretty regularly on it and even have group messages. During the past forty-right hours I used Voxer for about three hours total. I texted for about one hour total and I called for about one hour total. All together I communicated over media for five hours within forty-eight hours.
The time spent using media that was monologic was about nine hours. This is because I watched TV (as previously stated) for a total of five hours, and I listened to Pandora Radio about two hours a day while at the gym. I would say that this is a pretty reasonable amount of time to use monologic media, especially since four of those hours were listening to media while exercising.
What surprised me the most about the time I spent engaged in media is that I don’t think that I spend much time at all. If this was only a few months ago, I would probably have many more hours to document. This semester I have been so busy with classes, three jobs, and a Resident Assistant position that I rarely have time to use the media as much as I would like. I know that this sounds odd especially for someone my age, but it is really hard to find the time at this point in my life. I could be completely wrong, and these hours could seem like a lot. I guess I will only know when I can compare my results to others’ in the class.
I think that I will continue to use media as I do. I feel as though I get caught up on what is going on in the world with the morning news, so that is sufficient enough. It would be nice to have more time for media, but that will come as soon as a graduate I am sure.
Before this class I had no idea what the creative commons practice was. I am still not sure if I fully understand the difference between the creative commons and a regular copy write, but I think the creative commons is a simpler version of copywriting, with more flexibility for new creators out there who want to build off of someone else’s great work.
The creative commons project alters the way we understand ownership and copyright because it allows for almost the same benefit as copyright, without the individual negotiations part of it. If I understand correctly, the creative commons project is beneficial for both parties who don’t want to drag out the process the way copywriting drags it out. This project affects the subject or subjects of a work because it can get the subject noticed quicker and just as efficiently as a regular copy write. Creative commons “allow creators to communicate which rights they reserve, and which rights they waive for the benefit of recipients or other creators.” This means that the creator is able to waive certain writes so that if another artist is inspired by his or her work, they can go with their inspiration.
A Creative Commons license would have altered the works cited in the text Gone with the Wind because it may not have blocked and secured all references so much. If an individual fell in love with Gone with the Wind, they were blocked from expanding and broadening their interest because they couldn’t possibly be allowed to work of the works already used in the novel. With a creative commons license, we could have been fortunate to have a sequel to the book or a novel building off the book.
I would say that the Creative Commons project does afford protection to the right of publicity. When looking at the Bela Lugosi case, you and see that Lugosi ended up being very famous and loved by the public. This hurt him at times because producers and creators did not want such a “famous” actor in their movies because Lugosi was starting to be seen as a one role artist. It was beginning to be hard for him to play different roles since new roles weren’t being offered to him. If the creative common project existed back then, then Lugosi would not be strictly attached to a certain role and many other creators could take what they liked about Lugosi’s work and use that towards a different woke altogether.
I do believe that the creative commons project is a great way for new creators to build off a great piece of work, or even simply to reference a great piece of work. It allows for the great works of the past to be brought back to life and recognized more than they ever were. One would never think that as a new creator you could be so stuck with the rules of copywriting, but without the creative commons, it must have been very difficult.
This week’s assignment reminded me a lot of the film we watched in class the other day. The film about how the human body have been drawn, sculpted, painted, etc. is just like the assignment. I am taking my actual form and manipulating it to what I think that I represent. I really liked this assignment because it was creative and fun. It also allowed me to link what we were doing in class to this blog post really easily.
The photo of me differs from my ration/symbolic representation because the photo of me is myself. I am mirrored in the camera and this is what I actually look like. There is no Photoshop, disfiguration, or change to the image of myself. It was simply taken from real life. The picture of “me” in sign form is very different than my actual picture when you first look at it. The image is not of a person at all, but of shapes that make up what I believe I generally look like.
There were a few areas of intersection between my empirical representation and my symbolic representation. This intersection was in the mouth. In the empirical representation I am smiling in the picture taken. In the symbolic representation I have a sign that says “smile” where my smile would normally be. The other areas of intersection were the general shapes of the signs. I picked signs that were the general shapes of my actual features. My head is somewhat oval, so I chose an oval sign, and my nose is a triangular shape so I chose a triangle sign.
I chose the symbols I did because they have some meaning to me. The sign that represented my head says “welcome” because I am a welcoming person and very easy to get to know and become friends with. The oval eye signs (I have oval eyes in my empirical representation) say “private property no trespassing.” This is because I am guarded when it comes to certain things and like my privacy. The triangle sign I used for a nose is an exclamation point. This is because I think I have a very outgoing and energetic personality. As I stated above, where the mouth would be I have a smile sign, because I like to smile and in my real picture I am smiling. I made my bangs a fashion sign because my bangs in real life have no definite shape, but they are a representation of my love for fashion and the latest trends, which is why I chose the “fashion style” sign. Last but not least, my ears are the life is good sign. I made my ears oval as well because that is the closest shape to my actual ears. I chose “life is good” because I really do believe that life is good, and I cherish every moment of it.
I think that every one of the signs in my photo describes me symbolically. There is nothing really that rational about my symbolic image. Everything is a metaphor for who I am deep down. The only somewhat rational thing about the image is the sign that says “smile” because it is where I am actually smiling in my empirical image.
When learning about the gaze, I thought, “Why is this so important?” I have come to realize that the gaze is used by everyone in everyday life. We see ads almost every day and for the most part just know what the ad is telling us. When you look more closely at ads, you can pick them apart and really see what the advertiser is trying to get across to his or her viewers. With this assignment I could see that we really have to look at the audience’s connection with each image, and each person in that image.
In the magazine advertisement for Koper Design with one human, the subject does not, in fact, seem to be aware that she is the object of the photo and she does not know she is being viewed by the spectator. The characteristics of the photo that support my answer are the fact that the girl in this ad is glancing behind her, not at the viewer, but at something else we cannot be sure about. She seems to be hiding almost, or seem shy. Her gaze does not go up I the air at above the viewer, her gaze does not go down below the viewer, and she does not seem to be looking at the viewer. She seems to be glancing at something behind her a ways. The fact that she seems to be hiding matches almost perfectly with the actual image. The fact that her dress is the same pattern as the background behind her looks like she is trying to blend into her surroundings (almost like a chameleon). The words in the advertisement, “Now you see it” don’t really matter that much because the ad says that for itself.
In the magazine advertisement for Handi Wrap with two people, one subject is looking directly at the viewer and the other is looking to one side at someone or something that is not seen in the ad. The subject in the advertisement that seems to have the power in the advertisement is the woman. The evidence in this ad that supports my claim is that the woman is positioned in front of the man. The woman is also holding the product being advertised, and showing it off and how durable it is. By her being the one that is showing off the product, you can see she is the one that holds the power of the viewer’s gaze. You can tell this advertisement is an older one. This is because of the hairdo of the woman as well as her dress. This ad is a stereotypical “woman making sandwiches for the man.” The woman is showing the viewer how easy and durable Handi Wrap is to use. There is even proof of this by the happiness of the man’s face behind her. I think that all in all, the fact that the woman’s gaze is at the viewer make’s her the more powerful one point blank. It is like she is staring at whoever looks at this ad saying, “This product is great, buy it.”
Comm 265 