Article of the Week 20

The Lottery,

by Shirley Jackson

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The story begins with the setting being described as a pleasant summer day. Making what is to come all the more shocking and out of place, unnatural. You become aware that something is off, when it mentions how the men’s jokes were quiet and they smiled rather than laugh. The box I suppose has some sort of symbol in itself. The fact that nobody wishes to make a new one, they still cling to tradition, yet that box is rotting away. Then, I wonder why Jackson spends so much time describing how they changed from wood chips to paper for the names, and why it matters where the box has been stored. I suppose that is a device he uses to stretch out the anticipation, for we still don't know what the lottery is at this point. As was mentioned in the beginning, the "ceremony" only takes 2 hours, so he takes his time describing those 2 hours in detail. He describes how so many aspects of the ritual have been forgotten; even the purpose seems to have been forgotten. As the story continues, Mrs. Hutchinson arrives, and in very good humor. Everyone is very cheerful, which makes you think that the occasion will in fact be perfectly normal. It makes you all the more surprised in the end. It’s interesting how they emphasize the role of men. Perhaps it’s supposed to further lone itself to tradition? This thing about tradition comes up again when they mention another village considering giving up the lottery. Then the scene suddenly changes from good humor to “It isn’t fair” when Mrs. Hutchinson is the one chosen to be the victim. All I can understand from the story is how people cling to tradition. No matter how ridiculous it seems, they blindly follow it for the sacred reason that its tradition. It is what has always been done. They have always continued in this stubborn fashion without questioning.

Article of the Week 19

Theo Jansen creates new creatures

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In this video Theo Jansen shows off his crazy sculptures constructed of plastic tubes and lemonade bottles. They are "creatures" that are designed to move...and even to survive on their own. His awkwardness and the strangeness of his creation give the video a humorous tone. This draws in his audiences' interest, although that wouldn't take much effort given the topic. He also uses some demonstrative videos that include a narrator that describes the creatures like they would a new species that’s been discovered on the discovery channel. This adds to the humor, and further draws in the audience. To make his creatures move he uses various systems that are designed to run on wind, to be able to tell when to turn back from water (these things are designed to survive on a beach), and to even drive a pike into the ground when storms are coming. I would like to remind you, these things are solely constructed of plastic tubes and lemonade bottles! I would think that the purpose of the video is just to demonstrate something that is mind blowing. He doesn't go very in-depth into how it works, and what he does explain he seems to put into language that the average person would understand, such as when he describes the leg mechanisms. He compares them to bike wheels, which have difficulty going through sand, whereas the design he came up with can maneuver easily across the difficult terrain. Even after he explained the "brain" and the "nose" of his design, I still don't fully understand how it is possible without wires and microchips. What he designed is practically a robot without using any sort of computer. For me that is mind blowing, so I think that Jansen fulfilled his purpose, which was to amaze his audience, or at least give them something to think about.

Unit 3-Reflection

What is the individual’s duty to his government? What is the government’s duty to the individual? In an essay that synthesizes and uses for support at least THREE of the readings from this unit, discuss the obligations of individuals within a society. Remember to attribute both direct and indirect citations. Refer to the sources by authors’ last names or by titles. Avoid mere paraphrase or summary.

Man’s rights were not determined by the hand of god, they were determined by man. It is man’s obligation to society to maintain those rights. It is man’s obligation to their government to remind society of those rights. Just as it is the governments duty to provide those rights that were previously determined by society. In his address, John F. Kennedy concludes with “here on earth God’s work must truly be our own” That sums up both the individuals and the governments obligations to society. It is up to both to provide their freedoms. All of our readings from unit 3 reflected on how freedom is not handed to us on a silver plate. It is our duty to fuel freedom; it is our duty to make it happen. It will not happen on its own.

            “Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offence I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country and of an act of disloyalty toward the majesty of heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings.” (Patrick Henry) Henry described how it was an act of treason simply for him to stay silent. Remaining silent is parallel to taking no action, letting what will, happen. It is as if you are under the impression that god will take care of everything. As JFK established earlier, it is the people on earth, not god, who make a difference. All of the speeches were calls for action. They were wake up calls to society. It is the individual’s duty to adhere to these wakeup calls. For without involvement of the people, what will become of the government?

Abraham Lincoln describes how he intends to create “a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.” What is a government but a collection of individuals who have been given the job to listen to the needs of the people and to protect those needs? In Americas case that need was freedom. A government will not try to provide those needs, such as freedoms, if the people do not make them aware of those needs. A government that is for the people requires the people to be for the government. It is a bargain of sorts. The people will give the government what it needs and the government will provide the people with what they need. The individual needs to provide a voice, they need to be involved. It’s up to the government to hear that voice. It doesn’t work if there is no voice to hear for, or if there is no ear to listen with.

JFK says to his fellow Americans “ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” It is the individual’s duty to give back to their country, not only take. For by only taking, there will soon be nothing left. The speeches in Unit 3 were all brought on by some sort of controversy or need that had arisen. With that need, they called upon the individuals. It is the Individuals duty to provide the fuel for their government. The government is not the driver; it’s just the means of transportation. The people are the engine, the thing that feeds the government. Without either, they won’t get anywhere. When they fulfill each other’s obligations though, all sorts of new paths open up

Article of the Week 16

Independent Reading Entry One

An Everlasting Meal: Cooking with Economy and Grace 

By: Tamar Adler

Tamar Adler has worked with various magazines, such as editing for Harpers Magazine. On and off she has worked in several restaurants, as a personal chef, and even helped open Farm 255, where she worked as head chef until moving to California. In 2009 she left the cooking business to write the Everlasting Meal, now she is a cooking teacher at the Edible Schoolyard NYC. The Everlasting Meal is intended to express how delicious meals can be found from simple origins. To begin, she goes over How to Boil Water. This process does not end at pouring water in a pot and placing it on a stove. The numbers of choices to be made are endless: adding oil or salt, using hot water or cold to begin, placing ingredients in before it boils or after. None of these choices are right or wrong; it just goes to show the millions of possibilities that lie in a simple pot of boiling water. The Audience Tamar directs this novel towards is the common person, and showing them how they are capable of easily having an affordable and delicious meal. The way Tamar approached writing this book was a narrative rather than listing ingredients. Her method is delivering and inspiring a way of thinking about how to approach cooking, rather than teaching how to cook a specific meal. She makes various appeals to common sense, and humor to gain the audience’s trust. Her diction is simply beautiful; she turns boiling water into poetry. The tone she creates flows in such a way that it seems like “thinking out loud” as Jack Hitt from the New York Times puts it. She weaves together topics in a way that makes it seem endless. There doesn’t seem to be pause to her thoughts. With her beautiful writing she entices readers to hear her voice. With that in mind, she was highly successful in twisting together what would have otherwise been a very dull instructional book into an inspirational epic about “the joy of cooking”.