TOW #12 The Song of a Man

The Son of a Man is an extremely interesting painting as the subject's face cannot actually be seen. It is actually to be expected, as this painting was created by René Magritte, who is known for his thought provoking paintings. They are known to change the viewer's perception of reality. This painting was made so that its meaning could take relevance in any time period. Magritte’s argument is about his perception of humanity, he believes that humans always hide things from others, but wants to know what others are hiding. He tries to use this painting to convey that to anyone who wants to view his painting in  philosophical manner.

In order to convey this message Magritte utilizes shadows. In order to hide the man’s face, he places an apple in front of it and it displays a shadow. There is also a shadow around the man’s right hand. This shows that the hand is behind the man’s back, away from the viewer's ability to see. This shadow makes the viewer curious about what is in the man’s hand, portraying the argument of the painting. Magritte also uses simplicity in the background and surroundings. Keeping the background simple it draws attention to the subject. Also keeping the apple simple, but with a bright color, draws attention to it, ensuring the audience will notice that the face is not able to be seen. I do not believe exactly that this painting achieved Magritte’s purpose. I did not immediately feel his purpose was shown. I was at first confused and did not understand there was an underlying message. It took me more time than I would have spent if looking at it in a museum.  Even spending much time analyzing did not lead me to an exact idea of what Magritte is trying to convey.

Tow #11 - An Unquiet Mind (IRB)

Bipolar is a common mental disorder that is also commonly misunderstood. Even people who have it can easily believe misconceptions about it. Someone working to help those with the disorder to understand what they’re going through, is Kay Jamison, a popular psychologist and author living with Bipolar disorder. Through her book An Unquiet Mind, a memoir explaining her struggles living with Bipolar, she helps others who suffer to understand they are not alone in what they’re going through.

Throughout the book she uses different devices to help the reader. One of these devices is logical reasoning and facts. Jamison is a psychologist and knows enough about about mental illness to explain it all. She also explains rational events such as how mania can lead people to make impulsive decisions or purchases. After mania, depression normally begins to settle in. The bills or consequences of the mania give a greater reason for this depression. Through explaining this, a person with Bipolar that can relate to this will feel relief that they are not the only one. They will also understand better why they feel the way they do. Another device Jamison uses is personal narrative. In her memoir she shares specific stories such as one where she went to a party when she became a staff member at a university. At the time she had believed to behaved normal but later was told by a friend she had seemed manic, dressed provocative, and been way too talkative. Sharing her perspective of the party and then giving the story from another person’s perspective allows the audience to understand that when a person with Bipolar is manic, they do not realize they are making bad decisions. I believe these devices allow the reader to have a much greater understanding of the mental illness. After reading this book so far I have more knowledge and a deeper curiosity for Bipolar disorder.

Tow #10 I am Very Real

A story that includes aliens, time travel, and war has become very popularly used to teach in schools. The book, SlaughterHouse Five, was written by Kurt Vonnegut, a highly popular author and war veteran. Although his book has been, and continues to be, used as a teaching aid in high schools, the head of a school board in  North Dakota, Charles McCarthy, demanded all copies of his book to be burned in their school furnace. He believed that the books had obscene language and were not to be given to the students. Upon hearing the news, Vonnegut decided to send McCarthy a letter to explain that although his book has obscene language, it is wrong to take this book away from children for it is a true story written by a real person.

I believe Vonnegut was highly successful in this letter because of the rhetorical devices he employs. Right from the start of his letter he uses an extremely offended tone. He explains how he is “ extraordinarily insult[ed]” because of what McCarthy has done. He does not remove the blame from McCarthy, who is the one to have caused all of this, all of the offense Vonnegut now feels. This causes the audience to feel anger towards McCarthy and sympathy towards Vonnegut. Another device Vonnegut used is rhetorical questions. Vonnegut explains that he is not using this event to publicize his books, he wants this letter to remain between them and he asks, “Do you have the courage and ordinary decency to show this letter to the people, or will it, too, be consigned to the fires of your furnace?” He does not actually believe McCarthy would burn this letter, but he pokes fun at how that seems to be how McCarthy solves his problems. This questions forces McCarthy to think about his own actions to come up with an answer to the question. Asking if he has ‘courage and ordinary decency’ paints him as such a horrible person to not automatically possess such necessary qualities. These devices together show how badly Vonnegut thinks of McCarthy and wrong his actions are. Vonnegut proves that his book she be given to children against McCarthy’s horrible judgement.

Tow # 9 Joined by Blood

Everyone has been affected somehow by cancer. Although there are many possible treatments for cancer many people do not survive. One known treatment is a bone marrow transplant, which requires a donor that gives their own bone marrow to a cancer patient who matches them. Michael Vitez, a writer for Yahoo news, wrote an article about the story of Molly and Avi, a patient and a donor. Molly Alanoff is a 23 year old American woman who lost her father to cancer while she was in high school; She donated her bone marrow to Avi Ruderman, a 54 year old Israeli man. Vitez wrote down their story because it was such an incredible one and wanted to inspire his audience and show them that there is still hope in a dark time such as losing a loved one to cancer. One way Vitez did this was using statistics. He explained that only four out of ten people who need bone marrow transplants receive one. He also stated that less than 1 percent of the people who sign up to be done marrow donors are actually asked to donate. Molly being a match for Avi was so statistically small. Vitez shared these small odds to show that there is still hope for people who think there is no chance. Another device Vitez uses is imagery to explain what happened when they first met, “Avi swallowed Molly in a mammoth, grateful hug. He is 6 feet tall, and she is 5 feet. Then, after a few seconds, she stepped back. Still holding hands, they looked at each other. “You saved my life,” he told her.” The descriptive words used appeal to pathos, making the reader feel how Molly felt while being in a big hug and holding the man’s hands.  I believe that this article was extremely effective and made me feel happy around such a sad topic.

IRB Intro Post #2

The book I chose to read for this quarter is "An Unquiet Mind" by Kay Jamison. Kay Jamison is a popular author and psychologist known for living with bipolar disorder. I am very interested in mental disorders and this is an accurate personal account to learn from. This book is a memoir which is a different style from my last book which helps expand the range I can read.

Tow #8- Introvert Power

Although unknown to most, introverts take up at least half of the world’s population. This fact is even unknown to introverts themselves! This has led many of people, close to half the population, feeling wrong with who they are. This is caused by the extrovert ideals being seen as the correct ones to live by. Laurie Helgoe explains this all in her book Introvert Power with the knowledge she has from being an author and a psychologist, specializing in personality and introversion. She uses her book to give real world explains to introverts, things that they probably do and why they are ok. One way Helgoe does this is by making references to pop culture. She starts off every chapter with a quote, typically from a famous figure such as Vincent Van Gogh. In one chapter she starts with a quote that does not sound like the others. She then goes to tell that this quote is from the tv show Star Trek. She then goes into detail about this quote and Star Trek, a show many introverts enjoy. Connecting this show to introversion really helps the reader feel more comfortable with the things they do. She also again connects introversion to popular show The Office. I personally am a huge fan of that show and seeing it in this book caught my attention. Having the reader see ideal they used to believe as bad, but then connecting them to things they enjoy, helps them see that it is not actually so bad. Another strategy Helgoe uses is asking the reader questions. Trying to have the reader get to know themselves a bit more she asks these questions, “How do you communicate? What do you appreciate about your friends?” And so on. These questions help to directly connect the reader to themselves. Allowing them to understand that they are who they are helps them come to terms with the fact that they are introverted, and it is ok. This book has absolutely achieved its purpose and has made me feel much better about my introversion.

Tow #7- Nighthawks

One of the best known twentieth- century paintings depicts nothing more than four people in a diner at night. Although this doesn’t seem like much, there is much more to it. This painting is called Nighthawks and was painted by Edward Hopper, a famous painter. Nighthawks is undoubtedly Hopper’s most popular painting. It was painted only a few days after Pearl Harbor, although that does not seem to have much of an effect on the painting itself. It was painted a few years after diners had become popular so it makes sense he would depict one in his painting. There are many possible reasons that have been argued for why Hopper created Nighthawks, I believe it was to show the loneliness of living in a big city.  The painting creates a sense of isolation through his use of lighting and windows. The diner does not have a visible entrance into it. Because there is no door, the only way for the viewer to get inside of the diner is through the windows, which only allows them to view the people inside. This isolates the viewer on the outside from the people inside. The diner is also the only thing lit in the whole painting. The streets outside are completely dark, only the light from the diner leaking out to illuminate them. This makes it seem like the only things happening in that moment are happening to the people in the diner. Something else that adds to the isolated feeling is the one man with his back to the audience. He is alone while the other three people are at least in a closer vicinity. It is not even certain the two customers next to each other are close relationship wise. I believe Hopper achieved his purpose and created an isolated painting, pulling the reader into his lonely, fluorescent lit diner.