Are we buying into this?

Only six major companies power the music industry. PolyGram, EMI, Warner Music Group, Sonly Music Entertainment, BMG, and Universal Music Group run the worlds music production; between the six firms they control 80 to 90 percent of the market on a global level (Scherizinger). They provide an enormous influence and face very few limiting factors. These companies are fueled by huge revenue, much of which the American people gladly provide. In the past nine years these profit-driven companies have collected more than $200 billion in assets (Hurt). Companies sell what consumers choose to buy, regardless of cultural implications brought on by the subject matter involved. We should not blatantly support a music industry that is supported by sexism and violence.

A common theme through out the music world is violence. There is violence in youth, violence in sex, and violence in our communities. The American citizens have created a culture where carnage is an accepted part of out lives. By way of music, especially urban music, derogatory language and cursing have found a way into the homes of citizens. The hip-hop culture can be found in almost every country and with it comes a great deal of aggression. Youth around the world listen to the lyrics of popular rap music regardless of socioeconomic standing, race or ethnicity (Richardson 176). Americans as a whole are funding this empire, whether they support the content or not, they are supporting the production. Violence may be condemned socially but undoubtedly profits and is rewarded by entertainment media (Richardson 183). We recognize the portrayal of violence as wrong, but we do nothing to stop it.

Individuals from many different upbringings, even women, support the content not only by purchasing it but also by embracing the lyrics. It is common in hip-hop music for male artist to “discuss and present women as caricatures, sexual objects, less than human, […] and overly sexualized, devoid of its physical, emotional, and psychic components “ (Oware 788). Not only are males participating in this language but also females. Both female artists and listeners find substance in “explicit” content. Many women choose to express themselves through “female self-exploitation and hyper objectification” (Oware 789). They present themselves in overly sexualized ways and as a higher level of woman that is not restricted by their sexuality. It is arrogant for them to believe that one person can be above the rest of the group, and their conceit has devastating affects on young women all over the globe.

Some say that women may find some sort of “affirmation and power in the fear that their sexuality…creates in men”(Lipsitz 386). Women feel this way because of the declining culture that allows them to see these lyrics as flattering rather than belittling. Women rappers also use their sexuality as a weapon in response to male sexism. Popular rappers like Lil’ Kim continually addresses sex and criticize men about their performance and their ability to please her which can be “the ultimate fear of many hetero-sexual males”(Oware 793). This is not helping women to overcome gender discrimination and is not empowering anyone. Media conglomerations are profiting from an endless cycle we have created. In reality, both men and women performers are bashing each other and themselves and in doing so they create false ideas for the youth about love, relationships, status, and power.

The violence and sexism is rap music is everywhere. A main machine distributing these ideas is the music industry. Greed causes the industry to prioritize the content that sells without any moral consideration. Our society supports an environment where inappropriate content flourishes and the music companies reap all of the benefits. They continue to profit until Americans stop buying into vulgar ideas.

*Works Cited from link below

FileDropper Free File Hosting

Ashley Full Review

ASUTrackASH

First in reading your intro, I can tell you are very intelligent and must be knowledgeable about a lot of our topics just based on your majors. I noticed right off the bat that you like to include your opinion and apply it to the reading, but you do so very well. That must come from the Political Science side of you. You really integrate it well in posts like “End of Humans: World of Humans” and many of the other earlier blogs. I especially like how in this piece you use a comparison to get the readers attention. I like how you take the time to introduce your idea and then support it with fine detail. You also avoid vague wording and it keeps your posts direct, informative and entertaining.

The post “Leave Marriage Alone” brings up some interesting ideas that I haven’t found in some other work. I like your paragraph including Darwin and how you address evolution in right and wrong in humans. This blog is full of interesting and well-written opinions supported by facts. Also a great candidate for elaboration could be “Breast Milk Just for Babies, Not Anymore”. This blog includes aspects of culture, technology, and human sexuality that could be added to in your final paper, not to mention it is very intriguing. I think your style in this piece and the interesting topic keeps the reader locked in.

Another favorite of mine was “Don’t Compare Yourself to Others, Even Animals” I think you point out many fallacies in the argument that humans are like animals by bringing our conscious and conscience into the picture. Moving on to more recent work, in “How Much Would You Pay For My Name on Your Chest” raises some interesting questions about American values and priorities. I think that materialism will continue to grow as long as business profit. I think this goes along well with your posts on “The Secret Control of the Japanese on American Music Industry”. It all comes down to money. I think you could combine some of these posts into one larger essay for your final project and use American Culture and money as a topic.

In regards to your work as a whole, you are already a very talented writer. I think as long as you pic a topic you are invested in and can find information on, you could use just about any of these as grounds for another paper, good luck!

Jess Full Review

These Words They Are My Own

First off, I love your festive background! I am also majoring in SHS and love how you have so many other interests like human development or Dance, your well roundedness shows in your blogs too. Even from the beginning I noticed you are a storyteller! From “Self” to “Yes We Can” I can sense this style or writing, which really helps the reader get to know your voice.

I like the ideas your proposed in “So…Can They” I think you made a great argument and supported it with the text. I think everyone’s “Consciousness” articles are great because we all have different definitions and opinions about it. Your post about “The Men of Glee” was also affective. They really explore gender roles and clichés in this series and your explained it perfectly. I think you could apply your ideas about gender roles and stereotypes seen in TV to an essay if you haven’t already explored this for a paper. This also links to “Heterosexual Idealism” and the influence of Media on the homosexual community. I know American media has changed drastically. You may want to look at if media fallows the expansion of homosexuals or if more homosexuals come out because of the acceptance in the media, could make an interesting paper topic as well.

“Evolution of Relationships” was also interesting. I can tell it is something that interests you just by how you explain things. I think the points you bring up in your final paragraph are interesting and new ideas other people might not have thought about before. You can also link your idea of choosing a partner with the same goals as you have to your “My Chemical Romance” blog. You have great support to your ideas. More recently “Two Views, One Country” was very interesting and detailed. I think over the past few months you have really developed your tone and direction in your blogs, good luck on your final!

Diedre Full Review

Balls Broadcasting and Between

I loved reading your into, you have a lot going on between tennis and double majoring. I am surprised you had time for this class; I know it took more effort than I had expected! You have a great life goal and I was excited to read your blogs.

All of your early blogs are great but I really saw you shine when I reached “Is he Wright”. You incorporated your research and opinion well and you brought some great ideas to the table. I love how you brought religion into this because it brings up the whole idea of a soul. If you wanted to elaborate more on this idea of robots and eternity in one of my cultural geography classes my teacher presented Blade Runner, a movie about robots who think they are humans and want eternal life and other qualities, there is a lot of information on the theories presented in this movie that would help you evolve this blog into an essay.

"Nuclear Family Split" was also worthy of note. I liked how you brought social influence up and used it in this essay. Sometimes it is interesting to look at changes in American culture and how those changes have affected subcultures. “What is Natural” was so interesting to me. It is very smart to bring new ideas not introduced in the text to a blog. You introduce some interesting questions that could be addressed in an essay. Should what natural for animals be natural for humans; aren’t we more “evolved”.

I think a big highlight was “Relationships: Largely Dependent on Belief”. Your writing style was aggressive and direct and made the reader understand what your points were. I also thought, “Want a fun day? Simply pay 4.75 via E-Z pass” was very comical and showed your personality and creativity. A more recent hit was “Yes or No to Gov’t control;” I think this would make a great essay if you didn’t use it already. I think you could easily explore the bounds of Government control in a well-crafted essay and express your ideas about limiting and empowering the government.

All in all I think you really developed and if you chose to reinvent one of your older posts you could put a lot more into it now. I would point out that in your blogs you could use a more developed intro and conclusion but in recent posts you have been really incorporating organization into your blogs. I also enjoy all of yoru witty titles, good work!

Week 12 Blog Reviews, a little late is better than never at all!

Didn't realize we had blog reviews due on the same day as Essay 3's rough draft, these probably wouldn't have helped with the paper but maybe in your final essay!

Kayla

"The New Science of Finance"

I think you did a very good job in summarizing the history and development of finance. I agree most everyone would define it as "money" and money affects everything in our society today, as evidence by other articles we have read. I think you could elaborate on this a lot for a final essay by adding a lot of your own opinions on how money is important and how therefor finance is even more so important. your opinions on the government were very interesting and you used great support from the text. Sorry about being late hope this helps you in your final essay. You are great keep up the good work.

Victoria

I love how how made "finance" an opinion piece, you did a great job is including new ideas and using ideas from the text. I think either of these could be used in your final if you wanted to find sources and support. Your article on cryptography is also very interesting and you could easily go into the consequences of loosening laws regarding it. I like your personal touches and think no matter which way you go you will do fine! Sorry for being late good luck!

Financial Development

Finance is defined as “the study of money and how it is invested”, but in reality finance is so much more complex (Change and Peterson 447). The creation of this discipline arose like any other academic field, because there was a need within society to understand and develop a practice for investing money. There is a pattern in the dates that major financial discoveries were made. Many of these discoveries happened during a period of economic turmoil or shortly after massive events in the U.S. Advances in technology also aided the “compilers” of finance in communication and publication of their work.

The 1980s, when Alfred Marshall discovered that money in the bank grows much faster with compound interest, were known for economic depression (Change and Peterson 448, Wikipedia). I feel that these hard times inspired Marshall as well as other pioneers of Finance to develop these methods to help the economy. The 1930s marked the beginning of the Great Depression (Wikipedia). During this time John Burr Williams applied these ideas to stock in 1930 (Change and Peterson 448). During this decade, new technologies such as intercontinental aviation and radio were also invented (Wikipedia). The combination of these events supports the idea that economic hard times inspire people to change the current circumstances.

In1959 after the Korean War and during the Cold War, Myron Gordon further developed notions of interest to the idea to dividends as well (Change and Peterson 448, Wikipedia). The late 1950s also marked the beginning steps and development of space exploration in the United States (Wikipedia). Another clue that technological growth and hard times lead to great discoveries. Another version of this idea is in 1976 right after the Vietnam War when the financial view of Brownian movement was developed. This occurred shortly after World War II as well by physicist (Change and Peterson 450).

In the face of tragedy and tough times, technology can aid and inspire change. It is my belief that all the disciplines involved in forming Finance may never have converged without having to face obstacles. Although struggles in the United States were hard for the people, great things arrived from their suffering.

Liberal Republican or Conservative Liberal: What's the difference?

This weeks reading was very interesting to me. I usually don’t like reading articles on different financial companies and ideas, but these pieces were more feature writing. To me feature writing is much more enjoyable to read than straight reporting. This Freewrite definitely peaked my interest.

Our society loves to group people. We love to put people into preexisting schemas and when they don’t fit, we place them in a miscellaneous schema. On a spectrum from no government to full government jurisdiction, like most everyone in the world, I fall somewhere in between. To explain, I will have to apply some ideology dimension information that I learned in Political Science. I think people get caught up in trying to categorize people into political parties, either the Democratic (or so called Liberals) vs. Republican (or so called conservatives). The issue is that Liberalism vs. Conservatism has more than two dimensions. Peoples political composition is much more developed. The truth is the only way to gauge political views is by looking at the many other factors. Right Wing vs. Left Wing just doesn’t fully comprehend each individual, and never has. There are other aspects and opinions to look at, like free market capitalism vs. state interventionist business. Also there are varying outlooks on personal rights vs. state rights. People, even politicians, have varying opinions of these subjects and they do not necessarily align with the two dominant political parties in the US.

I myself believe that every American has equal rights and opportunities, but some people struggle in our culture. I believe in the success of the free-market without government control. I think the government tends to limit business, and when they bail large companies out of debt, they are not doing our society any favors. I understand our economy is fragile, but if these businesses are in terminal situations it is their responsibility to get out of them. I am not saying that the government hasn’t helped the employees but to me it is a personal obligation to help others, not a government commitment. I think it is important for the government to have social programs that help adolescents start their life off right with all the available resources. I am more likely to support tuition grants that social security, but that is just my opinion. I too wouldn’t fit into a Right Wing vs. Left Wing schema because my views of capitalism would be considered conservative but I have liberal opinions about human rights and government founding. I am just one example of the millions of people who do not feel represented in our political system. I am forced to pick a party vs. a individual.

To summarize, the two-party system does not effectively reflect the views of Americans. However for now the two will have to work together and fight polarization so everyone is represented. Internally American needs to focus on changing any and all aspects that prolong the two-party system so that we can hear all the little voices over the loud isolationist tendencies that the two major parties have created.

Week 11 Blog Reviews

Victoria Presley-

Very interesting piece on immigration- I loved how you made this personal by adding information from your grandma. You’re writing style is great my only concern is with your citations. I know for your primary source, your grandma, you didn’t site her like the Hult book explains. Also, your second paragraph seems a little barrowed and could use some in-text citations. I liked how you wrapped up with a personal view though, it really supported your claims. The flow of your writing and organization is good, just work on your citations! Your materialism piece was well thought out and planned. You also brought up great points about credit and materialism as it relates to happiness. Both blogs were very interesting as always!

Kayla Smith-

As far as the Twitchell response, I like how you really took on a pro vs. con approach to this blog. I think in both paragraphs you brought up great points and applied the texts to your opinions. I think you did a great job shaping your argument here. In the Immigration Blog, you did a good job in summarizing some key issues with Native Americans and then adding your opinion. Although the summary was pretty condensed, you still hit on major areas. I think the only thing that would have improved your facts here would be to support them with quotes and information from a primary or secondary source. Always great to read your blogs!

The Luck of the Irish

The United States of America is known as a “melting pot” a place where people from every culture can blend and become one uniform group. This idea of assimilation is not a positive subject for all immigrants. For the Irish, their immigration into the United States is distinct from other groups mostly because assimilation was not their main concern. First off, their migration started long before the famine, and unlike other cultures, men and women migrated in equal numbers and few left the US once they arrived (Guinnane). Because so many individuals stayed, the Irish traditions also found their way into American life.

Their strong ties to Ireland made the cultural transition easier for Irish immigrants. Religion was a main ingredient in the Irish culture that was maintained and incorporated into the American way of life. The Irish Americans brought Catholic churches and schools with them to the United State (Guinnane). Around 50 percent of the United States Catholic population was Irish By 1900 (Guinnane).

Not only the religious aspects of the Irish were preserved. Even after the Irish had become integrated into the main aspects of American urban life and somewhat assimilated, the Irish continued to create their own neighborhoods as well. Most social interactions continued in Irish neighborhoods (Guinnane). Another reason that the Irish culture found a home within America was that the immigrants still married within their ethnicity. Among those Irishwomen who married in America, 70% married Irish-born men or the sons of Irish-born immigrants (Guinnane).

America is now looked at as a “salad” with a heterogeneous build instead of a fully assimilated melting pot. Some immigrants may have lost many aspects of their culture in the move to America. Clearly the Irish traditions and ideas immigrated to the United States with them and therefore maintained the key aspects of their way of life.

Works Cited

Guinnane, Timothy W., Carolyn M. Moehling, and Cormac Ó Gráda "The fertility of the Irish in the United States in 1910." Explorations in Economic History 43.3 (2006): 465-485. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 5 Nov. 2009.

Consumption of Consumption: Eat this.

Twitchell shines a light on the benefits of materialism in our world, especially in our country. As Americans we top the list of consumers. This way of life defines us. But would we be the powerhouse we are without the spending habits we “enjoy”? If this spending creates happiness, will our happiness spread around the world as well, or just our debt?

Could the spread of these habits increase the dept of other countries as well? As Twitchell points out, European countries frown upon our spending habits. In reality these habits allow us to have four times the amount of belongings than people in these countries (Twitchell 389). We have become so accustom to purchasing that we define ourselves by our possessions. The purchasing of “goods” has even found our ay into our social classes. Twitchell points out that “ the poor are after[…] association, affiliation, inclusion, [and]magical purpose,” all of which can be purchased in America(Twitchell 393). It is almost sad that our society is defined by money, but it is also exciting that our social classes do not limit people by race or parents occupation. With capitalism everyone has an equal shot at success.

We define people by lifestyle; good or bad, this trend is taking off (Twitchell 396). The idea of consumerism is growing as rapidly as capitalism has. Russia and China are both “playing catch up” with our expenditure (Twitchell389). It is not secret that the average American is in dept at an early age. It is not just spending habits that get us there; it is the combination of these habits and the availability of easy credit (Twitchell 392). I guess the two are both products of capitalism. Hopefully the negative side of consumerism does not consume the world as quickly as capitalistic ideals have, at least not before we can find a happy balance.

Week 10 blog reviews

Victoria:

Your piece The Smiths was super dark but I loved it. I definitely didn’t see that ending coming. You did a really good job developing each character and explaining your story. Your tone was interesting and kept me engaged. It was an interesting read, good job.

In We Have a Choice you raise some interesting questions about who decides what we listen to and ultimately I agree it is up to us, the listener. Everyone has the right to express him or herself no matter the content. I completely agree, anyone can change the radio station, or bypass a CD with parental advisory stickers. Critics are not responsible for what we purchase, we are. I think companies do their best to notify listeners and parents of explicit content and that is really all they owe us because lets face it, sex sells.

Kayla:

Your blog The Blow Out really tells a very funny and unexpected story. It’s funny how things like this happen. Thankfully it all turned out okay, but it is ironic how things like this happen. I like your story telling style in this piece and it was a fun read. I liked this prompt because it really let us be more creative.

In Oct 29^th Blog about music, lyrics, and sexuality you bring up some great points. It is like music has a whole other set of standards. Some of the most popular songs are speaking badly about women, but girls love them too. I know I am guilty of singing along, but when you think about what is being said, it is a little upsetting. I definitely agree our culture makes these songs acceptable and even popular.

Lyrics for Sale?

P386 Directed Freewrite

With the overly controlled music industry, these few music mega companies that monopolize the industry have full control over the content released. Are these companies therefore responsible for the affects the music has on our society? No, they are not. This materialistic nation we live in, fostered these businesses and these businesses are interested in making money. If the lyrics and ideas portrayed in the music sell , then at the end of the day, they did their jobs. The problem is not in the words, but in the society that buys these lyrics.

I agree with the critics that women “discussed” in these songs, and within the hip-hop and dance culture, may find some sort of “affirmation and power in the fear that their sexuality…creates in men”(Lipsitz 386). I believe that these women feel like that because our culture allows them to see these lyrics as empowering rather than derogatory. The question is, is this idea of empowerment just another thing we are buying into? Weather the lyrics are derogatory or responsible for the perpetuation of gender roles is not the main issue, it is what Americans are purchasing. It is about what we are investing our money into. As long as we continue to support this business, they will continue to meet demands.

If the hip-hop culture is what is popular, then the companies will continue to invest in it. In this capitalistic economy, it is not the morals of society that are important to us; it is the revenue that the music creates and the jobs that this huge business supports. The key to analyzing this topic is to look at the profit versus the responsibility to the community. Unfortunately media businesses are not held responsible for the content they provide, mostly because it is the American people who are the driving force behind the business.

A Slough Time

At the age of 14, I was playing volleyball, dancing competitively, and about to start high school. Between the hot Arizona summers and my vigorous conditioning, my skin was stating to take a hit. I started breaking out and having to deal with a very complex skin cleansing regiment every morning and every night. I went to my trusted dermatologist with a hope that she would have an easier solution to my very embarrassing skin problem. Unfortunately all she had to offer was a tube of nightmares.

She kindly prescribed a Benzoyl Peroxide wash and a Differin .3 gel, which she instructed me to use and avoid the sun. I went home, goods in hand, and hope in my heart. That night before I went to bed I tried out my new wash and spot treatment cream.

The next morning I awoke and wondered in the bathroom. I was startled awake by the face staring back at me in the mirror. I was startled to find my complexion red and peeling. I became very worried and quickly began to moisturize, but clearly this facial peel was beyond repair and was going to have to run its course.

I quickly logged on the web to research my new found “treasures”. The consumer reports quickly warned me of the dangers of these products and the affect that they can have on ones skin tone. These particular products are known for their cause of dryness; feeling of warmth; irritation; itching; peeling; redness; stinging. All of which were written all over my face. As a result an even more self conscious teenager had to battle out her first few weeks of high school with a dry, red, itchy face, and only a bottle of moisturizer as a weapon.

Week 8 blog reviews

Victoria-

For the post on 10/13 I am assuming you were responding to p310 #1. I like how you separated out your response into an intro, a summary, and a response. I really liked the way you lead into this but I would have like to see more details in the second paragraph and more focus on the ramification in paragraph three. I think your flow was nice, this piece was just lacking a little attention to detail. Great ideas!

In regards to your 10/15 post, you have a great understanding of the argument at hand here. I think my main suggestion is to fully respond to the prompt. I think you could use a few specific examples from the text and then argue the other side. You make some great points, like that “it really just depends on your own views are, and where you fall in this argument.” I think that personal opinion can skew this information in many directions, guess we’ll ever have an answer.

Brittany-

10/13

I’m assuming the prompt you are answering here is on p310 # 1. I think you handled the first part of the prompt well when you discuss the traditions of our culture. I especially like the idea of your concluding sentence that say , “with this being said maybe humans don't really fall in love but more so fall into a mating ritual, that as soon as your ready to settle down is when your brain tricks you into thinking your in love.” I think it would have benefited you to write more about the affects of changing these beliefs on our society, as directed in the prompt. You are on the right tract with this one but a little more information from the text and fallowing the directions of the prompt could have really boosted this entry’s efficiency.

I’m not seeing a post from 10/15 to review here

When I went back it loaded, sorry about that

I loved how you picked the article on Hyenas. I think your piece was very informative and brought up another side to this very complex argument. I felt this post was done really well and I think it is one of the best ones I have read by you in this section. I think you can use a lot of the facts on your argument essay if you decide to talk about gender.

Lauren-

10/13

You did such a great job attending to all the points in the prompt. Your intro and summary are great and your transitions went smoothly. I think you put a lot of thought into your response and as a reader, and I truly appreciate that. You balanced support from the text with your ideas very well. For example I loved how you used arranged marriages as a change that would really affect our ideas of romance. I completely agree with your last paragraph that a lot of this is biologically predetermined but in the end we have free will!

10/15 - I think this is p 339 “class discussion, right?

I think your summary of the argument from both sides was very effective. I love how you connected the idea of what is normal and what is natural and how these arguments can be used to condemn peoples actions. I think when you say, “our culture teaches every person what is natural, and since there are differences in cultures, there will be differences on naturality” you have a really good start for an great argument. What is natural for human beings should be consistent through out the different cultures since we are all one species. Great job, I always enjoy reading your posts, especially because I can see the effort you put into them!

"Aint Nothing But Mammals"

Page 339 "Class Discussion"

Klugar’s retelling of the facts in Biological Exuberance, raise many important aspects of “biological homosexuality,” an endless debate over homosexuality as an innate trait. He declares that many different animals are “doing it”, but humans are the only ones who are oppressed for it (Klugar 337). As far as the among of animals participating in homosexual mating, a shocking twenty percent of the 2,000 species, whose mating preferences have been studied, demonstrated same sex relations (Klugar 338). These species are not limited to animals who participate in sex for pleasure, like the dolphin, but also mice, elephants, giraffes, the bonobo monkey, and many more (Klugar 338). Another very strong point that not many people may realize is that these unions are not limited to one night stands or for temporary satisfaction, but can last a lifetime, just like any successful marriage (Klugar 338).

As pointed out by the text, someone opposing human homosexuality would say that the animals being studied might have other motives behind their mating (Klugar 339). It could be that they were not selected to be a mate by someone of the opposite sex and their instincts told them the next best option was a mate of the same sex. It is also possible, and plausible, that these particular pairs are an exception to the rule. How many individuals within that 450-specie range are demonstrating homosexual behavior? If it is a small percentage of that species, it can almost be written off as a fluke. Clearly it is not a large number because it still takes a male and female to reproduce and carry on the species, which is still the goal of evolution. If it were nature’s intention to have these unions, there would be a way for them to carry on the gene pool and be the “fittest” in game of survival.

In order to use this data presented in Biological Exuberance we need many more case studies. It is clear a wide variety of animals are showing a “natural” homosexuality, but to know their motives is impossible. Personally I do not think that using examples from the animal world will really help support the idea of innate homosexuality because there is just not enough definitive proof behind it. There are many other arguments for gender development and the argument at hand is just not fully developed enough to make a difference.

A Tall Order

Page 310 #3, the article I chose to translate from scientific text into a non-academic wording is titled “Height, Relationship Satisfaction, Jealousy, and Mate Retention” by G. Brewer and C. Riley which can be found here.

Women are more likely attracted to a tall man versus a short man. It’s depicted in movies, television shows, and magazines, but is it science? Women may think it is just a visual preference, but in reality, it is programmed into them. We prefer more fit partners that are more likely to pass on the better traits to our children. Women are even more fascinated with tall men during their more fertile stages of their cycle, therefore enforcing the idea that tall men carry desirable characteristics.

How Far Are We Willing To Go?

Women who are dating tall men will actually start exercising more extreme strategies to keep their man around. These methods include improving their appearance and fitness in order to keep the man interested in them. Apparently it is working because tall men reported that they were more satisfied because their partner was conscientious. Women with tall partners are working on themselves, does that mean women with shorter men are not? Why are we so concerned with impressing our mates based on height?

Short Men, Short Relationships?

Women are so much more attracted to tall men, that they are even less likely to cheat. Infidelity rates are much lower with taller men than shorter men. Are we just waiting around for someone better and fit? Women in this study even warned that short men should watch out for more attractive rivals who could lead their partner to infidelity. Short men also expressed more jealous behavior- rightfully so.

Short End Of The Stick?

In contrast to these so-called desirable traits, short guys have a “platform” of their own. Bigger guys have more testosterone and testosterone can lead to aggression. Therefore smaller guys with less testosterone have a smaller chance of acting aggressively with others or their partner. They also try to keep their mate interested by increasing love and care towards the other person unlike tall guys who may monopolize your time because they know they have nothing to lose.

Week 7 blog reviews

I really tried to put out constructive criticism, I hope this helps you select the posts you use on your next paper! I also noticed we all had some formatting errors, something to think about!

Victoria:

MEN!!

I loved how you could apply the topics to many aspects of your life. I agree that Tannen’s ideas will help with my relationships with the men in my life. I did find a few errors that could have been fixed with a quick read through, but I am just as guilty as rushing to post my blog as well. A little more support through out would have made for a stronger post, but you certainly painted a picture I can relate to!

One Mate, One Marriage

I enjoyed reading this post, I certainly agree with your main points. I think it is very important to look back to the assignment at hand. We are supposed to take an evolutionary perspective and not just reflect. I know I struggled with this at first because my opinion on the subject got in the way. Although your opinions are interesting I would have like to see you support your claims with more text from the book and take a more scientific approach. Again, I saw few typos here and there that will easily be resolved by rereading your writing.

Lauren-

Emotional Women, not so Emotional Men

I think you were very success with this assignment in describing your experience and using Tannen’s methods to help fix them. I know I can relate to your situation. I think to be fair we have to point out that men can be emotional too, they just handle it differently than women. The only corrections I would make would be to add a few more sentences to really wrap up your thoughts. Another thing I noticed is that when you insert a quote you don’t need to capitalize the first word unless is starts your sentence.

‘Till Death do us Part

I loved how you used the scientific information to shape your argument. I will say I was little confused about the second paragraph. I think you just need an introductory sentence to introduce your main idea here. I felt the third paragraph was the best combination of science and opinion. I completely agree that society has shaped marriage into something it was never intended to be. I think you really used the text to support your claims and were very successful in responding to the prompt.

Brittany-

Women Can Drive Too-

Well first of all I completely agree. It is interesting how men and women argue and I think it was a great topic for this piece, especially when we are looking at communication. What better way to look at difference in men and women than in a fight? I think your introductory paragraph could use some work on the flow. I think the ideas didn’t really flow well or introduce your main point very clearly. All in all I love your topic and I wish you luck with your next argument J

Should we mate for life?

I think for this piece it is important to build on your ideas. You definitely developed an argument, and I loved how you played “devils advocate”. The only thing is you really need to fully express your opinion along side the facts. I did notice a few citation issues. I know Professor Patel suggested a blog to reference as a guild in an earlier post. I loved how you pulled from a lot of different topics from the reading as well.

The Evolution of Commitment

Every year millions of couples say, “I do”. They do so against the odds: the fifty percent chance that they will not fulfill their sacred vows (Wright 288). These couples must be compelled by some very strong feelings of love and attachment in order to make a promise with a poor probability of fulfilling it. It is something much deeper than just words. Not just love influences such a decision; instincts compel us to join in this life-long commitment as well.

In order to reproduce naturally humans, like all other mammals, need a male and female. Humans, engage in these monogamous relationships just like the Ring Doves and many other animals (Buss 271). The difference is that humans have a much greater recourse, a fully developed frontal lobe. This portion of our brain helps us to bond and commit and engage in monogamous relationships. Because of this advancement, we have many more distractions that can pull us away and distract us from our mates. Evolution has created this concept of love, and ultimately ruined it (Wright 284).

Unlike more primitive animals, our biggest problems are not that our mate can’t reproduced and is therefore expendable like in Ring Dove, or a bigger more fit partner comes along like with male elephant seals (Buss 270 & 271). We also need to deal with the environmental influences around us, like the fact that men are greatly impacted by the images of Playboy models that influence their perceptions of women (Wright 286). We also have to deal with a woman’s attraction to richer partners that can lead to infidelity (Wright 287). Distractions like these fuel the fire of jealousy that inhabits our relationships (Buss 270). These natural feelings are magnified by our ability to think at a higher level.

Love between men and a woman is a universal natural thing (Wright 284). According to Wright, the key to correcting our immoral behavior is to realize that was just that, immoral; the thing is we have the potential to be moral. A combination of our instincts and our high capability to reason, we need to overcome the temptations of our society along with the ones already programmed into us. The institution of marriage still has a chance, humans just need to really consider their promise before vowing to spend their entire life with another individual.

Directed Free-write: Lost in Translation

I found both the article by Deborah Tannen and the one by Candace West and Don Zimmerman wrote to be very interesting and informative. I know when I was reading then I could definitely apply them to the conversations I have with my brother, dad, and boyfriend, especially the parts about physical communication. Tannen’s section on The Sounds of Silence really applied to my life as well. I often feel like I am talking a lot more than my brother about feelings rather than events. Usually communication with men is not a huge problem in my life because I have adapted to their style of conversing and arguing.

My biggest communication problems involve my cell phone. Whether it is through texting or talking, it always creates more conflict than necessary. When discussing pressing topics or making plans over the phone or through texting can be very frustrating to me. If I am trying to set a plan and my boyfriend’s words are short, I assume he is ignoring me and is busy with something else and lose interest in pressing the plans. The same thing happens when I am on the phone with my dad. He lives in Ohio and always calls to check in, but ultimately just comes up with a list of things for me to do. As a woman, I am much more driven to discuss family issues, feelings and thoughts (Tannen 242). As a male my father wants to demonstrate his hierarchal power and give me a list of chores from across the country (Tannen 242).

With the help of this article I can now see how different communication between and within different sexes is so different. I can see how the topics of these articles play out in real life. My brother never looks at me when we are having a conversation. He can stare and the TV and I automatically assume he is not caring about what I have to say. Apparently when he positions himself next to me rather than facing me, he is able to listen and care about what I am saying (Tennan243). By recognizing that we have such gaps in communication from body position to actual topics I can work on my style of communication with the males in my life.

Week 6 blog reviews

Brittany Molnar-

I think the movie Raising Helen was a really good choice about the transformation from a girl to a woman. I love how this displays some very true tough choices that we have to go through in order to grow up. I like how you summarized the plot of the movie and then went on to describe how it applies to the prompt. I would have like to see a little more support on your claims but I definitely agree that Kate Hudson represents all of those stereotypical “Wild Woman” characteristics. Wish I could review your October 1^st post, but I look forward to reading more of your Gender and Sexuality unit posts.

Lauren Petrovich-

Mr. and Mrs. Smith is a great representation of a wild woman under wraps. She represents the role of a housewife but during the day but is the exact foil as she is a hardcore assassin at work. I love how you worked in the comparisons Sleeping with the Enemy because it really does show a fearless and empowered woman. In regards to your post about D’Emillio’s article, you brought up some interesting points about the effects of the birth rates on projected job opportunities. I think it is interesting that these social networks will create revenue that will also boost the economy. All in all I enjoyed your take on the changes of society and the changes in the economy and how that will change the “American Family”.

Victoria Presley-

I love how you picked Crossroads as the movie you decided to critique. It really does compare to the story of Thelma and Louise. You found some strong points that draw the two together like the fact that in both cases the women leave behind their boring live to pursue a better opportunity all on their own. This sends a very important message that “real woman change their lifestyle to get where they want to be” Would have loved to read your post from October 1^st, but I look forward to reading your next posts.

Plugged in to Profit

D’Emillo’s views about how the gay and lesbian society changed with growth of capitalism mimic the changes on families brought on by the changes in technology. In the same way that the free labor systems altered the “functions of the nuclear family, the ideology of family life, and the meaning of heterosexual relations,” the change in our economic and social means have altered our way of life as well (D’Emilio 228). Unlike the slow transition away from family life to capitalism, the ongoing development of technology is swift. We spend much more time using our laptops, watching our TiVo, or listening to our iPods over family time. We are constantly busy doing one two or three different things. These technologies enhance our ability to multi-task. Is it helping or hurting us?

As capitalism expanded, people were able to develop social lives, ergo creating social communities of like-minded individuals(D’Emilio 229). In recent years this expansion has bloomed into technological communities in the form of online blogs, forums, podcasts, and chat-rooms. These societies have expanded substantially and are accessible to virtually anyone. With more outlets available, societies can reach people of all different backgrounds. We are now able to communicate with people who have similar interests, concerns, or even sexual preference.

D’Emilio believes capitalism and family life are opposing forces (235). What if technology could lessen their resistance? In the past capitalism has made an opportunity for individuals to live outside the family and avoid conflict around homosexuality (235). What if this is not necessary anymore? With the accessibility of technology, families can find support groups and guidance in supporting and understanding homosexuality from the convenience of their home. In regards to D’Emilio’s claim that capitalism pushes men and women into families, with medical advances it’s much more feasible for homosexual couples to reproduce in order to “produce the next generation of workers”(D’Emilio 235). In order for homosexuals to enhance their social networks, they need technology. It is a great recourse in integrating new family ideas with changing times.