Pepe (TOW #13)

     It is hard today to go on the internet without coming across a meme in some form, and anyone who is savvy with current internet cultures knows that one meme reigns supreme: Pepe the frog. Pepe is a cartoon frog created in 2005 as a character on the cartoon Boy's Club. The cartoon depicts the typical life of a twenty some year old american. The cartoon was relatively small and Pepe did not have any kind of great claim to fame. He spread relatively slowly throughout social media, but by 2015 Pepe was the most common meme on almost all platforms. Obviously Pepe is popular, but why does he have such a broad appeal?

     It is hard to say why Pepe has become so popular, but I would argue that it is due to his incredibly emotional depiction and easily emphasized features. Pepe comes in many iterations but his most common form is sad Pepe. This instance of Pepe features the frog looking down with a mix between sadness and emotion in his eyes. This complex level of emotion is shown through the details put in the eyes. The eyes are looking down and slightly furrowed, but they also seem distant and are made so to look reflective like dears are building in them. This meme is typically paired with a caption depicting a sad event, or more specifically a disheartening realization of the future. This is a key part of the life of an early twenty year old, it is the beginning of true adulthood and independence.

     I think it is also important that Pepe is a frog. Although he possesses a fairly humanoid form Pepe is still a completely different creature. This makes him seem a little more distant. This creates a tone of a sort of self depriving humor. It highlights both the way that there are many things that can make you upset when you are young but also how in hindsight they are greatly insignificant.

     Like any part of the internet Pepe has been appropriated for many less than savory causes. He has been used by alt-right antisemitic groups to promote Neo-Nazism, racism, and white supremacy. This is a wholly unjust and quite frankly irrelevant use of the image and is not true to its original intent.

Wander Above The Sea Of Fog (Tow #12)

     The Wanderer Above The Sea Of Fog is one of the most iconic romantic paintings of all time, and is rightfully so. It was painted in 1818 by artist Caspar David Friedrich and depicts a man standing high on a cliff looking down over a land shrouded in fog.

     Caspar David Friedrich was one of the more well known painters of his era and is considered the most important German artist of his time. Most of his pieces were landscapes and were allegorical in nature. His work went on to be some of the most important pieces in all of German history and to influence the surreal and expressionist movements greatly.

      The images central figure is a man staring over a precipice. He is notably higher than everything else in the image, even the cliffs in the background. The image itself is very typical of the time period and the romantic movement. It shows a subject in nature and focuses on the power and beauty of nature, it is also a very emotionally evocative piece, adding further to its romantic undertones is the fact that the man is alone. The romantic movement was strongly centralized around introspective solitude and emotional reflection, which is shown in the mans staring into the fog and presumably pondering. 

     Two crucial symbols within the text are the authors intentional positioning of the man facing away, and the intense fog enveloping the surroundings. The man's distal orientation is used very powerfully to highlight the emotion of the piece. This is because it is impossible to tell what the man is feeling because we can see his face. It also in some ways makes the man easier to affiliate with because he could have the same face as one of us. The next device is the fog. The fog is interesting because everything about the man seems to suggest a ruler looking down over his nation, but there is nothing to be seen, just a vast empty landscape of fog.

Tow #11 (The American Crisis)

     When we think of the american revolution we tend to focus on the roles of the founding fathers. People among the ranks of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson. However, when we consider the ideals behind the american revolution one man stands at the base of nearly all of them. Thomas Paine is an author whose works were incredibly moving and influential, helping to structure the beliefs of the american revolution. Pains most notable work is the pamphlet Common Sense, meant to display the tyranny of Britain. His next work, the american crisis, was meant to inspire Americans to fight against Britain in the revolutionary war. It was so effective, in fact, that George Washington read it to the all of the troops in valley forge.

     The essay is meant as a call to action so as to inspire american soldiers to fight against Britain. It lays out and juxtaposes two different men the summer soldier, and the true patriot. In the introduction Paine says " These are the times that try men's souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country" by characterizing the summer soldier Paine creates a rather unfavorable archetype. He shows a soldier who literally and figuratively fights in the summer. The summer soldier is the soldier who literally fights in the summer but retreats home to comfort in the winter. This symbol is further extended at a deeper level. The summer could be referring to any time where fighting seems favorable, where sun and good fortune shine down on you, but as soon as darkness or threats loom, the sunshine patriot flees. Paine continues his argument in this first paragraph with an argument that seems both logical and emotional. It was a call to the american sense of divinity. He makes a clear logical relationship Tyranny is like hell and there for not easily conquered, but it is known that the harder a conflict the better the triumph. This call to action is deeply moving in that it not only lays out a logical reason to fight but also compels one to revolt against the actions of Britain depicted as nearly satanic.

The American Male at Age Ten (TOW #10)

     Susan Orlean has been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1992. She has also written for The Rolling Stone, Vogue, Esquire, and Outside. She is also a nonfiction novelist, whose most famous book, The Orchid Thief, was adapted into a movie. She has also received a Nieman Fellowship, a prestigious award from Harvard school of journalism.
     Her essay "The American Male at Age Ten" details the time Orlean spent with ten year old boy Colin Duffy. Orlean spends the essay giving many short anecdotes about Collin and frequently using dialogue that she takes from Collin and his friends. She opens the essay with a brief description of Collin, from his appearance to his interests. She then talks about his school, she details the social structure of the fifth grade classroom and shows us more about Collin through dialog. She continues on describing Collins social and home life. She focuses on many key aspects of Collin's life such as the girls in his class, his relationship with his friends, his dreams for the future, his obsession with money, and a rather detailed segment on Street Fighter II.
    The essay is centralized around dialogue between Orlean and Collin and thus, much like the inner dialogue of a ten year old, jumps between many different topics very quickly. This is done effectively however, and in such a way that helps to both characterize Collin very deeply in a very short amount of time, and support Orleans overall purpose in the essay. The essay acts as a general spectacle on the point in you at which one is between adolescence and childhood. When the typical naivete of children begins to fade. She highlights this masterfully in the very conclusion of her essay. When she explains Collins creation of a spider web trap.  It seems like a childish game but it also highlights Collin's increasing maturity and complexity. With him saying to her "You could do it with thread, but the fishing line is invisible. Now I have this perfect thing and the only one who knows about it is me."

IRB Intro 3

For my next IRB I will be reading A Short History Of Nearly Everything. I chose this book because it is a very detailed and interesting account of the history of life. The author, Bill Bryson, is also funny and was recommended to me by my father.

HRC Welseley (TOW # 9)

     In light of the current election i have decided to do a speech by one of the candidates, Hillary Clinton. This withstanding, however, i have decided not to use a speech from the recent debates. This is because we have already analyzed them. Rather i have chosen a speech i stumbled upon while browsing the internet, Clinton's Wellesley College commencement dress.
     Although today Clinton's ethos seems automatic, at the point of this speech it was far from that. Clinton was introduced before the speech by the dean of the school. She is established as both a good student and a charitable and kind girl, who the dean stated was a very obvious choice for the class speaker.
     It is also interesting to consider Clinton's audience in this speech. She is both speaking for and to her classmates. She both calls them to action and conveys their mass sentiment. For this reason her wording is both familiar as well as formal. She also takes great care only to use the first person plural.
     Clinton uses her speech to reflect on her class as a whole. She talks about the idea of reacting. she explains that her generation has spent years reacting to problems and aligning themselves with goals without doing much. She talks about how her generation developed themselves in people who acted for their beliefs. Clinton continues to describe the fact that in politics and history we have only thought of the possible, and no the impossible (and making it possible). She talks about this as their generation's goal. Clinton continues to talk about many people who doubt the girls of Wellesley college. She talks about devotion to the school as well as devotions to themselves. Clinton finishes, recognizing people may be afraid of change, but there is just no time for it now.

Stiff (TOW #8)

      Mary Roach is a notable science writer and journalist. She has a weekly column in Readers Digest and has published seven books, all revolving around points of interest in the science field. Roach's most popular book, Stiff, details the endeavors of the human body after death. Roach writes this essay to a general audience, using basic vocabulary and more elementary explanations. She establishes credibility with anecdotes of her own research and citations from many knowledgeable people.
     Roach's book essentially goes through and details the many possible uses for the human corpse after its inhabitant has died. Roach explains both the science behind the process the body undergoes during these procedures and elevates many misconceptions about them. Roach also gives anecdotes about these processes and how she has experienced them in her research. Roach continues to explain how these corpses can do good, and how their use can benefit society as a whole. Roaches over all goal throughout the essay is to sway her reader. She wants to both inform them of the power one corpse can have, as well as to persuade them to donate their corpse.
     Roach's most important tool as a writer is her great sense of humor. She is attempting to convince, a mostly begrudging audience to give away their body, even if it is after they are dead. She has a compelling list of arguments against her, from overwhelming fears, to cultural mores, to deep-rooted religious beliefs. However she uses facts and moral appeals to attempt to convince her audience. All the while she is certain to maintain a humorous and light tone. This is important, discussing death is treading into dangerous waters. It is a taboo that is typically avoided at all costs. But roach employs her light tone and dry humor to break through this taboo and convince her audience of the importance of donating your corpse, in one way or the other.