Boys and Girls IOC

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bz9VERFQIZSgZ0hOSm1xUVpRQm8/view

This is Water

In his essay 'This is water' David Foster Wallace develops his thesis through further developing the

concept of the term ' freedom'. Wallace uses certain subjects such as education, empathy and the general concept of the adult life to drive home the meaning of freedom.

To spark our interest, Wallace uses the example of an elder fish (as an introduction ) briefly passing by two young innocent and inexperienced fish and asking them “how's the water?”. It is evident that the two youngsters have not yet ventured out into life as they question his question by raising another one “What the hell is water?”, this displays that they have not yet experienced all of 'waters' wonders. With regard to this essay the term 'water' symbolizes life. As we progress and grow throughout life, we are faced with or put into situations which forces us to stop and think “Why me?!”. It is through this essay that Wallace urges the

general public to come to terms with and be aware of the fact that nobody is perfect and that there is no such thing as a “perfect life”. We have to experience and get through the choppy waters to enable us to see the bigger picture. He further enforces this message through the subjects he mentions.

Education is not something that everyone has the privilege of experiencing. Education is a gift that opens up or minds to the possibilities of the future, through learning this, we are far more cautious in ensuring that we do not repeat the mistakes of the past. Wallace had came to understand that when teachers said they aimed to teach us “how to think” what they really meant was “learning how to think”. There is a fine line between being conscious and unconscious. When one is conscious, they will tend to look at a situation and try to find the silver lining within every cloud if you will. Whereas if someone is unconscious, they will tend to do the opposite and look at every single thing through a negative and ungrateful lens. When one begins thinking in an unconscious manner they tend to push everything aside, and believe that they are the centre of attention. The individuals will begin to think that their “needs and feelings are what should determine the world's priorities”. In terms of consciously thinking we get to decide how we want to perceive things, we are the ones who get to look at certain things and get to choose “what has meaning and what doesn't”. Ultimately anything we decide whether it is conscious or unconscious or even both, is all in our own hands. How we view the world as a whole, people, the environment and our lives is all in our hands! We make our own decisions regardless of being either negative or positive, we are free.

Empathy is a strong feeling, that enables us to experience what another person is feeling through their frame of reference. Wallace embeds empathy throughout his essay, he uses the example of being stood in a cashier line with various different types of people waiting to get there items checked out. You never know what other people are going through in their lives, so cutting them some slack as they get themselves sorted out at the checkout line could be very helpful. Everyone goes through “frustrating crap” in their lives and by thinking to yourself that “the likelihood that everyone else in the supermarket's checkout line is just as bored and frustrated as I am, and that some of these people probably have much harder, more tedious or painful lives than I do, overall” makes it easier for not only you but for everyone else in the world to be able to empathize with those around us.

Being an adult is not easy, you are solely in charge of feeding yourself, cleaning up after yourself, paying your bills and taxes, oh and making sure your goldfish gets fed everyday rather than once a week. You consider running away now more than ever, you just want to stop “adulting” and go back to living with your parents, and have your mom make you her famous grilled cheese sandwich. Unfortunately there is no turning back when you join adulthood, personally Wallace's essay further expanded my knowledge and opened my eyes to exactly what it is like to be an adult. He explains in further detail what “an average adult day” consists of day in and day out, whilst not forgetting the hardships that adults must go through on a daily basis, it's certainly thought provoking.

Subsequently, Wallace's theory relates to our inquiry question, 'How can literature develop empathy and emotional intelligence?' as through his essay he was able to get across to the world what its like to live in another human beings shoes. Through the use of his extensive language and with the help of relatable situations and experiences as readers, learners and thinkers our knowledge is immensely broadened. We as human beings are able to take these situations and experiences and break them down so that we can be able to sympathize and empathize with others. 

Munro Literature Reflection

When I think about literature, I get quite excited. When I pick up a novel, poem or a short story I posses the ability to travel in time and not only explore the past, present and future but I also am exposed to the worlds issues and dilemmas that I would perhaps never considered. The best part about studying literature, is that we get to study it in depth. Upon the assistance of rhetorical devices, literary techniques and elements we are able to dissect a text and get down to core, alongside that we as literature students are able to go into the world with open eyes and have a better understanding of those around us. Through studying women’s literature we are able to understand exactly how they have been oppressed and how that slowly they have been released from Male dominance and the scrutiny of society. The themes and values of Munro’s social realism is significant during the 1950s-1980s because in her work, Munro presents how women struggle everyday to meet societies standards. During the 50s to 80s it was all about the empowerment of women and their equal rights and achievements. Although Munro does not identify herself as a feminist, her work has contributed to gender equality by expressing to society what women have gone through and continue to go through over the years, whilst also displaying how they muster up the courage and strength to fight for themselves and their rights. I find Alice Munro's work very refreshing, although various authors have spoken about the oppression of women Munro presents it in a form where her readers are able to both relate and engage with her work and truly begin to understand the struggle women have and continue to go through. Reading a few of Munro's works has really opened my eyes, I knew that women had been subjected to oppression and that they had been restricted from being their true selves and branching off and doing what they desire. Munro’s work has the ability to genuinely resonate with her readers as she writes about past and current events and experiences that we all have come across in some points of our lives. 

Music Anthology Role Play

You know when your sitting there listening to a really great song and once its over you think ' wow ,that hit a spot'? Well thats exactly how I felt about Lady Antebellum's 'Compass'.

This song delivers an empowering message to its listeners which is to just allow yourself to settle into what you do best, to believe in yourself and let things take there natural course. Overall, it creates an atmosphere of joy and encouragement, whilst at the same time sending out a positive message to those who need it. In life we come to face numerous obstacles that leave us both stressed and provoke conflict within ourselves. The lyrics assure the audience ( people who doubt themselves and their decisions, who feel like they have no one to lean on for support) that they must muster all of their power within themselves and believe that they should let their hearts be their compasses when they are lost and to “follow it wherever it may go”.

The songs message is enhanced with the assistance of rhetorical devices, one of them being didactic narration. The song lyrics come across in a didactic narration, it is presented in this fashion in order for the listeners to take away the message of the song, as explained above. Whilst also provoking a feeling of reassurance from them, to inform them that they will never be alone as stated in the song “Cause no matter what, you'll never be alone”. Metaphors are used twice throughout the song, the first one “So let your heart sweetheart be your compass when your lost” meaning that if you follow your compass then you will constantly be happy as you are doing what you are meant to be doing. It is directly followed by the lyrics “And you should follow it wherever it may go” indicating that by following wherever your heart leads you, even if things are going south you should slow down and “walk instead of run”. By walking instead of running you are more likely to ease into your current situation, as opposed to rushing around and chasing after things because some people try so hard and end up empty handed.

Lady Antebellum has formed their entire song into an extended metaphor, which is letting your heart guide you. The song lyrics are broken down into components that when read separately a certain message rises to the surface, but once all the puzzle pieces are put together the true and final meaning is exposed. In conclusion it is through these lyrics that Lady Antebellum chooses to display a message they want to share with the rest of the world, one that could potentially assist others to cope with their daily lives along with all the things and occur in them.

Music video link :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiG-4-V7Xd0