Harry Potters Girl Trouble

Christina Vinson June 3,2012 In the Harry potter books Schoefer is impressed by how kids are becoming passionate readers. The books are so great until there is a waiting list at the public library. These books provide a magical mystery,eye raising suspense, andcompelling language use. Schoefer conveys that she ignores the sexism part about these books. Schoefer goes on to name a few of the books and compare there sexes attitude. Schoefer is argueing her point about girls not being a direct charecter in these books Although Hermione is a girl and a best friend of Harry Potter, she does not take an fore front spot. Hermione is said to be smart and a goody goody person but it doesn't give her any special parts or powers. Harry Potter is the heroic person that saves a girl in distress. We can look at it as if he was protective friend or here heis again to save the day. I think she argued her point that girls aren't put in super hero stages but I think that it is up to the person, man ,woman,and and try to put themselves in the front lin

O Brother, where art thou?

In Ethan and Joel Coen's film called O Brother, Where Art Thou? a band of three misfit prison escapees seek a treasure as told by their so called leader Ulysses Everett McGill, The journey for their treasure takes them from breaking loose from a prison chain gain, to writing and signing a top hit song to escaping from the clutches of the Klu Klux Klan. The opening credits of this film state it is based upon the epic poem by Homer called The Odyssey. As many of today’s films are filled with sex, drugs and violence this film has hardly any of those and for those reasons it makes it one of the best films of its time.

Some negative critics of the film don’t see the humor, or the historical importance of the film. According to an independent film critic named Christopher “This is a story of selfishness and stupidity signifying nothing. The characters live in a beautiful world and have zero appreciation for it.”(1) Christopher perhaps missed the entire point of Ulysses’ dimwitted sidekicks and the fact that there are people that live the way the characters do and that is in a selfish and stupid fashion. Who is Christopher to say that their world is beautiful? Would the world seem beautiful if you were a wanted fugitive during the depression era? I believe the Coen brothers did a brilliant job of telling the tale a three less than intelligent men setting a goal and sticking with it through thick and thin. 

The fact that O Brother, Where Art Thou does not have any sex, drugs and minimal violence in it sets it apart from nearly all other films.  There is humor throughout the film and sometimes it is missed in the first, second and even third viewing. One of the funnier lines is when the trio was approaching a rundown farmstead and a young boy approaches them with a guy and starts to name who he has shot at. When the boy said “I nicked the census man” Delmar O’Donnell responds “now there’s a good boy” What is historical about that is the census (or the Federal Government) was not very popular with the citizens of this country in that time period.

O Brother, Where Art Thou shall stand the test of time and may even become more popular as the years go on as it tells a simple tale during a dark time in our countries history. Although the main character may be selfish, and the three of them would probably be considered “stupid” by someone, they are truly unique characters that you will root for throughout the film and anyone that takes the time to watch this lighthearted film will have a smile on their face when it is over.

(1) http://www.metacritic.com/movie/o-brother-where-art-thou

Harry Potter's Girl Trouble

  In Schoefer's essay Harry Potter's Girl Trouble she is evaluating how woman or girls are just helpers or enablers and have do higher meaning. To begin with, she starts her argument with the positive qualities that the Harry Potter series has to offer. Such as its "impressive lead on the best selling list", how Harry has the ability to turn all types of kids into readers, and the colorful but impressive imagery that just hooks the reader. Schoefer also left out some positive features that most likely enriched her argument. Some of these include how Hermoine may be annoying to the boys, but they were both in love with her, it cause a love triangle that added some interesting detail to a few of the books. She also forgets to explain how Hermoine saved their butts countless times proving that she is the brains to the operation, her story was deep and well thought out and it seems like Schoefer just ignores it to persuade her view on the "sexism" that the Harry Potter series is cursed with.

Harry Potter's girl trouble

The positive qualities that Schoefer identifies in The Harry Potter books are how brave Harry and Ron are, although she states that Harry is the braver of the two. How Hermione is book smart, and how Minerva is stricked but in a good way. I agree that Hermione was pretty stuck-up in the beginning but near the end, she ended up becoming pretty cool and she stuck by Harry and Ron's side till the end, whereas in the beginning, I wouldn't have thought that she would be there by there side. I think she is unfairly slanting her evidence since they whole point of the story was to explain how the women in the books basically get in the way and don't help much. Hermione was a "goody goody" in the first few books but as she got older she began to calm down and actually help Harry and Ron without aggravating them. If it wasn't for her, they wouldn't be able to do half the things that they did towards the ending books.

Transformers: Dark of the moon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCVFRkPUFlM&list=FLh3iFBku8L0aEog1PyY1Wyg&index=1&feature=plpp_video

I believe all in all this movie was bad ass. Between the graphics and story line, I loved it. With this being a great movie, I found my favorite part on youtube.com, so here you go.

This clip is about a car chase between a few of the Decepticons and Autobots. They used traveling shots in this scene to give you a  feeling of being in the movie. They went from one side of the road, to the other. As doing so, the background music faded a little bit while the sound of the cars' engines got higher. You could here the strength of the car as they raced away from the decepticons. Going more towards my favorite part, they used a decelerated motion to anticipated whether or not Sam was going to fall to his death or saved by Bumble Bee. Of course, like in most movies, Bumble Bee came to the rescue and caught him in mid-air as he blocked any debris going towards Sam. They did a close up shot as Bumble Bee transformed from robot mode to his Camaro form. Sam was still screaming like a girl in the passenger seat.

Film Review

After careful consideration, I choose What Dreams May Come to be my all-time favorite movie. Starring Robin Williams, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Annabella Sciorra, it is a movie about soulmates, the afterlife and the emotions associated with the concept of heaven and hell. It is based on the novel written in 1978 by Richard Matheson of the same title as the film adaptation. Although this movie did not get great rating or reviews by film critics or websites like Rotten Tomatoes, I fell in love with not only the storyline itself by the vivid colors and visible depiction of heaven and hell. Even the author of the book made the statement " I will not comment on What Dreams May Come, except that a major producer in Hollywood said 'They should have shot your book.'Amen" It starts out with Robin Williams character, Chris, meeting Annabella Sciorra's character, Annie, in Italy in sailboats. I believe in fate in real life and was impressed that this was shown so nicely in this movie. They get married and have two kids, a son and a daughter. The kids get killed in an auto accident, which causes Annie to go mentally insane and to get put into a mental institution. Chris himself dies in an car related accident. He is a doctor in the movie and is trying to save victims of an accident that he had been stuck in traffic for. Chris finds himself in what he calls his part of heaven. It comes across as a beautiful oil painting that his wife, Annie, actually painted in real life. I enjoyed this part because I often wish I could disappear in my own paintings. Chris then meets his dog, a dalmation, that he had to put to sleep due to old age, in heaven and he thinks he is in doggie heaven. This a part of the movie that I could relate to, I own an dalmation. Annie ends up committing suicide because she is unable to deal with all the death that has occurred. Chris finds out that Annie committed suicide and that she will end up in hell because of that. He makes his mission to rescue her so that they can be together forever in afterlife. Another character is introduced as Albert, a medical mentor of Chris', played by Cuba Gooding Jr. Albert leads Chris on this mission to rescue Annie from hell. Along the way Chris discovers Albert is actually is Chris' son. His son choose to be shown to him as Albert because of the respect that his dad always had shown Albert. Chris also runs into an airline stewardess that he soon realizes is his daughter. His daughter had chosen the stewardess based on a statement that her dad said during a flight together of Asians are beautiful. Chris and his son journey to hell which is shown as the broken down house they all had lived in. Annie is trapped in that house. Chris goes in to save Annie but is warned first by his son that if he stays in there too long he too will be trapped. After the failed attempt to trigger Annie's memories, Chris decides that he will just stay in hell with her. This clearly demonstrates to me that true love means sacrifice. Annie comes to and they end up back in heaven with both kids and the dog too. The jump between the hell and heaven part wasn't thought thoroughly through and didn't make much sense to me. The film critics felt this way as well. In the end of the movie, Chris and Annie decide they want to be reborn again. The scene flashes to a lake and two kids, a boy and a girl, sailing toy boats that collide with each other, once again implying the soulmate theme. Even with all the negative reviews this film received, I would still recommend it to everybody. It has the makings of a great movie, a love story, drama and action. It is all in how you perceive heaven and hell and how you feel about soulmates and the afterlife.

The Greatest Speech Ever Made

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WibmcsEGLKo&feature=related

This video clip used many film aspects to convey a message. It begins with a close-up of Charlie Chaplin. The emotions are apparent in his face as he begins speaking and the viewers are focused on his face then his words. As the voice-over begins a cross-cutting scene begins playing to translate the meaning of his words to image that are in everyday life. Chaplin's voice modulates to emphasize the importance of his delivery. Emotions begins to stir as images roll across the screen. The intensity of the message increases as Chaplin's voice amplifies and the images of life and death are shown. As he speaks of the depravity of humans images of depravity are shown. As he speaks of humanity images of life and kindness are displayed. Utilizing montage to show historical accounts, Chaplin speaks of how technology has brought humans closer together and torn people apart. The clip ends by showing how beautiful life is and relating these images to words of hope to inspire the viewers to take a stand, make a change for the better, and leave a mark on this world.

Harry Potter's Girl Trouble

   The positive qualities that Schoefer identifies in the Harry Potter books are their impressive lead on the bestseller lists, parents' raves about Harry Potter's magical ability to turn kids into passionate readers, her daughters' clamoring and the mile-long waiting lists at the public library. Schoefer ignores the struggle between good and evil and how good triumphs over evil. Also, the value of mentors to students is important to not only teach academia but to teach important life lessons. Another important aspect that was overlooked was over children can overcome being bullied. Harry Potter was bullied by other students, but he did not let these obstacles keep him down. Harry Potter persisted and succeeded through adversity. Schoefer's failure to mention these positive aspects means she is slanting her evidence for the argument. The focus of the portrayal of females in the Harry Potter trilogy would definitely persuade someone's opinion of these books. Leaving out the lessons learned by reading these books is not being objective.

Harry Potter's Girl Trouble

Although I did not run out and buy the Harry Potter series in book form , I do proudly own them in Blu-Ray. I purchased them for pleasure, not to critically analyze them. They are intriguing due to the magical content itself. It gives you focus outside real life. There is and always will be one form or another of sexism. I do not completely agree with Christine Schoefer's article where she insists the the female characters are inferior to the male characters. The books are appropriately titled Harry Potter for a reason. If the series were focused primarily on the female roles, then it should be titled differently. The Harry Potter books follow Harry Potter himself and his journey to magical maturity and his endeavors along the way. There are indeed more influential male roles compared to female roles. However, the female roles are just as important. Dumbledor and Hagrid are two primary male roles who are Harry's mentors and father figures whereas Ron and Hermione are his friends who accompany him throughout his magical adventure. Hermione serves as the wisdom to this diverse group of three. She is studious to remain competent and current in wizardry which is historical dominated by males. Unlike Harry Potter who is recognized by the stories of his battle with Lord Voldemort as an infant and his famous lightning bolt scar, she has to earn her place. Her choice to focus on her studies is the reason she "has no girlfriends" and where Christine stated "she felt sorry for her", I do not. No matter what gender you are, in order to stay ahead of the game, you have to put in the effort. Once again proving herself as not the typical female who is conscious of their looks, Hermione comes across as almost a tomboy which helps her fit in even more with Harry and Ron. Girls will be girls, we are more emotional and showy of emotions then most males. We will blush in the presence of an attractive person. This example is shown in Christine's article where she points out Ginny, Ron's younger sister, does blush and stammer around Harry. J.K Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter books, is just trying to show that Harry is physically attractive as well as an aspiring wizard. Ginny does become Harry's love interest and ultimately marry and have kids. There are female characters scattered throughout the series but none individually that really influence Harry. J.K. Rowling wrote an incredible series of books even though they are based on males. If Christine Schoefer is truely perturbed by the stereotypical writing, then she should write her own series with the lead character being a female.

Cultural Studies/ Superbad

    In the movie Superbad, written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg the characters are driven by partying and sex. The movie is trying to portray how in teen culture boys only care about getting "laid". They write a story about three boys who are on a mission to lose their virginity. The writers try to express how these young men are willing to do pretty much anything for sex. That being; getting a fake ID, running from cops, and getting intoxicated. Throughout the movie the three high school student encounter many troubles that some other students may encounter everyday. For example, that daily visit from the bully, stopping at a gas station for red bull before class, and not having a lab partner. The reason behind the story is to make a general audience laugh at something that they may have experienced in high school, and show that high school students are always going to be looking to accomplish a similar goal. Superbad may be targeted for a younger audience around the ages of 16-30, but if you have a aberrant sense of humor than the film can be just enough to make you laugh aswell.

Film Review Movie "Big"

The movie"Big" was a movie that about a young boy who made a wish that he was big. Because he was not able to ride on the ride with his friends. After, the next day he was big, Tom Hanks, played the adult part, of the movie Big. He thought making this wish would be an effective way for him to do anything. He feels that adults are able to whatever they would like to do when they want to without any restrictions; for example, he wanted to stay up late to watch TV and he did. Because he was now an adult, he had to support himself. After learning that things were not all grand being big, he wanted to be a kid again. He found that he this was an ineffective wish because he had to responsible adult with no more free time. I am sure we all have said " I wish I was older or bigger", some point of time.  This is an example of do not rush to grow up. Enjoy life day by day and do not rush time.

Harry Potter's Girl Trouble

What positive qualities does Schoefer identify in the Harry Potter books? Schoefer describes the four factors that lead her to purchase that Harry Potter books: Leading on best sellers list, parent's raves about the books, and her daughter glamorizing over Harry Potter character. She was intrigued by the magical world, wizards, sorcerers, and Hogwart's School of witchcraft. There are other positive factors that should have been mentioned; for example, the troubles that Harry had to endure while growing up. His parents died when he was young, and his family treated him very badly. Because he was not their child, he was treated like an outcast. However, this did not influence Harry to be a hateful or negative person and influenced with positive attitude. I do not feel that she is not justified in discussing this positive aspect of the books. This is an important factor that no matter how bad things may seem a person can be a productive individual. He shows no bitter emotions to those who treat him very badly. Also, he is a positive role model for other young people that may have lost their parents due to a tragedy. I feel that Schoefer seems to be "sexist", by the way she down grades Hermione's self worth. I thought these were books to enjoy reading and take you away from everyday life. I feel that Schoefer is more focused on the sexist instead of the actual stories.

 





Do the Harry Potter books deserve their popularity?

Do the Harry Potter books deserve their popularity?

I have viewed the entire collection of Harry Potter adventures, as well as read the entire series and I would definitely have to say yes to the question. The Harry Potter books deserve all the popularity it has received.

Author J. K. Rowling was able to entwine make-believe with reality as well as linking action with adventure. She created a bewitching fantasy world littered with confrontation, prejudices, and determination to believe in something greater than the viewer. The Harry Potter books pull the reader into a childlike atmosphere that makes one want to believe in the possibilities. It also has many real life experiences that many people have gone through as children.

The Harry Potter series opens one up to the magnificent creativity of the author as the scenes develop before the eyes. These books travel through the life of a young boy as it watches him grow and mature into a young man of incredible values and morals, despite his unpleasant, unfortunate circumstances.

With each challenge that he faces Harry Potter must invent ways using intelligence, rationality and determination, sometimes without the use of his magic. Harry Potter’s determination is a very good influence for young readers because it allows them see that if they set there minds to a goal or task, they can achieve it.

Many reviews that have been written do not agree with J. K. Rowling’s books because of their use of supernatural aspects such as wizards, warlocks and witches. Believing this cannot be suitable subjects for young people to be immersed in.

Although everyone is entitled to their opinions, Rowling’s Harry Potter books are far from being unsuitable. There are many other famous novels that deal with witchcraft or the unfamiliar. Harry Potter books are very much deserving of the popularity. The use of imagination and creativity help to champion the underdog. It gives one the understanding that people should always fight for truth, justice and righting the wrongs as well as helps one to believe that you can concur obstacle.

Week 3 DQ #2

Idealogical Review of Forrest Gump

Tom Hanks is the main character in the award winning movie Forrest Gump. He plays an outstanding character who can be a role model for anybody. Forrest Gump was known as the town idiot who proved his intelligence without being aware of the epic decisions he was making during his life. The only things Forrest was truly familiar with was love, selflessness, the importance of family, and relationships that lasted forever. He would take advice from anyone and could call them a friend. Forrest had a mind that never gave up. He presented us with a difficult life but all it took was to be motivated. He showed the world that a human being is capable making any choice one desires. Forrest lived in a world where no judgments were ever made by one another. In every one there should be a Forrest Gump giving you the bright side.

The film is a complete set of values that should take place in every ones daily life. Watch it once, you feel the importance to love all things, watch it twice and you’ll want to call your long -lost, best friend. The way this movie inspires leaves a hero in all of us. He could make the sun shine on any day.

Week 3 discusion post #1

Recently, I fell in love with a corky, free-spirited, beauty who is named Sara(Charlize Theron). She is the main character in the romantic comedy Sweet November. Her happiness and passion for life really engaged my attention. She meets a stranger at the local DMV named Nelson (Keanu Reeves). Nelson is a workaholic who has no spare time if he’s not making money. During, a driving test he’s forced to take by his secretary, Nelson distracts Sara and the instructor calls her out for cheating. Sara leaves the exam room with no shame but with an idea up her sleeve to get revenge on Nelson…the sweetest revenge.

Sara and Nelson’s personalities are polar opposites, but after one month together they share memories that will last them forever.

This movie is a pleasure for me because it is truly inspiring. The reality in the story line can relate to many individuals who are thirsty for motivation in their own lives. No matter who you are or what you are going through, this film can make you appreciate anything. It will make you want love, it will make you want to cry. It will also give you an idea that with any amount of time you have at the moment, you can be happy in it.

Essay 1

The majority of you should have received Essay 1 by now.  I still have a handful that I am working through over here, but those of you still waiting will have them back well before the next essay is due.

This is a good time for my to make a note about revisions.  You have the option to revise any of your essays.  There are three things you must do in order to take this option.

• Let me know that you plan to revise the essay within 48 hours of receiving it back from me.
• Revise the essay and email it to me within one week of its return.  (In other words, if you got your essay back today, I would need your revision by next Thursday.)
• Return the original graded essay and rubric with your new copy.

As you revise, pay attention to both the original assignment sheet and the grading rubric returned to you with the essay.  Also note that I will not raise your grade if you perform only cosmetic, grammatical revisions.  That is proofreading, not revising.  Revising should indicate an overhaul of essay construction or content and should go beyond simply correcting the grammatical notes I have made on your paper.

DQ #2: Ideological Analysis on Avatar.

Avatar may seem like a purely entertaining movie, it however is promoting many ideas and underlying themes in its plot. For example, the humans begin to invade, colonize, and exploit the natural resources of the “Na'vi” or blue tiger-like people. A classic tale of what humans have done to each other, to animals, and to nature itself since the beginning of time. It is clear that the movie aligns itself with the side that this is wrong, because the Hero is the one who opposes it and fights with the Na'vi against the humans. In the movie, the humans only care about removing the one, expensive natural resource that the Na'vi possess and are willing to eradicate their population to get it. The movie also promotes the idea that beings are and should be ones with nature. The Na'vi are their entire planet get energy from the trees, and when the trees are cut down the Na'vi and the planet are no more. One can just switch the natural resource in the movie for oil in real life, and see the significant parallels. Humans will destroy natural environments and habitats, endangering animals in the process, to obtain and drill for oil. Or substitute it for diamonds: Humans will go into other countries or continents (Africa) and colonize, endanger, and steal all of the wealth of that country and its citizens by digging for diamonds, cashing in huge, and keeping all of the profits. These are all very similar to James Cameron's tale, Avatar.

DQ#1: Film Aspects on Step Brothers.

In the youtube clip of the 2008 movie Step Brothers titled “Watch the Shark Week Clip”, many film tactics are used to capture the scene. The scene is continuously cross cutting between Dale and Brennan, and their parents. First the parents talk, then Dale and Brennan, and back and forth. In each step of the cross cutting, a two-shot is involved with both actors, and when Dale and Brennan are being shown it even involves a medium-closeup and a two-shot. The most obvious reaction shot is when Dale's father decides to punish the boys and says “no television for a week!”, in which case it cuts back to Dale and Brennan slamming down their ice packs in anger screaming “WHAT?!?!”. The scene also begins with a more mild reaction shot when Dale's father turns off the television to get their attention and the camera cuts back to Dale saying “Dad, what are you doing? It's shark week!”. 

Film Review Examples

Prometheus review
Snow White and the Huntsman review

Agenda - Week Three: Evaluation Arguments

Practical Argument Readings:

• Chapter 14: “Evaluation Arguments” (385-415)
• Chapter 9: “Summarizing, Paraphrasing, Quoting and Synthesizing Sources” (249-262)
• Chapter 10: Documenting Sources: MLA (265-279)

Presentations:

• "Incorporating Sources: Quoting, Paraphrasing, Summarizing, Citing" (UNC, Fayetteville)
• "MLA Formatting: The Basics" (Purdue OWL)
• In-Text Citations

Resources:

University of Chicago Lab:  How to Write a Movie Review
Dartmouth University Writing Program: "Writing About Film"

Discussion Questions:

• Using the "Structuring an Evaluation Argument" outline on pages 388-89 (PA), write an evaluation of your favorite (or least favorite) film.
• Find a movie clip on YouTube and analyze it using at least 3-5 filmic aspects listed in the Glossary section of the Dartmouth "Writing About Film" page linked above.  Include the clip in your post.
• Review the "Kinds of Film Papers" section on the Dartmouth "Writing About Film" site linked above.  Choose one of the kinds of papers, and use it to write a short analysis of one of your favorite (or least favorite) films.
• Read "Harry Potter's Girl Trouble" in PA (411-13) and answer question two on page 413.
• Write a response to Exercise 14.8 on page 414 of PA.

Assignment:

Essay 3, due Monday, June 4 at 11:59 pm.  I'm putting an extra day in for each essay so your responses and essays won't all be due on the same day.  It should make your lives a bit easier, I hope.  The assignment sheet will be posted to the Lessons page of Angel as Essay 3: Film Review.