SOAPSTONE "Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out"

SUBJECT:
The subject of Dave Barry's "Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out" is that men and women see things differently. What may seem almost nonexistent to men sticks out like a sore thumb to women, and what seems very unimportant to women is of very high importance to men. Barry's viewpoint is illustrated by his two personal examples. First, when his wife asks him to clean their son's bathroom and after he had she asked him to do the same task again. His second example is of the dinner party at his friends house. All of the men wanted to watch to world series and he depicts how each ended up being able to do so. Both of these examples show how men and women see things differently.

OCCASION:
"Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out" was written during the late 1900's. This essays time of creation was conveyed by the non-sexist view on women the author has. By the late 1900's men and women were seen as equals. The probably place of this essay is in Miami, Florida where Barry lives with his family. The time of this articles creation influences the essay by the author being able to describe the differences between men and women without being viewed as sexist.

AUDIENCE:
Dave Barry's specific audience for "Batting Clean-up and Striking Out" is married med who can relate to his examples. The author's targeted audience was revealed by his multiple stories of his wife and his own different perceptions on the same things. Other married men could relate to things and sympathize with him; whereas a married women would not understand his viewpoint and it might even anger her a little for someone to say that she sees dirt where it is not and doesn't appreciate a good sports game.

PURPOSE:
Dave Barry's purpose in "Batting Clean-up and Striking Out" is to portray the many ways men and women see things differently in a humorous and relate-able way o that people will both want to read his writing and sympathize with how he feels. His purpose is made clear when he uses his examples of cleaning the bathroom and the world series game. When he does this, however, he does not bash his wife and say that the way he sees things is the only right way but, rather, admit to the fact that they see things differently neither one more right then the other.

SPEAKER:
Dave Barry, a humorist whom the New York Times has called "the funniest man in America," believes that although men and women see some things very differently both are equal and neither one is more or less right them the other. Barry supports this belief with her stories of the way he and his wife see things differently.

TONE:
Dave Barry exhibits a humorous and sarcastic tone attitude about the differences between men and women. I believe this is because although he encounters them in his everyday life they are not something to stress about. He shows his humorous attitude through his stories about cleaning his already clean son's bathroom and how the guys got to watch the world series at the dinner party. Barry exhibits his sarcastic tone through some of the phrases in his essay for example when he says "If you can imagine such a social gaffe."

A Short Film

Single Effect:
Don't overlook the small things in life, and take every opportunity given to you.

3 things that add to the single effect:
1. The music at the beginning of the film creates a happy feeling.
2. The girl and the man have matching gloves.
3. The overall optimistic feel.

One Thing Changed:
IF you took out the music it would change it for the worst.

Harry Nilson "Good Old Desk"

Subject- God
Occasion- 1970's
Audience- People who don't believe in God
Purpose- To explain how God is always there for him, and at times the only thing he can rely on.
Speaker- Harry Nilson
Tone- Joyful

3 lyrics that show he is talking about God:
1. "It's got no place to go it's always there"
2. "my old desk never needs a rest and I've never once heard it cry I've never seen it tease, It's always there to please me"
3. "It's the friend I've got, a giant of all times"

Rockwell's "The Runaway"

Counter culture is going against what is currently accepted at the "normal" in a certain area. The the painting the little boy is talking to the police man, and has a nap-sack like he is running away. One would expect that the boy's parents would be worried and wouldn't expect to see the police officer to be talking to the little boy in such a friendly matter, but rather just take him home. Rockwell being born before the 1950's had an impaired judgement of what was currently going on in society. When he was a child it was not uncommon for a child to disappear for a few hours because there was little danger in small towns, and everyone knew everyone. Rockwell's "The Runaway" overlooks the fundamental rift that was rising in america throughout the 1950s- an emerging counter culture that was not concerned with how things were in America but rather how they are.

"Across The Universe" The Beatles

3 Images:
1. “words are flying out like endless rain into a paper cup”
2. “images of broken light which dance before me like a million eyes”
3. “sounds of laughter”

Symbols in Context:
Words are flying out like endless rain into a paper cup in a symbol for ideas that never stop.

Definitely a Symbol:
Light in a symbol of happiness.

Shooting an Elephant

Subject:
The subject of George Orwell’s “Shooting an Elephant” is the effects that the pressure of society has on an individual when faced with a decision. This is illustrated when the police officer is sent to control the elephant, but when the croud of Burmans pressured him to kill the animal after seeing the gun in his hands he felt compelled to do so to avoived looking like a fool. The officer did not want to kill the animal, however, the pressure to do so from the crowd overwhelmd him, forcing him to go agaisnt what he felt was right and conform to what society wanted.

Occasion:
“Shooting an Elephant” was written in the 1920’s. The essay’s time of creation is exhibited when the author refers to the dying of the British empire that ruled over India until the mid 1900's by saying, “I did not even know that the British Empire is dying.” The place of the essay's creation is most likely Burma, India. The time and place of the essay's creation influenced how the author felt about the Burman's that were pressuring him to kill the elephant as well as the British Empire at the time.

Audience:
The specific audience that Orwell is targeting in his essay, “Shooting an Elephant” is people that understand what it is like to be pressured into doing something you would have otherwise not done. He makes this clear by emphasizing the fact that if not for the large crowd pressuring him to do so, he would have not killed the elephant. In his essay Orwell talks about how the people of Burma hated him, and how that added to the negative pressure working against him. Through his writing he conveys how impossible it felt to stand up for what he believed was right to the people that hated him. This is a very wide audience because, although not everyone has experienced something exactly to what Orwell had, everyone has been pressured into doing something that was against their better judgment.

Purpose:
George Orwell’s purpose in “Shooting an Elephant” was to portray that it is difficult to stay true to your morals when being pressured by a large group of people. When someone is faced with a decision where the line between right and wrong is being distorted by the pressure to do what society wants the will often conform to society because of the overwhelming fear of being judged and made fun of because of your decision. Even though Orwell did not want to shoot the elephant the pressure from the crowd of Burmans belittled him into doing so. After the fact, he felt as though he had gone agaisnt his own will and felt horrible for his actions.

Speaker:
George Orwell, an author of the 20th century, believes that it is wrong to make decisions based on the expectations of society and going against your own judgment. He believes that everyone should think for themselves and do what they think is right in every situation. After killing the elephant because the pressure of the crowd and the overwhelming fear of what everyone else would think he said, “I often wondered whether any of the others grasped that I had done it solely to avoid looking a fool.” Although most people would blame the crowd of Burmans for pressuring him to do the wrong thing, Orwell takes full responsibility to not staying true to what he thought was right under the circumstances.

Tone:
George Orwell has a negative and angry attitude about his conscious decision to conform to what society wanted him to do in his essay “Shooting an Elephant”. After he shot the elephant Orwell had feelings of regret and was discontented with himself. Taking this overall negative tone to his essay shows that one should always do what they think is right when faced with a decision no matter how over powering society might be. In the end, you will always be content knowing that you did what you felt was right.