Comic King

Ethos, by definition, is "a speaker appeals to ethos to demostrate that they are credible and trustworthy to speak on a given topic...is established by both who you are and what you say". In Scott McCloud's excerpt Show and Tell from his book "Understanding Comics", we were asked to identify his use of ethos throughout his comic strips. With this short excerpt, McCloud describes how words and pictures can work together in harmony to give a more in depth experience when reading.

The background information on McCloud on page 805 is a start to establishing his credentials on the subject of comic books. He has worked on numberous projects and has created many books explaining comics, such as Understanding Comics, Reinventing Comics, and Making Comics. By listing all of these achievements and works before the excerpt even begins, this textbook allows the reader to understand that they are not dealing with a simple amateur here. McCloud knows his comics.

In the very first panels of his comic, McCloud depicts a similar scene that everyone can relate to. He shows his younger self in front of a class full of schoolchildren, displaying his toy robot for show and tell. He is goaded by the teacher to use his words to explain the details of his robot as he displays it. But McCloud does not use just words; he also shows the class by pointing out how it can become an airplane or how it can change shape. McCloud establishes credibility with these first few panels because everyone who has been in a school setting can relate to this activity. Back when we were children, it would be common to just use words and demonstrations interchangeably - something that McCloud points out and builds upon. Creating a similar scenario for the audience reels them in and helps them relate to what he has to say and giving him the credit of being truthful in his beginning panels. McCloud then goes on to different definitions for a multitude of different comics on pages 810-811. His caricature would say the definition in the left panel, and the right panel would have small example comics that explain what he is describing. This is what definitely displays his use of ethos because he is taking an authoritative and informative stance on comics. I honestly had no idea that there were so many comics and that they all served different purposes for setting up a scene. By using different examples and thoroughly explaining how each one worked, McCloud was able to convince the reader that he knew what he was talking about. McCloud elaborated on this use of ethos by using one example of a woman buying ice cream and recreating it within the context of other definitions. He used interdependent, parallel, and amplification to describe how much words and pictures depended on each other in a scene. By practicing what he explains and clearly showing evidence of his knowledge and talent, McCloud is able to undeniably prove his credibility in the world of comics.

How We Created Unattainable Beauty

In Celebrity Bodies by Daniel Harris, we were treated to a look at celebrity lives and how they are victims of the middle class and not the other way around. This essay touches base on subjects of celebrities going through crash diets to obtain or keep a malnourished figure. Celebrities are constantly under a magnifying glass; their every move is watched and criticized by other celebrities and the masses of people that tune in to watch. We savor reading trashy tabloids flat out lying about these poor celebrities, yet one step off the golden path of goodness leads to us shaming these people for the rest of their lives. We want there to be more representation within the media, yet lash out when we are actually shown fuller-figured celebrities. 

There was one instance that I recently read about that irked me like no other. As most people would know, Sports Illustrated magazine recently came out with yet another addition of its coveted Swimsuit Edition. On the front cover was Ashley Graham, the first full figure model to ever grace the front page of Sports Illustrated. There were also multiple pictures of plus size models within the magazine, and it was praised for finally showing some curves and going against the conventional standards of beauty (which having a society that sets the bar for beauty and dictates every little thing within that sphere is disgusting, but well). Cheryl Tiegs, back in what Hollywood would consider her "glory days" (I.e. When she was youthful and a pretty thing to look at), also was a cover girl for the Swimsuit Issue. She had some problems with this recent issue. She is quoted saying: 

"I don't like that we're talking about full-figured women because it's glamorizing them, and your waist should be smaller than 35 [inches]". 

She then goes on to say how she means well, that Dr. Oz said this himself, etc. She immediately recieved backlash from multiple groups stating that her own covers back in the day inspired anorexic and bulimic tendencies within young girls at the time. When I had heard of the story, I immediately knew that she was going to have to publicly apologize, or else her image would be relentlessly picked apart until there was nothing left. Soon enough, my prediction rang true. She publicly apologized for her mistaken message and praised Graham for her courage and beautiful figure. (Graham, pictured on the left with her cover image; Tiegs is pictured on the right).

And so it goes. We are always ready to tear a new one into any celebrity we please. Should Tiegs be promoting an unhealthy lifestyle or having a healthier figure in the long run? Back in her day, she was considered the healthy figure. So it could be a fault on what she was forced to endure back in her model days, where the health of a woman was not the main concern, so long as her hip bones jutted out and her breasts were still perky. While our society is learning to be more health concerned and cry out for more representation, we still face those that grew up thinking that an absolutely flat stomach is what every woman wants to aim for, no matter her body type. And for Tiegs, she bears the brunt of social ignorance in the past in this instance here. There is no verbal backspace for her. There is no amounts of apologizing that will do her good. For now she will be seen as public enemy #1 who wants girls to be anorexic to achieve her waistline until the paparazzi find another poor celebrity to sink their teeth into. It's interesting, isn't it? We have condensed all the traits average people want to obtain - fortune, status, glittering galas and chiseled bodies - and placed in some magical far away place that can only be accessed through pictures and movies. By doing this, we have elevated what could have been normal men and women and placed them in godly glory. But, one false move from these gods and it is like the cloth is torn from our eyes. They turn out to be human, with their own set of flaws and insecurities; and that simply cannot do. 

 

I'll Get Around to My Zombie Later

There are many "zombies" in my life, to put it that way. I stay up super late watching YouTube videos of Good Mythical Morning and Markiplier. I go on Tumblr and just scroll through for hours on end, even if I know I don't want to waste my time doing something mindless. I go on Buzzfeed and take brain numbing quizzes, such as "This scribble will tell you how tired you are" and "which animal are you based on your zodiac sign?" . Recently, I've gotten obesessed with a game on my phone called Neko Atsume, which is basically this generation's version of Tamagotchi (I have a cat named Joe DiMeowgio and I am in love). These multiple vices have been keeping me up late at night and distracting me for hours on end. But the worst vice I have isn't electronic; though my constant connection with online media certainly does not help. The biggest zombie that I've never been able to kill is procrastination.

I have tried to win against procrastination ever since my days in middle school. There will be times where a sudden burst of motivation consumes me, and I rush to do as many assignments as I can before my usual lethargy takes over and I'm back on my phone. It's just a constant battle that I cannot seem to win. It's like this zombie can regenerate over and over again. I can take it down for a measly hour or two and then it's back again, ready and raring to take me down. My parents have attempted numerous times to help me kill this zombie. They have gotten me procrastination help books, day planners, and calendars to schedule out assignments and projects that aren't due the next day. I have heard the foreboding warnings of teachers going "You shouldn't wait until the last minute!" and "You'll regret it when you're staying up all night finishing the paper/project!". And yet it is impossible for me to heed these warnings and actually do something about it.

Now, do not get me wrong. It is not like this zombie is completely in control all the time. I'm not in honors classes for nothing. When I know that I have work to do, I will not rest until all of that homework is completed. I literally cannot fall asleep unless I know that every piece of homework is complete and I have at least glimpsed at any material for a test or quiz the next day. It just takes me forever to do it. I distinctly remember one instance of procrastination that still haunts me to this day. It was freshman year (and that year was difficult, getting used to the curriculum and the fast pacing of my classes and such) and I had a choice board project for the Odyssey and a history paper due for Kenny K. Now, I thought that I would be able to handle a couple of small projects from the choice board and writing a three page paper comparing Christianity and Islam. I was wrong. So, so wrong. I had my parents helping me until 1 AM with the choice board project, and I stayed up until 6AM doing the paper. I got about a good half hour of sleep, but I had done it. I finished the projects and slept soundly for that half hour. The next day I felt like the walking dead, so I knew in my heart of hearts that I am not cut out for all nighters.

It feels like I will have the words "time management!!!" ringing in my ears for the rest of my life. But, like the article pointed out, we just need to beat back our bad behavior until we eventually seize the day. I just beat my zombie right now, just by writing this blog. So I'll keep up the good fight and pray I don't have any all nighters planned in the fates for me. This zombie may regenerate, but I have a ton of ammo and I'm not afraid to use it.

Hip Hop and Youth

In his concluding paragraph on "Hip Hop World", McBride describes hip hop as being a warning. Hip hop, as we know it, has evolved heavily from the era that McBride was recalling. However, the message of hip hop being a warning towards the older generations is still crystal clear. 

There was one specific line in that concluding paragraph that caught my eye and lends a solid foundations towards McBride's arguement. "At its best, hip hop lays bare the empty moral cupboard that is our generation's legacy". Hip hop was a way for African Americans to voice the discrimination and injustices against them. They used their music as a revolutionary movement, giving voice to their struggles and finding another home within their community. By laying bare all that had happened from the beginning of hip hop in the seventies up until 2007, McBride illustrated just how important it was that African Americans were given this gift to cry out and say "We are here". 

Hip hop was also a warning in the way that it connected with so many people. It became a worldwide hit among the youth. Even white American teens struggling with poor families were able to relate to African Americans within their verses. This could be seen as a warning to the older generations that our generation will not tolerate the injustices thrust upon us. The youth has always been looked down upon and hated for being different. Since hip hop gave such a powerful voice to the youth, that is why it was so hard for McBride and others of his generation to accept that hip hop would be a cultural phenomenon. I think it is easy for older generations to underestimate and mistreat those of younger generations. They believe that we are not capable of maintaining whatever system that the old generations developed. Different influences from different time periods further separate the young from the old. But with hip hop, it gives the youth a chance to stand their ground and fight for what they believe is right. 

Politics

Politics; the thing that runs our good country of the United States of America and also makes for uncomfortable arguements at Thanksgiving. We were given two presidential candidates to analyze and to see if their words really added up to their message. We also threw in the great John Oliver for good measure, who added some great points about how some political candidates never really have a concise message. 

Donald Trump is the leading candidate for the Republican Party in the elections right now. This soggy cheeto is very hard to take seriously, in my opinion. He believes that Americans (and by Americans, he means white straight men) have been cheated out of their precious money becuase it has been taken by undocumented workers coming in from Mexico. In his speech, he gets the crowd all riled up about his master scheme: building a wall between the border of the U.S. and making Mexico pay every penny for its construction. Trump loves to make these outlandishly ridiculous statements, only because he knows that it will get a rise out of his audience and those watching at home. But the problem with this tactic is that no one seems to think of how he's actually going to get Mexico to pay for a wall with their own money without it backfiring on the American people. He also tends to get pretty hypocritical at times. While he claims that he will 'Make America Great Again' by getting more jobs for documented citizens only, his past reveals that he has not always followed this straight and narrow path. In the Oliver video, it is pointed out that one of the Trump towers (which only uses his name; it's not his actual building) was being built by illegal workers who were given inadequate supplies and not allowed the proper protection for their work. Trump, of course, denied it to save his own orange skin. The thing about Trump is that he will spout out whatever he wants to say with no form of game plan on how he's going to make it happen (this can be said for all politics, but Trump somehow manages to insult every living being on the planet along the way).

Bernie Sanders is falling behind Hillary at the moment, but is still the favorite Democratic Party choice among children my age and college students. Sanders is taking on many controversial issues within his campaign, which is why young people love him so much. He talks about Wall Street and colleges all have the big bucks and how colleges are sentencing students to decades of debt to pay for an education. He tells the struggles of African Americans and the discrimination against them, the students in debt, the mistreatment of women, etc. Comparing this message of equality to the total white and corporate supremacy of Trump, one would think that everyone would be lining up to vote for Sanders. But one of the problems is his choice of People to represent and fight for. I would like him to be President as much as the next Millennial. But by focusing on the young, he is taking away his chances at getting to the people who really vote: the elderly. Young people just don't get the chance to vote nowadays. So while Trump is making the old cronies sing his praises, Sanders is stuck with people who have to commitment to the idea of voting.