Reading log 6
Text Title: The Perks Of Being A Wallflower
Director: Stephen Chbosky
Text Type: Film
Submitted: 11 & 13/08/17
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is an American movie adapted from a book of the same name. This movie was directed and written by Stephen Choboksy. This movie follows a teenage boy named Charlie, Charlie is a freshman in high school who has problems with being shy because of mental issues he adapted - due to his aunt sexually abusing him when we was younger. He meets a boy named Patrick in his shop class and gets introduced to his step sister Sam later on at a football game. The three end up becoming good friends and they help Charlie overcome his social anxiety.
There are two scenes that use the quote "we accept the love we think we deserve", which had me thinking about how people view themselves and the amount of love that they think they're worth. There is a scene where Charlie asks his English teacher Mr Anderson "why do nice people chose the wrong people to date?" This is the scene where the quote first comes in to play, which makes the audience soon realise that Sam thinks she deserves a bad love because of the mistakes she has made in her past. This makes me feel sympathy and sadness towards Sam because of the mistakes she's made in that past that have forced her to think she has to settle with less love than she actually deserves. Another scene where the quote was used is; when Sam asked Charlie "why do I and everyone I love pick the people who treat us like we're nothing", to which Charlie responds " we accept the love we think we deserve". This is when Sam realized that she deserves more than the bad love she has previously been given and that her past mistakes don't define who she is. A lot of people can relate to this quote as they too think we accept the love we think we deserve, despite knowing that they can find a better love and deserve a better one too.
In this movie one of the main themes is manhood/coming of age, Charlies coming of a story involves getting him over the sexual assault he went through as a child. At least 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys are a victim of child sexual abuse in America, but is also very difficult to determine because it is not often reported. I find it absolutely disgusting that someone could do something that horrible to another human being, especially a child.
In conclusion The Perks Of Being A Wallflower deals with many different things and is still a very fun and heartwarming film that I would recommenced to anyone that hasn't seen it.
There are two scenes that use the quote "we accept the love we think we deserve", which had me thinking about how people view themselves and the amount of love that they think they're worth. There is a scene where Charlie asks his English teacher Mr Anderson "why do nice people chose the wrong people to date?" This is the scene where the quote first comes in to play, which makes the audience soon realise that Sam thinks she deserves a bad love because of the mistakes she has made in her past. This makes me feel sympathy and sadness towards Sam because of the mistakes she's made in that past that have forced her to think she has to settle with less love than she actually deserves. Another scene where the quote was used is; when Sam asked Charlie "why do I and everyone I love pick the people who treat us like we're nothing", to which Charlie responds " we accept the love we think we deserve". This is when Sam realized that she deserves more than the bad love she has previously been given and that her past mistakes don't define who she is. A lot of people can relate to this quote as they too think we accept the love we think we deserve, despite knowing that they can find a better love and deserve a better one too.
In this movie one of the main themes is manhood/coming of age, Charlies coming of a story involves getting him over the sexual assault he went through as a child. At least 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys are a victim of child sexual abuse in America, but is also very difficult to determine because it is not often reported. I find it absolutely disgusting that someone could do something that horrible to another human being, especially a child.
In conclusion The Perks Of Being A Wallflower deals with many different things and is still a very fun and heartwarming film that I would recommenced to anyone that hasn't seen it.
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Reading log 5
Text Title: I Have A Dream
Author: Martin Luther King
Text Type: Written Text
Submitted: 10/8/17
I Have A Dream
I have a dream is a public speech delivered by American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr, during the Washington for Jobs and Freedom March on August 28 1963 in which he calls for an end to racism in the USA and called for civil and economic rights. He delivered this speech to over 250,000 civil rights supporters on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. the speech was a defining movement in the civil rights movement.
"But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination." This particular line from Martin Luther Kings speech "I have a dream", gave me an insight on how poorly people with darker skin were treated back in the day and some, to this day, still are. It breaks my heart to know that many decades ago black people were used and enslaved based on the colour of their skin. Despite African-Americans no longer being enslaved when Martin devolved his speech the racism never stopped, as the government was still finding ways to make Negros lives miserable through the Jim Crow laws, all because of the colour of their skin. This goes to show how small minded a government or group of people can be, they went out of their way to make other humans lives miserable because the colour of their skin was different and they believed it was okay.
"This sweltering summer of the Negros legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality". This line influenced my understanding that all that the African-Americans wanted was Freedom from the torture that was their life and equality like every white man had. King's comparison of the seasons is to show the intensity of the black Americans push for equality to the heat of a hot summers day and if equality to reached the joy that will follow is comparable to fair autumn after the hot summer. Its disgusting to know that the Negros were used and worked so hard in such unfair conditions for 245 years because they had a different skin tone, although slavery was over for many decades before King's speech the Negros still did not have equality. After reading this speech, I began thinking about why people wanted to punish and discriminate people of dark skin tones. Many African-American/people of colour can relate to the discrimination and unfair justice that the Negros were put through because they had coloured skin
In conclusion I think that if you haven't heard or read the speech, I highly recommend taking the time to do so as it is a truly inspirational and moving speech that everyone should hear.
__________________________________________________________________________________________"This sweltering summer of the Negros legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality". This line influenced my understanding that all that the African-Americans wanted was Freedom from the torture that was their life and equality like every white man had. King's comparison of the seasons is to show the intensity of the black Americans push for equality to the heat of a hot summers day and if equality to reached the joy that will follow is comparable to fair autumn after the hot summer. Its disgusting to know that the Negros were used and worked so hard in such unfair conditions for 245 years because they had a different skin tone, although slavery was over for many decades before King's speech the Negros still did not have equality. After reading this speech, I began thinking about why people wanted to punish and discriminate people of dark skin tones. Many African-American/people of colour can relate to the discrimination and unfair justice that the Negros were put through because they had coloured skin
In conclusion I think that if you haven't heard or read the speech, I highly recommend taking the time to do so as it is a truly inspirational and moving speech that everyone should hear.
Reading log 4
Text Title: The Fault In Our Stars
Author: John Green
Text Type: Novel
Submitted: 18/7/17
'The fault in out stars is a moving book written by John Green in 2012. It's about two teenagers that meet at a cancer kid support group, Hazel Grace who was diagnosed with lung cancer when she was 13 and Augustus Waters who was diagnosed with a rear bone cancer called osteosarcoma, and instantly form a friendship which soon turns into love but very tragically ends when Augustus waters dies.
This novel deals with the fear of oblivion and that fact that one day we will all die. This book is very touching because of the issues and feelings these two teenagers go through on top of the fact they they have a very high chance of dying, which is why it made this book so powerful. When Hazel first meets Augustus she is very hesitant about letting him into her life because she doesn't want to hurt him when she ends up dying, but in the end we all deserve to be happy no matter how short that happiness is. One of the most outstanding metaphor's in the book is one Hazel said "I'm like. like. I'm like a grenade, mom. I'm a grenade and at some point im going to blow up and i would like to minimize the casualties okay". Hazel referees to herself as a grenade because one day she is going to blow up, meaning the result of her death when talking about casualties she means the people that will be affected by her death, I can understand why Hazel is hesitant to let Augustus in at the start as she doesn't want anyone else to be effected by her death than there needs to be. This metaphor was used to make us see Hazel the way she sees her self, which makes the readers sympathetic and upset as she wants to isolate herself from the world.
The cruel irony of this book is the fact that Augustus is the one who ends up dying first. Which is ironic because Hazel was the one that didn't want to hurt him, where as in the end he ended up hurting her. One of Augustus's main quotes is "you don't get to chose if you get hurt in this world, but you do have some say in who hurts you'. This quote made me realize how true that statement is we put ourselves in these different situations that give others the power to hurt us and then get upset when they do, where as if we chose who hurts us it gives us the power to decide how much damage they do. One of Augustus agonizing issue is that he is captivated by being remembered and leaving a mark on the world, but in the end Hazel teaches him that it is more important to leave a mark on a person and he does that with her. I fully understand why Augustus was infatuated with leaving a mark on the world and wanting to be remembered as no one wants to die for nothing, but then its just as important if not more to help leave a mark and change someone for the better as they will always remember you.
Overall The Fault In Our Stars as its one of the best books i have ever read. The way John Green balances the sadness and and comedy makes this book an emotional roller coaster, which makes you get attached to the characters which every great book should. I highly recommenced this book as its worth the read to anyone that enjoys these types of novels.
Overall The Fault In Our Stars as its one of the best books i have ever read. The way John Green balances the sadness and and comedy makes this book an emotional roller coaster, which makes you get attached to the characters which every great book should. I highly recommenced this book as its worth the read to anyone that enjoys these types of novels.
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Reading log 3
Text Title: The Duff
Author: Kody Keplinger
Text Type: Novel
Submitted: 24/6/17
The Duff
'The Duff' by Kody Keplinger is about a 17 year old high school student Bianca Piper who is cynical and loyal, she doesn't think she's the prettiest of her friend group. She also thinks she's way too smart to fall for the schools womanizer Wesley Rush. In fact Bianca hates him. When Wesley nicknames her "the duff" of her friend group (Designated Ugly, Fat,Friend), it plays on her mind mostly the rest of the book as well as other things. Things aren't great at home for Bianca with her parents going through a divorce and her mum traveling around the country with her job. She ends up desperate for a distraction and therefore kisses Wesley and liking it. Eager for escape Bianca ends up being in a 'friends with benefits' relationship with Wesley Rush, her and Wesley's relationship is very sexually based. Until it all goes wrong and turns out Wesley isn't such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with horror that shes falling for the guy she thought she hated and little does she know hes falling for her too and will do anything to prove it.
The characters in this text at times makes you feel a whole range of emotions for what Bianca and Wesley go through such as disgust, empathy, sadness and happiness. At the start Wesley goes over to Bianca at the bar in order to get closer to her (the duff) so that he looks good to her stunning friends Casey and Jessica. Bianca asks Wesley what the duff is, Wesley tells her its an acronym for the Designated Ugly, Fat, Friend. Bianca is horrified as she already struggles with self esteem issues and this just makes her feel worse. She then throws her cherry coke over him and leaves. This part of the book made me repulsed by Wesley and made me feel sadness towards Bianca. Wesley downgraded Bianca and made her doubt her self confidence even more than she already did which is a pretty horrible thing to do. I can relate to this as many people have made me doubt my capabilities and my self confidence through out my life.
This book has a lot to do with change and shows how different types of people deal with it, and also makes the readers perspective change through out the book. For example one thing that really changed my perspective of Wesley was when he starts falling for Bianca we see this when he says "Wesley Rush doesn't chase girls but im chasing you". Wesley still said that in his cocky up him self way but a way in which he meant it. That is one of many lines that made me realize that Wesley isn't the bad person he is portrayed to be, yes he can be arrogant but deep down he is a good person and wants to show Bianca love but was never taught how too. Wesley then later goes on about why he thinks he really is starting to fall in love with Bianca.
In conclusion i think this book is a really good read and i thoroughly enjoyed it, I ended it with a smile on my face and highly recommend it to anyone that enjoys these types of novels.
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Reading log 2
Text title: 13 Reasons Why
Director: Brian Yorkey
Text Type: TV Series
Submitted: 25/4/17
This show gave me an insight on how you never really know what someone is going through and what they are feeling until it's too late exactly like Hannah Baker. Hannah takes her own life as she thought no one cared enough for her to stay and in the end neither did she. So Hannah decided that no one would hurt her again. The first thing that triggered Hannah's suicide was a racy picture that got sent around the school which ended up labeling Hannah as the 'class slut' which was the beginning of the end for her. In the show Hannah is blamed for everything that happened to her when that is entirely wrong. It wasn't her fault that her friends left her or that she was stalked. It wasn't her fault that in freshman year she was put on a list for the best ass which ended up putting a target on her back. yet after all of this Hannah still wanted to believe that good people existed in the world. The final thing that pushed Hannah over the edge was her getting raped at a party inside a hot tub, which was entirely not Hannah's fault she didn't ask for it no one ever does. Which in the end was the final straw and what broke Hannah completely on the inside. Hannah couldn't change anything that lead up to her death. The writers didn't shy away from Hannah's suicide as they wanted it to be gut wrenching and hard to watch as suicide isn't painless and an easy thing to do. There is always room for hope but unfortunately Hannah and a lot of other people don't see that.
Once i had finished the show and the extra episode called behind the reasons (which is where the cast and writers talk about the show and everything that happens on it.) Brian Yorkey said that "as a society we tend to shy away from tough topics like bullying, rape and suicide" and I agree with that. Us as a society need to recognize it and start doing something about it. He also said that "teenage brains don't work the same way adult brains do as trauma and pain feel like they're going to last for ever and I think that we forget that sometimes", which i completely agree with. As a lot of adults tend to trivialize things that aren't so trivial to us teenagers. The show relates to a lot of people in the world as they to have gone through or are going through things very similar things Hannah Baker did.
In conclusion i think that this show has such a powerful and meaningful message behind it that needs to be talked about more often than it is. I highly recommend this show to adults and teenagers all around world. As it faces so many true reality's that people face today and may even give them the courage to come forward about what they have or are going through.
Text title: 13 Reasons Why
Director: Brian Yorkey
Text Type: TV Series
Submitted: 25/4/17
13 Reasons Why
13 Reasons Why is an american televisions series created by Brian Yorkey which is adapted from the 2007 novel Thirteen Reasons why by Jay Asher. The show revolves around a young teenage girl Named Hannah Baker who killed herself by slitting her wrists inside a running bathtub. Before Hannah dies she leaves behind 13 tapes, each tape holds a reason on why she committed suicide and tape is dedicated to someone that had something to do with her death. The tapes were given to the 13 people one by one they listened to them and passing them on until they had reached the last person. A few of the people on the tapes accused Hannah of lying but the truth is soon revealed, as 'why would a dead girl lie?'.This show gave me an insight on how you never really know what someone is going through and what they are feeling until it's too late exactly like Hannah Baker. Hannah takes her own life as she thought no one cared enough for her to stay and in the end neither did she. So Hannah decided that no one would hurt her again. The first thing that triggered Hannah's suicide was a racy picture that got sent around the school which ended up labeling Hannah as the 'class slut' which was the beginning of the end for her. In the show Hannah is blamed for everything that happened to her when that is entirely wrong. It wasn't her fault that her friends left her or that she was stalked. It wasn't her fault that in freshman year she was put on a list for the best ass which ended up putting a target on her back. yet after all of this Hannah still wanted to believe that good people existed in the world. The final thing that pushed Hannah over the edge was her getting raped at a party inside a hot tub, which was entirely not Hannah's fault she didn't ask for it no one ever does. Which in the end was the final straw and what broke Hannah completely on the inside. Hannah couldn't change anything that lead up to her death. The writers didn't shy away from Hannah's suicide as they wanted it to be gut wrenching and hard to watch as suicide isn't painless and an easy thing to do. There is always room for hope but unfortunately Hannah and a lot of other people don't see that.
Once i had finished the show and the extra episode called behind the reasons (which is where the cast and writers talk about the show and everything that happens on it.) Brian Yorkey said that "as a society we tend to shy away from tough topics like bullying, rape and suicide" and I agree with that. Us as a society need to recognize it and start doing something about it. He also said that "teenage brains don't work the same way adult brains do as trauma and pain feel like they're going to last for ever and I think that we forget that sometimes", which i completely agree with. As a lot of adults tend to trivialize things that aren't so trivial to us teenagers. The show relates to a lot of people in the world as they to have gone through or are going through things very similar things Hannah Baker did.
In conclusion i think that this show has such a powerful and meaningful message behind it that needs to be talked about more often than it is. I highly recommend this show to adults and teenagers all around world. As it faces so many true reality's that people face today and may even give them the courage to come forward about what they have or are going through.
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Title: The Milgram Experiment
Text type: Article
Author: Saul McLeod
Submitted: 31/3/17
The Milgram Experiment
"The Milgram Experiment" by Saul McLeod is a nonfictional article about one of the most famous studies of obedience in psychology was carried out by Stanley Milgram in 1963. Stanley Milgram was a psychologist at Yale university. That conducted an experiment focusing on the conflict between obedience to authority and personal conscience.The experiment started in July 1961 a year after the trial of Adolf Eichmann in Jerusalem. Milgram come up with the experiment to answer the question "could it be that Eichmann and his million accomplices in the holocaust were just following orders?. Milgrim wanted to know how far someone would go in obeying an instruction if it involved hurting another person. The results were that ordinary people are more likely to follow orders from an authority figure. People tend to obey orders from other people if they recognize them as morally right or legally based.
This article got me thinking about why people would administer pain to others or go through it themselves just because someone of authority told them too. This article gave me an insight into how obedient humans can be when under the influence of a authority figure. In the experiment there was a learner, a teacher and an experimenter. For instance when the teacher refused to administer a shock the experimenter was to give a series of orders (called "prods") to ensure they continued. The idea behind the whole experiment was to know "could it be that Eichmann and his million accomplices in the holocaust were just following orders?.
In conclusion I think this experiment was a success in testing how willing a person is to obey authority. This article got me thinking about how far someone would actually go to obey authority, like would they risk their life or another's just to follow someones orders. The part of the article that got me thinking this was that 65% of participants ("teachers") continued to the highest level of 450 volts. As where all of the other participants only continued to 300 volts.