I am pursuing the topic of Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation. When turning this topic into a question, I need to keep in mind that I need to show what both types of motivation are, how they are used, and how they tie into video games. So a overall question like "How do extrinsic and intrinsic motivation affect people?" or "How can extrinsic and intrinsic motivation be used in gaming?" would fit the bill.
Using editing software (like windows movie maker), I will be creating a video on my topic and explaining a thing called Gamification. Gamification is the use of extrinsic or intrinsic rewards to help drive an individual or groups actions. This method can be used in businesses, schools, and families and is a very powerful use of rewards.
I plan on having this project be the kickstarter video to my youtube channel, HowDisWorks.
Link to channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCb4HWc7MxiIDQp66UjlSUOg
So the final project (I'm hoping) will be professional and interesting. On HowDisWorks, I will be explaining topics from science to movies to books. So this channel will be a hobby and will hopefully become popular.
Now reading about my topic, it is very surprising how much it is actually used. Gamification is a method that is very common in today's world, and I'm excited to do more research on it as well as experiment with it. For an experiment, I would like to see how effective Gamification is in gaming and how it affects people subjected to it. It would be cool to take battle block theater and have two groups play it, while one group might have extra motivation (Like a prize or leader board), the other group might just play the game normally. After the game, both groups would answer questions on how they felt playing it and rating certain emotions or feelings they felt.
This weekend, I plan on contacting the Behemoth and some other gaming companies to see how they put extrinsic and intrinsic motivation in their games. I also plan on typing up more of my written script, as I will be making a video and the script is a key part of the whole.
Also, here is some of the sources I have found on my topic.
https://docs.google.com/a/bhmschools.org/file/d/0Bz1zbeZHBC9KanlKaHhCTUdVRU0/edit
https://docs.google.com/a/bhmschools.org/file/d/0Bz1zbeZHBC9KX3JXZzhWeExmajg/edit
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Claim, Evidence, Warrant; Sold Through Steam!
Brief Introduction
Steam. It is created by water and heat. But these days, those of you who are nerds in your basement might have a completely different type of Steam in your head. Steam, as in the gaming company. These days, Steam has continued to gain growth in today's world. The company is privately owned, and its financial information is private. However, in a recent video released on February 11th, 2014, Steam released the daily earnings of community bought items in video games such as Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2. The amount that was made the first week of January, 2014 is 1.2 million dollars. Multiplying that by 52 weeks is equal to $64,400,000 made in one year. And this is only from the sale of in game items, not even their main sales, a.k.a. video games!
But not only are the players helped by Steam, but the developers of games are. Steam is the chance for game developers to hit the big time. With every new game that is just starting to sell through Steam being advertised through the main screen, a chance for new and upcoming games to be bought by the millions of Steam users is created.
Oh... and did I mention that Steam is working on perfecting its own video game console? But that's a topic for another blog.
Sources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHC-uGDbu7s
http://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/7/35221584729653199/
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2009/sep/27/videogames-hollywood
Steam. It is created by water and heat. But these days, those of you who are nerds in your basement might have a completely different type of Steam in your head. Steam, as in the gaming company. These days, Steam has continued to gain growth in today's world. The company is privately owned, and its financial information is private. However, in a recent video released on February 11th, 2014, Steam released the daily earnings of community bought items in video games such as Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2. The amount that was made the first week of January, 2014 is 1.2 million dollars. Multiplying that by 52 weeks is equal to $64,400,000 made in one year. And this is only from the sale of in game items, not even their main sales, a.k.a. video games!
Sold Through Steam
Steam is one of the many middle man companies that sell video games in today's economy. It has 7.6 million users at this point in time, and is becoming increasingly popular. More games these days should be sold through Steam because the games will be easily accessible.
Those of you who are one of the many millions of Steam users have experienced the companies brilliance in that it is so easily accessible. With the access to Steam being mainly through computers and now phones, the accessibility of Steam is one of the many things that makes Steam brilliant. Steam provides many easily accessible options that helps gamers to connect with each other and do what they love. In order to not only buy and play games while being able to chat and compare statistics with friends while doing so, all you need is a computer and a Steam account.
But not only are the players helped by Steam, but the developers of games are. Steam is the chance for game developers to hit the big time. With every new game that is just starting to sell through Steam being advertised through the main screen, a chance for new and upcoming games to be bought by the millions of Steam users is created.
But what about old games? What about games that were originally sold on console? What about games that have already been played a billion times over and have been recorded for YouTube? *Cough Cough* Minecraft *Cough Cough* Well the best part about all of these questions is that Steam is able combat all of these bad things. Let me introduce you to a thing called Steam Sales! As a gamer myself, I no longer look forward to holidays being a time for friends and family, but instead look forward to the huge sales on tons of games. Besides, you have time for friends and family always, but Steam sales only happen every once in while. On holidays such as; Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Halloween, Steam takes a ton of the best games from that time and sells them at rates of 5-90% off!
You see that sixty dollar game you've been wanting? Well instead of putting on your footy pajamas and driving a couple of miles to the nearest game stop for horrible service and wasting money on gas, you can instead buy it from the comfort of your own chair for half the price! And yes, the satisfaction of having a hard copy of the game may be rewarding, and yes the anticipation of driving home waiting to play the game you have already watched YouTube videos of and read cheat guides for may be immensely satisfying. Not only does Steam help to cut the space needed to store your video games to a small box connected to the cloud, but it also gives you the worlds most satisfying feeling of looking at the list of games that you spent hours playing, and your favorite companies spent hours making.
"So why does all of this matter?" you say, "Video games are dumb anyway!" (Tee hee that rhymed)
The video game market is the largest entertainment variable in today's entertainment industry, topping DVD sales, cinema sales, and music sales in today's world. But not only do they top all three individually, but they top all three combined.
Gaming is becoming popular across the world. So when you say that video game sales don't matter, you are wrong in your thinking. With releases of widely anticipated video games like Halo or Call of Duty, the economy receives a huge boost in profit due to the millions of gamers all buying that video game on the same release date. All I'm asking is for these games to be sold through one easily accessible source. That is why Steam matters, that is why you have read this blog, because I have peaked your interest. Steam matters in not only today's economy, but in today's culture. Since video games are becoming more important, they need to be; easily accessible, reliable, and fitted to the public. Steam provides all that and more.
Gaming is becoming popular across the world. So when you say that video game sales don't matter, you are wrong in your thinking. With releases of widely anticipated video games like Halo or Call of Duty, the economy receives a huge boost in profit due to the millions of gamers all buying that video game on the same release date. All I'm asking is for these games to be sold through one easily accessible source. That is why Steam matters, that is why you have read this blog, because I have peaked your interest. Steam matters in not only today's economy, but in today's culture. Since video games are becoming more important, they need to be; easily accessible, reliable, and fitted to the public. Steam provides all that and more.
Oh... and did I mention that Steam is working on perfecting its own video game console? But that's a topic for another blog.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHC-uGDbu7s
http://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/7/35221584729653199/
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2009/sep/27/videogames-hollywood
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Fallacy Blog (Magic With Words)
Fallacy video - Post Hoc
Fallacy Presentation - Dogmatism
Fallacies are magic. All you have to do to use them to your advantage is know what they are, but all you have to do to counteract them is to know what they are. I came into this English unit thinking what is a fallacy, much less how to use them or counteract them. But now I'm expert in logical fallacies.
"Heavy hate magic!" ~ Heavy, Team Fortress 2
A fallacy is a flaw in logical reasoning, and can be very powerful if used correctly. If used in a way that is obvious or wrong, they can backfire and allow the opposing argument/side to point out a fault in your argument. Some major fallacies include cherry picking, dogmatism, and post hoc fallacy.
Cherry Picking- Looking at chart of data and selecting data that helps your side of an argument and ignoring the rest.
Dogmatism- Refusing to accept or listen to the opposing sides argument.
Post Hoc- If event A happened before event B, this means A caused B. This may not be true.
Knowing what these fallacies are can help you argue better by not using them and strengthening your argument while disproving or discrediting an opposing argument. These fallacies are used everywhere. Three major places where you can find them are in ads, political debates, and at school.
One of the more interesting things about fallacies is why they are used. If you see that an argument/side has used a fallacy, you can then use this to think at the core of their argument. For instance, if an argument uses a fallacy, you can conclude a few or all of the following.
1. Their argument is faulty and lacks required evidence or backing to it.
2. The person/s arguing this claim are worried that their argument does not have enough backing to it. (They are afraid of opposing side, this can be used to your advantage.)
3. This person does not know what a fallacy.
All three of these are reasons to use fallacies, and all three are also ways you can counteract them. Fallacies are very risky, if used in a subtle way, you may be able to get away with it. But if the opposing side is looking for the use of fallacies like you should now be doing, your entire argument can collapse on you.
Fallacy Presentation - Dogmatism
Fallacies are magic. All you have to do to use them to your advantage is know what they are, but all you have to do to counteract them is to know what they are. I came into this English unit thinking what is a fallacy, much less how to use them or counteract them. But now I'm expert in logical fallacies.
"Heavy hate magic!" ~ Heavy, Team Fortress 2
A fallacy is a flaw in logical reasoning, and can be very powerful if used correctly. If used in a way that is obvious or wrong, they can backfire and allow the opposing argument/side to point out a fault in your argument. Some major fallacies include cherry picking, dogmatism, and post hoc fallacy.
Cherry Picking- Looking at chart of data and selecting data that helps your side of an argument and ignoring the rest.
Dogmatism- Refusing to accept or listen to the opposing sides argument.
Post Hoc- If event A happened before event B, this means A caused B. This may not be true.
Knowing what these fallacies are can help you argue better by not using them and strengthening your argument while disproving or discrediting an opposing argument. These fallacies are used everywhere. Three major places where you can find them are in ads, political debates, and at school.
One of the more interesting things about fallacies is why they are used. If you see that an argument/side has used a fallacy, you can then use this to think at the core of their argument. For instance, if an argument uses a fallacy, you can conclude a few or all of the following.
1. Their argument is faulty and lacks required evidence or backing to it.
2. The person/s arguing this claim are worried that their argument does not have enough backing to it. (They are afraid of opposing side, this can be used to your advantage.)
3. This person does not know what a fallacy.
All three of these are reasons to use fallacies, and all three are also ways you can counteract them. Fallacies are very risky, if used in a subtle way, you may be able to get away with it. But if the opposing side is looking for the use of fallacies like you should now be doing, your entire argument can collapse on you.
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Bond, James Bond: Satire
In 2016, a new James Bond movie is supposed to come out. Some information was leaked about it yesterday, so I'm really excited for the new movie! The movie is supposed to start out with James walking out onto the screen, then he pulls out a gun and shoots the viewer! Amazing! This is very original and makes the viewer feel like they're actually in the movie. The screen goes black, and then an epic chase scene ensues, with James chasing the bad guy. Explosions, helicopters, and awesome action stunts go on for the first five minutes. Each stunt making you wonder how the heck James has been able to do this for 62 years.
Ending with the bad guy getting away, a music video involving some song by a female singer made specifically for the movie starts in the background over a video that probably took more time to make then the rest of the entire movie. Fading into the background, a shot of James Bond in some wickedly awesome car comes onto the screen. Looking like a boss, he pulls up to the "secret" M16 base, which every villain in the entire series of movies seems to know about and take advantage of. Walking into the building, this is about the time that you pull out your phone and play candy crush as you wait for something exciting to happen.
Thirty minutes later, Bond has been shipped off to some country that stereo typically is known for either nukes, enemy agents, and people that Bond has supposedly killed before but didn't die. Having gotten his mission, Bond usually makes his way to enemy base #1, killing all of the henchmen and causing the building to explode as he goes after the villain who usually ends up being number two in command. Having had a tough day, Bond goes to bed with a women who he usually finds conveniently on the streets, and who usually ends up to be an enemy agent.
Secretly leaving her, Bond makes his way back to headquarters, getting some freaking awesome gear from Q, his weapons/inventions specialist. Usually this includes an exploding pen, exploding car, and exploding wristwatch. Setting out, Bond goes after the villain who was number two in command, then finds out about the villains boss who is set on some sort of world domination. Sneaking up on the villains, he is betrayed by the first girl, in which he is captured. Being lazy, the villains send him on some stupid death trap with no way of watching Bond, allowing him to escape unharmed while they think he is dead.
Fleeing, Bond usually hooks up with the second girl in the movie, who you conveniently did not see because you were playing candy crush. Luckily for you, this actress is a horrible actor, and soon you are happy that you missed the first thirty minutes with her in it. With the new girl in tow, Bond goes after the villains who usually are putting their evil plan into action. Gaining access to their secret hideout, Bond kills the second in command with in the first thirty seconds. Going further into the secret hideout, Bond goes on to kill the main villain, this time taking a good ten minutes to do something he has done over a thousand times. Meanwhile, the two lead actresses fight. And since one is a bad guy and the other is a horrible actress, you usually are happy if either one is killed.
With all of the bad guys dead, Bond and bad actress destroy or recapture the death weapon, nuke, stolen goods, etc. With nothing left to do but report back to headquarters, the movie ends with Bond wrapping up any loose ends or going to bed with the bad actress.
In conclusion, this is going to be the most original Bond movie ever! It will top all other movies in the series and create a new era of James Bond!
Ending with the bad guy getting away, a music video involving some song by a female singer made specifically for the movie starts in the background over a video that probably took more time to make then the rest of the entire movie. Fading into the background, a shot of James Bond in some wickedly awesome car comes onto the screen. Looking like a boss, he pulls up to the "secret" M16 base, which every villain in the entire series of movies seems to know about and take advantage of. Walking into the building, this is about the time that you pull out your phone and play candy crush as you wait for something exciting to happen.
Thirty minutes later, Bond has been shipped off to some country that stereo typically is known for either nukes, enemy agents, and people that Bond has supposedly killed before but didn't die. Having gotten his mission, Bond usually makes his way to enemy base #1, killing all of the henchmen and causing the building to explode as he goes after the villain who usually ends up being number two in command. Having had a tough day, Bond goes to bed with a women who he usually finds conveniently on the streets, and who usually ends up to be an enemy agent.
Secretly leaving her, Bond makes his way back to headquarters, getting some freaking awesome gear from Q, his weapons/inventions specialist. Usually this includes an exploding pen, exploding car, and exploding wristwatch. Setting out, Bond goes after the villain who was number two in command, then finds out about the villains boss who is set on some sort of world domination. Sneaking up on the villains, he is betrayed by the first girl, in which he is captured. Being lazy, the villains send him on some stupid death trap with no way of watching Bond, allowing him to escape unharmed while they think he is dead.
Fleeing, Bond usually hooks up with the second girl in the movie, who you conveniently did not see because you were playing candy crush. Luckily for you, this actress is a horrible actor, and soon you are happy that you missed the first thirty minutes with her in it. With the new girl in tow, Bond goes after the villains who usually are putting their evil plan into action. Gaining access to their secret hideout, Bond kills the second in command with in the first thirty seconds. Going further into the secret hideout, Bond goes on to kill the main villain, this time taking a good ten minutes to do something he has done over a thousand times. Meanwhile, the two lead actresses fight. And since one is a bad guy and the other is a horrible actress, you usually are happy if either one is killed.
With all of the bad guys dead, Bond and bad actress destroy or recapture the death weapon, nuke, stolen goods, etc. With nothing left to do but report back to headquarters, the movie ends with Bond wrapping up any loose ends or going to bed with the bad actress.
In conclusion, this is going to be the most original Bond movie ever! It will top all other movies in the series and create a new era of James Bond!
Thursday, December 11, 2014
God, Whats The Real Question?
I think one of the most interesting topics in today's world is "Is God Real?"
It is an extremely debatable topic that scientists, philosophers, and pretty much anyone has thought of at one point. From people who devote their lives to trying to find the answer to this question to the common person, I think it is interesting to look at the varying spectrum of time spent on the subject. Now I'm a very strong believer in God, I love him and believe he is watching over all of us. Quoting veggie tales "God loves you just the way you are."
How I understand the quote is that no matter your viewpoint or standing on the subject of God, he still loves you. At the end of your life, you could have been an atheist since the beginning of time, but as long as you recognize God and believe in him, you will go to heaven. He is very forgiving, and I think we are all very fortunate to have a God like him as the father, son, and holy spirit.
Getting into the science aspect of things, I think that everything that science tells us CAN be true. But when you look at all the scientists in the world who give us evidence for things happening, I question this evidence. I could not count how many times I have been told by a nonbeliever that science is the only thing that can prove the world and its many meanings. But yet, I still believe. At the end of the day, I will always take the religion side of things because God is real. According to science however, he is not because there is no proof. According to science, there has to be proof.
Science will just keep hounding religion and demanding evidence for religion. But when I look at this question, "Is God Real?", I see the other side to it. In order to explain things, Science uses proof or evidence, basing it as fact. But what really is fact? I asked myself the other day, "what proof does science have about science?", what makes it the undeniable overlord of fact. What makes religion any different?
There is many answers I could say about this question, but people might say I'm wrong to many of them. For instance, why is the bible so old? I'm sure if you were alive many, many, many years ago you could tell me the answer to the question. But I'm not that old. and neither is any one alive to this day. Its a debatable question, and can't be proven wrong or right. Just like religion. But the funny thing is, we have no proof of science either! Ever since we we're born, we are given so many reasons and "facts" about how the world works. Gravity, how our bodies work, and what nutrients we need to have daily are only a minute portion of the things we learn.
Science, in itself, is just as debatable as religion is! People who are religious are antagonized constantly for having no proof, but neither does science! Both can't be proven wrong or right! So why is science thought of as right, when in truth, it can't be proven just as religion can not be proven?
What I mean by this is that our facts here on Earth may be completely wrong just by the fact we can't really give them an even deeper meaning. Lets take gravity for example. Explain it. Why does it happen? How does it work? All the answers to the question boil down to the fact that it just is. Just like people who believe in religion can give reasons that boil down to the fact of, it just is!
In itself, religion and science are the same thing. Both can't be proven wrong or right! Thinking some more on this, I realized that God might even be using science. What if the way we explain things on Earth is the way God created us? What if the big bang was God in his science lab mixing chemicals and elements to create an explosion eventually leading to our existence?
In truth, there is no one right side to this never ending argument. God may be real, and I believe it with all of my heart, and I believe you should to! So, why does science keep antagonizing religion when it has no right to do so? The answer is that people think they have the right to do so, so that's why they are able to push religion around. But now you know better.
So the next time you get shoved around by science, shove back, because you have the right to believe, just like they do.
It is an extremely debatable topic that scientists, philosophers, and pretty much anyone has thought of at one point. From people who devote their lives to trying to find the answer to this question to the common person, I think it is interesting to look at the varying spectrum of time spent on the subject. Now I'm a very strong believer in God, I love him and believe he is watching over all of us. Quoting veggie tales "God loves you just the way you are."
How I understand the quote is that no matter your viewpoint or standing on the subject of God, he still loves you. At the end of your life, you could have been an atheist since the beginning of time, but as long as you recognize God and believe in him, you will go to heaven. He is very forgiving, and I think we are all very fortunate to have a God like him as the father, son, and holy spirit.
Getting into the science aspect of things, I think that everything that science tells us CAN be true. But when you look at all the scientists in the world who give us evidence for things happening, I question this evidence. I could not count how many times I have been told by a nonbeliever that science is the only thing that can prove the world and its many meanings. But yet, I still believe. At the end of the day, I will always take the religion side of things because God is real. According to science however, he is not because there is no proof. According to science, there has to be proof.
Science will just keep hounding religion and demanding evidence for religion. But when I look at this question, "Is God Real?", I see the other side to it. In order to explain things, Science uses proof or evidence, basing it as fact. But what really is fact? I asked myself the other day, "what proof does science have about science?", what makes it the undeniable overlord of fact. What makes religion any different?
There is many answers I could say about this question, but people might say I'm wrong to many of them. For instance, why is the bible so old? I'm sure if you were alive many, many, many years ago you could tell me the answer to the question. But I'm not that old. and neither is any one alive to this day. Its a debatable question, and can't be proven wrong or right. Just like religion. But the funny thing is, we have no proof of science either! Ever since we we're born, we are given so many reasons and "facts" about how the world works. Gravity, how our bodies work, and what nutrients we need to have daily are only a minute portion of the things we learn.
Science, in itself, is just as debatable as religion is! People who are religious are antagonized constantly for having no proof, but neither does science! Both can't be proven wrong or right! So why is science thought of as right, when in truth, it can't be proven just as religion can not be proven?
What I mean by this is that our facts here on Earth may be completely wrong just by the fact we can't really give them an even deeper meaning. Lets take gravity for example. Explain it. Why does it happen? How does it work? All the answers to the question boil down to the fact that it just is. Just like people who believe in religion can give reasons that boil down to the fact of, it just is!
In itself, religion and science are the same thing. Both can't be proven wrong or right! Thinking some more on this, I realized that God might even be using science. What if the way we explain things on Earth is the way God created us? What if the big bang was God in his science lab mixing chemicals and elements to create an explosion eventually leading to our existence?
In truth, there is no one right side to this never ending argument. God may be real, and I believe it with all of my heart, and I believe you should to! So, why does science keep antagonizing religion when it has no right to do so? The answer is that people think they have the right to do so, so that's why they are able to push religion around. But now you know better.
So the next time you get shoved around by science, shove back, because you have the right to believe, just like they do.
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Happiness Is A Dish Best Served Your Way
/\
Iowa Nutty Bar at Arnolds Park = MY HAPPINESS
Happiness is such a broad term and can't be explained in 400 word blog by an 8th grader! or can it?
Lately in class, we have talked about the subject of happiness and the American dream. Now, I feel that happiness is such a broad word in this world. Us Americans use it a ton! Just look at Pharell's song called "Happy", he says the word 57 times in the song for crying out loud! So in order for me to describe a word that is over used in the world, I need to look at the world through multiple viewpoints. By multiple I do not mean all. That in itself is possible to do, but I would have to view the world through a ton of peoples eyes and describe what they find happiness in, so by the time that I would finish I would be dead. So I'm going to describe happiness through two types of people, people who make advertisements and the people who are affected by them.
Also in class, we made collages of a ton of advertisements from differing magazines. These magazines included beauty magazines, motorcycle magazines, and even MAD magazines. All of them included some sort of advertisement in them. But one common thing that was found in all of the magazines was something to do with happiness and the american dream. When your not looking for it you may not notice the fact that advertisements contain messages, however small they may be, that your brain makes connections to. This may be as small as putting smiling people in a deodorant commercial to having nudity in a motorcycle ad.
So what are the devils behind these ads thinking when they make them?
Well, the way ads work is that the company that wants to sell their product makes an ad and then buys a page in a magazine. The way this is supposed to work is that the ad creates revenue by raising awareness of the product, therefore covering the cost of the ad in the first place and giving the company money. So really, the ad makers goal is TO DO ANYTHING POSSIBLE TO MAKE YOU BUY YOUR PRODUCT. And you know what that includes? Selling you "happiness".
So at this point, you've probably recovered from a seizure at the fact that they can sell you happiness, and constantly do! I guarantee you that if you look at an ad on TV, in a magazine, or at the movies that they have something in the ad that relates to happiness. Now it does vary on the level at which they sell it, however. What I mean by this is that ads may contain the words "gives you happiness", or they might simply make a connection (that your brain picks up on) of the fact that an Advil commercial may make you smile. Its that simple, and it happens all the time! Me, you, and the entire world are attacked by these small but powerful connections, all the time! And they get away with it, all the time!
So now I'll describe the average persons reaction to ad's. I believe that we, the people, are so dramatic these days that ad makers don't even have to have the happiness part in it. All they have to do is be like, "Hey! You know that blemish you have on your face? Your ugly because of it, so here's our brand new product that makes you pretty!"
And that's not even taking into account the fact that they can sell you "happiness"! Our entire lives are dominated by other peoples view points, when at the end of the day, it's our own viewpoint that is going to make a difference. Our teacher also suggested I read this publication by Ralph Waldo Emerson. My teacher summed it up pretty nicely by saying that Emerson describes the world as you are you, and I am me, so at the end of the day the only thing that matters to us is our opinion and how we see the world.
Going back to the fact that the average person in the world only worries and cares about what other people think about them, the one thing that anyone who reads Emerson's literature should take away is the fact that we are individuals, and we are singular. In our own minds, we are the ruler, and no one can tell you otherwise. And if people are telling you you look horrible in some shirt, or are ugly because of a zit, put a twist on it. Because at the end of the day, you are your own person, and you and you alone can change the world around you. You just need to put a spin on it.
Boom. Mind. Blown.
So at this point, you've probably recovered from a seizure at the fact that they can sell you happiness, and constantly do! I guarantee you that if you look at an ad on TV, in a magazine, or at the movies that they have something in the ad that relates to happiness. Now it does vary on the level at which they sell it, however. What I mean by this is that ads may contain the words "gives you happiness", or they might simply make a connection (that your brain picks up on) of the fact that an Advil commercial may make you smile. Its that simple, and it happens all the time! Me, you, and the entire world are attacked by these small but powerful connections, all the time! And they get away with it, all the time!
So now I'll describe the average persons reaction to ad's. I believe that we, the people, are so dramatic these days that ad makers don't even have to have the happiness part in it. All they have to do is be like, "Hey! You know that blemish you have on your face? Your ugly because of it, so here's our brand new product that makes you pretty!"
And that's not even taking into account the fact that they can sell you "happiness"! Our entire lives are dominated by other peoples view points, when at the end of the day, it's our own viewpoint that is going to make a difference. Our teacher also suggested I read this publication by Ralph Waldo Emerson. My teacher summed it up pretty nicely by saying that Emerson describes the world as you are you, and I am me, so at the end of the day the only thing that matters to us is our opinion and how we see the world.
Going back to the fact that the average person in the world only worries and cares about what other people think about them, the one thing that anyone who reads Emerson's literature should take away is the fact that we are individuals, and we are singular. In our own minds, we are the ruler, and no one can tell you otherwise. And if people are telling you you look horrible in some shirt, or are ugly because of a zit, put a twist on it. Because at the end of the day, you are your own person, and you and you alone can change the world around you. You just need to put a spin on it.
Saturday, October 4, 2014
The Stranger (Creative Writing)
MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FROM "THE STRANGER" AND A TON OF OTHER THINGS!
Many people may see me as an athlete, on the account that I swim 10-12 hours a week. But really, I'm a nerd, learn to deal with it. Considering I'm me, I think you can do it since your you. So when my English teacher walks into the room and asks us to compare the character we've been reading about to ANYONE IMAGINABLE, my interest perked up. I mean, my brain is described through this picture. (And yes, I made it myself)
https://docs.google.com/a/bhmschools.org/drawings/d/1uJTu5JoYq1OKpFJ9HpAFqSpkpfuYxoIgN8ON0OxlHGU/edit
Marvel and DC references activate! Mearsault is the main character of the book, "The Stranger", is described by me as a heartless, cruel, and apathetic man who can't express emotion to save his life, literally! He dies at the end of the book through execution, which wouldn't have happened if he had shown emotion to two things, his mothers death, and to religion/god. Since this book is pretty old, its been debated numerous times that he is a Nihilist. I've seen some pretty heated debates in my class about whether or not he is one, but my opinion stands as is. I believe that Mearsault isn't a Nihilist, but is some of both. He doesn't seem to believe in religion at all, but instead seems like he would be okay if religion turned out to be real. But getting to the point, I can pull as many Marvel and DC references out of gigantic brain. So sit back and hold tight as I pull out a ton of random villains from the comic book, gaming, and book universe.
Many people may see me as an athlete, on the account that I swim 10-12 hours a week. But really, I'm a nerd, learn to deal with it. Considering I'm me, I think you can do it since your you. So when my English teacher walks into the room and asks us to compare the character we've been reading about to ANYONE IMAGINABLE, my interest perked up. I mean, my brain is described through this picture. (And yes, I made it myself)
https://docs.google.com/a/bhmschools.org/drawings/d/1uJTu5JoYq1OKpFJ9HpAFqSpkpfuYxoIgN8ON0OxlHGU/edit
Marvel and DC references activate! Mearsault is the main character of the book, "The Stranger", is described by me as a heartless, cruel, and apathetic man who can't express emotion to save his life, literally! He dies at the end of the book through execution, which wouldn't have happened if he had shown emotion to two things, his mothers death, and to religion/god. Since this book is pretty old, its been debated numerous times that he is a Nihilist. I've seen some pretty heated debates in my class about whether or not he is one, but my opinion stands as is. I believe that Mearsault isn't a Nihilist, but is some of both. He doesn't seem to believe in religion at all, but instead seems like he would be okay if religion turned out to be real. But getting to the point, I can pull as many Marvel and DC references out of gigantic brain. So sit back and hold tight as I pull out a ton of random villains from the comic book, gaming, and book universe.
Bane
With this reference, I'm going to prove/almost prove why Bane is like Mearsault in how he sees the world. In "The Dark Knight Rises", the final parts of the movie are coming into play. All the police have escaped form the sewers and are now running at the huge gang of Bane's evil groupies. Batman is heading to fight Bane. Chief Gordon is trying to move the bomb back to the machine in order to save the city from mass destruction. But the thing I noticed was that as things boiled down, Bane seemed to be in the city 15 minutes from the mass explosion of Gotham. This means that any means of escape or movement on Banes part would be to slow or futile, or he would have been able to get out of the city, only to be shot down by the army. And since Bane is pretty smart, I believe that this shows/proves that Bane is either crazy or does not believe in the afterlife. This is because Bane is shown as very smart, so he either has to be crazy enough to kill a ton of people and be sent to hell, or he doesn't believe in the afterlife.
So I'm going to quote Alfred on this one because he sums it up pretty well.
"Some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn." ~ Alfred Pennyworth
Ronan the Accuser
I actually just saw this movie in the past couple of days, and I absolutely loved guardians of the galaxy and the many references from the 80's. Now Ronan is an interesting character because of his sudden appearance out of no where in the marvel universe. But one thing is for certain, he wants to see everything burn! Not only does he risk his own life before thinking about touching the infinity stone, but he doesn't care about destroying an entire planet with it! Comparing him to Mearsault, he never shows any emotion other then giddy happiness over the destruction of his enemies, and confusion at what the heck a dance battle is. But the thing that I take out of this is, he really needs a hobby. Like Mearsault, the only thing he does is work until something new pops up in his life that actually interests him.
Wilhelm Strasse
Wilhelm is the villain in the video game "Wolfenstein The New Order." His main focus in the entire game is to defeat anyone who gets in his way, or by his way, his empires way. He has taken over the world and no one has been able to stop him, so really his only focus up to the rebellion is that he needs to leave the world having expanded his empire to an immense size. This is like Mearsault because of his "living in the now." Even with Mearsault knowing that his execution is taking place in a few days, he still only cares about what he talks about or does in prison up until the last second.
Taking into account all of the villains I have mentioned, I'm sure that I could state at least another ten, but right now it 9:42 on a Saturday and I kinda want my Sunday to be homework free, so goodnight, I'm closing the book on this one!
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