Cedric Washington

English 1100

November 29 2013                            

                                          Social differences

It's amazing to see how high school can really define a person's character. In four years a 13 or 14 year old can mature into a young adult sculpted by their peers who they've acquainted themselves with. In high school teenagers form peers and those peers align themselves with more peers who have a commonality and this group of friends is referred to as a clique. In some cases a person may bounce from clique to clique throughout high school but it is no doubt that your clique defines you. Much like in the real word you are judged based on the people you choose to surround yourself worth. There are cliques in high schools all across the globe but what makes every school unique is the types of cliques and the variations in the number of cliques. The example is never clearer than in the difference in both Napoleon Dynamite and 10 things I hate about you. Both movies explain the life of teenagers struggling to grasp the social aspect of high school but their environments were very different. The core differences between the two movies were the level of cliques, the clique’s fondness of each other, and social perception.

In both movies there are both the inner circle and the outer circle. This meaning there is both a group where socially they are recognized as the popular crowd that everyone knows and envy’s and the outer crowd would be the group of people who are not as popular and are looked down upon by the inner crowd. The similarity ends there because the variance in social cliques was far different. In Napoleon Dynamite you have a high school social setting most like the economic classes in today's society. There was an upper class, which included Summer Wheatley and her group of friends, and then there was the middle class, and finally the lower class which included Napoleon, Pedro, and Deb. In Napoleon Dynamite there a vast amount of the middle class and smaller amounts of the popular and “nerdy“. In difference to that in 10 Things I Hate About You where more variety of inner and outer circles had. There was a clique for almost everyone in the school. The qualities about a person instantly placed them into one group or another at this high school. Unlike in the Napoleon Dynamite film where the middle class were all placed in a clump. To quote a lot few lines from 10 Things I Hate About You as Michael explains the cliques to Cameron, “Over there you’ve got your basic beautiful people Now listen. Unless they talk to you first, don’t bother...... To the left we have the coffee..... these delusional are the White Rasta. Uh, they’re big Marley fans. They think they're black......" - Michael “Wait. Let me guess. Cowboys?" -Cameron....... "These are your future MBAs- We're all Ivy League accepted. Yuppie greed is back, my friend." - Michael. In 10 Things I Hate About You its more based around the idea that everyone must be unique but also belong. There is still an inner circle, being Blanca Stratford’s and Joey Donners group of friends. As well an outer circle, being Cameron, Michael, Kat, and Patrick.

The variety of lack thereof in social placement not just a key difference between the two movies, likeability between social groups was also a difference. Which in the movie 10 Things I Hate About You there is a quite remember able scene where a party in thrown. The party was the most intriguing because not only was the inner circle like Bianca and Joey there but also Kate, Patrick, Cameron, and Michael. It was a social gathering which included both inner and outer circles and a mix of the other cliques from the previous quote above. At one point Kat gets on a table and begins to dance at which point a gang of people watching begin to cheer and praise her. Yet in the Napoleon Dynamite movie at one of their social conventions, the prom, Napoleon is left alone sitting while his date leaves to hang out with her friends. One strong fact that can be made is that Napoleon would have been dateless to the prom had the girl’s mother not forced her to go with Napoleon. Which furthers the point home that the social likeability is very thin when it comes to the inner and outer circles? Another comparison that can be made is that in 10 Things I Hate About You Cameron asked the most popular girl to prom, Bianca, and was rewarded with a yes. As for Pedro who asked Summer and predictably rejected with a note. These examples show that when it comes to coming together between social classes it is more present in 10 Things I Hate About You than it is in Napoleon Dynamite.

This difference in behavior between social classes in both movies directly correlates to the way each school perceives each other and how much they care to keep up an image. The expectations for a high school student were different for each school. The concept on being judged on what you wore and who you hung out with was more of a factor in 10 Things I Hate About You than it was in Napoleon Dynamite. In 10 Things I Hate About You pep dressed in an entire that would show loyalty to the cliques that they were included in. Such as the cowboy clique dressed up in western attire. Also some of the people with in the movie cared about what other thought and behaved in manners that would please others. Which brings up the scene in the movie where Bianca is begging her dad to let her go to the party because if she doesn't go she believes everyone will think less of her and her social status will drop. This is not the case for Pedro in Napoleon Dynamite who is unfazed by how he may be perceived by the rest of the school and runs for president against Summer. Another example of the difference between social acceptances in both movies is when Napoleon gets on stage and preforms a dance in front of the school for his friend Pedro and is not discouraged at all by the thoughts of his class mates. This proves that in Napoleon Dynamite the characters are less driven by the perception of their classmate than the characters in 10 Things I Hate About You.

These movies both provide excellent examples of social issues in high school. Even though both of these movies are completely different in how social standards are kept at both schools. Similar to homonyms these schools in each movie may seem to have the same social concept but they are very different. For one there are a wider variety of social groups in 10 Things I Hate About You than there are in Napoleon Dynamite. Another difference is that in Napoleon Dynamite the characters from different social classes are Lot less fund of each other than in 10 Things I Hate About You. Last but not least the envy for social acceptance is far greater in 10 Things I Hate About You. For though these movies grasp the same concept of social life in high school they still have reached different details on how students think and behave.

Cedric Washington

English 1100

Argument Paper

 

                                         Is Hip-hop all bad or does it just have a bad Rap

 

            “Hip-hop is supposed to uplift and create, to educate people on a larger level and to make a change.”- Doug E. Fresh. This statement was said by a well known artist within the hip hop community who has seen the peace and happiness his music can resonate. Although Doug E. Fresh associates the genre of hip hop, or also referred to as rap, as a way to uplift and educate some people feel as if the hip hop culture is vulgar, offensive, and violent. The two opposing sides cause hip hop to be the most controversial music in today’s society. The controversy is even more fueled when America’s youth is involved. The side opposing the further expansion of rap music believes that this type of music will be hazardous to the health and minds of the younger generations. Although many illustrated studies that focus on the effect hip hop has on the youth have discovered that hip hop can lower the obesity rate, raise academic scores, and improve self efficacy among youth.

 

Andrea J. Remero and her team of researchers constructed a project to evaluate the influence hip hop would have on children in Latin America who participated in very physical activities. The concept was to place these children in a program that provided 10 different physical activities for 50 minutes twice a day. These activities would incorporate hip hop to pique the interest of the adolescents. The results were astoundingly positive, with 77% of the students finishing the course all the way through the end. There were also distinct signs of weight loss and physical physique within the children. This project was mainly possible also helped the children gain a higher level of self esteem. With the accomplishment of passing the course it allowed the children to feel more in terms with their attributes and also allowed them to break neighborhood boundaries and meet other children with a new perspective on life. With hip hop these children were able to stay in the program because they were challenged by something they loved.

 

            Hip hop can also be used as a learning tool to help students struggling in the classroom. Christopher Emdin and Okhee Lee studied the continuous drop in the American education system for years and were out to design a new way of teaching. A way to allow the students to grasp complex concepts and relate them to their lives in order for them to maintain the information received. So they preformed a sample study to further prove their hypothesis; that if young adults were given relatable subjects like hip hop to use as a learning bridge for tough subjects such as science they would be more successful in their education. They called the idea of using hip hop as the relatable subject as the Obama effect. In this study they found that the students comprehended the subject better, and were also move involved and more excited to learn. Hip hop made these young adults look forward to school and also helped them derive valuable information that can be used for a higher level of education.

 

            A cliché a quote is that “You don’t judge a book by its cover”. Though it may be cliché it’s very rare that a cliché isn’t true. This quote can be applied to hip hop because the bad persona that shadows hip hop often washes down the good that brings. Hip hop can be used to rebuild the younger generation as seen in the two studies done in the paragraphs above. It can lower obesity rates through physical activity, raise self esteem, and also provide easier and more enjoyable learning criteria. These are just a few examples of how hip hop can be used to make a positive influence. With even more studies soon to be examined people will find that there are countless ways to hip hop as a constructive tool in today’s society.

 

 

 

 

 

Work sited

Remero, Andrea J. "A Pilot Test of the Latin Active Hip Hop Intervention to Increase Physical Activity Among Low-Income Mexican-American Adolescents." American Journal of Health Promotion 26.4 (2012): 208-011.

 

Emdin, Christopher, and Okhee Lee. "Hip-Hop, the "Obama Effect," and Urban Science Education." Teachers College Record 114.2 (2012): 1-24.

Analysis of Forrest Gump

Cedric Washington 11 October 2013 Analysis Paper English 1100                                                          Analysis of Forrest Gump             How do you define living a good life? Is a good life working hard and becoming successful? Is it enjoying every day and living as if it’s your last? Obviously this question isn’t an easy one. It isn’t something a person is going to grasp immediately. It is something so few of us even dare to find out. A lot of people in the world just do what there told or do what everyone else is doing. It is almost as if we take this precious time that we are given for granted. Some people do this because they are afraid that the struggle to do what they what in life might be too difficult. It wasn’t until I saw the Forrest Gump movie that I had reached the conclusion that the impossible is only impossible when a possible opportunity is not taken. The Forrest Gump film is the best interpretation of a man overcoming great struggle such as his mental retardation, crooked back, and growing up without a father.               In the Forrest Gump film one of the many struggles the main character Forrest Gump has is that he is hindered by his Mental Retardation. When he was just a young boy Forrest was told that his IQ score was just too low to go to school with the other children and that he would need to attend a special needs school. Even though Forrest was mentally challenged he still attended the school for children without disabilities and was able make it through elementary school, middle school, and even graduate high school. He and his mother did not let a principle dictate his life because of his disability. Using this attitude Forrest Gump went on to college at the University of Alabama. He was able to graduate from one of the best collegiate schools in just 5 years with a degree. This is something that most people would deem as impossible for a mentally handicapped person to accomplish. The movie also shows the main character becoming a business owner of a shrimping boat company. Although he was mentally handicapped, knew nothing about fishing, and was told by his former Lieutenant, Dan Taylor, that he could never be a captain of any boat; Forrest Gump still pursued his aspiration. In doing so he was rewarded by becoming extremely successful after a hurricane had whipped out all of the other boats in the docks except Forrest’s. With the help of former skeptic Dan Taylor the name Bubba Gump shrimp (the name of Forrest’s shrimping boat company) was able to become a household name. This of course made Forrest Gump a millionaire and with some proper investments in a rising company called Apple he was able to become a billionaire. This is a milestone his principle couldn’t have even conceptualized that the young disabled Forrest was capable of doing. Forrest Gump conquered this struggle along with others, such as the infliction his crooked back had on him.               Young Forrest was unfortunately diagnosed with a spinal disorder. For the early years of his life he had to wear braces on his legs in order to walk. He had no idea if the braces were ever going to come off. These braces made him a target for bullies and in one part one the movie Forrest is chased by bullies on their bikes. Now with these braces on his legs he was already at a disadvantage and with their being three boys with bikes, it seemed all but possible. Forrest started to run anyway and with the three boys gaining on him something amazing happened. Just as he is running the braces bring to brake off of his legs and Forrest is able to run without the help of the braces. He is actually able to run away from the boys and return home running the entire way unscathed. Although he was able to evade the bullies this time he was still a target for them. As seen when Forrest is in high school and the bullies show up again this time with a truck. Immediately Forrest starts to run as the odds are stacked up against him again. Forrest runs so rapidly he sprints through a high school football practice that has taken place and leaves the Alabama University football recruiters astonished at his speed. Forrest Gump was awarded a full scholarship at a division 1 football program. At the university he was a kickoff returner and a spectacular one at that. He was such an exceptional football player he was awarded the title of kick returner on the All American football team. After college Forrest Gump enlisted in the army. Forrest Gump then proved again that he could do great acts despite being diagnosed with his back disorder during the Vietnam War. After an ambush by the Viet Cong Forrest Gump used his great speed to arrive to safety but is concerned about his friend Bubba (a fellow U.S soldier) so he runs back into the lines of fire. On his way back he comes across three other soldiers including Lieutenant Dan Taylor who he over hears calling an air strike on the boundary. Forrest Gump picks up each of the soldiers, places them on his back and takes them to safety one by one. Still in search for his friend Bubba he runs back into the location of the imminent air strike and finds Bubba and brings him back to safety right before the area is in gulfed in flames. In that duration of the movie Forrest Gump was able to rescue five soldiers from what seemed to be assured death. Forrest Gump was able to use his legs to be extraordinary in many aspects including running border to border across the nation. This profound run shocked most of the nation almost everyone, aspect his mother.               Forrest’s mother always believed he would accomplish great things, even when others couldn’t possibly see it she did. Which is another obstacle Forrest had to face, it was that he only had his mother. With his father out of the picture Forrest was faced with the responsibility of being the man around the house. He had to help around the house as a youth and take care of guest, which were frequent in the house because it was run as a bed and breakfast. When Forrest became a young man and acquired some money he had to also become a provider for his mother. Forrest even provided for his late friend Bubba’s mother because Bubba had died in the war. Forrest selflessly provided her and her children with enough money that she would not have to work a day in her life. Forrest Gump also became a man who knew how to treat a woman without the guidance of a father, such as protecting his longtime friend and love his life Jenny from aggressive men attempting to hurt her. He also learned important social lessons through one part. One of these social lessons was when Forrest Gump picked up a book that Vivian Malone, an African American woman trying to integrate the University of Alabama, had dropped and gave it to her. This was a small act but showed social acceptance on Forrest’s part. He also learned how to become a father without knowledge of knowing how a father is to act. When told of the new by the love of his life Jenny that he has a son who is just a young child. She gives him the choice to leave by saying “You don’t have to take care of him I’m not asking for anything”, but Forrest stays to take care of his son. Not soon after Jenny passes away leaving Forrest a single parent, but he decides, like his mother did him, he will raise his son to become a man by himself.               The Forrest Gump movie shows many aspects of life that we all face. The movie was able to tell the story of how a mentally handicap child with a crooked back and a fatherless home became an high school graduate, college graduate, All American athlete, a war hero, national inspiring runner, and a great father. What makes this movie so great is that the story shows how all the odds are stacked against the main character and yet somehow he is able to accomplish great things. The movie is the greatest example of persistence through hardship and living every day to its capacity. The movie not only makes the audience want to do more in life, but it also shows them that anything is possible. This is why Forrest Gump separates its self when it comes to defying the odds type movies because the movie makes the audience believe it’s real and makes them want to apply this style of living to their own life. Forrest Gump. Paramount Pictures. Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise. 6 July, 1994, DVD

Narrative

       "And after four quarters the game is tied 21 to 21. Westerville North has the ball at Kilbourne 20 and have been marching going down the field for possibly the last drive of the game. With only 5 seconds on the clock this could be the last play of the game." exclaims the announcer with enthusiasm.

       The quarterback calls out the cadence, practically screaming it so the entire offense could hear. I stare him in his eyes placed 15 feet from the ball. We both gave each other the same look. It was the look a Lion gives a Crocodile when a dead carcass is placed just on the edge of the river. The lion and the crocodile know and understand each others strengths but still believe that they are superior to the other.

"SET HIKE" the quarterback yells.

      As a safety I take my read steps backward carefully understanding the situation around me. I glance at the quarterbacks eyes he's eyeing down his favorite receiver, this was a costly mistake. I turn my hips and sprint at an angle such that I can place my self in the area where the ball landing. I was right the ball gets thrown by the quarterback and it's in perfect rotation. Then suddenly everything seems to slow down to the point where seconds feel like minutes. In the background I can hear the noise from the crowd.

     They are screaming my favorite chant. "I believe that we will win. I believe that we will win."

      I look over at my mom who is up of her seat and I know if she could tell me something at this moment it would be." Cedric you can do this I know of you can. " It's a typical mother line but for some reason it helps ease the anxiety that comes with the game. Suddenly the I look up and the ball is only just out of my grasp. I look at the receiver who is a inch or two in front of me but is not too great of a distance that I can't catch him. I decide to go for it and snatched the ball out of the air before the wide receiver can even get his hands near. So I stop running, turn my hips and bend my knees and elevate into the air. I'm almost there my hands are so close. The ball comes and just slips over my fingers past me and into the receivers hands.

     The crowd with almost a harmonic sound scream "NOOOOOO."

      "HUH " gasping for air I awake from what can only be described as an anxiety filled nightmare. The nightmare only make me second guess my self as I prepare for school." Am I not ready to play my first high school football game? " I ask myself.

      As I arrive at school my stomach begins to sink and I can feel myself about to throw up. I race to the nearest bathroom, throw my book bag by the sink as I enter the stall. I get on my knees an almost like clock work I feel the vomit depart from my mouth. After about 15 mins of vomiting and gagging I finally leave the stall. As I get ready to leave the restroom Mr. Vincent one of the teachers at the school walks in.

"Hey bud big game you ready. " he says as he places his on my shoulder.

"Yes of course sir." I say seeming unsure of myself.

"Alright give em hell and remember to have fun out there. If your nervous you'll play nervous and we don't want that now do we? He says with a smile that made the rest of his face seem so small I have comparison to his mouth.

"No sir" I said with even more uncertainty than before.

"Alright then see you second period then." he says as he was procedure the second stall.

       I walk toward my first class with so much anxiety and fear on my shoulders. I feel as if someone has place a bench bad on my shoulders and with each minute leading up to the game it gets heavier. I'm so focused on the the game my classes seem to  drift by so fast before I know it school is over and it's time for the biggest night of my life.

      So I walk into the locker room place my things on the ground and just think. Contemplating on even getting dressed . My mind is racing and all I can think about is backing out, but how can I leave when my team and my coach's are all counting on me . I can't just walk out on the people who are counting on me because on my fears of making a mistake. Also I've loved this game since I was four years old yet now it seemed as if the sheer idea of playing was making me queasy.

"Gentleman 20 minutes until the bus leaves and that's with or without you so get a move on. " screams my coach.

        His words are coherent but my body is in a paralyzed state. I just can't seem to make the fear go away. So I do what usually calms me down and I listen to some music. As I play my music, in hopes that it will dissolve the fear from my mind, I receive a text from one of my friends that reads "I thought you might like this because I know how nervous you must be for your first. Hey good luck and have fun."

      The text he had sent had a quote that completely resolved my problem. The quote said " Do what you fear and fear disappears." - David Joseph Schwartz.
I finally understood that it wasn't about vanquishing fear it was about taking my fear head on .The entire day I was afraid of the consequences of failure, but  I finally realized that if I didn't play the game I would never relinquish that fear. So I get dressed and head for the bus and in my head I know that fear is not something a strong man lives with out it is some a strong man conquers.

Response

       In 1984 the National Minimum drinking age act was issued in by law. This law states that the minimum age for all Americans to acquire and/or consume alcohol was 21. This act was not the first law inforced for this issue but it was the last. There are some countries with the same policy as America but most countries do not. For example in countries like Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and the Netherlands the minimum drinking age is only 16. Also there are over 80 countries, making up 62 percent of the world with alcohol laws, with the drinking age at 18. ( "International Guide to Minimum Legal Drinking Ages (MLDAs) in 138 Countries - Drinking Age - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.) This includes place like China, Costa Rica, France, Nigeria, and Mexico.


       So I can't help but wonder why the drinking age is 21 and not say 18 or even 16? With much of the talk about legalization of Mariuana is it time we bring up the discussion of the  proper alcohol consumption age? Should America for take in the global acceptance of the alcohol age? Or are we more stuck in our ways to change a law that could affect our society's young adults. America's never been a country for conformity with the rest of the world. We still haven't even changed to the metric system. So is it even plausible that the stance on the drinking age will change anytime soon?

 
        I believe the real question is how old is 21 really? What I mean by this is, is it when you are completely an adult. Is 21 the age at which your brain has developed into it most mature state? In a study, at Dartmouth college in 2009, the scientists found that the brain is not fully developed and at its most capable state until the age of 25 ( "Brain Changes Significantly after Age 18, Says Dartmouth Research."Brain Changes Significantly after Age 18, Says Dartmouth Research. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013) In fact at age 18 and 21 your brain has not completely exited the puberty stage. Which begs the question is brain development a real argument for the drinking age to be 21 and not 18.

 
          It could be a strong possibility that the age is 21 do to the fact that most young adults 20 and younger still rely on parental guidance in finances . So this could be why the government doesn't consider these ages adults. Their argument would be, if you can't handle your own finacies how can you be trusted with a substance that if used improperly can kill you. Although a study, by NBC News (  "Alcohol Linked to 75,000 U.S. Deaths a Year." Msnbc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.) , found that underage drinkers only make up 6 percent of the fatality rate when it come to alcohol related deaths.

 
        What if instead of 21 the drinking age was really 25? Would that make more sense? At that age most people are not dependent on their parents. Also the brain has matured into its most prominent state. Could this be the real age that your are considered an adult? Even though a man or woman can place the life on the line when fighting by their country? Is that really fair to consider a person still a child but send them over seas to fight a war? All I know is that I am 19 and I consider myself and adult but I do know some people who are from the ages of 18 to 25 that still do not act like adults. Maybe it's just a person to person type issue. Where some people can be trusted with the responsibility and others just can't. If this is the case how do we regulate this problem? If the maturity level in every person is different at different ages whose to Who is responsible and who isn't? With as alcohol related deaths being the third on the list of preventable deaths, ("Alcohol Linked to 75,000 U.S. Deaths a Year." Msnbc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.) 1st is this a substance that can get the better of anyone no matter the age?