Blog 7

Macbeth's Netflix Queue:

1. How to Get Away With Murder- This drama following  a group of lawyers led by the fearless Annalise Keating contains some useful tips for when you are trying to get away with decide. If Annalise can get anyone off for murder, Macbeth might just need to take a few hints from her.
2. Supernatural- This shows follows the Winchester brothers as they hunt down supernatural creatures around the country. Tips for working with witches and taking care of ghosts may be exactly what Macbeth needs to keep his throne.
3. Scandal- This show follows a team of crisis managers and how they deal with public affairs for the White House. A political/thriller that features methods of concealing secrets and getting away with crimes? Add in that it revolves around a powerful government figure and you've got something Macbeth would love to watch.
4. Game of Thrones- Game of Thrones is a fantasy show that revolves around the struggle for power in a fictional land known as Westeros. Macbeth could learn a thing or two about taking over a country from this show, as well as learning about what happens when you mess with magic a little too much.

Power Corrupts

I believe Shakespeare would greatly agree with the idea that "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." The main reason that I believe that Shakespeare would agree with this concept is that it is one of the central motifs of Macbeth. In the play we see that from the moment the witches offer him a chance at power Macbeth begins to lose himself to the concept. While the character of Banquo remains uncorrupted by the promise of power we see from the moment the witches promise him the throne Macbeth has become a pawn of the prophecy. This is evidenced by when he says, "Do you not hope your children shall be kings, when those that gave the thane of Cawdor to me promised no less to them?" In this quote Macbeth is trying to convince Banquo to believe in the prophecy as he now does. Another, greater example is the transition inside of Macbeth that occurs in the 3rd Act. In this act Macbeth decides to have both Banquo and his son Fleance murdered in order to ensure his own throne. He does this because now that he has achieved absolutely power he has become corrupted to the point where he is willing to kill his best friend. Shakespeare would also agree with this quote because of his experiences with King James the First, a man Shakespeare greatly respected and had a lot of faith in. Once James rose to power in England it became clear he was not going to help Catholic Britain's, an action Shakespeare viewed as an effect of his position of power that many believed prompted the creation of Macbeth. It is for all of these reasons that I believe Shakespeare would agree with Lord Acton's beliefs on power.

Freebie

Freebie

The Play Was Awesome

I went to the play!

This advertisement for Expedia, created by Mark Osborne in January 2013 in London, England serves as a prime example of lust. In a denotative examination of the text it is stating that Expedia's travel expertise can take someone to a place like paradise, fill of sun, sea, sand, and sex. The connotative examination of this piece reveals that this ad is appealing to the idea of escapism in human nature. This idea of leaving behind the mundane life and going to a fantastical location far away from the norm is an appeal to the sense of wanderlust humans experience on a day to day basis.The advertisement is being marketed towards British travelers, as shown by the use of English as the language of publication and the web address in the bottom left corner (expedia.co.uk). The social and economic backgrounds of the targets of this advertisement would consist of people who are middle to upper class who are seeking adventure in their mundane lives, since lower class members of society could not afford luxurious vacations to high end resorts. The average traveler does not have a large amount of cultural knowledge of the place of the they are traveling, which is represented in this ads generic descriptions of travel destinations. The ad is simplistic in its layout, listing off a series of words as airplane baggage tickets. The words themselves promote the idea of lust in that sex is included alongside sun, sea, and sand. This implies that sex is just as important to a complete beach vacation as the beach itself. This plays on stereotypes of luxurious vacations to faraway islands that are present in the minds of wealthy travelers.

The Meaning of A Name

1. Lane: A Middle English surname that meant someone who owned property on a narrow road or street, most likely in a town. To me this name conjures up images of my family and of the rural parts of North Carolina we come from. I find myself caught in the duality of my last name sometimes, wanting to embrace the Middle English Lane and live in a city, far away from the rural past, yet I have also come to appreciate the simplicity of the roots I come from. In this way my name gives me mixed ideas about where my place in the world is.
2. I fell like I live in a struggle very similar to the position captured in Life in the 30's. I find a portion of myself connects with the roots I come from, yet another side desire to declare myself a complete individual. This struggle comes from the expectations I have been surrounded by from birth. In the family I was raised in traditional ideas of success and wealth are the prominent school of the though and I had this doctrine pushed on me from a young age. However, as I have grown older I have explored the idea of other aspirations and I quickly learned that my plans for my future did not line up with the expectations placed on me. I have noticed how different my attitudes and behavior are when I am around my family, compared to when I am around friends and even strangers. To this extent I exist in duality, partially an individual, partially a member of my family.

We Are The Other...

http://know.wingyounghuie.com/image/20758303616

On Easter Sunday, 2012 this photo, "Easter Sunday, 38th & Chicago Bus Stop" was taken by Wing Young Huie in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jayme, the man shown above, was on his way to the Word of Grace Baptist Church when he was stopped by Wing Young Huie inquired about his life, and then photographed him. In this picture we see the word "salvation" written on a sign. This man was separated from the rest of his family when his mother was sent to a state mental hospital for life following a mental breakdown. After a run of bad luck and mounting gambling debts Jayme was forced into homelessness. At first glance we see a man, sitting on a bench, waiting for a bus however, this man is waiting for much more than a bus. He is waiting for relief from all the hardships of his life. He is literally waiting for salvation. Jayme lives in a Catholic homeless shelter and on Sunday's he leaves that church solely to attend another church. His sign alone speaks to the fact that this man has been waiting on salvation he knows to be coming soon.

Atwood and Wing Young Huie have very different ideas of "othering". Atwood believes that the most efficient method to strip someone of their humanity is to silence their voice. The Handmaids in The Handmaid's Tale have no voice in the society. The only way the communicate is through phrases they were taught such as "Praise be". (Atwood 19). Huie has a slightly different stance. In Jayme's story it is stated that "He told me that people don’t believe him when he says that her face glowed." In Jayme's story we hear about a man who was made an other, not because he has no voice, but because no one hears his voice even when he uses it. While Atwood and Huie may not agree on how to effectively make another person less and human they both agree that the key lies in striping away the voice of the individual, whether it is through silencing that individual or by making their voice have no true meaning.