One part I enjoy about weekly blogging is taking concepts we have talked about in class and applying them to my own personal ideas. It really is nice at the end of the week to have a physical representation of what we have been learning about in class. My blog is a space where I can explore ideas that strike me while reading and a place where I can openly ask questions. Each week I have used the readings we have focused on in class and expanded on them in length and content. I worry that my blogs are too long at times and people might not want to sit there and read it based on the length. We are all busy after all.
I incorporate images and quotes as much as I can because I think it can draw people in. I want a people to have a visual, especially if it pertains to what the blog is about, and I also want them to see how words of the past fit into our present day. I like thinking my blog is being reached by people who will finish reading and have at least one question or comment on their mind.
The grammar in my blogs probably is not perfect, especially my commas. I personally think that a blog space should be whatever a person makes it, and those small spelling and grammar errors can fly! Despite my misspelling of the word “an” I think that my ideas and words are still credible and interesting. Those little mistakes and quirks can add character! Right? I like to re-read my writing, especially after a number of days have passed by and they are not in the forefront of my mind.
I really appreciate the major events in history we have been covering in class like: Hurricane Katrina, 9/11 because they make me dig deep into my emotional soul. I know this sounds cheesy, but these are moments I lived through and blocked out of my memory. 9/11, for example, occurred when I was 7thFalling Man grade and I realized how much I had suppressed. Since I am older I can look at this event through many lenses I have attained since middle school. I touch upon this in my entry about when Lianne approaches Elena about her music. Lianne’s use of the word “they” when talking about Elena and her assumed Middle Eastern “people” reminded me of how racism further thrived after 9/11. I also talk about how Lianne “frames” Elena physically in the doorway and racially. Framing also appears in my blog about The Boondocks episode where the news was accusing the “drug-related crime” on the only Black characters in the neighborhood.
This is also connected to the stories behind Botero’s paintings of Abu Ghraib where American soldiers tortured innocent civilians in Iraq. This unjust event is grounded by racism, hate, and prejudice, and is also a product from 9/11. In my blog I analyze the colors, shapes, and appearances in Botero’s paintings and why he perhaps painted his figures and scenes the way he did. This was a powerful blog for me to write because as I continued analyzing the paintings I realized how they impacted me. I began to ask questions about the painting with the tied up man being attacked by the dog: he scream? Did he call for anyone? Hopefully others began asking questions. I think that art was a good switch from talking about books people outside our class perhaps have not read.
Other concepts I have highlighted are escapism and creation, particularly in 1 Dead in Attic. I reflect on how “Some through alcohol and medication and even suicide” have “achieved escapism, but Rose seeks a piano. The piano becomes the symbol of the broken house/family and a memory of the liveliness of Louisiana through music.” I thought it was important to understand how Katrina emotionally and physically affected the survivors. There was also a certain amount of creation and creative thought, like the Cat Lady, who lived near Rose. This creativity acts as a light through the bleak darkness that surrounded the survivors and Louisiana as a whole. I really wanted to touch upon these two concepts because I feel like that they should provoke empathy and understanding in people who haven’t given Katrina much thought.
One thing I would like to change within my blogs is making them more personal. I feel that at times I can get too hooked on the analysis of a book or idea, which can take away from my personal opinions about the topic. I do this a lot in informal, personal papers even! I would like to make more concrete statements as to how I feel about a specific concept and to be able to feel my voice more.
