Dr. Lambiase

Dr. Lambiase was very interesting when she came to speak. She spoke about stereotypes in film and documentaries. I learned that a "stereotype" was a piece of equipment used to make the same image over and over again, which is where the meaning comes from. I enjoyed watching each film to see how wrong we were about our stereotypes. I wish we had more time to watch every single film, but class could not allow that. Spellbound had great examples and I learned a lot about different stereotypes in film.

Guest Speaker

Brian O'Connor came to visit us last class period and everything he said was very interesting. I thought his work was great and I feel as if I learned a lot. In No Place To Go, O'Connor trapped the images of poverty-stricken families in black and white. The film was very empathetic towards them and made the viewer feel as if they were really there. It made me want to go out and help the poor.

The question of cultural authenticity is whether or not someone outside a culture can make a good documentary about a different culture. I think it depends. If someone were to live in the culture and shoot every angle of it and make it unbiased, it could work out well. But if someone outside the culture didn't know the norms or the way things are done, certain aspects could be left out or not acknowledged and that would not be a good thing.

Information poverty, where people don't know the facts, is a sad occurrence around the world. Everyone should be well-educated on everything in life, otherwise they really don't anything. Experience is the key. I wait tables part-time and we always say that people should have to work in a restaurant at least once in their lifetime. It's hard work and no one seems to understand unless they have worked for a restaurant before.

I thought it was interesting when Mr. O'Connor showed us Horse Pulling and he got different reactions from different areas in the United States. 80% of the people in California and other states said the film made them claustrophobic. But in New Hampshire (where it was filmed) no one said that. It just shows that where you live and what culture you come from makes up your opinion on a lot of things in life.

February 19, 2008

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. This is true. I have seen my share of couples where one person in the relationship is very pretty and the other is....less pretty. But they love each other and no one can change what they see or feel for the other person. Our society today makes us feel ugly. In the United States, a "beautiful" woman is supposed to be 5'10, 100 lbs. and gorgeous without makeup. Why did we let things get this bad? Models are starving themselves to stay thin so they won't be considered "ugly." "Ugly" in American eyes is normal in mine. You need to have a little fat on you to be healthy and REAL. If you don't properly groom yourself with the right haircut, clothes, makeup, etc. you can't be "pretty" in America. It's really sad how our image has changed from the past. In Europe throughout the renaissance, women with big hips (for childbearing) were considered beautiful and paintings are still on display of them. Women in general were beautiful and worshipped almost because of their beauty. Now it's hard to even get attention unless you look like Adrianna Lima (sp?). We have tried to change things over the years, but let's face it: things are still the same.

Feb 13

Does geographical position determine how a country will develop? Yes. In the example of countries that live on a coast, their economy will thrive on aspects of water (fishing, trading, etc). If a community lives in a busy, high-profile area, the country will develop to that standard. I thought it was interesting when Dr. Wachanga showed us the two different views of Africa. The first one was of tourists exploring the african savannah with the animals and beauty of the land. The second view was of the starving children and the tragedy of the continent. I have grown up seeing both of these views when hearing or learning about Africa. Stereotypes exist for every community and country, and there are probably more than one view for each as well. I found it very amusing that there are africans who will come to the U.S. and attend African festivals, dressed a certain way and doing certain "african" dances for entertainment. It really is just for show and it has nothing to do with the culture in Africa. The map of Africa is very hazy...with all the many different regions and tribes and communities and countries...it gets very confusing...I found it interesting that in Kenya/Tanzania, the people say they are going to "London" when going to Kenya and "Germany" when going to Tanzania....just because those were the people that took over each territory. It's funny that the reporter who did the story on the "barefoot" monks made it a point to say they were barefoot, when that is part of their culture... I would love to see a story from one of them saying that we were all walking on campus with our shoes on. When it comes to criticizing documentaries, voice is power. We use celebrities to get to the public, which is understandable but also really sad. I hate how much we idolize celebrities and think that because they use a product, it must be better. Why can't my neighbor say a product is good and we trust her judgment? Cameras do lie...everyone has their point of view and there is not way to not be biased when filming anything..whether you try to be or not.

Feb 4, 2008

In class we watched the very entertaining movie, "The Gods Must Be Crazy." I found it highly enjoyable and want to make everyone I know watch it. I thought it was brilliant to point out that the bushman's life was way more simple and peaceful before the coke bottle fell. It caused anger and weird emotions in his family and that is exactly what is wrong with society today. We are too high-tech and complicated and we are suffering because of it.

Now, to address Dr. Wachanga's questions:

When I think of African Documentary film, I automatically think of a documentary set in Africa. This doesn't have to the be the case, it could have similarities to Africa but not be filmed there I guess. Africans belong to Africa as a genre, but like we saw in the movie last week, there were other people involved. When African Documentary film is brought up, it is common to just think of a documentary set in Africa and about Africa.

I think even if it is produced by a non-African but is still set in Africa and about Africa, it is still considered an African documentary. If an African produces a film about a non-African society it shouldn't be an African documentary because it's not about Africa in any way. I think that it does not matter who produces, directs or narrates a movie--if it is about Africa, it's African...if not, it's not.

Jan 23

In class Wednesday we discussed many interesting subjects. We were asked what comes to mind when we think of Africa and I am almost ashamed at myself for imagining the stereotypes we stated in class.

Colonialism in Africa consists of the 4 C's: Civilize, Conquer, Commerce and Christianity...which really sums up the ideals of the "powerhouse" countries like the United States. They want to conquer everything in the world and make it just like them, whether the inferior countries want that change or not (do they even have a choice?).

The environment really does create our culture. People in Hawaii celebrate the summer all year round...and they seem more relaxed and calm than people who live in the snow all year.

The idea of "educated" people is what we think we are. We have certain ideas of what a "smart" person or "funny" person is and we always compare it to that. We need to realize that words have different meanings in every single culture on this planet. In class an excellent quote was spoken: "Uneducated by Western Standards." This sums it up perfectly.

I think it really shows ignorance in people when they assume things about another culture. When Dr. Wachanga told us the story about the reporter for the NT Daily who wrote that he hunted goats, I was shocked. As a journalist I was shocked that she would assume any fact, and as a human being I was shocked that she was so clueless.

Due to my hectic schedule I was unable to rent the documentary "Darwin's Nightmare," but I will hopefully have the chance soon.

Blog 1

In class yesterday we discussed the idea of representation and what it means. I completely understand that a flag is not really a flag, it's a representation of a flag...but what was the original flag then? Someone thought of the idea, so is that a representation of their idea of a flag?

I find it very interesting that the tribe in Kenya wanted to send New York City eight cows, with the huge difference in the two cultures. I wish things were simple like that still, where we could just give cows as thank-you's. Now it's all about technology in this country.

Perception is also something I've always wondered about. If we all see a red octagon on the side of the road, we know it means to stop. But if you are from another culture and don't have to drive or have never been on a road with signs, you would not know what the sign means. It really is all about the situation and circumstances.