Society's Expectations

Today in class, we talked about the movie Grizzly Man. It was interesting to all of us how the friends and family of Timothy Treadwell acted with cameras on them. Most people in our society seem to act differently around other people. Jewel Palovak, the close friend of Timothy, acted very fake on film. While her and the man were sitting listening to the death audio, they both expressed emotions that seemed unusual to the viewers. Of course they must have been sad to listen to the audio of a man they knew very well, but is the emotion the man (who never met Treadwell) expressed what he was really feeling, or was it partially because society has told us that it is sad to be listening to that.


 I think a part of it is subconscious, and we naturally want to "fit in with society." Whether we realize it or not, subconsciously,  we all adjust our feelings and emotions to fit into society. This is just part of the norm. For example, my friends and i have made movies before, and even the voice we use on camera is different than our normal one. It is something that we don't even realize until we watch it after.


Timothy Treadwell, however, was different. I think he acted more naturally on camera, and what we saw was the real him. Therefore, I think he did not exactly fit into American society. He is different than the rest, for this reason, but also others as well. Another concern everybody has is money. All we think about is money and how to get more of it. Timothy, like Chris McCandless from Into The Wild, did not care about that. They burned it all, and had little interest in making more, except for bare essentials.


All in all, I think that we all have a mask covering our real selves. Whether we know it or not, we act differently around others, because that is how we are expected to in our society today.

Finding The Right School

      I recently went to a college fair, and was completely overwhelmed by just how many colleges there are. As I walked through the clausterphobic gym, college representatives from over 200 hundred schools tried to convince me to learn more about their school. When picking your college there are so many considerations you have to put into it: size, location, cost,  major, sports, admission criteria; the list goes on and on. Every school is different, and there are endless possibilities. Walking by each booth, we passed several colleges that my mom had never even heard of! With so many colleges throughout the country, you many not even find the college that is completely right for you. There also may be several colleges that are a good fit, and you never come across them.

        We as Americans like the idea of having endless places to chose from. In the Thoreau reading we discussed in class, there are many important American values that relate to picking a school. The idea of more choices is key. Most Americans are the complete opposite of Chris McCandless, as he believed simplicity was better. Additionally, competition is very important in our country today. Getting into college is one big competition. It's like a contest of who can get the best GPA, or do well on their ACT. It is something that is taken very seriously here, maybe more so than in other countries of the world.

The Children of 9/11

As talked about all over the news, this coming sunday will mark 10 years since 9/11 occurred. Every year, many are reminded of this day, and the tragedy that occurred. For friends and family who lost loved ones, this is the day to grieve their death, but to also look up to them as a hero, and send balloons with letters to their dads.

While reading my weekly People magazine, the article on the front cover talked about 9/11, and how the kids were effected. I thought this was an interesting perspective to put it from, because I have never read about how the kids were effected tremendously as well. There were 10 or so interviews with kids all about 9 years old, whose fathers died in 9/11 before they were born. They never were able to meet their dad, so all they have are pictures of him. One kid in the article said she was jealous of her older siblings not only because they knew him for a short while, but also because they had pictures with him to remember him by.  These 9 year olds didn't have a picture with him at all, just pictures of him, which was very difficult for them. One girl said she kept the ultrasound of her in her bedroom because it was the only picture her father had seen of her. 

When I saw the cover of this magazine, "The Children of 9/11" it was a perspective I had never seen or thought much of before. I thought it was very interesting to hear what they had to say, and then hear what their mothers or siblings said afterwards about it. When people think of the tragedy of 9/11, I don't think they single out what the children, especially the unborn ones, were dealing with, but instead the family and friends as a whole. What makes these kids special is the legacy they are carrying on with them. They take a tragedy and turn it upside down by carrying a good light on their shoulders. I read all the time of people trying to make the best out of something horrible. By trying to stay positive and being active with the situation, they can accomplish something amazing themselves. 


This scenario reminds me of J.R. Martinez, who burned over 40% of his body in the Iraq war. Now however, he is on Dancing With The Stars. He kept his head high and tried to make the best of each and every day. This is what these children of 9/11 are doing, and I think it is the best way to remember something tragic.