Hearts and Minds

This was definitely an impacting documentary. In terms of the structure and aesthetics it seemed well done. It started off with very peaceful scenes of Vietnamese women and men living their peaceful everyday lives. Then there was a transition and the scene shifted to an man getting interviewed. This was the point at which the viewer was able to be reminded that the film was a documentary. Other interviewees included veterans, former generals, presidents, lieutenants, senators, and Vietnamese people, which added to the credibility and feeling that all the appalling war-related issues people addressed- killings, bombings, tortures, abuses- were really real and did actually happen. Hearing the testimonies of the veterans as they spoke of the killings and bombings made the viewer feel somewhat grossed out- grossed out not only because of the things veterans said they did like rape women and torture them or torture Vietnamese men in front of other Vietnamese men in atrocious ways in order to instill fear, but grossed out at the fact that the viewer realizes humans are doing this to other humans.

This relates to the part in Cooke's reading when he mentions the unlearning process, which I addressed in the previous blog. Veterans do seem detached of their humanity and is surprising to realize that they were conditioned to act and think and considered themselves experts in whatever they were doing- whether it was killing or bombing. Many stated they found the idea of dying to be thrilling. Many, when talking about the subject, seem emotionless- like if it does not hurt, like if it's just a story, just a story. Another detail that stands out is the background music that plays when there are images of killings and bombings. It was very happy, which is a significant contrast due to the situation it deals with. This makes the viewer wonder if veterans actually felt happy or burden free during the war, which would come as no surprise.

Arbus's Freaks

Sontag claims Diane Arbus, unlike other photographers, depicts people one would not normally try to associate with. These depictions suggest our world shelters even those who are freakish and eccentric. Arbus' characters are odd. Their oddness encourages people to stare at them not because they are aesthetically pleasing but because the viewer is somewhat appalled at their appearance. Some of them are massively tattooed, strangely tall, dress unatractive, look scary, or are simply just odd.

The picture shown titled "The Day" depicts two children. Each is very different and to some extent odd as well. The girl is holding something close to her chest, and it seems as if she is letting out a devilish laugh or an expression of victory. The boy is shorter than she is, darker, and has a big head. His short shirt and high pants add to his innocent character. It looks like if he is acceeding or concuring to the action of the girl but in a less open manner. It is the image of them together that make this still funny and enjoyable to disect. This is the major reason I chose this picture.

The viewer would definitely not try to associate with the children. Instead he or she would look at the contrasting characteristics of each and realize as Sontag states, "Humanity is not one." Everyone is different or odd at some point. This is probably the reason why Arbus had the capability according to Sontag to "insinuate anguish, kinkiness, [or] mental illness with any subject-" due to the fact that these are real people, not members of a runway who are asked to pose in a certain way that makes them look artistic by an aesthetic standard. This concept is stricking and prompts the photography audiences to think, "I wonder if others have ever perceived me as odd or as a freak. I mean I look normal..."

The "Unlearning" Process

This image depicts the mushroom cloud resulting from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki towards the end of WWII. It all looks like a massive poof. The argument of course is similar to what Floyd's response was to the results of a bombing- "aesthetic" in nature. He found the "the bomb blasts to be beautiful." In a like manner, this picture could be perceived as stating the results of nuclear could also be artistic in nature- perhaps not in the sense that it is aesthetic to see lifeless corpses, but in the sense that the effects of an explosion could create a picturesque poof. This image almost seems to be speaking out saying, "Look at what nuclear war would look like." Perhaps many people would even utter something like, "Hey, that looks cool."

Interestingly enough though is the fact that I had never thought of putting the title "aesthetic" to an image like this. Perhaps I unconsciously thought of it, but did not allow myself to do it simply because the image itself dealt with a serious topic- war and of course all the implied deaths. Cook also describes the process individuals go through when learning to kill (or should I say "unlearn"). He mentions that soldiers for instance have to "unlearn a series of relations that govern contact between bodies in a society." This means they almost have to dehumanize themselves in a way in order to be detached of their innate good human feelings. It is a process. It is something they are trained to do.

In the case of this picture I feel that in order for one to articulate the words "This is cool" a mini version of the "unlearning" process has to occur. One would have to detach human feelings from what is actually happening or could happen- even if it is just a hypothetical picture, and even if it is just for a short period of time.

The Apple Personal Shopping at the Retail Store feature shown on the company's website reflects Apple's interest in responding to customers' needs in a helpful, friendly, straightforward manner. It presents a line of experts, a clean website, and shows pictures of experts helping people.

This picture referencing 9/11 definitely evokes emotion. Not necessarily sadness, but anger. Many people would consider it to be offensive. You just don't use the word "happy" with an issue like this or put smiley faces on the towers...

A Word A Day

We might end up needing to expand our vocabulary for this class. Check out the word of the day.

A Lil' About Me

Well I am 22 years old, a senior in college, majoring in Advertising, and looking forward to life after graduation. I know everything will be so different- a new challenge. One of the things I really like doing is going on walks. Being outdoors is so relaxing. I am happy Austin has so many places where one can just go with a couple of friends and take a nice walk: the lake, downtown, S. Congress, the Capital- you name it. Back home, in El Paso, there is none of that. Bummer. I am Christian and really enjoy church. I wear skirts all the time. So if you wondered, now you know. There are probably a handful of people who see this and wonder... I am pleased this course is different from the traditional rhetoric classes. I honestly don't know much about films and the like. So, I am really looking forward to the class and the way we will approach the topic. I thought today's discussion of the definition of a documentary- or lack thereof- was pretty interesting.