I just finished reading Nicolas Kristof's article called, "When States Abuse Women." It was mainly about how many states are taking extreme measures to prevent abortions. In states like Texas, women getting an abortion are required (yes, it's MANDATORY) to get a vaginal ultrasound, listen to the fetus' heartbeat, watch it on a screen and listen to the doctor explain about all of the fetus' organs. Then, the girl has to sign papers saying she understands all of it, go home and wait 24 hours before she can come back and actually get the abortion. Many people are saying it borders on the definition of rape.
Rape is, after all, "putting any object into an orifice against a person’s will." That's what this is, except the state government is organizing it. "Twenty states now require abortion providers to conduct ultrasounds first in some situations, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization. The new Texas law is the most extreme to take effect so far, but similar laws have been passed in North Carolina and Oklahoma and are on hold pending legal battles." Read that again. TWENTY STATES. That's almost half of our country. What I'm wondering is if these laws are constitutional. They probably are, but I'd like to investigate some more. I am just so shocked to learn about this. Yes, I knew people were against abortion. I knew a lot of people were against abortion. This just seems like a little bit over the boundary.
All these people seem just a tad hypocritical to me. They are so against abortion, yet they still do the following. "The small proportion of women and girls who aren't using contraceptives account for half of all abortions in America, according to Guttmacher. Yet Texas has some of the weakest sex-eduction programs in the nation, and last year but spending for family planning by 66 percent." It honestly makes no sense to me how they could possibly make women go through such hoops to get an abortion when in fact they are doing little to stop it from happening in the first place. I understand that they have their opinion about the matter, and I respect that, but they can't just complain about a problem and make it worse if they didn't try to prevent it in the first place!
Personally, I am pro-choice. I think if a women wants an abortion, she should be able to get one, especially for young girls. People shouldn't bring a child into the world unless they are going to take care of it to the best of their ability, love it with all their heart, and provide it with a good life. That's my personal opinion on the matter. After reading the article, it just made me even more pro-choice, if that's even possible. I just couldn't believe some of the bigotry in our country. If a doctor has to probe a woman's vagina to stop her from getting an ultrasound, and make her do all that other crazy stuff, things are clearly out of hand. Some people see that, but until more people see that, nothing is going to get better any time soon.
Here's a link to the article if you want to check it out for yourself, which you should.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Invisible...For Good or Bad?
Skylar Grey is a very talented yet little-known artist, and I just love her. (She's the one that sings the chorus in Coming Home, by Diddy-Dirty Money.) I've been addicted to her song, Invisible, for the past few weeks and I really wanted to look a little deeper into it. Boy, was I surprised what I found. I thought I liked this song because it had a nice tune and she had such a nice voice, but now I like it for so much more.
People probably hear this song the first time, and think, wow, this girl is seriously depressed. (I'm not going to lie, that's what I thought as well the first time I heard it.) If they took the time to really unpack the lyrics, they would see that it's so much more than that. The first few lines are, "I take these pills, to make me thin. / I die my hair, I cut my skin. / I try everything, to make them see me, / But all they see, is someone who's not me." Okay, I see she has some issues here...but are they really her issues? I think she is characterizing the common image of beautiful with her words, and it's just about someone who's failed to conform. All the stereotypes of modern beauty make tons of girls and women feel self-conscious and just not pretty in general. It's true, what's she's saying. People who don't fit the exact criteria for beautiful often do things like taking pills, and cutting their skin, to make themselves feel better, or relieve the stress.
It's sad that beauty is so unrealistic and unachievable. In the chorus, she says, "Even when I'm walking on the wire, / Even when I set myself on fire, / Why do I always feel invisible, invisible. / Everyday I try to look my best, / Even though inside I'm such a mess, / Why do I always feel invisible, invisible." I don't think she's literally walking on a wire or setting herself on fire here, it's definitely more of a metaphor. Perhaps "walking on the wire" actually means when things matter, or when she's atop the world. Setting herself on fire probably means making a big show of herself. It hurts, when people try so hard to get noticed, and yet nothing happens. Beauty should be subjective, yet modern media and modern publicity have made it nearly unattainable. People have developed a definite opinion of what beauty should be, and that's the absolutely wrong thing to do. A skinny girl wearing lots of make-up should have the same beauty-value, shall we say, as an overweight girl au-natural. Skylar Grey demonstrates this with her lyrics. She's saying even when she does conform to the modern stereotypes and standards of beauty, (everyday I try to look my best), she STILL isn't getting recognized. That's the bitter truth. Girls gunk themselves up to look "pretty," and wear the latest styles to be, "cool," but all they are doing is supporting the messed up world we live in. And they STILL aren't there yet. They are the ones that feed the ever-growing monster of a concept we call, "beauty."
To wrap up, basically, this song has a lot more than it appears to on the surface, just like in people. What she is implying about beauty is spot on, and I've come to believe it. Maybe that makes me a cynic, or maybe it just makes me truthful. You decide. This song is what happens to people who have lost hope in all that is good, and realize the truth about life. This is one of those examples of what not to do (if you take it literally) when you become "invisible" in your own way. Everyone is invisible to something or someone, but if we dig deep enough, we can all find that thing that makes us stand out.
This is the song if you want to give it a listen...just remember she took some artistic liberties in the music video, specifically when she shows the lyrics literally.
People probably hear this song the first time, and think, wow, this girl is seriously depressed. (I'm not going to lie, that's what I thought as well the first time I heard it.) If they took the time to really unpack the lyrics, they would see that it's so much more than that. The first few lines are, "I take these pills, to make me thin. / I die my hair, I cut my skin. / I try everything, to make them see me, / But all they see, is someone who's not me." Okay, I see she has some issues here...but are they really her issues? I think she is characterizing the common image of beautiful with her words, and it's just about someone who's failed to conform. All the stereotypes of modern beauty make tons of girls and women feel self-conscious and just not pretty in general. It's true, what's she's saying. People who don't fit the exact criteria for beautiful often do things like taking pills, and cutting their skin, to make themselves feel better, or relieve the stress.
It's sad that beauty is so unrealistic and unachievable. In the chorus, she says, "Even when I'm walking on the wire, / Even when I set myself on fire, / Why do I always feel invisible, invisible. / Everyday I try to look my best, / Even though inside I'm such a mess, / Why do I always feel invisible, invisible." I don't think she's literally walking on a wire or setting herself on fire here, it's definitely more of a metaphor. Perhaps "walking on the wire" actually means when things matter, or when she's atop the world. Setting herself on fire probably means making a big show of herself. It hurts, when people try so hard to get noticed, and yet nothing happens. Beauty should be subjective, yet modern media and modern publicity have made it nearly unattainable. People have developed a definite opinion of what beauty should be, and that's the absolutely wrong thing to do. A skinny girl wearing lots of make-up should have the same beauty-value, shall we say, as an overweight girl au-natural. Skylar Grey demonstrates this with her lyrics. She's saying even when she does conform to the modern stereotypes and standards of beauty, (everyday I try to look my best), she STILL isn't getting recognized. That's the bitter truth. Girls gunk themselves up to look "pretty," and wear the latest styles to be, "cool," but all they are doing is supporting the messed up world we live in. And they STILL aren't there yet. They are the ones that feed the ever-growing monster of a concept we call, "beauty."
To wrap up, basically, this song has a lot more than it appears to on the surface, just like in people. What she is implying about beauty is spot on, and I've come to believe it. Maybe that makes me a cynic, or maybe it just makes me truthful. You decide. This song is what happens to people who have lost hope in all that is good, and realize the truth about life. This is one of those examples of what not to do (if you take it literally) when you become "invisible" in your own way. Everyone is invisible to something or someone, but if we dig deep enough, we can all find that thing that makes us stand out.
This is the song if you want to give it a listen...just remember she took some artistic liberties in the music video, specifically when she shows the lyrics literally.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Mercutio: The Forgotten Influence of Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet are probably the most recognizable names in romance. Even if you haven't read the play yet, everyone knows a little about the tragic love story of Romeo and Juliet. Most people know Romeo and Juliet are the main characters, maybe a true Shakespearian might even know a thing or two about the secondary characters, like Friar Lawrence, the Nurse, Benvolio, and Tybalt. I know that before studying this text closely, I had no idea who most of the people I just named are. I certainly didn't have any idea about who Mercutio was. Oh yeah, Mercutio. Did you forget about him too momentarily? Too bad. Mercutio is a way under appreciated character. Mercutio's role in the play is just as pivotal and important as that of Romeo and Juliet.
Romeo and Juliet met at a party thrown by the Capulets (Juliet's family) and Romeo crashed it. (You see, the Capulets and the Montagues, Romeo's family, have been having this ancient grudge that has prevented the two families from getting along. ) The two decide to get married after knowing each other only a few hours. Romeo kills Tybalt, and he is then banished. Juliet and Friar hatch a plan where Juliet drinks a potion that will make her appear dead for a day, and when she wakes up, Romeo will be waiting to run away with her. When they got back, everyone would be so happy Juliet was alive, they would forget about Romeo's wrongdoings. Unfortunately, Romeo didn't get the memo before he killed himself by Juliet's side, and then Juliet woke up and killed herself. You might be asking yourself, what did Mercutio have to with any of this? Well, to put it simply-everything.
Mercutio was the one who persuaded Romeo to go to the party in the first place. Act 1, scene 4, is all about Mercutio telling Romeo to go to the party, and give love another chance. "And to sink in it, should you burthen love-Too great oppression for such a tender thing...If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.— Give me a case to put my visage in! A visor for a visor.—What care I what curious eye doth cote deformities? Here are the beetle brows shall blush for me." To put simply, Mercutio is telling Romeo to give love another chance, and when it brings him down, to keep trying. If you really think about it, this interaction is what sets off the course of events for the rest of the play. If Romeo hadn't gone to that party, he would never have met Juliet. Mercutio is pretty much responsible for them falling in love in the first place.
Mercutio's death is what changed the play from a comedy to a tragedy. There is a big fight scene involving Romeo, Tybalt, Mercutio, and Benvolio. Benvolio of course is the one who is trying to keep the peace between the two sides, but that doesn't really work out. Tybalt comes at Romeo because he is mad that he crashed the party. Romeo couldn't fight back because he was Tybalt's kinsman, but Tybalt did not know this. Since Romeo didn't fight, Mercutio provoked Tybalt and fought him himself. His last words were, "A plague on both your houses!" (3.1) This means that Mercutio wants both houses to suffer for their immaturity and meaningless fighting. Death was the outcome. Mercutio's cry was the unintentional wake-up call both houses needed. Without his death, Romeo wouldn't have killed Tybalt, which wouldn't have led to hin getting banished, which wouldn't have lead to Romeo's and Juliet's death. Mercutio, in his own way, set the dominos falling.
Many people believe it was Romeo's and Juliet's decisions that lead to the outcome of the play, but I believe differently. I believe that it was Mercutio had just as big an influence on everything as they did. He is literally the turning point of the play. He shapes the entire plot. He is important in so many scenes, and his actions lead to others that set up everything in the play. I will never forget the character of Mercutio. Never, ever, ever.
Romeo and Juliet met at a party thrown by the Capulets (Juliet's family) and Romeo crashed it. (You see, the Capulets and the Montagues, Romeo's family, have been having this ancient grudge that has prevented the two families from getting along. ) The two decide to get married after knowing each other only a few hours. Romeo kills Tybalt, and he is then banished. Juliet and Friar hatch a plan where Juliet drinks a potion that will make her appear dead for a day, and when she wakes up, Romeo will be waiting to run away with her. When they got back, everyone would be so happy Juliet was alive, they would forget about Romeo's wrongdoings. Unfortunately, Romeo didn't get the memo before he killed himself by Juliet's side, and then Juliet woke up and killed herself. You might be asking yourself, what did Mercutio have to with any of this? Well, to put it simply-everything.
Mercutio was the one who persuaded Romeo to go to the party in the first place. Act 1, scene 4, is all about Mercutio telling Romeo to go to the party, and give love another chance. "And to sink in it, should you burthen love-Too great oppression for such a tender thing...If love be rough with you, be rough with love. Prick love for pricking, and you beat love down.— Give me a case to put my visage in! A visor for a visor.—What care I what curious eye doth cote deformities? Here are the beetle brows shall blush for me." To put simply, Mercutio is telling Romeo to give love another chance, and when it brings him down, to keep trying. If you really think about it, this interaction is what sets off the course of events for the rest of the play. If Romeo hadn't gone to that party, he would never have met Juliet. Mercutio is pretty much responsible for them falling in love in the first place.
Mercutio's death is what changed the play from a comedy to a tragedy. There is a big fight scene involving Romeo, Tybalt, Mercutio, and Benvolio. Benvolio of course is the one who is trying to keep the peace between the two sides, but that doesn't really work out. Tybalt comes at Romeo because he is mad that he crashed the party. Romeo couldn't fight back because he was Tybalt's kinsman, but Tybalt did not know this. Since Romeo didn't fight, Mercutio provoked Tybalt and fought him himself. His last words were, "A plague on both your houses!" (3.1) This means that Mercutio wants both houses to suffer for their immaturity and meaningless fighting. Death was the outcome. Mercutio's cry was the unintentional wake-up call both houses needed. Without his death, Romeo wouldn't have killed Tybalt, which wouldn't have led to hin getting banished, which wouldn't have lead to Romeo's and Juliet's death. Mercutio, in his own way, set the dominos falling.
Many people believe it was Romeo's and Juliet's decisions that lead to the outcome of the play, but I believe differently. I believe that it was Mercutio had just as big an influence on everything as they did. He is literally the turning point of the play. He shapes the entire plot. He is important in so many scenes, and his actions lead to others that set up everything in the play. I will never forget the character of Mercutio. Never, ever, ever.
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