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Dollhouse crosses is the "blank slate" philosophy; which states that at birth anyone has the opportunity to be anything possible. What the parents do or what kind of genes someone has virtually has nothing to do with what you will be. John Watson, a proponent of this theory, stated, "Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select...regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors" (Powell 2). Meaning that Watson doesn’t care what the child’s parents or grandparents have done, anyone has an equal chance to be anything despite their talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors.

One Problem In My Paper

I feel that one problem that I have with my paper happens to be the biggest problem that I have, organization. I feel that after the first 2 page paper that I wrote, I tried to hard to just add to that. So my 3-5 page paper was about multiple things, rather then trying to focus on the main point.

Also in high school the longest paper that we wrote was only 5 or 6 pages, so the 7-8 page length is giving me some trouble. I feel that after the first 5 pages I am just repeating what I've already said. I am working on trying to find another source that is relevant to my topic. I have been working on it a lot lately and I think that it is getting better. Hopefully by the time it is due I'll have all of the kinks worked out and it will be an easy transition to the commonplace paper.

WB Prompt 3

The product that I choose was Coca-Cola, the classic dark soda. One website I choose was http://www.mycoke.com/index.jsp, the home website. The website first opens up with a scientist talking to you. He gives the date that coke was founded and says that its “…a day the world changes.” As I navigate to the home page there are games that are available, and all kinds of interactions. I think that they are not so much trying to sell their product, but trying to keep people on the website. As the site claims, the “Secret Formula” is another tactic used. I think that when people see that, they want to taste what it is all about.

The second site I choose was http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/. Right on the opening page there is counter that is continuously counting up. It states how many cokes are bought daily on average. The count is around 1.6 billion a day. There is a conversation blog on the site where visitors can say what they think of the product. Also there is over 2800 total coke products.

Overall both of these sites have a lot of info about all of the coke products. Both sites are bright red and eye catching. They also both have interactive features, which get the viewers involved. With coke being one of my favorite drinks, these sites gave me everything that I needed. I feel if I never would of tried coke, I would be tempted to go out and try one after seeing these websites.

We Don't Give a Damn for the Whole State of Michigan: Ohio State Marching Band

One of my favorite Ohio State songs is “We Don't Give a Damn for the Whole State of Michigan.” The song is played by the Ohio State Marching Band. Every year the Michigan vs. Ohio State football game is a huge deal. The song truly shows the rivalry that the two teams have for each other. The song is upbeat and exciting. Every time I hear it I get pumped up for the game. Even though the overall record is in Michigan’s favor (57-42-6), Ohio State has owned Michigan the last 5 games. As the song reads, “We don't give a damn for the whole state of Michigan, we're from Ohio” shows that true Ohio State fans hate Michigan. With both teams having above average years, this year’s game should be full of excitement. I can’t wait.

Wilcox - Fear The Princess Screamed Once

This article continuously states that Buffy knows that she is the princess. She takes the role as soon as everyone loses their voices. “When the wise man, Giles, indicates the need for a princess, all the characters (including Buffy) and presumable viewers alike immediately assume that Buffy, the Chosen One, is that princess.” I believe that this is very important. Everyone looks up to Buffy and looks at her as a leader. I think that the world needs more of these types of people. Being a leader is a very good attribute to have. As a former captain of my high school football, basketball, and baseball teams, I think of myself as a leader. Trying to be a leader and being a good leader though are two different things in my mind. It takes a special person to be able to have the patients needed to be a good leader. If you just give up after something goes wrong, then it is worthless. If Buffy would have gave up after the first unsuccessful night in “Hush,” then she probably never would have survived. I think Buffy is a great leader and that the world needs more people like her.

Is It Art?

At one point in the article Moeller compares the straightjacket monsters to the flying monkeys on the Wizard of Oz. “Could their characters be inspired by the Igor of the Hollywood Frankenstein flicks of the 1930’s and 40’s? Or is it “I”-gor of Mel Brooks’s Young Frankenstein, or is it Frankensteee-n? Or maybe they are inspired by those extremely-menacing flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz? That seems a better bet.” When I read this I was amazed, because I thought the exact same thing. While watching “Hush,” I was trying to think of what they reminded me of. As soon as I saw them walking on the ground they were, I thought of the monkeys. As a kid the monkeys freaked me out; I was so scared of them. I would cuddle up in my blanket and close my eyes when they came on the TV. I believe that these monsters were meant to have the same purpose. I think that when the students first saw the monsters they were freaked out. As the monkeys were servants to the wicked witch of the west, the monsters are servants. I wonder if the writer intended for this to be so similar?

Grimm Realities

After reading this article, I thought that the "Killed by Death" section was the most interesting. The episode sounds to be one of the better ones. The way that Buffy has to attack the demons is ironic. "Buffy must therefore reinfect herself with the illness so she can see the demon to fight it and save the young patients on the ward. The virus weakens her, but she is the Slayer, so Der Kindestod has met his match." The reason I find it ironic is because things have to get worse before they can get better. Buffy must physically hinder herself in order to kill the demons. Usually when a hero wards off a villain the hero needs to be in tip top shape. Then after the battle the hero is in worse condition then when they started. In Buffy's case it is sort of the opposite. She has to infect herself before the battle, then after the battle she becomes better. I am sure that she had her wounds after the battle also, but ultimately she will recover and be in better shape than before the fight.

Hush

After watching the episode Hush, I started to think what if that would happen at Ohio State. Where everyone's voices had been taken away one morning and no one knew why. It would be so hard to communicate with each other. Having to write things down on paper or having to lip read would be a huge hassle. All class would be cancelled. Then I started to think what if not only we all lost our voices but if those creepy monsters were walking around town. I’m not sure if anyone would have the guts to even leave their houses. I question if I could put the pieces together like Giles did. Luckily I don’t think this will ever happen or really hope it doesn’t happen. If it ever would happen I would be completely lost for words. (Literally)

Free Writing #2

Constructivist learning theory is a theory that states students learn the best when it an active process of creating meaning from different experiences. Or, trying to do something on their own with the guide of a teacher to help them along. I believe that this is one of the best ways of learning. When students figure things out on their own they tend to remember how to do it better then when they just memorize what a teacher is saying. In addition to figuring things out on a your own, "...a persons prior knowledge may help or hurt the construction of meaning." Where you grow up and when you grow up can help in many ways. Your experiences when you are young stick with you as you grow up. When a life lesson is learned at youth, people will remember it for a long time.

This relates to my episode in Dollhouse because dollhouse virtually erases your prior knowledge and feeds you something else. When given another memory, you lose your memory of your past. All of your past experiences and your cultures are useless. This is just another reason why I think that what dollhouse is doing is wrong.

Work Cited

"Constructivist Learning Theory." NDT Resource Center. 13 Oct. 2009

Free Writing #1

The "blank slate" philosophy is relevant in dollhouse. "Blank slate" means at birth anyone can be anything. What your parents do or what kind of genes you have has nothing to do with what you will be. John Watson was famous for saying, "Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select...regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors." Dollhouse takes peoples memories and makes them what they want them to be.

I believe that this is morally wrong. Everyone should have an equal opportunity to be anything that they want to be. Dollhouse is taking that away from them. They turn them into what they need them to be. Even if the subjects volunteer to be changed it's still wrong.

I think that this is Dr. Jack Kevorkian on a smaller scale. Those people told him to kill them, but it was still very wrong. No matter how bad someone may think they have it, messing with someones mind is not right. In the episode I watched Dollhouse still wasn't very confident in what they were doing. They weren't sure if everything was going to be "okay." I believe if they have the slightest doubt in what they are doing it shouldn't be done.

Works Cited

Powell, Kimberly. "Nature vs Nurture - How Heredity and Environment Shape Who We Are." About Genealogy - Learn How to Research Your Family Tree. 13 Oct. 2009 .

Life in College

I decided to write on all of my new experience's in college. I'll start off with the best part, the parties. Having no curfew and no parents nagging me is defiantly a plus. To counter that, the studying jumped from virtually zero to a couple of hours a night. The content is defiantly more in depth and if you fall behind its your own fault. Also living with a roommate is a change. Even though I have a brother and a sister, I always had my own room. Its a different experience but at the same time a fun one. Another plus is the meal plan. Having 200 swipes is amazing. I can eat almost anything that I want at any time that I want. Meeting new friends and hanging out with different people is a lot of fun too. Getting out of the high school "clicks" and away from your good friends is exciting. I love everything so far and look forward to the next four/five years of my life.

WB Prompt 2

When eating lunch today at market place, I decided that it would be a good place to write about in the prompt. The dinning hall has all kinds of food such as pizza, pasta, wraps, salads, and soups. Looking around I noticed all of the different kinds of people sitting together. I noticed the studiers in one corner, the group of friends grabbing a bite to eat in another, and finally the athletes in talking/meeting everyone.

Not only is this a great place to go to eat but it is also a great place to meet people. There are tons and tons of people there every time I go. Waiting in line for my pizza, I was able to talk to a couple of people. I told them that I was going to write this blog about the atmosphere at Market Place. They told me that they thought it was a hectic mess, and I told them that it beats being in class.

Lastly I realize that maybe I need to do this more in my life. In this fast and ever changing world, taking time to just sit back and observing my surroundings really helps. I feel like I am always trying to hurry up and get things done. As much as some of these blog post are a pain, I thought this one was worth my time.

Brian's second source

My second source is from the same episode from Dollhouse. It is the scene when Caroline's partner Victor has to listen/watch Caroline get "married." Of course she is not actually getting married, only trying to find out information on Martin Clar, the biggest arms dealer on the coast. I thought this scene was important because Victor is attracted to Caroline. He tosses and turns threw out the night and it hurts him. She makes jokes about it and plays it off like its nothing. She tells him it means nothing that she is, "blind when she needs to be blind." This suprises me because when you think of girls and guys when it comes to sex, its usually the girl that gets hurt and the guy that plays it off as nothing. I thought that this scene was also important becuase it shows that Victor is starting to get emotionally attached. It is no longer just about getting information on Clar, it is now personal.

Brian's first source

For my first source I chose the first scene in Dollhouse episode 1 season 2. One of the subjects that is going to get worked on complains about having an "oriental" work on her. She asks if she can have the white male work on her instead. If there is one that that I have learned since coming to Ohio State, its that everyone is equal. The fact that the girl insults the asain doctor is not only disrepectful but also rude. After realising that the male will not be working on her, she trys to complement the doctor with a vulger joke. This not only makes the situation awkward but also shows the subjects insecurity.

Our Mrs. Reynolds/ "But she was naked"

After watching the episode in class today, I thought that the scene where Mrs. Reynolds kissed Mr. Reynolds was very important. When she came onto the ship everyone felt sorry for her and thought that Mr. Reynolds was in the wrong. He wanted to kick her off the ship and forget about her. She cooked him dinner and was basically his slave. I had a feeling that she was on the ship for more then just an accident. I was right. As stated in the article, Mrs. Reynolds used a couple of techniques to seduce Mal. She continuously shows her vulnerability to try to receive sympathy from Mal. When she kissed Mal and tried to take over the ship it was ironic. It was ironic because the woman took advantage of then man, when it is usually the other way around. She went from an innocent lady to a evil woman trying to take over the ship. Luckily one of the girl crew member catches her and stops her. This scene just shows that "Not everything is what it seems to be"