Author Archives: Trevor Lee

Colorful Characters Makes it the “Right Thing” to Watch

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One thing that sparked my interest in the film Do The Right Thing is the colorful characters. Everyone has their own unique personality and the interactions of the characters make it a very entertaining, informative, and funny movie. The first character I want to bring up is the white guy that messed up Buggin’ Out’s Air Jordan. That guy was wearing a Larry Bird jersey and is the only affluent man in the neighborhood. It’s ironic in two ways. First, is why would this guy live in such a neighborhood if he can easily be bullied. Second is that Larry Bird is the finest white basketball player in his era and had an intense rivalry with the famed Magic Johnson, who is African American. The guy who was wearing the Larry Bird jersey is kind of asking for it, because he lives in a predominantly African-American neighborhood, and should probably be exercising in a Magic Johnson jersey or a Michael Jordan jersey, the one that Mookie was wearing in the beginning. Buggin’ Out claimed that about why there was not any of his “brothers” in pictures in Sal’s Famous. So, riding a bike while wearing a “non-brother” jersey in an African American neighborhood can be dangerous.

Likewise, Señor Love Daddy, the DJ at the radio station, was one of my favorite characters. I cannot remember what he exactly said, but he was yelling “Wake up!” for a long, long time, but also had a nice tone and smoothness to his voice. His hilarious sentences were repeated in its converse and he seemed so passionate about his job. The sentences were natural and I would not mind listening to that radio station. I was captivated by his flair and the suave of his voice. It is also cool how he is right down the block from many people, and you can easily walk by his station and wave hi. He might even call your name out and give you a chance to say something on air. He also kind of defies theory on how as you age, you can’t speak like a kid. But he says whatever he wants, and has a classic, but a contemporary feel to his voice.

There are many other colorful characters, but these two were the ones that stood out to me, and makes the film even better. It is a interesting and worthwhile film and I hope for more characters, more laughs, and a defining moment. I can’t wait to watch the ending, and I know it will only get better.

A King of Inadequate Features

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Richard II’s characteristics are the exact qualities for how kings fail and suffer a tragic ending. First of all, Richard is an incompetent king, who is unable to connect with his people. He is too busy in his court with all his attendants, who flatter Richard for personal gains. Richard is also lost in the fashions of his time. Already, a self-centered king not like very much by his people will need to change immediately. Richard disrespects John of Gaunt, Henry Bolingbroke’s father, when he is nearing his death. Richard is actually quite happy about this. When John of Gaunt dies, Richard takes the respected John of Gaunt assets. Richard, actually, has a cruel nature and does not want anyone being close to steal his throne. John of Gaunt even wants to warn Richard about his punishment from God before he dies, and he truly believes that God appoints the king. This is foreshadowing Richard losing his throne. A man so deeply believing that God controls the throne, tries to help Richard in the right direction only further serves as a message to Richard that he has to shape up his act.

What’s worse is that Richard is the leader of the group that killed Thomas of Gloucester. Richard plays a very political game. He banishes Henry from England, but he fails to notice that and pay attention to the fact that Henry can still come back and take the kingdom. He does so for only six years because Henry is the people’s champion and he has to satisfy the people by giving Thomas Mowbray a longer sentence. Richard is still in his own world making his own plans. His plan to steal John of Gaunt’s assets to fund for the war, shows how incompetent he is as a king. A good King does not need to steal to have a kingdom run smoothly. If Richard listened to the Duke of York, then Henry might have less of a support system when staging his coup. The Earl of Northumberland, Lord Willoughby, and Lord Ross would not have switched alliances. It’s such a pity that Richard does not listen to the elder’s wise words, possesses qualities that will only hinder the decadence of England and has a narrow scope of what is really going on.

Don Juan’s Hilarious Excuse

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Don Juan is such a colorful character. He is a very personable, young, trickster. In a way he is a magician. He makes an illusion of what he really isn’t. He uses his flowery language to persuade the lovely ladies into falling in love with him. Although the exact time period is not stated, it can be assumed that “Don Juan” takes place in the far past. Part of the reason why women are tricked by Don Juan is due to their plainness. Charlotte, for example, is a peasant and is uneducated. Although she has learned that many “court folk are cajolers” she instantly falls in love with him after she has a slight argument with her husband to be (Act II, Scene 2).

Even more hilarious is that in Act I Scene 2, Don Juan’s monologue justifies his actions of deceiving and playing with women. “What? Do you want us to bind ourselves…so that I might extend my amorous conquests there” (339). Don Juan not only questions, but also rebels against society’s norm of settling down with one woman. Beauty enchants him and he has to pay respect to the fair lady by giving her his heart. It sounds very superficial but, furthermore Don Juan claims that “nature requires” him to do so. Don Juan kind of has it set up for himself to die. He is disrespecting God and the social norms of his era and this foreshadows his death by heaven. Don Juan adapts the concept of love is ever changing and the passion dies out after a while. Although the vigor of finding new love is more of a modern day concept, Don Juan relishes his concept as Alexander conquering new worlds. Fresh love is rejuvenating and in Don Juan’s excuse, love for one another will run and, thus both needs to go their separate ways. He talks about his ambition to travel near and far and to conquer the heart of many. In a way, the challenge seems fitting for Don Juan because he seems to be in ecstasy when he successfully courts the “love of his life.” Even though he tries to justify his doings by making an eloquent speech, I can’t help but laugh and admit that Don Juan has a sense of swagger that will bring him great happiness, but cruel and regrettable death. Even his servant, Sganarelle, warns him about a tragic ending.

 

The Highline: A home to nature, the buildings that make the Highline more than just nature, and a short description of the Highline

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The pictures with all the buildings shows off the stylish architecture of NYC. It’s cool to see the sleek designs that I can’t even dream of becoming a reality. The Highline is suppose to be taken down but it looks better when surrounded by the fascinating architecture. The other quartet of pictures represents how the Highline tries to conserve nature. The “Protect the Plants. Stay on the Path” sign encourages visitors to keep the vibrant nature alive. The sight of a wealth of flower is pleasing to the eye, and the color brings a sense of liveliness to the Highline. The glass mosaic is recycled from the old train’s glass windows that use to run on the tracks of the Highline. By preserving and recycling, the Highline is promoting people to be more eco-friendly by being a great example.  The last picture is what I crafted. I took pictures of text that gives a short description and history of the Highline. I took, what I felt is, the most important words from the texts and meshed it together.

Patti Smith: A Visionary Who Was a Trend Setter

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As a young girl Patti Smith was raised as a Jehovah’s Witness. She was sent to Sunday school and had to learn and read the Bible. Even at night, Smith would recite prayers after her mom. But according to her, she “plagued her (mother) with questions.” At such a young age Smith was already questioning ideal thoughts. She was a child wise beyond her years. Smith showed hints of being a leader. She wouldn’t settle for what people told her and wanted to find out things for herself. Although, I am citing her actions as a child, I am speaking in regards to her potential. Patti grew up and became an artist. Her experiences with her soul mate, Robert Mapplethorpe, made her more complete. Smith defied the stereotypical view of a punk rock and roll artist. Oddly enough, she was also known to be a poet who tried to mesh her poems and her songs. Although, her voice sounded raspy, and wasn’t the greatest she influenced others in a different way.

First, Smith is such a phenomenal person. When she had her first child, she gave it up for adaptation instead of just dumping it. She believed that someone else could have taken care of it better and she didn’t want her struggles as an upcoming artist to worsen her child. Smith was not a hater to minorities, and actually loved entertaining minorities. Her songs, her style which are manly like, and personality appealed to the rebels of her time. She even said herself that girls weren’t really a part of rock bands that time. It’s amazing how became one of the most influential singers and person of her time. She dreamed of being a teacher, not a singer, and how lucky is the world to have Smith who not only tested the waters, but revolutionized the artistic era of her time.

The Immigrant Experience

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“The Arrival” by Shaun Tan tells a fascinating story that many can connect to by painting pictures instead of using words. This book is the proverbial representation of how a picture is worth one thousand words. I felt as if was in this foreign, yet magical world while I was reading. More importantly, this is a classic tale of what almost every immigrant goes through as they come to America.

Many immigrants leave their home country in search for a better life for their family, but they also face many challenges, and some they can’t overcome alone. It’s natural for the protagonist’s wife and daughter to cry during the beginning when the protagonist/father/husband leaves. He brings a suitcase full of memories. In my opinion, he brings everything he left behind except his family. People only bring essentials when starting over, but the protagonist is too poor and the most valuable thing he can take along is his memories. He stares at the picture which symbolizes a longing for his family, just like most immigrants who go to another country to fund their family to come over or support their family back home. Another challenge is adjusting to the new life. It is always quite a shock. The protagonist is searching for a job and it takes him a lot of time to get one. First of all, there is a language barrier, so he has to gesticulate. It is hard to make friends or get a job if one doesn’t know the language of their new country. Communication problems puts a greater burden on the protagonists’ struggles. Once he finds a job, he almost immediately loses it because he doesn’t know how things work in the new country. Different culture may lead to doing things differently, or it can, again, be a language barrier. After failing multiple jobs, the protagonist, just like many other immigrants, resort to working in an assembly line. Another vital factor in living standard is that the protagonist lives in a small apartment. It is only two rooms big. And the living rooms seems crowded enough with two tables and a chair. By the way, the protagonist had to draw a picture to articulate what he wanted. This shows that the language barrier, although hard, is not impossible to navigate through. All immigrants have to go through tests in the beginning to see if they are healthy enough, must answer questions, fill out a plethora of paperwork, and wait to do all of that with a horde of people waiting on line. I just like to note that when the protagonist is being checked, and questioned, the place is reminiscent of Ellis Island.

As difficult as the struggles are, immigration also can be quite wondrous. The stray animal that the protagonist becomes friend with is very similar to a dog. It is his greatest companion while he is in the beginning stages of living life as an immigrant. Also, while the protagonist gets on a boat, he asks direction of another immigrant who not only helps him, but explains her life story. It shows how everyone struggles, but there will always people helping each other out. The man with glasses and his son are affable enough to share their dinner with the protagonist. He in returns shows they origami, and they show him their talents. The cordial nature doesn’t just pertain to one people, but to many. The old man whose been through war takes the protagonist to this friends to play some kind of game. Cultures and friends are learned through this, and it is also a way to escape from the struggles, or in a way it takes away the struggles. At the end, when a young lady is lost, the protagonist’s daughter helps her out. This exemplifies that the sincerity of helping immigrants adjust to their new life is continuously passed on, from one person to the next. Some people may have never experienced snow in their lives, and it can be a special time for them. It is new and something they never experienced.

As I said before, I kind of wanted to be in the book. The setting looks so surreal. It’s something I haven’t seen before and it makes me feel like somewhat of an immigrant. I am fascinated by it and want to explore and live in it. It is like what many immigrants think of New York City. New York City is this amazing place, where it only exists in the imagination of most. Some people are just dying to go there. I have the same feeling for the setting in the book. A lot of things, like the hot air balloon, and the magnificent gardens, make me feel like I am a foreigner just like the protagonist feels. I think Tan does this on purpose so that the reader can relate to what an immigrant feels like.

Is forgetting really worth the sacrifice?

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It was all fun and games for me during 9/11/2001 because a student named Nikita was having his birthday party in class that day. When he left school early it seemed no big deal. Maybe it was because his birthday, I thought. But when more than half of my third grade class slowly was thinning out one by one, I could help but wonder why. I deduced that something important happened that affected a lot of people, but I just wasn’t able to put my finger on it. My mom who was supposed to be working that day picked me up. I was surprised to see her. She explained what happened and all the clamor that parents were making outside the school. When I got home I sat down at the dining table and waited for my mom to make me a snack. I would usually watch cartoons after school, but when I turned on the TV, I was only able to see the news on channel two. As a kid, I was upset that I wasn’t able to watch my favorite shows, such as Pokémon or Digimon.

Taking a look at Oscar’s view on 9/11, he wasn’t in my situation. He heard the final words of his father, and had to go through the pain of living and growing up without one. Oscar is one of those unlucky few who suffered a truly devastating loss. I, on the other hand, was a just a normal boy who was too young to comprehend others’ feeling. I was, in a way, lost in my own world. Oscar in a way lost a part of his childhood and grew up faster than most kids did.

9/11 has left an impact on Oscar. It isn’t easy to deal with all the grief he is suffering from. It also hurts him more when he holds onto the memories of his father. Oscar suffers when his mom is dating Rob. The memory of still having dad as a fatherly figure and mom only in love with dad is deteriorating. The concept of family is over when Rob steps into his mom life. In “The Limits of Remembrance” by David Rieff claims the forgetting is warrant, and in a way better. But for some people, like Oscar, forgetting might bring more pain. Oscar will lose precious memories of his dad. Pain will always live on in memory, but pain lives on when someone forgets someone or something special. Is forgetting really worth the sacrifice?

The picture of the 9/11 memorial in “The Limits of Remembrance” can be seen as the towers fading into the sky when getting bigger, which symbolizes a memory. When one lets go of a memory, the memory slowly fades away. The endurance of pain lessens and all the suffering disperses. Another analogy is as someone screams into the air, the sound drifts slowly away and spreads until it can’t be heard anymore. It can also be seen as a concrete memory that won’t be forgotten. The layers represent the depth of remembrance and all the way down to the core, 9/11 won’t be forgotten. Even in the hustle and bustle of New York City, 9/11 will always have a place in its lore. Even though the picture in “The Limits of Remembrance” can be seen in different way, there is no right still no right answer to is forgetting really worth the sacrifice? It all depends on the individual who answers it.