My Response to Killing Us Softly

This documentary had many valid points and seeing the very strange ads that she had collected over the years made me wonder what the company was thinking by letting it into the public eye.

I think that Jane is correct in saying that advertisement looks at Americans as consumers instead of human beings. They go for the shocking and obvious that will catch your eye within minuets of reading and will stay with you until you have time to buy the product. I think that most advertisers aim for the pleasurable and beautiful because if the ad looks good, why won't you look good when using the item? However, I really wonder if they do it on purpose or if it's just what they think will catch people's eye the fastest. I don't think that they smear the girl's face with fancy make-up to look like a tiger because they want to portray her as "less than human" more because it looks cool.

The ads that I see definitely want to show the "perfect" woman. Skinny body, long legs, a big bust line, nice hair, pretty face: it all ties into how we should look. And fashion even supports this with skinny jeans and leggings that only a certain type of person can wear well (some chose wear this anyway with a not-so-great end result).

To be a consumer means that you do just that: consume for the sake of consuming. You buy things that you don't need, just to fit into the "American" lifestyle. I'm very much a consumer, I'll be the first to admit it. I like buying clothes that are expensive, frivolous, and sit in my closet half the year. I spend money on hair products and make-up that cost more than my school lunch. My dresser is filled with jewelry, purses, and accessories that add to the overall look. Through this all I don't feel affected by advertising on a daily basis. I will never be what the ads say, and I know this; the only thing I can do is be comfortable with myself.

It's also not just advertisements that do this, it's everywhere. Movies, TV shows, books, the Internet: in one way or another these pieces of society effects how women and men view each other. So it's not really fair (for the most part) to pin this all on advertisement even if it plays a huge role in how we see ourselves.

Choosing a Sister

Caucasia has me wondering, which is pretty good considering I'm not even half-way through the book, about who I would choose: Birdie or Cole. It seems that almost every other person in Birdie's life picks one sister over the other.

Those in Roxbury see Cole as a perfect member of the black community with her dark skin and thick hair. Her father spends every moment he has pumping her mind with information, ignoring Birdie; the kids at school accept her into the cliques more easily than Birdie; Carmen dotes on Cole while Birdie is treated with apparent dislike. Cole is the black girl who fits into her father's world the way he wanted.

However, those from the white community (that we've read of so far) favor Birdie because she fits in. Her mother sticks to her for support and her grandmother insists that she's the only one from "good stock".

While I would like to say I would take each sister as she is, I'm not she if it's true. It's not because I'm racist, so don't think that, it's because I would pick the girl that seems the most left out. Birdie seems to always be pushed aside because of how she looks and she needs some TLC. And I respect both of them because they are still sisters who don't see themselves as black or white, just family.

Caucasia- Already seeing a reflection

While I'm only 51 pages into our newest novel, Caucasia, I really like it. The voice of the main character Birdie is very believable, and the conflict between the races seen only through her parents troubled marriage (for right now anyway) is portrayed very vividly.

I've also noticed that mirrors are brought up as a motif a couple of times, even this early in the novel. Birdie introduces the novel by saying that she always remembered her reflection in the mirror as her sister's face, not her own. Birdie then thinks into the mirror after he mother called her a Sicilian when her father left. Cole also asks for a mirror after her mother tries and fails to braid her hair in corn-rows like the other black girls. It's very early in the novel and this could just be a coincidence but I think the idea of how you see yourself will carry over into other parts of the book.

It's not just harps and fluffy clouds...

We touched base (but only briefly) on a topic I've been thinking about for a very long time while discussing Pan's Labyrinth today. While everyone fought over whether Ofelia's mind was playing tricks on her, a theory was brought up about the ending scene; that even though Ofelia died, her new life in the underworld was just her version of heaven. It's an idea I always wonder about: is heaven what we make it or is it the same for every person? Each person makes their own afterlife that best suits what they believe. The Buddhist reaches Nirvana, the Christian sits at the right hand of God, the Muslim gets his 7 virgins. Or the mourning widow sees her husband and the blind man sees everything he missed out on in life. Instead of there being one heaven with fluffy clouds and singing angels (as seen in so many 3 Stooges skits over the years), each individual reaches their own personal Paradise that reflects what they've always wanted. And for Ofelia it was sitting with her parents as Princess of the Underworld.