Blog #5 - The Birthmark

     Last week in class, we read The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The Birthmark is a story about a man named Aylmer and his wife, Georgiana. Aylmer is a scientist, and he is married to one of the most beautiful women who could, in a sense, be deemed as perfect. But to Aylmer, she is very much NOT perfect because of a birthmark that's on her cheek. The birthmark appears to be in the shape of a little hand, and shows up severely when Georgiana shows certain emotions. Over time, Aylmer cannot deal with the birthmark. Georgiana had always been alright with the mark and was shocked when Aylmer wished to remove it. Eventually, Georgiana could not stand the thought of the mark being on her cheek and decides to let Aylmer try his hand at removing it. Aylmer succeeds in removing the mark, but it kills Georgiana.

     In today's society, this theory of removing imperfections is still there and is even more involved. Over time, doctors and scientists have developed new ways to fix our physical imperfections. But why? Why can't people just be happy with themselves? Instead, we are constantly trying to change the way we look. We dye our hair, we remove pimples, we use colored contacts, and some people even have plastic surgery to more permanently change one (or more) of their body parts.

     For instance, let's take a look at Heidi Montag. She's undergone a ridiculous amount of plastic surgeries over the years and has been in the public spotlight for it. Here's Heidi's transition: 

     In 2006, Heidi looked perfectly normal. At least in my opinion she did. In 2011, she was barely recognizable as the person she was in 2006. I'm not exactly sure why she wanted all of these changes or who might have possessed her to make these changes. But as far as I'm concerned, Heidi Montag is a perfect example of the message Hawthorne was trying to make.

     According to John Schlismann, Hawthorne's story is just a relevant today as it was when he wrote it. We have been doing everything in our power to change the ways of Mother Nature and we do not like to fully accept who we are. Schlismann says that, "When man tries to accomplish what he was not intended to accomplish, disaster will be the ultimate result." This is true in the case of Heidi Montag. By changing herself drastically and not embracing who she was, she got a lot of crap from the media. The media's comments could have potentially damaged her reputation and the way she thinks about herself. Schlismann also says:

"This goes back to what makes us who we are; we are not pure flesh and blood, our psyches and our true selves go so much further beyond that. Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story The Birth Mark touches on philosophical and ethical issues valid in his time, as well as ours. His work makes us think about what is perfection and is it desirable in the physical state. In the end we discover that if we overstep our bounds and try to make perfect that which is imperfect, death will be the final result, for only in death through God, can we achieve perfection."

     Regardless of what changes we make in relation to our physical appearances, we are still the same person on the inside. Changes on the outside do not affect what's at our core. In the words of Lady Gaga, "There's nothing wrong with loving who you are, she said 'Cause He made you perfect.'" But unfortunately some people must change themselves on the outside in able to do that and think they are perfect.

     And on that note, I'll leave you all with this:

Blog #4 - Why Do We Read/Watch Fiction?

     One day in class, we read Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving. Mostly everyone knows the story of Rip. He was the man that fell asleep and woke up 20 years later and everything had changed. Naturally, this is most likely not a true story. But if it's not a true story, then why do we read it? 

     In class, we discussed why we read or watch fictional stories. We talked about Harry Potter, Transformers, Jaws, etc. We came to the conclusion that these fictional stories have deeper meanings than what's seen. They aren't just about the wizards, robot cars, and a big shark. We determined that the underlying meaning reflects what society is thinking about at the current time of production. Although this is true, there's another detail that we missed in class.

     Fictional stories not only teach us about things that don't exist, but they teach us about ourselves as real human beings. Psychologist Keith Oatley says, "They train us in the art of being human." He says that we tend to think of watching movies as being a passive activity, but that thought is not true when it comes to our emotions. When we're watching a movie, we have empathy for the characters, and we can relate to them. If the writing or movie is powerful enough, we can feel the emotions of the characters as they are feeling them. Oatley says, "The feelings elicited by fiction go beyond the words on a page or the images on a screen." After we've read or watched a piece of fiction, we can oftentimes think about how they relate to our own lives.

     For instance, let's go back to Harry Potter. On the surface, Harry Potter seems like it's a movie solely about this magical wizarding world that doesn't actually exist. In reality, it's MUCH more than that. Harry Potter has themes about love, friendship, good and evil, and education. These are all themes that we can take to heart and use in our real lives. Joyce Pines, of the Kalamazoo Gazette, says, "It [Harry Potter] is a remarkable story that reminds us that, no matter what life throws at you, you must do what is right. They are a guide, presented in an entertaining format, to help us understand the difficulty of life's journey."  A memorable lesson from the series is love and knowing that love is something that will prevail for all time. Here's a clip from the last movie, Deathly Hallows: Part 2, that sums this up in a nutshell. (ALERT! This clip is a spoiler if you haven't read or watched Deathly Hallows. It also might make you cry if you're a sap like me.) 

     So do we really read or watch fictional stories solely for the entertainment factor? Sometimes, yes. Oftentimes, no. We embrace fictional stories because of the impact they can have on our views on life and our emotions. Next time you're watching The Walking Dead, Firefly, or any other fictional story, go beyond the surface and think of what it really means, even if you have to go back a couple of decades. We can always learn new ideals and lessons from people, objects, and places that aren't actually on a real map.