Representational Analysis

/in /by

Compare and contrast two visual or audio-visual works of art (painting, drawing, photo, sculpture, film, video game, etc.). Utilize the concepts explored in Ch. 3 of Practices of Looking. Consider the representation of social class, race/ethnicity, gender, OR sexuality. You may only choose one approach. Fill in the blank accordingly. How is gender represented in this artifact? Do the artworks define, reinforce, or challenge stereotypes and power dynamics in gender representation? How is the gaze structured around gender?

reading analytics

/in /by

When the Perks Fade 

Sean Neale is CEO of a robotics manufacturing firm located in the Midwestern United States. The company prospered in the 1990s sales revenue nearly tripled and the company’s workforce doubled. The price of the company’s stock rose from under $8 a share to more than $60. And his employees prospered because the firm had a pay-for-performance compensation system. Specifically, every year, 20 percent of the company’s profits were set aside in a bonus pool and used to reward employees. Profit sharing provided the typical employee with an extra $7,800 in 1998 and $9,400 in 1999. Then it dropped to just $2,750 in 2000. The company lost money in 2001 and 2002, so there were no profits to share. Meanwhile, Sean’s executive team was not spared from watching their profit-sharing bonuses disappear. The average executive bonus in 1999 was over $150,000. Like the company’s operating employees, in 2001 and 2002, executives got nothing over and above their basic salaries.

            Sean’s situation seems to be common among many firms. While employees in 2002 and 2003 were often glad to just have a job, the incentives they enjoyed in the 1990s were eroding. For instance, Ford Motor Company suspended contributions to salaried employees 401(k) retirement plans and merit raises for about 2,200 senior executives; Media company Tribune Co. in Chicago froze wages and cut 140 senior managers pay by 5 percent; and Hewlett-Packard eliminated profit sharing in 2001. 

The question is:

What implications can you draw from this case regarding pay-for-performance and what can you offer employees as an alternative to compensation that will not place an undue hardship on your organization’s bottom line? Be specific.

Source: This case is based on S. Jones, “When the Perks Fade”, Wall Street Journal, April 11, 2002, p. B12

Please support answers and refer more to chapter 2,3 and 4. An opinion alone is not enough

comedy and free speech

/in /by

Freedom of speech remains one of the most revered and protected rights in America. At the same time, it represents a right constantly under attack. Art is often the site of conflict. Throughout American historywriters, painters, and all types of entertainers have been accused of taking their art too far. This is especially true in the broader world of comedy where many entertainers have tested and redefined the limits of decency. For example, Lenny Bruce was arrested across the country 4 times for obscenity in the early sixties, and a decade later George Carlin was arrested for his infamous Seven Dirty Words routine in Milwaukee. Since that time many still consider rape, incest, suicide, racism, and other universally recognized taboo topics off limits. Others believe historical events like the Holocaust, slavery, 9/11 and other tragedies like school shootings are forbidden topics. Still, many comics staunchly defend their right to free speech and find a way to weave in these controversial and touchy topics into their routines. Ian Crouch–in Is Social Media Ruining Comedy?–expands on this mindset: 
[C]omedians have to say things that other people are afraid to say, and, by making us laugh, force us admit some things about ourselves that we would be unwilling to cop to in the cold light of day. The best comedy has to be offensive, or at least offensive to someone, in order to prove that it is goodthat it is doing something useful beyond just filling time and selling cocktails. Any comedian who purports to be shocked when the manifestly shocking thing that he says gets a lot of attention cant be telling the truth. It is dangerous when criticism leads to censorship, or self-censorship, because controversy and scandal are also signs that a comedian is doing something right. (124)
While comediansstill armed with a sense of duty as truth tellersno longer face arrest for obscenity and perform their routines without incident, they occasionally experience tremendous backlash from a publicobsessed with political correctnessthat increasingly finds this comedy blatantly offensive.

Using the classic essay strategy, in MLA format construct an argument that responds to the free speech debate as it relates to a wide spectrum of comic forms. Overall, carefully consider the gravity of sensitive topics, especially on victims of trauma and tragedykeeping in mind that audiences often selectively choose topics that offend while accepting other that dont. Ultimately, should the comedians limit the scope of their comedy in the name of decency or should freedom of speech be without constraint? Incorporate at least three sources to make your case.

Sample Outline (Classic Essay)

I. Introduction

II. Background

III. Point 1 (Defense of position)

IV. Point 2 (Defense of position)

V. Counterargument/Rebuttal

VI. Conclusion

Partial Paragraph (Counterargument/Rebuttal)

Stance: Limits on what comedians should joke about

Supporters of absolute free speech in comedy assert that tackling sensitive topics can help victims cope with their traumatic experience.

DEVELOP THIS IDEA FURTHER. TRANSITION TO REBUTTAL.

What these detractors miss is that not all victims benefit from jokes about tragedy. Some may feel victimized by a culture that minimizes their pain in the name of a laugh.

The Unreflective thinker

/in /by

Each Journal Entry will address one of these stages. Your challenge is to examine a situation in your own life experience that can serve as an example for each of these stages. If you cannot think of a personal example then research the stage in question and journal about that material.

Each upload should be about one page.

Stage One

We Begin as Unreflective Thinkers

We all begin as largely unreflective thinkers, fundamentally unaware of the determining role that thinking is playing in our lives. We dont realize, at this stage, the many ways that problems in thinking are causing problems in our lives. We unconsciously think of ourselves as the source of truth. We assume our own beliefs to be true. We unreflectively take in many absurd beliefs merely because they are believed by those around us. We have no intellectual standards worthy of the name. Wish fulfillment plays a significant role in what we believe. Whatever we want, we believe we should have. We create and maintain pleasant illusions. If it feels good to believe something, we believe it.

At this stage, we may think well intuitively within certain domains of our lives. For example, we may have high-quality thinking skills with respect to our work, or we may be good at balancing our personal budget, etc. But when there are problems in our thinking, we usually fail to recognize them as such. We have no knowledge of the “moves” our minds are making. Therefore, we cannot correct its errors.

We begin to move beyond this stage when we develop real insight into the “flawed” nature of our own thinking. This insight, to be effective, must be concrete and specific. Virtually everyone will agree in the abstract that they have some “prejudices” and that their thinking is “not perfect.” But these unelaborated admissions have no functional value to those who concede them. They are not based on any real knowledge of the nature of thinking. They are not based on a realistic sense of the skills they would need to develop to improve. They are not based on an accurate appraisal of the kinds of motivation they would have to develop to improve over an extended period of time.