Moon Shoes Commercial Lyrics

Here's how we get the gravity shoes: moon shoes!
Jumpin' up and down like a kangaroo! Moonshoes!
Going ahead honey I really fly, me and friends jumping really high.
Man these shoes defy gravity, gotta get those shoes it's a necessity!
Moonshoes!

* Every kid is wearing moon shoes in this commercial

* People have fun watching others use moon shoes

* Kids using moon shoes with ease

* Girl jump roping with moon shoes laughs and points at the camera, involving the audience

* Commercial is similar to various other kid toy commercials attempting to assimilate children into toy culture.

* One of the lyrics state that getting the shoes is a necessity. 

* Also states that shoes defy gravity, obviously don't.

Thinking about the Text - Havrilesky and Mad Men

1. Heather Havrilesky’s main insight about Mad Men can be found after she asks the question, “What’s missing from this pretty picture?” First she describes the change and backwards evolution of the “American Dream”, portrays each of the characters and their stories, and then she goes into what we are left with. She answers the question in the final paragraph, “What’s missing…is empathy.”  She goes into that more deeply and brings up our discontent as a nation, and how perhaps we are losing our souls.

2. Havrilesky establishes her authority to write about this show throughout the article. She uses both exact facts about the show, like the actors and actresses names, as well as precise information. Someone familiar with the show can tell she knows what she’s talking about, but she’s also done it in a way that the unfamiliar folks can understand it.

3. Havrilesky appeals to readers’ emotions by tying the story in with American’s expectations and dreams. The first couple paragraphs have a universal element to them, anyone who reads them can understand and feel what she’s talking about. She closes this section with the statement that we are always falling short, and describing the impact this has on our young children.

4. I was not familiar with the show Mad Men when I read this essay. I feel like I have a pretty good grasp of its premise, although it’s hard for me to remember which character is which with having no faces to remember and very complex facts regarding their relations. I might watch this one; the way Havrilesky described each of the characters and their surroundings gave it a lot of depth. I want to see it myself now and find out what happens to the characters. I almost never watch TV shows, so getting me to want to watch anything is quite an accomplishment. 

Difference between paper #1 and paper #2

Between the two papers we had to write, a narrative and a position essay, I learned pretty quick that I like writing narratives better. It's much easier to sit down and just write, than have to do all the research required for a position essay. In a narrative, I'm the boss. Usually I get to be the one to decides how it should be and where the story goes. With my particular essay, I was recounting a past event in my life, which made it really easy to write. I felt like how Ernest Hemmingway puts it, "There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typerwriter and bleed." (Except I was at a computer).
The position essay took me a lot longer to write. I needed to find other people who have similar views and have evidence that supported my position. I also needed to look at counter-arguments and do even more research to try and refute them. Looking through all the resources then and trying to decide what was legit, and what I could use was a large task. I became pretty discouraged and ended up changing my topic three times, which wasted even more time. Although it was a bit of a negative writing experience for me, (honestly I'm not too happy with my end result....[but am I ever?]), I did learn a lot about my topic I didn't know before.

Summary of Writing Analytically, pages 141-159

The book Everyone’s an Author spends some time explaining writing analytically. It goes through five characteristic features, which include: a question that prompts you; some description of your subject; evidence drawn from close examination; insight gained as a result; and clear language. Each characteristic is explained in detail and a sample of writing in which you can identify that characteristic is shared.  

The first characteristic is a question that prompts you to take a closer look. The example actually starts with an open ended question, “Who is Barack Obama?” The author points out not every analytic piece has to start out with a question, but there will always be an underlying question to your topic. 

The second characteristic is offering some description of what you are analyzing. This depends on how much your audience already knows about your subject, the subject itself, and the medium you are in. Credibility can be gained when you cite a professional, an academic expert or someone with a firsthand experience.

Evidence drawn from close examination is the third characteristic. This includes looking at each individual part or characteristic of your subject and thinking about how it contributes to the whole. This allows you to build evidence and reason for your main point.  There are four different kinds of analysis. The first is rhetorical, which includes looking at text and analyzing the author's message. The second is process analysis, which examines in detail a set of actions or processes that cause a result. The third is causal analysis, looking closely at why something occurred. The last type is data analysis. This can be analyzing a graph or a bunch of data and finding meaning and results from it.

The fourth characteristic of analytic writing is insight gained from it. This is the purpose, the reason why it matters. The insight you gain should be formed into a clear point and be evident why it's important to you and your audience.

The final characteristic is clear, precise language. Writing analytically is done so that the audience can understand something. Your word choice will depend on how much your audience knows and how intricate your subject is. Using the right words is important so that your meaning is properly conveyed.

Analyzing Websites

Analyzing two consumer-oriented websites:
I chose to do websites selling Ukuleles, since that is something I am actually interested in buying with my next paycheck. Or maybe the one after that... (or the next).

Guitarcenter.com
- Can narrow your search down to specific brands, condition, and price range.
- Doesn't show many details until you click on that product
Once you view the Ukulele:
- Gives specifications in an at-a-glance format
- Has an area for you to read customer reviews

Kalabrand.com
- It groups products into types. You can look at only wooden, only some with designs, or only colorful ones. If you are looking for a particular style this makes it much easier to find it.
- Gives price and product details right at the top of the page.
- Shows pictures of all the different styles
- Actually has a sound clip so you can hear the quality of the music yourself.

It's hard for me to decide which website is more useful, as they are fairly different in style and even purpose. Guitar center sells many brands and products, so if you already know what you want, you can find it very easily. Kalabrand is a specific brand, so they only sell their products. It seems to be more friendly to the non-experienced buyer. I have to say the sound clips of the instrument are the most effective element.

My own use of analysis

An analysis of the decisions I make:

Size of Decision	What was I deciding?	What areas do they affect?
Small (affecting that day)	1. What I should wear today	They affect the basic needs of my day. Though it can seem important in the present day, I will forget about these decisions in a few days.
Medium (couple months/year)	1. Which half marathon I should do and when	These decisions affect a couple month portion of my life. They revolve around the activities and things I enjoy, but might not have a particularly huge effect on my life.
Large (affecting entire life)	1. Where to go to school	These decisions affect a great area of my life, as they can ultimately decide where I end up or live.

What information did I gather before I decided in each case?

In the small decision section, I gathered little information. To decide what to wear, I thought about where I would go, the temperatures, and the things I needed to get done. Whatever was most comfortable and kind-of-nice worked.

In the second section, I did a little more research and thinking. In my decision to do a half marathon, for example, I needed to find a particular race in the area that I could make it to. I spent some time searching for races and finding the cheapest, higher quality race in an environment I liked. I also needed to know if I had enough time to properly prepare, so I did some reading on training plans. 

In the third section, I made the decision of where I wanted to go to school. This took a lot of time and thought over a period of a few months. I was actually able to go down to the school and help build up the campus, so I knew what it would be like. I looked at a lot of similar schools online to see what options I had. I also talked to friends about their personal experience.

What does this tell me about my interests, activities, and priorities?

I realize my priorities are just that: mine. The clothes I wear are usually not the latest or cutest clothes. The half marathon I want to do only allows 300 runners, so it’s not very popular or well known. Even the school I want to go to doesn't get me the same qualifications that everyone is looking for. Nevertheless, each one of the things I have decided on is important and valuable to me.

Position Essay

If you have ever walked through a grocery store you might have noticed magazines near the checkout. Bright pictures and loud slogans cry out for your attention. What you might not realize is that most images of women are completely changed through the process of photo editing. This immoral act negatively affects women all over the world.

Photoshopping or altering pictures of women creates unreal ideals of beauty. Processes like airbrushing erase all blemishes and smooth out wrinkles. Editors can stretch and change even the shape of the body, making it slimmer or giving fuller curves. The madness doesn't stop there. Even hair can be changed to instantly give more volume or tame unwanted wisps. While it may look natural and difficult to tell it is edited, it creates a standard of beauty that in most cases is impossible to achieve. As an example, take a look at the following picture:

Photo from msmorphosis.com

The woman on the left is glowing. She looks happy and healthy. But that just wasn't enough for Redbook magazine's cover. If you look closely at the right image, you will see she has been edited to their standard of beauty. The wrinkles around her eyes have been smoothed and her back, arm and waist have been changed so she looks considerably thinner.

Even if you are aware that photos are being edited, there are professionals behind the job and know how to make it look good. Obviously, they try not to publish the original photo, so you cannot tell exactly how much is real and how much is altered. This hugely messes up woman's self-esteem and healthy body image.

What exactly is body image? Put simply it is how you see yourself and how you feel in your body. A negative body image distorts your own perception of yourself. You might feel ashamed, self-conscious, and anxious about your body, and might even feel that only other people are attractive.

The National Eating Disorder Association states that: “People with negative body image have a greater likelihood of developing an eating disorder and are more likely to suffer from feelings of depression, isolation, low self-esteem, and obsessions with weight loss.” What starts as only thoughts soon changes actions, and this can lead to severe problems.

Rachel Johnston, as reported by dailymail.uk, almost killed herself when her anorexia went too far. Her weight dropped tremendously, to the point she only weighed about 60 pounds. When asked what triggered Johnston to start starving herself, she explained how she cut out magazine pictures and pasted them all over her room and locker. This motivation to be thinner turned into many hospital visits, depression, and osteoporosis.

Effects are not only seen in cases of anorexia, but may possibly be drawn from plastic surgery statistics. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery reported a 471% increase in number of cosmetic procedures in women alone, from 1997 to 2013.  Although perhaps not a direct result, this is a correlation with the increase of Photoshopped images. Surgeons often report patients coming in with pictures from magazines to express exactly what they want.

Perhaps what is most disturbing about our messed up ideals of the female body is how it affects young girls and teens. The National Institute on Media and the Family reports that at age thirteen, 53% of American girls are unhappy with their bodies. By time the girls reach age seventeen, that percentage grows to a massive 78%. Is selling a product worth taking a girl’s self-confidence away?

            Some argue that all the debate surrounding use of Photoshop is a waste of time and could be better spent elsewhere. Tina Fey wrote in her book, “As long as we all know it’s fake, it’s no more dangerous to society than a radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds ...” The idea that we can dismiss it simply because we know it is fake goes against human nature. Thoughts and images in our mind actually have a huge amount of power. A study published on the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website reported that people could actually increase muscle mass by mentally working out. Clearly any sort of visualization has a great effect on our body’s health.

Others, like Psychology Today, argue that there are not a significant amount of studies done showing Photoshop is actually the cause of eating disorders. Dr. Sarah Ravin points out that this is because of a difference between eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa, and disordered eating. She writes on her blog:

“Disordered eating is very widespread in our country, especially among women. I define disordered eating as a persistent pattern of unhealthy or overly rigid eating behavior – chronic dieting, yo-yo dieting, binge-restrict cycles, eliminating essential nutrients such as fat or carbohydrates, obsession with organic or “healthy” eating – coupled with a preoccupation with food, weight, or body shape.

By this definition, I think well over half of the women in America (and many men as well) are disordered eaters.

The way I see it, disordered eating “comes from the outside” whereas eating disorders “come from the inside.” What I mean is this: environment plays a huge role in the onset of disordered eating, such that the majority of people who live in our disordered culture (where thinness is overvalued, dieting is the norm, portion sizes are huge, etc) will develop some degree of disordered eating, regardless of their underlying biology or psychopathology.”

Although only a small percentage of women are actually diagnosed with an eating disorder, many fall into disordered eating. This is still unhealthy and can cause problems. Why should we continue to Photoshop if it harms people?

Women have a right to see the truth. The studies have been completed and the evidence is clear: photo shopping is detrimental to our society. Just looking at the power that magazines and images have to influence our actions, we could have a huge opportunity to change people. Can you imagine what would happen if we put a greater emphasis on what women have accomplished or discovered, instead of idealizing their bodies?

Thinking about the Text- On Buying Local

1. Yes, Katherine Spriggs has convinced me that the topic matters. She establishes the importance by first talking about the global issues that industrial-style farming helps contribute to. These include global warming, pollution, and diminishing fuel resources.

2. Spriggs examines quite a few counter-arguments besides her own, and refutes them with examples and data. 

The first argument is that some places grow certain foods better than others, which is true. To be able to buy local, then, we'd have to grow all the foods everywhere.  You either have to give up eating that particular food during that time or focus on buying locally as much as you are able. 

The second argument is that small farms aren't as efficient as large farms, so buying local can be bad for the environment. This actually depends on how you measure efficiency. Spriggs says "Small farms are less efficient than large farms in the total output of on crop per acre, but they are more efficient in total output of all crops per acre." This is in part due to the fact that most small farmers work with many different crops instead of one. 

There are other arguments on the global effects and local effects of the economy, but Spriggs talks about the actual benefits that buying local will bring. 

3. A section of Sprigg's essay I found ineffective was when she was talking about global effects of buying local. She agrees that "Repercussions on the global market seem unavoidable." Her strongest point on that to me was "The people of the United states could demonstrate to the world our commitment to environmentalism." That's it? To me this is not effective because it doesn't have good reasons or really respond to the problem.

4. Sprigg's photos contribute to her argument by giving the reader strong visuals. With terms like monoculture and polyculture farms, her pictures allow you to better understand what she is explaining. Just reading her points under the pictures allow you to make associations that help you remember it better.