Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes

This title is great because it adequately sums up many qualities of this work. The book is large, intense and filled with big ideas. The name also gives a connotation of this text’s importance. The Leviathan is mentioned in the Bible, and may have been anything from an alligator to a giant python. Hobbes decision to use this title may have been informed as well by this fact. The Leviathan in this text is the political State which contains each and every person who lives in a society alongside other human beings. The title is also mysterious as any person who has not heard of this text will immediately wonder if it is literary fiction, and not if it is a text on political matters. I would take from this the use of a title that expresses qualities about the content, but also a larger scope.

Fear and Trembling by Soren Kierkegaard

This title is interesting because it first reminds a modern reader of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and secondly because it builds an expectation of frightening stuff inside the text. The text however happens to be about the moral implications of Abraham’s (of Bible fame) challenge to sacrifice his son because God asks him to. The title makes one suspect horror, where there is none at all. Unless the line “Reality does not lie” is frightening to a reader, which now that I think about it could be taken as a scary statement. However, there is also a weird part where he talks about an eternal love between two people who can never be together (or something). From this title I wouldn’t take any inspiration though it is an interesting read. The title feels tacked on at the last minute once you’ve finished the text. Great title for a work, but in this case on the wrong work.

Is this It? by The Strokes

This first album by The Strokes refers not only to the title track, but can also be about the hype concerning the band’s first release. In the track Is this It? a gentleman is trying to pick up a date and go back to their place. When the words “Is this It?” are sung it is unclear what it means. Is he asking if they have arrived at their destination? Is he asking once inside the apartment with disdain if this is what the person’s apartment amounts to? Or is he asking himself if this is the chance he has been waiting for to go home with this person or home with any person period? It works well because it is so unclear. On the hype end of things, the title of the album could also refer to the band’s massive hype at the time, and “Is this it?” could be the question that some listeners may have asked themselves once they’d listened to one or all of the tracks. I would take from this the use of a title that can have many interpretations depending on one’s own preferences.

Bulger on Trial is very striking initially with its photo of a young Bulger. An extreme closeup, most likely a mugshot, and very effective as Bulger seems to staring directly in to viewer/reader’s eyes. This helps show the intensity of the individual and also of the stories to come. When you hover over The Stories it pulls down divisions that each have their owns headers and a summary of the stories they link to (seemingly). What is great here is that they are positioned where they cover Bulger’s eyes. This takes us away from his stare, and forces us to consider the coming tales of his deeds. Clicking on either The Gangster, or The FBI agent, or The Politician only leads us to a photo of each of these co-conspirators. This was slightly disappointing but they are decent photos however except for the last one. Courtroom drama is great but I can’t tell who my focus is to be on in that photo. Out of the two story-telling sections The Victims is a bit more intense not because of textual content, but because of its design. The design is seemingly simple, but effective. After a background photo of law enforcement possibly exhuming a body or bodies, and a short opener we get to the first victim of 19 who will be profiled. Having each name written in white with a large black border spanning the length of the page forces you to assume some importance of what is to follow. Also, the placement of each victim’s name aligned left tells us that none of these stories is the main story. The Victims header that was centered at the beginning of the piece makes each “victim header” into sub-headers all of equal weight to one another. The use of dropcap was good aesthetically to begin with, until you realize that not every section uses it which is distracting since we are supposed to be seeing every victim in the same light. There should be some consistency in the use of dropcap since there is mostly consistency everywhere else including audio for each section. The lack of consistency in use of photos is not really a big issue.

Of the two pieces I can take away the use of photos (extreme closeups). and of audio clips. The idea of having a short audio play when you first reach the site is good, but only if the content of the clip is good and not too long. Short attention spans need short attention, and could be turned off by long audio while they read, but the Survivor piece is effective in its choice. I would also use the alignment in The Victims that gave a feeling of sub-headers to the story. This gave a feeling of components to the story instead of pushing one character in front of others.

From the opening line “If I were a bitch, I’d be in love with Bill Truesdale,” Susan Orlean makes us aware of Bill’s status as a dog, but continues on in a way that blends personification with the actual. Throughout the great opening and the entire piece itself, Bill is given almost full control of his life. Instead of saying that his owner’s sell him as a stud to people who want to breed their dogs with Bill, Orlean writes instead that Bill himself charges for his sexual favors. What’s also great is the idea she puts forth in the opening that Bill has to watch his weight, but it is all ok because he likes working out. The key to Orlean’s style in this piece is the power over his own existence that she gives Bill Truesdale’s character. Although you could initially see the opening as maybe just that, and expect Orlean to shift gears and perspective, the beginning of the second section, “PRETTY soon, Biff won’t have to be so vigilant about his diet.”  lets the reader know that this style of writing is going to be the piece. We are going to see Bill’s life through Orlean’s filter, almost as if he had told her the details himself.

In the Bernie Goetz profile, what works well is the third person perspective of the first two sections. These sections read in a story-told way. You could read them without knowing their origins and not be able to discern whether you’re reading a fiction piece or a truth. After the first two sections then we are introduced to an “I” who is our journalist. From here we meet others who can agree with Goetz’s beliefs, but also in contrast other interviewees who counter his story. So what works here is the initial third person, and the non-bias and differences in opinion over the profile subject’s methods.

The second piece about Sean Casey acts more as an advertisement than the Goetz profile. However, I don’t call it an ad in a derogative way, nor as an ad for Casey’s animal rescue project specifically, but as an ad for animal rescuing as a worthy act in general. So the first thing that works here is the general/societal relationship the piece evokes in the reader. Secondly, there is a subtlety to descriptions of Sean Casey even when the descriptions aren’t subtle. His stature is described as non-assuming, and we’re told he hardly makes eye contact, but then we’re told/see that he isn’t when it relates to those he’s helping. In this piece what works is the advertisement for a cause feel, and the handling of Sean Casey’s personality.

I think for now what I could take away from these two profiles is the story telling third aspect of the first piece, and the almost ad feel of the second, but this all depends on who my profile subject turns out to be.

In “Sleep’s Tiniest Enemies”, there are two main interviews or segments listeners are given to be informed by. However, there are other interviews that take place that are interspersed throughout. It all starts with scripted narration to tell us where the segment’s story lies. From the opening narration, we are led to the two interviewers’ who are doing the leg work  and this is done to start out both segments. Scripted narration then interviewer’s narration leading to the subjects to be interviewed. Ms. M’s story begins at approx. 22:20 with seemingly silence as background but slowly weird jazz music creeps in and the interviewer’s narration returns. 23:57 Interviewer mentions Ms.M’s daughter and starts the recording with the daughter repeating the last word the interviewer says in her narration. A similar technique is used later at approx. 24:21 where the interviewer paraphrases what Ms. M told her, following with audio of Ms. M saying it in her own words.

25.36 Soft weird jazz follows the first segment, and Ira Glass opens, followed by seconds of four different interviews. Narration by the next interviewer, informing us that this interviewee (like Ms.M) sought anonymity before being recorded. This segment follows similar cues as the last, scripted narration, barely heard background music that rises in some parts to create a transition to interviewee or narrator. Also, there’s a contrast in the stories where Ms. M is somewhat tolerant of the bad situation because of the safe neighborhood, while “Stephanie” is frustrated but has a calm demeanor for the sake of the interview.

I think what I would take away from this overall piece is the use of music and the subtleties of its use.

https://pallasday.exposure.co/the-chapel-in-the-marketplace

For this assignment I chose a photo from the “Paradise Paved” photo series. Although I found many of the photos to be interesting, my two favorites were #2 and #5 though I’ll only write about #2. In this photo the subject is stretching barefoot in the empty parking lot of Walmart with the sun bright behind her. The shadows produced by her form, along with her car’s indicate that the sun has only recently risen. This belief could also just be fueled by the fact that she is stretching, and that the parking lot is bare of other cars.

The sun behind the subject gives off this subdued glow that could be described as soft, and matches her smile and outfit. The skirt allows some light through adding another glow besides the full bodied halo behind her. The short snippet of her story below the photo tells us that she is going to a yoga retreat, which makes sense considering her style of clothing (a new age kind of vibe even without the story telling us). What makes this photo work so well aesthetically however are the following things: the framing of the subject by the trees with the sun’s powerful yet subdued presence, the subject’s pose, and the shadows produced. Because of her skirt, her shadow is almost not even that of a human being’s, but when you look at her bent left foot touching the pavement, and the shadow’s version of this same foot, then the human is there. The car’s shadow to the left of her’s is a contrast, machine opposite human, but also her bedroom and chariot.

Her story and photo fits with the overall narrative as Walmart parking lots allow for people of varying motivations and backgrounds a quiet place to rest their heads if the night warrants it. As a person who every few years makes my way across America for the sake of some fresh air, the idea of sleeping in a Walmart parking lot wouldn’t be a challenge at all. I can relate to the subject’s waking in an empty area, having a blissful stretch in a quiet area with few people and disturbances. We can imagine that she is also smiling because the birds are chirping as they wake up themselves.

(Sorry there is no image. I tried for an hour and could not copy the photo from NYT’s slide show adequately nor embed it nor anything)

Origin: Barbados and Boston, Massachusetts

Behaviors: Reading, Writing, Music making, occasional silliness, going to rock shows in dirty basements.

Markings: Four tattoos, various scars on hands from being clumsy.

Characteristics: Sometimes I talk too fast. Sometimes I talk too slowly (not really). Non-judgemental of others most of time. “Laid back” is the most applicable description of my usual life outlook.

Call: “I’m at a show, call ya later.”