Brave New World Seminar

​Pre-write

1. I feel that the overall message in Brave New World is that happiness is empty when it comes without struggle. In their society everyone is in this false sense of happiness, but when somebody who knows of real happiness and real experience the false sense is almost toxic. The happiness in BNW is provided without a problem which in turn creates a society where things are productive but there is no meaning.
2. BNW has brought to light the concept of happiness being created only when there is a struggle as well. They are handed happiness and in turn they have no real experience because there is no struggle with the joy. Many times in our society when we work hard and have to overcome things we are opened up to new things we otherwise wouldn't have experienced. I have also thought more about what happiness truly is. I now feel that happiness is very different than what is many times though it was. I now believe that happiness is not just a feeling of being content but also the relief of overcoming something much more difficult.
3. I think that John is saying how, at least in the Brave New World, everything is given without consequence or struggle. When he is talking about cost he is talking about the cost of losing some of your humanity. With all of our experiences and with what we see we gain and lose some of our humanity, we see things that scar us and that some people are not supposed to see. In their society that is not the case. The bad does not exist in their society, all struggles and experiences that shape a person have been erased. John sees how they don't have worries and he thinks that in the society nothing costs enough of their shaping.
4. In our society I think that in our society we focus 50% on comfort 35% on beauty and about 15% on truth. Almost all we do is to life a content and comfortable life. We go to school to get an education, to get a job, to make money, to buy, and to live out the last of our days in peace. So much of what we do is based on comfort. We also spend quite a bit of time focusing on beauty. We try to make ourselves, our homes, our everything beautiful. We even try to ruin other things so that our lives will be beautiful. In our society the truth is something that is not always focused on. We put on masks to hide ourselves from the truth and consequences that come with that. What we do to hide the truth many times comes with us facing it and running from it.

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​Reflection

Ava Stills
BNW Seminar Reflection
Reaction:

In the seminar TJ made a comment about how our society is slowly becoming like the Brave New World. I agree with his comment. In our world we hold ourselves to the standard of models and we work to be like them, losing our individuality. This is similar to the way that everyone is the same in BNW. I feel that as time goes on and there are more and more standards we will become closer to a world like the brave new world.

Self-evaluation:

    In the seminar I feel I did well with sharing my thoughts and citing the book. In the last seminar I did not speak up as much as I wanted to because I felt that I did not have strong ideas. In this seminar I feel that I had a better understanding of the book and I feel that because of that I was able to bring in claims from the text and  share my thoughts.

Key Take-away:

    I believe that after having this seminar and reading this book I will be able to rethink happiness and individuality.  My view on our world has definitely changed since reading BNW. I now feel that I am able to think of what happiness is and how not to act in order to stray from the changes in our society turning us into one similar to BNW. BNW has helped me understand that many times happiness comes as almost a high after having struggles and unhappiness in our lives. This shows me how without conflict and pain we will not be able to feel that relief and happiness. Also, BNW has showed me that we need to be our own person. If we all act the same, work the same, and are the same there is nothing new in our lives, there is no progress. If we have our own thoughts we are able to come up with ideas to move forward, in turn advancing our world. BNW has given me the understanding of happiness and what comes without pain as well as individuality and progression.

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Mexican White Boy Seminar Reflection

SEMINAR PRE-WRITE
What masks do Danny and Uno have to wear?
​        The masks that Danny and Uno wear are very different but similar at the same time. Danny wears a mask that seemingly hides his thoughts and emotions. In the first section at the bottom of page 2 Sophia talks about how Danny rarely speaks; “Danny ain’t no big talker, all right. He’s mad smart, gets nothing but A’s at the best private school in San Diego, but don’t get your chones in a bunch if you can’t never pull him into a convo.” Because Danny is a mostly white kid in a Mexican neighborhood he seems to put on a mask that makes him invisible. Danny’s mask is full of suppressed emotion that he later in the book releases. It seems that a lot of Danny’s harsher emotions are spurred by his parents. Uno definitely seems to be socialized by the man box, as shown on page 109 with the story about Uno getting hit by the ball and his dad yelling at him. Even as a young child he had to put on a tough guy mask and conform to the man box standard of boys not crying. Uno for most of the book plays a tough guy act to be excepted in their rough, tough community.

Use the concepts of socialization to explain “Mexican Whiteboy”.
        In MWB socialization is a large role. In the Leucadia community the boys are socialized to act tough. In the book it says Uno went to juvie, but as the book goes on Uno shows that he is actually a sensitive guy. Also, the girls seem to be socialized to act as more of objects than people. The girls are treated with a lack of respect. As shown on page 207 the people in the community are used to death and violence because they have witnessed it often.

What new insights did you gain about race and economic class?
    MWB really shows the perspectives of different races. Danny grew up in a different setting than the others. He has nice clothes, proper education, and a different life. Because he grew up differently when he moves he witnesses a different side of everything. Danny even though he is intelligent he want to be able to speak spanish, be less smart, and fit in more with his family. It seems that Uno was socialized quite differently than Danny. Uno was socialized in a less wealthy area. He grew up making the most of what he could, with less money, less education, and seemingly more exposure. In the chapter Del Mar Fair everyone is drinking and treating alcohol like a normal thing, while Danny has never drank and alcohol is a more of a foreign concept. This division is due to socialization. Danny’s friends were socialized around alcohol thinking it was a normal less frowned upon thing, while Danny was socialized with it being frowned upon. Economic class is also something talked about often in the book. The division between the classes is shown in this book. When Senior is talking to Uno about Oxnard he talks about why he is setting the price high. Senior asks if Uno will be a wisher or a worker, I feel this could be to give Uno more of chance than others have had. (PAGE 99)

SEMINAR REFLECTION 
Reaction:
  One comment I very much agreed with was the idea of how Senior played such a big role in the way Uno was socialized. I agreed with this statement because while reading the book I felt that Senior was someone who Uno looked up to and wanted to be like and it seemed that now as Uno is older Senior is trying to socialize him differently to not make the mistakes that he did. I feel that Senior is trying to make up for his mistakes by having Uno go down a positive path.

Connections: 
 A connection I have with this seminar and book is with the recent socialization project that I did. We learned about socialization and identity. We used our personal experiences of socialization as our inspiration. I feel that this book showed insight to the aspects of socialization through race and economic class that I personally have never experienced.

Self- Evaluation:
    I feel that I did well comprehending, listening, and sharing personal opinion in this seminar. I am someone who observes for best comprehension. I listened and considered what others were saying before I shared my thoughts on what we were discussing. Even if I was not the most vocal in the seminar I feel that I was full engaged and what I said enhanced the seminar.

Most Beautiful Line:
    I feel that the most beautiful line in Mexican Whiteboy was; “The two of them sit in silence and stare at the pale colors slowly fingering their way into the dark sky, around the recycling plant.” (Peña 247) This line shows change and forgiveness. During the book Danny and Uno have both changed the way they act and their relationship. The book began with them at odds, disliking each other, and fighting. Through the book they bonded, forming this beautiful friendship shown in this line. This line stands out for me the most because it shows a beautiful friendship of forgiveness in an area that does not posses much beauty.