Group Work

I am not sure why in every group I have ever been assigned to in school there is a person that seems to not care one bit whether he/she actually participates and contributes to the group? Why is it that there is this attitude of complacency among at least on person in what seems like every school project group? Does it not give these people some sense of guilt for letting the other members of the group do everything as the complacents just slide by and barely pass the project?

As I was assigned to my group for my Business class this semester initially I was very excited as it was what seemed to be a great group. Everyone seemed to be on the same page with everything, all dedicated to the final project and to doing it well. This initial meeting however, was without the sixth member of our group. It turns out that he was absent many many times from this class and in turn from our group. It has been a constant struggle for the group to get this person on board. Finally, one lady in the group stepped up to cover his aspect of the project just in case he would not get it done. She has done most of his research and is basically spoon feading him the material that he needs for his portion of the presentation.

The group as a whole is in the final stages of our project and two days ago this person approached me to ask me what he was supposed to be doing. After explaining that he needed to start initially with the research stage he showed up to our next meeting with nothing done.

I am not sure if there is just a severe lack of desire to do anything in school for this person. I am not sure if it is just that he feels like because he is in a group it gives him all the more reason to do nothing. Whatever the reason is, I think the group should have the ability to kick people like this "off the island", out of the group. It should not be our responsibility to watch over this person to make sure he is going to contribute something.

I realize that this phenomenon of group work will be something that I am going to have to deal with for the remainder of my education but also in the work place. I absolutely see the value in working as a team but I am just not sure why in every team there is a person who chooses to make it a trying experience for everyone else?

The Office- Diversity

Jo Chemo, Spoof Ad

Most everyone in this culture is familiar with the animated camel better know as "JO Camel", the advertising technique used by Camel cigarettes. Why a camel? I really do not know why this is the choice of the marketing directors at Camel cigarettes but it has been a rather affective one in that everyone knows "JO".
This ad is a spoof on the Camel ads and shows all of the camels in the hospital on Chemo because all of the cigarettes they have been smoking have given them cancer.
This ad utilizes a few very clear rhetorical strategies. The first that seems to be the most obvious is the us of cause and effect. It demonstrates how the use of Camel cigarettes are often times the cause of cancer thus making patients require the use of Chemo for survival. This is the biggest strategy of the add that appeals to the pathos of the audience. It is in many ways a very comical ad but appeals to a very serious situation. Most people have at one time or another been a smoker, known someone that smokes or at least are around a smoker every so often. Most people have felt the effects of smoking, whether it be as drastic as actually having cancer or not. Nonetheless, there are not many positive effects to smoking. This appeals to pathos as people can relate emotionally to the consequences of smoking.
Finally, this ad uses the original Camel ads as a social commentary in a huge way. As I mentioned before, most Americans are familiar with "Jo Camel" which allows the people who see this ad to understand its message. If this ad were in another country where Camel cigarettes were not sold there would be a disconnect to where the people would have a very difficult time understanding the advertisement.

Calvin Klein Ad

This add, taken from the Unofficial Calvin Klein Ads Archive shows two women with what appears to be a couple of guys behind them. The women are dressed very modestly with clothing that is fully covering their figures. The sex appeal is this ad is very different than the sex appeal that one would see in most advertisements today. This picture is from the nineties judging by the appearance of the clothes although the actual year of the picture is unknown. The clothing is very flattering yet not immodest and does not compromise the dignity of the ladies in the picture.
While viewing several of the pictures on the Calvin Klein website, it is interesting to see the progression of the clothing even from just ten or fifteen years ago. It would appear that more often than not the models become more seductive with fewer clothes on their bodies as the years progress. The use of sex appeal is very much a temporal idea which makes me wonder what advertisements will look like in another ten years?
I find this ad to be effective even without the blunt use of sex appeal. I also find it to be quite appropriate to all eyes of all ages. However, in regards to some of the other advertisements, I cannot say the same.
I think that this ad appeals to pathos in several ways. It is interesting to see that although quite modestly dressed the ladies still have guys standing behind them. This would appeal to emotion and make a person think that even though the women are dressed modestly it does not make them ugly or undesirable. They are beautiful with all of their clothes on which would appeal to the emotion of women whose mind set tends to be the opposite.

Analysis

The element of size in the photograph is a powerful statement. The size of the tree trunk in the center of the picture reaching all the way to the top and bottom of the image creates a sense of grandeur to the photograph. It is in the very middle of the image and takes up much of the forefront of the picture. The other part that takes up much of the rest of the image are the green leaves which are mostly part of the tree. The sticks of the ground which came from the tree are what make up the large part of the bottom half of the photograph. The magnitude of the tree and its elements make a strong statement regarding the little girls. The girls are in the foreground of the image and are rather small in comparison to the elements of the tree and the forest.

I think that the artist is trying to portray a sense of innocence and lack of power pertaining to the little girls. The fact that one is asleep on the other's lap in the midst of the grandeur of the forest, conveys that they are merely little girls. The argument that I think this is trying to make is that although human, they are only small girls and lack an understanding or the wisdom for survival amidst the large elements of nature. The message would be that humans still have somewhat of a sense of weakness although in a position of power over many aspects of nature. The human body is human and in many ways is powerless like with the little girls.

Reflection

This photograph makes me think that the little girls are far away from home and have stopped to rest for awhile. As the day lingers on the girls are becoming more fatigued and have to stop for a nap. It makes me think that they are a bit scared to be away from home by themselves so one girl decides to stay awake while the other rests her eyes. They are quite young and probably thought that it would have been fun to wander out into the forest to play until they realized that they no longer knew their way back home. They decided to rest beside a tree in so that they could conceal themselves somewhat from others would someone else come into the forest. The girl who is keeping watch has a look of melancholy and maybe a bid of sadness as she is thinking about what to do next. There is probably no food around or an adequate place to shelter the two young girls and the girl is probably feeling a bit worried. It makes me think that maybe there are feelings of neglect stirring within the little girls as no one has come to find them yet. Perhaps the reason they left their home in the first place was neglect as well, the lack of feeling loved from parents so they began to wander hoping to find something else, something that would love them better than where they came from. Perhaps they decided to run away.

Observation

The large tree trunk is what consumes most of the photograph by Polixeni Papapetrou from the Foley Gallery, and slices it in half. It is the size of the little girls in the photo put together. The greenery lies in the backdrop of the whole picture which leads one to focus on the little girls at the bottom of the picture, the focal points. One is sitting erect against the tree in her beige collared shirt and jumper. She is acting as a pillow for the other little girl resting her head upon her lap. The little girl is resting with her eyes closed in her white collared shirt and brown jumper. Her hands lay relaxed on her lap as if she had not a care in the world. Both little girls have long brown hair and appear to be no older than seven or eight years old. They are laying atop the forrest floor which is covered in sticks and do not have shoes on their feet to protect them from the stickers of the sticks. It is a dark forrest with no one else around and it would appear as if night were approaching quickly. The sun is barely peering through the thick green leaves, which tower over the little girls.