My original model citizen was a blond haired, muscular, democrat. I found playing sports, partying on the weekends, and being involved in the community ideal as well. My interpretation of the assignment was to make a citizen which I saw as the most popular, normal, or perfect. I picked popular music for my citizen to listen to, popular sexuality, popular movies to watch, and even a popular religion Christianity. This was my interpretation of an ideal citizen at a taller than average height and normal weight. I felt like all the traits I put down for my character were normal for the United States college student.
My new citizen would be similar in appearance to my first citizen, but different in personality. The new ideal citizen would stand up for something he believed in. He would not just be a democrat, but he would be a democrat with an opinion on some of the issues in the world. My citizen would be well read and show knowledge to back-up his opinion. The changes I made were based solely on the topic of service and having a legitimate argument. I felt like my first ideal citizen was neutral and that made him ideal, but having an argument and knowing how to support it is ideal. The course didn’t make me change my mind on appearance because I feel the same way about my ideal appearance as I did when the course started.
This course topic has showed me that by analyzing and researching a topic, it is much easier to formulate a legitimate argument. The course has made me look at service and activism in a completely different light because before this course I saw activism merely as people protesting outside of the Whitehouse or on the oval. By looking at music videos, attending events, and watching the Laramie Project I have seen the real side of activism. Along with activism I’ve looked at the word normal differently. Being ideal doesn’t necessarily mean being normal. Normal in terms of statistics means obesity, racist, and hazardous to the environment. These behaviors are not perceived as ideal by any means. With racism and sexism prevalent, it might be normal to be racist or sexist but it certainly is not ideal. The ability to formulate an argument and back it up with legitimate research is vital to becoming successful in the world and is ideal in my opinion.
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Kevin,
ReplyDeleteI really agree with the changes you made to your facebook 'ideal' citizen. I also changed my person to make her active in a cause she believes in. In your last paragraph, I like how you cite examples that showed you a different side of activism and that we've worked with throughout this quarter. You addressed 'normal' perfectly during your first blog and now you've recreated him as a truly 'ideal' person. I agree that the ability to formulate an argument and support it with research is ideal, but I don't think I understood this until I wrote my own blog at 1:30 this morning. Good job!
The changes you have made really depict what you have taken out of this English class. Your new ideal citizen seems to have a better perception of the world and the problems that arise each and every day. After reading the excerpt from Michael Warner, its important to realize that being normal doesn't always mean that it is the "right" thing. Sometimes being normal means having flaws and problems and I think you have addressed that very well. Good work.
ReplyDeleteI think you made some good changes to your ideal citizen. Being normal really isn't ideal. Being able to effectively argue your opinion is a very important trait. I can see that this class has changed your views on activism and critcal thinking. Keep it up.
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