Summer Assignment

Mans Man


Surface Meaning
A masculine man is standing in a shower. It shows him walking out of the shower and onto a boat, and on the boat he does very many things.

Inferred Meaning
The advertiser is trying to say that by using Old Spice, a man can become manlier.

Cultural Meaning
Our culture today is based a lot on a man’s “manhood”. By showing a very buff guy that is obviously attractive, the ad is trying to tell us that if we use their product we will be “manlier”.

Mans Woman


Surface Meaning
Kate Upton is eating a Hardees burger. The burger becomes so spicy that she begins to undress.

Inferred Meaning
The advertiser is simply just to trying to make men remember this commercial and think of Hardees.

Cultural Meaning
Our culture today is based on sex. Kate Upton is a very sexy woman, and men also like woman that like what they like. Men like Hamburgers. Men like Kate Upton undressing. Therefore; men will like this Hardees Commercial.


Womans Woman

Surface Meaning
A very smooth woman’s legs are and other various body parts are shown kicking and waving around. At the end it cuts to the woman’s beautiful face.

Inferred Meaning
The woman has very clear and smooth legs and they want women to think that St. Ives makes them have that beautiful skin.

Cultural Meaning
Today’s woman want to be comfortable in their bodies. The woman in this commercial is comfortable in her underwear and is not scared to show off her beautiful body. The woman that watch this commercial strive to be like her. Therefore; they buy St. Ives lotion.


Womans Man

Surface Meaning
A man with a ripped body and rough face is shown swimming, and there are many close shots of his abs with water running down them.

Inferred Meaning
The advertiser was trying to get women to buy their fragrance for their men, because if they smell good apparently they look good also.

Cultural Meaning
The commercial is focused towards women who want their men to smell good.

American Born Chinese by Gene Yang

When I picked this book off the shelf the first thing I noticed was that it had an award. The book was a finalist for the Young People's Literature Award. I also noticed that the book was a comic book. I don't know exactly what it's about but I believe it is a about a Chinese American boy that is trying to fit in. It may be a little below my reading level but it's supposed to be funny, and I believe no matter what reading level a book is, a good book is a good book.

Holes by Lois Sacher

I read this book when I was in like 4th grade. So, obviously I have forgotten the whole book. I recently watched the movie on T.V. and I really loved it. The story is about a kid that gets in trouble and is sent to a camp where he is forced to work. I really like the fact that the book is written by a teenager. I think that it deserves to be read because it's amazing that a teenager could write an award winning book.

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer

I have seen the movie and heard everybody talk about this book. I'm not that into romances or vampires, but I just want to be able to talk about it when the book comes up in conversation. The book is about an average girl who falls in love with a vampire. The movie had a lot of action so hopefully the book brings the same amount of action to the table. I also heard that the writing style of Stephanie Meyers is very colorful.

Payback Time by Carl Deuker

I love a good sports read and I also love a good mystery. This book seems to offer the best of both worlds. Mitch is a sports reporter at his high school. He notices that a kid names Angel is the best athlete at his entire school, but the coach never plays him. The story seems to lead to a big scandal. I enjoy following sports scandals. This summer I couldn't pull my eyes away from the TV when reports of the Penn State scandal came on. Hopefully this book will have the same effect on me.

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis

The title of this book jumped out to me. The word "psycho" always makes for something interesting. The book is written in first person. Patrick Bateman tells his story about brutally murdering and raping his many victims. The reviews said that the book was "disturbing". I am not a crazy person or anything, but that just makes me very curious. It's hard for me to stay focused on a book, but it seems like this book will keep me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

I have read and and watched the movie, The Hunger Games. I really like how the book created a whole different complex world that readers and viewers can understand easily. It reminds me a lot of Star Wars in that way. Catching Fire is obviously the sequel to The Hunger Games. Katniss and Peeta are forced to go on a Victory Tour by the capital. If they cannot keep making people believe that they are two teenage star-crossed lovers, then bad things will happen. I can't wait to dive back into the world of the Hunger Games. Hopefully I get to this book before the next blockbuster movie comes out!

50 Shades of Grey by E.L. James

I heard other people were putting this book on there list, so I thought that I might as well take a look. I do not know much about this book but I hear that it is very explicit. What made me want to read it is the fact that when I tried to look it up on the school's website and the school blocked the page. If that isn't mystery I don't know what is! The book sounds exciting!

Wild Pitch by Mike Lupica

I have read many books by Mike Lupica, and unlike the childish sports writing of Dan Gutman, Mike Lupica writes sports books for adults. Wild Pitch is about a one time pitching phenom who try's to make a comeback in the major league. I really enjoy comedies about baseball. I'm hoping that this book is as funny as the films Major League and Bull
Durham.

Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

Everything about Australia interests me. So when I came across this book and saw that it took place in Australia, it caught my eye. The book it about a child who's life changes when a man names Jasper Jones knocks on his window and asks him to help hide a body. I like mystery and Australia, and the book seems to have a lot of action and that's always a fun read.

Quiet Stength by Tony Dungy

As a leader of our schools FCA, I almost feel obligated to read this book. The book is written by ex football coach Tony Dungy and it is about how to become a better Christian man. I usually don't enjoy Christian books, but I am a Tony Dungy fan, and this book is focused towards men and athletes. I just so happen to be a man and an athlete, and I believe that I can get a lot out of this book.

Forgiveness

    Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, and Confucianism are all examples of the world's great religions. You would think that these religions would not have much in common, but when it comes to the idea of forgiveness the religion's share almost the same idea. The idea is that everybody deserves forgiveness. But, you can only forgive a wrong that has been done to yourself. What got me thinking about this topic was reading The Sunflower by Simon Wiesenthal.

     In the book the author, Simon Wiesenthal, was a Jewish man,in a Nazi concentration camp. While working one day, Simon was taken to the bedside of a dying Nazi soldier who was searching for forgiveness from a Jew for all the horrible crimes he had committed against the Jewish race. Simon did not know what to say to the soldier, so he left without saying a word. At another concentration camp, Simon met a Jewish man named Bolek. Bolek was studying to become a priest, but was Jewish and was taken by the Nazi's to the concentration camp. Simon told Bolek about his encounter with the Nazi soldier. Simon was expecting a christian answer, but Bolek responded with the words, “I don't think that attitude of the great religions to the question of forgiveness differs to an great extent.”

      What Bolek told Simon is true. Although religion's differ greatly they have the same philosophy about forgiveness. Forgiveness is not a religion thing if all religion's agree on the same philosophy. It is a human thing.

Forgiveness is Neccessary

What if you had the choice of watching your friend die by death of an angry mob, or kill him yourself to relieve him of his pain? I believe if you chose to relieve your friend of his pain that you would feel guilty even though you did the right thing. Forgiveness is key to a person that has gone through this situation and they deserve more then forgiveness. A person in this situation needs people to tell him or her that they did the right thing. They are good people, of course they deserve forgiveness.