TOW #23 - Why You Should Shop at Aerie and not Victoria's Secret

Author Aviana Peterson  of Oddessy shared, "Not only does Aerie have a more self-loving goal, but the prices of Aerie are much more realistic. At Aerie you can get seven panties for $27.50. Victoria’s Secret on the other hand gives you five for $27.50, so two more pairs of underwear from Aerie for exactly the same price. A nude push up bra from Victoria’s Secret is $46.50, while from Aerie a nude push up bra is $29.95. Just from the price difference you can love yourself more. With that extra $15 you didn’t spend on one bra you can go pick out a new shade of lipstick." You shouldn't have to pay obscene amounts of money to feel beautiful.

"Going onto the Victoria’s Secret website, you can see their models. None of them look very much like me. That’s probably because Victoria’s Secret Angels must meet strict limitations, which are being 5-foot-9 with the desired measurements of 34” -24” -34”. Which does not look very much like me or most women I know." While I was shopping at the mall this weekend with my friends, we noticed the artificial body image that Victoria's Secret stores plaster on their walls. How many people in actually have a waist line like that. The underwear and lingerie in stores like Victoria's Secret is supposed to make women feel sexy and empowered, but in my opinion it makes women feel self conscious and unattractive.

Victoria's Secret is notorious for photoshoping and airbrushing their models, whereas underwear stores like Aerie, by American Eagle stopped airbrushing their models in 2014 as a way to promote body positivity to all girls. Their are girls that are under weight that deserve to lover their bodies, just like their are girls that are over weight that deserve to love their bodies. How can ladies on a wall that only weigh 115 pounds and stand at 5 foot 9 promote body positivity when girls on the street rarely look like any of the Victoria's Secret "Angels?"

TOW #22 - I'm Concerned for My Safety

In a passage that our class read earlier in the year, we found that humorists like comedians are used to reveal the harsh truth through a comedic environment and tone. I especially think that political cartoonists are especially helpful for those that are young at heart. People in my generation mostly get their news from twitter and other online web sources. Even though people in the generation before mine are becoming more progressive with social media, some still like old school, hard copied newspaper.

In the cartoon above, a black man and white man are seen having a conversation about their fears. While the white man is afraid of the terror group ISIS, you can see that the black man clearly is not focused on that. He is focused on his safety in America. The illustrator shows on a nearby news stand, reading, "More Police Shootings...... Minneapolis.....Chicago." The illustrator employs an ironic tone because the white man is completely oblivious to what was happening to American citizens of color. Recently, the news hasn't shown much about white on black crime. What upsets me is that the other day, my sister, Kassidie, showed me a video of a white man getting pulled over by a police officer. The officer asked him, "license and registration," and the white man gets out of his car, opens the trunk, reaches inside, and pulls out bowling pins and starts to juggle them. Now imagine if a black man was the man in the car. We all know that a black man can barely even grab his license without getting shot, let alone get out and reach into the trunk of his car. In the end, I am glad that political cartoonists and other humorists like this are using their platforms to show others that there are bigger problems in America than ISIS and that black people are under represented.

TOW #21 - College is too Difficult

Today I had one of the most stressful conversations that I have ever had to be a part of with my parents. We talked about college and frankly I do not think that I know exactly what I want to do or what I want my occupation to be. I am worried but not for what my eventual job will be, yet I am nervous for the workload. If I can barely handle two AP classes, I have no clue how I will balance more than 5 college classes. So I searched the web to hear the stories of college students.

Alexandra Petri, New York Times author, says, "College is too Difficult." Yikes. According to many student, they spend up to 15 hours working. This is concerning due to the fact that I get distracted easily and that I feel that I over study. I study so frequently that I mix things up and second guess myself on quizzes or tests. I asked my mom, "Do you think that I am ready?" And of course, being the mom she is, she told me that I can, "Do anything that I set my mind to." Alexandra Petri also states, "Homework is for high school students. Once you’ve survived four years of lugging A. P. textbooks around, learning how to fill in arrays of bubbles correctly and write essays with erroneous but well-ordered facts, and pursuing at least 300 extracurriculars, you are entitled to sit back and relax."

College for me is a scary thought for me. Yes, I am ready and excited to make the life long friends and memories, but I am just worried. I feel that If I stay to close to my parents and go to somewhere like Temple, then my parents will try to hold my hand throughout college and not let me experience and step into the "real world." But I don't want to go to far, because in the article, Petri mentions that it is vital to have a  strong support system in college. I feel that this time next year, a heavy weight will be lifted off of my shoulders.

TOW #20 - Groundbreaking Year for the Oscars

Oh it is that time of the year again... Oscars season. While I enjoy watching the Oscar's, I feel like I am watching four hours of the "Talented White People Show." In the article in the New York TImes, author Shaun King says, "A record six black actors and actresses were nominated." While all of the actors deserve their nominations.. how can there only be six black females and males combined that were nominated? As a young woman of color who is interested in being in films and television shows, it makes me doubt myself and the color of my skin.

"All of this matters tremendously — not because these artists do what they do for recognition, but because this recognition makes these films, these directors, these actors and actresses more known to the world. Mahershala Ali is one of the best actors on earth."(King). While I do agree with the author, I feel that there should be more representation in black films - animated or moving picture. For example, my baby cousin, Calliegh, loves the movie Frozen (but what 3 year old doesn't?). And when we turned on The Princess and the Frog, she absolutely hated it. She said her brown skin was "ugly." This is why we need more black people in film. More black girls and boys that don't play "the bully" or the "ghetto girl." But the black girl or boy that is smart, educated, and strong. We need these characters to help strengthen the black community and help little girls like my cousin to love the beautiful skin that she is in. It took me 16 years of my life to actually like the skin that I was in. It took me until I saw hidden figures on December 27, 2016 to find out that black women are strong, powerful and that black is beautiful. It is essential to put more black people in film so that the black youth can feel loved and beautiful.

TOW #18 - Caitlyn Jenner's Mission

As many may know, Caitlyn Jenner is the father of social media stars Kylie and Kendall Jenner, and is a big face of the LGBTQ community. Although she is a public icon, I have a bone to pick with her.
Jennifer Finney Boylan of the New York Times was able to get a phone interview with her as she was driving. Now, Jenner is a known republican and I am a little confused as to why. She also is a conservative that likes Trump’s administration. This makes me very confused. Why? Because Mike Pence, Donald Trump’s Vice President, was the former governor of Indiana. As the governor of Indiana, Pence has notably said:
“In 2006, as head of the Republican Study Committee, a group of the 100 most-conservative House members, Pence rose in support of a constitutional amendment that would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman. Citing a Harvard researcher, Pence said in his speech, "societal collapse was always brought about following an advent of the deterioration of marriage and family." Pence also called being gay a choice and said keeping gays from marrying was not discrimination, but an enforcement of "God's idea."(Time Magazine).
“In May, the federal government directed school districts to allow students to use the bathroom of the gender they identify with. The directive came as criticism crescendoed around a North Carolina law that would have restricted the use of bathrooms.Along with many other conservatives, Pence opposed Obama's directive and said it was a state issue. "The federal government has not business getting involved in issues of this nature," Pence said.” (Time Magazine).
People in President Trump's administration are known for being racist, sexist, and homophobic. But Caitlyn Jenner, a gay, transgender woman, supports them. She says that she wants to be the LGBTQ voice in the Republican community, but sadly, I don't think that the conservatives want to hear what she has to say.

IRB #3 - The Double Helix

For this marking period I have chosen to read The Double Helix by James D. Watson. This book explains how the discovery of the double helix in 1968 by James Watson changed the science, medicine, and the world.

TOW #17 - Amid the uproar over Nate Parker, why is no one talking about Casey Affleck?

What Nate Parker did was absolutely disgusting. Raping a young girl is a punishable offense. Now, do not get me wrong, rape is an awful thing that should never happen to anyone, but why isn't anyone talking about Casey Affleck's rape? When he was a student at Penn State, a girl reported him and another student of raping her while she was unconscious. While she was unconscious? What kind of world do we live in where you can rape a female and get away with it? This made me think, why is everyone talking about Nate Parker and not Casey Affleck? I have come to a conclusion that the reason that people are talking about Nate Parker is because he is an African American man. Yes, this is about race. I do not think its fair that petitions are being signed for Nate Parker to be put in jail but Casey Affleck not to be. Casey Affleck, a successful white male is not being punished for what he had done.
This can be connected to the news and media. Have you ever noticed that when an Arab man commits a crime they are labeled "terrorist," or when a black man commits a crime, he is called a "thug." But when a white man commits a crime he is called a "lone wolf" or "mentally ill." I recently saw a tweet that read, "Breaking news: Mississippi man shoots shoppers inside of the Walmart because they will not sell him a Confederate flag." Mississippi man sure is a funny way of saying terrorist. Can you imagine what people would say if a Muslim or Arab man did that?
I am not whatsoever justifying Nate Parker's crime, but I do think that if people commit these heinous acts, then they should punished fairly and equally.

TOW #16 - What's Next for Women's March Movement

Barcelona, Amsterdam, Paris, Melbourne and even these United States. Hundreds of thousands of people came out on January 21st to protest the new President, Donald Trump and to unify women, people of color, all genders and sexual orientations. While an extremely low 193,000 people came to watch the new president's inauguration, an estimated 1.15 million people attended The Women's March in Washington D.C, according to authors at heavy.com. If these numbers are true, then this will have been the largest inauguration protest to date. But this is not my point. USA TODAY author, Heidi M Przybyla, says, “This is the moment of the beginning of the revival of the women’s movement,” and I agree 100 percent. We live in a country where we are fortunate enough and privileged enough where we are able to exercise our basic rights. Countries like Burma, North Korea, Turkmenistan Libya, Cuba, Syria, Eritrea and Uzbekistan have to abide by strict censorship laws. This is what America stands for. But should we really be protesting things like equal rights for all in the year 2017. The fact that women have to protest this is an abomination and is unfair. How is it the year 2017 and people in the LGBTQ+ community are still fighting for equality? How is it the year 2017 and people of color are still being oppressed constantly? How is it fair? This is why people like Meryl Streep, Madonna, Miley Cyrus and so many more are using their public platform to help gather and get people to rise up. This protest is an open letter to Donald Trump. This protest is a battle cry. Protest like these are the ones that made this country what it is today. This is what exercising your rights look like. This is what America is.

TOW #15 - I Have A Dream

Martin Luther King Jr. Activist, teacher, fire-eater, friend, literary and rhetorical genius. In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I have decided to analyze his famous, "I Have A Dream," speech.

Dr.King uses anaphora frequently in his speech, repeating the phrase, "I have a dream." King repeatedly says this to put impact on his views towards the racial divide in the at the time. He also uses a few metaphors sporadically throughout his speech, for example, "In a sense we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check…It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds.”(King 1963). Martin Luther King continues to use more rhetorical devices like allusion when he says something similar to a quote from the sixteenth President of the United States and the "Great Emancipator", Abraham Lincoln, "Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation."

Martin Luther King Jr.'s words have impacted so many peoples everyday lives and the way many people think. If you really think about it, slavery ended in 1863 which isn't as long ago as we think. Jim Crow ended in 1950, which isn't even 100 years old. Martin Luther King has influenced groups like Black Lives Matter to protest peacefully instead of using violence.

TOW #14 - How Far I'll Go in 24 Languages

This week, I went to the movies and saw the new Disney animated film, Moana. I really enjoyed this movie because Moana solved her own problems, with very little help from her male counterpart, Maui. But this is beside the point. I mentioned the movie because while I was browsing through my twitter feed, I saw a video of the star, Moana, singing the song "How Far I'll Go" in twenty four different languages.

I heard all of the languages and it was so beautiful. This video reminded me of the Coca Cola commercial where various peoples from around America were singing "America the Beautiful' in their preferred languages. This proved that America is the land of immigrants and the land of the Melting Pot. A plethora of people were upset by the Coca Cola commercial, claiming that the true "American language," was English. I searched on twitter if there had been any hate towards the Moana video.

There was no surprise that many people were hating on the video. While there was nothing said about the true American Language, the internet trolls came out of their hiding places to make the other speaking people feel poorly about themselves and their countries.

I think the authors point of view was to show how beautiful the art of language is, not to spark a hate war on social media websites. This brings me to question, what is wrong with the people in America? Why is there so much hatred towards the unknown.The people of other countries were expressing great feelings of admiration towards the song. Why can't Americans be like this? Is it because of the feelings that we are more superior than other countries. Not only does this make me angry that Americans can so easily show hatred in their hearts, but it makes me sad because Americans are not seen spreading love.

TOW #14

The author of this article eloquently uses personal anecdotes when speaking of the White Resentment on the Night Shift at Walmart. Author Tracie McMillan shares with her audience how rapidly the world is changing. She shares that in 2008, her small county in Michigan was all for Barack Obama being the next President of the United States. She mentioned that the whole state of Michigan was in fact a democratic state. Later in the next election, she told the audience that her incredibly small county in northern Michigan was still democratic but only by a small margin.

McMillan then mentions that in the most recent election, the whole state was red. Even more so, the whole county was red. That puzzled her because the people in Trump's cabinet are fighting to lower the minimum wage. She was very confused because the minimum wage was what she and all of her other co workers worked for everyday. Members of the Trump administration proclaimed that 10 dollars an hour was way to high, but Walmart workers barely make nine dollars an hour. But then, the realization hit her. Donald Trump's presidency was focused around appealing to the uneducated, poor, white man. The people who work at Walmart fit the standard because she mentioned that most of her colleagues only had high school diplomas and a few of them did not even graduate high school.

This was very eye opening to me because it made me wonder why so many people voted for Barack Obama. I mean he did have a strong base from the African American community, but why did the white people vote for him? He was not appealing to the poor man, yet he was not appealing to the rich man either. This shows that rhetoric in the way that leader's speak really can impact the way people respond; because with President Obama, he is very charismatic and warm hearted, but President Elect Trump is very blunt and sarcastic. Tracie McMillan shows the audience how the poor white men felt throughout this election.

TOW #12 - Violence Can Mark Children Forever, Featuring David Beckham

World renowned soccer player, David Beckham, has never been shy about his many tattoos. I was never interested in what they meant or how many he had, but when UNICEF released a commercial starring David Beckham's body as a canvass, I became interested.

The commercial advocates for children that receive abuse; whether is physical or verbal, the commercial's slogan was,

"Violence Can Mark Children Forever." In this, they use the analogy that violence and abuse will stick with the child forever, just like a tattoo does. In this advertisement, they also use dark imagery to show the audience that abuse can engrave horrible things into children's minds. Because UNICEF is using David Beckham's body as a sketchpad, you can see live drawings of various images. For example, one that was especially scary to me was a young girl that had been messaging a boy via a dating application. Then the audience is taken to a scene where the same girl is standing waiting for someone. In the distance, you see a young boy waiting but that same young boy turns into a man, that takes the girl away. That was really eye opening to me because in today's society, social media and social networking is extremely prevalent. That scares me because you never truly know who is hiding behind the computer screen.

I think the producer did achieve his purpose because he made his audience feel sympathy for the children. Without a doubt, this may have struck a nerve for many that might have suffered child abuse and for those who have seen others go through child abuse. I also really liked this commercial because they weren't asking for donations, but they have asked for awareness. At the end of the commercial David Beckham repeats for the second time, "Violence Can Mark Children Forever," which will stick in the back of my mind forever.

TOW #11 - Patrick Henry

The infamous Patrick Henry; one of the most revolutionary orators in the history of the world. His most famous speech was presented to the members of the House of Representatives on March 23, 1775. Although his primary audience was his fellow house members, I believe that he was directly addressing King George. During 1775 the American colonists were enraged with how the British oppressed them. From paying unnecessary and outrageous taxes during the sugar act, the tea act, and the Townshend acts to housing soldiers in their own homes, one can understand how upset the colonists must have felt.

Patrick Henry was a patriot who was not known to bridle his tongue, which makes his tone so important and influential. Within the first paragraph, Henry states, “… I shall not speak forth my sentiments freely and without reserve.” He is saying to his audience that he is restraining himself so he doesn’t offend anyone in the house that is a loyalist. He continues to say, “Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear or giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of Heaven, which I revere above all earthly things.” In this Patrick Henry is saying that he feels as though that his is betraying his country and God because he is holding back on what he truly wants to say. He goes on to use metaphoric language when he tells his audience of who or what guides him, “I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided, and that is the lamp of experience. This helps him prove his purpose that the colonists need to speak up, and that they need to unite instead of fighting for different causes. Throughout the hole speech, Henry tries to refrain from unleashing his true thoughts, but I find it ironic that his last line was, “but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” By the end of his speech, he has let his words flow off of his tongue freely. This speech was not just an informative one, but a battle cry. A battle cry to his fellow patriots and some loyalist, to help show them that the colonist would rather die than be in bondage by the British.

TOW #10 - White Nationalists Celebrate 'an Awakening' After Donald Trump's Victory

In today's society, people all around the world get their daily dosage of the news from social media applications like twitter, snapchat, and instagram. Its very upsetting that even in the twenty first century, Americans still have their own terrorist groups like the KKK and other white supremacy groups. I haven't really seen much of them before the recent election but now I can feel their presence among America. Authors Alan Rapperport and Noah Weiland of the New York Times use a warning tone to tell Americans that the terror groups of the 1960s are back. " For years, they have lurked in the web’s dark corners, masking themselves with cartoon images and writing screeds about the demise of white culture under ominous pseudonyms," the authors from the New York Times describe these white domination enthusiasts as monsters by using dark words such as "lurked, ominous, and masking." The writers purpose for writing "White Nationalist Celebrate 'an Awakening' After Donald Trump's Victory" is to make Americans (especially minorities0 aware that these groups aren't nightmares of the past. I chose to read this article because my older sister goes to the Ohio State University and during our weekly FaceTime call she told me, "The KKK was spotted in Louisville." My family just moved from Fort Knox, Kentucky which is only about thirty minuets from Louisville. When she asked me this I thought, 'of course they were, Kentucky is a southern state.' But then that got me very curious to see if there were any other kkk spotting in America. To my surprise the KKK has been spotted in Louisiana, Indiana, Texas, Connecticut, and Georgia just since Donald Trump has been chosen to be the president elect. I think that its good that these groups are starting to show themselves more because then, I won't have to guess who is plotting behind my back. I think that the authors did reach their purpose because it is bringing awareness to people across America.

IRB #2 - Founding Brothers

Historian and author, Joseph J. Ellis, takes his audience behind the scenes of what really happened during the 1700s. This biography explains what type of relationship the founding brothers had and how especially vital it was for them to be allies instead of enemies. I chose to read this book because my older sister read it and she said that it really helped her to make connections in her AP United States History class. In APUSH, we are discussing the founding fathers and what their roles were, so I am very excited to finish this book because I believe that it will help me better understand the content that I am learning in my other classes.

TOW #9 - Anti - Trump Protests Stretch

This week I have chosen to write my blog on a more serious topic, the United States President Elect; Donald Trump. Yes I realize that my voice doesn't really matter in this election because I am not old enough to vote, but I am old enough to know how the world works. I am old enough to know that America has made an enormous mistake. People like me have realized that this election can set us up for our future or our failure. In response to the new President Elect, people across the nation have reacted by taking to the streets and peacefully protesting. CNN authors Ralph Ellis, Khushbu Shah and Azadeh Ansari, have shown that people are protesting in major cities like Dallas, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and even Donald Trump's hometown New York City. In this article the authors use a concerning tone, even though they are not supposed to be biased. In my opinion, this article's purpose was to inform the American public that young people actually care about what could happen in the future. Protesters walk through the streets holding signs and chanting "Not my president." This makes me kind of upset though. It makes me wonder, if so many people are against Donald Trump, then where were they in the polls? The majority of states where red, rather than blue and thousands of people are protesting. Then, you have the people in the Republican Party that say, "when Obama was elected we didn't say anything," but yes they did protest and it was disgusting. If you look at the picture on the right you will understand what I am talking about. In my opinion, this article was very effective because it really woke up my inner activist. It showed me that I am not alone and my thoughts actually do matter.

TOW #8 - IRB

I finished The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls quicker than I expected so it was really hard for me to find another book that I actually wanted to read. Then I thought, I could use a little more help in AP United States History; why not read a book on the founding fathers? My IRB book is called Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis. Ellis's other works pertain to American history, some of which including: His Excellency: George Washington, American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, and First Family: Abigail and John. As you can probably see, Joseph J. Ellis is a Historian and graduate from Yale and the College of William and Mary. He is also the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for History.

The Beginning of the book introduces some household names, like George Washington, Aaron Burr, John Quincy Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin. Along with those well known names, Ellis also mentions some of the people "behind the scenes," like John Jay, Nathaniel Pendleton, Thomas Scott, and Edward Coles, to mention a few. I believe that Ellis's purpose so far is to show who the Revolutionary Generation was and to show who really built our nation.

Once I started to read the first chapter I was instantly excited. I would consider myself a big fan of "Hamilton: An American Musical," and the first chapter just happens to be titled: The Duel. In this duel, Vice President Aaron Burr shoots Alexander Hamilton because Hamilton did not endorse Burr in his presidential race against Thomas Jefferson. Ellis helps to connect with his audience by using an informative tone. Unlike the author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves, Lynne Truss, Ellis does not use a sarcastic or humorous tone with his audience but more of a serious tone to explain how important this duel was to the foundation of American History. In my opinion, this book can help students in history classes because Ellis thoroughly explains the events.

TOW #7 - The Science of Sleepy Teenagers"

Almost everyday I come into school extremely tired. So many teenagers and high school students do. According to Slate author, Russell Foster, “school schedules make them grouchy, impulsive, and humorless." According to the article “The Science of Sleepy Teenagers,” teenagers need about nine hours of sleep a night in order to be alert throughout the day. The national statics show that the average American teenager goes to sleep at midnight. So why does our school start at 7:30 if teenagers need approximately nine hours of sleep per night? Many scientist have noticed that if people do not get enough sleep in their youth, it can lead to poor health in the future; like metabolic changes, insensitivity, low glucose in the blood, and diabetes. Russell Foster I think is trying to inform people that the teens of the world need sleep.
Without it we physically cannot function. According to this article, "all in all, a tired adolescent is a grumpy, moody, insensitive, angry, and stressed one." This shows that these poor sleeping schedules may promote the likelihood of smoking and drinking caffeinated drinks. Schools around the world are starting to notice the horrible effects that sleep deprivation can have on teenagers. A school in Newcastle, U.K., moved its start time to 10 a.m., which showed signs of a higher morale in students at the school.
An important rhetorical strategy is tone because the author of this article writes using a very informative voice. He lists a plethora of facts throughout this piece which helps convince his audience that teenagers should not be going to school so early in the morning. In my opinion, I can believe that Russell Foster achieved his purpose because this explains the reason why teenagers are still "half asleep" when they come to school in the morning. I think this essay will influence specifically the teachers because students aren't always sleeping in their classes because they are bored, but because they are exhausted.

TOW #6 - Don't Dress Your Age

In the New York Times article, “Don’t Dress Down,” author Julia Baird preaches to women, trying to persuade us to dress as we wish. Julia Baird is actually an Australian journalist for The New York Times, broadcaster, and author so she is able to write to women in Australia and The United States. Baird’s purpose for sharing this with her audience is because she was “old shamed.” She retells an anecdote from when she was looking for a vintage dress and her former husband said in her ear: “You know, there comes a day when wearing old-lady dresses is no longer ironic.” Not only was that a rude thing to say to her, but it made her feel old. She was only 36 at the time so she wasn’t even middle aged. She uses a metaphor to express how she felt that she was dressing, “And apparently not even a lamb dressed as mutton, but fast approaching mutton dressing as jerky.” So what exactly does it mean to “dress your age?” How does someone dress at 16, or 21, or 42? Women are criticized for wearing things that make them look "too young" or "too old," so where is the happy medium? The media and popular culture are one of many reasons as to why women feel so discouraged when they step out of their homes. Once you turn 40, you should use "plenty" of conditioner and avoid getting your haircut into a bob, according to a fashion writer in The Telegraph. A Daily Mail survey showed that women a quarter of 50 year old women and up are afraid it wear high heels. Titles like "Are You a Middle-Aged Fashionista Who Just Doesn't Know When to Quit?" are very crestfallen, because women deserve to feel good and look good. Julia Baird did reach her purpose, in my opinion, because she advised her readers that whenever someone tries to "old shame" them, just brush it off because women merit the right to appreciate and love themselves.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/23/opinion/sunday/dont-dress-your-age.html?_r=0

TOW #5- "The Allegory Of the Long Spoons"

When I was on snapchat I saw a video that really opened my eyes. It showed six people sitting around a platform that held a bowl of soup. But what made this more interesting was that the platform that the soup was on was surrounded by an abyss that would "lead to your doom." The audience then sees the six people in black and white, the only color coming from the soup. They are all sitting on the edge and are trying to get some of the soup, but because their spoons are so long, they cannot reach their mouths. After a man accidentally spills soup on another, a fight breaks out and the people end up with five spoons instead of six. After a few moments of silence, we see another spoon into view, trying to feed the man whose spoon broke. Once the man gets a small taste of the soup, the images around them are no longer black in white. The space around them is bursting with vivid color. After some research, I found that this story was an ancient Jewish parable. The parable is supposed to show the difference between Heaven and Hell. In Heaven the people there eat at long tables and feed each other with long spoons and are always full. Whereas the people in Hell only try to feed themselves, which leads the audience to believe that people in Hell are starving. This parable is most often told at church sermons. In my opinion, this piece conveys dramatic irony. I believe that because the people in the audience know how the problem could be solved, but the people in the actual piece do not. Although the original artist is not knows, I think his purpose was to get more people to follow Judaism because if they weren't active in their faith, they would end up going to Hell. The author, in my opinion, achieved his purpose because Judaism is one of the oldest Abrahamic religions and is still practiced all over the world. Without this, then maybe the Jewish church wouldn't exist.