"Inspiration Information" by Shuggie Otis

This song had an lighthearted, happy, and "chill" feel to it. It's the kind of music that I would listen to if I wanted to just relax. It has a loose feel to it with no strict pattern. I think the synthesizer that gave the song a wavering sound to it set off the vibe. It makes the song not only unique, but also flow well. This song definitely gave us a view of something different. The synthesizer was the main part of what the musician chose to make the song feel this way. The simple drum beat was also a nice touch that added a slow, but steady rhythm throughout the song. It wasn't rushed, but it wasn't incredibly slow either. The bass guitar also added a relaxing, "groovy" feel with it's low bending notes. It had a very relaxing, calming feel to it that made an overall nice, unique song.

"Semeadores" by Diego Rivera

Subject: The workers.
Occasion: Work being done in a field (most likely planting seeds).
Audience: The working class.
Purpose: To make the audience think about the work and situations certain people (in Mexico, specifically) were put in
Speaker: Mexicans in the working labor.
Tone: Sad, negative mood, miserable to work.

I think that the meaning and the theme of the painting has to do with what people went through in Mexico and how hard they worked. I think the artist wanted us to see what certain people (Mexicans in specific) had to go through to get money to survive. The dark colors and negative light indicates a negative mood. The work shown in the painting is a continuous cycle and process, which the artist showed by using wavy, curvy lines that seem to make everything flow together.The characters in the painting seem to blend into the background so that no distinct features or characteristics are portrayed. I think the point of this was to show the unhappiness and how unimportant they seem in their position and what the workers have been put through.  This is obviously something that the artist is unhappy with. With the light, lines, and colors, he is trying to show us how he does not agree with the type of work these people had to do and what we should be aware of.

Wilco's Approach

Wilco explains that there are many different options to choose from when creating a song. It depends on what style and type of music one is looking for. When attempting to build a certain type of style or sound, one must take it apart and go into depth about it. Exploring the subject and idea is the way it is brought together. By taking a certain idea and picking it apart, it eventually leads to a very good, developed piece and continues to build up. For my own personal writing, I always have a general idea of what I'm looking for and create a theme to go by. Then I go more into depth about the subjects I want to talk about. I decide what I want to be specific about and what aspects I can be broader about. I usually look for everyday objects to incorporate in a unique way. I set up my writing like an outline first with my ideas and then start to add the details. I then piece it together to make it all flow. At the end, I go back and check over it. If certain things don't go together, I change it or correct it to make it sound better. Re-reading it a lot and allowing others to examine it and give feedback is also important because it helps me to be able to hear other ideas that can help my piece get better.

Nostalgia

I would define nostalgia as a sentimental desire for something in the past that one misses or wants back. One image that came to mind when I heard the song "Rock Around The Clock" was a black and white scene. In the scene there was a dance floor with lots of different people, the girls with their puffy skirts and dresses and boys with plaid shirts, dancing and laughing together as a band played and sang the song. There was one main singer who was in the center of the scene playing guitar and everyone was dancing in front of him, all in sync. The scene was happy and upbeat, like the song. When I think of my childhood certain images, smells, memories, and sounds pop into my head. Going to Graeter's with my dad, running through sprinklers with friends, playing kickball in my next door neighbor's backyard, watching movies and playing dolls with the girls next door, going fishing with Granddaddy, and going to the golf course with my dad are all images of my childhood. The smell of clean cut grass on our front lawn, the smell of cookies baking at Grandmother's house, the sound of the "I Love Lucy" theme, and the sound of Christmas music are all sounds and smells that remind me of the days from the past. These all have a nostalgic affect on me and will continue to do so as I remember my sweet childhood that is now behind me.

A Pinch of Poverty

The main contributing factors to poverty are unemployment, little/no income, inflation, scarce food supply, and being in poverty itself. The picture has a negative light because of the dark colors throughout the painting and the background seems to be in a mist or fog. The colors seem to be washed out and the main focus is on the people because they are the darkest in the picture with the exception of their faces, which are very pale. Poverty is an awful and stressful situation that creates an unhealthy environment. With it being such a terrible situation to put in, it seems as if the artist was trying to communicate that it wasn't their fault; rather it was a situation brought upon them. Two elements that enhance the message are the dark colors and the facial expressions on the people. Only dark and bland colors are used throughout the painting. The only bright colors are yellow flowers to create a contrast between the brightness of the flowers and the darkness of being in poverty. The background as well as their clothes, along with the black streets all come together to show the extreme stress of poverty. The facial expressions on the people are solemn and look as if they are lonely and hurt. It almost seems as if they don't know what to do and have nothing to look forward to, enhancing how truly bad poverty is.

Poverty

World Poverty is obviously a huge issue in the world. Chitra Divakaruni, author of Live Free and Starve, writes from the perspective that sometimes things that appear to right are not always for the best. For example, the bill no longer permitting “the import of goods from factories where forced or indentured child labor was used,” seems to be the right thing to do. However, when looking at it in broad perspective, it would actually cause the situation in third world countries to become worse. Divakaruni states, “If the children themselves were asked whether they would rather work under such harsh conditions or enjoy a leisure that comes without the benefit of food or clothing or shelter, I wonder what their response would be.” Divakaruni uses the example of Nimai, a boy that came to work in her household when she grew up in Calcutta.  On the surface, it might seem wrong that a child would be exploited in this manner; however, she described Nimai as feeling pride in the fact that he was a responsible member of his family.

However, Peter Singer, author of The Singer Solution to World Poverty, looks at it from a different angle. He believes giving as much as possible to support and save lives of children is the right thing to do. “An American household with an income of $50,000 spends around $30,000 annually on necessities…Therefore, for a household bringing in $50,000 a year, donations to help the world’s poor should be as close as possible to $20,000.” He uses the example of “Bob” to describe how, to put it bluntly, selfish we Americans are. He uses Bob to show how he is confronted with the dilemma of whether to save an unknown homeless child or his uninsured vintage car, representing his life’s savings, as a runaway train races out of control. He then goes on to explain how if we were to give up dining out for a month, we could save enough to save a child. However true this may be, we also must look at how realistic it is- not very. While some may give already a lot of money to organizations like UNICEF, there are so many more that don’t.

Though Divakaruni’s article isn’t ending world poverty, it is more realistic. I agree that the conditions in which the children in third world countries is awful and should not be accepted. However, Divakaruni makes a valid point and a good argument that by taking away the children’s employment, it would leave them without money to support their family and they would most likely die of starvation. Possible bias may come from the fact that I happened to read Live Free and Starve first; therefore, I may have already had an opinion about it. However, I do somewhat agree with Singer with the fact that we as Americans should give more to stop world poverty. It’s just difficult to concur with his argument due to the extreme measures he goes to and the fact that it, all in all, is just completely unrealistic.

I do agree that world poverty is an issue that needs to be addressed, but not in such a forceful and extreme manner to where it is almost impossible. We must all be aware of what decisions we make that could affect other people, like Divakaruni states, but also aware of what harsh conditions others are living in and how we are able to help.

Ariel Pink's Haunted Grafitti "Round and Round"

Knowing a broad range of music, I have heard a different variety of music. I have been accustomed to listening to different genres as well as different types of music. I've heard songs like "Round and Round" before; therefore, nothing affected my opinion because of difference. I do, however, have a keen ear due to having so much experience with music. The correlation between my opinion, being that I liked the different qualities of sound, dynamics, and tempo used, and my facts- it had a slow beat and transitioned from soft and quite to loud and upbeat- both have to do with beat and dynamics. Those were the two things I saw and recognized most prominently throughout the song. I do not have bias because I listen to all different music and I am open to all of them.