A Little Blood Never Hurt Anyone



This week’s lecture made me reminisce back to the first encounter I had with monsters. When “Interview with a Vampire” came out I was extremely young and my older sisters rented it one night and watched it in our basement. I still remember watching the first bite Tom Cruise took on a human and my giant scream that consequently woke my parents up thinking that something horrible had occurred. For years after Vampires had been my biggest fear, until Buffy came along. Buffy the Vampire Slayer quickly became my favourite show and I couldn’t miss an episode. I don’t know what it was that drew me in, but it was a damn good show. What was interesting was how I lost any fear I had for vampires, monsters and any other demonic creature. I quickly found myself falling for the character of Spike versus Angel. This seems to be a pattern for me in vampire shows as I would take Damon over Stefan in The Vampire Diaries and Eric over Bill in True Blood. Girls have fallen for the bad boy for generations so putting the heroine female lead with a vampire; the ultimate demon seemed to fit perfectly.

What I agreed with completely this week was when Prof Harris discussed how these demons struggle between goodness versus evil which is something all of us do every day.  Vampires never chose to be this way and what’s interesting is how they once were and in some cases still are God fearing, Christian individuals. In most vampire shows, the good vampires hate themselves because they know that they are evil creatures who will never see the light of heaven. The fact that they carry this guilt around makes them vulnerable and appealing to viewers everywhere. It forces people to look at their own faults, mistakes and “sins” and reflect on their own fate. What is funny about the good vampire versus the bad vampire in each show or movie is that it is usually “the bad vampire” who was actually the better and kinder human and they become these monsters once they turn into vampires because they are so angry at what they are and can’t think back to a time when they were good because it hurts too much.  

If you think about it, we all have monster type of instincts in us. If you bring it back to last week’s lecture about violence, how are these human beings who are killing others any better than the vampires drinking people’s blood and zombies eating people’s brains? Difference is that we are human beings who aren’t programmed to do those things, but they had no choice but to be made into these evil beings.

We need to look at our actions and choices a little more carefully because in essence we all started out as innocent beings.


So where is the line between good and evil? Who are the real monsters? Us or them.

Xo,

Y

Dig the Knife Deeper

 

I thoroughly enjoyed this week’s lecture on many levels. Firstly I’m the least violent individual you’ll ever meet, yet I love listening to explicit rap, watch crime shows and disturbing psychological thrillers.

I immediately identified with this catharsis effect as I find myself getting this emotional feeling at the end of a violent movie, being able to walk away and leave the violence on screen. I have zero urge to go and turn violent or rage against someone if I get angry or upset. However when looking at the incapacitation effect it made me worried that I’m surrounded by crazies in the theatre.

The Dark Knight is a fantastic film and rightfully so, one of the most watched films around. Thinking about it now, I realized just how many murders and just how much violence there was in the film, and as disturbing it was when the Joker slammed a mobster’s face right into a pencil and thus killing him instantly, I couldn’t look away. The violence is haunting but you want to see more. Then I wonder are we overexposed to too much violence that watching it seems a little natural? It’s disturbing how twisted and crazy we’ve all become from being exposed to all the ugliness and raw grit of the world.

As we enter each year with promises to better society, we continue on a downward spiral of more violent crime. I had an interesting conversation with my dad about how when he was a kid it was so safe to walk out your door at any time of the night and feel safe with your surroundings. Now the minute night falls it feels like danger is looming, or at least that`s what we have started to believe in our heads. How much can we blame on media? A lot. Kids are exposed to violence at such an early age that as they continue to grow their vast knowledge of weapons and violent acts continues to grow as well. If they see their favourite rapper waving a gun while talking about “killing a bitch”, what will make them think that this behaviour is wrong if it’s glorified on the internet and on TV? As adults we can distinguish what’s right from wrong (mostly), but kids and young teens are the most influential individuals.

With psychos running rampant on the streets; society, film makers, rappers and TV executives might want to think about toning the violent imagery down and instead output a more positive image. I might be starting to sound like a parent, but I think that anything can happen at any time. And let’s get real, Huratio from CSI Miami won’t be around the corner ready to peel off his sunglasses and rescue you.

I’d love to hear your comments!

Xo,

Y

Response to Kathleen’s “Personal Paranoia: Fuelled by Law & Order or the media?”

I really enjoyed your post this week Kathleen! It can be found here: http://lifeisbetterinblackandwhite.blogspot.com/2011/03/personal-paranoia-fuelled-by-law-order.html

 

I found it interesting how you wrote about feeling scared in everyday life because these shows have had an effect on you. It’s funny because I find myself in the habit of trying to calm my mom down if I’m downtown too late or walking to the bus late at night. She watches tons of Law and Order and CSI and combined it equals way too much paranoia.

It’s crazy that a fictional TV show can have such an effect on people. My mom consistently tells me to “BE CAREFUL” as if I’m going into a war zone, even though I’m just walking around campus at night. It’s this thought process that I can almost see in her head flash by anytime I call her and say that I have to stay late to finish an assignment or study. What’s worse is her paranoia becomes contagious and soon I start to wonder “I could be that girl from LO:SVU on last week’s episode”. Crazy? Yes. However what pushes these shows so far into our brains that we believe it will turn into reality?

Well the fact that shows say that the episodes are “based on real events” doesn’t help. This plants ideas in viewer’s heads that these events occur on a regular basis. The amount of horrific and unimaginable violence on these shows makes it very surreal to think that these murders occur.

These shows are addicting, and by the end of a season a viewer feels connected to the investigators, scientists and agents that all formed teams to help solve crime. We all think we can solve real life murders and that we know exactly which chemical to use to find DNA in a forest. Now if we could just go on with our days without thinking an axe murderer is following us, we’ll all be just fine.

Xo,

Y

Response to Vanessa Lee’s "Athletes as God and God Helping Athletes"

Thank you Vanessa for a great read! Her blog post can be found here: http://homertheheretic.blogspot.com/2011/03/athletes-as-god-and-god-helping.html

 

 

I must say you nailed it with hitting the point of Athletes being seen as God like figures. In my post about sports I mentioned how Athletes truly believe that they were given a gift from Gift in their abilities to play.

I enjoyed examining the LeBron James ad for Nike. I have to agree with you in that it’s taken too far with the Christ symbolism. LeBron may be an amazing athlete in the NBA but to compare him in Christ in an effort to sell shoes is a little indecent. The slogan of “we are all witnesses” is cheesy and over dramatic. Star athletes let the fame and glory get to their head and sponsors like to amplify this by making them seem more powerful than they are. If you are a true believer and have faith in God then isn’t trying to imitate Christ, a slap in the face and a sign of mockery? I just find it ludicrous that an athlete can thank God for everything they have and in turn pretend like they are a Christ figure. If God did give you a gift to be such a strong athlete than selling yourself doesn’t showing gratitude.

I believe everyone has a gift and is talented in some form and that these are seen as God given gifts. However it’s how you use it that reflects on yourself. If star athletes were more humble I think I could appreciate and respect them more. What I do have to hand to them, is that they seem to cope well with the pressures from coaches, fans and everyone else around the world who believes they have a say in a particular team. Yes they have a gift. No they are not Christ figures.

Thanks for the great read Vanessa, I really enjoyed it!

Xo,

Y

All of the lights, all of the lights

This week’s lecture was all about sports and Christianity. So let’s dive right in and let the games begin.

I want to start this post by focusing on the pilot episode of Friday Night Lights that we watched in class last week. The show focussed on the fictional town of Dillon Texas and hones in on its players and their families. Just from watching the one episode, it was clear to see how strong of a community this town is and how centered it is on football and faith. Before and after games the team is always praying and keeping a strong hold on God. They are thankful for everything God has given them and are true to their roots. Funny just how much religion plays a part in a show so focussed on football, it’s almost as though their faith is at the center of the show, they take pride in being believers and thank God for being able to play on the field.

In general, sports can be seen as a type of religion. A cult sort of following with fans across the world.  The whole idea of renewal and hope is really interesting to me because it shows how much dedication and how much time people invest in not just a specific sport, but a specific team. It’s this adoration, love and respect that nobody can take away from a hardcore fan. In this essence, sports and Christianity are extremely similar as they share the same type of adoration towards something. So it seems only natural that sports fans and players are firm believers in God and everything religion has to offer.

Going back to Friday Night Lights, I found that the episode was extremely entertaining to watch and I found that the characters Christianity and just the fact that they are real believers.

In my opinion I relate athletes having such strong faith in God and their religion because of how athletes are consistently told that they inhabit a “gift”. That their abilities to play professionally or at any high ranking level is because they were born with a “God given gift”.  This then makes athletes believe they need to thank God and hold on to their faith in order to keep their “gift” alive.

Feel free to leave your comments!

Xo,
Y

Response to Kathleen’s "Finding Positive Pop Icon Role Models (Like Finding a Needle in a Haystack)"

Hello Kathleen, thank you for writing a wonderful post for me to comment on!
Original post can be found here: http://lifeisbetterinblackandwhite.blogspot.com/

This post caught my eye because it proves a valid and strong argument about the reality of popular culture these days. It also reiterates my point in my last post about how Justin is providing a positive message to the youth of today.

Justin’s music is targeted to a more teen audience and I think that is why so many people in the class were overtly opposed to the idea of him and believe that he’s just a fabricated brand. Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Lil Wayne and K$sha can definitely not be considered role models. Because they serve to entertain an older and more adult audience they don’t feel the need to hold back their “creative expression” as they like to call it. The problem does not lie with Bieber himself, it lies with the fact that because people are used to viewing and hearing such obscene and vulgar lyrics and music videos, someone producing a more wholesome image is seen as “fake”, as if being real and true to oneself doesn’t involve loving God or giving back, it’s noted as a “publicity stunt”. Keeping in mind that Justin just turned 17 this week, there is still time for him to evolve as an artist and who knows he might abandon his squeaky clean image as does the lot of young stars.

What I think is important to remember is that Justin is outpouring positivity to his young fans and it helps defer young pre teens from looking at a Lady Gaga video and thinking that being overtly sexualized is the way to attract attention from other peers. Whether we like it or not, Justin is having a huge impact in pop culture and for us to sit and judge him for being too ‘clean”, it says a lot about the downward slope of media and society today. The reality is kids, teens and everything in between are mimicking what they see in music videos and overexposure to all the disturbing things seen in these videos makes us wonder...what are “kids” going to be like in the next 10 years? If you think about the vast differences between our generation and the one that came after us, it’s scary to hear the things they already know. Drugs, violence and sex are all becoming a sort of mainstream norm. So what’s the problem with kids preserving their youth, listening to JB’s songs and taking away a positive message from them?

By Justin showing to his fans that he’s active in donating it encourages his fans to do the same and to see that it’s a good to be good.

Thank you again Kathleen for the great read!

Xo,
Y

Beliebable Bieber

This week in class we all kind of experienced an overdose on Justin Bieber. I must say I never took the time of day to listen to a JB song or watch a single video he’s made as I just decided that he wasn’t worth my time. As someone who never likes to give too much attention to popular trends seen in media, I just steered clear of anything Bieber related. This class really forced me to look at just how big of an icon Justin has become and the kind of effect he has on a part of the world population.  To dub him as a sort of “miracle child” would be a far stretch in my opinion but I guess I have to admit that he does have talent for such a young age.

At first when watching the video for his song “Pray”, I thought “what a corny video to show himself off as an angelic role model”, but after reflecting and listening to everyone else’s hate on the video, it made me start to really think about his age and how even at 16 he’s giving back to the community. These kids who are stuck in a hospital for most of their lives don’t have much to look forward to and if they get enjoyment, pleasure or any other type of euphoric emotion from Justin’s visits then who are any of us to judge his intentions? How many of us can say that at 16 we were active in giving back to the community. If he’s making a difference with his music and his messages about God to his audience then there really isn’t any room for us to judge.  

He may not be categorized under the Christian musician category but that doesn’t mean that he isn’t having a bigger effect on youth than bands and singers that fall under the three Christian music categories stated in Schill’s article which include: Separationist, Integrationist and Transformationist.  

The irony of it all can come from the fact that a singer like Justin can attract more attention to religion by not being a typical “Christian” singer than a band like Petra or Switchfoot simply because the second a band falls under a certain religious type, they also carry along a stigma with it. People don’t want to be told to be better “Christians”, they want to enjoy their music without judgement. Justin Bieber managed to incorporate God and religion without segregation of religions and because of that he is able to reach out to more of the mass population and to people who come from all different religious backgrounds.

Take a minute to think about all the different singers and bands you listen to. Do you find any hidden or subliminal religious messages in their lyrics?

Xo,
Y