Assignment 2.2, Laken, Due 7/28/2010

Valerie Laken's, "Seperate Kingdoms" seems to be writing the story to demonstrate how technology can ruin family interactions and communication. Laken wants the reader to consider family interactions and how we can be unaware of the impact our actions have on other individuals. Laken seems to use different structural strategies to grab the reader's attention and place more emphasis on different portions of the text.

Laken chooses an interesting style for her story, writing most of the story in a two column style but twice in the text she has a running sentence that breaks the two column barrier. The choice for a two column style is different from most styles because it doesn't switch sides on every page, you have to completely read the left column and then read the right column. It appears that Laken is breaking the barrier to over emphasize a sound or situation. Throughout the stroy Laken uses the technique of exaggerating words like "Duh Guh" (pg.6). These words represent a single stroke roll, but the sentence breaks composition and moves across the entire page. I take this to show an overemphasis to the situation and there to draw more attention to the situation. The second example Laken breaks the double column style, "You take it, then 'he shouts, wishing he could throw something. 'Take it! Take the goddamn money and the little drummer boy and drive yourselves straight to paradise, set yourselves up! I'm fine right here" (pg. 11). This is a situation that represents an argument; the interesting aspect of this structural break is in the right column the story discusses the dad's yelling. It appears this sentence might break the struture to represent an argument on both portions of the text and adding extra emphasis.

The essay addresses a family that seems in turmoil and does not get along. In the beginning of the story the dad is very distant and uninterested in the family. Laken portrays the father as uninteresting and appears to prefer to keep to himself and watch television, "He'll be fine. He's reclined on the couch in the back room-the old couch, in the reject room-convalescing"(pg.1). This represents how uninterested he is in the family dynamics and structure, he seems distant and only worried about himself because he places himself in the "reject room-convalescing". Throughout the story the father son relationship is not cohesive and they treat eachother as strangers with an attitude of dislike. There are multiple times Colt rejects Jacks attempts to repair their relationship and spark up a conversation but Colt is uninterested. It is obvious that Jack is able to recognize his father's dislike and disinterest in him, "Jack, why don't you take a break and keep your dad company while I exercise? As if he wanted company. From me. As if he's said a complete sentence this week at all, to me or her or anyone" (pg.2). Jack points out his fther's behavior and lack of family communication. This portion of the story addresses the family's lack of happiness with the family dynamics and the ather seems to be at the center of this situation.

Laken's story seems to use different structural functioning to draw more attention to different situations in the text. While doing this the story seems to address a family's inconsistencies and lack of communication. There is little to know communication and the father is very distant throughout the story.

Due 7/22/2010

5 Aspects of Laken's story "Seperate Kingdoms"-Visual Strategies
1. The entire essay is written in two columns (right and left side of page)
2. Page 6, right side of the page the words "Guh Duh" are repeated over and over again
3. Page 10, right side of the column the word "squaaaaaaawk!" shows an emphasis of the situation the word is describing
4. Page 11, the beginning of the page Laken breaks the right and left columns and continues a sentence across the entire page
5. Page 12, top of the right column the word "Shamalamadindon. Shamaoomama" seems to show an emphasis of the situation the word is describing

Laken's purpose for writing the story seems to be trying to get the family back together. I think she wants the readers to consider family interactions and how at times we are unaware of how our actions impact other individuals. During the story the family came together after the dad's injury because they started talking and disucssing their issues. After bringing their issues and concerns up as a family the dad began to change his behavior and be more interested in the family then in Animal Planet.

The visual choices I identified in light of my current understanding of Laken's purpose is perhaps her way of over emphasizing some portions of the text that she believes the reader needs to pay more attention to. As the information in Drucker's essay seemed to point out the importance and reasoning for different writing procedures is to draw the reader's attention to certain portions of the readings.

Assignment 1.3-Due 7/8/2010

Current Controlling Purpose:
The essays controlling purpose focuses on his interest in memory and an overarching concept that being book/work smart is not everything.

Revised Controlling Purpose:
The essays controlling purpose focuses on the transitions memory is taking from storytelling interactions to forced experiences. Some individuals are able to warp this transition into a perception of innocence. Memoir are a place memories can be expressed and increase the decreasing value of interactions and personal memory. The mind has an amazing ability to express shame and detach ourselves from this to save our minds.

Revised Introduction:
The essay read is Shame and Forgetting in the Information Age by Charles Baxter. This essays controlling purpose focuses on the transitions memory is taking from storytelling to interactions to forced experiences. Some individuals are able to warp this transition into a perception of innocence. Memoir are a place memories can be expressed and increase the decreasing value of interctions and personal memory. The mind has an amazing ability to express shame and detach ourselves from this to save our minds. He labels this the information age, meaning most of our information is derived from books or educational basis and we are losing the storytelling process of face to face discussions. The essay addresses the audience with the importance of his concept of memory and the abilities it holds, remembering certain memories and deleting other memories. Some individuals are able to transform deleting memories into a personal image that portrays them as innocent, a positive attribute. Baxter's goal of accomplishment may be to open the reader's eyes to the infatuated emphasis on written literature while writing our own personal memoir (journal writing) is a way to increase the lost value of interactions and personal memory.

Assignment 1.2. Due 7/7/2010

The essay read is Shame and Forgetting in the Information Age by Charles Baxter. The essays controling pupose focuses on his interest in memory and an overarching concept that being book/work smart is not everything. Baxter's idea about memory and living everyday through person to person communication begins with his handicap brother who is unable to retain information from books and writings. He labels this the information age, meaning most of our information is derived from books or educational basis and we are losing the storytelling process of face to face dicussions. The essay addresses the audience with the importance of his concept of memory and the abilities it holds, remembering certain memories and deleting other memories. Baxter's goal of accomplishment seems to be to open the reader's eyes to the amazing powers of memory and the infatuated emphasis on reading and writing communication. The essay attempts to allow the reader to explore their interpretation of the world, technology, memory, forgetting and shame. Numerous times in the text Baxter addresses his understanding of these five interconnecting aspects of the world but does not directly come out and say it for the reader. By Baxter discussing memory and giving us bits of his personal opinion it allws the reader to fully explore the text from a semi unbiased persepective and explore their own thoughts about the world, technology, memory, forgetting and shame.

Baxter's essay was designed to help us understand that we are living in an age that is obsessed with technological information. His purpose is to open the audiences eyes to the two different types of memory used in this age and the problem with only relying on technological memory. He begins his essay by introducing us to his brother who seems to ahve a cognitive disability and is unable to retain book information but has an amazing ability to remember everything he hears. Baxter declares his brother "Tom was an outcast of information age. Perhaps every family has one"(p.141). In this information age individuals like Tom are being left behind because they have an inability to keep up with the information ages idea of memory This idea of memory places an overarching emphasis on individuals being book smart and being able to prove this knowledge through memory. Baxter discusses the importance that individuals place on their memory and describes it as a level of pride or comfort, "People here often take considerable pride in their minds and more particularly in their memories"(p.144). What Baxter is trying to address here is individuals' misconception of memory. In this information age individuals think they have a great amount of knowledge and take this knowledge to be memory. With this misconception of memory follos a loss of personal experiences shared through person to person interaction. "Benjamin argues that the explosion of information in the modern age is denying us something precious: 'the ability to exchange experiences.' This is, Storytelling"(p.149). This portion of his essay addresses his concept that literature is replacing the importance of storytelling, the importance of personal connections with storries and the effect this has on our personal memories.

The intended audience for Baxter's essay seems to be everyone but more directly the younger generations. The essay intends to help the reader explore their percetions of the world, technonly, memmory, forgetting, and shame. "What you remember is key to who you are"(p.151). This is an important concept Baxter's essay addressed to the audience because he is laying down the foundation of importance that memory has on everyone. While also addressing the concept that "No one can absorb all the information"(p.146) and the implications this can have on individuals.

The context of Baxter's piece takes an extensive approach to the two types of memory, technological memory and personal memory and the implications that can have on individuals. Primarily focusing on the information age and technology can have an effect on individuals' memory causing forgetting and shame. "Forgetfulness meaning that your mind may have crashed"(p.148). Meaning you mind is in an amnesic state. Baxter describes the minds amazing ability to decide which information to retain and which information to discard. "Strategic amnesia has everything to do with the desire to create or destroy personal history"(p.145). This concept of amnesia seems to be centered around the inability to place personal experiences on information in the information ages causing forgetfulness to be more pronounced. The interaction of storytelling is becoming extinct because of emphasis on literature, reading and writing. "American memoirs of the past two decades are some of the most powerful literary documents that we have created during this period, in part, I think, because they have taken seriously conditions of innocence and the subsequent corruption or fall from that innocence, and seen it in relation to storytelling"(p.152). this concept of forgetfulness leads to individuals expreiencing shame. "No one seems to be resonsible for anything, or else the wrong people are accused of what may not, in fact, have happened at all. This is usually a complex response to shame"(p.153). As I stated before Baxter's text addressed the minds ability to create and destroy information, this concept supports his notion that when indivduals expreience shame from no remembering certain aspects of memory the mind begins to fill in the blanks with its perceptions of events. "The shame of forgetting"(p.155), there is an emphasis on the ability to remember and the mind determines what information is retained and what is rejected. This can be beneficial if the mind is deleting painful memories or harful when it's deleting information that information age deems necessary information.

Assignment 1.1-Due 7/01/2010

The essay read is Shame and Forgettin in the Information Age by Charles Baxter. The essays controlling purpose focuses on his interst in memory and an overarching concept that being book/work smart is not everything. Baxter's idea about memory and living everyday through person to person communication begins with his handicap brother who is unable to retain information from books and writings. He labels this the information age, meaning most of our information is derived from books or educational basis and we are losing the storytelling process and face to face discussions. Baxter's flow with the text begins to show the reader the importance of his concept of memory and the abilities it holds, remembering certain memories and its ability to delete other memories. Baxter's goal of accomplishment seems to be to open reader's eyes to the amazing powers or memory and how we are placing our majority of focus on reading and writing communciation. The essay attempts to allow the reader to explore their interpretation of the world, technology, memory, forgetting, and shame. Numerous times in the text Baxter addresses his understanding of these five interconnecting aspects of the world but does not directly come out and say it for the reader. By Baxter discussing memory and giving us bits of his personal opinion it allows the reader to fully explore the text from a semi unbiased perspective and explore their own thoughts about the world, technology, memory, forgetting and shame.

Examples from Text

• "Tome was an outcast of the information age. Perhaps every damily has one" (p.141)
• "People here often take considerable pride in their minds and more particularly in their memories" (p. 144)
• "our memories' are memories of our experiences in narrative form" (p. 144)
• "Strategic amnesia has everything to do with the desire to create or destroy peronal history" (p. 145)
• "No one can absorb all the information" (p. 146)
• "Is it forgetfulness or is it Alzheimer's" (p. 146)
• "Forgetfulness means that your mind may have crashed" (p.148)
• "Benjamin argues that the explosion of information in the modern age is denying us something precious: 'the ability to exchange experiences.' That is, storytelling." (p.149)
• "Whatevery the job is that she must do, they wanted it done yesterday" (p. 149)
• "There aren't any stories there, unless her coworkers are seducing or cheating or harassing each other, always a possibility" (p.150)
• 2nd paragraph on page 150 holds important information
• "Even memoir argues that a personal memory is precious" (p.151)
• "What you remember is key to who you are (p.151)
• "...because they have taken seriously the condition of inocence and the subsequent corruption or fall from that innocence, and seen it in relation to storytelling." (p.152)
• "No one seems to be responsible for anything, or else the wrong people are accused of what may not, in fact, have happened at all. This is usually a complex response to shame." (p.153)
• "If your memory of your experiences is precious, then your father has, at least in a patriarchal culture, a special and almost sacred power to confirm a history." (p.153)
• "The same of forgetting." (p.155)

Shame and Forgetting in the Information Age

The purpose of Baxter's essay seems to focus on memory and the different forms that can be utilized. He begins the essay discussing his brother Tom who passed away and seems to have a learning disability enabling him to remember everything he hears but unable to comprehend written information. The style of Baxter's essay gives us an easier flow into the information he is sharing with us. He transitions from a personal story about his brother, to memory in different individuals, to personal memory abilites and how that fits into everyday lives, and to exploring the idea that minds fill in blanks to stories/situations we are unsure of the facts. I think he titled the essay Shame and Forgetting in the Information Ages because on page 153 he states "No one seems to be responsible for anything, or else the wrong people are accused of what may not, in fact, have happened at all. This is usually a complex response to shame." I take this to mean that individuals begin to feel shame, mistrust and tend to forget their own interpretation/memory of past events. He declares this the Information Age to possibly mean storytelling from one individual to another is extinct; the only for of storytelling we witness now is the "subsequent corruption or fall from that innocence" (Baxter, p.152). In the beginning of the essay he declared his brother was an outcast to the information age, society now is based on/places a large enphasis on educational information. His writing style takes personal information about multiple individuals (e.g. Ms. Bartleby). It looks at their work experience and the way in which they use information in this Information Age and how it's affecting their everyday lives. Baxter discusses how computer information is only one sourse of information and these individuals are missing the greater/useful information of everyday life.

About ME

My names Deonte Roberts, I'm 23 years old. I've never blogged before so this might take me a little while to get use to. I play basketball for UWM mens team. My families from St. Paul Minnesota, I have 4 siblings: Ardejon 17, Adrian 20, Uwanna 12, Deontea 3. Back home I have 1 dog named Gato and 1 cat named Izzy. I enjoy cooking, eating and sleeping.