Shawn Jennings

Professor Young

November 10, 2014

English 1100

What is Beauty?

During the TED Talk given by Cameron Russell, entitled “Looks aren’t Everything.  Believe me I’m a Model”, she discusses the honesty in beauty.  While Aimee Mullins provides a TED Talk, “My 12 Pairs of Legs”, where she focuses on how beauty can be constructed.  I agree with both women in the fact that beauty can be honest and constructed.   Beauty is defined by a combination of qualities present in a thing or person that pleases the visual senses or brings about deep satisfaction. Many people take that definition to mean that beauty describes a person’s outward appearance. Although a person’s outward appearance can be defined by the term beauty, true beauty lies in the way a person acts and thinks rather than the way they look, as well as beauty being present in the construction of art.
                The term beauty is subjective to each and every person. Today, so much emphasis is placed on a person’s physical appearance, or in Cameron Russell’s words, “winning the genetic lottery” (Russell 2:37). Physically attractive girls and guys are known as beautiful and desirable, and those individuals who don’t meet society’s standards of “beauty” are mocked or ridiculed. Yet, beauty doesn’t always have to mean the outward appearance of a person. Beauty can define a person’s heart and personality; it can describe an inspiring view, or it can explain a person’s actions. It’s true that a person’s appearance can be described as beautiful as well, but that is only part of the definition of beauty. A person can be beautiful just from the way they act towards others or the way they go about their daily lives. True beauty, or inner beauty, is seen with the heart; not the eyes.
                Beauty can be found anywhere. Everything from an amazing sunrise, to an individual helping a homeless person, to someone lost in thought, is beautiful. There’s almost something profound about catching those tiny moments of beauty in a person or place; someone sitting in a café lost in thought while reading a novel, or an old married couple holding hands. During those moments, it’s almost as if the individuals’ true self is taking center stage. The viewer is allowed to see past what society wants the people to think is beautiful and is truly able to catch a glimpse of what beauty means in its simplest terms.

                It is harder to find beauty in someone’s appearance that is natural or honest within our society.  It is almost impossible to look around and not see a picture that is either photo shopped or enhanced in some way. As Cameron Russell states in her TED Talk, the pictures she takes are “constructions by a group of professionals” (Russell 5:26).  Many social media applications, such as Instagram and Snapchat, also have filters to make pictures appear different.  When people look at these pictures they feel ugly and their self-esteem drops.  Seeing these pictures also sets an impossible standard to achieve.  Which, in turn, pressures women or men into getting plastic surgery to achieve this unreachable goal.  When in reality the goal of reaching honest beauty can be met.         

On the other hand, I believe beauty can be honest.  For instance, there are many other ways beauty could be portrayed besides appearance.  For example, personality can be perceived as being beautiful.  Someone who has a kind-hearted personality can be described as being beautiful.  A person who is naturally kind or sweet can be defined as having “natural beauty”.  A person like this does not need Photoshop to show their natural beauty.  It is who they are as a person, not what they look like.  Personality is always honest because it expresses who someone is as a person.  Expressing who you are as a person is not only being honest with others, but also being honest with yourself.  As long as people are honest with themselves they can be comfortable with showing their own beauty, while recognizing others inner beauty. 

The main point of Aimee Mullins TED Talk is the idea that beauty can be constructed.  Throughout her speech, Aimee refers to the many pairs of legs, twelve to be exact, on stage with her at the time.  She explains that each pair of legs were constructed to look beautiful, almost as if they were art.  I agree with Aimee.  I believe beauty can be constructed in the form of art, but not to the extent of plastic surgery.

                Some examples of art are paintings, sculptures, and in this case prosthetic legs.  I believe art is beautiful and for art to become beautiful it has to be constructed.  Famous painters had to construct their work in order for it to become a beautiful painting.  For example, Leonardo da Vinci had to construct the Mona Lisa for it to become beautiful.  Another example would be the construction of a “pair of hand-carved wooden legs made from solid ash” (Mullins 4:28).  If beauty was unable to be constructed what word would we use to describe works of art?  Famous sculptures are called “a work of art” for a reason.  The reason is because the sculpture had to be made or constructed to look a certain way, just like Aimee’s prosthetic legs had to be made to look beautiful. 

                I also believe that the construction of beauty can go too far.  For example, plastic surgery is not a construction of beauty, it is a deconstruction of yourself.  Once someone gets a body part enhanced by the form of plastic surgery they are not themselves anymore.  Plastic surgery may construct parts of your body, but it does not make you beautiful.

                Beauty can be constructed in the form of art.  Beauty cannot be constructed in the form of plastic surgery.  Art is made to look beautiful while it is also constructed.  On the other hand, plastic surgery is the construction of the body, but not beauty.            

Both honest and the construction of beauty can be seen all around us.  From kind-hearted people with wonderful personalities to gorgeous pieces of art such as the Mona Lisa.  Beauty is not defined by looks.  There are many different components to make a person or thing beautiful.  

Aimee Mullins TED Talk

Shawn Jennings

October 31, 2014

Professor Young

English 1100

Response to Aimee Mullins TED Talk

                The main point of Aimee Mullins TED Talk is the idea that beauty can be constructed.  Throughout her speech, Aimee refers to the many pairs of legs, twelve to be exact, on stage with her at the time.  She explains that each pair of legs were constructed to look beautiful, almost as if they were art.  I agree with Aimee.  I believe beauty can be constructed in the form of art, but not to the extent of plastic surgery.

                Some examples of art are paintings, sculptures, and in this case prosthetic legs.  I believe art is beautiful and for art to become beautiful it has to be constructed.  Famous painters had to construct their work in order for it to become a beautiful painting.  For example, Leonardo da Vinci had to construct the Mona Lisa for it to become beautiful.  If beauty was unable to be constructed what word would we use to describe works of art?  Famous sculptures are called “a work of art” for a reason.  The reason is because the sculpture had to be made or constructed to look a certain way, just like Aimee’s prosthetic legs had to be made to look beautiful. 

                I also believe that the construction of beauty can go too far.  For example, plastic surgery is not a construction of beauty, it is a deconstruction of yourself.  Once someone gets a body part enhanced by the form of plastic surgery they are not themselves anymore.  Plastic surgery may construct parts of your body, but it does not make you beautiful.

                Beauty can be constructed in the form of art.  Beauty cannot be constructed in the form of plastic surgery.  Art is made to look beautiful while it is also constructed.  On the other hand, plastic surgery is the construction of the body, but not beauty.             Aimee Mullins TED Talk

Response to Cameron Russell TED Talk

Shawn Jennings

October 24, 2014

English 1100

Response to Cameron Russell TED Talk

                It is harder to find beauty in someone’s appearance that is natural or honest within our society.  It is almost impossible to look around and not see a picture that is either photo shopped or enhanced in some way.  Many social media applications, such as Instagram and Snapchat, also have filters to make pictures appear different.  When people look at these pictures they feel ugly and their self-esteem drops.  Seeing these pictures also sets an impossible standard to achieve.  Which, in turn, pressures women or men into getting plastic surgery to achieve this unreachable goal.  When in reality the goal of reaching honest beauty can be met.          

On the other hand, I believe beauty can be honest.  For instance, there are many other ways beauty could be portrayed besides appearance.  For example, personality can be perceived as being beautiful.  Someone who has a kind-hearted personality can be described as being beautiful.  A person who is naturally kind or sweet can be defined as having “natural beauty”.  A person like this does not need Photoshop to show their natural beauty.  It is who they are as a person, not what they look like.  Personality is always honest because it expresses who someone is as a person.  Expressing who you are as a person is not only being honest with others, but also being honest with yourself.  As long as people are honest with themselves they can be comfortable with showing their own beauty, while recognizing others inner beauty. 

Cameron Russell TED Talk 

Shawn J Essay 2

Shawn Jennings

September 28, 2014

Professor Young

English 1100

Essay 2

Problems within my Community

                I live in a small community of Pompton Lakes that is about three square miles.  By living in a small community there are a lack of places to hang out.  There are a limited number of areas for teens to go because unlike adults most are unable to drive out of town to experience new thrills.  From being unable to leave town and the lack of entertainment options, teens find excitement in making poor choices.  The insignificant amount of spots to hang out in my community causes kids, mainly teenagers, to do illegal activities.  Such law-breaking activities include drinking, experimenting with drugs, and petty crimes.     

                My hometown of Pompton Lakes is a very small community.  There are about six hundred high schoolers in total.  Many students have pride in their hometown, but almost all agree that it is too small.  They find themselves always wondering what to do because having a community so small there is almost nothing new to see.  You are able to walk around the entire town of Pompton in one day, which cannot be said for our bordering towns like Wayne or Oakland.  So many students want to explore new places and try new things.  They feel that their town is boring while another town could be exciting.  So I feel we need to make our small town of Pompton Lakes more exciting to the youth.  This way they will find new things to do within the community and not cause any trouble because they are not struck by boredom. 

                One of the main problems in my community is underage drinking.  When teenagers drink heavy amounts of alcohol they tend to become reckless.  Drinking impairs the mind, especially a teenager’s mind, which causes them to destroy property, like bending or breaking street signs or littering the streets with empty beer cans.  Many parties end in disaster because most teens get too drunk to realize what their actions are.  Usually the house where the party is being hosted gets demolished by reckless teens.  Above all, minors put themselves in danger when drinking.  The amount of teen deaths related to being intoxicated has reached staggering numbers and the death toll keeps rising every day.

                There are many ways to solve underage drinking.  One of which would be to make alcohol more difficult to obtain.  Pompton Lakes could make liquor stores do more in depth background checks on customers to decide if it is appropriate to sell alcohol to them.  This way alcohol will never fall into the wrong hands.  Another way to resolve minors from drinking is to create more hang out spots.  This way teenagers would not be as bored, therefore they would not have the need to drink alcohol for fun.  If these methods do not work teens tend to turn to drugs after abusing alcohol. 

                Many teenagers experiment with drugs after using alcohol.  They get bored of being drunk and need a different feeling to pick them up.  Teenagers turn to marijuana as a gateway drug to get high.  Then they begin to use more hardcore drugs such as meth, heroin, or cocaine.  The majority for the use of drugs is because of boredom.  A significant number of teens need activities to distract them from turning to bad influences. 

                These activities could include movie nights and playing in or attending a sporting event.  The community could get together and form a special night to go out and see a movie like “The Maze Runner” or play a pick-up game of any sport.  Many teenagers could attend these activities to occupy them instead of going to a party to get high.  This could also make the town of three square miles feel like a lively community.  More activities within Pompton makes the town more interesting so the teens would not feel the need to leave and cause mischief.  Teens could be looked after at these events and not cause any trouble.  More events in town equals more teens occupied which means less time to cause trouble. 

                After turning to drugs for a high many teenagers get addicted to the feeling.  They spend so much money to try to attain drugs that they become broke.  After, losing all their money they begin to commit petty crimes like stealing from department stores to sell the items for money.  Stealing also serves as entertainment for teenagers because of the lack of things to do in the community.  They find stealing, thrilling and entertaining because it is something different to do besides sitting around and doing nothing.  Many local stores within Pompton tend to go out of business because of the amount theft that takes place.  When stores close their doors the building that was once a thriving establishment begins to become rundown.  It becomes an eyesore within the community and soon the closing of other stores spread like a plague throughout the town square.  It is disturbing to see what was once a busy town square turned to rubble because teenagers need money to get high.     

                Ways to resolve this problem include to step up law enforcement in department stores.  If just one teen gets caught stealing it could scare any other teenagers who were thinking of breaking the law.  Another way to enhance catching teens in the act of stealing would be to install more cameras in department stores.  This could be essential in catching teenagers in the act of stealing.  An alternative way to keep teens from stealing would be to establish recreation centers in my community.  This would allow teens to go to a single place to hang out and play sports together.  Having a place to do something fun and exciting would decrease the number of teens who get into trouble by being bored.  Many juveniles steal for the thrill.  Pompton Lakes could replace the thrill of stealing with the thrill of playing a sport or hanging out with friends in one place like a recreation center.  This eliminates the problem of having a lack of hang out spots.

                My community of Pompton Lakes is small and boring now, but there are many things that can be done to improve its excitement.  There are not many place to go and have a good time without causing trouble, but that can all be changed by adding a few improvements.  Any small improvement made could help teens find something exciting to do within the confines of their own community.  They could be given the choice to make a good choice for a thrill instead of making bad choices for the thrill of getting caught.  Giving teens a choice can make all the difference in the end. 

Shawn Jennings

September 28, 2014

Professor Young

English 1100

Essay 2

Problems in my Community

                I live in a small community that is about three square miles.  By living in a small community there are a lack of places to hang out.  There are a limited number of areas for teens to go because unlike adults most are unable to drive out of town to experience new thrills.  From being unable to leave town and the lack of entertainment options teens find excitement in making poor choices.  The insignificant amount of spots to hang out in my community causes kids, mainly teenagers, to do illegal activities.  Such law-breaking activities include drinking, experimenting with drugs, and petty crimes.  ----           

                One of the main problems in my community is underage drinking.  When teenagers drink heavy amounts of alcohol they tend to become reckless.  Drinking impairs the mind, especially a teenager’s mind, which causes them to destroy property.  Many parties end in disaster because most teens get too drunk to realize what their actions are.  Usually the house where the party is being hosted gets demolished by reckless teens.  Above all, minors put themselves in danger when drinking.  The amount of teen deaths due to drinking and driving is way too high and the number keeps rising.

                There are many ways to solve underage drinking.  One of which would be to make alcohol more difficult to obtain.  My community could make liquor stores do more in depth background checks on customers to decide if it is appropriate to sell alcohol to them.  Another way to resolve minors from drinking is to create more hang out spots.  This way teenagers would not be as bored, therefore they would not have the need to drink alcohol for fun.  If these methods do not work teens tend to turn to drugs after abusing alcohol. 

                Many teenagers experiment with drugs after using alcohol.  They get bored of being drunk and need a different feeling to pick them up.  Teenagers turn to marijuana as a gateway drug to get high.  Then they begin to use more hardcore drugs such as meth, heroin, or cocaine.  The majority for the use of drugs is because of boredom.  A significant number of teens need activities to distract them from turning to bad influences. 

                These activities could include movie nights or sports.  The community could get together and form a special night to go out and see a movie or play a sport.  Many teenagers could attend these activities to occupy them instead of going to a party to get high.  This could also make the town more interesting so the teens would not feel the need to leave and cause mischief.  Teens could be looked after at these events and not cause any trouble.  More events in town equals more teens occupied which means less time to cause trouble. 

                After turning to drugs for a high many teenagers get addicted to the feeling.  They spend so much money to try to attain drugs that they become broke.  After, losing all their money they begin to commit petty crimes like stealing from department stores to sell the items for money.  Stealing also serves as entertainment for teenagers because of the lack of things to do in the community.  They find stealing thrilling and entertaining because it is something different to do besides sitting around and doing nothing. 

                Ways to resolve this problem include to step up law enforcement in department stores.  If just one teen gets caught stealing it could scare any other teenagers who were thinking of doing it.  Another way to enhance catching teens in the act of stealing would be to install more cameras in department stores.  This could be essential in catching teenagers in the act of stealing.  An alternative way to keep teen from stealing would be to establish recreation centers in my community.  This would allow teens to go to a single place to hang out and play sports together.  Having a place to do something fun and exciting at would decrease the number of teens who get into trouble by being bored.

                My community is small and boring but there can be many things done to improve its excitement.  There are not many place to go and have a good time without causing trouble, but that can all be changed by adding a few improvements.  Any small improvement made could help teens find something exciting to do within the confines of their own community.  They could be given the choice to make a good choice for a thrill instead of making bad choices.  Just giving them a choice to play a sport or watch a movie could make all the difference in the end.   

Shawn Jennings

9/19/14

Professor Young

English 1100

Favorite Place

            I walk into my house and the first thing I notice is the smell that engulfs my nostrils.  It’s not an awful smell by any means.  It’s a fresh smell, like the smell of freshly picked fruit.  Every day I come home and take one step into my house I smell this scent.  It almost puts me in a trance and it sort of calms me down after a long day. 

After taking in the smell I take off my book bag and set it down on the oak colored hard wood floor.  I then take off my shoes and place them on the tan wool rug where the rest of families shoes are scattered.  After this I make my way over to my cream colored couch which is made of the softest leather.  I lay down and it is like I am floating on a cloud.  I reach for the remote and turn on the television. 

The TV lets out a huge booming sound that almost makes my ears bleed.  I start to cover my ears and wonder why the television was set to sixty out of one hundred.  I realize my Dad had come home for lunch and turned the TV volume so high it could be heard four houses down.  After turning the volume down to a soft twenty-five I watch a quick fifteen minutes of television before dinner. 

When my Mom yells, “dinner is ready!” I find it hard to get off the couch.  It’s almost like I am sinking deeper and deeper into the cloud that is my couch.  My Mother yells again, “dinner is ready, Shawn!” but I just can’t find the energy to escape the softest couch in the world.  Eventually, my hunger gets the best of me because I begin to smell the freshness of my Mom’s potato leek soup.  I spring off the couch and sprint to my chair.  I grab my smooth silver spoon and start to heave spoonful after spoonful into my gaping mouth.  After my second spoonful I feel a burning sensation on my tongue and around my whole mouth.  I spit out the delicious potato leek soup almost three feet across the table. 

Luckily, my brother, Karl, was not sitting across from me just yet.  I apologize to my Mom and clean up our brown wooden table.  Now I sit back down in my chair and remember to blow on the soup before shoving it down my throat.  Every spoonful is like filling my mouth with joy.  It’s not too thick and it is not too watery.  The soup fills every part of my mouth perfectly and the taste is so pleasant.  Every slurp is sensational.              

Essay 1 Shawn J

Shawn Jennings

9/2/14

Professor Young

English 1100

One page response to “How to Tame a Wild Tongue”

Identity

            One of my dreams is to go to England and watch my favorite club team, Liverpool F.C., play in a soccer match.  I want to feel the atmosphere of the stadium when the fans begin a chant or the roar when Liverpool scores a goal.  Soccer is a huge part of who I am as a person just like language is so important to Gloria Anzaldua’s lifestyle.  In the passage “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” by Gloria Anzaldua, she describes how language defines who you are.  She states language could be part of your identity and identity describes you.  A certain thing that defines who I am is soccer.  I am very passionate about soccer.  I love to play, watch, and do anything that involves the sport.

  I feel proud to love the sport just like Anzaldua is proud of her language and I am always happy when playing or watching soccer.  Identity can even be seen within the sport of soccer.  For example, people could like different teams that could define them.  I love watching Liverpool so I wear their jersey, which is red, to show my support of the club.  Also, players can express their identity by playing different positions on the field.  An example of this would be that defender would do anything to stop the other team from scoring a goal, this shows their desire and heart to stop the opposition from scoring.  An example of how a position defines me is that I play on the outside closest to the sideline.  I like to send in crosses to my teammates so they can score.  This describes me because I am unselfish on and off the field.  I tend to think about others before myself and I am satisfied to help my teammates score goals.     

            There are even more ways to identify a soccer player.  The number they choose on the back of their jerseys surprisingly says a lot about them.  For example, the number nine is usually a forward or goal-scorer, while the number seven is a midfielder on the outside that crosses the ball into the middle for the forwards to score.  On a personal note, the number which I chose says a lot about me as a person.  In high school I chose the number ten which is normally someone who is a play maker.  A play maker is usually unselfish, which is one of my own personal traits.

I love the way the crowd cheers when there is a goal scored and I love being there when it happens.  Even when I am watching a game at home I find myself jumping out of my seat to cheer.  Just seeing a goal scored for the team I support is so exciting to watch.  Hearing the crowd cheer through the television is enough to get me thrilled.  Soccer is something that expresses who I am.  It is something that I love to do.  It is part of my identity. I will never stop loving soccer.

            There are many people that put down soccer in the United States just like how people put down Gloria Anzaldua because she spoke a different language.  Anzaldua was almost harassed for speaking her language.  I feel the same way when others talk down soccer.  They say that it should not be considered a sport or they say soccer players are soft.  Many people don’t appreciate the skill and physical fitness level required to play soccer.  Most soccer players run an average of 6 miles per game.  Yet I am still proud to support the sport and the players that play it.  I will never stop supporting the sport I love.  I will always speak positively of soccer and motivate people to play the sport.   

             News stations such as Sports Center don’t recognize soccer as a major sport in the United States.  They mention the four major sports, not five.  The major sports are the NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA.  But Major League Soccer, or MLS, is not included in this category.  This definitely frustrates me that the MLS is not considered a major sport and many people will not even consider it to be a sport in general.  The reason for this is because many citizens in the U.S. believe that soccer is boring and not exciting to watch.  These people do not give the sport a chance and therefore just assume it is not worth watching.  In my opinion, soccer is not boring at all considering there is no stoppage in play for forty five minutes in two halves.  The sport is definitely growing and I believe that someday it will be considered as a major sport in the U.S.  As of right now I will continue to support soccer and hope that it becomes more and more popular throughout the years.

                    Even when people put me down because I play soccer I will never stop striving to promote the sport.  Soccer defines who I am as a person.  I love to watch, play, and do anything to help the sport grow.  When I am on the field I can express myself.  I am normally a reserved person, but when I am running with the ball at my feet I feel more confident in myself.  Like Anzaldua I am proud of what defines who I am.  Soccer is what defines me; soccer is who I am, and it is part of my identity.