Speaking of Courage [dajksldsjad it deleted. I wrote like a full page. i hate this i hate this i hate this. my computer is terrible]

Memoir Review

I chose a random memoir, not wanting to be biased or looking for those that might seem more advanced or interesting. I just clicked on one named "Dent". I thought it would be about a more complicated situation, but the idea was simple. The speaker (who I assume to be the same as the author, since it's a first-person account) tells about the time where he had to keep a friend's secret. His neighbor had discovered a huge dent in her car, one that she loved dearly, and the speaker's friend was at fault. The detail given was alright, but it could have been emphasized a bit more.

"Mrs. Goldstein, my aunt’s neighbor and close friend, had woken up yesterday morning to find a huge gouge in her silver Civic. The paint and metal had worn off. The damage was astounding."

Since it is the subject of the story, the actual event could have been given more attention. The speaker then goes back to present tense, where he is at home.

"My head slumped into my hands. The dragging chatter in the background became a weak buzz. If I was submitted to much more of this, I would fall asleep before dessert."

This is one of the better examples of sensory images in the memoir, since there aren't many that truly convey feeling. I found a lot of similes, though.

"His face was contorted like a child reluctant to give away his favorite toy. I heard the plea in his voice."

 "It took a couple of seconds before the impact came, but when it did it felt like someone had punched me in the gut."

"The tears came and rolled steadily down his cheeks like rivers of pain." 

There was good word choice, and the overall story stayed in chronological order (with a few flashbacks to past events). The author re-told exactly what happened, but in a way that makes you believe you are in the story with them. There was powerful use of dialogue that displayed the characters' emotions and personalities, and it was easy to relate to their situations. Overall, it was a decent memoir, for what it was. I won't critique it too harshly, but I feel like there could have been more in-depth syntax and more descriptive passages.

Back in 'Nam (post in comments)

Langston Hughes, WOO~ (in comments)

Scene Re-write(s)

Page 92

Gatsby began take out a pile of clothes, throwing the shiny silk and thick linen in the air, landing in a colorful disarray atop the table. He continued to add to the mountain of fabric as tears began to well at my eyes at the sheer power of this image. Finally, I grabbed the nearest shirt and buried my face in it, starting to sob uncontrollably.

"They're such beautiful shirts," I cried, muffled by the folds of the shirt. "It makes me sad because I've never seen such---such beautiful shirts before."

That's not true. What really struck me was the realization of why I left Gatsby all those years ago. It was his wealth, or lack thereof, that separated us. But now, after seeing his money materialistically represented there upon the tabletop, I know that I was wrong. That I should never have been so foolish. Though, after all, that's all beautiful girls are meant to be in life. Foolish.

...

Gatsby took us outside to begin a tour of the grounds and his swimming pool, though it began to rain soon after. We took shelter as Gatsby turned to me to say something.

"If it wasn't for the mist we could see your home across the bay," he began. "You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock."

I looped my arm through his briskly, clutching tightly. His words meant so much to me, then. The fact that he had been waiting all these years to see me once more, how he had never given up hope. How, in a way, he had been watching over me even though I had forgotten about him for the time being. Tom was nowhere near my mind, now.

....

Page 116

"Holding down the receiver," I said cynically.

"No, he's not," Nick assured me. "It's a bona-fide deal. I happen to know about it."

The door opened and out came Tom, hurrying into the room with a sort of urgency.

"Mr. Gatsby!" Tom shouted hysterically, holding out his hand with an air of concealed dislike. "I'm glad to see you, sir....Nick..."

"Make us a cold drink," I ordered, looking him over dully.

He left the room, and I took the chance to kiss Gatsby on the mouth again.

"You know I love you," I told him, looking into his eyes.

"You forget there's a lady present." said Jordan.

I looked around at the others doubtfully, shifting my gaze.

"You kiss Nick too," he implied.

"What a low, vulgar girl!"

The American Dream

[SOURCE]

The American Dream: Is it slipping away?

by Gregory Rodriguez.

'For all the talk these days of porous borders and external threats to the United States, the core of our sense of security and identity as a nation has always come from within. What's surprising, perhaps, is that it derives less from our vaunted democracy or our freedoms than it does from that rather nebulous notion we call the American dream.

The dream is the glue that keeps us all together. It's the vague promise that our lot will get better over time that gives us the patience to endure whatever indignities we suffer at the moment. It's the belief that our kids will have a better chance in life than we do that keeps the many elements of this diverse, highly competitive society from ultimately tearing each other apart. More than anything else, it's the fabled dream that fuses hundreds of millions of separate, even competing individual dreams into one national collective enterprise.

But what happens when too many Americans stop believing in that dream? Last week's ABC News/Yahoo News poll revealed that today, only half of us think the American dream — which the pollsters defined as "if you work hard you'll get ahead" — still holds true, while 43% said that it had once been true. That only 4% of respondents thought that there was never such a dream testifies to the power of the phenomenon.

Not surprisingly, attitudes varied from group to group. Respondents with higher incomes tended to still believe in the dream more than those with lower incomes. Similarly, the college educated were bigger believers than the less educated. Independent voters believe less than either Democrats or Republicans, and Americans who live in the West are significantly more likely to believe than those in the Rust Belt. Reflective perhaps of varying levels of expectations — or sense of entitlement — nonwhites are more likely to believe in the dream than are whites.'

So is it true? Have we lost sense of what the American Dream is? It's no surprise that the economy is diminishing nowadays and taxes are taking over the majority of our incomes. Economic security is one aspect of the Dream, but will that matter in the future? A lot of Americans have trouble getting by as is, with their current status. Lower to middle class families have it worse. We see in the article how only those with larger amounts of wealth really have a dream that does not relate to money. The wealthier people get, the more their dream becomes about the pursuit of happiness and social class. The poorer people get, the more they worry about their economic status. The line between the two seems like it's boldly defined, but in actuality only the individual can truly decide what they want.

Music Review: Passive Me, Aggressive You

Artist: The Naked and Famous
Album: Passive Me, Aggressive You

The Naked and Famous is a band formed in 2008, in Auckland, New Zealand. They are described as indie/alt rock, and are very similar to MGMT and Passion Pit. The studio album was recorded by their own label, Somewhat Damaged.

Passive Me, Aggressive You is their debut album that spawned five singles, and contains the following tracks:

1. All Of This (First Single)

2. The Source

3. The Sun

4. Frayed

5. Eyes

6. Young Blood (Second Single)

7. No Way (Fifth Single)

8. Spank

9. Punching in a Dream (Third Single)

10. Jilted Lovers

11. A Wolf in Greek's Clothing

12. The Ends

13. Girls Like You (Fourth Single)

I chose to do this band/album because they're fairly new to me, and I'd rather not include favoritism in my critique. If I had to choose my top three songs off of the album, they would be "Young Blood", "No Way", and "Girls Like You". Many people probably think that all their songs sound familiar, and I get that, many bands try to go for the MGMT-esque avant garde sound. It's interesting, though, the fact that they are from New Zealand and said that they were not influenced by modern indie rock. I love the sound of each song individually, the vocals from Alisa Xayalith and Thom Powers are brought together by the melodic synth sounds of the tracks. It's something new and refreshing if you want to break away from the current mainstream and alternative rock we hear today. The music videos are also worth a mention, seeing as how they each tell a story with stunning visuals to go along with the lyrics. Overall, it's an album definitely worth listening to, and a new band to lookout for in terms of new tracks and singles.

RATING: 8.5 out of 10

Though not the most amazing album made, it is something that should be experienced if you want to be introduced to new styles of music.

Pros: Great vocals, refreshing sounds, and catchy singles
Cons: Slightly repetitive on a couple of songs