Final Presentation:Blog.

Last Blog?!

Bree Hubbard
Laura Cline
ENG102
Technology

Online classes

I have taken many online classes throughout my education career.  I think an online course has everything to offer as a classroom class. People might prefer interacting with people and talking with the teacher but Mrs. Cline has been able make that happen in this class.  We could give each other feed back and could see her at the campus. In this class, it was nice to watch everybody’s introductory video and getting to know the classmate.  I have read many blogs on how it is their first online class or they are having a hard time trying to work it.  That was my first time as well, I didn’t know how blackboard work so it was just a struggle but now that I have taken many of them, it is like second nature to me.

 My father is against online courses because when he was in school there was no such thing as online classes. He is always getting on my case when I sign up for online classes because he doesn’t think it is right, he doesn't know that teachers still lecture but through video. Not being able to experience this first-hand, I think he doesn't fully understand what an online course can offer people.  People don't have enough time in the day to go to a couple hour lecture a couple times a week. When having a full 18 credited hour schedule, I rely on online classes.    

The only challenges I had is that I was taking multiple online classes at a time and trying to remembering each due dates.  The three online classes I took this semester had different dates. One of my classes opened its lectures and assignments each Tuesday by noon and had it due the following Tuesday by midnight. Another had everything due each Friday at noon, then I had this class on Sunday at midnight.  My calculus class in an actual class but had to do the math assignments online, so that was due every Wednesday by 11pm. I had to make a calender at the beginning of the semester to remind me but once I got accustomed to it, piece of cake.

 What I benefit to online classes is that I don’t have to actually go to the classroom.  My first semester I had with Mrs. Cline in ENG100 I took her class in a classroom.  I had horrible attendance due to the time I had taken it, lunch.  This way I could do the assignments and watch the lectures on my time.  I am a full time student with 18 credits and work full time so it is nice to choose when to do school work.  As I can see with other people's blogs, they agree with me.  It is hard to be a full time student and work full time at work, I think online classes make it easier for us.

 I really enjoyed being about to create a blog, to see my fellow classmates and their work through the blogs.  See what their taste was because we could customize it as we would like. Another was the cool “globster” website.  I will try to remember it for the future if I have a project for another online class. Thanks Mrs. Cline for giving us the chance to learn some great website to help us with a future classes.

Reflection

Reflection

This semester has gone way too fast.  It feels just like yesterday making my introductory video.  English is my more difficult subject.  Writing isn’t second nature like for a lot of people I know.  One thing that I have a better understanding with is in-text citations.   I have never felt too confident on how to use it, but I have an idea on how to go about it.  Another thing is learning how to analyzing literary text instead of just trying to summarize it.  When I made the connection about literary analysis being like a persuasive essay made it a little more understanding.

   The readings haven’t had a great impact on me, personally, but they were interesting reads.  Up in the Air wasn't my favorite but it was a nice to be able to compare it to the movie.  Winter's Bone was more of an interesting read because of the thrilling plot of Ree trying to find her father. 

I think my writing has improved greatly throughout this course.    I still have an issue on trying to start my papers unless if I am interested on the subject.  When I have some kind of interest, I can produce a better paper compared to when I can’t relate.  I hope that with my other college classes that I can be able to show that I know the difference between summary and literally analysis and be able to cite correctly. Being more confident about my writing had made me not hate English so much.  

No Questions Asked: Close reading to Bartleby.

“Ah Bartleby! Ah humanity!” (Mellville 251)

Bartleby, the Scrivener: A story of Wall-Street was written about a man, named Bartleby, who made a great first impression to this lawyer.  The lawyer had many copyist in his business, but these people had special, specific needs.  One did better in the morning time while, one did better in the afternoon.  Bartleby was very well-rounded when it came to his work; he worked well all the time. After a while passed, he started to say “I would prefer not to” (Mellville 22). Bartleby became lazy and didn’t produce any work; while he was slacking off, he was taking advantage of the lawyer.  The lawyer tried everything to help Bartleby he wanted to believe that Bartleby could be changed into the hard worker the lawyer grew up to be.  This was the beginning of where the lawyer saw that society was starting to change, not for the better. 

Here is a website to read up more about Bartleby the Scrivener. 

Melville, Herman. "Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-street." Bartleby. N.p., 2011. Web. 18 Feb 2012. <http://www.bartleby.com/129/>.

"Up in the Air" rough draft.

Bree Hubbard

Laura Cline

ENG102

22 April, 2012

Airworld

There are a number of books that are being portrayed in the movie industry.  Some of these books are taken and later made into a movie.  A majority of the time there are some changes made from the book when being made into a movie. Sometimes because the director and author don’t see eye to eye or maybe because between the times the book was written and the movie is made many things in society can change.  One book called Up in the Air was recently made into a movie.  This movie portrayed some of the text and ideas from the book but there was a lot that was changed.  When the book came out in the year of 2001, things were good economically.  After many years passed, the movie had come out in 2009. The movie was brought up in a different time, 9/11 had passed and things weren’t looking good for our economy.  Many people thought the country was going to go through another great depression. Another thing about movies is that they have to be watchable by a mass audience, the director has to put on a twist to make the watchers excited to watch it.  Keeping this in mind, the movie focuses on a girl. Romance is key to movies, and normally by using this theme, movies are able to appeal to a much larger audience.  The book concentrates on Ryan Bingham’s job a little more and about how he goes about it. When movies are made based on a book there are normally many differences, and these differences tend to depend on what has happened in between the too, what social issues have happened, and what the viewer has experienced between this time change.

Ryan Bingham, is the main character in the book. The book focuses on his job; whereas the movie is more about his love life.  The movie shows Ryan more as a guy who wants a friend with benefits.  Ryan has no interest in being tied down to a woman, he actually doesn’t want to be tied down to anything; a house, family, girl.  When he finally finds this friend with benefits, he slowly begins to find himself falling in love but it takes Ryan’s assistant and his sister’s fiancée help him realize that being alone isn’t something to live for.  Being in love and being able to share those moments with someone is what living is about.  The book took it towards a different path, Ryan talks about how a family and someone to settle down with may be in his future. Also, about how he got a divorce in the book and the movie implies that he was never married. The divorce wasn’t his happiest moments; he had still cared about her.   

In the plot of Up in the Air, Ryan Bingham was a business man who lived in “Airworld.”  This is where he lives and breathes, he states “planes and airports are where I feel at home… I even enjoy the suite hotels built within sight of the runways on the ring road” (Kirn 4). His job was to fly around and fire people and help them cope with it a little bit.  These ideas were both in the book and movie.  When Ryan fired people in the movie, they took it more devastating than in the book. The unemployment was so high.  They didn’t know how they were going to be able to get another job and support their family. What are they going to tell their wife or husband, their kids?  Unemployment back in 2001 was at 4.9%, said Money MSN (Miley). Back then, it wasn’t as hard to find a job but it wasn’t nice to lose your job. The fact that in October of 2009, Money MSN stated that unemployment rate had reach 10.1% people knew it would be harder (Miley).   Losing their job, in that kind of economy had people worried. These people were devastated, and even in the end an employee actually jumped off the bridge.  Ryan always hears about suicides but never think people are willing to do such a thing.  In today’s time losing your job is a much more serious thing then it used to be.  Some may not find a job, and some may have to settle with a minimum wage job rather than the large salary and benefits they once had.  The economy crisis was a huge deal to most Americans and affected many people’s lives. CEO’s of companies were now working at fast food restaurants, some are in jail, and some are homeless.  This idea is very catching to a viewer and if it wasn’t portrayed in the movie, the movie wouldn’t have appealed to the viewers of 2009.  Economic issues have caused society to change from 2001 to 2009 and this aspect had to be shown in the movie or it wouldn’t have related to the viewer as well.

The movie shows a selfish older man who is just trying to keep his life in order.  He is never there for his family; he doesn’t have very strong ties with them.  When his sister asks if he will be willing to take pictures of her and her fiancée in different places, he dislikes the idea. He likes being alone.  When his boss said he had to train a new person in what he does, he at first rejected the idea.  He didn’t think that a woman who makes websites could help the company in any way.  He only likes doing things that will benefit him and will allow him to prosper. While, in the book he likes to talk about how he is close with both his sister. Their relationship in the book shows that he actually cares and wants to hear from them.   

Another economic issue in the movie was that the company was trying to reduce the amount of flying. Ryan was coming close to 10 million miles.  Flying was very expensive; the insurance, the fuel cost, ect.  The company hired a girl who made a way that they could fire people over the webcam. This would help the business cut down on travel cost, helping the business economically. Also, allowing the people to be home for holidays and be with their families.  This wasn’t an issue back in 2001; they weren’t looking at how costly it was to fly.  Now, when the movie came out in 2009, businesses are close to bankruptcy. Gas prices are on the rise and because of 9/11 and the fear of terrorism flying didn’t seem so appealing anymore. The companies just can’t spend money like it is nothing; they have to preserve it in any way possible.

Airport security is a lot stricter these days compared the beginning of 2001.  Due to the terrorist attack, airports want to make sure that it is more safe and secured. Flying is also another issue for these businessmen.  Back in 2001, the airports were easy and fast.  Since the terrorist attack, they make it more difficult to go through the airport. Flying is not the most desired form of transportation anymore.  9/11 was a catastrophic event and it scared everyone, and it continues to dictate people’s lives. In the movie, Ryan has gone through security many times before.  He knows to stay out of the line where there are old people and Arabians.  He states to Natalie “never get behind old people. Their bodies are littered with hidden metal and they never seem to appreciate how little time they have left. Bingo, Asians. They pack light, travel efficiently, and they have a thing for slip on shoes. Gotta love 'em” (Reitman). Ryan has very stereotypical ideas about who to get behind, but he has experienced it all and knows the more time he saves, the less time he wastes.  He has a small bag that he can carry on rather then check on the plane, and he knows exactly what he is doing at all times.

            The book and the movie are very similar, yet also very different.  When one makes a movie based on the book there are always differences.  Some people like one more than the other, however, the author normally have no say in how the movie is made.  They write books for a reason, and movie producers do the same.  The point of a movie is to get the largest possible audience to pay to see the movie in a pretty short period of time.  In order to do this they must spark interest anyway they can, and most of the time this means changing the original story into something that will appeal to a larger audience.  Another thing is that the times change; different things are going on in the world.  People can relate to the most present events because they are currently affecting the way they live.  Up in the Air  is a great book that is showing how thing were back in 2001 and the movie shows how things have become.  

Work Cited

Kirn, Walter. Up in the Air. New York: Anchor Novels, 2001. Print.

Miley, John. "The economy before and after 9/11." Money MSN. n. page. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. <http://money.msn.com/investment-advice/article.aspx?post=7be1200a-e79a-4b35-a974-031570ce1a28>.

Reitman, Jason, dir. Up in the Air. Perf. George Clooney, and Vera Farmiga. Paramount Pictures, 2009. Film.

Introduction to "Up in the Air"

Movies v.s. Book

There has been a trend where a book is written and then a movie comes out about the book.  Sometimes, these movies are disappointments to the people who really enjoyed the book because they are nothing like the book. An example of this trend is the book Up in the Air.  This book was written by Walter Kirn and was published in the year of 2001.  Later, in 2009, Up in the  Air the movie came out.  A lot has happened during these years that could have been put in the movie that wasn't in the book.   Throughout this eight year time span, there have been many changes to society that are portrayed in the movie.  A lot has happened in the eight years and the differences between the book and the movie reflects these changes in the world. To find some of the changes between those eight years click here .

"Up in the Air"