Summary:
In Strong Arts, Strong Schools by Charles Fowler he discusses how schools that have good art programs then in turn have a good curriculum (best schools have the best art programs). He then proceeds to discuss how the arts complement all the other subjects such as science, math, and history. Art gives students the ability to make their own decisions where as science mainly has correct ways to do things. Art tends to make students more attentive due to the fact that students have to make their own decisions and they can come up with multiple ways of coming to a conclusion instead of there only being one way to accomplish a task. Art also makes students more open-minded and makes them think deeper due to unanswered questions and different perceptions. Arts also bring in a multicultural view since art can be created universally. A final important note that was brought up in this article is that art brings out feeling and the schools that have better art programs have better schools because they address feeling which humans run off of.

Analysis:
I thought this article was interesting and really made me think. I could see that art may be beneficial to a student to help them open their minds and think in different perspectives, which is why liberal arts colleges incorporate art, music, or theater classes as part of its curriculum. I do not believe that the best schools have the best art programs. I personally have no artistic bone in my body. I am a science major so of course I think with reason which I believe is necessary for science. I believe it depends on your major to whether an open-mind through art is beneficial.

Summary:
In the Vanishing Hitchhiker it discusses how urban legends formed through tradition. It then discussed that legends are able to hold up for years if they contain story appeal, foundation in actual belief, and a meaning or moral. Legends are heard as if they were news. People listen to them and take them into account because it is an “exciting” story. Legends typically form two variations. One of them being that the storyline is based upon the setting and situation while a second type is based on the introduction of new characters, plots, or objects. In general legends are believable due to the fact that they are exciting and mind-bottling but also have real circumstances involved. The reason for legends is to one excite people and two make them think about there decisions.

Analysis:
I believe that this article is very true in its content. I agree that legends are fun to here and they usually do have a useful message to go with them. I personally do not believe in ghosts or strange creatures who kill people but I do think each of those stories has a lesson. Numerous legends have the same or similar messages, but they are fun to hear about. I feel as if many legends have changed how they were written as the years have gone on.

Summary:

In “Christmas was not Always like this: A Brief History” by Bruce David Forbes the debate of whether Christmas is overrated and accurate is discussed. Forbes discusses how he learned that many common beliefs of Christmas’s history seem to be inaccurate. One being where and how Christmas originated. Many believe that it was discussed in the bible which is why we celebrate it. Forbes found that only two of the gospels discussed Jesus’ birth and the two gospels were meshed together. He also discusses how there is no where that states Jesus was born on December 25. It is believed the date was chosen due to winter festivals already celebrated. The next discussion was that Christmas was not viewed by everyone. Puritans viewed Christmas as a day on penance instead of celebration. Christmas was just recently re-accepted as a holiday by many denominations. The final point was that of gift giving. The origin of gift giving came from Saint Nicholas aka Santa Clause the only thing is is that Saint Nicholas day is in early December rather than on the 25th.

Analysis:
I thought this was very interesting. I guess I have always had the pieces of this information but never put it together as a whole. In my house we used to celebrate both St. Nicholas day and Christmas. On St. Nicholas day we would get an apple and candy in our shoes where at Christmas we would get large presents. All of this information really makes me think especially after hearing that the story of Christmas was only in two of the four gospels and it was a combination of the two. They both did not have the same information. I am very strong in my religion but hearing this makes me wonder what else our religion could be incorrect.

So far we have had the common theme of beauty. We started off with trying to define beauty and discussing the positives and negatives of beauty through calli. We then read and found beauty through speeches, athletics, fractals, and finally through Kurt Vonnegut even though I’m not really sure we found much beauty out of it.

I have found that after taking a step back and analyzing the pieces we have read and watched I have found a few underlying similarities. The first one I came upon doesn’t necessarily tie in all on the readings but it does for majority. I found that discrimination and strong view points were found in many of them. In calli it was the difference between seeing beauty and not seeing beauty. Then we went to the speeches and it varied depending on the speech that was read but my speech was about birth control and the discrimination between those who are for or against. We next had major controversial views on women and sports. Fractals there isn’t much to work with, but finally Vonnegut’s speeches could have been viewed as offensive or discriminatory.

Another common point I found was that in each reading we have read about things that we take for granted and thinks we see as simple and we then analyze them and find the complexity and also the usefulness of that object or point.

So far I have like honors because it is a discussion based class where only your opinions matter instead of a right or wrong answer.

Summary:

In his first speech Kurt Vonnegut talks in a very random manor he goes on about the love he had for science and then talks about how that love went away after science was used in war to make the nuclear bombs. He also talks about the effects of a tank and a machine gun how the only way to beat a tank is with another tank. He also rambles on about having children and how he claims to pessimistic but has to lie to his wife to keep her from leaving.

The second speech was read by his son due to Kurt’s death two weeks prior. This speech is all about bashing on people. He talks about how the claim that the “Mona Lisa is a perfect painting” is completely wrong and that it was not drawn correctly. Then he goes on to say how dentistry should not be a job and he goes on to say that he is not a religious sort of person. He also then goes on to talk more about science. Where here is where I wonder what is absolute true feelings of science are because he goes back and forth on his views.

Analysis:

To be completely honest I was not very enthralled and interested in these speeches. I believe some of the satire made them better but there was still no spark for me. The only part of the speech that I really thought related to me would be when he was telling the students to not go and try and save the world by themselves right away. I believe this is true. There are always smaller ways to help out the community and environment but don’t take it on all at once especially right out of college. We all need to take the time to learn what we can handle and control in our lives before trying to reach for the stars.