Generative Criticism: Link Park ‘Numb’ Music Video

Linkin Park released the song ‘Numb’ on their third album, Meteora in 2003.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXYiU_JCYtU&ob=av2n

2. Coding the Artifact

1.FEATURE: Girl stands with Prague, Czech Republic, behind her

INTERPRETATION: She is one small person, alone, in a very large, scary world.

2.FEATURE: Shot of Linkin Park singing in a church

INTERPRETATION: The setting of the church could have been chosen because of the sound quality. In terms of the lyrics, because the song is so much about ‘making mistakes’ and being seen as ‘imperfect’ in the eyes of others, the church setting could elude to the fact that ‘God doesn’t judge and we are all created perfectly’.

3.FEATURE: Girl draws picture in class

INTERPRETATION: She is uninterested with what is being taught and what is going on around her. She is lost in her own artistic world.

4.FEATURE: Girl doesn’t respond when called on, she is laughed at

INTERPRETATION: The other students and teacher don’t understand what she’s doing and don’t understand her in general.

5.FEATURE: People get up from class and move around her in a blur while she stays still

INTERPRETATION: She feels unnoticed as people get up around her. She feels as though she stays still while other people move on and go about their lives without her.

6.FEATURE: Shots of religious statues, she draws them

INTERPRETATION: The religious statues are probably more than just a coincidence. She could draw anything but she chooses these. Religion could mean she is looking for a safe place to be herself or support and comfort.

7.FEATURE: Girl is tripped and people pass by her in a blur, no one helps her

INTERPRETATION: She doesn’t have many friends and is outcasted at school. She’s down (both literally and mentally) and again, sees people passing her by without a second glance.

8.FEATURE: Mother moves around while she sits still

INTERPRETATION: Even at home with family, she feels unnoticed and alone.

9.FEATURE: Mother criticizes her

INTERPRETATION: Something that happens often. She feels pressured and ‘wrong’.

10.FEATURE: People leave when she sits down beside them

INTERPRETATION: She finds it hard to fit in and hard to make friends. She has no one to talk to or sit with.

11.FEATURE: Walks on a bridge and people pass by in a blur around her

INTERPRETATION: Even when she is going places and moving, she feels like other people don’t see her. She may be moving to different places in her life (bridge) but other people are going to further places or going somewhere better, faster.

12.FEATURE: ‘Numb’ is carved in her arm

INTERPRETATION: A breaking point. A way of releasing her anger and frustration and showcasing how she feels. It is rebellious.

13.FEATURE: Angrily and violently lashes out with paint on a canvas

INTERPRETATION: another breaking point. She puts aside the negativity she faces and lets herself do what she loves. Instead of releasing the pain into herself (cutting her arm) she unleashes it by realizing that she has worth and is talented (Lyrics: “And I know I may end up failing too, but I know you were just like me with someone disappointed in you”)

14.FEATURE: Runs into church looking for someone

INTERPRETATION: ‘Hears’ Linkin Park’s song and searches for them. Church: ‘hears’ a higher power, finds strength, finds a voice that tells her not to give up.

Themes:

“Numbness”/Being unnoticed

-Girl stands with Prague, Czech Republic, behind her

-People get up from class and move around her in a blur while she stays still

-Girl is tripped and people pass by her in a blur, no one helps her

-Mother moves around while she sits still

-Walks on a bridge and people pass by in a blur around her

Criticism

-Girl doesn’t respond when called on, she is laughed at

-Mother criticizes her

-People leave when she sits down beside them

Release of emotion

-Girl draws picture in class

-‘Numb’ is carved in her arm

-Angrily and violently lashes out with paint on a canvas

Religion

-Shot of Linkin Park singing in a church

-Shots of religious statues, she draws them

-Runs into church looking for someone

Pentadic Criticism: ’30 Minutes or Less’ Trailer

30 Minutes or Less was released by Sony Pictures in the summer of 2011. It stars Jesse Eisenberg as Nick, a pizza delivery diver. Dwayne and Travis (Danny McBride and Nick Swardson), two slacking middle-aged friends, are miserable living under Dwayne’s father and are looking for a get-rich-quick scheme. They decide to kidnap a stranger and force him to rob a bank, so they to acquire $100,000 to pay a hit man to kill Dwayne’s father, allowing them to gain and enjoy their inheritance without getting their own hands dirty. Nick becomes that stranger. Dwayne and Travis strap a bomb to his chest that will activate if they don’t receive the money before he 10-hour countdown expires. Nick enlists his friend, Chet (Aziz Ansari), to help him and they successfully complete the action. They also come up with a witty plan to outsmart Dwayne and Travis and escape with the money.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWEcNbEDg_E

Analysis:

Act: Rob a bank

Agent: Nick and Chet

Agency: ‘Borrowed’ car, fake guns, masks, fake names, instructions and directions

Scene: Local bank

Purpose: Acquire $100,000 for Dwayne and Travis, have bomb removed, live.

Ratios:

Act-agent: no

Act-agency: yes

Act-scene: yes

Act purpose: no

Agent-act: yes

Agent-agency: no

Agent-scene: no

Agent-purpose: no

Agency-act: no

Agency-agent: no

Agency-scene: no

Agency-purpose: no

Scene-act: no

Scene-agent: no

Scene-agency: no

Scene-purpose: no

Purpose-act: yes

Purpose-agent: maybe

Purpose-agency: maybe

Purpose-scene: yes

 Ratio analysis:

The Purpose is the most dominant element, followed closely by the Act.

The purpose affects the act because in order to get Dwayne and Travis their money, have the bomb removed and ultimately live, Nick (and Chet) must commit the act. The purpose affects the agent, Nick, because the bomb is strapped to his chest, and Dwayne and Travis chose him. The purpose affects the agency because in order to rob a bank, Nick and Chet need materials and disguises and must instruct the people and the bank employees in order to complete their robbery. The purpose also affects the scene, because they need to rob a bank.

If the purpose is to be fulfilled, the agents must use their agency to commit the act at the scene.

Ideological Criticism: “Get a Mac: Mac vs. PC” ads

“Get a Mac” commercials were created by Apple to promote their desktop Mac brand computers and aired from 2006 to 2009. They star John Hodgman as a PC and Justin Long as a Mac. The commercials serve to point out the flaws in PC computers while showcasing the new and innovative technologies on Mac.

PC:

Older man with glasses: becoming older, out of date

Suit, tie, collared shirt, and dress shoes: professional, working class

Energetic movement: trying to be ‘hip/cool’, seek attention

(verbal)–PCs are used for work, making charts, documents and graphs; Encounter many problems and need much outside assistance

 Mac

Younger man: new generation, popular, attractive

Jeans and a shirt: relaxed, everyday style, ‘get up and go’

Static movements: sleek, easy to look follow, quiet

(verbal)—Macs are used for creative purposes, creating movies, albums, songs and websites; all-in-one operating system with everything thought out

The ads promote Macs a young, attractive male dressed in laid-back clothing. PCs are represented as an older gentleman who tries desperately to ‘compete’ with the Mac. The suggested elements for the PC normally represent an older working class that deals with many problems and setbacks. Macs are young and new, have everything figured out, and work with everything perfectly. PCs are work-oriented and used for work purposes while Macs are creative and used for leisure, but also get work done. The PC is large and clunky while the Mac is sleek.

The ideology of these commercials is that Mac’s a perfect computer, capable of work and creative leisure and made and adapted for use by everyone.

Fantasy-Theme Criticism: Hairspray

Hairspray (2007, theatrical version) is a musical that takes place in Baltimore, Maryland in 1962. It follows Tracy Turnblad as she lives her dream of dancing on television show: ‘The Corny Collins Show’. She is noticed by her crush, Link Larkin and instantly disliked by the uptight and bourgeois manager’s assistant, Velma Von Tussel. Tracy and her friend, Penny Pingleton, along with Link and their new friend, Seaweed J. Stubbs, join together to revolt against the show for attempting to cancel the once-a-month edition of ‘Negro Day’. In the end, they succeed in leading the way to desegregation on the television show and Tracy and Link fall in love.

The setting is Baltimore, Maryland, USA in the early 1960s. Segregation existed and was a large aspect of society at this time. Because of segregation, the coloured dancers were only allowed to dance on the show once a month on ‘Negro Day’ while all the other white children could dance on every single day.

Character themes throughout the movie revolve around the ‘coloured’ people and the ‘white’ people, as well as each character individually. Seaweed, Inez and Motormouth Maybelle are the main coloured characters while Tracy, Penny, Link, Velma, Edna and Corney are the white characters. Another character theme is ‘skinny’ vs. ‘big’, in which case all female dancers (coloured and white) and Velma Von Tussel are skinny while Tracy, Edna and Motormouth are ‘big’.

Action themes (the most obvious) include dancing (the white children and coloured children) and fighting/walking to end segregation (the coloured people and some of the white people). Another action is being on television, which is ‘meant’ for skinny people and not big people (in the eyes of Velma Von Tussel).

The movie showcases 3 fantasy types: forbidden love, desegregation and breaking the stereotype.

Tracy and Link, and Penny and Seaweed become involved in ‘boy meets girl’ relationships that revolve around forbidden love. Tracy and Link shouldn’t be together because Tracy is a bigger girl and not the classic ‘thin, blue-eyed blonde’ that Amber is. Penny and Seaweed shouldn’t be together because Penny is white and Seaweed is of colour.

The plotline works towards the desegregation of the television show. The entire cast becomes involved in the desegregation movement, some for it and some against it. At the end of the movie when desegregation is achieved, many of the minor plotlines are tied up.

Breaking a stereotype is also a major fantasy theme that goes hand-in-hand with desegregation. Tracy breaks the stereotype of body image because she is a larger girl on television who also ends up dating Link. Penny breaks a stereotype because she goes against her very Christian and religious mother by falling for a boy of colour.

Metaphoric Criticism: Drops of Jupiter

The album, ‘Drops of Jupiter’ was released by Train in 2001 with the title song Drops of Jupiter. Written by lead singer Pat Monahan, the song pays tribute to his late mother and is about the journey of returning after a death and the deceased never really leaving.

After considering its context, it is easy to note that the song itself is metaphor for death and the afterlife of a deceased person, as well as those who are mourning.. “Back in the atmosphere” and “soul vacation” are metaphors that can represent the deceased returning ‘to earth’ or ‘to the ones who lost them’ through time and healing. I think this verse “And tell me, did Venus blow your mind? Was it everything you wanted to find? And then you missed me while you were looking for yourself out there” can be metaphorical for the person mourning the death because it represents healing and finding the person ‘still here’ even though they’ve gone. The line “did you fall for a shooting star, one without a permanent scar” could be a metaphor for physical healing. His mother died of cancer, and perhaps this could represent the notion of a ‘healed body’ or ‘lack of pain’ after death. Contrastingly, it could represent the healing that happens to the person who is mourning, as if the ‘permanent scar’ of pain flashed by and they saw the light of healing.

Lyrics:

Now that she’s back in the atmosphere

With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey

She acts like summer and walks like rain

Reminds me that there’s a time to change, hey

Since the return from her stay on the moon

She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey

But tell me, did you sail across the sun?

Did you make it to the Milky Way

To see the lights all faded

And that heaven is overrated?

Tell me, did you fall for a shooting star?

One without a permanent scar

And then you missed me

While you were looking for yourself out there?

Now that she’s back from that soul vacation

Tracing her way through the constellation, hey

She checks out Mozart while she does Tae-Bo

Reminds me that there’s room to grow, hey

Now that she’s back in the atmosphere

I’m afraid that she might think of me as

Plain ol’ Jane told a story about a man

Who was too afraid to fly so he never did land

But tell me, did the wind sweep you off your feet?

Did you finally get the chance

To dance along the light of day

And head back to the Milky Way?

And tell me, did Venus blow your mind?

Was it everything you wanted to find?

And then you missed me

While you were looking for yourself out there

Can you imagine no love, pride, deep-fried chicken

Your best friend always sticking up for you

Even when I know you’re wrong?

Can you imagine no first dance, freeze-dried romance

Five-hour phone conversation

The best soy latte that you ever had, and me?

But tell me, did the wind sweep you off your feet?

Did you finally get the chance

To dance along the light of day

And head back toward the Milky Way?

But tell me, did you sail across the sun?

Did you make it to the Milky Way

To see the lights all faded

And that heaven is overrated?

And tell me, did you fall for a shooting star?

One without a permanent scar

And then you missed me

While you were looking for yourself?

And did you finally get the chance

To dance along the light of day?

And did you fall for a shooting star?

Fall for a shooting star?

And now you’re lonely looking for yourself out there

Pat Monahan explains the meaning behind drops of jupiter

‘How I Met Your Mother’ Narrative Criticism

How I Met Your Mother is a sitcom that began in 2005 and was aired originally by CBS. The story takes place from 2005 to the current season in 2011, but is told as a past-tense story from the year 2030. The main objective of the narrative revolves around Ted Mosby telling his children the story of how he met their mother, while also teaching, instructing and offering them life lessons.

The narrator is Ted Mosby at age 47 (also know as, “Future Ted”). He recounts a story that occurred over 20 years ago. He is a narrator that evaluates, criticizes and preaches. His intrusive qualities are depicted when he reflects on events that occurred and on the feelings of the characters. These qualities are also displayed when he reflects of the main themes of the episode and offers words of wisdom and lessons to his children. He has the power to talk about the future and reference the past and is not confined to the specific time of the story that occurs in each episode. He is also omniscient because he has knowledge of other characters’ feelings and thoughts. Excusing a few instances that occur where an element of a story is misremembered, Future Ted is a reliable narrator. Due to the nature of the time lapse between the events and storytelling, a few instances occur where he apologizes or corrects himself. However, his credibility is not jeopardized because the audience does not think or conclude that events and characters are unlike how he described them. The audience is not at odds with Teds account of his story. The main purpose of his narration is to provide a synopsis of the years leading to how he met his wife while providing fatherly advice to his children throughout the process.

SIDENOTE:

When I searched Wikipedia for a quick synopsis and overview of the airtime of the show, There was a citation about Future Ted as an ‘unreliable narrator’, which was directly quoted from an interview with the creator of the show, Craig Thomas. The statement is seen in the answer to the 8^th question. In the interview (contrary to the Wikipedia topic) the quotation is that Future Ted “can be an unreliable narrator”. The interview also focuses specifically on the third season where there was a specific incidence of misremembering. However, in terms of the series as a whole and the definition (seen in the textbook on page 313), Ted is not considered an unreliable narrator.

Article:

‘How I Met Your Mother’s’ Craig Thomas on Ted & Barney’s Breakup, Eriksen Babies and The Future of Robarn

http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2008/05/how-i-met-your-mothers-craig-thomas-on-ted-barneys-breakup-eriksen-babies-and-the-future-of-robarn.html

Can COLDPLAY be considered Alternative Rock? A Generic Participation Critic

The point of my post is to prove, through Generic Participation, that Coldplay is incorrectly placed in the genre of Alternative Rock.

According to Wikipedia and an article published in 1989 in the New York Times, the Genre of Alternative Rock is an ‘umbrella term’ that classifies music by its intensive focus on the sounds of the guitar and lyrics that address social concern but still contain sincerity.

Examples of mainstream alternative rock bands or groups (taken from the Wikipedia Article on ‘Alternative Rock’) include the following: The Smiths, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters, Oasis, Green Day, Weezer, Radiohead, Coldplay, Liz Phair, The Strokes, The Killers, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Modest Mouse, The White Stripes and Muse.

Coldplay’s songs are very mellow and offer the listener a pleasant, calm and sedative experience. They utilize guitars in their tracks but in many instances the focal instruments are the piano and drums. Chris Martin’s vocals are smooth, seductive and soft. Many of the songs on the album X&Y, released in 2005, contain lyrics or cover topics about social issues. There are songs about struggle and repair (Fix You), confusion (Swallowed by the Sea, X&Y), self-mockery (The Hardest Part), and loss (Shiver, Up In Flames).

Although I’m not fully familiar with most of these bands, I know enough about a few of them to discern that Coldplay songs don’t sound similar to most songs by The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins, the Foo Fighters, Green Day, Weezer and The Killers. Although many of these bands compose songs that are slower and mellow, they all produce songs that are generally louder, more intense, put more emphasis on the distinguishable features of guitar playing and are more ‘raw’ and truer to ‘rock’ than the songs composed by Coldplay. Even though Coldplay fits with the criteria of the alternative rock genre in terms of the lyrical topics covered within their songs, they lack in the stylistic sounds and techniques described in the genre. Despite that alternative rock is an ‘umbrella term’, Coldplay’s sound and musical style does not perfectly fit all criteria and is too different from other bands under the same classification to fully fit in the genre.

Articles:

Wikipedia “Alternative Rock”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_rock

New York Times 1989 article: HOME ENTERTAINMENT/RECORDINGS: SOUNDINGS; A New Kind of Rock

P!NK “Perfect” Music Video Cluster Criticism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3GkSo3ujSY (“Clean” video version)

When criticizing this music video in terms of Cluster Criticism, there are many apparent terms/themes/aspects throughout it. The term I have chosen to analyze is the Teddy Bear. It appears 5-6 times throughout the video at very intense and highlighted moments. It is most prominent at the beginning (0:12), climax (2:45) and ending (3:38 and 3:48).

In the simplest and most obvious terms, a teddy bear is plush children’s toy that provides comfort and is usually used as a toy to bring to bed or naps. It represents childhood, innocence and comfort. In this video, along with innocence and comfort, the bear also represents strength and acceptance, as these are the major themes the song conveys.

When the main character is a young girl the bear looks new: it is brightly colored, fluffy and unworn. In the beginning, middle and end, the bear is old, discolored and worn. This is reflected in the main character and in anyone viewing the video. When she is young, she is pure, innocent and only beginning to deal with difficulties in life. As she gets older, she becomes stressed, overworked and time takes its toll on her mentally and physically.

As she lies in bed, seeing the bear conjures the memories of how she got to the place she is now. She remembers her childhood, her teenage life and her struggles and downfalls. When she found herself in a difficult time and was choosing to give up, she saw the bear and had a revelation. It was as if the bear said to her “You are perfect to me”. The bear didn’t talk. It wasn’t alive and didn’t have emotions. It was, however, a part of her that was always there for her and couldn’t judge her or tell her she wasn’t good enough. It gave her strength to get up and change how she lived.

Most people have toys that they have kept from their childhood. These toys kept because they bring back memories of the simple and innocent days of childhood: a time when you and everything was perfect because there was no media, bullies (except for the occasional boy taking your toy away), or apparent expectations to live up to. Just as the teddy bear did, kept toys give us comfort and strength.

When she gives the bear to her sleeping daughter, she mouths (to the music), “You are perfect to me”.  Giving the bear to her daughter is a way of giving her daughter strength, comfort and acceptance; things she herself lacked as she grew but found through the bear.

The meaning behind the teddy bear heightens and goes hand-in-hand with the meanings of the song in its entirety.

Shawn Hunter Delivers Perfect Valedictorian Speech to Friends and Audience

Boy Meets World is a 1990’s sitcom that follows the life of Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) from 1993-2000. In episode 24 of Season 5, it is the John Adams High School, Class of 1998 Graduation Ceremony. Cory, his girlfriend, Topanga, and their best friends, Shawn and Angela, are all graduating. Topanga was an A student and chosen to be the Valedictorian because she had the highest number of A’s. However, she does not choose to give her speech. Instead, Shawn presents a small paper that their teacher, friend and mentor, Mr. Feeny, asked the class to do.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM84UkcY_kA

Speech: 1:30-2:57 (I recommend watching the speech 2-3 times.)

In terms of Neo-Aristotelian Criticism, Shawn’s speech is a success when focusing on the aspects in the canon of delivery. The delivery of the speech was honest and heartfelt and fully served its purpose. Shawn was not the valedictorian—nowhere close to being it. He doesn’t like attention, which is pointed out when Corry says, “Shawn is speaking in public, this will never happen again in our lives”. His speech was his reflection on how he felt during his last weeks of high school, which were greatly impacted by finding out how much he and his friends changed the life of Mr. Feeny. Focusing on delivery, Shawn expresses many different emotions as he speaks. He begins with a comedic joke, proceeds with an upbeat introduction and then becomes serious and remorseful as he shows his true colours. Although he uses his manuscript in the beginning, as the speech progresses he refers to it less and less. When he mentions his friends or Mr. Feeny, he looks directly at them and talks to them while still presenting to the audience. These instances of eye contact that do not focus on the audience provide a more personal connection between Shawn and the people that he is talking about and allows the audience to enter that connection as well. Although he is somewhat nervous when he begins, his body language is upbeat and confident and commands attention, which captures the audience initially. His voice is a confident but a little shaken in the beginning, and as he progresses with his speech his tone becomes stronger and more serious. When this occurs, he moves less and really talks to the audience truthfully. His vocals calm, his tone steadies, and his speed slows as both he and the audience reflect on what he says: “I could have done better”. These words, repeated several times, are powerful, moving, and very emotional. Shawn is a character who is guarded and doesn’t like to show his true feelings. Even though the most of the audience doesn’t know Shawn personally, they can easily understand what he means and how he feels. His words make the audience reflect on their own lives and evoke their own feelings of “I could have done better”. The delivery is strong, heartfelt and commanding, his gestures and eye contact were natural, his tone was strong and emotional, and his personal testimony influenced the audience greatly.