Lincoln, Extra Credit

New York was having the hardest time of the year this November. Hurricane Sandy hit hard in New York and left big chaos. There were many damages around the city not to mention the economy. But most of all it was not a good time for the presidential election. Everybody was talking about weather it will be Obama or Romney.

When the movie ‘Lincoln’ came out, it was not a surprise to hear that it was waiting for the election and released it. And I could see why.

The movie was very directly narrated from the story that is well known. I was hoping to see more about Lincoln’s personal life, but the movie focused more on the facts and process of passing the Act. Lincoln was a very tall people loving president, father, and husband. He was very relaxed, and did not have temper. He tried to listen to his people and tried his best to be fair.

While watching the movie I could not help but to compare it to ‘To Kill a Mocking Bird’ by Harper Lee. Lincoln was like Atticus in To kill a Mocking Bird. White men fighting for the black was a very hard choice to make back then. But because Lincoln and other people fought for the justice and became the voice of unheard, we have free country.

But somehow I felt as if the intention of this movie was to show how superior whites are. If Lincoln, the white men, did not fought for black people’s freedom, we would be still living in racist world and Obama would not have never be president.

Just seeing ‘Lincoln’ after election made me think more deeply about what is really going on in America with their Black President. What difference can Obama make compare to Lincoln? Or is it more like a competition between these two heroes? While Korea is about to have a female president, I came to think that now is the phase the world goes through or against what we used to know. 

Andy Warhol Exhibition at Met

Andy Warhol is well known artist in Pop art. He expressed his creativeness through film, pictures, and paintings. To be honest, I am not a great fan of his works especially his films and pictures because it just looks awkward to me and meaningless. But he has great taste in colors and he uses it very well. His painting method is very simple. He cuts out picture from the newpaper, enlarge it and print it on the silk screen and paint them in various colors.

It looks very simple but people worship his paintings.

He loved to use Marylin Monroe, Mao, Jackie for his silk screen work.

It is as if he wanted to use their popularity to draw people’s attention. Or maybe Andy Warhol really did worship them and think of them as the King or Queen of their fields. By using dynamic colors, Andy Warhol somehow brings out the feeling of the characters. With Marylin Monroe’s headshot, he tried on bold, sexy color to represent her sex appeal, and at the same time he used very dull blue to show her inside. When he painted the Mao, President of China, he used colors like yellow, green, and blue which are used often in Asia. He used Elizabeth Taylor’s picture also. And he used soft green on her portrait.

When we first see Warhol’s painting, we know that it is his painting right away because his dynamic colors. But also, we look at it more carefully because we know the person on the paining and that makes it more interesting.

We can not tell much from the portraits because there is no background or torso of the model. All we know is their face, name, and the painter. Maybe that is why Warhol used only the headshot of the famous people, who is considered as king or queen in their field. 

Marie Antoinette, Queen of Fashion

Most people think Marie Antoinette as a very naive and childlike queen. Before I got to know her, I did too think her as a mindless woman. But while I researched her life and read about her, I was drawn to her and feel sympathetic of her.
She lived mediocre childhood until most of her siblings died of smallpox. She was almost sold to France and become the Duphaine of France because of political reason. She had no voice in her marriage and in France.
14 year old Marie Antoinette tried to act her best and wished to win France people's hearts but she could not. She was not loved by her husband either.
Because of her lack of education, she could not possibly excel in political matters. So she chose fashion.
To stay on the top of the fashion, she encouraged other woman to copy her style and even sold her dresses. Her hairstyle, costumes and makeups became the most wanted fashion style in France and then France began to recognize her.
She wanted people to recognize her as a Queen of France, not just an innocent Austrian woman.
It is very sad to think that all the struggles she had to go over to be visible and notable. She gained some respects with her fashion and enjoyed it.

Orlando pt.2

    Orlando is now she. She learns that what she thought about woman when she was a man, are not quite right. In a way, Orlando enjoys to be female but feels very oppressed and powerless. She wants to be independent but finds it very hard to do so.
    Orlando is unique novel because it has two perspectives. Same person going through same problem, in this case, love, in different sex. Gender roles take most parts in our lives. How we should act, think, and react depends on the gender most of the time. I think Virginia attempted to express her own feelings toward her husband and Vita in this novel. She loves them both dearly but can not stay with them and devote to them. She must have been confused about her feelings since herself had two genders in her.
    Struggle over how she can not behave according to what her mind thinks.
Orlando could be an important message to those who draw significant lines between male and female. What gives us right to judge someone by gender?
  

Orlando Pt.1

        In Virginia Woolf's novel, Orlando, the main character, goes through sex change and experience 

different time of eras. It seems very important that the fact that Virginia was in a relationship with another woman names Vita. Throughout the book, Virginia portraits Vita as Orlando and talks about two genders in him/her. 

        The first three chapters are about Orlando as a beautiful young boy. He looks fresh and the Queen, who admires that youth, loves him dearly and gives him great fortune. With his good look, Orlando gets many woman by his side and live very freely. He seems very happy and flexible. 

        For some reason all the kings and queens we have been go over in class falls over obstacle called 'love.' Orlando tries to win Sasha's heart believing that she should be his just because he adores her. But  after Sasha's betrayal Orlando feels great depression and wanders how love works for woman.

      

Queen Elizabeth

 In class, we watched Queen Elizabeth, the first Queen of England.
It is an issue even now, when woman tries to gain political powers. For example, in Korea, for the first time in the history, female candidate showed up as president. Many medias and groups thinks it is wrong for woman to take over the country and rule the people.
So I can not imagine how hard it must have been for Elizabeth when she first became the Queen.
She became Queen just because she was in the loyal family. She lost many things, love, freedom...
But she struggled the most when people did not take her side because of what she was.
Her voice was easily hid because she was a woman. England wanted a King to look upon to. They tried to take advantage of the Queen and often make fun of her Queenship.
But Elizabeth ruled with heart. She could done it because she was a woman. She gave her heart and compassion not to man, but to England.
Throughout the movie, I was very proud to be a woman. I admired the courage and devotion of Elizabeth. She became the very first example of a strong woman.

Venus In Furs

 Venus in Furs is a novel about a man being a slave to a beautiful woman.
The meaning of 'power' takes very different parts for woman and man.
Man gets power with his wealth, strength and ability. While woman gets power with her beauty.
In this book, the main character, Saverin, adores goddess-like woman and willing to be a slave for her.
He wants to get punished by her and rejected by her. Through that he feels passion about love.
He goes nuts when Wanda, the Venus like woman, wears fur.
 Wanda is a widow. She wants happy life with her next future husband and wish it could be Saverin since she loves him. But instead she decided to play along for an year to see if Saverin is the right guy to marry. She gets surprised at first when Saverin wanted her to whip him and hit him and be cruel to him so he can beg her fro her love. But later she enjoys it with him and abuse him and treat him like a slave.
The ending of the novel is predictable. Wanda meets other man and abandons Saverin.

The real question about this book is this. How do man and woman use their powers when it comes to love? Who will win in the end?
Woman seek man who can satisfy her needs and love her unconditionally. Man, on the other hand, want obedient woman as a wife but when it comes to love, he needs someone who can fulfill his fantasy.

That woman, as nature has created her, and man at present is educating her, is man's enemy. She can only be his slave or his despot, but never his companion. This she can become only when she has the same rights as he and is his equal in education and work.

It is just that woman and man are very different that it is very difficult to satisfy both. One of them has to be obedient and willing to give all.