Truth of War Project
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The task we were given was to write an essay and create a visual that conveys your perspective, on the truth of war. The visual could be a Photoshop poster, painting, sculpture, video, or ant thing you could think of. So what I did for this project was grasping what society teaches of war, then explaining what war truly is. As a visual a made two pieces of art; one of the pieces of art contains Captain America with a variety of awesome military vehicles and a silhouette of a soldier in the background. This piece of art represents how society views war; society often over glorifies war, for example Captain America. The other piece of art contains a drawing of a soldier who is a Nazi and very old. He is also crying. This represents what war is truly like. The man is old because the scars of the horrific events that war contains never leave the soul. And the fact that he is a Nazi expresses that our enemies are not as different from us as we think. (Pg. 223, All Quite on the Western Front) “The silence spreads. I talk and must talk. So I speak to him and say to him: ‘Comrade, I did not want to kill you. If you jumped in here again, I would not do it, if you would be sensible too. But you were only an idea to me before, an abstraction that lived in my mind and called forth its appropriate response. It was that abstraction I stabbed. But now, for the first time, I see you are a man like me. I thought of your hand-grenades, of your bayonet, of your rifle; now I see your wife and your face of fellowship. Forgive me, comrade. We always see it too late. Why do they never tell us that you are poor devils like us, that your mothers are just as anxious as ours, and that we have the same fear of death, and the same dying and the same agony. Forgive me, comrade; how could you be my enemy? If we threw away these rifles and this uniform you could be my brother just like Kat and Albert. Take twenty years of my life, comrade, and stand up-take more, for I do not know what I can even attempt to do with it now.’” He is crying because to show weakness; you never see the good guy get hurt, or killed, you always see the bad guys get beat up and stabbed. Captain America represents this in the other picture.
The Habit of Heart and Mind that I learned through this project is evidence. Through my essay critique with Lori it was the first time I had too much evidence. Usually I have not enough evidence to support my argument. This was a pleasant surprise and I had fun editing my essay. “delete!” :) One substantial revision I did to my essay was cut a paragraph about if killing a soldier is a sin or not. In the Ten Commandments it states thou shall not kill. Why is it in the Old Testament God supported so many armies in battle? Well the paragraph goes in depth on a profound theory I thought of about how killing, as a soldier in most cases is not a sin. If I had a few extra weeks on this project I would further refine my drawing of the old Nazi soldier because with the face the shading is a tad bit ruff. I would make the shading more smooth and organic instead of a series of lines. To make that smooth organic look, you must darken the shaded parts then go in with an eraser ad smear and take away parts. I did this on the helmet part of the drawing. |
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Truth of War Essay
Violence is everywhere, with all the movies, books, video games, and magazines. Often society views violence as bad thing. But why is it that we get so stoked when we see super intense “violent” movies? Everyone likes seeing a hero beat up the bad guys. Playing a video game that doesn’t involve any sort of killing is plainly described as “boring.” Even with young kids, you see this trend of violence. I remember when I was younger; guns were the “big thing.” Playing airsoft wars with your friends, playing cowboys and Indians, having magnificent Lego wars, pretending to be a glorious war hero slaying numerous bad guys with foam swords, and drawing stick men blowing each other’s heads off with bazookas and laughing at it. Why is everyone so interested in death and killing? “Teaching our Kids to Kill” by Debrah Prathrow-Smith is a book about the aspects of society that makes people attracted by violence says, “In all these movies, by standards, subway riders, ordinary people get caught in shootouts, crossfires, explosions, and other violent incidents. We’re not supposed to even think about the dead and dying left behind.” From the quote it is saying that in violent movies, video games, or even books often people don’t notice the details. They are focused on the protagonist, not all the other people getting blown up or shot. This is why we get this false view on violence and war. Society makes us attracted to it by revealing a false image. And that image is over glorified and attractive.
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Genocide Project
For this project I wrote an Op-Ed on how to survive genocide. We studied the Rwandan genocide in 1994 as a class then we had to do independent research on another genocide. I however instead of researching another genocide read and analyzed a book call Man’s Searching for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. In this book the author tells of his experiences in surviving the holocaust and goes into depth the mental components of surviving such a horrific event.
Along with the Op-Ed we created a political cartoon that coincides with our Op-Ed. From creating my first political cartoon about Rwanda, to creating this most recent one I have learned to better express important issues through the simplicity of cartooning. Cartooning is harder than I originally thought, and I had a hard time figuring out how I could incorporate all these concepts Frankl discovered through his experiences. I chose one concept called apathy. Apathy is simply not caring anymore, or loss of interest. During the holocaust the victims were exposed to so much death and violence that they stopped caring. By not caring about their surroundings it leaves more time for good things like love and hope to grow. I expressed this through drawing humpty dumpty as a prisoner getting shot by Hitler. The evil tries to penetrate the shell but bounces off and the good things can not be stopped from growing.
Writing Op-Eds was a lot different than what I am normally used to. An Op-Ed is an opinion based piece of writing and is strategically written using objective writing. I like to write flowery but I could not do this type of writing. At first I thought I would be horrible at this type of writing but in the end I found I was pretty good at it. I felt this assignment really improved my over all writing because it caused me to challenge my self and think differently when I write.
Along with the Op-Ed we created a political cartoon that coincides with our Op-Ed. From creating my first political cartoon about Rwanda, to creating this most recent one I have learned to better express important issues through the simplicity of cartooning. Cartooning is harder than I originally thought, and I had a hard time figuring out how I could incorporate all these concepts Frankl discovered through his experiences. I chose one concept called apathy. Apathy is simply not caring anymore, or loss of interest. During the holocaust the victims were exposed to so much death and violence that they stopped caring. By not caring about their surroundings it leaves more time for good things like love and hope to grow. I expressed this through drawing humpty dumpty as a prisoner getting shot by Hitler. The evil tries to penetrate the shell but bounces off and the good things can not be stopped from growing.
Writing Op-Eds was a lot different than what I am normally used to. An Op-Ed is an opinion based piece of writing and is strategically written using objective writing. I like to write flowery but I could not do this type of writing. At first I thought I would be horrible at this type of writing but in the end I found I was pretty good at it. I felt this assignment really improved my over all writing because it caused me to challenge my self and think differently when I write.
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Where is the Beauty of Surviving Genocide
Ande Lloyd The extermination of a group of people is an act one cannot find beauty in. However, the means of surviving genocide reveals the ultimate meaning of life. The book “Man’s Searching for Meaning” is the testimony of a holocaust survivor, and a Ph.D. in psychiatry, Viktor E. Frankl. Frankl’s “meaning of life” took its turn. The basis of surviving genocide is essentially the same in surviving the suffering and hardships of everyday life. To understand “the meaning of life,” dive into the essence of genocide. When someone is imprisoned in a concentration camp, fate is probable to end only in death. In the first stages of being imprisoned, the psychological patterns that arise are the hopes of living. A concept called “delusion of reprieve” a symptom a condemned man goes through right before his execution. A sudden thought that one might be saved at the last moment. Frankl experienced this when he first arrived at Auschwitz and was almost divided into a group of people not fit to work. Those people where immediately sent to the gas chambers. Delusion of reprieve is a symptom that keeps the mental state stable when all is lost. (Frankl 14). Click to view the rest of Op-Ed |
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Seminars of the Year
Seminar Self Reflection: All Quite on the Western Front When the question was asked about whether AQotWF was an anti-war novel, I remember Jonny saying that he thought that the book was an anti-war novel but also expressed that the book shows how much soldiers go through in war; living through horrific violence, seeing your friends get blown to bits, knowing at any second that they could die. And no one truly understands a soldier unless you go through the same type of things. Jonny’s point really made clear that AQotWF was a book to educate people about the horrors of war, and create a respect for soldiers. Also in the discussion Justin made a very good point about why soldiers are soldiers. Justin’s comment was a question I asked about what makes a soldier proud to be a soldier. Justin said that not all soldiers enlist into the military because they are proud to fight for their country, others might join because they have nothing else, or because they have to. Heidi’s grandpa joined the army to pay for college. Justin’s point made me realize that not all soldier is the same. A lot of my views are very anti-war, but whenever I can I’m super interested to hear the other side of the argument. Jonny and Justin was an absolute pleasure to have in the seminar because they brought very different interesting perspectives to group.
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Seminar Self Reflection: Slaughterhouse Five1. Did aliens, opposed to him just imagining it, really kidnap Billy Pilgrim?
A point that Jake Pinkney made was very interesting. Jake said the possibility that Billy’s whole life story was just in his head could be very possible. The state Billy was in was very scary; he experience a terrifying event which thousands of people died. The moments that Billy travels back in time too, were not in fact just random ones, but ones that really impacted his life. They actually had meaning to him. It may have been random in Billy’s head but unconsciously they weren’t. So later on in the seminar Marley makes a very good text reference on page 201 about how Kilgore Trout influenced Billy. One of his books was about an Earthling man and women who were kidnaped by extra-terrestrials. They were put on display in a zoo on a planet called Zircom212. Marley says Billy has gone through so much, and seen so much that he is trying to cling on something that makes him unique and individual. And maybe that’s why he is so passive about anything else other than the Tralfamadorians. He is taking Kilgore’s writing and wants to believe it so much it becomes an alternate reality for him. Then Justin says, what if Billy is going through some sort of posttraumatic stress that causing him travel in time, and get kidnapped by aliens. Click here if you want to read rest of the document |
Seminar Self Reflection: The Global Village
Sure you could easily say that this “new world order” is a bad thing because it is fading away nations’ identities. But it ultimately changes things to a more positive way. Through advancements in technology, things like Facebook and YouTube, they create an environment of communication where a person in Canada can talk to a person in China in a matter of seconds. In “The Global Village Finally Arrives,” by Pico Iyer, in paragraph five it says, “The global village is defined, as we know, by an international youth culture that takes its cues from American pop culture. Kids in Perth and Prague and New Delhi are all tuning in to Santa Barbara on TV, and wriggling into 501 jeans, while singing along to Madonna's latest in English. CNN (which has grown 70-fold in 13 years) now reaches more than 140 countries; an American football championship pits London against Barcelona.” Companies and forms of technology create ways to communicate internationally, weather it’s through entertainment or commercialism, it’s making an environment that shares ideas. Click here to view the rest of the document |
Seminar Self Reflection: DulceOne comment made by Avra, during the discussion over the meaning of the second stanza in Dulce Decorum Est, stood out. Avra said, “The meaning of mainly the second stanza, shows that chaos is something that a soldier has to deal with. Chaos shows how “accepting” soldiers have to be.”
Avra’s comment meant that soldiers have to go through so much pain and suffering, they have no choice but to accept it, and live on. Being constantly shot at, bombed, and gassed are just some of the things they have to deal with. The reason why this comment grabbed my attention was, because I had just finished my genocide project on the idea of Apathy. Apathy is a blunting emotion that a person can feel when being imprisoned, or in my case, stuck in a concentration camp. When someone feels apathy, they stop caring about the horrible things around them and focus on the survival of them selves and their comrades. Click here to read tthe rest of the document |
The Poetry Project
Artists Statement
My name is Ande Lloyd and I am a passionate student of Animas High School. My hobbies are pretty much what you would expect from a typical Durango kid. I love to run, climb, bike, and ski. As far as my academics I am a very passionate student that you will regularly see jump with excitement when learning new things. But one thing about me that makes me unique is a kidney condition I have called Minimal Change Disease. Luckily it is curable and now I am doing great. But going through this ordeal it has challenged me more than ever. Through having Minimal Change Disease I have learned how to persevere through unthinkable challenges and it has ultimately taught me to be a better person.
You can look around and see a world consumed by things like texting, Facebook, tumbler, email, and cell phones. It is a world filled with social interaction. But what is the common factor between these topics? They are all tools for connecting with people. These connections are all ways to communicate.
My poem is about the power of communication. And communication is the ultimate weapon and can be used both to create a lot of good and a lot of bad. My source of inspiration is the effects of things like war, bulling, religion, and racism are having on our world. I don’t like it that kids are so innocently obsessed with violence, and I don’t like it that people are so disrespectful of others’ regions. Bulling is being accepted when it shouldn’t be accepted. I want to use communication through the media, the Internet, and films to educate people about these serious issues. If we educate people then they may be more accepting and understanding towards these issues. Using the power of poetry is an excellent way to have a strong voice, and I hope I can bring good to this world by expressing this poem.
You can look around and see a world consumed by things like texting, Facebook, tumbler, email, and cell phones. It is a world filled with social interaction. But what is the common factor between these topics? They are all tools for connecting with people. These connections are all ways to communicate.
My poem is about the power of communication. And communication is the ultimate weapon and can be used both to create a lot of good and a lot of bad. My source of inspiration is the effects of things like war, bulling, religion, and racism are having on our world. I don’t like it that kids are so innocently obsessed with violence, and I don’t like it that people are so disrespectful of others’ regions. Bulling is being accepted when it shouldn’t be accepted. I want to use communication through the media, the Internet, and films to educate people about these serious issues. If we educate people then they may be more accepting and understanding towards these issues. Using the power of poetry is an excellent way to have a strong voice, and I hope I can bring good to this world by expressing this poem.
Growth as a Poet Reflection
From the first draft to the second draft what mostly changed was the length. The main revisions were made after Lori read over my first draft. In the first draft I had only four stanzas of the metaphors and similes but after that I added four more. This made my poem much more complex and interesting. I got so enveloped in the writing process it was like I wasn’t writing but my emotions were shining back at me through my poem. For example, “The people, the poor people, they wail with misery, they fall with no hope. I refuse! I reject! This is what will happen! This is what will become! I tell you this you animal!” This little section of my poem reflects the prednisone I am taking. I incorporated my experiences of taking drugs to war because it made my poem unique and actually mean some thing to me. Many of us wrote about war, but how can we truly relate to it if we never actually experienced war in the first place? And you asked me what did I do to make my poem more sophisticated. Well many might not understand my poem unless they know my whole story, but I love writing poetry with multiple meanings fused together by poetic devices. It is truly an adventure through literature.
When I did my critique through with a group of class mates one major change I made in my poem was switching order of lines in, lets just say “the power” stanzas so that they physically ramp up in each stanza. For example,
Like a selfish jerk
Like a cyber demon
Like a snake of mistake
Like an influence of command
These are in no particular order but in an order so they physically ramp up as you read. The first four “the power” stanzas ramp out, and “the liberated” stanzas ramp in. Before this they were in a random order and it looked pretty messy. By changing this you don’t actually do anything of true importance to the message or flow of the poem. You just make it easier to read. Making it easier to read improves the mood, and improving the mood makes it more of an experience for the reader.
Another major change I made in my poem was interpreting the message in the first “power” stanza. When I wrote that stanza I was doped up on my medication and was writing complete nonsense. In normal circumstances reading poetry from a high little Ande could be enjoyable, but when you trying to make a final poem with a deep message, it is very frustrating. In that first stanza I was trying to show how the world is so caught up with all these stupid issues of no importance, and is not focusing on real devastating issues like climate change, gun control, and world hunger. In that first stanza I had lines like, a sickness of wickedness, and an avalanche of destruction that had no relevance to what I was trying to say. So after a chat with the wise Lori Fisher, I added, took out, and moved some lines around. The final piece looked like this, “Like the wars of pain, Like the dams of rivers, Like the kids of Sandy Hook, Like the avalanche of wickedness, The power is the ultimate weapon, The ignored voice of devastation.” Making this change made my poem more clear and understandable. I am glad to have had so many critiques of my poem while being befuddled on the prednisone. Now my poem can really drive a point to those who are obliged to hear it.
Lastly, I changed the last power stanzas from saying, “the power that must be controlled” to “the power that must be liberated.” The first four stanzas are supposed to be negative and bad, but as for the other four they are supposed to be hopeful and good. So originally I had the phrase “the power that must be controlled” on all the stanzas. Again after discussing with Lori and some classmates I changed it to “the power that must be liberated.” This way it makes the good stanzas bloom out and break free. The good phrases are supposed to be battling the bad ones. Kind of like what I was doing on the prednisone. I was in constant war with myself. The true Ande trying to break free but the drugged Ande was holding him down. So changing this made my second message more apparent and obvious. And the mood of the poem becomes more intense. Not adding the liberated phrases the poem would have been too repetitive and boring.
When I did my critique through with a group of class mates one major change I made in my poem was switching order of lines in, lets just say “the power” stanzas so that they physically ramp up in each stanza. For example,
Like a selfish jerk
Like a cyber demon
Like a snake of mistake
Like an influence of command
These are in no particular order but in an order so they physically ramp up as you read. The first four “the power” stanzas ramp out, and “the liberated” stanzas ramp in. Before this they were in a random order and it looked pretty messy. By changing this you don’t actually do anything of true importance to the message or flow of the poem. You just make it easier to read. Making it easier to read improves the mood, and improving the mood makes it more of an experience for the reader.
Another major change I made in my poem was interpreting the message in the first “power” stanza. When I wrote that stanza I was doped up on my medication and was writing complete nonsense. In normal circumstances reading poetry from a high little Ande could be enjoyable, but when you trying to make a final poem with a deep message, it is very frustrating. In that first stanza I was trying to show how the world is so caught up with all these stupid issues of no importance, and is not focusing on real devastating issues like climate change, gun control, and world hunger. In that first stanza I had lines like, a sickness of wickedness, and an avalanche of destruction that had no relevance to what I was trying to say. So after a chat with the wise Lori Fisher, I added, took out, and moved some lines around. The final piece looked like this, “Like the wars of pain, Like the dams of rivers, Like the kids of Sandy Hook, Like the avalanche of wickedness, The power is the ultimate weapon, The ignored voice of devastation.” Making this change made my poem more clear and understandable. I am glad to have had so many critiques of my poem while being befuddled on the prednisone. Now my poem can really drive a point to those who are obliged to hear it.
Lastly, I changed the last power stanzas from saying, “the power that must be controlled” to “the power that must be liberated.” The first four stanzas are supposed to be negative and bad, but as for the other four they are supposed to be hopeful and good. So originally I had the phrase “the power that must be controlled” on all the stanzas. Again after discussing with Lori and some classmates I changed it to “the power that must be liberated.” This way it makes the good stanzas bloom out and break free. The good phrases are supposed to be battling the bad ones. Kind of like what I was doing on the prednisone. I was in constant war with myself. The true Ande trying to break free but the drugged Ande was holding him down. So changing this made my second message more apparent and obvious. And the mood of the poem becomes more intense. Not adding the liberated phrases the poem would have been too repetitive and boring.
