TOW# 28: First Position (Documentary)

            A career in the ballet industry is hard to come by and very short lived. Children must start training at a very young age, giving up most of their childhood, to increases their own chances at success.  The documentary, First Position, follows a total of seven different ballet hopefuls prepare to compete at the worlds largest ballet competition, Youth American Grand Prix (YAGP).  First Position was released in 2011 and it aimed to show its viewers what life if like for young ballet dancers worldwide.

             The documentary tells the stories of 7 kids: Aran (11), Jules (10) Miko (12), Gaya (11), Joan Sebastian (16), Michaela (14), and Rebecca (17).  The film -makers used each child’s personal lives as anecdotes about what it’s like to be in training to be a professional dancer.  Each child has a story to tell; each story connects through ballet. For example, Michaela is an African Ballerina from Philadelphia who was adopted from Sierra Lion at the height of the war. While being interviewed for the documentary, she talks about how both her parents were killed in the war and how everywhere she turned she saw death. At the orphanage were she was staying there was a magazine with a ballerina on the cover, Michaela told herself if she ever left Sierra Lion she wanted to become like the dancer on the cover. Ballet became Michaela’s passion and helped her recover from a traumatizing experience. Dance is such an important part of her life, and just like all of the other children in the documentary, Michaela is willing to make sacrifices in order to achieve her goal of becoming a professional ballerina.

            Cinematography also played a huge role in getting the directors purpose across. By constantly switching between all the different stories, viewers were able to understand what each dancer had to do to prepare for the YAGP competition. At the end, all the stories ended up on the same place, and all of the children had the same goal, to win.

            I found First Position to be a very moving film.  Being a dancer myself, I was able to connect with the emotions that the kids were feeling. But, the documentary  also let see a whole new side of the dance world I had yet to be exposed to.

TOW #27: TOW Reflection

            As much as I disliked the TOW assignments, I will admit that they ended up being extremely helpful throughout the progression of my English education. At the beginning of the year, I saw writing TOW’s as unnecessary busy work; but boy, was I wrong.  Who would have thought that a short 300-350 word blog post would allow me to grow so much as a writer.  After going back and reflecting on old TOW posts, I realized how much I have evolved as a writer in less than a year!

            From the first marking period to now I have noticed a huge leap in my writing ability. In the beginning of the year, my TOWs were extremely formulaic; I simply followed the guidelines that were handed to me in the syllabus. At this point in time my writing quality was below average and I struggled to accept the fact that I would not be able to be successful if I continued my black and white form of writing. The TOW posts allowed me to experiment on different ways to transform my bland writing style to more cohesive, enjoyable pieces. So now looking back, I realized how much these silly little blog posts have help me.

            TOWs also allowed me to work on specific elements of writing. For example, I saw transition sentences as a struggle in the beginning of the year, and now they flow easily and effortlessly on to the page. I also placed a large amount of focus on diction and word choice this year. TOWs let me experiment with new words without having to worry about a penalty.  But, there is always room for improvement! I still need to work on strengthening my analysis and also generating a strong conclusion that can leave my readers thinking.

            So, even though I dreaded writing my TOW post every Sunday, I have most definitely benefited from them. I only wish I would have known how much I would gain from them when I first started the APELC course. The TOW assignments have achieved their overall purpose flawlessly.

TOW #26: V-J Day in Time Square by Alfred Eisenstaedt (Visual)

Goals:

-Pick a unique piece that would challenge myself

-Try not to repeat words so often

-work on connecting rhetorical elements to thesis

         

           It’s August 14^th 1945, President Truman has just announced victory over Japan and the end of World War II.  Thousands of people fled from buildings to join the celebration in Time Square in New York City.  One American sailor’s excitement caused him to go around the square kissing anyone and everyone he saw. Intrigued by this man, photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt began clicking his Leica camera for a chance to capture the perfect kiss.  Out of the corner of his eye, Eisenstaedt saw a white nurses dress being wisped into the sailor’s arms. SNAP! The iconic image was taken. “V-J Day in Time Square” photographed by Alfred Eisenstaedt represents celebration in a kiss and the luck Eisenstaedt had in order to capture the joy of all American’s at the conclusion of WWII.

            Propaganda played a large role in any war. Kissing in war advertisements was seen in a very positive light during wartime because it made the war seem lighter than it truly was. Although V-J Day was shot after the declaration of the war’s end, it still played a large role in persuading the American public.  An American sailor who had most likely predicated in WWII is seen kissing a nurse. This image was published in Life magazine, along with a few other kiss pictures in order to generate a new sense of hope in American citizens. This captivated many and brought out more excitement about the war’s conclusion.

            If Eisenstaedt turned around 5 seconds later than he did he would have missed this iconic moment. His luck made him and his photograph famous. Eisenstaedt recollection of the event is as followed: “I saw something white being grabbed. I turned around and clicked the moment the sailor kissed the nurse. If she had been dressed in a dark dress I would never have taken the picture.” Without luck, America would have never witness this celebratory action.

            Almost every person in America knows of the image of the sailor kissing the nurse in Time Square.  This spontaneous event led to the iconic image that reminds America of the hope that comes after war. Eisenstaedt will be remembered forever for just a simple push of a button.