Blog Post III.III
Dear Everybody,
So, I have come up with two different ideas for what to do with my final project that I would not only love to share but also could use some input. I’m leaing towards developing a previous essay rather than starting fresh.
The first idea is built off of my essay on what my father collects (II.II). Feel free to take a look at it on my blog and please comment on that draft. I want to develop it further, to get a full picture of how crazy what he collects truly is and how how almost anybody can relate to it (surprisingly). I love this topic because it is something that has always interested me. I think it will be successful because it is relate-able to on several levels and it is special to me ad I feel that will fuel the fire to make it a compelling essay. The structure will be similar to my II.II essay, unless somebody has a better suggestion as to how to format it. It already has an introduction paragraph to set the scene which I am open to changing. I was thinking of adding some dialogue, cutting the cross-section of the box altogether a focusing on the closet. The message I want to communicate is really about how different yet similar all humans are. We feel an unconscious need to hold onto things because they hold greater significance (yet a the same object means nothing to somebody else) and I want to showcase how my father has done this, in a very specific way, throughout his life so far. The list of items is really a poem, thus making it a hybrid essay. I’m thinking of adding the epigraph of the cross-section as the closing for the essay as well. I’m not sure how long it will be, although it will adhere to the requirements. I’m going to have to play with the list itself to show the breadth, depth and insanity of the collection, while making it cohesive and make sure the flow is correct so it reads not like a shopping list but like a poem. The working title is “My Father: A Controlled Hoarder” or the previous title of Essay II.II
The second idea I have is either brilliant or really stupid. I’m not sure. There is a fine line between the two. Regardless, it centers around a question: Have you ever noticed how men and women take their T-shirts shirts off very differently? First, men tend to grab it from the back, while women cross their arms in front of them and remove it (I think it is due to the hair business). I was thinking of incorporating some silent videos of people removing their shirts (I may give every person a similar one in the correct size to streamline it) and conducting interviews (which I would transcribe into text) about how one takes his or her T-Shirt off to each participant. What are your thoughts? Is it doable? Is it to risque? What would you take away from it, if anything? The working title is “How Do You Take your T-Shirt Off?”
Best,
Alee
3 responses so far
Alee, I’m planning on sitting down with your Essay 2 tomorrow (likely), so I will hold off on commenting on it here. I will only say that if you wish to continue with it into Essay 3, which is totally fine, you will have to think about how to make it new/fresh–what new directions to take it. I will think about this as I read it, too, but you think about it. It has to be not just a revision of Essay 2, but a new “chapter,” of sorts. As for the second idea: I could actually picture it as I read your description, and to me, this suggests a lot of potential: not only could I picture it, but my mind wanted to picture it. It’s an intriguing idea. I can imagine a very evocative and poetic meditation on male and female bodies, and how we relate to our bodies differently, and those different relationships (your essay would implicitly suggest) are reflected in how we undress. Yes, it’s a potentially erotic topic, but I think the eros could be approached with a soft touch– just a real, human part of the essay. Overall, the essay could be more of an intellectual/emotional meditation on bodies and how we feel about them in this intimate (?), vulnerable (?) moment of undressing. I picture a video essay with the interview comments cut and edited into the video to match with specific moments in the video. Might be a fun and challenging exercise. (But of course, this might not be how you’re picturing the essay.)
Alee,
You have two compelling ideas. I read your Unit 2 essay and it struck me that its elements are reminiscent of a lyrical essay. The vivid nature of the writing coupled with the list format and the clever capitalization of the Items particularly stand out. There’s something there and I can tell that it’s worth some exploration given the personal intrigue it holds for you. Is there a particular item/story worth focusing on?
However young Skywalker, we know you have to choose only one concept. And the second essay idea gives you room to tread on previously unexplored ground. Although I think the subject matter – people taking off their clothes – might slip into titillating territory, I see the inane, Seinfeldian qualities of such analysis.
Anecdotally, I used to do the whole grab from the back of the neck or the one arm pull. However, the one arm pull was a bit goofy and the back of the neck leaves the shirt inside-out (a pain when you’re a guy who actually does his own laundry). So now I actually tend to do the crossover. In the name of statistical integrity, you may want to get a larger sample size of people taking off their shirts.
You may want to consider analyzing the impact of undressing as a whole as Cheryl suggests. That subject in its entirety is fuller and has more to analyze within an essay.
In term of audiovisual presentation, for some reason I’m picturing a grey-scale scene and strategic lighting with garments being the only thing of color, or vice-versa. Consider adding (whimsical?) classical music in the background and a voice-over for reading the essay.
Alee,
I found your blog although I responded to your presentation.
I myself prefer the first idea — For one thing, I like the ideas behind it, peole are all different, yet similar, and we all like to hold onto things although the same items to person, may not have the same meaning to another.
I also like makinthe collection of items a poem, and possibly repeating it at the end.
The second idea is definitely unusual, but can you write a whole essay on it?
It will be unique, if you think you can.
Thanks —
Michelle