Section APR2D

This was the first workshop I had and probably the most uncoordinated. There were over 200 students that attended and there wasn’t enough room for everyone. Because there were so many of us, they had to split us up and even then, the rooms were crowded. When they had finally started, they just ran a quick overview about picking classes before they let everyone go. I didn’t learn anything, unfortunately.

The Finding Your Major workshop was actually quite helpful. It helped me set my goals for the future and to plan out how to achieve them. We basically stated where we want to get in life and what we ultimately want to achieve. Then we were asked to map out how we would eventually reach these goals and obtain the things we want out of life. The overall purpose of the class was to show us that everybody has the potential to be something great but its up to you to make the most of it.

I attended a workshop that dealt with the issues of choosing your major. Things like family, religion and ethnicity pressures were things that we learned how to handle. I found it to be a very useful workshop and believed that it helped me think more clearly. I advise everyone to go to the office and learn more about it.

I attended a play at the Baruch theater to complete this workshop. I believe the name of the play was “A Dolls House”. To be honest I really enjoyed this workshop. The performers were very talented and had great acting skills. They showed a lot of emotion in their performance and were able to connect with the crowd. I’m happy I took the time to attend this play I truly enjoyed it.

The workshop was very short and to the point. The presenter outlined what the required English and communication classes we need. She went over the importance of communication for many other classes and for working in the business world. Also she told us about the services located in the school such as the academic advisement the writing center and the student academic center consulting center.

I attended the Arts at Baruch “A Doll’s House” reading, I had mix feelings about Nora during the play at some points she seemed like she was trying to protect her husband but in many scenes it seemed she was just trying to protect herself. I don’t know if I agree with her on her decision to leave her husband and children however. I know she felt as she was his “doll”, however leaving your children behind just because you have “to find yourself” seems a bit selfish to me. Their marriage may have taken place in a time where marriage was viewed in a very different way but at the core it seemed to have a very major and common problem a lot of relationships have which is not being able to communicate. Nora at one point says “This is the first time in our marriage that we have actually sat down to have a real conversation” Which hit me hard on a very personal level, something I certainly was not expecting from watching this reading. I am very familiar with the feeling of not ever having a “real conversation” in a relationship. Which made me relate to Nora, I understood her pain about feeling like she wasn’t important enough in his life to have a real conversation. Overall I was glad I attended the workshop.

I went to see a condensed version of the play “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen. I had prior knowledge of the play and its meaning because I read and studied the play my senior year of high school. (My teacher is a feminist.) Anyhow, while I was watching the play I remembered the discussion about how Torvald was on the surface a loving and doting husband, but his cute nicknames, if you will were seen as more belittling. Almost how you would call a child. I was still unsure if Nora’s decision to desert her family was the right choice. But still the most amazing and I think one of the most insightful quotes of the play was when Torvald asks Nora, “But can’t we live here like brother and sister–?” To me it signifies the perfect facade that every marriage has on the outside, but here Torvald was begging, if you will, to keep up the charade just so they keep the “Beaver style” life. Overall, the play was very well done. The actors and director appeared to have a complete and clear understanding of Henrik Ibsen and the story’s uniqueness for the time period it was written in. I must say I enjoyed watching the play more than I did studying the text. Good workshop!

9/24/09 – It was everything that I expected of a club fair.  I checked out some of the tables and I talked to two of the music production clubs.  It was organized pretty well and it was not too crowded.  I was interested in finding the breakdancing club, but I actually already found out about it the week before.  I was looking for the Russian Students and Hip-Hop clubs but I did not see either of them represented at the fair.  I like how there is a lot to choose from, especially all the different ethnic clubs, it makes daily life at Baruch pretty interesting (people yelling on 2nd floor VC).

11/05/09 – I read “A Doll’s House” in my senior year of high school, so this stage reading brought back a lot of the discussions I had on the play in class.  I always thought that Torvald was a very pretentious character, like the way he called Nora his “little skylark”.  I also remember that I could never determine if Nora did the right thing by leaving her husband and children.  On the one hand, her search to figure out who she really is fully justified in the modern sense, yet her immature and naive behavior discredits her, especially with the whole traveling to Italy business.  In general, this workshop got me thinking about the proper roles of husband and wife.  The line that stood out to me the most was when Nora told Torvald something like, “This is the first time in the history of our marriage that we have actually sat down to have a real conversation.”  I thought about that and I decided that in whatever relationships I have I will always lay the cards on the table, I don’t want to harm people with unrealistic fantasies.  In terms of the workshop itself, I thought the actors did a very good job of taking on the personalities of the characters.  It was well done, thumbs up.

I went to the interviewing workshop  on October 29th. Although the workshop entailed things i already knew i had to do, i feel that i learned so much more. As i start my quest for new employment, ill be sure to include all the things we learned in my approach. This was an enriching workshop and Baruch gets an A lol