Fredrick Douglas "America's brighter future"

This celebration also marks the beginning of another year of your national life; and reminds you that the Republic of America is now 76 years old. I am glad, fellow-citizens, that your nation is so young. Seventy-six years, though a good old age for a man, is but a mere speck in the life of a nation. Three score years and ten is the allotted time for individual men; but nations number their years by thousands. According to this fact, you are, even now, only in the beginning of your national career, still lingering in the period of childhood. I repeat, I am glad this is so. There is hope in the thought, and hope is much needed, under the dark clouds which lower above the horizon. The eye of the reformer is met with angry flashes, portending disastrous times; but his heart may well beat lighter at the thought that America is young, and that she is still in the impressible stage of her existence.
-Fredrick Douglas

I really enjoyed this passage in Fredrick Douglas' speech. The way he uses the storm to portray his message was really interesting and effective. I also like how he explained that America was still young, and has much potential for its future. That is a great way to reach the audience, and it helps them to listen and want to change for the better.

Dialogue

Sarah and I wrote out a short script which we felt might happen the following historical persons and author meet up to discuss freedom. They have varying different views on freedom and I feel like we left off the discussion at a part in which it could have become pretty heated. They time in which they lived is very different and the "norm" point of view society had about freedom also was extremely different.    

Historical Persons/Author:

Anne Hutchinson

Thomas Jefferson

Ronald Takaki

Overall question:

Is it possible for Americans to exert their freedoms without suppressing the freedoms of minorities?

Dialogue:

Takaki: Throughout history, the white majority has oppressed minorities from personal freedoms in order to pursue their freedoms to the fullest extent they believed possible.

Anne Hutchinson: To further this point, it was not solely based on race. Many women were oppressed of these freedoms because men viewed women as inferior.

Thomas Jefferson: It was necessary at the time for the white majority to suppress the minorities and women because the country was not fully stabilized. It is not that I wanted to fully oppress the minorities and women, for example, I have stated that Native Americans and whites are both “Americans, born in the same land,” and hopefully we will achieve the ability to have good relations in the future.

Takaki: This was not your intent because in my research, I have discovered that you wanted to “encourage them to abandon hunting and turn to agriculture”, put them in financial ruin, and remove them from the borders of civilized society.

Anne Hutchinson: The white man’s stupidity in oppressing others from their freedoms can also be exemplified in my case because I was viewed as a threat to the religious hierarchy in Boston and as a threat, I was subsequently forced to leave Boston. So therefore, who has the right to determine who is eligible for the same freedoms?

Structure of Stolaf Buildings

After our discussion yesterday on the buildings of St. Olaf I thought about it more when walking around campus. The idea that the St. Olaf ideals of spirit, mind and body come together in the structure of the buildings on campus is true I think in some buildings but not in others. I was analyzing Skoglund/ Tostrud and when I thought about it, yes there are aspects of all three. Body: the athletics and varsity, club and intermural. Mind: Classes held for PE. Spirit: Opening ceremonies and other events like Christmas Concert. When I went down there yesterday though, I thought about the fact that these aspects together are possibly just for functional reasons rather than a seriously planned reason. The largest space is needed for the concert and opening ceremonies. That’s why the large gym is used. I think that these may have come together for function not as a result of major planning. It is nice and convenient I think and it does make a unique dynamic to the location but I feel like it may not have had a lot of intention. 

Declaration Inspiration

I found the Declaration of Independence to be a very useful dense fact. It seems like such a key focus for Americans today when reflecting back on our country’s foundations. It is hard to think about the Revolutionary War, without thinking about this important document to our nation’s history. The words were very carefully planned, which makes this document even more useful and memorable for The United States.

When all the reviewing happened the amount of time and effort put into these seemingly minor changes sticks out the most. When looking at original drafts and then comparing it to the final known Declaration, it was impressive to see how those changes affected the feel of the paper. A lot were unimportant to me today, like the lists of specific grievances, but the overall idea still has its effect.

The amount of reviewing put into this document inspired me to do so with my own paper. Instead of simply writing it and reviewing it for grammar and minor details, I wrote out a first draft, printed it for reference but then completely changed up most parts for the second writing of my paper. Although not nearly as impressive as the Declaration naturally, I still feel like the same reviewing techniques were very helpful. I hope that this inspiration from the Declaration in terms of writing and editing is not brief!

Who's Freedom?- Declaration of Independence

In class we discussed why or why not the concept of slavery was mentioned in the Declaration of Independence.  When we look at it from our point of view today, most I feel would agree that slavery is direct violation of people’s freedom. But it was an accepted norm during the writings of the Declaration. Although I feel most people in the back of their minds understood slavery to be “wrong”, there were major economic reasons in keeping slavery in the British New World.  The slavery problem was another idea to tackle at a later time.

 The bigger problem addressed by the Declaration was the lack of freedom by Britain. If the colonists wanted freedom from Britain they were going to get into a fight. In that fight they needed all the man power they had, which meant slave owners and non-slave owners had to work together in defeating the British. It was a tactical reason why the concept of slavery was not addressed in this letter to Britain. Although it seems extremely hypocritical today, the Declaration was used to gain freedom from Britain, while freedom for all people would have to be put aside until afterword.

Another Tea Party Dense Fact

I found this picture that is used on T-shirts, buttons, bumper stickers, etc. This picture represents the tea party movement, obviously, as the tea bag. The other parties are represented as the Kool-Aid. Aid has the double meaning of representing the social programs currently in action in the United States as well as the drink name. It seems to me that the major point that is trying to be emphasized is the difference between tea and Kool-Aid. Mostly, how the tea party especially differentiates itself from the GOP. The use of this term is becoming more popular in news accounts, etc.

It will be interesting to see how similar or different the motives and actions of the GOP and the Tea Party representatives really are.

Dense Facts.... My current understanding

I am still confused by the concept of a dense fact, and have pretty much figured out the message that I will always be trying to adjust what my take is on a dense fact. 

 Currently, my idea of a dense fact is that it can be any sort of tangible object, person, place or event, or an intangible idea, theme, feeling, emotion, etc. Basically it must be something which can be used to understand a topic on a different scale. It is like a stepping stone in order to gain more knowledge on a concept as a whole.

I think that this stepping stone can be used to analyze something else in more detail, (going deeper into a subject) or can be used to understand a much bigger concept. So basically the dense fact can be a small idea, object, concept, etc. used to understand a much broader topic, or a large dense fact used to get understanding of a very small and specific topic.

 In general the dense facts are used to analyze from various points of view. The dense facts are those points of view. At least, as of now, this is my understanding of the term "dense fact".

Revenge?

Benjamin Franklin seems to use his autobiography to seek some sort of revenge on a lot of people in his life. This especially seems to occur in the “part one” section of the book. He dislikes his brother and the authority he had over him. After leaving his family and making a “better” life for himself he shows off to his brother, seeming almost to rub it in his face. He even writes with that type of voice. This is also seen when he writes about his drunkard friend Collins. His writing style portrays Collins in a very negative and embarrassing light at the end of their friendship and he does not do much to cover for his “friend”. Another example is the way he wrote about his boss Keimer. He writes about the lack of skill in his shop and later writes about his rise above Keimer.

“The two printers I found poorly qualified for their business. Bradford had not been bred to it, and was very illiterate; and Keimer, tho’ something of a scholar, was a mere compositor, knowing nothing of presswork”.

 This just seems like a fairly rude way to write about the person who found you a job at the early stages in your working career. The whole way this autobiography is written has quite a bit of arrogance and a lot of revenge involved.  

Benjamin Franklin's $ Logic

I found that I really enjoyed reading about the logic Benjamin Franklin uses in many circumstances in life-choices. One that I really enjoyed was his reasoning to become a vegetarian. He read a book, got the idea, tried it and found that in doing so he also saved money which he spent towards books. At the same time the logic when deciding to eat fish again was also just as unique.

“…when the fish were opened, I saw smaller fish taken out of their stomachs; then thought I, “If you eat one another, I don’t see why we mayn’t eat you.”  

Another time Benjamin’s unique logic came into play was in his opinions about drinking beer. While most of his peers were drinking lots of beer, Benjamin was eating a fairly different diet and drinking water. He figured he was getting the same amount of nutrients if not more helping himself out in the long run. The fact that it saved him money was also important for Benjamin. (He could probably buy more books, right?) He was able to persuade many of his coworkers to also change their diets to be more like his own, using this money saving and nutrients logic.

Overall, Benjamin was constantly finding more efficient ways of doing simple tasks. His money saving logic seemed to drive a lot of lifestyle choices.

West Coast Tea Party

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2013239636_apussenateperplexingraces1stldwritethru.html

I found this article to be interesting because it really relates to my home area. The western states that are generally more democratic now seem to be leaning closer and closer towards the GOP. This tea-party movement is contributing largely to this, which has caused the Democratic Party to start going on defense for these states. The race discussed in this article is that for senate, which is close in several states. This election could swing the majority in the Senate, from Democratic to Republican.

The tea-party political movement seems to be making a big effect in politics right now. It will be interesting to see the results of these elections because it is hard to say just how “successful” this movement really is. If it isn’t so successful it may lead to its downfall, but on the other hand a big impact may lead to the tea-party becoming a major influence in our generation of politics.  

Dorm Room List

My list of my dorm room objects:

Bed

Mattress

Comforter

Pillow (2)

Throw pillows (6)

Window seat

Futon

Blanket

Jewelry

Phone

Phone charger

Reading light (2)

Desk

Chair

Books (19)

Box of Sunday funnies

Lamp

Laptop

pictures

Candy canisters (3)

Sticky notes

Stapler

Paper clips

Pens/pencils

Sharpies

Whiteboard pens

Whiteboard eraser

White out

Tape

Glue

Scissors

Hand sanitizer

Push pens

Lined paper

Extra binder

Fridge

Vitamin waters (8)

Apples (3)

Speakers

Ipod

Hard drive

Drawers

Fan

Makeup/ nail polish/ etc

Shoes (14 pairs)

Sweatshirts (4)

Hats (4)

Gloves (2)

Jackets (5)

Sweatpants (2)

Jeans (4)

Vests (2)

Shirts (21)

T-shirts (7)

Socks (13)

Shorts (6)

Pjs (3)

Swim suit (2)

Cups (4)

Plates (4)

Silverware (8)

Bowls (4)

Shower caddy

Shampoo

Conditioner

Body wash

Face wash

Towel

House robe

Dress

Skirt

Backpack

Belts (3)

Hairbrush

Hair straightener

Toothpaste

Toothbrush

Water filter

Volleyball

Frisbee

FOOD
tool kit

Laundry detergent

 After reading over my own list and comparing it to those of the 1700s, I found a lot of similarities, and quite a few differences. For instance I value my electronics a lot, while slaves, silverware, and imported items were greatly valued in the 1700s. At the same time I value pictures and letters a lot. People back then also valued pictures. The biggest difference I noticed was that these items were just in my small dorm room. I have more items even back home in my room. On the other hand, these were all of the items these people owned for their entire homes and farms. Basically, today we have a lot more “stuff”. It made me step back and look at how unnecessary a lot of these things are.  

Pocahontas Poems

Although I really enjoyed the poems I felt like they did not help me to understand Pocahontas any further. They all seemed to tell more about the person writing the poem than about the real person of Pocahontas. Whether that meant writing about her beauty, or strength or calling her a hero or a trader, the poems told more about the writer. It was clear to see the true intent of most of these poems. They told how Pocahontas was being portrayed in the time it was written. While Cornstalk wrote in an upbeat, sexualized way, Thackeray wrote a in a heroic tone while Allen wrote about the Englishmen with a negative vibe. All about the same person, all are very different perspectives.

Overall this helps show that there are less facts about her as a historical figure and more is written about her character.

The Many Pictures of Pocahontas

After looking at the different artworks of Pocahontas in class it made me more curious to find more. It is amazing to see the amount of differences between all the works. The only one made while she was alive is extremely different than many of the images we have of Pocahontas today. In my mind I visualize the stereotyped dark skinned, deerskin covered, feather-wearing skinny and beautiful “Pocahontas”. It was amazing to see the different takes on her. They mostly said more about the artist though than the actual person of Pocahontas. Even the one painted while she was still alive feels like it must have some of the artist’s interpretations of her mixed in as well.

I found yet another portrait that was made of Pocahontas around 1610. It mixes both her Indian dress with some European aspect (the necklace). Unlike most works, this photo seemed to have less European influence in how she is portrayed. Just another picture to add to our collection.

 

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1615189,00.html

Pocahontas as a Character in America's Story

When learning about Pocahontas, I would have to say my understanding of her is much more in character, than in symbol or historical figure. (Historical figure meaning more facts about Pocahontas herself) There really aren’t too many sources that tell dates, attributes or other qualities of the person Pocahontas. Thinking about Pocahontas as a symbol is doable, but I find myself most studied in the way she is a character. I believe she encompasses story and is remembered for her importance to the history of our nation.    

The reason I think of Pocahontas more as a story than a figure or symbol is because of the way she is portrayed in society. I have learned some minor information about her in textbooks in past classes but what seems to be more important were her actual works in story form.

The other way I know Pocahontas is from her Disney movie, which I haven’t seen in a very long time. I remember the story through this media, but I don’t remember factual information. In movie form more values are shown, but I still find the story much more understood than symbolism of Pocahontas.

Why is that the impression I am left with? I know that there are values added into the movie, but why don’t they stand out as much in my mind? I am going to re-watch the movie again tonight and that will probably answer my questions or even change my impression.

EGO?

“Thus God indueth thise savage people with sufficient reason to make thinges necessarie to serve their turnes.”

-First Hand Accounts of Virginia, 1575-1705

How can these people be savage when they are making complicated boats, have unique fishing techniques, etc?

It is quite clear that these English people think highly of themselves. Even when writing about the complicated and very successful techniques for fishing, the writer talks down the Native Peoples.

When the English were starving and struggling during their first years it seems funny that these “savages” were able to survive so well.

Although this writing seems to compliment the Indian techniques, it has underlying quotes like above that completely belittle them at the same time.  

Statue of Freedom

The time and thought that went into making the Statue of Freedom made me curious as to what the other plans looked like. Below is the second draft, with the liberty cap. It is interesting that the final product did not contain this symbol, but instead wears a helmet with a feather.  

The idea that the liberty cap represented freedom from slavery would have been seen as hypocritical since slavery was still at large in the States.

Instead, they had to make adjustments to this sculpture which I thought was interesting to learn about.

This made me ask, what sort of complications and conflict this would have caused, had the statue remained with the liberty cap.  

 

http://picturinghistory.gc.cuny.edu/item.php?item_id=185

American's View of Landscape

Have we “as America” changed in the way we view land. Is it just a resource to use?

I have to think that yes, we still use our land as a device for money. We grade and change landscape in order to fit our best needs. Hills are leveled, forests are cut, and Americans make the land as profitable as possible. I think it is to some degree always true though of human nature. To get the most you can with what is given. To some degree every person, besides hunter/gather type, are all altering the landscape to some degree. The main difference is to what degree. America as a country today seems to do this at a very high rate.

So no, this is not a new concept, Americans still, and may always, view land in terms of profit.

Positve/ Negative Events

I was asked after one of my posts if a group of people can bond from only negative events or challenges, or if it was possible to have commitment from positive events.

I found it much easier to think of negative events bonding people together than positive. In history, people tend to get together because of traumatic experiences. After 9/11 the United States seemed to “come together” through this negativity. When America fought for its freedom, it again was rebelling against the undesirable British rulers.

After thinking it through though, there are positive motivations for coming together also. People get together for positive celebrations, like births, and anniversaries. On an even bigger scale, something that stuck out to me was the Olympics. I went to them last year and the memories and experiences I gained from it seem so surreal. Seeing people of all nations, together for a positive moment was incredible.

So, overall, I feel like both positive and negative moments can bring people together. It seems though, like negative events either stand out, or occur more frequently though.  

Centers of Community

“The New England village therefore assumed great symbolic importance to the Puritans, as a mythic as well as social and commercial center.”

-Landscapes of the Sacred, Belden C. Lane

When I think early European settlements in the New World, a typical layout of the village comes to mind; one with the religious meeting house in the center and houses, farms and other buildings working around that center. This was typical for these villages, and having the meeting place in the literal as well as the theoretical center was of main importance to the Puritans.

When I think of St. Olaf, no true center comes to mind. The layout was not planned in that way. Are Buntrock and the Chapel the theoretical center? It the literal center closer to Melby hall?

I began to think of my home town. Even in the downtown I can’t think about where the center truly lies. Possibly in the local shopping mall? When I thought of the theoretical center though, several places came to mind. The “Education” hill in town with the elementary, Jr. and high schools. The movie theater and dining area. The bottom of education hill where several churches and temples are located. The town hall.

The main concept I gathered was that the Puritans had a known center, while today that is rarely the case in most towns, cities or even college campuses.

Do we lose a sense of community by not having a known “center”?

The Typical College Campus

“But in the process, the college had to become even more fully a kind of miniature city.”

-Campus, an American Planning Tradition, By Paul Venable Turner  

The more I think about the quote and think about my life as a college student, the more I fully agree with this statement. Out of all the college tours I went on over the past couple years, none of the schools I looked at lacked extracurricular entertainment. Each school has plenty of park and open space, gyms, commons, cafeterias and cafes and some even movie theaters and bowling alleys.

In every case, each college was set up in a way to accommodate student’s every needs. There are plenty of food choices, living spaces, recreation areas, even convenience stores for every campus. I felt like I was touring miniature self-sufficient towns, but that became the norm.

At Saint Olaf I realize the only reason I really have left campus so far was to go for runs, bike rides, and sightseeing (especially Carleton’s flooded fields). Other than that I have been able to get everything else I could need right here on the hill.

I never thought of this as being abnormal, but after reading this excerpt, I realize this concept was much more unique when introduced in America. I find this interesting but also logical as students seem to be able to spend more time in their scholastic communities this way. I wonder what the college experience would be like had these ideas not come into being.

Glimpse Into the Other Side of the Anne Hutchinson Case

“Although the elders claimed that their punishments of Hutchinson were for the good of the society as a whole, they were most furious about her personal criticism of their preaching; it was absolutely unforgivable, Thomas Weld complained, that ‘the faithful ministers of Christ must have dung cast on their faces, and be no better than Legall Preachers, Baals priests, Popish Factors, Scribes, Pharisees, and Opposes of Christ himselfe.’”

-A Radically Different Voice: Gender and Language in the Trials of Anne Hutchinson, Lad Tobin

This quote is interesting for me to read. I mostly find myself siding with Anne Hutchinson because everything that I have read has shown her as the victim. I am not saying that I believe any of this as being morally correct but I enjoyed hearing this piece about those on the other side of the argument. They (the accusers of Anne) felt very strongly about being seen in a poor light. They did not want this trend to continue. People were beginning to see flaws or differences in these tradition Puritan teachings and change was beginning to take place. Not only were women in on this change, but men as well. This movement was gathering strength and challenged the comfort and authority these traditional Puritan men had.

I could see them being offended by the rejection of some of their teachings but it seems way over dramatized in this quote. I still believe that banning Anne Hutchinson from the Massachusetts Bay was unnecessary and unjust but this quote at least gives to light the thoughts and feelings of her accusers.

This quote clearly shows how overboard these people went and the way they overanalyzed Anne’s teachings. The idea that in the New World the Puritan’s had less in common stands out even more to me now. Without the common persecution from the Old World, there was less to keep these people bonded together with. They were waiting for the next bonding experience, and that happened when some new idea was introduced and accepted by Puritans. To combine against Anne was the next “bonding moment”. I think this is a crucial aspect for the trials of Anne Hutchinson.

AMCON's Landscape

“Landscape is a way of investigating and interpreting these sources of ourselves. Inevitably, though, the paths we choose to approach it- words, pictures, music, dance, gardens, sports- lead us only to points of view which are full of vision, but short of whole sight”

-Landscape Is a Point of View, by Gregory Conniff

I found this short assessment of landscape extremely interesting and applicable to our class as a whole. It is difficult to have a broad view on anything in life because every person comes from their own unique backgrounds. Depending on these backgrounds, no two people can have the same thoughts or opinions on all subjects. Experiences lead us to have points of view on anything.

I think that is what helps make our class much more interesting and helpful. The more people with different backgrounds in life we have in a discussion, the more points of view we have. Because of this the discussions become much richer.

This is something I want to keep in mind for this class and for the rest of life itself.  Keep in mind other backgrounds, and be open to listening to others thoughts on a situation.

This occurs in class all the time. Reading several articles and sources about Puritans gave me a better understanding of them. Before I had a much more limited view of them, but after reading these articles and having our class time, more points of view gave me better insight on the topic.

Puritans and the Natives Americans

“John Winthrop declared that the decimation of Indians by smallpox manifested a Puritan destiny: God was ‘making room’ for the settlers and ‘hath hereby cleared out title to this place.’”

-          A Different Mirror, Ronald Takaki (40)

I found this quote to be extremely interesting especially after today’s discussions. Here was the leader of the Puritan movement to America, saying something so “unreasonable” in today’s ears. It seems crazy to hear of someone wanting to “be better people” going about talking about deaths as reason to take land.

Here they were escaping to gain freedom, only to take away from others and have little care in the matter. It shows how poorly the native people were thought of by these supposedly religious and kind people. It also shows how strongly the Puritans thought that the devil resided in the native people. I know that these thoughts on the native people occurred by many other groups of colonists, but it the book and this moment in history shed a poor light on the Puritan people.   

 Here's a nice picture of John Winthrop
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Winthrop

Learning to Love the Hill

Learning to Love the Hill

by Katie Ulvestad and Marissa Recht

because of the friendly greetings

because of the snow topped hill

because the lakes freeze over in the dead of winter

because of the leaves scream fall

because I say we, not they

because I home is now the Midwest

because bikes replace my mode of transport

because I have delighted in the Caf foods

and Malt-o-Meal smells are a part of every day

because I have left my high school ways

and college takes up with great pace

because I would never walk barefoot in the shower

because I belong in St. Olaf’s biggest class

because I left my mountains far behind

because I left granola country for Ole country

because I am St Olaf 2014

because it is time.

Freedoms; Positive and Negative

The idea of positive and negative freedoms is an extremely difficult concept for me to comprehend. Just when I thought I understood it, we had class lecture and it became even more confusing to understand. The main thought I had after leaving class was the question of what is a right and what is a freedom. They are different concepts but seem to overlap at certain times.

Another question I had after class was whether or not “freedoms” conflict at times with “human rights”. In some ways I think this occurs but in other cases, I think people have the right to respect but not listen or care about the ways people use their freedoms. In this way I think that there are cases of conflict, like freedom of speech and the right to ignore. No freedom is being denied; only it may not serve the purpose the speaker wishes.

 Basically, this concept of freedoms leaves me with more unanswered questions than with the neat orderly definitions I crave.

What Freedom Means to Me: America's Freedom of Choice

I belive money symbolizes the American freedom of choice seen in the 21^st century. There are so many options as to what Americans can spend money on in this time. Cars, electronics, food, clothes, vacations, homes, are all part of the variety of ways people choose to use their cash.

 Once acquired, money can be spent in the manner the owner wishes. People have the option to choose the way that they wish to spend their money. It is a freedom. Having money means you can choose what things you want to see, do or have. You can spend ten dollars on gas, movies, lunch or earrings. It is completely up to the owner to pick the way it is spent.

Also, an even bigger choice given to Americans is the way they can choose where they buy their particular items. In the American 21^st century this means that there are limitless choices. If one prefers McDonalds over Subway, they can choose to buy a hamburger over a sandwich. A person can prefer a PC over a Mac, there’s another choice. There are no limitations to the way money is spent once acquired (after of course accounting for taxes). At the same time money can also be saved for something larger in the future.

Money is a type of freedom, just like speech. Although money needs to be earned first, once in procession both speech and money can be used in the way the owner wishes. So in this day and age, choice through the use of money is a major source of freedom for Americans.