Moth vs Butterfly - WITH KENDRICK INFLUENCE ;)

The one thing we all have in common is the single representation of life… and the single representation of death. There are two kinds of people that make up the world. The butterfly and the moth. One with triumphant wings that catch they eye of any being, and one with the inelegant wings that result in disgust.

The moth is always identified as an insect or creature  due to its features. There are no characteristics which make it stand out. It is rather ugly and unappealing, just like any other standard insect. As Virginia Woolf stated, “they do not excite that pleasant sense of dark autumn nights and ivy-blossom which the commonest yellow-underwing asleep in the shadow of the curtain never fails to rouse in us”. The statement made shows how a moth is just mediocre or more so pathetic. The humans that stay below the eye of the public, that do not strive for excellence, that sit back and wither away are the moth. They are the unimportant creatures of our specimen. They have the wings to fly, however; they do not use their capabilities to their potential. They go day to day with simple tendencies that do not past any chance of change.

The butterfly is the exact opposite. The highest in its class and considered beautiful, although it is know as an insect. To people a butterfly is a creature worthy to the human eye and is even a representation of life. As Kendrick Lamar uses the image and wording “To Pimp A Butterfly”, he exploits the creature to its full potential by “pimping” it. This is taking, the already beautiful, butterfly and adding more to it, giving it more life. In the sense of life for a human, the butterfly would be known as the person who leads. The one who uses their abilities to better themselves and the people around them. They use the wings given to not only fly, but do so with grace.

The COMPLEXION of a butterfly is the symbol of its characteristics. To be “a sight to see” for an insect, the butterfly is what we humans should strive to be. The greatest of the human race. To be seen based on our work instead of color, race, or religion. Just as Muhammad Ali, Ghandi, and Albert  Einstein who are all known based on their actions. We are INSTITUTIONALIZED; however, we need to break THESE WALLS and be more than a MORTAL MAN.

We all have “loyalty and royalty inside our DNA” making it possible to be the butterfly we need to be. We can use PRIDE but be HUMBLE at the same time. We can FEAR but still master each ELEMENT. We can all “pimp” a butterfly, but cant change a moth.

To Glow

To enter into the discussion, the problem is racism towards all. We all have bigotry and intolerance for a specific set of people, no matter what the situation may be. To make sense of every situation we should understand every previous moment before; step into one's shoes, rethink how one may feel, and view both sides of the story. We need to glow.

The phrase “blinded society” is extremely ironic. We would be better blind since much of the hatred comes from what we see and the outlooks of one’s personality. Instead of our society being blind to everything, we have a specific lens we see through that slowly worsens our view on the world. This relates to our perspectives, and how we our close minded. The blindness is a severe diagnosis which humbles one’s heart and mind. The correlation connects but the point is off. It is not our eyes that are blinded, but more so the mind.

To have a good heart is scarce in the world. The constant cycle of breeding humans to hate is placed on every soul as we slip further into an abyss of darkness. We learn the difference between right and wrong, until the inside of one's heart and mind is manipulated. Then the care to do something right fades as the acceptance of doing something wrong becomes withstandable. One thing that we take advantage of (which is still a sin) is the disrespecting of others. The circle of the cold world is shown not only through hatred towards a kind of person but towards the people we are jealous of. The people we hate for no apparent reason. The people we do not even hate due to racism, but toward the fact that they are different. This relates to the lens that slowly takes over our minds. It devours our spirit like a boa snake constricting our ability to love. Thus creating an adaptation to the claustrophobic environment of our ill mind.

The never ending cycle of hatred can change. Change is not easy but neither is living in this gruesome world. Create a loving atmosphere for the generations to come. Just as Frederick Douglass had said, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men”.

BOOM

The passage, The Clan of One-Breasted Woman, emphasizes the disastrous outcomes of the nuclear weapons testing. Just as people had suffered in Japan due to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs, people in the United States have suffered due to radiation. Unfortunately, like many outcomes of America, the government is yet to blame. Using land that is supposedly “uninhabited” as a safe ground for the testing, this caused in outburst for the people in these areas.

Not only did the bombings affect have health related issues, but it goes to show how the United States government is hypocritical. Claiming to love and protect “its people” as they let the radiation alter human life. Causing death due to cancer and other health issues. Critically standing for itself as they get a slap on the wrist for their actions. The millions of problems created from the United States government seem to piece together as if they work together on a link chart.

All the facts are embodied throughout time. We just need to stand for ourselves against the government that works for us.

To Be Or Not To Be

Everyone loves to look dapper and beautiful; however, people also need their days to wear sweatpants and hoodies. As men “supposedly” have their days to look sloppy and not be judged, Deborah Tannen claims that “there is no unmarked woman”.

For many years women have been described based on their beauty. What they wear out the house, what makeup they place on their face, and what they do to their hair. It is almost mandatory for women to have to dress themselves up. When they take a day off women are judged for not looking “normal”. Nonetheless, times have changed and views of people are not as sexist as before. Women argue that they cannot go out in sweatpants and hoodies without being judged. Yes, women are criticized when they do not wear makeup or dress up, but it is up to them for wearing makeup everyday and dressing themselves up. It is only right for one to question the difference. The argument they women are the only ones marked is not true to this day.

As I present myself with fashionable clothing and different trends, I am considered marked. I am questioned when I do not dress up. Since it is common for me to do this everyday it is expected for people to ask questions about my different appearance. A young girl in my class wears the same blue hoodie, along with jeans and no makeup. No one questions her appearance and why she does not wear makeup because she has been presenting herself this way everyday. If a woman wanted to dress up everyday with no makeup no one will question her actions, leaving her being unmarked. If I wanted to wear sweatpants everyday, I would also be unmarked.

It is not just for women to be marked or unmarked. It is about the decisions one makes that gives them the specific title.

Difference

After much controversy, many ask about why spaces in the world are gender classified, however, thought about this topic recently shifted into my point of view. After (President) Donald Trump issued for gendered students to use their normal bathroom despite their gender preference. This means that a male uses the male's restroom and a female uses the female restroom, just as it had been set in standard for many years. As this instance does not affect me personally in any matter, it does soever affect millions of people scared to be who they truly are. Just recently it has been proclaimed that a young male, known as Mack Beggs, has finished his wrestling season 52-0 since Texas Law would not allow him to wrestle boys. As he was born a female buy changed his preference to a male, the boy would not be qualified to participate in a sport that does not correspond with his birth certificate. Though he proved himself worthy against Texas law to beat females in wrestling, what if the roles were reversed?

Many times boys are stereotyped to be athletes and always better than females at physical activity based on our genetics. We have separate stores that we enjoy (sporting goods stores)  and places that correspond to our masculinity like the gym. When one thinks of a gym they think of macho men who suit up in sleeveless shirts, injecting drugs into their veins, and the act of pumping iron. No one considers women to play a role in the type of work done at a gym. How come?

It is from the basis of what we have been crafted to follow certain stereotypes and not break from them. Ironically it is not the fact that women are not physically capable, it is the fact that they outshine men in aspects based on stereotypes. Women fight harder, and many times are more determined than men. And though this is said, many times being true, we still think of the stereotypes after all the change in the world. A male is placed to do this. A female is placed to do that. Times have changed, technology has become efficient, we have evolved, but our minds have have barriers that keep us from reaching our full potential as humans.

What Happens In Vegas Stays In Vegas

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas is a saying well known to many people all throughout the United States of America, however it is very ironic. With all the things that happen in Vegas one may not understand the fact that the events that take place are supposed to be left there and never placed into further discussion. The drive thru marriage companies think otherwise as shown in the passage, Marrying Absurd by Joan Didion.



Marriage in Vegas seems to be considered as a joke as many marriages take little time and effort to complete. The business of the drive thru marriage has been created just as a way to influence Americanization and the importance of money. In many cultures a marriage is an important time in one's life, but in Vegas it tends to be considered as a joke. People ages 18 and over can recite their vows in a matter of minutes and be considered “married”.



The problem is what does this cheap marriage describe about the situation? Does a person not love another if they get married through a drive thru? Will the marriage last? Was it even love or rather so lust? Was this the only affordable outcome a person may have had? No one can speak for another person's life and their actions but it does bring suspicion into the minds of couples all around the U.S. The lifeless ‘Drive Thru Company’ makes marriage seem to be a joke. Instead of the marriage being something real it may be seen as something quite fake slowly eating away at hearts of Americans day in and day out. Marriage is made more so as a label to add to your resume of life. Many people seem to just want more than they ever have before, allowing them to be vulnerable and mislead to the cultures of society. Fitting in with labels and Americanism people give into silly customs that play a part of American life. It just goes to show that the marriage in Vegas may just stay in Vegas.

The Truth of the Nacirema

The ways of humans have forever been shifting as we pick up on different aspects from the “Nacirema” tribe according to Horace Miner. Our view points, our ways of life, and our judgment has all been altered as we adapt to new ways of living. It is certain that we Americans have culture, but where do we originate from?

Just as the humans have had tribes of all types, we discover our true self from the Nacirema. The Nacirema is a tribe that has originated from all different types of tribes, emulating the ways of others into its own society. With the transition to mold its own way of life The Nacirema tribe created a country based on freedom of all. Although there was freedom and equality the tribe had made, a specific way of living with expectations on appearance, thinking, and respect became part of the cycle.

As people started to adapt to the ways of the Nacirema, they stopped questioning the decisions of the tribe. The religion to follow became Christianity and anything else was out of the ordinary. The jobs began to be classified for certain people, as whites took prominent role in all the industries. Education became a part of society and placed through the eyes of the tribe, as they had control of what knowledge people received. Certain tendencies were a way of adaptation for all life and became known as assimilation. Respect came for only a certain class of people. Listening to people with more authority became the main way of society. The way one appearance should be had shifted based on the culture of the higher class. Sectioning off people based on color and ethnicity, known as race, had become a way of thinking that was never questioned.

The ways of the Nacirema tribe were dysfunctional. The leaders had constructed everything while the people of the tribe became blinded. Corruption was placed in the heart of the Nacirema tribe and push through until it had become a way of living in America now. The real ways of the Nacirema tribe were never followed but only promised. Only the ones with the real eyes will be able to unveil the difference between the Nacirema tribe and what is America culture today.