Penn State: A Party School

After listening to the This American Life podcast, I had very mixed emotions about the general content and the manner in which they tried to present it. I feel as if this was given from a very biased standpoint, and doesn’t show what Penn State is really like. When put in the wrong light, anything can look much worse than it is. I understand the intent was to show the issues that are included with Penn State being a party school, but the way they presented their anecdotes and thoughts made us look like a reckless set of students who are in general destructive and out of control. I do agree that the party scene at Penn State is big and fairly linked to the university, but I think how they showed it over exaggerated the problems that happen, especially those to the extent of deaths and severe property vandalism. With that aside, some of the things that happen such as “drunk kid in the house” are inexcusable and should not be what represents the overall picture of our university.

I found many shocking moments during the podcast. One of the main things that disgusted me was how delivery drivers were treated. To think that students would damage their cars, verbally abuse them, and even break their bones when all they are trying to do is deliver the drunk kids their food saddens me. Another surprising moment was when they were interviewing a kid at a party who was talking to a female who he had just met that night, and he openly admitted to trying to take advantage of her. “I’m just trying to get her drunk so I can take advantage of her later,” he said. I know this sort of thing happens, but it is hard to hear someone openly admitting to trying to do something like this. I also thought it was a shame how the officers could predict exactly what would happen through the night. They knew that around 2 A.M. they would get their DUI’s, around 3 A.M. was the victims and people to the hospital, and around 4 A.M. was when “drunk kid in the house” commonly occurred. This shows that these events happen frequent enough that there are trends that are fairly accurate in estimating when they will be.

The podcast had many appeals in place which greatly increased the effectiveness of their points. They used a lot of logos during their discussion and included many facts when talking about Penn State as a party school. One of the memorable ones was how 75% of the school drinks. They brought in a lot of pathos when discussing the victims of these events (such as delivery drivers and owners of houses that were intruded). Also, when discussing the fact that students die from these activities, they made their argument more credible and ethically appealing. Regardless of the party situation, I will still see Penn State as a well-balanced, superb university.

Art in Architecture

To me, art is expressing yourself in any way you feel passionate. By my definition, art will be different for every single person. I think this is true because art is something you have to have emotions for and feel strongly about. Since each person is different from the next, it is fair to say that the concept of art will change for everyone. I think that any form of personal expression to anyone is considered art, as long as someone is able to connect to it.

Being an engineer, the type of art which intrigues me the most is architecture. I really appreciate buildings and structures, and enjoy seeing all the different styles around the world. One of my favorite things to see when I go on vacations and travel are the famous structures that are near the area. I am very math and physics minded and love being perplexed by how some structures can even stand. My family went to Key West last spring and I got to see the 7 mile bridge. I was really excited to see it because I think it is amazing that we as humans can build a 7 mile bridge over an ocean and have it stand for going on 30 years now. I believe architecture counts as an art because the designs bridges and buildings have aren’t just functional; they are also made for aesthetic appeal. When the engineers constructed the 7 mile bridge, they designed it first to make it structurally sound, but secondly to give it a personal touch. If another engineer were to design it, it is safe to say the bridge wouldn’t look the same.

Along those lines, I am a huge fan of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural work. He has many different structures in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, which are my home state and where I live. His personal touch to all of his pieces makes each structure what it is, and I really appreciate every aspect of what he does. I really like his idea of creating structures “of the land, not on the land.” His best representation of this, in my opinion, is Falling Water located in our very own Pennsylvania. This building is literally built on top of a waterfall and on a rock, amongst the woods. There are parts of the building that wrap around the trees creating courtyard-like areas, and this makes the house look like it actually belongs there. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallingwater

Obviously architecture isn’t the only thing that I consider art, but it is one of the types that I appreciate the most. There are also types of art that I don’t love, but I respect and appreciate for what they are. The main example I feel this way about is musicals. I have been to my fair share of them, and seldom do I love them afterwards. However, I admire how much effort goes into them and how impressive both the acting and singing aspects of them are.

If you want to be be amazed, creeped out, concerned, intrigued, and a whole slew of other emotions, take some time and watch this conspiracy video about the Denver Airport. Through architecture, art, and structure, you will see some fairly questionable things that link the art involved in the airport to a story involving the Illuminati.

Palmer Museum of Art

Title: Cotton Choppers

Artist: Benny Andrews

Year: 1965

This piece was created using oil on canvas and depicts a few people of African descent working in a field. There are plants which are planted somewhat methodically in rows, which are small and being tended to by the workers. The description of the picture reveals that it took place in the south during a time of segregation. We also know Benny Andrews, the artist, is a vivid storyteller, and that this painting came from his perception of the social situation and his childhood memories of the event. As a narrative-based artist, his work evokes a lot of emotion. Because of this, his work is very touching and believable. During the time this was painted in the south, the Civil Rights Movement was going on and it just followed the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

                This piece relates strongly to emotion because it shows the way people of color were treated back in the time before equality among all humans. The way this piece was created shows how harsh the conditions were. The sun is bright in the sky with no clouds, there are some plants but hardly any shadows, and the ground looks like hot sand or dirt. These people were forced to work out in the sun regardless of the conditions, and you can even tell through what clothing they are wearing that they were struggling. When looking at the people in this picture, you can tell that the artist did not put a lot of detail into the faces. I believe he did this intentionally because it shows that to the white people of the era, the people of color were nothing but work horses and that they didn’t even see a unique human being in each body. This piece is also emotionally touching because the people in this picture all look exhausted, yet they continue to work in misery. The two people in the foreground are stopping to take a break, and all three of the people have a slumped posture.

                The main reason the artist satisfies a viewer’s ethos is by creating his pieces by memory, his own stories, and his past experiences. The artist also has many other pieces, most of them based on social issues and other nonfictional ideas. He paints based on experience, not with creativity. This alone helps the viewer believe that he is an accredited artist. Some of his pieces are also similar to this one showing that he has many memories of the event. As these pieces are all fairly similar, we can trust that his work is truthful because his experiences all tell the same story.

I believe the idea of painting this piece was to show the injustice going on in the south from the perspective of a man who had been dealing with it for part of his life. It is persuasive because we know he is telling a story based on experience, and the story is emotionally touching. I also believe he was trying to show how strong people of color were during this era. In the piece it is obvious how hard of workers they were regardless of the circumstance.

                I am not a frequenter to museums, but I did enjoy my trip to the Palmer Museum of Art. I found that a lot of the pieces I saw were very interesting, and many were much more than just a painting. This was my first visit to Palmer, and I was actually surprised as to how big it was. I didn’t realize how many rooms and different places there were filled with artwork, and I ended up being there for longer than I thought I would. I enjoyed my trip to Palmer and I related to much more artwork than I expected.