Kuranda's Portfolio

Kuranda Elwood's portfolio for Lang 120.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Final Reflection

Writing and communication is a tool that is used in all disciplines and I feel that it is not only necessary to grow in this area but that I have successfully grown in the key ways this course was designed to encompass. Engaging in critical questions that require in depth thought, the ability to take information from many sources and integrate them, and the ability to use all of these tools to communicate effectively and appropriately are all key to writing and I feel I have reached a point where I can do all of these things. Throughout my many works of writing, I have asked difficult questions, gathered and used information in my research from wildly different sources and used them effectively, and I have learned how to make use of rhetorical devices when attempting to convey my ideas through writing. From the beginning work to the end, I believe my portfolio accurately captures my growth as a writer and researcher.

Throughout my writing, I have asked critical questions about important issues that affect society today. This class has taught me how to conduct proper research, find useful and insightful sources, and how to cut out unnecessary resources. Knowing how to investigate in this way has enabled me to find answers to issues that I thought too complex for me to ever fully understand or be able to contribute to answering, but now I feel I have.

Critical questions and issues affecting society today are present in the work I have done. In You Made Us Grow, I wrote about mental illness and how the mentally ill are forced to live due to stigma. For example, “When Andrea’s grandfather was young and first experiencing his mental illness, he was forced to hide his condition and kept it a secret for decades.” Stigma leads to issues like this and, like in the case of Andrea’s family, it can have extreme effects on a family. This is an issue often not acknowledged due to shame, and more investigation and communication is needed to put it out there and make it visible. Visibility is the first step towards acknowledgement and change, so communicating issues like this through writing is very important.

I have not only researched and spent time finding a variety of sources to accurately capture a rounded image of the issues but considered multiple and conflicting opinions. By exploring multiple perspectives, like in my work A Monopoly on Life, I am able to capture the multifaceted nature of an issue. By showing these many sides, such as a teacher and a scientist’s opinions and experiences with the same issue, I have been able to show the complexity and the significance as these issues often affect many people in many different situations and in many different ways.

I also know the importance of using tools like MLA format when writing and using these sources. For my papers to be appropriate for an academic audience, MLA citations have to be used. This is important because it also gives my research validity.

I have used sources in conjunct to shape a bigger picture and support my claims from multiple angles. In my little library, Universal Fear, I drew from art, fiction, and podcasts to express my view of fear. In my piece Monopoly on Life, I used statistics, studies, and personal accounts to capture the United States’ issues with medicine and prices. From this array of sources, I was able to find connecting messages, purposes, and conflicting ones as well. Even conflicting opinions were used to develop my writing and my own opinions through integration and alternative options. Despite how different the sources were, I was able to use information from all of them, forming opinions and works that truly capture these serious issues. All were sourced and used in an ethical way, as well.

Throughout my research, I have developed a process of culling unnecessary information and sources in order to make my research precise and clean. This has also proved important when I consider audience and how to deliver my intended message. Thinking about how the work needs to be presented has become something I do from beginning to end in my writing process now that I look at writing as a conversation.

In addition to this, editing my own work and others has taught me more about revision and communication. When working with my group, I found even more effective methods of research and communication through our teamwork and received important feedback. They assisted me in the refinement of my work in Monopoly on Life. With feedback from both these classmates and my professor, I have worked to better my arguments and writing. The response to my work has shown me where I can improve or strengthen my argument. For example, I reordered Monopoly on Life after receiving comments about the need for an appeal to ethos at the beginning of the work. This was necessary to make the issue more human and relatable as most of my argument was built off of numbers, which don’t speak to the audience and call them to action in the same way as an appeal to ethos. This also goes back to what I have learned about rhetorical devices and how to use them. As my audience is built up of my peers, it is important to keep my writing in this piece professional but not necessarily as academic as a study paper, allowing me to use anecdotal evidence and the like. These sources of feedback have proven extremely important in developing my own methods and shaping my ideas.

Now that I have reached the end of this course, I believe I have fully grown to grasp these concepts taught within it. The difference in my ability can be seen from my beginning work to the work I have recently completed, and I’m very proud of that. I can communicate effectively through rhetoric and other writing tools, I can engage in critical inquiry and reflection, and I have developed formal literacy as my work included in this portfolio shows. I have done what I set out to do when I took this course.

Works Cited

Elwood, Kuranda L. "Monopoly on Life." Kuranda's Portfolio. N.p., 10 Dec. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.

Elwood, Kuranda L. "Little Library: Universal Fear." Kuranda's Portfolio. N.p., 2 Oct. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.

Elwood, Kuranda L. "You Made Us Grow." Kuranda's Portfolio. N.p., 2 Oct. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Op Ed Piece

Monopoly on Life

“For years, a steady supply of Daraprim had kept Reva Jones of Baltimore free from the devastating effects of toxoplasmosis, an infection that can cause brain damage and blindness,” writes Leslie Allen. Like most medicines, over the years Daraprim’s price has risen, but in 2015 that price of $13.50 a pill suddenly shot up when Turing Pharmaceuticals acquired the rights to produce it. Reva’s medication simply stopped coming. That’s how she and her family learned there had been a sudden price change. Before it could be sorted out, she had used up the remainder of her medication and the fallout began soon after that.

“She became more and more confused and couldn't walk or bathe or take care of herself,” her daughter explains, and by the time she was taken to the hospital she could not speak.

At the hospital, they soon learned that Turing Pharmaceuticals had also restricted the drug’s distribution, meaning it took nearly five days to get any of it to the very ill Reva, and when they did, it was $750 a pill. It’s the only treatment for her condition, however, so what choice does she have? Turing took advantage of the U.S. market, built perfectly for such predatory business practices, and trapped the deathly ill between a rock and a hard place, and they certainly aren’t the only ones.

This is just one example of many: Adalimumab, better known as Humira, is an immunosuppressant, it is extremely important to many people and is quite literally life-saving. It treats arthritis, plaque psoriasis, Crohn’s disease, and other conditions that affect the immune system. For a 28 day supply, this medication averages $822 in Switzerland. In the United States, that average jumps to $2,669 (International).

Harvoni, a two-drug combination of ledipasvir and sofosbuvir, is a new treatment for hepatitis C. In other countries, this medication can be bought at “as low as 1% of the U.S. sticker price.” And what’s the sticker price in the U.S.? $94,500 (Staton).

OxyContin averages $36 in Spain and $265 in the U.S. Tecfidera is $663 in the U.K. and $5,089 in the U.S. Truvada is $689 in the U.K. and $1,301 in the U.S (International). The list goes on.

A visual of United State’s price gouging compared to the prices in other countries (International).

The source of this information, the International Federation of Health Plans, does a yearly report of variations in drug costs worldwide. “First, it (the report) gives the lie to the idea that some countries spend more on health as a result of higher utilization. It is all about unit price,” says the International Federation of Health Plan’s Chief Executive Tom Sackville. To reiterate, this report reveals the fallacy in explaining away differences in health care spending between nations as an issue of how money is used in relation to medicine but the price of the medicine itself. “Second, we have looked here at a number of … products which are identical across the markets surveyed. The price variations bear no relation to health outcomes: they merely demonstrate the relative ability of providers to profiteer at the expense of patients, and in some cases reflect a damaging degree of market failure.” In other words, our market has made us easy prey to drug companies.

Issues of gouging and soaring prices have been put under the spotlight in recent months with drugs like tetracycline which experienced a price increase of 7,500 percent, daraprim which went up by 5,000 percent, or the the two dozen other prescription drugs that grew 400 percent or more between 2013 and 2015 (Allen). Not to mention Epipen, which has sparked very outspoken outrage in much the same way.

Daraprim has been particularly notorious as the former CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, Martin Shkreli, was called before congress to explain raising the price of the drug. “...(Daraprim) is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines because it treats toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that is particularly dangerous to pregnant women, people with compromised immune systems, and the elderly. In that vulnerable population it can lead to seizures, blindness, birth defects in babies of infected mothers, and, in some cases, death,” writes Bethany McClean. Daraprim is truly a medicine for the most “vulnerable.”

“The attempt to public shame is interesting,” Shkreli said to McClean in an interview. “Because everything we’ve done is legal. [Standard Oil tycoon John D.] Rockefeller made no attempt to apologize as long as what he was doing was legal.” Shkreli has gone as far as to say he wishes he had raised the prices higher still.

These prices are exorbitant and they’re ever-growing. So why should you care? “Higher brand name drug prices can increase health care premiums, deductibles, and other cost-sharing for everyone with health coverage, even for those who don’t take medications,” is the explanation Debra Whitman, AARP Executive Vice President for Policy, Strategy and International Affairs, provides (Philips). In other words, when the prices are already ridiculously high and still growing, it puts strain on the other industries involved and connected to it, not to mention every single person on health insurance.

In a 2004 study by the Veterans Affairs Center for Practice Management & Outcomes Research in the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, price surges have been determined to have a very clear effect on health. This analysis, which included data from multiple other studies, shows that the high prices of medication has led to a decline in health among the middle-aged and elderly Americans. The researchers also found that among those with preexisting cardiovascular conditions, there were higher rates of angina and nonfatal heart attacks or strokes. In the end, they concluded that the high cost of medication is very clearly having an effect on the population, particularly the chronically ill (Heisler).

There are a few different reasons for these wild prices, but patents are at the center of everything. Patents are extremely important in the drug industry as they serve as an incentive for research and the development of new drugs. “One of the patent's basic purposes is to encourage advancements in technology by ensuring inventors have — for a time — a monopoly on their creations and are therefore able to profit from them” (Whitman). Without patents, the scientists creating drugs would have no way to profit off of them and with the high price of research, scientists have to be assured they will be able to gain something for their hard work.

Patents allow companies to set extremely high prices for their brand-name drugs due to lack of competition. Without any competition, there is no reason to lower prices; it's simply not necessary. This can be seen in action in the case of Daraprim, in which the drug had no competition and was allowed to reach absurd prices.

While patents are in effect, generic counterparts cannot be made, but when those patents do run out the companies are loathe to let go of their monopoly. Often, manufacturers pay off other companies not to enter the market with their generic versions of a drug. “Even for older generic drugs, when competition dwindles or is bought out, prices rise” (Markert). They make a monopoly and they do absolutely everything in their power to keep it.

In other countries, there are limits to the prices pharmaceutical companies set. “In Europe health care systems anchor drugs’ pricing to their value; the U.K.’s National Health Service will not include drugs in its formula if their cost exceeds their value to patients” (Bach). This is just one example of many ways other countries avoid these extreme situations and keep their citizens safe.

“Clearly legislation is required, but you and I know that lightning could strike the Capitol dome in the same place not twice but 10 times, and this Congress would not be willing to stand up to the pharmaceutical lobby,” Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas has said in response to questions about these price hikes. He argues that “executive action is needed” as the situation is so dire (Sullivan).

The United States must follow suit and do so quickly, because the lives of so many rely on it. Morally and logically, the current system is remarkably flawed and if it is left in this state the situation will only continue to escalate. For the many citizens like Reva Jones whose lives depend on it, we can no longer sit in silence. Lives are being ruined and lost because of a price tag. From Daraprim to Epinephrine, medicines meant to save are being used to bleed the ill dry and it’s simply not right.

Big business should not be allowed to determine who lives and who dies.

Works Cited

Allen, Leslie. "Prescription Drug Costs." CQ Researcher by CQ Press. SAGE Publications, 20 May 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

Bach, MD Peter B. "How the U.S. Could Cure Drug-price Insanity." Fortune. Time Inc., 16 Sept. 2015. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Heisler, Michele, MD, Kenneth M. Langa, MD, Elizabeth L. Eby, MPH, Mark Fendrick, MD, Mohammed U. Kabeto, MS, and John D. Piette, PhD. "The Health Effects of Restricting Prescription Medication Use Because of Cost." LWW. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc, July 2004. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

International Federation of Health Plans, and Health Care Cost Institute. "2015 Comparative Price Report." (2015): n. pag. International Federation of Health Plans. International Federation of Health Plans, 19 July 2016. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Makert, Jennifer. "7 Things To Know About Drug Pricing in The US." Curiousmatic. Curiousmatic, 12 Oct. 2015. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Phillips, Greg. "New AARP Report: Brand Name Drug Prices Increasing Dramatically - AARP." AARP. AARP, 20 Nov. 2014. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Staton, Tracy. "Hep C Drug Tourism Has Begun as Patients Seek Harvoni, Sovaldi Overseas." FiercePharma. Questex, 02 June 2015. Web. 21 Nov. 2016.

Sullivan, Peter. "HHS considering Action on Drug Patents over High Prices." TheHill. Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., 10 Feb. 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

Whitman, Elizabeth. "Drug Price Debate: Can An Obscure Supreme Court Patent Case Lead To Lower Prescription Prices?" International Business Times. IBT Media Inc., 03 May 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Annotated Bibliography

Allen, Leslie. "Prescription Drug Costs." CQ Researcher by CQ Press. SAGE Publications, 20 May 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

Leslie Allen is an author with a background in science who has written many articles about the medical field, giving her the knowledge necessary to explain the issues of rising medication prices in an informed manner. Allen's article describes the nature of the drug industry and why prices are rising in great detail, focusing on the effects on both society and on the law. It is a scholarly article that uses facts and the opinions held by both sides to inform rather than argue. Allen focuses on the recent rises in prices of EpiPen and other important drugs and where these current issues stem from, going back to laws and other regulations put in place in the past such as the 2003 Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act which implemented the Medicare Part D prescription program yet restricted Medicare's ability to negotiate prices. This article is important to my research as it provides a wealth of factual information about my topic of research.

Elwood, Laura. "The Effects of Rising Medication Costs On Schools." Personal interview. 30 Oct. 2016.

Laura, an assistant teacher at a local elementary school, shared her experiences with medication both in her classes and her personal life. Due to rising prices, it can be difficult for students to get EpiPens despite being around their allergens quite often. She recognizes the importance of EpiPens but also expresses fear when considering using one because they are simply so expensive and she doesn't want to make the wrong decision and cost a family that much money. She also shared that we have family struggling to get treatment due to the price of their medication. Despite suffering from a condition that severely affects their ability to function, her nephew simply can't get the treatment he needs because of how expensive it is. This perspective will help my argument because it is so personal and it appeals to the audience's emotions. It is hard to deny there is a problem when children's lives are on the line.

Heisler, Michele, MD, Kenneth M. Langa, MD, Elizabeth L. Eby, MPH, Mark Fendrick, MD, Mohammed U. Kabeto, MS, and John D. Piette, PhD. "The Health Effects of Restricting Prescription Medication Us... : Medical Care." LWW. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc, July 2004. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

This analysis, which included data from multiple other studies, shows that the high prices of medication has led to a decline in health among the middle-aged and elderly Americans. The researchers also found that among those with preexisting cardiovascular conditions, there were higher rates of angina and nonfatal heart attacks or strokes. In the end, they concluded that the high cost of medication is very clearly having an effect on the population, particularly the chronically ill. This research supports my opinion that the rising costs of medication are having very real effects on our society, creating serious issues for many, some of which are life threatening. If this is not corrected, the study shows that not only will preexisting conditions worsen but new illnesses may develop such as depression.

Lambrecht, M. (2015), “On Water Drinkers and Magical Springs: Challenging the Lockean Proviso as a Justification for Copyright”. Ratio Juris, 28: 504–520. doi:10.1111/raju.12098

Lambrecht is a researcher of law and ethics at the Hoover Chair for Economic and Social Ethics, Université Catholiquede Louvain. He argues that copyrights and patents are not justified as “the ends don't justify the means”. He builds a strong argument through steps, layering his reasoning. First, he explains the Lockean Proviso, a labor theory that states we all have our rights to private property but only “where there's enough” for others. Proprietarian arguments are built from Locke's ideas and developed into the claim that the creators of original works are entitled to property rights on those works for moral reasons. This is applicable to the conversation about the rising costs of medicine because, at the moment, patents are part of the reason prices are through the roof. Because of these patents, there is not enough for others, as the Lockean Proviso mentions. This suggests that the patents are going too far in this case and that something should be done to correct it.

LoGiurato, Brett. "The EpiPen Pricing-surge Scandal Brings out the Worst Parts of Our Government and Healthcare System." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 27 Aug. 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

Janis is a mother of a boy with severe nut allergies and asthma, meaning he needs an EpiPen in case of emergency. Janis is still paying off hospital and other medical bills from the past few years and has no hopes of getting her hands on a new EpiPen once her last one expires. That day is quickly approaching and she is very worried about her son now that he's beginning daycare. By sharing this account, author LoGiurato appeals to the audience's emotions, showing them the turmoil this event has caused. He is also biased, however, as he himself has a severe food allergy that he must deal with so this source may not be the best as it does not show the full picture. Still, this emotional and personal account is an important part of the conversation and will help with my paper greatly.

Sullivan, Peter. "HHS considering Action on Drug Patents over High Prices." TheHill. Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., 10 Feb. 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

Sullivan explains the concept of “march-in-rights”, an executive action that allows Health and Human Services to end a drug patent when the drug in question was federally funded and its price is so high it is not “available to the public on reasonable terms.” Lawmakers believe that issuing further guidelines on when this action can be executed would prevent pharmaceutical companies from price gouging and other questionable practices. The article also discusses what a big issue this is currently, considering both presidential candidates are discussing methods of lowering prices. Trump and Obama both have considered allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices and Clinton is standing up against pharmaceutical companies as well. Sullivan uses numerous sources and quotes to show differing opinions on the situation and how things may play out. The political aspect of such a large issue is something important to be acknowledged in my paper and I believe this is a good source of information on that side of the issue.

Whitman, Elizabeth. "Drug Price Debate: Can An Obscure Supreme Court Patent Case Lead To Lower Prescription Prices?" International Business Times. IBT Media Inc., 03 May 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

This article discusses the court case CuozzoSpeed Technologies, LLC v. Lee which was actually focused on speedometers but could have proven influential on the cost of medicine depending on how it played out. Whitman explains that patents allow companies to set extremely high prices for their brand-name drugs due to lack of competition. Without competition, there is no reason to lower prices; it's simply not necessary. At this time, there are two methods of contending a patent: through the federal court or through the Patent and Trademark Office. Part of what the case in question is focused on is the differences between these two methods and how it is much easier to invalidate a patent through the Patent and Trademark Office and the pharmaceutical industry sees this method as a threat as it can allow for their costly medications to be challenged. This article is helpful as it sheds light on the importance of patents and these regulations on this industry which I'm researching. It shows that patents are part of the reason these companies have as much power as they do but also explains their side of the argument and how it's important that these companies have some way to protect their creations.

I began researching thinking I would focus on the recent copyright of the term “invisible illness” and how it has affected the chronically ill and disabled people who consider their illnesses “invisible” but once I began researching I realized the subject was too small and too recent to form a proper paper and my focus spread. I broadened my thesis to include the whole of the relationship between medicine and patents and copyrights, not only this specific issue, but that proved too broad. Finally, I settled on specifically medicine and patents. As I’ve researched, I’ve been surprised by how messy the legality of these issues appear to be and how little say the government seems to have in the restriction of patented medicines, but this is, in part, due to the sway powerful pharmaceutical companies have. The “naysayer” in my collection is present in the unbiased work of Leslie Allen, who makes sure to capture both sides of the argument. It’s helpful to have this information as it allows me to better strengthen my own argument against the common opinions of the “naysayers.” The importance of this topic is that it is one currently ruining many lives and could, at any moment, affect you. It’s impossible to know when illness might affect you or someone you love, and we can’t always be prepared, but when the time comes, we all deserve the right to access affordable medication that will not cost us our entire savings. So many people in this country need medication to live yet just as many can’t afford the medicine they need whether it’s a life or death case or simply to treat a cold, chronic or short-term, et cetera. The variety of media and perspectives I’ve gathered on the subject shows how many people it affects: personal accounts, studies, research, emotional narratives, and so much more, all about this same subject. I am confident in my research and in its importance.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Interview Reflection

In the interview, I did use all of my questions and formed about as many as we spoke as I had going into it. I knew that the questions I asked would lead to more, but I didn’t expect some of the stories my mom had to share, which were amusing in a frightening sort of way, particularly to me, as someone with food allergies. I think the unexpected outbursts from my mom were the most insightful, actually, as shown by quotes like, “So you’re thinking she’s not going to be on the floor but, as this shows you, you never know with kids.”

I think we often forget how chaotic kids can be and how often the unexpected does in fact happen. I honestly thought it would be easier to keep the kids safe from their allergens than it really is with them running around dropping forks and the contents of their meals being unknown to their teachers. It’s scary to think about how close they are to the things that could kill them and they go through this every day with a $600 backup plan in case something goes wrong.

All in all, I feel like I learned a lot from this conversation as it gave me insight on another, very specific, view of the situation: that of a teacher’s. I wasn’t fully prepared for some of the turns the conversation took, particularly when it came to my own family. I honestly didn’t know that my cousin was having problems along those lines and it hit close to home. The whole issue has always felt personal to me, but now it feels much more so.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Works Cited

Allen, Leslie. "Prescription Drug Costs." CQ Researcher by CQ Press. SAGE Publications, 20 May 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

Bach, MD Peter B. "How the U.S. Could Cure Drug-price Insanity." Fortune. Time Inc., 16 Sept. 2015. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

International Federation of Health Plans, and Health Care Cost Institute. "2015 Comparative Price Report." (2015): n. pag. International Federation of Health Plans. International Federation of Health Plans, 19 July 2016. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Makert, Jennifer. "7 Things To Know About Drug Pricing in The US." Curiousmatic. Curiousmatic, 12 Oct. 2015. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Phillips, Greg. "New AARP Report: Brand Name Drug Prices Increasing Dramatically - AARP." AARP. AARP, 20 Nov. 2014. Web. 22 Nov. 2016.

Sullivan, Peter. "HHS considering Action on Drug Patents over High Prices." TheHill. Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., 10 Feb. 2016. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Reflection

In the short time I’ve been in this class, my writing ability has grown greatly and my portfolio shows that. Through writing, I have considered questions and issues large and small, gathered information from multiple sources and used them to form something new, and learned how to better use rhetorical devices. With each new project I complete, I feel I am building a better writing process and it shows. My work reveals how I am developing as a writer capable of using these methods to form an opinion and convey my thoughts effectively.

Critical questions and issues affecting society today are present in the work I have done. In You Made Us Grow, I wrote about the issues the mentally ill face, “When Andrea’s grandfather was young and first experiencing his mental illness, he was forced to hide his condition and kept it a secret for decades.” The stigma of mental illness is a major issue and in the work I investigated it from the perspective of the family, a view not always considered. Being able to acknowledge and explore these issues is important to me and my ability to do so through writing is growing.

I have used multiple sources throughout my work, bringing them together to form a bigger picture and support the rest of the paper. In my little library, Universal Fear, I drew from art, fiction, and podcasts to help convey my message. From this array of sources, I was able to find connecting messages and purposes. Despite how different the sources were, I was able to use integrate information from all of them into one work. All were sourced and used in an ethical way, as well.

Through editing my own work and others I have learned more about revision and the appropriate use of various rhetorical devices. Analyzing the work of others, such as Gerald Graff’s Hidden Intellectualism, I was able to better understand how to construct my own argument and write it in such a way that it comes across well to the audience. When I write, I consider what focuses and structures will best convey my point. I consider my audience when deciding style, phrasing, and rhetoric. I focus on keeping my papers appropriate for an academic audience. For example, I use MLA format in order to keep my writing professional by complying with convention.

My portfolio covers all areas of these learning outcomes. I still have plenty of room to grow but my work shows that I’ve come a long way already since my first assignment. With each assignment I complete, I can tell that I am growing in the direction of fully fulfilling the learning outcomes expected.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Freewrite: My Hidden Intellectualism

My hidden intellectualism can be seen in how I pick apart works. I have little interest in Shakespeare or other classics, but when I do find a work I like I take it apart, piece by piece. I study the characters, try to find the symbols and meanings hidden within, mapping them as if they’re the supports in a building.

The first time I clearly recall doing this was with a comic. The characterization in it was extensive as it followed many children as they grew, fighting very human enemies and some that were wholly fantasy. I still feel as if those characters are a part of me because I grew to know them so well, looking beyond the obvious, finding the deep influences and the hidden aspects of their personalities.

How their parents, their environment, and their pasts shaped them into the characters that they were and how every subsequent event changed them was especially interesting to me. I can tell you Rose wasn’t a hard child who grew up too fast because her mother drank but a child so eager to grow up she found excuses to and veiled her childishness until her mother died, she was all alone, and she truly had to become an adult. Others argued she was mean or too serious, but she knit sweaters for cats and beneath the cold exterior she was just a child, trying to protect herself with big words and a complex facade.

I have analyzed horror stories like Lovecraft’s work since I was a kid; my mom likes to joke about it even now. I can tell you that his grand schemes of aliens lying in wait, of intellectuals finding themselves in too deep, and the lack of any single female character that was not passive represents his xenophobia, his ego, his overbearing mother. Through his work I have grown to know him and who he is, while far from pretty, is intriguing.

My interest in horror has led me to know people with many hidden fears, desires, and pains and sometimes the only way to know them is to find out through the art they make and they consume. My hidden intellectualism resides in my ability to piece together signs and symbols from a work to realize a deeper meaning, to understand the author or the reader.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Lovecraft’s Voice

In The Call of Cthulhu, author H.P. Lovecraft uses perspective and very specific vocabulary to build tension in his work and convey his ideas of mortality and humanity’s lack of meaning, creating his own brand of horror. Lovecraft has not only become a key figure in horror literature, particularly due to the popularity of The Call of Cthulhu, but he developed his own unique form of horror now known as “Lovecraftian horror” or “cosmic horror” which focuses on those universal fears Lovecraft wrote about so frequently along with the beast he created: Cthulhu. The terrors he originally wrote of such as the unknown, the chaos of space, and humanity’s hopeless future have only grown more and more relevant as economic insecurity, war, and the rise of almost alien technology have made humanity’s fate uncertain. This is an important text worth reading due to its great influence on and addition to horror through the many authors he inspired to add to this new subset of horror, “cosmicism”.

Originally published in 1928, The Call of Cthulhu has not only remained relevant but grown in relevance, becoming more and more prominent in literature due to Lovecraft’s use of fears that are universal. This includes the fear of the unknown and of insignificance, mortality leading to humans being nothing more than a blip in the grand scheme of the universe. As Stefan Dziemianowicz states in his introduction to Lovecraft’s work in H.P. Lovecraft: Great Tales of Horror, “In the three-quarters of a century since his death, H.P. Lovecraft has enjoyed a shift in literary reputation akin to that of Edgar Allan Poe… Lovecraft has gone from being perceived as a writer of a peculiar type of fiction with appeal to only a limited audience, to being respected as a literary figure whose work measures up to that of other classic American writers…”

The Call of Cthulhu begins with a preface explaining our protagonist Francis Wayland Thurston’s account of the events enclosed were discovered after his death, this dramatic irony already setting the tone for the rest of the work. It starts much like a mystery, tension building from the start as questions are, and continue to be, raised with each new revelation. The use of first person point of view reveals Thurston’s perspective and conveys not less but more despite the limits of what he knows, such as the knowledge of his death. This adds to the tension and displays how a man of science can fall so far, the supernatural gripping him and driving him to madness. Thurston’s voice is key to creating the horror in this work and Lovecraft’s final message of humanity’s insignificance. Thurston is a man of logic and he is regarded as stable and reasonable, as far as the reader can tell, and his narrative allows the reader to see into his mind as he struggles through the mystery and faces the horrors of this new level of reality he has stumbled upon.

The use of  vocabulary Lovecraft uses in The Call of Cthulhu is very distinct. The story is riddled with words such as eldritch, cyclopean, and non-euclidian. Through these words, which almost feel foreign, Lovecraft begins to build a sense of strangeness. His choice of words is very eldritch and strange in and of itself. By using words like non-euclidian and cyclopean to describe the ancient, ghastly city of R’lyeh, where Cthulhu slumbers, he paints a very vivid picture of a place that denies the laws of our reality, Euclid’s laws of geometry that define the world as we know it. Cyclopean brings to mind images of fallen cities, of ancient relics of the past. Lovecraft uses vocabulary to stress how truly repulsive and inhuman a sight R’lyeh is. R’lyeh and Cthulhu are depicted as terrifying,  “The nightmare corpse-city of R'lyeh…was built in measureless eons behind history by the vast, loathsome shapes that seeped down from the dark stars. There lay great Cthulhu and his hordes, hidden in green slimy vaults.” Words such as ancient, loathsome, seeping, and slimy convey the horror and unnaturalness of this city. The very specific words Lovecraft chooses, and often uses multiple times, stress the repulsiveness and horrible nature of what Lovecraft describes.

The magic of Lovecraft’s work is the universality of the fear it portrays and the way Lovecraft uses narration and word choice to convey that fear. Thurston’s tireless search for the truth takes him to the sea, as much the final frontier as space in Lovecraft’s world, the beasts both hold alien and dangerous to man as they are so unknown. He uses every part of himself he considers human and potent: intelligence, resourcefulness, only to find that, by the end, the world is a dark, grotesque place and there’s nothing he can do about it despite all of his abilities. He learns that humanity is powerless and small. The Call of Cthulhu is a highly influential work as it has led to the creation of a new form of horror, has inspired many authors such as Neil Gaiman and Stephen King, and grown in prominence since it was published nearly ninety years ago. The anxieties and nightmares at the core of this story transcend time periods and cultures, allowing for this work to only grow in distinction as the years have passed.

Works Cited

Lovecraft, H. P. "The Call of Cthulhu." Great Tales of Horror. New York: Fall River, 2012. 1-25.

Dziemianowicz, Stefan. “Introduction.” Great Tales of Horror. New York: Fall River, 2012.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

“Hidden Intellectualism” Rhetorical Summary

Gerald Graff, author of Hidden Intellectualism, grew up in the fifties when being an “intellectual” was considered a bad thing and would lead to social ridicule. Graff is now a professor and an author, intellectual work is enjoyable to him, and he explains that the unlikely source of his intellectualism was sports. This piece appeared in Clueless in Academe: How Schooling Obscures the Life of the Mind and the intended audience is other professors, educators, and administrators like himself. Graff seeks to show that academic thinking can apply to areas we usually don’t consider academic by providing examples from his own childhood. This can complicate the assumption that academic thinking must come from academic work that’s commonplace in schools.

His argument, while supported by his experiences as a student, leaves me questioning how it may be supported by his experiences as a professor. Though I have no experience as a teacher, I know that some concepts such as this are easier said than done when it comes to schooling. Otherwise, his argument is sound, supported by personal experience and a few similar theories such as Ned Laff’s.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

“You Made Us Grow”

Marilyn Hillerman and Andrea Crook, a mother and her daughter, sit down together to discuss a subject most avoid: mental illness. This is a topic growing more and more important yet it remains unwelcome in today’s society making Marilyn and Andrea’s honesty so valuable. There are many misconceptions about mental illness which run rampant in our culture and keep people like Andrea from feeling safe enough to speak up. Most families don’t allow these conversations to leave the walls of their home, adding to the discomfort surrounding mental illness, but Marilyn and Andrea have learned that silence is oppressing. By speaking up and sharing their experience, they help others learn and grow from them.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been more frightened in my entire life,” Marilyn begins yet she’s not panicked or tense, there are no signs of fear in her voice. When Marilyn and Andrea sit down together to reflect on their experience with Andrea’s mental illness, they aren’t upset. Andrea had a very terrible experience with her illness as she had a break from reality very suddenly and, when her mother came to get her, she jumped out of a moving vehicle and was almost hit by another car. The tone is surprisingly calm despite the subject and the obvious fear both experienced. Even this is important, that she’s calm in recounting this nightmarish situation. She shares her fears and explains how she rushed to get to her daughter once realizing there was something terribly wrong, and she’s calm. This is more important than even the sharing of their experience as these illnesses are seen as so frightful. Intent is good but tact is necessary to properly convey what needs to be in this situation and both Andrea and Marilyn have that tact in their conversation. By staying calm, Marilyn is showing that, while mental illness is painful and scary, it is not the monster under the bed that most media makes it out to be. In order for society to grow to accept mental illness, stories like these are a necessity. It’s important that these experiences are shared.

As their account continues, the tone changes to one of surprise even in reflection when Andrea shares what her grandfather told her: “I want you to know that I’ve been there.” He waited two weeks before calling his granddaughter and sharing that he too was hospitalized, that he too is sick. Andrea is not alone. Not even his own daughter, Marilyn, knew about his illness. He had kept it secret for years and who can blame him? When he first became ill, the treatment of mental illnesses was much worse than it is even now. And that shame and fear have haunted him his entire life, so much so that he was too afraid to come forward at first, even when his granddaughter needed him. It can be difficult to acknowledge illness, especially illnesses of the mind as they carry with them many stereotypes and are surrounded by misinformation, which Marilyn and Andrea’s story shows.

I originally chose this story due to the title, “The tone in your voice was so different.” It caught my attention and I felt drawn to hear the story behind it. Andrea and Marilyn’s experiences with mental illness and family teach the importance of honesty and love when going through even the most difficult situations. “We are so incredibly close. I don’t think there’s anything left unsaid,” Andrea says and her mother stresses that this honesty is what has set them free. When faced with difficult times, family has to come together to make it through, and that’s what Andrea and Marilyn’s family did.

This conversation and the lessons it shares are extremely important for all to hear. Andrea’s humanity and her family’s love and strength reveal that mental illness isn’t as threatening as it may seem. Those who have just been diagnosed with a mental illness, who are experiencing the fear and alienation that can come with their diagnosis, could be immensely helped by hearing Andrea’s story, just as it was helpful to Andrea to hear her grandfather’s story.

Our society has grown much like this family. When Andrea’s grandfather was young and first experiencing his mental illness, he was forced to hide his condition and kept it a secret for decades, but, now that society is beginning to change, Andrea is free to live her life more openly. This is exactly why it’s important for stories like these to be shared. At one point, Marilyn tells her daughter, “I think you made our family grow, whether they wanted to or not, or were ready to or not.” Now, by sharing sharing their story with the world, Andrea and Marilyn are contributing to the conversation about mental illness and how it can be handled by families and making society grow. Society is becoming more accepting of mental illness but we still have a long way to go; the first step begins with communication just like the growth of this family.

[exalted-8th-blog1]

Little Library: Universal Fear

I met a woman named Katherine through my interest in horror and my views on the purpose of this genre were forever changed. When I met Kat, I was scared of her. She’s strong, witty, and so perceptive it’s intimidating. She has interests that make one ask if she’s a good person because surely good people don’t take joy in writing and making art about such pain and horrors. Despite my inhibitions, as I got to know her I realized she’s one of the most kind, empathetic people I know. She uses horror as an outlet in the rawest sense possible: Kat was beaten and raped repeatedly as a child and her work often reflects that.

When I first met her, she had just started writing, and in the time that I have known her she has not only become my good friend but a healthier person. It’s as if writing about these things and portraying them in the most honest way possible - the most horrible way possible - has healed her. Writing, reading, creating, and consuming this horrific work has helped her heal. It gives her something to relate to, a way to speak out when she’s felt so closed in.

Kat is just one of many people I have met that uses horror to vent, to express their pain, and to help others. Shannon was manipulated and emotionally abused and once you know it, you can see those themes throughout her horror writing; she writes when she has panic attacks, she writes when she’s in pain, she writes when she’s remembering, and because of that she grows, she feels better. Isak has been emotionally abused; he draws and he sings, making beautiful art and enjoying work that, despite how horrific it may seem, serves as an outlet. With every work they create, I have seen them struggle with their inner demons and finally overcome them, if only a little at a time, growing with each small accomplishment. Each time they share these works, I have seen the feedback from others, from people who feel alienated, alone, or in pain who needed a voice that spoke to them and found it in these dark works.

We each will face our fears at one point or another and when we do we should have the tools we need to face them. In our culture we’re told to “face our fears” but facing them is just the beginning. To truly overcome a fear, I believe you must not only face it but to know it and accept it. This little library is a collection of works which speak to some of the most common fears, some that are as old as man such as the fear of the unknown or the fear of not being good enough, and some such as the fear of technology which is relatively new to humanity. Fear is universal, fearful things are all around us and even within us, and we each can grow from these works in some way.

As these fears are universal, they also span generations. War, technology, and helplessness were all stressed during the Cold War when Harlan Ellison wrote I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream and now, nearly half a century later, we can still relate to these fears. When Lovecraft published The Call of Cthulhu 88 years ago, there was fear of the unknown, of other groups, of what might be waiting just outside our perception, and now we still fear what we don’t and cannot know and let it haunt us, we fear other people, we fear other beings. Sleepless speaks of death, the most universal fear of them all. I believe these works should be a part of a little library because of how broad the reader base could be. Someone born after the Cold War can still relate to the fear described in I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream as there is still tension between countries, a fear of nuclear weapons, and of what technology may become.

Welcome to Night Vale, a quirky comedy about our fears and the popular works that capture them, manages to capture an array of universal fears while still remaining light and humorous, “I fear, Night Vale. I fear for what we know. I fear for what we don’t know. I fear for what we don’t yet know that we don’t know.” It focuses on internal fears, especially, “One of the great fears among a life of great fears, perhaps the last great fear is the fear of being no longer useful.” This quote captures the anxieties that can reside within a person. As Welcome to Night Vale and the comic, Myself, show, part of what makes us human is our anxieties. Being human comes with fears of inadequacy, being unwelcome, helpless, and these are just a few of the things we face but we will each face them Kuya’s comic, Myself, also shows how we can be our own worst enemy, our own nightmare. Again, these are all fears that we face as humans. These anxieties and worries are universal; no matter what society you may be in, what your background is, where you’re coming from you are almost sure to experience fear of not being good enough, of not fitting in, and the like. These works speak to each of us in a sense because of it.

We heal through works of art that we can relate to. Horror, like romance, comedy, and tragedy, can speak to us. I’ve seen it help others by serving as an outlet and a way to communicate a person’s struggles. Making this work easily accessible through a little library could help others the way it has helped the people I love and me.

Ellison, Harlan. I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream. New York: Galaxy, 1967.

Humanity’s inability to overcome the Cold War leads to the creation of an artificial intelligence, AM, so great that it becomes resentful of humanity and thus destroys it. All but five humans are killed but these few are saved only as toys for AM. This story is about madness, helplessness, and the loss of control. This horror story is a warning about war and the follies of science. I chose it because it’s such a good example of horror capturing the fears of a specific group under certain circumstances. Ellison published his work in the middle of the Cold War, when technology was becoming more and more advanced and key in war. When he created this story, he captured society’s worst fears: apocalypse, total destruction, the rise of artificial intelligence. These are still issues that we fear today with the power of nuclear weapons and technology in general and the tension between countries.

Lovecraft, H. P. "The Call of Cthulhu." Great Tales of Horror. New York: Fall River, 2012. 1-25.

A work that has led many other authors to write such as Stephen King, The Call of Cthulhu is a story that is still referenced today and has changed horror forever. It’s about a man who stumbles upon a mystery he was never prepared to solve when he goes through his great uncle's paper’s upon his death and discovers evidence of bizarre cults and deities, and its disastrous consequences. It’s not the best writing, it wasn’t famous in its time, yet now it’s one of the most popular works of horror. I included it in my little library because it focuses on the darker side of fiction and why we need these stories about the worst that can happen, what makes us uncomfortable, and what makes us really think. Lovecraft’s work is about the fear of the unknown, what we cannot and can never know, and what happens when we dare to challenge our own beliefs. These are issues that every person can relate to in a sense. “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear. And the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown,” he once said. We’ve all worried over what’s out there, what’s just around the corner, and what we may be missing, making this work relatable.

Deadmau5. “Sleepless.” Album Title Goes Here. Deadmau5. Mau5trap Recordings, 2012. CD.

Sleepless is a chilling song about death and loneliness. “Standing outside, the chalk outline, beside ourselves in time,” speaks of what happens after death, the fear of what comes next, something everyone has experienced at least once. Sleepless is peaceful even as it describes waking after death to find yourself outside of your body. This peacefulness We all ask what’s coming next, if there’s an afterlife, if there isn’t one, and worry about what might happen if there’s nothing. I chose this particular song due to it speaking to a universal fear: what happens after death, something no one can ever truly know. It fits in well with the theme of the library: befriending your fears, getting to know them, accepting them. Sleepless is another highly relatable work and past the dark undertones it is almost relaxing.

Fink, Joseph, and Jeffrey Cranor. “Glow Cloud.” Audio blog post. Welcome to Night Vale. Night Vale Presents, 1 July 2012. Web.

Welcome to Night Vale is mostly comedy with references to famous works of horror and science fiction throughout. It’s a story told by the town’s local radio host, Cecil, about all of the strange conspiracies and dangers that plague the town: secret police, UFOs over Arby’s, a mysterious cloud that sweeps through town and leaves dead animals in its wake. I include it in this library because it teaches an even more important lesson than all the rest: fear can be amusing. It can be beneficial to laugh at our fears and our worries, reminding us that worrying about what’s under the bed or what’s around the corner can be pointless stress. “One way to test if someone is actually dead is to think about when that person was born. Was is 400 years ago? Probably dead.” Facing universal fears like the control of the government, the unknown, what might be out there, etc. and laughing at them, making them something light, is a relief. This is another outlet, a way to make fear easier to take. It’s more relatable for teens and adults alike, making it helpful for all groups.

Kuya. “Myself.” Joestar, Tumblr, 23 May 2016, http://joestar.tumblr.com/post/144790331972/whos-telling-you-this-myself.

Kuya’s comic depicts a woman struggling to be “good enough”: no matter what she does, no matter how hard she tries, there’s a voice telling her it’s just not enough. The comic depicts her literally falling apart, words like “mediocre” haunting her, the only color her own blood, until finally the owner of the voice appears before her, revealing it’s herself. The comic ends with only a few words from the artist: ‘who’s telling you this’ and the response ‘myself’. I chose to include this piece because it is something that everyone has fought with, themselves. Anxiety, inferiority, and other negative emotions are all a part of being human and this comic captures the struggle to meet your own high expectations. The piece is powerful because of how relatable it is. It fits in with the other works because of the universal fear of inadequacy it portrays.

[zealli]

‘whos telling you this’

‘myself’