3. Sea Nettles

Ah yes–the Western canon, where do we even begin? For those who are unfamiliar to the term, the “Western canon” is the “high-culture literature, music, philosophy, and works of art that are highly cherished across the Western world, such works achieved the status of classics” according to Wikipedia. These are the Shakespeares and the Homers. In the context of this discussion, we are talking about the literary canon, which refers to European and American texts, which are considered to be the foundation of Western culture.  Mainly, I wanted to say that the Western canon has too tight of a hold on the American literature that we read in school. Throughout our educational journey we have read a multitude of books that are from the Western canon. Of Mice and Men , Oedipus Rex , To Kill a Mockingbird , Romeo and Juliet , The Merchant of Venice , In Cold Blood and many more. These texts are very influential in American literature however they all share a common theme: They were written...

Why is it that in America, tips are expected and even automatic, but everywhere else, all around the world, they aren't?  In Japan, they specifically prohibit tips and find it disrespectful if a tourist even suggests it. However, in America, some businesses automatically set the tip for the buyer, even without asking them what percentage they would prefer. One thing that really irks me is when the servers don’t even do anything; all they do is be at the counter when you place your order. Yet on the screen, it will still ask what percentage of a tip the customer would like to give. Why should a tip be given for that? Something which anyone, even me, can do? T ips used to be for table service. Now it's for coffee shops, to-go orders, delivery apps, haircuts, nails, airports, kiosks, and the list honestly just keeps on going on. Society has been shaped in a way that it even makes someone look like a bad person if they don’t tip, instilling guilt in the buyer. Whether it's Door...

The Never Ending Problem Homelessness always stays rampant when housing is simply too expensive. We as a society, primarily focus on curative medicine instead of preventative medicine. It is human nature to be greedy and believe that we will be fine … until we are not. The City of Fremont  explains how the Bay Area “experienced a significant growth in homelessness.” Today, looking on Zillow , a single family house that has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms costs around 1.2 million dollars! Renting in an apartment has also grown significantly in price as well. But, the minimum wage is currently at $17.75 hourly, which is barely enough to sustain oneself, let alone a family. There is also an anti-American dream philosophy, NIMBYism , which stands for “Not In My Backyard”. Fremont, like many other Bay Area cities, have sometimes faced strong local opposition when new affordable housing or shelters are proposed. For instance, residents in Central Fremont are worried about “the proposed co...

(Content warning: This post has distressing discussions of real animal abuse, cruelty, and testing) In a metallic, windowless lab, a helpless rabbit is restrained on a cold, metal table. In the name of science , her eyelids are clipped up to prevent them from closing, and a chemical is placed into her eyes. These chemicals are known to cause intense burning, bleeding, and pain. Why? Well rabbits are small and gentle, so they’re easy to handle…and they lack tear ducts, meaning they don't produce enough tears to wash out the chemicals, so reactions stay visible for longer. In a Virginia Beach lawn, for military training, a live goat is used as a stand in for wounded soldiers. Instructors cut off limbs, stab, and dismember him while joking and filming the “drills.” His moans and cries are audibly heard in the background because the instructors couldn’t be bothered to properly apply anesthetic. When both these cases came out to the general public, there was obvious outrage. Peop...

During America’s early years as a country, they appealed to the masses by promoting the idea of the American Dream . The hope that one can make a name for themself with just perseverance and hard work. This fostered millions of people from all over the world to immigrate to the U.S.. Although most of these immigrants sought to work at industrial companies, many were determined to bring their culture to America and start anew. One way people did this was opening restaurants, it was a great vessel to showcase the individuality and specialities of one’s culture. Fast forward today, immigrants from all sorts of cultures are still coming to America, with the expectation they make a name for themselves, however this is not faced without challenges.  Kitchen Nightmares is one of the many shows produced by the famous chef, Gordon Ramsey and is also the epitome of what the American Dream looks like. Chef Ramsey, is a renowned chef across the world. He is best known for his tendency to go ...

  Over 230 miles per hour. Cockpits that reach up to 140℉. Drivers that risk their lives to achieve their dream. Tracks all over the world. Fan bases that stretch over every continent. This is Formula 1. This weekend, Formula 1 arrived at COTA (Circuit of the Americas) for the 12th United States Grand Prix held in Austin, Texas. Known for its festival-like atmosphere and absolutely iconic track, the United States Grand Prix is one of the biggest races on the calendar. More than the numbers in the grandstands, the cultural impact that this event has sets it apart.  None of the current twenty drivers on the grid are American, yet Texan culture was present throughout the weekend. In fact, in the promotional content posted during the week leading up to the Grand Prix, almost every driver posted pictures with them donning cowboy hats, belts, or even a lasso. Six out of the ten teams sported special liveries specifically for Austin, the most notable being the American team Haas, wh...

The other day, I was imagining a man who was planning on committing suicide, taking a “last walk” around the Lucky’s complex near American. I’m not sure why, but it was an interesting situation nonetheless. He would suddenly have an unimaginable childlike playfulness about him, being awestruck by every single sound or object he would see. I kept pondering how I would feel in his situation. One after another, different scenarios flowed through my brain, but one stayed with me. How could there be such a big difference between three people experiencing the same things? I created three characters; Good, Bad, and Ugly (yes, named after the movie ). With something as heinous as childhood abuse, they would still handle it completely differently. Good would go to therapy, and get the proper help needed. Bad would bottle himself up, and only perpetuate the hurt he went through. But, worst of all, Ugly would weaponize his hurt until he would purposely thrive on anger and want to make others feel...

The Train of Conformity Identity is often described as singular, and the embodiment of how we, as people, are different from one another. Yet, humans are primarily social creatures who want to fit into our crowd, often altering our own identities to associate and bond together Psychologists have long studied group theory, and discovered herd mentality , where individuals conform to the beliefs and behaviors of the majority in the group. This mentality leads to decisions that the person themselves do not believe in, removing all their individuality and conscience. In everyday life and at school, this phenomenon is understood as peer pressure where a group of people convince an individual to conform to a certain behavior or identity, likely losing the individual’s own preference. Image from Peter Babel Solomon Asch , a psychologist, tested his hypothesis with one participant and seven actors (people who were instructed to give the false answer). The participants were given three lines to...

       Friedrich Nietzsche is one of the most famous and influential philosophers in history. His philosophies on identity are deeply rooted in our modern interpretation of identity.      Nietzsche was born in 1844 and died in 1900. During that time, the world was deeply rooted in religion and many people built their identity around religion. His famous quote, “God is Dead” is an observation that religion was starting to have less of an impact on modern society. This philosophy can be seen even now as Science has taken a more prominent role in our society. Religion now lacks the same amount of influence on people's identity as it did before. He does not however celebrate the rise of atheism but simply explains that without the role of religion in a person's identity they are able to grow and reflect and have their own individual will however he also warns that without the guidance of religion people may fall to nihilism       Going ...

Indian culture is one of the most vibrant and well-known, known for the spices, clothing, jewelry, and designs – all holding cultural symbolization. However, over time, many have forgotten what it truly is about, and it has been rebranded throughout time, turning into a lack of cultural appropriation. Historically, over time, lehengas have gotten more skin-revealing. Dating back to traditional lehengas, typically, it was just a fitted blouse (normally cropped) to reveal a woman’s midriff. The focus used to be on the fabrics and embroidery, and modesty was always maintained by covering the midriff with a dupatta. However, over time with western influence, these have been replaced by crop tops, bralettes, and even sheer fabrics, which reveal more skin. The whole purpose of these items has gone away, and they are now considered a “trend.” Some people even go as far as wearing a lehenga as their prom dress – they aren’t Indian, and don’t give credit to Indian culture. This has even been ta...