First Day

To be honest, I wasn't surprised at Tim's overanalyzation of the Tommy Girl add; this has become one of my expectations of English teachers (no offense to you Tim). Can't anything just be simple? Does there always have to be some deeper, controversial meaning to every article, picture, or quote? There seems to be no constant answer to this question, its answer depends on the individual answering it. I believe that some things are worth analyzing, and some are not. I highly doubt that Tommy Hilfiger was trying to depict the oppression of black women; the company is trying to sell their product, not go into the history of the country or its politics!

When I look at this add, I see a girl who looks very similar to the blonde models that have been in other Tommy Hilfiger ads. But, now the ad is not only reaching out to young, white, rich kids, but also other minorities. They encouraged the idea of patriotism and freedom not only because it is a powerful statement, but because when you see their red, white and blue label this patriotic statement will pop into your mind. The presentation of this girl seems almost angelic compared to the other ads you see around these days; although she sits with her legs spread it's not in a provocative way, it's more in a tom-boyish, friendly way. Although I did enjoy Tim's input and understand why he analyzed the ad in that particular way, I definitely don't agree with him. I'm not saying that I like this advertisement, in fact I dislike most advertisements that include women. With the exception of a few companies (like Dove), the image of what a woman should look like is completely corrupt.

This is one example of how people don't think for themeselves, the image of the "perfect" female. I'm sure that if these types of advertisements didn't exsist younger people wouldn't have half the problems that they currently have with their self-images. (I could go on and on with that subject, but I'll stop there before I get carried away.)

I really enjoyed the activity outside today, class is more fun when it's not in a classroom! I think it gave us a chance not only to let out some of our opinions without having to speak up, but also to get to know the people around us. I think it broke the ice quite nicely.

~Emily