Similarities pt. 2

My suspicions were confirmed when the friend who edited my paper also commented on how Gothel was similar to my mother. I do not feel comfortable telling a blog exactly what my mom is like but she does treat me like a child. She has nicknames for me, acts like I am immature and acts as if I am not prepared for the real world. The slightest freedom I cannot have anymore (such as my car when I wrecked it) makes me feel like I am becoming more and more trapped and dependent. This is infuriating but causes a strange mix of emotions because no daughter feels good about thinking badly about their mother unless they have don’t something outright horrible. This is different, it’s subtle and confusing. The film “Tangled” actually captures this perfectly and effectively captured the attention of me and others who feel the same. As much as I want to rebel sometimes, I really haven’t. Rapunzel is slightly inspiring to people like me.  Good move, Disney. 

Similarities

When writing the essay about Gothel’s relationship with Rapunzel, I felt kind of odd about it for a reason that slightly bothers me still. It began when I was watching the movie for the first time after beginning the class. My boyfriend was over and had never seen it (Yes, I am a master at killing two birds with one stone) so I he watched it with me. He said a few times things like “sounds kinda like your mom” when Gothel was being… well… Gothel. This surprised me as he reserved like me and does not often state his opinion about such things. The weird part is, I was thinking the same thing. Gothel is similar to my mom. 

So many posts..

You may have noticed that I am making too many posts today. That is because I am very short on time to get all of the required posts done. Time management is a big issue for me, if you couldn’t tell yet. I have, however, gotten better at it just a little bit. As I type these today, my boyfriend has been sleeping next to me and is letting me work. Good thing he has been sleepy because I get to spend time with him while getting homework done! I feel as if I am not the only one who has pushed posts this far back. In fact, I am positive that someone was planning to write all of his posts today, the day before they were all due. Not smart, but at least it makes me feel a little bit better about my own time management.  

What would you have done differently?

If there is one thing I have learned from English classes, it is that there is always room for improvement. I am sure there are some issues in the paper that I missed due to being “burnt out” form schoolwork and work. One problem I would have fixed is how I used sources. When I had edited down my Literature review, I realized I had cut out a source and was one less than I should have been at even after the instructor lessened the number needed. This is worrying me quite a bit. I would have fixed it but again, being burnt out discouraged me from worrying about it at the time.  

How well do you think your research paper turned out?

I am pleased overall with my essay. After completing the other assignments and overcoming the obstacles they brought with them, the final essay actually did not appear to be very difficult. I estimated, however, that it would take more time than any of the other assignments. The conference for this project was encouraging because the instructor was pleased with my work. I believe that I did well on this assignment because I had a solid understanding of what I was doing and managed my time with it well. I hate to admit, but this was the first project in which I really spent a good amount of time editing. I had a close friend come over to my house just to get some extra edits. Because of this extra effort, I believe my essay was well made. 

What did you get out of the peer review?

The peer review is always helpful for me. While others hate having material peer reviewed, I enjoy it because it tends to put my mind at ease. I tend to worry about things in the paper I really shouldn't worry about. I might feel that an idea is bad or my sentences are all structured poorly. In general, I begin to loose confidence in my writing and become anxious about what my grade on it will be. The peer review let me know that my ideas were good and there were easy fixes to any problems I was encountering.  The peer review also gave me additional topic to write about that my reviewer thought would be an interesting addition to my essay.  

What problems were encountered with writing the draft?

I encountered very few problems when writing the draft because I had thought out exactly what would be talked about in the paper. The biggest problem I had was getting enough down on paper to be revised. I was running behind and was unable to write as much as I had wanted to. I was careful, however o include the majority of the ideas I would be discussing throughout the paper to make sure that my peer reviewer and instructor could gauge the direction I was going in with the rest I had not yet written.  The final issue I had encountered with the draft was editing down the literature review. This was difficult for me because I was afraid of cutting certain parts off that the audience of the essay may feel is necessary.  

What is your most important source?

My most important source was the article by Lina Papadaki on objectification. The article clearly stated a definition of objectification. Along with her own definition of objectification, she provided the definitions of objectification that other women’s studies scholars have composed.

My other significant source was YouTube. I found it much easier to watch the scenes I was analyzing over and over again on YouTube rather than trying to fumble with the temperamental DVD player in my room. This, however did have a slight downfall. I was sometimes temped by the “recommended” videos off to the right of the screen and became distracted easily by them.

What is your latest working thesis?

My latest working thesis and final working thesis is: In Tangled, Gothel uses sexist methods to control Rapunzel. This thesis has been edited and approved by my teacher. She said it was only one of a few that do not need improvement. This was exciting news because I could start working on my essay without putting much more thought into my thesis. I am behind on blog posts because for the past few weeks I was focusing on working on the actual essay. I had to add a ton of information in my essay because my rough draft was not as complete as it should have been. 

Home Stretch!

I am in the home stretch for this research paper and I am as excited as when Rapunzel first steps onto the grass after deciding to leave the tower. So far, everything is going a lot better than expected. I have just had my required meeting with my teacher and she told me some really good news that has put me at ease. First she told me that my thesis was just one of two that does not require any more tweaking. My new thesis, is the one that she approves of and the one that I will be posting next about next time. She also told me that I had few grammatical errors which was “a relief” to her. Now I am on my way to completing the final draft of the research essay.

Describe One of Your Sources # 2

The most useful of all of my articles collected is Lina Papadaki's "What is Objectification". This article has been particularly useful because the sole purpose of the article was to define objectification. The definition of objectification is required in my literature review. I did not have to dig through research or other information to find what I needed thanks to this article. Papadaki’s article also included the definitions that other scholars have given before she gave her own. This article was the only one I had needed to find definitions from various scholars in women's studies all in one article.

Describe One of Your Sources

One of my most interesting sources is the book "Cinderella Ate My Daughter".  Just the title itself is interesting, but, along with the sparkly and bright pink cover, it really caught my eye while on the library shelf. The book is not scholarly but is written by an experienced journalist for a general audience. I have read the first few chapters of the book and was excited to discover that the book studies all girl stereotypes rather than just studying Disney stereotyping. This is useful for me because my thesis no longer has anything to do with Disney. The book has also been approved by my teacher who has experience with determining the usefulness of a book.

Current Working Thesis

My current working thesis is now much different then what it once was when I started. Upon receiving my graded proposal (project 2) with my original thesis on it, I realized that my instructor wishes we focus directly on the characters in the movie. My thesis used to involve to involve what the movie revealed about society. My new working thesis is: Mother Gothel uses infantialization, objectification and stereotyping to control Rapunzel. I am aware that this thesis still needs some polishing. I do believe, however that it is now focused in the right direction. Thanks to some suggestions from the instructor I believe that my thesis will only need minor adjustments in the future. 

Research Scedule

Alright, the time has come to create a research schedule. This will not be a very easy task as my work schedule is not constant, varies greatly, and is not given to me until the Thursday before the next week starts.

 Even though I had less work hours this week, I am currently sitting at my cousin’s birthday party working on homework for three of my classes. That’s just the start of it because life is a little busy right now. That being said, I cannot create a schedule that is “set in stone”. The tentative plan is to be spending a least an hour on my project during the weekdays (more if time will allow) and one or two free day a week where I power through 4+ hours of working. I work best when I really sit down and spend a lot of time on something.  I also plan on spending time with my instructor to ask a lot of questions before some classes. 

Analyzing a "Tangled" Scene: Part 2

Rapunzel is about to turn 18 at the start of the movie. In today’s society, 18 is considered the starting age of becoming an adult. In the time period that Tangled takes place in, 18 was well into adulthood due to the life expectancy being so low. Despite this, Gothel treats Rapunzel as if she were a baby or young child. In the beginning of the song she says to Rapunzel “look at you, as fragile as a flower. Still a little sapling, just a sprout”. Towards the end of the song she even uses a word commonly used with young children. She says, “I'm just saying cause I wuv you”. In both cases as well as with the entire song, Gothel is speaking to Rapunzel, a full grown woman, as if she is a young child.

Analyzing a "Tangled" Scene: Part 1

The first scene I have decided to analyze using the critical model begins with Rapunzel asking Gothel, who she thinks is her mother, to leave the tower she has been in for all of her life. The scene consists of a song Gothel sings called “Mother Knows Best”. In the song she lists many reasons why she believes Rapunzel should not leave the safety of the tower. I found that the scene is full of infantialization and objectification.

Gothel views Rapunel as merely an object she uses to keep herself young. While she pretends to have mother-like traits, her true intentions still shine through when does things such as caressing Rapunzel’s hair rather than Rapunzel.

The Model

In This entry I will discuss the critical model as I understand it. The model studies how women are viewed by others and themselves and how these views affect women. The model focuses on studying stereotyping, objectification and infantilization. It looks to views found in a society for these things.

I have chosen for my analysis to focus on stereotypes found within the movie Tangled. I believe this is the best topic because I will be able to include all of the other topics women’s studies focuses on within it. I look forward to discovering some interesting things about scenes in the movie and will report my findings here soon.

Updates

 To anyone keeping an eye on this blog, I apologize for taking so long to post again. I have been very busy with work and some important social events. Luckily this week, I only have 12 hours scheduled at work so I will be able to focus a little more on school.

Anyways, here is what has been going on with my research project:

1. My instructor believes I should focus on stereotypes rather than my art idea. I like the idea and it should be easier to back up with research.

2.    I am awaiting approval of my new topic choice from the instructor. It was stated in the project proposal I feel I did well on. This was my thesis: “With this research paper, I wish to explore the various stereotypes found in Tangled and how they may affect society today”. 

3. I must begin the search for resources on women’s studies. I am slightly worried about it, however, because the instructor was not clear on how long we would be able to keep the books we borrow. I feel they will be necessary to have until very close to the day we turn in the final essay but we will not be able to keep them that long. What if I go to renew a book and someone else needs it? Semester-long projects never fail to stress me out.

Topic Brainstorming

I have come to realize that there are many directions I can go when choosing my exact topic for the paper. As stated in an earlier post, I have chosen to analyze the movie Tangled from a Women's studies perspective. The movie I have chosen just so happens to be a Disney movie that involves a princess. These Disney princess movies are known to be VERY popular with females and the young age groups are the most affected. When Women's studies is mixed with any form of media, some very common questions first come to mind. This is where my brainstorming starts.

Is this piece harming women?

Maureen O'Hara and other women become popular in the media for their beauty

What does this piece say about women today?

How will this piece affect how people see women?

I might even include art somehow into my topic. I believe women are constantly pushed to be beautiful because they are used as a form of art in the media. Tangled displays this because the main character does things that are both stereotypical of women and are activities considered beautiful (such as painting as singing). The main character is also beautiful in appearance. 

I will discuss with my instructor and see what she thinks about the art idea. Update next week!

About This Blog

Welcome to my blog page! This is my first time writing a blog and I apologize if it sounds dry or uninteresting because of being new to it. The purpose of this blog is to aid in the writing of a research paper for an English 102 class. I am currently in my first year of college, straight out of high school and still getting the hang of everything college entails.

The research paper is going to be an analysis of a movie using one of the provided standpoints the instructor provided. I chose to analyze the movie Tangled with the Women’s studies approach. I look forward to discovering new things about the movie which I have seen before and enjoyed. Stay tuned!