I have chosen to highlight this article because it highlights a very interesting issue with how online shopping is beginning to be a threat to real stores, especially in the case of bookstores. Nowadays people are not taking the time to browse bookstores anymore, but rather order solely through the online sphere.
By solely purchasing books through online stores such as Amazon, Noon, we are both taking business away from bookstores, but also limiting ourselves. Browsing bookstores allows a person to find more books that they otherwise probably would not have found.
Amazon as a company has been getting more and more into the book business. The link pasted above shows how Amazon, the physical bookstore, has also become a threat to booksellers.
Amazon has opened their very own bookstore in Seattle, while also taking business from bookstores in the same state. The issue has risen because booksellers have begun to complain about Amazon, both for the way people have begun to opt for online book purchasing and for the way Amazon has also taken business from bookstores in Seatle.
The second link pasted is an article from The Guardian, highlighting the issue and the complaints of booksellers set in Seattle.
In the 21st century, image-based media platforms became some of the most popular among adolescents and young women. Although these platforms provide entertainment and the ability to stay connected, they come with many downfalls. Participation and exposure to this type of media may affect the users’ self-esteem. As the theory of self-verification implies, adolescents and young women are at risk of constantly comparing themselves to others’ evaluations, leading to an unhappy and hopeless state.
Today, adolescent and young women had been born into a world fueled by digital technology. From a young age, they became focused on creating an online identity, some of them use social media apps as a means to receive validation from peers to satisfy their self-esteem needs. Girls who already had pre-existing body image issues were put in a possibly triggering environment, the trend of face tuning selfies and editing people’s bodies in pictures encouraged some girls to add greater emphasis on their looks.
Women and girls have real and authentic bodies, therefore, they can’t obtain what is promoted on these platforms. In fact, many businesses and industries thrive off of these insecurities. This could be the reason that many institutions don’t bother to construct a solution for this issue, the very existence of it is far too profitable.
Each individual’s response to this issue only affects their own life. If a person deletes social media to avoid being exposed to widespread unrealistic beauty standards, that only means they themselves will not be as heavily affected, however, the rest of the world still is. In order to overcome this collectively, it is important to gather infromation on the relationship between social media use and negative self-image. Once this information has been found, we can search for the most effective approach to tear down the harmful effects of image-based media.
We have all felt down in the dumps sometimes or too unmotivated to do…well anything! Sometimes you just need to sit down and turn off your burnt-out mind. There are many ways to “turn your brain off,” some go for a run, and others start to bake or cook.
One of the most universal ways people cope is settling down and turning on a movie or TV show. Well-known comfort shows and movies are shared worldwide, from shows like Friends (1994), Parks and Recreation (2009), and The Office (2005), to movies like Ratatouille (2007), My Neighbour Totoro (1988), The Princess Bride (1987), etc.
Friends (1994)
Parks and Recreation (2009)
The Office (2005)
Ratatouille (2007)
My Neighbour Totoro (1988)
The Princess Bride (1987)
Personally, relatively short and feel-good movies are my go-to media to “reset” myself. I want to watch something that I know the ending of, which makes the movie comforting in the first place. What makes a movie or show “comforting” is that you know what is going to happen and/or you relatively know what to expect. For me, a movie that I know isn’t too stressful or suspenseful is perfect for me. As such, I often find myself on the Disney side of Netflix during late nights when I cannot sleep. They often serve as a white noise that gives a sense of security. My ultimate comfort movie that I know by heart is Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993).
As a fan of Halloween as a child, I fell in love with the characters, the songs, the stop motion, absolutely everything. I bought the VHS tape, the DVD, and a digital version of the movie on my Ipad just so I can watch the movie in HD as many times as I want. I still remember replaying the movie so much that I destroyed the VHS tape from rewinding it all the time, as well as how I scratch the DVD disc from how many times I put it in improperly. Even as a child, it played a role as white noise for me to sleep to.
Tim Burton (Director) with concept art and figures.
Tim Burton with Henry Selick (Director) during the 3 and a half year process of making the film.
The simple hour-long story is about how a Skeleton accidentally sabotages Christmas with good intentions, then fixes his mistakes and gets everything back to normal. It is such a simple concept but made with an excellent soundtrack and amazing stop motion animations. This movie was the one that got me intrigued by animation and motivated me to pursue it as my dream. To this day, I can still say the lines word by word, and that in itself should suggest how connected I feel to this film.
My main question is what comfort movie, show, or activity in general that you would do more often than not, almost subconsciously, to soothe or comfort you?
The album “4 your eyez only” by J.Cole was published in 2016 with 10 songs which have all made it into the top 40 of the US billboard top 100.
The album focuses on the life of a young man that was a close friend of J.Cole. the album displays the struggles of the life of a black man growing up experiencing racial prejudice and violence and also displays the good parts of his life like finding love and having children, showing that not everything in life is tragic. In the lyrics it is stated that the album was made to tell the life of the man to his daughter that he left behind as it was stated in the last track of the album that the man died due to a gang setup. The man knew he was going to die and decided not to drag anyone else into it as it was what he did for himself and in his words ” he had to deal with the consequences of his actions”.
The Tale in the lyrics
the opening track “for whom the bell tolls” seems to refer to the bells in a funeral as the man was awaiting his inescapable demise.
in the song “change” Cole raps about how change can only be made from the inside as people need to change to cause a change and in this track he raps about seeing the news of his friend’s murder on the news.
other tracks also reference the man selling drugs in an attempt to escape poverty even with Cole trying to steer him away from it.
The tracks “folding clothes”, “she’s mine pt.1″,”she’s mine part 2” describe how the man found love and had a daughter whom have changed his perspective in life in trying to change himself for the better which in the end unfortunately did not work for him as he passed away due to a setup as described by the last track “for your eyez only”.
A feel-good web-series nothing short of a masterpiece.
by: Hannan Arshad
I first ran into a trailer for Marvellous Mrs Maisel back in 2017 while scrolling through youtube looking for a new series to watch. But owing to its bright colours, atypical script, and fresh, but at the time, seemingly quirky characters, I didn’t think to watch the show. Set in the 1950’s, this never-been-done-before story of a late-twenties, female comedian taking the streets of New York by storm, all while dressed in perfect, pretty outfits, seemed like a story not made for me. A year later, though, I regretted not watching it sooner.
The name Marvellous Mrs Maisel refers to the show’s main character Midge Maisel and her unmatched talent for stand-up comedy. Being married to a wannabe comedian, Midge would often accompany him to his weekly acts at a New York coffeehouse. However, post his shocking decision to divorce her for his secretary, she finds herself at the very same cafe taking on to the stage to vent. What started as a whimsical, drunk attempt at releasing her emotions became an unexpected revelation of her talent for comedy. Her effortless jokes left the cafe in riots and this is where her story begins.
What followed was an unfolding of a recent divorcee’s life as she takes on an unconventional career instead of patching things with her unloyal husband. Despite the mindset of the 50’s, what is most refreshing is her modern ideologies and joyful approach to it all. Although, more than the journey she takes, and its interesting starting point, it is the carefully crafted script, sets and incredible casting that I fell in love with.
Being a millennial kid, having a show transform me into Midge’s world was a magnificent experience. The sets, made perfectly to recreate the many 1950s diners, cafes and hotels, and costumes capturing the eye-catchy colours of that era as well as its elegant outfits and extravagant hats, together made for an immersive world. Along with that, the carefully written characters and dialogues made it impossible to not feel engaged. Their pretty, pastel colour palette, beautiful dresses and consistent, bright lighting, brings in a natural feeling of joy and hope much like the main character’s personality. However, more than the visuals, the reason for my interest in this show lies in the characters’ use of language.
Its characters being spectrums apart from each other, like Susie Myserson, a coffeehouse owner turned talent agent, or Abe Weissman, a typical Jewish middle-aged man, the show provides a multitude of personalities. Moreover, directed and written by Amy Sherman-Palladino, much like her direction of the famous Gimore Girls, this show is planned as a fast-paced, conversation heavy series. With its actors often mentioning they had 70-80 pages of dialogues for a single scene, her aim was to engage the audience with consistent deliverance of one-liners and witty comebacks. Tony Shaloub, who plays Midge’s father, says
the show forces its audience to hone “a way of listening at high speed”. Personally, this made for the best part about the show. While engrossed in the multitude of chaotic dialogues, having some of the jokes hit you a minute or two after adds to the adrenaline of watching the characters and their energy. Their hour-long episodes would pass by like lightning with the amount of fun I’d have watching them.
With the amount of dialogues in one scene, one of the show’s specialties is its attempt at highlighting the personalities of all characters within the room. This makes it impossible to lose attention; all the more reason to marvel at Amy’s craft. Moreover, with the lead actor, Rachel Brosnohan, the quality of the show’s humour and deliverance is evident in her prep as she claimed to have studied the likes of Joan Rivers, Lenny Bruce and Jean Carroll.
Having won the Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy, and eight Emmys including Outstanding Comedy Series, all for just the first season, what’s fascinating about the show’s success is how powerful a script really is. Till date, I struggle to convince most of my friends into watching the show and I see them hesitate because of the age-gap between the leading characters and themselves as well as the largely dissimilar time period. However, once a few of them watch the first episode, it lures them in the same way it did me. Amy’s power-packed deliverance of dialogues, each written to perfection emphasises the power of language and how it resonates with the audience. With each of Midge’s dialogues written by herself and her husband, she proves that storytelling aided by humour and intellect can attract even the most recent generations of audience into watching a character based in the 50’s despite zero connection to her life and experiences; a fact I still ‘marvel’ at despite being a fan for four straight years now.
In the spring break, I had the privilege of traveling to two polarizing parts of Turkey — the more rural, agricultural town of Cappadocia, and then to the bustling, lively city of Istanbul. With Turkey being around the sixth country I’ve been in, considering having lived in the United States for 10 years, visited Syria every summer before the civil war broke out, and then lived in the UAE, making up the three main countries I have been in, I have also visited Oman, Switzerland, and England. I can finally say at this point, with the cities I have been lucky enough to experience, that there is an undeniable “feel” to every country I have visited. Each city had its own sensation to experience, from how the general consensus of people felt, to the environment of the city itself. It is an intangible sensation that truly can only be felt when visiting a new country or city. Each setting has its own, breathing soul. As I look at my own photographs of Turkey, I have come to realize just how difficult it is to portray the life of these settings in photographs.
My photos of Cappadocia, Turkey. 3/29/2022
I am someone who has come to really value the atmosphere of settings, especially as someone with a complex relationship with Syria, which I haven’t seen in 8 years, and rural Kentucky, where I lived. So, although these photos capture the beauty of a part of Turkey, they do not quite capture the life I felt pulsating in the veins of the country.
As a fan of art, though, I’ve realized how many artists have come to capture a sense of “life” I feel when I think of certain settings. One artist I want to focus on is Holly Warburton, a modern artist I’ve come to really love the art of.
“I Wonder Where You’re Going”. A piece based on sketches the artist made in Amsterdam.
Holly Warburton, or Holly Warbs in some of her social media handles, is an illustrator and animator who is currently in commission. Her art strikes me for its emphasis on bringing setting from being 2D to feeling 3D. To me, these works are reminiscent of an Impressionist painting style, with rough “brush” strokes (as she paints digitally) layering over a myriad of colors to form one cohesive part of the painting. For instance, in I Wonder Where You’re Going, pink, purple, and blue are overlaid to create the shadows of the piece. I chose to show this piece because of how it portrays Amsterdam. It tells you more than what a typical photo taken by a tourist can: it shows a piece of the life and sentimentality associated with this location, the innocent curiosity in this particular person, the wonder and light-heartedness of the city.
To analyze what it is that brings these works to life, I will start with Night Time Solitude.
“Night Time Solitude”
This piece portrays a silhouette of a person in a room, with the ‘camera’ situated to be peering into the building from the outside, showing some streetlights and bushes around the building. The name of the piece describes the emotions it emits well: a sense of isolation is evoked, suggesting either the melancholia of loneliness, or perhaps the tranquility of solitariness. What makes the emotion so potent through this piece is mostly in the colors: this piece is primarily composed of green. The shows are made up of green, with the red of the street lights and billboard contrasting with the overwhelming green saturating this piece. The subject, sitting alone in this house, with only their silhouette visible rather than a clear expression in their face or body language, makes the piece’s ‘emotions’ open to interpretation. Peering into the house makes the viewers into a voyeur to the vulnerable and unsuspecting life of this individual. These combined parts, along with the impressionistic, rough painting style, creating movement in the brushstrokes that adds to the emotion, emit a sentiment that I likely would not be able to emulate in a simple photograph of a setting. Rather than just showing a setting for what it is, this painting serves to show the palpable feelings associated with these certain settings, possibly evoking feelings of nostalgia, tranquility, loneliness, lostness, and more.
Another piece I’d like to analyze is Lavender, one of my favorite pieces by Warburton.
“Lavender”
Perhaps it is because I connect this piece with my own experiences living in rural Kentucky, but I feel the subtle and subconscious emotions associated with this setting are very tangible in this piece. In addition to the painting style previously mentioned, this piece has a purple sky that contrasts with the yellow grass — its complementary color. It contains a red barn in the very middle of the painting, with dark green-blue trees and shrubs around the person that sits atop the house, who wears yellow, as they peer out to the yellow-pink clouds. The movement of the wind, blowing the hanging towel and grass a certain way, reminds me of the wind chimes I used to hear from my neighbors in America, or the sense of wind blowing through my hair when I would stand outside alone as a kid. The facelessness of the figure adds intrigue and suggestiveness to the piece, making it feel quiet, with a strange balance between melancholy and tranquility. The clouds and sky contrast with the diagonal movement of the brush strokes in the grass, making it seem that this person is staring out to the serenity of the sky. The darkness of the trees adds more mystery to this piece, to me, and could point to a desolate or moody sentimentality. Overall, it can be seen how this piece can evoke a multitude of emotions through its portrayal of setting. Warburton is not the only artist to emphasize setting in her works to evoke emotion: many Impressionist artists, amongst other artists, do this as well.
All of this is to say that real-life settings are not as simple as its environment and buildings and whatever else the setting is composed of. Real-life settings almost always have more to tell than what meets the eye in a photograph, with its own, unique consciousness that brings it to life, like a beating heart, pumping life into the people residing in this place. The people of Istanbul and Cappadocia fed off their settings; conversely, these cities were brought to life through its people, the same way Warburton’s paintings are enhanced by the people portrayed in them. As humans, we likely have our own symbiotic relationships with certain settings, like locations we associate with childhood, or family and relatives, etc. I will never get over the people who believe a setting can be replicated online through photos or simulations for this reason.
Next time you read a story, look at a painting, or visit a new city, I encourage everyone to ruminate on the settings, and what can be told through these settings. After all, humans are a reflection of their environments.
Other artists I recommend people to check out: Linden Fredrick, Bernie Fuchs, Daniel Garber, Richard Savoie, and many, many more.
Football fans are perhaps the most passionate fans in the sports industry. The banners the fans hold up show that football is more than just a game, with all banners holding a deeper meaning than implied. For example, F.C. Barcelona’s famous motto of “Més que un club”, which means, literally, “more than a club”, is the best example for the passion fans show clubs, and how clubs treat their fans in return. In this case, it means that this is not just a club, but a family instead, including fans, which teams would not be motivated to play without. Another famous motto is Liverpool F.C.’s “You’ll never walk alone”, which fans chant before, during, and after matches are played, regardless of the result. It is especially used when Liverpool lose a heroic defeat, in which fans show their appreciation to the team’s hard work by chanting that they will be with them, regardless of the results.
More Than a Sport
It is said many times, that sports should be separated from politics, and any surrounding issues. However, football is still involved with these issues, inspiring people, and being a positive influence. As a team with as many fans as nearly a 100 million, Liverpool’s fans use this as influence, or respect in memory of an occasion. In the picture below, we can see Liverpool fans holding a banner of “YOU’LL NEVER WALK ALONE” with the Ukraine flag colors, in support with the unfortunate events going on in Ukraine right now. Furthermore, all Premier League clubs wore T-shirts with “Black Lives Matter” instead of players’ names written on the back of the shirts, for the entirety of 9 match days, due to the events which occured in the U.S with George Floyd. They also took a minute while taking a knee as a symbol of pride and identity, inspiring change. Liverpool fans also held banners on the top of their stadium saying “WE NEVER WALK ALONE HILLSBOROUGH” in memory of the victims of the “Hillsborough Disaster” where football witnessed one if its greatest disasters in 1989. The semi final match featuring Liverpool and Nottingham Forest witnessed 97 deaths, and 766 injuries, due to overcrowding and literal crush in an entrance to the stadium. 20 years later, and these fans are still showing the respect owed to the victims of the unfortunate event. This goes to show that football is not just a sport, but can be much more.
Liverpool fans holding their famous “You’ll never walk alone” motto with the Ukrainian flag colorsPlayers’ names replaced with “Black Lives Matter” as a stand against racismLiverpool Fans once again showing their passion while standing with the victims of the “Hillsborough Disaster”
A Comfort Show?
For many people, plenty of TV shows have been their comfort shows, with each person having his own comfort show while growing up and up till now. Personally however, sport entertainment has been my comfort show since I was a kid. Waiting for my favorite teams to play, on matchday enjoying the matches, and supporting the team through ups and downs were the most fun times of the week. Weeks with Champions League nights were especially the best as I enjoyed 4 days of football matches a week instead of just 2. As a kid, I remember napping through the day to be able to stay up late and watch the matches without losing sleep. It is especially most fun the day after the matches, when everyone is talking and analyzing matches together, teasing the losing team and taking it all with a grain of salt.
Humans have fought wars since ancient times. Throughout history, we have seen the negative effects of war, but humans have continued to wage war on each other. Memes, on the other hand, are a relatively new concept. People create memes about a wide range of topics, including sports, TV shows/movies, relatable things, and global events such as the pandemic.
When Russia first invaded Ukraine, everyone on my social media feeds was posting about it. However, within two to three days, memes about the war began to circulate. When I looked at the memes’ comment sections, I noticed that people were divided. Some argued that jokes have no place in war, while others argued that memes can be used as a coping mechanism.
Initially, memes portraying WW3 and people being drafted went viral.
Then, citizens of Ukraine started to make sarcastic videos about the war on TikTok after a Ukrainian girl went viral for posting this video with the caption “Living my best life”:
From its vibrant, striking styling to its dramatic, sinister symphonies, “IDEA: 理想” has got to be one of my favorite titles from South Korean singer Taemin.
Joining the music industry with four other members, Lee Taemin is in a group called "Shinee" that had made their debut in 2008 and quickly became one of the most respected names in South Korea, and globally, for their unique sound and their talents.
Released in November of 2020, "IDEA: 理想" is the title of his solo album "Never Gonna Dance Again: Act 2" which takes us on a journey following his rebellion of the social norm and his discovery of a new, "true" identity.
What is “IDEA: 理想 “?
Unlike the expected, the title is actually pronounced (E-DAY-A). It comes from the Greek word “ἰδέα” which means form or shape. The other word in the title is Japanese for “ideal”, referring to an uttermost perfect form of something. Together, the title showcases Plato’s Theory of Forms. The theory is based on the concept that the physical world is merely an imitation of the perfection and timelessness of ideas that can be found in the spiritual world.
One has to become aware of the fact that this physical reality will never be as absolute as abstract ideas— in this music video, Taemin starts to become self-aware and tries to grasp at this perfect world, attempting to achieve enlightenment through knowledge.
Material World
The white room that Taemin walks into is FULL of people in high fashion— some playing poker, some playing cards, and some having gold bars on their table. The common factor? They’re all distracted with physical, visible things— often things that give them some kind of material reward like gaining money or simply sitting around looking pretty!
The Rocky Road To Enlightenment
Locked Up
In the opening MV scene, one image of him looks like he is locked up and the other is free; they’re talking through a barrier and a telephone as one does when they’re in jail and want to talk to someone from the other side. In this situation, one side could resemble his true self.
The White Room
Taemin continues to display the imagery of struggling to connect to one’s most enlightened form while trying to disconnect from the real world. The people around him in the white room seem to glitch– appearing and disappearing- as he’s absorbing the fact that the people around him are focused on the material world.
–fake perfection–
Heaven and Hell…?
Another more dramatic image is him running away in a forest with dull, creepy people surrounding him, who are also glitching. I personally fell in love with this depiction as the glitching people caught me off guard the first time I saw it, giving the MV a much creepier aura. The contrast of that is him literally climbing “the stairway to heaven”, where he later dances with “angels”.
Finding Himself
볼 수도 쥘 수도 없는데
어느새 새롭게 나를 정의해
내 안에 모든 게 배가 돼
가장 뜨거운 숨을 쉬게 하지
I can’t even see or grab / Before i know it, I redefine myself / Everything in me is doubled / Making me take the hottest breath
While self-identity is something that we cannot see, Taemin turns this “new ego/identity” into a visual for us, represented by the silver person that materializes in front of him.
As the music video comes to an end, it reaches its last verse with Taemin dancing to the growing symphonies after emphasizing how much this journey is “killing him”, fortunately, the video ends with him seemingly at peace— “Finally I open my eyes”. Metaphorically, this could mean that he has finally reached his uttermost true self and can see through the physical realm.
-enlightenment-
All about the styling…
Personally, I LOVE the white outfit that Taemin wears in the white room. It’s simple, yet separates him from all the fancy looking people surrounding him. He had his hair styled into devil horns in front of the “hellish” fire, and he had a softer, sky blue look when he was going towards heaven. Simple imagery like this tends to be really eye-catching for me and makes me think of the reason behind choosing this specific styling.
While I, myself, enjoy this MV and all that it encompases, I am interested to see other people’s opinions regarding the music video and how it portrayed Taemin’s journey with self-identity.
Have you seen other music videos or media that talks about the same, or similar topics? Personal growth, material gains, etc?
Do you think the music video did a good job with the visuals or do you have any creative opinions that you think would have worked better in portraying the messages?
Netflix premiered an adult animated television series based on an anthropomorphic horse named Bojack Horseman. The show is set in Hollywood, and it follows Bojack, a washed up 90s TV star who wants to make a comeback. The show also displays other characters. These characters are related to Bojack in a certain way. Bojack’s agent Princess Carolyn, his roomate Todd Chavez, his ghost writer Diane Nguyen, and his co-star/rival Mr.Peanutbutter. The show mainly focuses on Bojack’s depression and addiction, and how it affects his day-to-day decisions, and his life. The show also portrays what every character is going through and the battles they have to fight.
What Differentiates Bojack Horseman from Other Shows?
Bojack Horseman is a show that I will full-heartedly recommend to people when asking for a show to watch. However, I will always warn them that Bojack Horseman talks about many real life problems and the show will get deep (deeper than you want it to be).
Bojack Horseman talks about many real life issues that are rarely talked about in tv shows/movies. For example:
Mental Illness
Addiction
Discrimination
Abuse
Trauma
Depression
Sexual Assault (in Hollywood)
Abortion
Gun Control
Sexuality
The beauty of Bojack Horseman is that a TV show accurately represented all these issues, especially the issues surrounding mental health. It shines a light on what people are going through on a day-to-day basis. Bojack Horseman provides a sense of comfort to people who don’t think that they are represented.
Bojack Horseman: Character
One of the main reasons why many relate to Bojack Horseman is because of the characters. The most important character is Bojack Horseman. Bojack is a character that if you know in real life, you would definitely hate, so why do many love him?
Bojack Horseman starts out as this goofy character trying to rise back in fame, by hiring a ghostwriter, Diane Nguyen. As the show progresses, we start to see Bojack’s real character and the several issues that he faces. Depression, anxiety, self-loath, addiction are some of the problem he faces. Many people relate to these problems and watching a character having them offers them comfort because they are not facing these issues alone. The issues are portrayed realistically, many say it accurately portrays mental illness.
I’ve Had A Lot Of What I Thought Were Rock Bottoms, Only To Discover Another, Rockier Bottom Underneath.
Bojack Horseman
To answer the question, many continue to like Bojack Horseman despite the many terrible things that he has done is because of his relatability. One of the things that makes Bojack relatable is his self-awareness. He is a bad person, and he knows it. There are moments in the show where Bojack is trying to be a better person, but is usually reverted back to who he really is. Bojack Horseman is a perfect example of someone who is self-aware, yet is always in conflict between who he is and who he should be.
