Talk Show – The article I chose to support this song from the album is “Infidelity in romantic relationships.”. Authors Frank D Fincham and Ross W May spoke on the definition of infidelity as well as discussing which gender would be more likely to fall, the victim. The discussion went on to mention the impact it leaves on couples. One of these factors is linked to the low usage of condoms with the person outside of the relationship. The characters Jhene and Big Sean play are put onto a TV show where they discuss their relationship. It soon becomes evident that their relationship isn’t as perfect as depicted. Jhene goes on to explain how her partner, played by Big Sean, had just cheated in the days before. This was despite just having had described how perfect he thought she was. Big Sean then went on his rant where he wished Jhene’s character had come forward on the affair before their decision to not use protection during their intimate moments.

{ https://www-sciencedirect-com.lehman.ezproxy.cuny.edu/science/article/pii/S2352250X16300227?via%3Dihub  }

Déjà Vu- The article I found was “Is Imagination of the Infidelity More Painful than Actual Infidelity?”. Authors Farid Pazhoohi, Catia Silva, Luís Pereira, Marco Oliveira, Paulo Santana, and Rui Rodrigues had all contributed to the article by explaining the results of an experiment involving the topic of infidelity. In the experiment, they find answers to the harm done when comparing actual infidelity to imaginative infidelity. They also dove into deciding who had felt more betrayal when it came down to gender, men or women. This article continues the conversation of cheating on your partner. As each individual goes up for their award, the other draws the attention of another in the room. The director for the overall music video gives clear evidence of distrust between the couple by giving visuals that represent anger towards the other; which is usually a change of eye color to red. The video then cuts to either Big Sean or Jhene being with someone else and back to the original setting. Although imaginative, the imaginative aspect of infidelity still fractured their relationship.

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London Bridge – For this song, I chose to connect it to the article, “Influence of Lack of Trust on Romantic Relationship Problems: The Mediating Role of Partner Cell Phone Snooping.” The authors were able to discuss the result of the lack of trust between a couple and other possible results. The overall article is bringing attention to the long term effect “lack of trust” and “emotional instability” would leave on a couple.

They had originally linked it to the idea of snooping through your partner’s phone and the risk of doing so. This connects to the song “London Bridge” with the fact both characters can leave but choose not to. This is a factor referred to as emotional instability. Jhene sings the final song on the album, to sum up, the story-telling plot. Through thick and thin, they are unsure as to where the relationship would end up next. This is the element of toxic yet it works out beautifully where they still loved each other at the end of the visual portion.

{ https://journals-sagepub-com.lehman.ezproxy.cuny.edu/doi/pdf/10.1177/0033294119899902

The text I will be focusing on for my essay would be the album “Twenty88” by Jhene Aiko and Big Sean. With my analytical research paper, I will be discussing the partial reality of couples forced into the spotlight. Jhene Aiko and Big Sean create a story-like album that highlights the ups and downs of relationships forced into the public eye. There is the continuous push and pull between the characters where they loop in acts of being petty, angry, and passionate. I was inspired while noticing more celebrity-based couples with more information out in the open are less likely to last as long as those who stay low key. It also becomes clear as to the fact they are only in a relationship for the sole purpose of entertainment as they are being controlled by a robot-like being. At the same time, you have relationships set up for marketing purposes. As time progresses, we see less evidence for true love. It becomes more likely to notice relationships made solely for the reason of publication. Jhene and Big Sean play the role of a Hollywood couple who remains under the constant public eye and struggle to communicate with one another. They resemble the now highly favored “toxic relationship” where they are unhealthy for one another but choose to stay. With this album being 4 years old, today’s relationships now relate to one of each 8 songs on the duo album. I’ll be doing more research. As to how toxic relationships are now over-hyped under the wrong pretense as well as how it related to the storyline of this album “Twenty88.”

When you hear of an “illegal alien” you automatically receive a negative connotation as compared to an “undocumented immigrant”. When you break down the term “illegal alien” you reach the understanding of each word by itself. Something illegal is automatically defined to be wrong or immoral. As media is built on the definition of an alien, it is easy to imagine a life form that has no resemblance to a human being. You imagine something exiting the doors of a UFO, cannot speak an understandable language, and wants to meet your “leader”. No human being should be compared to an alien in the sense of immigration. From the beginning of America’s history, there had always been the idea of the “American Dream”; which should have been predicted to lead to immigration. Acts such as the Dream Act and programs which aid first-year college students of their families are pieces of America’s history that people hope to get a taste of. A lot of times, there is a good chance these incoming immigrants are running away from problems in their own home countries or looking for a chance at a better life for themselves and future generations. Jose Vargas convinced himself that hard-work would erase the chance of people asking what his ethnicity or citizenship status is. A lot of people who hold that title of being a “US Citizen” have the idea of incoming immigrants refuse to assimilate or causing society to fail. The reality is that these incoming immigrants “pick your strawberries or care for your children. Some are in high school or college. And some, it turns out, write news articles you might read”. (Pg 329 Paragraph 2) Immigrants are beyond the stereotype of coming into the US and bringing in “problems”. Naturally, growing up in the Bronx, I’ve never taken note of the citizenship of people I meet. I grew up knowing that anyone could be the face of any successful business. Your race couldn’t hold you back until your citizenship had become involved. For people such as Vargas who came here for a chance at success, I believe they should be referred to as nothing but “undocumented citizens”. Vargas stated, “I was paying state and federal taxes, but I was using an invalid Social Security card and writing false information on my employment forms.” (This helps to the understanding that these people still work to be parts of a community and earn their place within their cities, yet the reality is that they won’t entirely be accepted because of their citizenship status. I feel as though words such as “illegal” and “alien” should not be used for people who have family roots here or simply coming in search of a better way of life.

President Lincoln and President Kennedy both gave their speeches to motivate the American people to work for the better. President Lincoln believed the United States should no longer live in a division as of the North and South. After the Emancipation of slaves across the country, Lincoln urged citizens to move forward and honor the lives lost during the Battle at Gettysburg and Civil War in general. He said to avoid the lives lost being done in vain, we should work to continue what had been started; which I assume to be the equality of all people. On the other hand, President Kennedy’s inaugural address goes into mentioning his plans for world peace. Instead of targeting one group, as Lincoln had, he addresses that all people and cultures alike work to maintain liberty. He goes into detail of the United States working to restart relationships with countries who may consider them an adversary. He also states that if we cannot help those who are poor by sustaining liberty, we would at least protect those who are rich. Both Presidents spoke at very sensitive points in the US’ history. In a way, we had never completely solved these issues involving both racial equality or world peace. As of world peace, we continue to be in a battle with other countries or regions which thirst for world power. In doing so, people are killed and taken away from their families. This is a negative outcome on both ends. There is also the fact of different beliefs that cause people and regions to be at war. When it comes to racial equality, there also never seemed to be a time of completion. Beyond Lincolns’ speech came the introduction of Jim Crow laws to modern-day racial inequality in the workplace. Despite such instances, people of different races had slowly but gradually acquired their place in society. Especially in today’s climate, people are now being more exposed to the hardships of non-white racial groups. Although each group faces their hardships, they each also face their conflicts under the foot of society. As society moves forward with more movements such as “Black Lives Matter” erupting, there is the possibility of better points of history showing progression.

While incarcerated, Malcolm X was able to educate himself further in the English language. I found it fascinating when he mentioned re-writing the entire dictionary and reading it aloud afterward. In doing so, he was able to learn of “people and places and events from history”. As mentioned in the beginning, he would pick up a book, skip over words he did not understand, and leave with little to no understanding of the entire book. I believe his idea to study a dictionary to learn some word was a creative idea which worked out great on his end. Be it that he was incarcerated, he had no excuses as to why he could not complete his goal. When he mentioned he felt free, although incarcerated, I feel as though it was an escape for him. With an understanding of Malcolm X and his life story, it is easy to say that bettering his reading skills was one of the few things the “man” could not take away. Thus, allowing him to feel free.

Rather than sulk and imagine a different story of his life, he took initiative to change for the better which was in his case; his literacy skills. As mentioned in his narrative, his new profound ability to properly read had awoken a “dormant craving to be mentally alive”. I feel as though everyone has that same dormant craving which only they can discover. Reading, for Malcolm X, had become a new hobby that took up his agenda a majority of the day. The narrative helped introduce the understanding that reading can be a fundamental part of a person’s life in terms of expanding their vocabulary and better reading skills overall. Malcolm admitted to always remaining curious and reading helped him keep that element. It allowed him to succeed in a personal goal he had set for himself.

Tan Amy paved a road for herself in terms of language when discussing her comparisons between speaking at public events vs. at home. Throughout the reading, Amy mentioned how her speaking at home with her mother had forced her to subconsciously judge her as well. She also spoke about her acting as her mom while on the phone with people in order to  feel like they are taking her seriously. While Amy grew up and attending school, she began to refer to her mother’s form of English as “broken”. At the same time, some of her teachers had been steering her towards fields of math and science because they felt that those were her only strong suits. At the end, she mentioned how everyone has their own version of “English” and she works to implement that into her writing. I feel as though Amy made other good points as well, when mentioning the treatment of people with “broken” english. For example, when addressing a very serious medical condition with the staff at a hospital, it took Amy to step in and use “proper” English before the situation was properly approached.

I’ve personally witnessed it where customer service decreases when servicing a person using broken english. In a way, immigrant families thrive off their “broken” english in the sense it keeps them together as one. Their form of english is something only they can understand in their own households. After reading Amy’s writing, I noticed that I also am a part of the “broken” english users which goes beyond my parents and siblings but into my cousins, uncles, aunts, grandparents and etc. Yet on the other hand, I can say English has been my strongest subject for as long as I could remember. Honestly, I think “broken” english helps me write better in the case I have a higher selection of words. I also feel as though I can writeBlog  an essay or story with words everyone would know without needing a dictionary. No one person should feel like they are subjected to one career because of their lack of language skills. In reality, every immigrant comes in with their own way for English to sound. This factor makes them no less human and only shows their courage for coming into a new place and learning a new language. If we were to all sound the same and use the same word structure or vocabulary, where would the “flavor” be. Every successful author can be called so because of their writing style or technique. One persons “broken English” can be another persons ability to feel like they were really present when being told a story or reading.

Hey everyone, my name is Christiana Addy(she/her). I also go by Cece as a nickname. My intended major is Business.

In this class, I am excited to learn new skills in terms of constructing different forms of writing. I am also looking forward to having conversations with other people in the class and seeing their point of view on different topics. At the same time, I’m anxious about peer editing as well as running out of ideas and facing writer’s block. In my opinion, for something to be considered “ good writing”, it should have a clear sequence. For example, it should be easy to notice the start, climax, conflict, etc. It’s important to be able to write well because those skills eventually affect the way you speak. If someone would like to be considered a “good writer”, I feel as though they should have a strong ground in terms of organizing their work or letting everything come together smoothly. I find it easiest to decide on a personal situation to write on after being given a form of literature. I can recall all the details which would possibly make my writing even better. The hardest part of writing would be organizing all the details into a proper way for the writing to be read smoothly. I find I often include details that are not necessarily important for the specific writing and end up having run off paragraphs that start up a whole other topic. In business, I assume I would be expected to construct pieces reflectinga persuasive essay. Being an effective writer can help me know which words to use and which I shouldn’t when creating essays to present to a panel of people or in advertisements that thousands of people will see. It can also help employers acknowledge my use of vocabulary and identify qualities that make me stand out.