FOCAL POINT trains its lens on one of the 15,000 North Korean defectors who have made it to South Korea. Twenty-year-old Haejung (not her real name) was smuggled out of North Korea some years ago in the hope of a better life — leaving her family behind. She now attends Hangyeore High School, a special boarding school an hour outside of Seoul, founded in 2006 to help North Korean teens adjust to life in the South. Most of the school’s 240 students are separated from one or both of their parents back in the North, with little hope of ever seeing them again. They experience severe culture shock transitioning from one of the world’s most isolated Communist states to one of the most technologically and economically advanced societies. The school tries to fill both the emotional void and the cultural gaps. The students eat, sleep, and study on campus. The teachers live with them in the dorms, and many have training as therapists to provide psychological counseling. The curriculum includes everything from history to English to learning how to use a cell phone, computer or credit card. In Field Trip to the DMZ, the students make their annual trip to the border, and Haejung dreams of a time when her family and her homelands will be reunited.

Before reading the passage of the article and also after viewing the PBS documentary, I never knew there was such a school an hour outside of Seoul that taught North Korean teens how to adjust their life within South Korea. Imagine being told by someone that you would never be seeing your family and friends. Leaving behind the ones you love in order to live a new and better life would certainly cause sadness for any individual. This is what the girl in the picture below had to deal with along with many other North Korean kids who have been smuggled out of North Korea to find a new life in South Korea. It is only natural for the girl to be excited about going to the DMZ because it will possibly be the closest she will ever get to North Korea where her family lives.

A North Korean girl currently within the South Korea border preparing to visit the DMZ

Here is the clip on the Field trip to the DMZ. Have a look.

However, out of the three, I believe the occupation “gemologist” is the most intriguing one. So here is what I found about Gemologists.

 Gemmologist
Gemmologists identify and evaluate the quality of all gemstones and gem materials, and distinguish them from synthetics and imitations.

Gemmologists may perform the following tasks:

• identify gem substances such as diamond, coloured stone and rock
• identify treatments which enhance the value of gemstones and gem materials
• assess the quality of gemstones and gem materials.

Gemmologists usually work indoors, on their own, or are employed by manufacturers, wholesalers or retailers in the jewellery industry. However, gemmologists may be required to work outdoors in the field.

What I researched about gemology isn’t different from what I initially knew or though about gemology. This is because my mother is a gemologist and I have seen her do work that gemologist do throughout my whole life.

To become a gemologist, you must go through different courses, such as Diamonds, Diamond Grading, Colored Stones, Colored Stone Grading, and Gem Identification. After completing these courses successfully, you gain the title of “Graduate Gemologist.” This title means that you have what it takes to indentify gems easily. This type of education can be obtained at GIA, or Gemological Institute of America, which is in California.

Being a Graduate Gemologist, or Gemologists, means that you have the ability to do things, such as identify a gem with ease. The education needed for this job can be obtained at GIA, or Gemological Institute of America, in California. Here, you can obtain the premiere training to become a gemologist.

These are some of the personal requirements to become a professional gemologist:

• patience
• good memory
• good eyesight (may be corrected) and normal colour vision
• methodical with meticulous attention to detail.

The average salary for a gemologist varies from 19,140 to 35,150 dollars a year. When starting in this field, people will earn the lowest amount of money. However, as they gain experience, their salaries increases.

What authors or genres of writing are cited as influencing McCarthy’s writing style? According to the NYT’s article on Cormac McCarthy’s All the Pretty Horses, Cormac McCarthy seemed to be influenced by the works and writing style of William Faulkner. McCarthy wrote this novel with great description as it is elaborate with long sentences that seem to be as long as the length of a paragraph.

His diction and phrasing come from all over the evolutionary history of English and combine into a prose that seems to invent itself as it unfolds.

This type of writing is said to resemble the Elizabethan style of language.

How does McCarthy treat human characters in his story as opposed to landscape and animals like horses? Cormac McCarthy is seen as somewhat unusual because he is indifferent towards human beings and is rather more interested in animals such as horses. As the article says, the author holds a higher opinion on horses, just like John Grady (protagonist) does. McCarthy becomes overly descriptive when he talks about horses and tells the reader elaborate imageries of horses viewed by the protagonist. Unlike human beings, horses seemed to be a more special living thing within the world of All the Pretty Horses

What type of dialogue does the article state McCarthy uses? According to the NYT article, the type of dialogue Cormac McCarthy uses is very realistic as he forms his sentences vivildy with elaborate descriptions. The  great quality of his prose is said to be seductive within the article and this type of writing represents the style of William Faulkner.

What is notable about his diction (word choice)? As mentioned above (first paragraph), his diction resembles that of the Elizabethan language.  He is known for his archaism, as his diction “comes from all over the evolutionary history of English and combine into a prose that seems to invent itself as it unfolds.”

Cormac McCarthy, author of "All The Pretty Horses"

Cormac McCarthy must be acknowledged as a talent equal to William Faulkner, but whatever he may owe to Faulkner’s style, his substance could not be more different. Faulkner’s work is all about human history and all takes place in mental spaces, while in Mr. McCarthy’s work human thought and activity seem almost completely inconsequential when projected upon the vast alien landscapes where they occur. Human behavior may achieve its own integrity — it’s John Grady’s conscientious striving for this quality that makes him Mr. McCarthy’s most appealing character — but it generally seems to have little effect. It’s unusual for a writer to adopt such a disinterested posture toward human beings, but Mr. McCarthy, like John Grady, seems to hold a higher opinion of horses:

CORMAC MCCARTHY has practiced the Joycean virtues of silence, exile and cunning more faithfully than any other contemporary author; until very recently, he shunned publicity so effectively that he wasn’t even famous for it. By his single-minded commitment to his work and his apparent indifference to the rewards and aggrandizements quite openly pursued by the rest of us, he puts most other American writers to shame. The work itself repays the tight focus of his attention with its finely wrought craftsmanship and its ferocious energy.The magnetic attraction of Mr. McCarthy’s fiction comes first from the extraordinary quality of his prose; difficult as it may sometimes be, it is also overwhelmingly seductive. Powered by long, tumbling many-stranded sentences, his descriptive style is elaborate and elevated, but also used effectively to frame realistic dialogue, for which his ear is deadly accurate. This mixture builds on Faulkner’s work, yet, more than Faulkner ever did, Mr. McCarthy seems to be pulling the language apart at its roots. He’s noted for ar chaisms so unfamiliar they appear to be neologisms. His diction and phrasing come from all over the evolutionary history of English and combine into a prose that seems to invent itself as it unfolds, resembling Elizabethan language in its flux of remarkable possibilities.

All these qualities make “Suttree” (1979) and “Blood Meridian” (1985), the two long novels that precede his latest book, more than a little challenging to the uninitiated, and the world of violence that these and his earlier, shorter novels so brilliantly depict can seem, on casual inspection, to be senseless. “All the Pretty Horses,” the comparatively brief first volume of a planned trilogy, is probably the most accessible of Mr. McCarthy’s six novels, though it certainly preserves all his stylistic strength. Although its subject and approach are superficially more palatable, the essence of his unusual vision also persists.

“In his sleep he could hear the horses stepping among the rocks and he could hear them drink from the shallow pools in the dark where the rocks lay smooth and rectilinear as the stones of ancient ruins and the water from their muzzles dripped and rang like water dripping in a well and in his sleep he dreamt of horses and the horses in his dream moved gravely among the tilted stones like horses come upon an antique site where some ordering of the world had failed and if anything had been written on the stones the weathers had taken it away again and the horses were wary and moved with great circumspection carrying in their blood as they did the recollection of this and other places where horses once had been and would be again. Finally what he saw in his dream was that the order in the horse’s heart was more durable for it was written in a place where no rain could erase it.”

In the hands of some other writer, this material might make for a combination of “Lonesome Dove” and “Huckleberry Finn,” but Mr. McCarthy’s vision is deeper than Larry McMurtry’s and, in its own way, darker than Mark Twain’s. Along with the manifold felicities of his writing goes a serious concern with the nature of God (if God exists) and, almost obsessively, the nature of something most readers have assumed to be evil. The decay of Western civilization throws a long shadow over all his work. “We’re like the Comanches was two hundred years ago,” John Grady’s father remarks. “We dont know what’s goin to show up here come daylight. We dont even know what color they’ll be.”

The novel opens and closes with eerie images of American Indians that suggest our civilization may be swallowed up as completely as theirs. For John Grady, meanwhile, the issue is the using up of the country; he heads for Mexico because too much of Texas has been fenced in or foreclosed on. Mr. McCarthy’s descriptions of the landscape are breathtakingly beautiful, but anyone who thinks he is sentimental about nature need only read “Blood Meridian” for a permanent cure.

Spiderman crawls outside on a tall building’s wall. He wears a costume in order to keep his identity from society.

Spider-Man (stereotype for costumes)

The Power Puff Girls are ready for some action. These super heroes can be seen wearing these costumes wherever they are. Whether they are fighting crime, sleeping, or eating, they always have the cute colored costumes.

 Prompt #1

After viewing many images related to archetypes and stereotypes, we have become adept at identifying which are which. The general rule of thumb seems to be that classic, old looking pictures are generally archetypes because they were established long ago. Stereotypes generally seem to be modern and have a “cleaner” feel to them.

For a long time, action movies have dominated in Western culture: “In action movies such as Spider Man 1, 2, and 3 Peter Parker always seems to saving Mary Jane or some beautiful girl from a falling building or who is being held hostage. Or in the movie Casino Royal or any James Bond movie in fact, part of the plot of the movie is saving some girl. I think that action movies don’t need to go from two extremes action and sex that there can be more to watch…” Most of the archetype elements we have identified in our presentation were established in action movies originally made in America. Thus, much of the images were intended for Western audiences, but they would still certainly appeal to international audiences as well, as can be seen by success of the James Bond series or Bruce Lee’s fame. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, and Ironman have all originated in America, and mainly appealed to children at the time. Ever since their expansion to the big screen, they have gathered more adult fans. Other action heroes like Rambo or Bruce Lee also have the typical “kick ass” style that many Western audiences have loved to watch. James Bond and Ethan Hunt are both covert operatives that anyone can become, as they do not possess supernatural abilities, but instead rely on their skills to save the world.

It is known that testosterone-driven men generally enjoy action movies more than women do. Because the archetypes deal with elements of action movies, it would be safe to say that men, from teenagers to adults are both represented fairly well. On the other side of the spectrum, women who seem to enjoy romantic movies that do not involve violence seem to be least represented in action movie elements.

Superman gracefully poses in the picture with his muscular features. A hero with great super powers, Superman is the hero of heroes. His presence has influenced the creation of many other super heroes, some of them, which are female characters.

Super girl (1984 film) is influenced by Superman. She has the same super strength and speed of that of Superman.

This is Super Girl that comes out in the drama series "Smallville". She is portrayed as Superman's cousin.

 Prompt #2
                   As we looked through and observed the images in the media, we learned that a whole lot of action movies are constantly lacking spontaneity and losing originality. Our group realized that the media clearly shows the world how unimaginative the movie industry is becoming, which is evident in many recently premiered movies on action heroes. Whether it is an American movie or an Asian movie, directors seem to love to put in action elements of those from the great movies of the past. One example could be the use of nun chucks, a powerful weapon known to be used by Bruce Lee. Our group looked at a certain Bruce Lee movie called Way of the Dragon and then we saw a Korean movie called Mal-jook-gul-ri jan-hok-sa. We compared the two movies together and saw how much of Bruce Lee we saw in the Korean movie. The protagonist of the Korean movie works hard to imitate everything about Bruce Lee in order to beat the toughest student in his school. The movie obviously followed the same format of the Bruce Lee movie, as the Korean protagonist had to face against over ten students with nun chucks. Movies nowadays are lacking individuality, and this is what our group had formulated after looking through the media.

Ripped muscles and no fat, Leonidas and his 300 men fight on the battlefield against the Persian army. Their physical appearances allow them to be seen already as powerful and brave. They are ready to fight off the great number of Persian soldiers. These characters can be seen as stereotypes of muscular bodies within action movies.

Master of martial arts, Bruce Lee flexes his muscles as he prepares to fight off his enemies. This is a body that every person wants and many fighters have been influenced by his perfect muscular structure. He is seen as an archetype in the area of muscular physical features within his movies.

Batman is a hero without super powers. However, as a billionaire, he purchases and uses special gadgets and weapons to punish his enemies during the night. He is also a heavily trained martial arts fighter which allows him to successfully fight criminals to save Gotham City. He can be seen as an archetype as a hero without super powers.

Tony Starks, who is also known as Iron Man, creates a highly advanced robot costume in order to punish people who threaten society with their evil doings. His wealth and intelligence makes him a hero without super powers. He can be seen as a stereotype of a hero without supernatural powers

Wordle

Weapons

Victory

Concept~of~Super~Heroes

Elements

Supernatural~Abilities

Action~Movies

Derivative

Bruce~Lee

Jackie~Chan

Jet~Li

Ethan~Hunt

James~Bond

Explosions

Themes

Violence

Superman

Batman

Testosterone

Women

Intense

Guns

Rivalries

Villains

Law~Enforcement

Masculinity~of~Man

Comstume

Physical~Masculinity~of~Protagonists

Romance~in~Action~Movies

Hero~without~supernatural~abilities

Expert~in~Martial~Arts

Customs

Never~Lose

Never~Die

Bond~Girls

Originality

Sex~Appeal~in~Action~Movies

Weapons

Muscle

Masculinity

Costumes

Identity

Gadgets

Spiderman

Daredevil

Power~puff~girls

Bruce~Lee

Spartans!

300

Iron~man

Leonidis          

Robocop

Kwon-Sang-Woo

Mission~Impossible

Wonder Woman

Cat Woman

Super Girl

After school, I have basketball practice. Then I get home at about 6. Now, I usually take naps right after I get home because I am way too tired to stay awake. After about an hour of sleep, I would have to open my school textbooks rather than turning on my laptop and go on Windows Live Messenger. I could finish all my homework quickly without using the internet. Maybe at the end of the day before I sleep, I can check my hotmail to check if I received any e-mails. For me, it wouldn’t be that hard to change my routine to be disconnected from all media. I hardly ever watch the television. I wouldn’t really matter to me if I had no internet for a day or a week, however, a month is overboard. A month without news or chatting with my friends would make me go insane. I am also use to looking at different articles about world issues by watching the news on television or on the internet. Without news, it feels as if I am way behind others on what is happening to the world and it somewhat makes me feel left out.

#2 How many hours per week do you estimate you spend on Facebook or similar personal networking sites? What are the benefits and disadvantages of using these sites?

I personally don’t spend that much time using facebook at home. My classmates in school are crazy over facebook and it has to be on the whole time for them. I just go on to check whether I’ve gotten a message or a comment on my wall (and this is just once). It is only natural to say that the benefits of using these kind of sites is that it provides a huge lot of information and news to the students at school. It seems that students are “cool” if they are updated with interesting news and rumors. Another benefit is that you can meet a whole lot of other people, however this could also be the disadvantage.

#3 To what extent are you aware of viral marketing, the use of “advertorials” (presenting advertisements as editorial content), or direct marketing on Facebook and other social networking sites?

It seems to be a good idea because a great number of people use Facebook. Advertising would be a smart thing to do and would definitely be successful with that many people going online almost 24/7. Any page you go on facebook, there will always be two to three advertisements on the right side of the window. There even is a link that leads users to more ads.

#4 Personal response based on your individual viewing of “Growing Up Online”.

I didn’t expect or imagine networking sites such as Facebook or Xanga to be that harmful to kids nowadays. Hardly ever talking to their parents, students go on Windows Live Messenger or Facebook to socialize with their friends and even random people who are referred to as their friends. Things like committing suicide and being exposed to sex predators seemed to be a dangerous thing to kids. I would like students to socialize more with their friends and instead of using MSN they should just go out and talk face to face in person. That is true communication.

For those who are interested in this subject, check out the actual documentary within this site:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/

Article #1

“Many Korean students still write cut-and-paste essays, which is considered to be plagiarism here in the U.S.,” said Dr. Kim.

“There are a number of Korean students who withdraw from prestigious universities after they find it extremely difficult to catch up with their peers in English writing and in logical reasoning – which is fundamental to studying in Western classrooms,” said the head of another hagwon, also identified only by the surname Kim.

“Most Korean students accustomed to a cramming style of education are generally weak in logical reasoning on their own. Therefore, apart from poor English skills, they find it particularly difficult to write an essay in the ‘Western’ way, which calls for creative thinking,” said the chief of an institute for Korean students in Flushing, who gave the last name Sohn.

I guess it is only natural for Korean students to spend their high school and college life within the walls of hagwon. This is because Korean students pile so much work for themselves by making extremely hard and unrealistic (too challenging) schedules within school, taking up to more than five Advance Placement courses in one school year. Even taking one AP subject can be a pain in the ass, but students tend to take a great number of them to prove the rest their dream schools how smart they are and how much they like to face challenges. It should be rare for Korean students to have a day without spending an all-nighter. Students believe that they cannot catch up with the the huge amount of work they have, so they resort to hagwons. Korean parents spend great sums of money for their students to get high grades within their classes (especially APs) so that they can get accepted to the college of their choices. But what is the point of getting countless hours of help from hagwon teachers and not do well within college? In one of my previous posts, I talked about the high dropout rate of Korean Ivy League students. The 44 percent dropout rate is shocking, and the article above clearly shows how college students now are resorting to hagwons again just like they did in Korea. Korean students should start developing social skills and start making more realistic schedules in school, so that they can study by themselves at home and not at hagwons.

The rest of the article is provided within this link: Article #1: Hagwon in U.S. cash in on Korean undergrads (JoongAng Daily) 

Article #2

The attitudes and conduct of some 29,760 high school students across the United States “doesn’t bode well for the future when these youngsters become the next generation’s politicians and parents, cops and corporate executives, and journalists and generals,” the non-profit Josephson Institute said.

An overwhelming majority, 83 percent, of public school and private religious school students admitted to lying to their parents about something significant, compared to 78 percent for those attending independent non-religious schools.

“Despite these high levels of dishonesty, these same kids have a high self-image when it comes to ethics.”

It will be hard for teachers to believe in their students with the whole academic integrity rule. Cheating and dishonesty is a huge problem in schools everywhere around the world. This is only natural for the students to commit because when a couple of students start cheating, result is, the rest of the class would start cheating on their quizzes and exams. It seems as if an individual would not be human if he or she did not get affected by others who are cheating on the test. He/she would get upset about the fact that there are those who don’t study and earn good scores by just cheating. Students desire to receive good grades within their classes and so they resort to cheating rather than simply studying at home and actually learn things. It is obvious what the future would be like within schools. The majority will cheat to earn good grades, which will cause more trouble when those students go on to college and experience the real world. It will be scary.

Teen looking at her classmate's paper.

 You can check out this site to see the whole article: Article #2: US teens lie, steal, cheat at ‘alarming’ rates

The use of natural force (chi) was also evident as the two female characters fought within the movie. Chi can also be defined as the combination of physical training, skill, discipline, and etc.

Here is a scene from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. You can see the power of both female warriors as they fight with flexibility and great speed.

I found it funny how the so called nicknames were given to the male warriors in the scene where the female character had to challenge a group of men. The names of men character are shown as masculine and are also decietful. I had no choice but to laugh when one man called the “Iron Fist” had actual iron cuffs around his wrists to use them as an advantage when fighting other warriors. That seemed to be my favorite scene, other than the action scenes.

The House of Flying Daggers showed a great contrast between men and women. In the movie, man always has power of woman. This was evident as the man (police general) was about to rape the female character within the tea house. Also, men could have more than one wife, and rich men could do anything. There was a scene where the man threw money down on the floor for the madam to pick up. This showed how women would do anything for money and how they can’t say anything or reject anything infront of money.

Apart from the two movies, the novel Woman Warrior told the story of Fa Mu Lan. Fa Mu Lan was a princess who wanted to participate in the war and fight off the enemy attacks for her country. At the time, however, women were not allowed to serve for the military. Fa Mu Lan opposed this idea and had to cut her hair short (to look like a man) and trained on top of the mountain to learn and get used to martial arts.

Here is Fa Mu Lan cutting her hair with a sword. This shows her eagerness in wanting to join the military and fight those who oppose the army. Here is Rambo holding a gun with his muscular features. His strength is shown through his body.

Rambo's strength is shown through his muscular features holding a gun.

“I saw many Korean students in America isolated from the local community due to their study-concentrated way of life,” Kim said in an interview with The Korea Daily, a Korean-language newspaper published in the U.S. “They should abandon what they were familiar with in Korea to succeed in America.”

He said the Korean mindset regarding education kept Korean students from moving into the American mainstream, citing statistics that of high-ranking officers at World’s top 500 enterprises selected by American business magazine Fortune, merely 0.3 percent are Korean, compared with Indians at 10 percent and Chinese with 5 percent.

Kim is obviously stating that the reason why Korean students are leading in the dropout rate is because they are studying within the walls of their libraries and dorms just like they did back in Korea. Instead of studying long hours and spending all-nighters in school, Korean students should be more involved with the community, such as being involved in clubs and different activities provided in the school. I could see that many Korean-American students are too obsessed with getting good grades which makes everything else seem unimportant. It is also important to socialize and somewhat hang out with a group of students. Just as Kim said, Korean students do not blend in well and integrate into American culture as well as the other students of different ethnic backgrounds.

Here are several Korean students studying with the help of private tutors.

I never realized that Korean-American students were at the top of the list in the dropout rate list. I guess this is natural because of the way we (Korean-American) students handle things. Getting straight A’s seems to be the only thing on our agenda to accomplish. Nothing else seems to matter. Grades do seem the most important to me, as I am getting ready to get prepared for college. Grades do matter for my college applications, but I wonder if high grades will actually get me prepared for college life. Honestly speaking, I don’t really receive great grades like the majority of the students here at Seoul International school (I’m just average). However, I do push myself to be involved with varsity sports provided here and also participate in local community services. I recently did varsity volleyball and now I’m participating in varsity basketball. I will also try out for the varsity soccer team as well so that I can become a more social individual, being able to cooperate and work with a group of players on the field. I believe what I am currently doing is going to help me succeed in college. I have to say that I am one of the few students in SIS who participates in almost every athletic activity, which makes me somewhat unique. However, I am not going to brag. I believe I am getting prepared enoughed for my life in college.

One of many varsity level sports offered in school. Students should try new things instead of just studying all the time.

My father told me an interesting story about Korean parents and students. Korean parents believe that if their son or daughter does not get into an Ivy League school, they are considered trash and should be disappointed. Korean families want to keep their high reputation in receiving a prestigious education from the best colleges in the United States. Thus, parents urge and force their children to work harder and harder within the walls of their homes to earn straight A’s, which they believe is the golden ticket in getting them into their dream school. But what is the point of getting into such colleges if they are going to drop out? Korean students should escape their habits of studying countless hours and start socializing. They should live a free life.

Harvard, one of the Ivy League schools. This is a school which every Korean student dreams of going to. But what is the point if there are so many dropouts?

In-Flux House

Here is some information on the In-Flux House (quite interesting).
1993
21 antique TV cabinets, six 9″ color TVs,
four 4.5″ color TVs, fourteen 13″ color TVs,
eight 19″ color TVs, decorative laser discs,
weather vane, TV antennae, stuffed crow
3 channel original Paik video
140 x 212 x 24 inches            

Nam June Paik, a Korean artist, was the first video artist who applied electronic media within his art pieces. He has definitely had great influence on the art of video and television, being called the “father of video art.” This influential artist was born on July 20, 1932 in Seoul, South Korea, and is known to be the fifth son of a textile manufacturer. A factor that led him to involve electronic media within his art was his fondness of music and art. He studied piano for long hours in Seoul. He started his career as an artist after fleeing from the Korean War, ultimately moving to Japan where he graduated from the University of Tokyo in 1956.He studied art, music history, and philosophy within this university, getting a step closer to his dream of becoming an artist.

As you can see, Nam June Paik’s art piece is one of a kind. If you have a look at what the work is made out of, you’ll find the whole art piece is very interesting, consisting of many types of televisions. If you have a look at In-Flux House, various televisions make up the house. The windows, rooftop, and most of the front wall of the house are covered with these televisions, giving a unique look.

Here is a clip dedicated to Nam June Paik