It's official, the Korean government is taking online gaming addiction very seriously. As of October it will be restricting the play time of adolescents. Korea has suffered through some very tragic events in the past year, and years before making it hard for the government to ignore the seriousness of the problem. In May a couple let their prematurely born three month year old daughter die of malnourishment because, in a stroke of morbid irony, they were too busy participating in a twelve hour marathon gaming sessions to feed and care for her regularly. The irony? The game they were addicted too, Prius Online, was a fantasy game where you raised a virtual child. The parents lavished gifts on their virtual daughter so that she would earn super powers while she grew, while their real daughter suffered and died. This is not an isolated display of horror to happen in Korea this year because of online gaming addiction. In the same month a 22 year old male was sentenced to 20 years in prison because he beat his mother to death after she brought up the frequency in which he played online games, and a few months earlier a 32 year old male dropped dead after a nonstop five day gaming session. Online gaming addiction does not only effect Korea, and as more studies gather information it is without question a dangerous addiction that should be treated seriously. My question is, do developers of online games purposely keep the addictive properties that keep consumers shelling out money for the monthly fee? How much responsibility are they liable for creating online gaming addicts?
Why would online game developers be interested in making video games addictive? Maybe, it is because the online gaming market has become a very profitable business. Experts are projecting that online games are going to be the source of one-third of the game market revenue by 2011. As of this year it is already worth $4 billion, and people believe it is expected to triple in the next five years. This is according to Strategy Analytic. That is more than the other online entertainment markets, which encompasses music, games, and video. These figures only include the direct flow of money from consumers to developers, and does not include the revenue generated by third party businesses that have prospered due to online gaming, such as companies who sell in game currency for real world money.
How does an online game generate money? After the initial purchase of the game, the user then pays a monthly subscription to keep playing. From there it is up to the game company to keep the gamer interested. There are alternative online games that are free to play online, however they generate revenue by selling in game items for real world money. Online gaming is a very lucrative businesses, and when you look at the numbers it is easy to see why a company would be motivated to keep players paying the monthly fee. So, what are the dangers? If the player is happy, and the developers happy, what is the harm?
Internet addiction has been around for, well, as long as the Internet has been around. Online gaming addiction has been around for just as long, but it wasn't until the launch of an online video game developed by Sony's 989 Studios, named Everquest, released March of 1999, that people started to see the effects of online gaming addiction. The game launched with modest expectations, however by October of 2001 Sony announced that it had over 410,000 active subscribers. It was the first very popular MMORPG (Massive Multi-player Online Role Playing Game) to hit the gaming masses, and from that popularity came many reports of gamers sacrificing their responsibilities to play the game. It was hard to ignore the many accounts. Gamers found themselves loosing their jobs, their relationships, their friends, and didn't care as long as it didn't interferer with their progress within the game. No one understood the addiction, or if they should call it an addiction, meanwhile a stigma in the geek community was formed, and with that stigma came a sense of pride. Everquest was given the nick name “Evercrack”, in the meantime some gamers began to face their addiction for the first time. Their experiences got the attention of psychologists who wanted to understand why video games are addicting in the first place, and the detrimental effects it has on the addict.
Gamers will sacrifice sleep, food, and real world human socialization (anything that can potentially occupy their free time) in order to spend more time in the game. A usual gaming session for an addict lasts from at least ten hours an can go on for more than twenty hours straight (Young 358). I have known people personally who would go for over twenty-four hours on a regular basis and be proud of their gaming stamina. They certainly had reason to be proud, because they were on top of the charts, mini-celebrities in the game. Eventually this behavior wears on the gamer's personal life, including job, school, family, and friends. This also begins to wear on the gamer's health. Gaming addicts can suffer from many health problems ranging from malnourishment, eye strain, back strain, carpel tunnel syndrome, and repetitive stress injury (Young 358). One of my resources, Kelly Young, goes on to quote a gaming addict concerning how his addiction effected his health “I sopped bathing. I didn't eat unless it was a quick snack I could eat in font of my computer. I lost weight. My skin was pasty and pale. I didn't shave or comb my hair. I did nothing. I looked so bad that my mother told me I looked more like a heroin addict” (Young 358). Despite the overwhelming consequences many gamers still refuse to acknowledge their addiction. What do they get from the game that keeps them playing despite facing real life consequences?
In every piece of information, and research I read regarding online gaming addictions, there was one parallel drawn to connect the papers. This was the social need of the gamer, and their ability to overwhelmingly fulfill that need inside of the game. Online games have a very complex social environment that is only limited by the diversity of its players. In the game World of Warcraft produced by Blizzard Entertainment, which has well over eleven million players, and accounts for roughly 62% of the current online gaming market, a player can participate in a number of organized social events from small temporary groups, to the larger, more permanent guilds.
Social support is essential to a person's mental health. It is known to improve physical health, and reduce negative psychological symptoms of depression and anxiety. It has been found that the social support derived from online games like WoW can also be associated with lower levels of stress and depression. Also, the more involved a player was in WoW, the more social support they received in game. It is found that gamers form life long friendships, and partners. It also has been concluded that gamers preffer to socialize online instead of real life, because inside the game they can safely express aspects of themselves that they don not feel comfortable doing so in real life due to their gender, sexuality, age, or looks. Though while a good thing for the mental well being of the gamer, the intimate supports groups, and social circles gaming addicts online have damaging consequences to real life relationships.
Blizzard knows how powerful the strong social bonds gamers form within their creation, and pressures active gamers to bring back friends who have quit the game by rewarding current players with items called scrolls of “resurrection”. These items you can give to a friend who has played in the past, and when activated will give them a free two week play time. If the friend completes the trial period and pays to activate their account, the person who gave them the “scroll of resurrection” earns a free one month period of WoW.
Blizzard isn't the only game developer who understands the importance of social support, and the pivotal roll it plays in keeping their consumers active, and paying the monthly subscription fees. The company Square-Enix of Japan offers an item called a “buddy pass”, and a “gold world pass” for their game Final Fantasy XI in a recruiting program. A current gamer can apply for the item, and send it to a friend, who can in return redeem it for a one month free trail period of the game. The “gold world pass” goes further, if the invited friend stays in game, they receive special items on their forty day anniversary, seventy day anniversary, one hundred day anniversary, and year anniversary.
Another interesting aspect of psychology that game developers admittedly use in order to keep their gamers hooked is derived from a famous man named BF Skinner, and is most famous for his experiments concerning rats in a box, and conditioning their behavior through reward and punishment. When a rat pushed a lever inside the box, it was rewarded with food pellets. The rat soon learned to push based on the positive reinforcement the food reward created. Later Skinner found that if he staggered out the rewards, instead of giving the rat a pellet every time it pushed the lever he would reward the rat every tenth time, the rat would push the level more often, establishing motivation.
The same concept is applied during game play. When a group of gamers defeat a hard opponent there is a chance that they will be rewarded with a rare item. To keep this system in check, and to prevent gamers from collecting all the rare items and growing bored with the game, the developers introduce harder monsters with more powerful, rarer items as reward for it's defeat. Some times the monsters are hard to find, and will only appear in game randomly after a number of days. A lot of the time the monster will not drop the rare item every time. The game developers monitor the game, and the players, and work hard to introduce new things to keep the gamers interested, so that they can keep collecting the monthly fee. It is also implied, while gaming, that you must have all the best items, and be more powerful than the other guy.
While there are some positive aspects of online gaming, and when done in moderation, it can be a rewarding experience for some one who enjoys video games, there is enough overwhelming evidence out there that shows how harmful online games can become. Instead of developers responding responsibly to the addiction, they leave it for other institutions (like the Korean government), and the gamers themselves to monitor for addiction, and prevent it. I feel strongly that with the more people taking action, and the more research that piles up to support the addictiveness of online games, developers will be forced to change the play style of the games to provide a more neutral environment, or place research into other preventative measures against online gaming addiction.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Research Journal
Bibliography Entry 4
Longman, Huon, Erin O'Connor, and Patricia Obst. "The Effect of Social Support Derived from World of Warcraft on Negative Psychological Symptoms.." CyberPsychology & Behavior. 12.5 (Oct. 2009): 563-566. Print.
Summary
This article talks about a study done on 206 participants who play the online game World of Warcraft. The article talks about why it chose World of Warcraft, and the demographics of the participants of the study. The purpose of the study is to test previous research based on the social interactions of online games, and provides evidence that social support can be derived from online games and online games can promote social health. It also contains information on harm from excessive use of online games.
Reflection
I am finding through my research that the studies done concerning online games, and online gaming addiction is by what seems like a small circle of people in academia. I found a website advertising a rehab center (here in Utah) who quoted a Kimberly Young as the expert in the field of online gaming addiction here in the United States. She is the author of the first report I submitted as an annotated bib. The article above comes from the same journal, same issue as the article of hers that I am using. Also the authors reflect back on the older article I am using concerning studies done in other countries. It is interesting to see the researchers draw similar conclusions. Also, I like this article, because it contains a lot of positive information. I feel it will be good to use in my research so that my research paper doesn't sound completely pessimistic.
Bibliography Entry 5: Student Choice
Hopson, John. "Behavioral Game Design." Gamasutra 21 APR 2001: 1-2. Web. 26 Jul 2010. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3085/behavioral_game_design.php?page=1
Summary
This article is written by a game research employed at Microsoft Game Studios. His biography states that he has worked on several bestselling games (but doesn't define what role his work played), and informs us that he holds a doctorates in behavioral and brain sciences. Creepy. The article talks about the behavioral psychology that is used when creating games. He first references B. F. Skinner, and his Skinner box. Creepy x2. In a nutshell the article is about how game designers try to anticipate the way gamers react to video games, and how they really react to video games.
Reflection
I originally wanted to interview some one, but this article was too good to pass up. I will still probably interview people if I still need information to support my arguments.
Longman, Huon, Erin O'Connor, and Patricia Obst. "The Effect of Social Support Derived from World of Warcraft on Negative Psychological Symptoms.." CyberPsychology & Behavior. 12.5 (Oct. 2009): 563-566. Print.
Summary
This article talks about a study done on 206 participants who play the online game World of Warcraft. The article talks about why it chose World of Warcraft, and the demographics of the participants of the study. The purpose of the study is to test previous research based on the social interactions of online games, and provides evidence that social support can be derived from online games and online games can promote social health. It also contains information on harm from excessive use of online games.
Reflection
I am finding through my research that the studies done concerning online games, and online gaming addiction is by what seems like a small circle of people in academia. I found a website advertising a rehab center (here in Utah) who quoted a Kimberly Young as the expert in the field of online gaming addiction here in the United States. She is the author of the first report I submitted as an annotated bib. The article above comes from the same journal, same issue as the article of hers that I am using. Also the authors reflect back on the older article I am using concerning studies done in other countries. It is interesting to see the researchers draw similar conclusions. Also, I like this article, because it contains a lot of positive information. I feel it will be good to use in my research so that my research paper doesn't sound completely pessimistic.
Bibliography Entry 5: Student Choice
Hopson, John. "Behavioral Game Design." Gamasutra 21 APR 2001: 1-2. Web. 26 Jul 2010. http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3085/behavioral_game_design.php?page=1
Summary
This article is written by a game research employed at Microsoft Game Studios. His biography states that he has worked on several bestselling games (but doesn't define what role his work played), and informs us that he holds a doctorates in behavioral and brain sciences. Creepy. The article talks about the behavioral psychology that is used when creating games. He first references B. F. Skinner, and his Skinner box. Creepy x2. In a nutshell the article is about how game designers try to anticipate the way gamers react to video games, and how they really react to video games.
Reflection
I originally wanted to interview some one, but this article was too good to pass up. I will still probably interview people if I still need information to support my arguments.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Research Journal: Invention Work
Annotated Bibliography Entry 2
Chin-Sheng, Wan, and Chiou Wen-Bin. "Psychological Motives and Online Games Addiction: A Test of Flow Theory and Humanistic Needs Theory for Taiwanese Adolescents." CyberPsychology & Behavior 9.3 (2006): 317-323. Web. 22 Jul 2010. http://researcher.nsc.gov.tw/public/wbchiou/Data/98291414271.pdf
Summary
This article is a very detailed, technical article concerning two studies involving groups of Tiwanese adolesence and their interaction with online games. The studies compare results between online gaming addicts, and non-addicts and tries to find the motives of unconscious players.
Reflection
This is a great article that contains statistics, and information from studies conducted, however it is very hard to interpret, and understand. It is very technical, and it is written for an audience that is suppose to know the technical jargon, and methods used. This article will be as useful as my ability to interpret it, and write about the information it contains.
Annotated Bibliography Entry 3
Sang-Hun, Choe. "In South Korea, Parents' Internet Game-Playing Cost Baby's Life." New York Times (May 2010): n. pag. Web. 22 Jul 2010. http://find.galegroup.com.dbprox.slcc.edu/ovrc/retrieve.do?contentSet=IAC-Documents&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2CUS%2C%29%3AFQE%3D%28sn%2CNone%2C9%290362-4331%3AAnd%3AFQE%3D%28ti%2CNone%2C64%29In+South+Korea%2C+Parents%27+Internet+Game-Playing+Cost+Baby%27s+Life.%3AAnd%3AFQE%3D%28da%2CNone%2C10%292010%2F05%2F29%24&sgHitCountType=None&inPS=true&sort=DateDescend&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&tabID=T004&prodId=OVRC&searchId=R2¤tPosition=1&userGroupName=slcc&docId=A227628028&docType=IAC
Summary
This is a news article that tells a tragic incident of extreme neglect where a child died because her parents were so involved in raising an virtual child they forgot to care for their real life daughter.
Reflection
This is a powerful article, that illustrates the dangers of online gaming addiction at its most extreme. There is a sad irony involved that shows how illogical the addiction can be, and at what lengths the loved ones of addicts suffer because of the addiction. It also shows the contrast between different addictions, like drugs. I will definitely be using this information to help emphasize my argument.
Report Paper Invention Work
My working thesis is:
Is online gaming designed to be addictive by the very companies who make design them?
1. What is my topic exactly?
Online gaming addiction.
2. What points do I want to make about my topic?
What is online gaming addiction, how serious is it, how it compares to other addictions, and are the games designed to be addictive.
3. What exactly is my purpose in this project?
To inform through analysis.
Research Paper Outline
Introduction
Why would gaming companies make their games have addictive properties
-Revenue statistics
-Mechanics of gaming, keeping gamers interested
Why is online gaming addiction serious
-Symptoms of the addiction
-Effects of the addiction of the addicts, and loved ones
Behavioral Psychology
-Skinner box, and the attributes
-Humanistic needs, and how games provide them
Conclusion
Chin-Sheng, Wan, and Chiou Wen-Bin. "Psychological Motives and Online Games Addiction: A Test of Flow Theory and Humanistic Needs Theory for Taiwanese Adolescents." CyberPsychology & Behavior 9.3 (2006): 317-323. Web. 22 Jul 2010. http://researcher.nsc.gov.tw/public/wbchiou/Data/98291414271.pdf
Summary
This article is a very detailed, technical article concerning two studies involving groups of Tiwanese adolesence and their interaction with online games. The studies compare results between online gaming addicts, and non-addicts and tries to find the motives of unconscious players.
Reflection
This is a great article that contains statistics, and information from studies conducted, however it is very hard to interpret, and understand. It is very technical, and it is written for an audience that is suppose to know the technical jargon, and methods used. This article will be as useful as my ability to interpret it, and write about the information it contains.
Annotated Bibliography Entry 3
Sang-Hun, Choe. "In South Korea, Parents' Internet Game-Playing Cost Baby's Life." New York Times (May 2010): n. pag. Web. 22 Jul 2010. http://find.galegroup.com.dbprox.slcc.edu/ovrc/retrieve.do?contentSet=IAC-Documents&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2CUS%2C%29%3AFQE%3D%28sn%2CNone%2C9%290362-4331%3AAnd%3AFQE%3D%28ti%2CNone%2C64%29In+South+Korea%2C+Parents%27+Internet+Game-Playing+Cost+Baby%27s+Life.%3AAnd%3AFQE%3D%28da%2CNone%2C10%292010%2F05%2F29%24&sgHitCountType=None&inPS=true&sort=DateDescend&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&tabID=T004&prodId=OVRC&searchId=R2¤tPosition=1&userGroupName=slcc&docId=A227628028&docType=IAC
Summary
This is a news article that tells a tragic incident of extreme neglect where a child died because her parents were so involved in raising an virtual child they forgot to care for their real life daughter.
Reflection
This is a powerful article, that illustrates the dangers of online gaming addiction at its most extreme. There is a sad irony involved that shows how illogical the addiction can be, and at what lengths the loved ones of addicts suffer because of the addiction. It also shows the contrast between different addictions, like drugs. I will definitely be using this information to help emphasize my argument.
Report Paper Invention Work
My working thesis is:
Is online gaming designed to be addictive by the very companies who make design them?
1. What is my topic exactly?
Online gaming addiction.
2. What points do I want to make about my topic?
What is online gaming addiction, how serious is it, how it compares to other addictions, and are the games designed to be addictive.
3. What exactly is my purpose in this project?
To inform through analysis.
Research Paper Outline
Introduction
Why would gaming companies make their games have addictive properties
-Revenue statistics
-Mechanics of gaming, keeping gamers interested
Why is online gaming addiction serious
-Symptoms of the addiction
-Effects of the addiction of the addicts, and loved ones
Behavioral Psychology
-Skinner box, and the attributes
-Humanistic needs, and how games provide them
Conclusion
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Research Guide
1. What do you already know about your issue?
I have user end experience on my topic. I've been playing MMORPGs for about 14 years now, starting with Diablo. Though I tend to grow board and move on to different games, or taking long breaks. I have met a lot of people online through MMORPGs and I have witnessed different events, and behavior take place that are unique or parallel real life, which surprises some people.
2. What questions do you have about your issue?
Why are they addictive, mostly, and what resources are starting to emerge because of this “new' addiction.
3. Who is interested in this issue?
Maybe psychologists, or people who are interested in human behavior, and people who play the games themselves.
4. Where do people read, write, talk, or hear about this issue?
Mostly from non-academic sources. Magazines, T.V. Commercials, friends/family and in the news when very unfortunate worse-case-scenario situations happen.
5. Where will you look to find your secondary sources?
I am hoping to create a survey, or interview some people. I would like to interview some one who has coped with sever MMORPG addiction, but I need to find some one willing to answer questions first.
6. Are you going to conduct primary research? If so, where? How?
Through a survey, and interviews. I would like to find people through message boards, and screen the applicants of trolls. Or I could use my friends. But I fear that is too small of a group.
7. Create a timeline/schedule for completing your research.
This week I plan on completing my bibliographies, and find my academic sources of information and create a general outline/idea for my paper. From there I will create the survey/questions I would like to ask for my interviews. That way I am able to gather relevant information. Thursday I would like to put out the survey, and hopefully get enough responses by Saturday so that I can sit down and go through the information. On Tuesday I will probably begin writing my draft, and organize data so that I have some thing solid to submit on Thursday the 26th.
Annotated Bibliography 1
Young, Kimberly. "Understanding Online Gaming Addiction and Treatment Issues for Adolescents." American Journal of Family Therapy Oct. 2009: 355-371. Web. 21 Jul 2010. http://www.netaddiction.com/articles/Online_Gaming_Addiction.pdf .
Summary
This article is very informative about online gaming addictions in youth, detailing information on symptoms and treatment. The article lists multiple sources, which it uses to support its statistics. It also spends time explaining what exactly online gaming is, how it evolved from games in the 1980's to what it is today. The article suggest that youths who get addicted to online gaming may have larger underlying emotional issues.
Reflection
I think I struck gold. Usually scholarly articles about video games are able to hammer the nail into the board, without actually hitting the nail on the head. I think this article is full of information, and sources that I can use for my research paper. When I was reading and it was talking about how gaming addicts would often play the game for 15-20 hours straight, I remember a time in my life where on my days off all I would do is play an MMORPG for that long.
1. What do you already know about your issue?
I have user end experience on my topic. I've been playing MMORPGs for about 14 years now, starting with Diablo. Though I tend to grow board and move on to different games, or taking long breaks. I have met a lot of people online through MMORPGs and I have witnessed different events, and behavior take place that are unique or parallel real life, which surprises some people.
2. What questions do you have about your issue?
Why are they addictive, mostly, and what resources are starting to emerge because of this “new' addiction.
3. Who is interested in this issue?
Maybe psychologists, or people who are interested in human behavior, and people who play the games themselves.
4. Where do people read, write, talk, or hear about this issue?
Mostly from non-academic sources. Magazines, T.V. Commercials, friends/family and in the news when very unfortunate worse-case-scenario situations happen.
5. Where will you look to find your secondary sources?
I am hoping to create a survey, or interview some people. I would like to interview some one who has coped with sever MMORPG addiction, but I need to find some one willing to answer questions first.
6. Are you going to conduct primary research? If so, where? How?
Through a survey, and interviews. I would like to find people through message boards, and screen the applicants of trolls. Or I could use my friends. But I fear that is too small of a group.
7. Create a timeline/schedule for completing your research.
This week I plan on completing my bibliographies, and find my academic sources of information and create a general outline/idea for my paper. From there I will create the survey/questions I would like to ask for my interviews. That way I am able to gather relevant information. Thursday I would like to put out the survey, and hopefully get enough responses by Saturday so that I can sit down and go through the information. On Tuesday I will probably begin writing my draft, and organize data so that I have some thing solid to submit on Thursday the 26th.
Annotated Bibliography 1
Young, Kimberly. "Understanding Online Gaming Addiction and Treatment Issues for Adolescents." American Journal of Family Therapy Oct. 2009: 355-371. Web. 21 Jul 2010. http://www.netaddiction.com/articles/Online_Gaming_Addiction.pdf .
Summary
This article is very informative about online gaming addictions in youth, detailing information on symptoms and treatment. The article lists multiple sources, which it uses to support its statistics. It also spends time explaining what exactly online gaming is, how it evolved from games in the 1980's to what it is today. The article suggest that youths who get addicted to online gaming may have larger underlying emotional issues.
Reflection
I think I struck gold. Usually scholarly articles about video games are able to hammer the nail into the board, without actually hitting the nail on the head. I think this article is full of information, and sources that I can use for my research paper. When I was reading and it was talking about how gaming addicts would often play the game for 15-20 hours straight, I remember a time in my life where on my days off all I would do is play an MMORPG for that long.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Research Journal: Topic Choice
My topic for my Research Journal is going to be MMORPGs (Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games).
1: What are they?
2: Who plays them?
3: Where can they be found?
4: How are they different from other games?
5: Where can they be found?
6: How do they effect the player?
7: When did they become popular?
8: What kinds of MMORPGs are ther?
9: Who makes/publishes them?
10: For what purposes are they created?
The purpose of the tutorials is to teach me how the Ebsco program benefits me. The tutorial showed me how to conduct basic searching, and how to utilize the search options so that I can find documents that fit what I need. The tutorial showed me the quick buttons for printing, saving, emailing, ect. documents. The tutorial showed me how to find indexes, and how to find cited references. The second tutorial showed me the advanced search options, which covered much of the content of the first tutorial, and expanded on other options which are handy to know, but I will probably forget. The tutorial also showed me how to create folders where I can save searches, and alerts by making a user name and password.
1: What are they?
2: Who plays them?
3: Where can they be found?
4: How are they different from other games?
5: Where can they be found?
6: How do they effect the player?
7: When did they become popular?
8: What kinds of MMORPGs are ther?
9: Who makes/publishes them?
10: For what purposes are they created?
The purpose of the tutorials is to teach me how the Ebsco program benefits me. The tutorial showed me how to conduct basic searching, and how to utilize the search options so that I can find documents that fit what I need. The tutorial showed me the quick buttons for printing, saving, emailing, ect. documents. The tutorial showed me how to find indexes, and how to find cited references. The second tutorial showed me the advanced search options, which covered much of the content of the first tutorial, and expanded on other options which are handy to know, but I will probably forget. The tutorial also showed me how to create folders where I can save searches, and alerts by making a user name and password.
Self Evaluation
Which assignment did you like best?
I liked the analysis paper. I like analyzing, and interpreting things. Also I had never seen Angel before, so it was nice to have a new series that can catch my interest introduced to me.
Which assignment are you the most proud of?
Even though I liked writing the analysis paper the best, and it was the easiest one for me to write, I have to say I am more proud of my observation paper. It was harder for me to write, but I was trying to make it humorous, and I think I accomplished that goal.
What are your strengths as a writer?
My voice, and my sense of humor. Also, I don't know if it shows but I try to find the perfect words for the idea I am trying to get across to my reader so I utilize the Thesaurus often.
What are your weaknesses as a writer?
Expressing emotion. When I try to convey serious emotion I feel an embarrassment similar to telling a stranger a intimate secret about myself. I feel if I was able to break this barrier for my first paper it would have been better.
What are your goals for the final report paper and the rest of the course?
My goals are to research some thing that interests me, and interests people who may not know much about my topic. I would hate to do some thing boring for the sake of getting the assignment done.
What grade do you feel you’ve earned on your Midterm? And why?
An A-. I worked really hard on my papers. I had major revisions to do on the reflection paper. I had to cut about 700 words out of it. I also had to pretty much start my observation paper over from scratch, because it was more like an analysis. I am happy with how it turned out, I feel it is more focuses. I just hope I didn't edit out the humor! I say A- because I know the probability of minor mistakes being present in my midterm is likely.
I liked the analysis paper. I like analyzing, and interpreting things. Also I had never seen Angel before, so it was nice to have a new series that can catch my interest introduced to me.
Which assignment are you the most proud of?
Even though I liked writing the analysis paper the best, and it was the easiest one for me to write, I have to say I am more proud of my observation paper. It was harder for me to write, but I was trying to make it humorous, and I think I accomplished that goal.
What are your strengths as a writer?
My voice, and my sense of humor. Also, I don't know if it shows but I try to find the perfect words for the idea I am trying to get across to my reader so I utilize the Thesaurus often.
What are your weaknesses as a writer?
Expressing emotion. When I try to convey serious emotion I feel an embarrassment similar to telling a stranger a intimate secret about myself. I feel if I was able to break this barrier for my first paper it would have been better.
What are your goals for the final report paper and the rest of the course?
My goals are to research some thing that interests me, and interests people who may not know much about my topic. I would hate to do some thing boring for the sake of getting the assignment done.
What grade do you feel you’ve earned on your Midterm? And why?
An A-. I worked really hard on my papers. I had major revisions to do on the reflection paper. I had to cut about 700 words out of it. I also had to pretty much start my observation paper over from scratch, because it was more like an analysis. I am happy with how it turned out, I feel it is more focuses. I just hope I didn't edit out the humor! I say A- because I know the probability of minor mistakes being present in my midterm is likely.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Analysis Final
In the episode of “Are You Now or Have You Ever Been” the main protagonist, Angel, portrays a vivid character with many perceived and real flaws. Angel's character does not seemed destined for heroism, as seen in the opening scene when the bellboy expresses fear, and discomfort when he is required to interact with Angel. The bellboy talks about Angel, saying that his eyes are empty. He is required to deliver a bill to Angel, and instead of waiting for Angel to answer the door the bellboy leaves, so he doesn't have to interact with him. It is a surprise to the audience when Angel answers the door, because he is supposed to be hero of the story. Yet, Angel is not just any hero. He is prone to moral lapses other characteristics are divergent from those of a standard protagonist. However, the story pits him in situations where he does pull through, thus making him an unlikely hero. Based on his actions I have come to the conclusion that Angel is an uncommon and non-traditional hero because his actions are mostly self centered, and self motivated.
Angel is a vampire who is able to live alongside humans because he masquerades as another human. He chooses a shady hotel as his residence, knowing that the occupants will not question any strange aura he may emit, nor will they encroach on his personal space. Angel dresses in a manner which mimics James Dean. This allows him to fool humans into assuming he is a rebel. He even lets them believe he has a drinking problem for effect. I believe this disguise backfires when a young woman named Judy running from the law attempts to enlist his help. I think she assumes that he would be able to relate to her situation because he is outcast. Judy seems to trust that he will be able to understand her problems and that this will be enough to convince him to help her.
When Judy and Angel first meet, Judy's character embodies a woman in distress asking for his assistance. It is surprising that Angel does not respond to this situation in the way that most archetypal heroes would. Rather than reaching out to Judy jumping to her aide and recognizing her as another troubled soul, struggling with the same challenges that he himself struggles with, Angel reacts towards Judy with disdain. She poses as a threat to him, and his disguise. He doesn't really care about the human Judy, and pushes her away. Later when he does decide to help her, one comes to understand that Angel would have never bothered to help her in any way if Judy had not inadvertently revealed something very important about herself to him.
During the time that Angel knows Judy as merely another human, he does not hesitate to push her away, obviously not caring about her in the least. He doesn't start to care, and continues to ignore her multiple attempts to beseech his assistance until she reveals that she is half black living as a white person. She reveals that she is living a masquerade, just as Angel is. During the time period of the 1950's, Judy's racial status caused her to be treated unfairly in society and she had little to no civil rights to rely on. Angel's only draw towards helping Judy, is that she presents a living parallel of himself. Judy struggles with a secret identity (recently exposed) and he struggles with his vampire identity. When Angel recognizes this real (rather than perceived) commonality between them, Angel is suddenly stricken with a strange compassion towards Judy because of the similarity of their afflictions. After this Angel sets out to destroy the demon that is feeding off the paranoia of the hotel residents, who is also very clearly affecting Judy. In the beginning of the episode Angel notices a man talking to the demon, and does nothing about it. Moments later when the man shoots himself in the room next door Angel doesn't even flinch, nor move. Only when he personally becomes invested in the situation does he make a move against the demon.
Another example of Angel's disregard for others can be witnessed directly after Judy's betrayal of him. Angel is faced with a choice to save the humans in the hotel – or walk away. The demon tells Angel that without a doubt he had made a friend in Judy. Angel allows a selfish grudge to prevent him from saving Judy, or any of the other occupants of the hotel. Judy's friendship means nothing to him. It could be argued that Angel's actions are a justified punishment for those who persecuted him. However, upon closer analysis it is clear that Angel's actions are spurred by pure desire for revenge against the people of the hotel who were responsible for his hanging. Most importantly, one must also consider the future occupants of the hotel as well. These people cause no ill-will towards Angel and merely had the misfortune of encountering the hotel. A true hero would never allow innocent bystanders to suffer because of the misdeeds of bad people. These two facets of Judy's betrayal and its consequences compound Angel's disregard for others and create some interesting conflicts in placing his character in the category of a “hero”.
In 2003 Angel returns to the hotel. The first action he takes is to retrieve Judy's money which he hid back in the 1950's. He then finds that the demon residing there is still alive. Seeking redemption, Angel decides to destroy the demon. His lust for redemption is a selfish concept that only benefits him because the people he would be helping are already dead. After the demon is destroyed Angel finds out that Judy is still alive, and living in the hotel. When he visits her she surprises him by asking for his forgiveness. Angel doesn't hesitate, he grants her the forgiveness immediately. This may seem like a reaction of a traditional hero, but upon closer analysis, Angel's ulterior motive for Judy's forgiveness becomes apparent. While Angel feels guilt for Judy's suffering, I believe a big reason that he grants her forgiveness is because he grants her forgiveness that he himself wishes he could receive. His actions make him a very unlikeable character that makes a questionable, but interesting hero.
Angel is a vampire who is able to live alongside humans because he masquerades as another human. He chooses a shady hotel as his residence, knowing that the occupants will not question any strange aura he may emit, nor will they encroach on his personal space. Angel dresses in a manner which mimics James Dean. This allows him to fool humans into assuming he is a rebel. He even lets them believe he has a drinking problem for effect. I believe this disguise backfires when a young woman named Judy running from the law attempts to enlist his help. I think she assumes that he would be able to relate to her situation because he is outcast. Judy seems to trust that he will be able to understand her problems and that this will be enough to convince him to help her.
When Judy and Angel first meet, Judy's character embodies a woman in distress asking for his assistance. It is surprising that Angel does not respond to this situation in the way that most archetypal heroes would. Rather than reaching out to Judy jumping to her aide and recognizing her as another troubled soul, struggling with the same challenges that he himself struggles with, Angel reacts towards Judy with disdain. She poses as a threat to him, and his disguise. He doesn't really care about the human Judy, and pushes her away. Later when he does decide to help her, one comes to understand that Angel would have never bothered to help her in any way if Judy had not inadvertently revealed something very important about herself to him.
During the time that Angel knows Judy as merely another human, he does not hesitate to push her away, obviously not caring about her in the least. He doesn't start to care, and continues to ignore her multiple attempts to beseech his assistance until she reveals that she is half black living as a white person. She reveals that she is living a masquerade, just as Angel is. During the time period of the 1950's, Judy's racial status caused her to be treated unfairly in society and she had little to no civil rights to rely on. Angel's only draw towards helping Judy, is that she presents a living parallel of himself. Judy struggles with a secret identity (recently exposed) and he struggles with his vampire identity. When Angel recognizes this real (rather than perceived) commonality between them, Angel is suddenly stricken with a strange compassion towards Judy because of the similarity of their afflictions. After this Angel sets out to destroy the demon that is feeding off the paranoia of the hotel residents, who is also very clearly affecting Judy. In the beginning of the episode Angel notices a man talking to the demon, and does nothing about it. Moments later when the man shoots himself in the room next door Angel doesn't even flinch, nor move. Only when he personally becomes invested in the situation does he make a move against the demon.
Another example of Angel's disregard for others can be witnessed directly after Judy's betrayal of him. Angel is faced with a choice to save the humans in the hotel – or walk away. The demon tells Angel that without a doubt he had made a friend in Judy. Angel allows a selfish grudge to prevent him from saving Judy, or any of the other occupants of the hotel. Judy's friendship means nothing to him. It could be argued that Angel's actions are a justified punishment for those who persecuted him. However, upon closer analysis it is clear that Angel's actions are spurred by pure desire for revenge against the people of the hotel who were responsible for his hanging. Most importantly, one must also consider the future occupants of the hotel as well. These people cause no ill-will towards Angel and merely had the misfortune of encountering the hotel. A true hero would never allow innocent bystanders to suffer because of the misdeeds of bad people. These two facets of Judy's betrayal and its consequences compound Angel's disregard for others and create some interesting conflicts in placing his character in the category of a “hero”.
In 2003 Angel returns to the hotel. The first action he takes is to retrieve Judy's money which he hid back in the 1950's. He then finds that the demon residing there is still alive. Seeking redemption, Angel decides to destroy the demon. His lust for redemption is a selfish concept that only benefits him because the people he would be helping are already dead. After the demon is destroyed Angel finds out that Judy is still alive, and living in the hotel. When he visits her she surprises him by asking for his forgiveness. Angel doesn't hesitate, he grants her the forgiveness immediately. This may seem like a reaction of a traditional hero, but upon closer analysis, Angel's ulterior motive for Judy's forgiveness becomes apparent. While Angel feels guilt for Judy's suffering, I believe a big reason that he grants her forgiveness is because he grants her forgiveness that he himself wishes he could receive. His actions make him a very unlikeable character that makes a questionable, but interesting hero.
Reflection Paper Final
I was twenty-three when my husband and I decided to divorce. The months after the divorce were a torrential emotional storm of confusion, doubt, and anxiety. Then one night, I was having a conversation with a friend of mine online. That small conversation was one of the most important things to ever happen to me in my life. It took weeks of analyzing every facet of every emotion before the epiphany occurred. Why was something so simple so hard for me to figure out? I realize now that is because no one ever told me that I was gay. We talked for a while, until out of the blue she told me something that took me by surprise.
“So, uh... I want to tell you some thing really important...” my friend said over an instant message. “...and it may seem weird... but I really really want you to know because I think you're a cool person, but I don't want you to think different of me...” She was gay. I remember thinking that her sentence's tone of awkwardness was perfectly complimented by her usage of ellipses.
“Oh, I am cool with that. Don't worry!” I assured her. “I'm really happy you trust me enough to tell me!”
“Of course I trust you! But... I also wanted to tell you... that I really really like you...” That's right, she confessed her feelings to me. It wasn't the first time some one had confessed their feelings of attraction to me, but it was the first time a girl had approached me with these sentiments.
I told her nicely that I was straight, and ended the conversation politely by going to bed, but I didn't get much sleep. Thoughts raced through my head, followed by excitement, which was followed by confusion. Why did I feel this way? My emotions conflicted with what I knew was true, and the truth was that I was straight, or so I thought. This was a truth I had accepted as far back as I could remember.
When I was young I would watch cartoons about princes and princesses with my cousin who was three years older than me, who also thought she was older.
“I think Prince Eric is really cute. When I grow up, I want to marry him.” My cousin would muse. She would often talk about boys, and even had a subscription to those magazines that featured boys, and other magazines that had tips about makeup, and how to dress attractively. “I want to get married happily ever after, and have two kids. One boy, and one girl. What do you want to do when you grow up?”
“I want to win a Nobel Prize!” I answered excitedly.
“No, no, no...” My cousin responded. “What kind of guy do you want? How many kids?” At the time, I really hadn't thought about it. Pictures of princes, and boys on t.v. flashed through my head, but none of them seemed appealing. “I think you would look good with Zack from Saved from the Bell.” She responded for me. As I grew older I kept trying to find an answer to her question, but none fit. Instead I would date boys that my friends approved of.
“Wow, Steve is hot. His family is rich too. I can't believe he asked you to the dance!” My friend wooed. A month later I ended things with Steve after a heavy make out session because I really wasn't into him. This was the trend with all my high school boyfriends. They would either move on because the physical parts of the relationship weren't going as far as they wanted it, or I would break it off before it ever got to that point. I made an exception for my marriage, but the disinterest in sex didn't go away after I got married.
“Why don't you like kissing me?” He would often ask while we were being intimate. “I feel like you don't like it when I touch you.”
“I just don't like sex.” I explained. “I hate the way it makes me feel.” It was the truth and a lie at the same time.
“How can you hate it? It is suppose to make you feel good.” It did make me feel good in the moment, he was right, I would orgasm, so what's the problem? Why did I feel so disgusting after the “moment” had passed.
“No...” I hesitated so I could find the right words. “I think it's me. I guess I just don't like sex.” And that's how it was through the duration of my marriage. I wish I could say that was our only conflict, but it wasn't.
“You have a crush on her!” Were the words of a friend that made most of the pieces fall in place. I hadn't realized I was talking about her again. She had asked me out on a date, but I had left her offer open-ended. After some time of conflicted contemplation, I took her up on her offer, and then the rest of the pieces came together. I learned that there was nothing wrong with me when it came to enjoying sex.
“I don't know how I never noticed!” I remember my mom saying once after I had come out to her. I don't know how she could have noticed when I hadn't realized it myself. I was too busy living up to the expectations of normalcy that I never thought I was gay. I hated any sort of intimacy with men so much I never thought to consider intimacy with women. But then again, no one ever did tell me I was gay.
“So, uh... I want to tell you some thing really important...” my friend said over an instant message. “...and it may seem weird... but I really really want you to know because I think you're a cool person, but I don't want you to think different of me...” She was gay. I remember thinking that her sentence's tone of awkwardness was perfectly complimented by her usage of ellipses.
“Oh, I am cool with that. Don't worry!” I assured her. “I'm really happy you trust me enough to tell me!”
“Of course I trust you! But... I also wanted to tell you... that I really really like you...” That's right, she confessed her feelings to me. It wasn't the first time some one had confessed their feelings of attraction to me, but it was the first time a girl had approached me with these sentiments.
I told her nicely that I was straight, and ended the conversation politely by going to bed, but I didn't get much sleep. Thoughts raced through my head, followed by excitement, which was followed by confusion. Why did I feel this way? My emotions conflicted with what I knew was true, and the truth was that I was straight, or so I thought. This was a truth I had accepted as far back as I could remember.
When I was young I would watch cartoons about princes and princesses with my cousin who was three years older than me, who also thought she was older.
“I think Prince Eric is really cute. When I grow up, I want to marry him.” My cousin would muse. She would often talk about boys, and even had a subscription to those magazines that featured boys, and other magazines that had tips about makeup, and how to dress attractively. “I want to get married happily ever after, and have two kids. One boy, and one girl. What do you want to do when you grow up?”
“I want to win a Nobel Prize!” I answered excitedly.
“No, no, no...” My cousin responded. “What kind of guy do you want? How many kids?” At the time, I really hadn't thought about it. Pictures of princes, and boys on t.v. flashed through my head, but none of them seemed appealing. “I think you would look good with Zack from Saved from the Bell.” She responded for me. As I grew older I kept trying to find an answer to her question, but none fit. Instead I would date boys that my friends approved of.
“Wow, Steve is hot. His family is rich too. I can't believe he asked you to the dance!” My friend wooed. A month later I ended things with Steve after a heavy make out session because I really wasn't into him. This was the trend with all my high school boyfriends. They would either move on because the physical parts of the relationship weren't going as far as they wanted it, or I would break it off before it ever got to that point. I made an exception for my marriage, but the disinterest in sex didn't go away after I got married.
“Why don't you like kissing me?” He would often ask while we were being intimate. “I feel like you don't like it when I touch you.”
“I just don't like sex.” I explained. “I hate the way it makes me feel.” It was the truth and a lie at the same time.
“How can you hate it? It is suppose to make you feel good.” It did make me feel good in the moment, he was right, I would orgasm, so what's the problem? Why did I feel so disgusting after the “moment” had passed.
“No...” I hesitated so I could find the right words. “I think it's me. I guess I just don't like sex.” And that's how it was through the duration of my marriage. I wish I could say that was our only conflict, but it wasn't.
“You have a crush on her!” Were the words of a friend that made most of the pieces fall in place. I hadn't realized I was talking about her again. She had asked me out on a date, but I had left her offer open-ended. After some time of conflicted contemplation, I took her up on her offer, and then the rest of the pieces came together. I learned that there was nothing wrong with me when it came to enjoying sex.
“I don't know how I never noticed!” I remember my mom saying once after I had come out to her. I don't know how she could have noticed when I hadn't realized it myself. I was too busy living up to the expectations of normalcy that I never thought I was gay. I hated any sort of intimacy with men so much I never thought to consider intimacy with women. But then again, no one ever did tell me I was gay.
Observation Paper Final
Some of the most dramatic expressions of humanity that I have witnessed in my life have occurred in seemingly mundane scenes of everyday life. Take the interaction of an angry customer in a 7-Eleven. The heatedness of the interaction between angry customer and annoyed (probably underpaid) clerk is hard to ignore and neigh impossible to not be curious about. This facet of human curiosity is responsible for a large number of traffic jams, as drivers gape at any sign of disturbance. It is pretty easy to find simple yet complex human interaction in real life, but one medium that has gone largely unrecognized in the sphere of human interaction is that of the online variety. Yes, its true that the information high way leads us to most of our daily intake of...well...information. But how often does one find themselves drawn into an online interaction between two other strangers? The answer for me is, not very often. This can be largely attributed to the fact that human transactions online are mostly private. However, as I considered my options for observation of human interactions online for this paper, I came to recognize that the world of online gaming is rich with displays of unique human behavior, that would be challenging to witness anywhere else.
I own an Xbox 360 Elite, and I have a membership to Microsoft's online service for the Xbox, called Xbox Live. Xbox Live allows Xbox gamers to connect online and play their favorite games with or against their friends and strangers. Microsoft rarely bans anyone for social misconduct; they only ban for cheating and hacking. Instead they place the burden of conduct supervision on the gamers. They accomplish this through a system designed to allow players to rate the people they play with as being good or bad players. You can avoid other gamers, or prefer other gamers, but this has no real consequence to the person being rated (outside their interactions with you). Even the most offensive gamers can continue gaming to their heart’s content all while spewing offensive, misogynistic, racial, hateful, and ignorant slurs to anyone they encounter. Even after being rated negatively. This also leads to some shocking, but amusingly offensive gamer tags (the name in which you go by on Xbox Live, Think of it as your Xbox Live name).
You can some times anticipate an unsavory gamer by their gamer tag. If you find yourself starting a match with someone by the gamer tag of “xxGreasyballsxx”, it is safe to assume you have a potential hooligan in your presence. The “x” in front of the name typically indicates that this person was not the first to think that “Greasyballs” would be an appropriate gamer tag. After the match started this gamer fulfilled my expectations by using misogynistic phrases in reference to his teammates.
In my time on Xbox Live I have tried to reason with these virtual delinquents only to receive unsavory results. One such occasion took place upon my breaching the subject one day, with one young man with the gamer tag “Boobie McFarland”. In response to my efforts at communication, he retaliated with a comment about my mother! My mother! Stooping to their level doesn't seem to phase them either. In another match, I ran across an individual named “MsgMe4DickPix”, when I expressed how highly inappropriate his name (and user picture) was he began to relentlessly call me racial slur after racial slur. I lost my temper, and found myself without any control over my actions. I told him he was a sexist pig! To which he replied that I sounded like a “fat negro.”. The temerity!
Another fallacy of social conduct that one may expect on Xbox Live is the concept sportsmanship. Your teammates can, and will, betray you at any moment allowing the other team to win. I have been shot at by a teammate because they did not appreciate my appearance. I have also been shot at because I found a shotgun, and my teammate (going by the name of “HurricaneKatrina”) wanted it for himself! These instances are not uncommon and really ruin the game play.
Through my experiences on Xbox live, I have determined that the Internet as a whole is no place for any person who requires a sense of social decorum at all times. Furthermore, the addition of the Internet to human interaction can and does create unique situations that would be rare or non-existent in real life. Xbox live is certainly a reflection of this assertion. In the end, it comes down to two options. Play with friends and family whom you trust, or be prepared to face the wrath of the Internet.
I own an Xbox 360 Elite, and I have a membership to Microsoft's online service for the Xbox, called Xbox Live. Xbox Live allows Xbox gamers to connect online and play their favorite games with or against their friends and strangers. Microsoft rarely bans anyone for social misconduct; they only ban for cheating and hacking. Instead they place the burden of conduct supervision on the gamers. They accomplish this through a system designed to allow players to rate the people they play with as being good or bad players. You can avoid other gamers, or prefer other gamers, but this has no real consequence to the person being rated (outside their interactions with you). Even the most offensive gamers can continue gaming to their heart’s content all while spewing offensive, misogynistic, racial, hateful, and ignorant slurs to anyone they encounter. Even after being rated negatively. This also leads to some shocking, but amusingly offensive gamer tags (the name in which you go by on Xbox Live, Think of it as your Xbox Live name).
You can some times anticipate an unsavory gamer by their gamer tag. If you find yourself starting a match with someone by the gamer tag of “xxGreasyballsxx”, it is safe to assume you have a potential hooligan in your presence. The “x” in front of the name typically indicates that this person was not the first to think that “Greasyballs” would be an appropriate gamer tag. After the match started this gamer fulfilled my expectations by using misogynistic phrases in reference to his teammates.
In my time on Xbox Live I have tried to reason with these virtual delinquents only to receive unsavory results. One such occasion took place upon my breaching the subject one day, with one young man with the gamer tag “Boobie McFarland”. In response to my efforts at communication, he retaliated with a comment about my mother! My mother! Stooping to their level doesn't seem to phase them either. In another match, I ran across an individual named “MsgMe4DickPix”, when I expressed how highly inappropriate his name (and user picture) was he began to relentlessly call me racial slur after racial slur. I lost my temper, and found myself without any control over my actions. I told him he was a sexist pig! To which he replied that I sounded like a “fat negro.”. The temerity!
Another fallacy of social conduct that one may expect on Xbox Live is the concept sportsmanship. Your teammates can, and will, betray you at any moment allowing the other team to win. I have been shot at by a teammate because they did not appreciate my appearance. I have also been shot at because I found a shotgun, and my teammate (going by the name of “HurricaneKatrina”) wanted it for himself! These instances are not uncommon and really ruin the game play.
Through my experiences on Xbox live, I have determined that the Internet as a whole is no place for any person who requires a sense of social decorum at all times. Furthermore, the addition of the Internet to human interaction can and does create unique situations that would be rare or non-existent in real life. Xbox live is certainly a reflection of this assertion. In the end, it comes down to two options. Play with friends and family whom you trust, or be prepared to face the wrath of the Internet.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Analysis Paper
In the episode of “Are You Now or Have You Ever Been” the main protagonist, Angel, portrays a vivid character with many perceived and real flaws. Angel's character does not seemed destined for heroism, yet the story pits him in situations where he does pull through to be an unlikely hero. However, based on his actions I have come to the conclusion that Angel is an uncommon and non-traditional hero because his actions are mostly self centered, and self motivated.
Angel is a vampire who lives alongside humans by masquerading as one. He chooses a shady hotel as his residence, knowing that the occupants will not question any strange aura he may emit, nor will they encroach on his personal space. Angel dresses in a manner which makes humans assume he is a rebel, and he lets them believe he has a drinking problem. I believe his disguise backfires when a young woman named Judy running from the law attempts to enlist his help. I think she assumes that he would be use to people in her situation, and maybe believe that unlike others, he could understand her situation.
It is surprising that Angel does not respond to this situation in the way that most archetypal heroes would. Rather than reaching out to Judy and recognizing her as another troubled soul, struggling with the same challenges that he himself struggles with, Angel reacts towards Judy with disdain. He doesn't really care about the human Judy, and would have never bothered to help her in any way if she had not revealed herself as sharing a very interesting commonality with him.
During the time that Angel knows Judy as merely another human, he does not hesitate to push her away, obviously not caring about her in the least. He doesn't start to care, and continues to ignore her multiple attempts to beseech his assistance until she reveals that she is half black living as a white person. During the time period of the 1950's, Judy's racial status caused her to be treated unfairly in society and she had little to no civil rights to rely on. Angel's only draw towards helping Judy, is that she presents a living parallel of himself. Judy struggles with a secret identity (recently exposed) and he struggles with his vampire identity. While they each deal with their situations in different ways, yet Angel is suddenly stricken with a strange compassion towards Judy because of the similarity of their afflictions.
Another example of Angel's disregard for others can be witnessed directly after Judy's betrayal of him. Angel is faced with a choice to save the humans in the hotel – or walk away. Angel allows a selfish grudge to prevent him from saving any of the occupants of the hotel. It could be argued that Angel's actions are a justified punishment for those who persecuted him. However, upon closer analysis it is clear that Angel's actions are spurred by pure desire for revenge against the people of the hotel who were responsible for his hanging. Most importantly, one must also consider the future occupants of the hotel as well. These people cause no ill-will towards Angel and merely had the misfortune of encountering the hotel. A true hero would never allow innocent bystanders to suffer because of the misdeeds of bad people. These two facets of Judy's betrayal and its consequences compound Angel's disregard for others and create some interesting conflicts in placing his character in the category of a “hero”.
In 2003 Angel returns to the hotel and finds that the demon residing there is still alive. Seeking redemption, Angel decides to destroy the demon. His lust for redemption is a selfish concept that only benefits him because the people he would be helping are already dead. After the demon is destroyed Angel finds out that Judy is still alive, and living in the hotel. When he visits her she surprises him by asking for his forgiveness. This is could be argued that this is a compassionate act, however I disagree. Angel doesn't hesitate, he grants her the forgiveness immediately, because it is the forgiveness he wishes he could receive. His actions make him a very unlikeable character that makes a questionable, but interesting hero.
Angel is a vampire who lives alongside humans by masquerading as one. He chooses a shady hotel as his residence, knowing that the occupants will not question any strange aura he may emit, nor will they encroach on his personal space. Angel dresses in a manner which makes humans assume he is a rebel, and he lets them believe he has a drinking problem. I believe his disguise backfires when a young woman named Judy running from the law attempts to enlist his help. I think she assumes that he would be use to people in her situation, and maybe believe that unlike others, he could understand her situation.
It is surprising that Angel does not respond to this situation in the way that most archetypal heroes would. Rather than reaching out to Judy and recognizing her as another troubled soul, struggling with the same challenges that he himself struggles with, Angel reacts towards Judy with disdain. He doesn't really care about the human Judy, and would have never bothered to help her in any way if she had not revealed herself as sharing a very interesting commonality with him.
During the time that Angel knows Judy as merely another human, he does not hesitate to push her away, obviously not caring about her in the least. He doesn't start to care, and continues to ignore her multiple attempts to beseech his assistance until she reveals that she is half black living as a white person. During the time period of the 1950's, Judy's racial status caused her to be treated unfairly in society and she had little to no civil rights to rely on. Angel's only draw towards helping Judy, is that she presents a living parallel of himself. Judy struggles with a secret identity (recently exposed) and he struggles with his vampire identity. While they each deal with their situations in different ways, yet Angel is suddenly stricken with a strange compassion towards Judy because of the similarity of their afflictions.
Another example of Angel's disregard for others can be witnessed directly after Judy's betrayal of him. Angel is faced with a choice to save the humans in the hotel – or walk away. Angel allows a selfish grudge to prevent him from saving any of the occupants of the hotel. It could be argued that Angel's actions are a justified punishment for those who persecuted him. However, upon closer analysis it is clear that Angel's actions are spurred by pure desire for revenge against the people of the hotel who were responsible for his hanging. Most importantly, one must also consider the future occupants of the hotel as well. These people cause no ill-will towards Angel and merely had the misfortune of encountering the hotel. A true hero would never allow innocent bystanders to suffer because of the misdeeds of bad people. These two facets of Judy's betrayal and its consequences compound Angel's disregard for others and create some interesting conflicts in placing his character in the category of a “hero”.
In 2003 Angel returns to the hotel and finds that the demon residing there is still alive. Seeking redemption, Angel decides to destroy the demon. His lust for redemption is a selfish concept that only benefits him because the people he would be helping are already dead. After the demon is destroyed Angel finds out that Judy is still alive, and living in the hotel. When he visits her she surprises him by asking for his forgiveness. This is could be argued that this is a compassionate act, however I disagree. Angel doesn't hesitate, he grants her the forgiveness immediately, because it is the forgiveness he wishes he could receive. His actions make him a very unlikeable character that makes a questionable, but interesting hero.
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