19th Century German Literature

http://prezi.com/p8ohm0z32wwc/19-century-german-literature/

Hopefully this link will finally work! It was the project to which I was assigned with A.J. Ray, and Matt Moslof. It has not worked all this time, so hopefully this one will finally work.

Two Movies

For this blog, there will be a comparison between two German films. The first film is called, Good Bye Lenin. This is a film about a young man named Alex Kerner. He lives with his family consisting of his mother, his sister, and his sister's daughter. Alex is a member of an anti-government demonstration, and sees a girl whom takes his fancy shortly before a riot breaks out and he is arrested. His mother sees him being arrested and has a heart attack and slips into a coma. Alex is released to see his ill mother that evening, where to his surprise, he sees and finally meets the girl from the riot. She is a young nurse who is taking care of his mother.The two soon begin to date. Not long after, the Berlin Wall falls, and capitalism is unleashed upon East Berlin. Alex wins a job in a lottery for installing satellite dishes. Eight months later, his mother awakens, but any amount of shock could bring on another heart attack. Alex and his family create the old world which his mother had known, and portray it day after day to his now bed ridden mother. This becomes increasingly difficult, and eventually Alex's girlfriend tells his mother everything. His mother died two days later, peacefully.

The second film is called, The Edukators. It is a film about three young activists in Berlin, Jule, Peter, and Jan. Jule is a waitress who has to pay back a very heavy debt to a wealthy man for crashing into his car. She is evicted from her apartment, and moves in with Peter and Jan. Jan tells Jule that he and Peter go around in the middle of the night, break into wealthy people's homes, rearrange their furniture, and leave a note saying they have too much money. Jule convinces the two to let her come with to break into the house of the man she is in debt to. During their break in, Jule loses her phone. They must return the next day. While looking for the phone, the owner comes into the house, only to be knocked out and taken hostage. The three friends take him to a cabin that belongs to Jule's uncle. While they are there, they learn more about the man, and eventually let him go. He gives Jule a note saying to not worry about the debt or the police. That night, ploice break into the apartment the three have been sharing. The police only find a note which says, Some People Never Change.

Berlin Calling Questions

Questions from the movie Berlin Calling.
1. Drugs mean a way of escape for Ickarus. He seems to always crave his next high. He uses drugs while making music, and just as an everyday event.
2. His fans are taking drugs before and after shows. I think that they take them to get deeper into the music, and to relax while listening to techno. They take pills and cocaine. One type of pill may have been LSD, but I am not for certain.
3. I believe that Ickarus' subculture is into drugs, because they are relatively young and are rebellious. Techno is a new up and coming type of music, so I believe that they are rebelling along side with their new rebellious music movement.
4. In my home society, drugs are highly frowned upon. This is the complete opposite of the society in the movie. Techno is around my home society, but it is not nearly as important to the culture as it is in the movie.
5. I believe that the youth culture depicted in the movie could lower the standings of German industry. I believe this, because they are more concerned about the night life and drugs than they are with their careers and goals in life. They seem to live in the moment, and not look at the bigger picture in life. Ickarus does show a very respectable work ethic when he begins to finish his new album. Alice also shows a work ethic which is respectable, because she looks out for what is best for her record company.
6. I honestly have never viewed a 'cult movie' such as this before. I will be sure to view one after watching this great movie. If any movie I choose to watch is anything like Berlin Calling, I know I will be satisfied. Great movie, I am very glad that we watched it in class.

19th Century German Literature Prezi

http://prezi.com/p8ohm0z32wwc/19-century-german-literature/

Hopefully this link is more successful than the last few I have tried uploading to this blog.

Literature and Medicine

We learned a great deal of information held within the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries of German Literature and Medicine. Germany went through three different periods of literary styles. There were many discoveries in medicine. Many of these discoveries are still used today, or have been manipulated into more efficient forms of medicine. There were many very interesting theories within the world of medicine, which I am thankful that there have been further discoveries improving the ideas of medicine. Germany witnessed many very influential authors and poets during these centuries. There were periods of sadness, joy, and influential writings. Authors who wrote during this time period are still very highly reguarded to this day. The most famous and argueably one of the world's all time greatest writers, Goethe published many highly influential and wonderful creations. The media began to have a great effect on the people of Germany during this time period. There was probaganda, most famously dictated by the Nazi rule. The media began to influence and shift the thoughts and opinions of the people of Germany. This is still very much witnessed today. Overall, these centuries saw a great change in both the worlds of fine arts and medicine. They are still used for a basis of research to this day, and will continue to be a stepping stone for the foundation of not only Germany, but for the entire world for centuries to come.

My Reaction to Today's Presentations

I enjoyed learning about the advances in medicine. It is amazing to see just how far it has come, and it was very interesting to see just where it all began, and to learn about the minds behind some of medicines most facinating ideas. I found the steam gauge to be the most interesting, because it is still being used today, just with some advances. It is hard to believe that there have always been such gifted minds that have been able to influence and better the lives of billions of people for thousands of years.