4/15

My inquiry for my project initially was “why students change their personalities based on their surroundings?” but after reading some articles about behavior it would almost seem impossible to find and exact why people do it, it seems be innate in all human beings as it is a part to how we survive in this world. So I have thought my inquiry more as a “how and when ” in comparison to a “why” it happens.  With this outlook I hope to find some parallels with my observations and research about the 5 aspects of self-presentation.

I never thought about the 5 aspects of self-presentation until I read about it and it seems to make things clearer for me as I look into how people use different tactics to leave a specific impression on people. Jones and Pittman concerning “strategic behaviors illicitly designed to influence a particular other person concerning the attractiveness of one’s personal qualities” identified the Five Tactics of Self-Presentation.  They are as follows: Ingratiation, Intimidation, Self-Promotion, Exemplification, and Supplication. Most people use one or two strategies in their daily lives and develop them in such a way that it’s basically customary or regular for them to use those tactics in any conversation.  Based off of these tactics I want to see what tactics are most used, when and how are they are implemented and how they effect the people around them. I feel like I just based off of my observations that I have so far, imitation seems to be used most when people are in areas that are unfamiliar or not in comfortable realm for a group of people to be. For example, when you are at the dining hall and you go to swipe your card the desk, the impression on the desk clerk’s face is usually somewhat unwelcoming which then affects the student is coming into the dining hall or vice versa. Another example could be when your walking down the street with your Ipod on and earphones in, most people walk with a very natural but almost intimidating mask on trying to avoid being seen by most people; Even better is when people where sunglasses and put another shield to protect them or defend them from the world and the people around them.  I’ve come to see how essential the natural mask is in our daily lives how much people rely on it to get by daily.

I’m still interested in looking more into other various theories about self-presentation including “Symbolic interactionism” (C.H. Cooley and G.H. Mead), “Presentation of the Self in Everyday Life”(Erving Goffman) and “Situated Identities”. I would hope that these theories would expand on my observations and develop new discoveries and rational with “when and how” people use certain self-presentational tactics. Through more article research, I hope to find these sources through databases or blogs; my best resource to finding this information is through the Internet as there are more direct ways to get to psychology and behavioral studies that way.

The only gap I can think that could possibly emerge an “orginal” idea is how these other theories could blend or clash with my established usage of the Five Tactics theory. From this, I could see how all these theories imply to my observations and then develop my own sense of “rules” or “theory” to behavioral status quos for college-students at SU. If I had to make an argument, I would say that majority of students at Su do put on different personas depending on their surroundings and such but don’t realize that they are always doing it. This is primarily based off of my observations, readings from People Reading and Self-Presentation, and the Five Tactics theory.

THESIS: Many people have little awareness about how they come off in public space.

1. I want to look more into and explore the reasoning behind why students put on different personas and are the limitations that encourage them to do so. I want to see if there is a similar reasoning’s as to why students find it necessary to alter their personalities depending on their surroundings.
2. I plan discovery this by observing individuals in different settings, interviewing them on how they feel in certain locations and why they think alter their behavior and finally I hope to combine my findings with the works of Unnatural Acts, Self-Presentation, and People Reading and hopefully come to some conclusion as to what a probable cause may be.
3. I’m going to be observing & interviewing students at SU.
4. I plan on observing students in different classrooms and areas around campus like the dining halls or in the dorms and also by holding a personal interview with them in a private space after, of course, I get their permission to ask them my questions.
5. My bias on my topic is that most people don’t really know why they act differently when they are around certain people or when they are in specific places. I would assume  they would just think they do it to fit in or not think they are doing at all or they never change, it would be the people around them who change.
6. I would make sure that I wouldn’t place my personal opinions upon each person that I interview and will do my best to not completely create false accusations when I am observing individuals.
7. I expect to gain greater knowledge on human behavior and how our society tends to shape the way we act in different circumstances.

I feel like the idea of public space is a hoax. It was created to make everyone think that we have created a place in our society that would be open to everyone but in reality there is no such thing if everyone is so territorial about his or her space. Inclusion, exclusion and segregation are the primary reason for the disillusionment of public space. It is something that can’t be changed because of fear over dominance, greed, persuasion and manipulation of they way we live our lives; Also, the idea of freedom of speech becomes blurry with transgressive acts in public.

SO if this is the case, should public space be abolished? Will there ever be a solution to the never-ending cycle of inclusion/exclusion? How would this affect our country in terms of how we accept homeless people as equals or people of lower class rank as the same as upper class society? How would this also affect not only our country but other nations around the world as if to say that we all had to oblige  to the same rules?

I would interested in observing people with their groups of friends and how they act in various locations, places, and surroundings. It would be fun to see how much their surroundings can greatly affect their behavior or if they are pretty much the same everywhere they go. Also, from our group projects, it was interesting to see people’s tolerance level on privacy and personal space in an open area. I would love to examine that more deeply as well.

Auditory

Olfactory

Thermal

Tactile

Visual

Clip of a Charlie Chaplin Silent Film

The collection of photos that I found are examples of extreme piercings and scarification which could be seen as “transgressive” body art. The picture in the top left hand corner is a photo of a young woman who is bare-backed and has a corset styled piercing pattern that mimics the arch of her back. There are 8 pairings of piercings that are interlaced with one another by a black ribbon/piece of material. They are not pulled extremely tight together so that she is in pain but pulled enough to get the styling point across while keeping the model comfortable.

The second picture features a straight on shot of a red-headed girl who seems to have multiple symmetrical piercings with the exception of her nose. She has a piercing through the very top of her bridge of her nose, a piercing poking out of the left side of her nose, a ring on the right, her septum, two cheek piercings on either side, two ball piercings on both sides of her tongue and three in the very center of her tongue.

The final picture is of an example of scarification which is the process of cutting or branding the skin with different words, images or designs. It is said that this process releases endorphins which would induce a euphoric state to a person seeking this kind of pleasure. In this photo a woman has branded herself with a unique design-probably of her choosing- and is exposing this design on her cleavage which is an interesting place to put her scaring.

All of these pictures are transgressive because to some people and the standards that they live by, the places of where these piercings and brandings are very blunt, and in your face which could be considered too much for someone to look at as they are walking by. In which case it could be said that these piercings/scars are in the “wrong” place or are simply “out of place”. These designs, I would assume, were personal choices, as a way of expression as to how these people want to be seen. I believe that it is others that are walking by and seeing these markings and placing judgment about how these women are as people. I personally don’t understand why transgressive semiotics are given the definition of being in the “wrong” place mainly because I feel like no matter what the sign/symbol/design/pattern may be, it is all depended on what the person looking at it thinks.

This is an ad that I found in support to stop Human Trafficking against women and young children. I chose this ad because of it’s interesting choice of the body parts that the company picked to be highlighted and also because of the modality of the picture which seems to be very air-brushed and almost reaching to a point of perfection while still trying to make a bold statement “Stop Slavery”. It is also interesting to me in the choice of color both in the background of the picture and in the font. They are basically the same color and almost blend in with one another. I would think that if the company was trying to get their point across, they would use either a different font that may or may not bolded or simply choose a different color to make it stand out more. I have done previous projects and research about Human Trafficking before and to me this ad is almost defeating the purpose of the injustice the is brought upon women who have unfortunately have to deal or have dealt with the suffering that this terrible epidemic has cause worldwide. I am not positive about how they are trying to control social behavior in public space but I would assume that they are trying to bring to everyone’s attention that slavery still does exist but not in the stereotypical way that most people would think of (ie. Slavery with African-Americans). The company uses brightness, illumination and a representation of a women’s legs chained together by what could be an ankle-bracelet as opposed to chain-links. They also make the women’s legs turn inward as if she were uncomfortable or not okay with how she feels about herself or the things around her; she is simply helpless. Also, by putting the main message right below the center photo, based off of Kress and van Leeuwen’s analysis, the information is more “given and real” information. I would be curious as what orientation companies put their main message on their ads and see if the Kress and van Leeuwen’s analysis would match the idea that the ad is trying to get across.

2.

3.

I believe that sign number 1 is a combination of an icon and symbol and could possibly be a index as well, sign number 2 (the smiley face) is definitely an icon and sign number 3 could be a combination of an icon and symbol.

The ad campaign that Dunkin Donuts has created uses icons that correspond with the message they are trying to send to their customers. By using the symbols of the USA and stick figure, the company convinces consumers that everyone in America literally runs and functions on and off of Dunkin Donuts, which could further imply that if you are an heavy coffee drinker, you can count on DD to help you make it through the day. You can find this sign on billboards running along major highways in different cities, you can also see commercials involving this ad on most channels, and you can also hear commercials involving this ad on radio stations as well. According the DD website, in the area code that I live in, there are 92 locations within a 9.98 mile radius to where I live and 29 of them are within 5 miles of me; the DD franchise is explosive and has this ad posted everywhere which instantly give you a craving for their products, even if it 5 pm and you already had your 3 cups of coffee for the day, and persuades you to make a pit stop into the drive thru and drop a couple of dollars on what we Bostonians call a “regulah coffee”.

The Wal-Mart smiley face is definitely an icon and could possibly be a symbol. The icon represents the happy and blithe services that Wal-Mart has to offer to its customers. It could also represent a symbol because of its bright and vibrant yellow color which is a very welcoming and vibrant which could attract customers; one may see this symbol and think that “if I go to this store, I must come out feeling better than when I enter”. This can be seen in all the Wal-Mart ads, commercials, and billboards in most cities.

The last image that I posted would probably be an icon and a symbol because of the Bull’s Eye target icon that goes with the name of the store, Target. Also, because the icon’s simplicity and bold red color, it makes this store name stand out in people’s minds, and also because of the brands that they sell at such low prices, which again can indicate the symbolism of the target/bull’s eye; that when a shopper comes to Target, they’ve hit the Bull’s eye

FREEWRITE 1

I was born and raised in a suburban town called Andover, which is about 30 minutes north of Boston, Massachusetts. The town is known for it’s well-established school system, including one of the prestigious private boarding schools in the country, Phillips Academy Andover. The schools has a long list of famous alumni including none other than Bill Belichick (Coach of the New England Patriots), both President Bushes’, and the founder of Au Bon Pan, Louis I. Kane just to name a few. The public high school is also known for having some notable alumni including Jay Leno (Talk Show Host), Michael Chiklis (Actor) and Martin Johnson (Lead singer of “Boys Like Girls”). As you can see, the standards and pressures of achievement are set pretty high, particularly in the high school level. Basically, by the end of your senior year, you were expected to: A. attend college (the more well known the better!) B. Walk across the stage at graduation and C. find a suitable major that was acceptable to society. Well, I got the first two down but it was my major that was intriguing to most people who asked.

I’ve been dancing since I was seven years old and began performing in theatre when I was about 14. I started to be recognized as “the girl in the plays” and by my senior I became recognized for the efforts and passion that I put into my work with theatre. However, what most people don’t realize is that, although I may have been one of the more committed actors in my school and I knew that that was what I wanted to pursue, there hundreds upon hundreds of “Broadway hopefuls”, nationally and internationally, who are just as committed, dedicated, and possibly even more talented than I am. Also most people don’t realize that we not only have to apply to universities and colleges academically, but we also have to audition to be accepted into the school’s theatre department, which has a limited number of spots available for their freshman class.

Syracuse had about 20 slots for the 800 or more people auditioning for the program. So when you’re applying to eight programs, which is the average number just about, then it can get pretty stressful; not only is there the consideration of our SAT scores, college essay and such, but also an element to our application that can easily accept or reject us from the school in one audition. So it was kind of difficult to explain all this to your guidance counselor and expect helpful advice of what to do.

However, there was a place where we could vent about our experiences with auditions at different schools, ask questions about concerns we had and certainly exclaim about our acceptances into our top choice, and it was through a Facebook group; a virtual safe haven where I could separate my school & home life from the theatre world that I lived in so frequently. To me it didn’t matter that I was not about the popular group or knew what the latest gossip was in our grade, I knew that I was the odd man out but I was not going to let it bother me just because I was not apart of the typical activities that everyone else was apart of. By the time graduation rolled around, it may have been clear to my peers and I that I may not have followed in the customary footsteps of most high school graduates but, they did however, recognize me as being successful with my college of choice and major even though I was isolated through most of it.