According to Angeline Close's expository article, "Gender roles escalating for women on Valentine's Day", Angeline Close, UT Assistant Profesor of advertising, points out "motives behind women's gift giving rituals." She then goes on to explain the difference between men viewing this holiday and women viewing this holiday. And me, well I am shocked at what women really think of this holiday and how they go about their Valentine's Day.
A study done shows that more women than men feel "that they aren't doing enough..." Women want to make sure they go out and try to buy the best things to impress others. Even though Valentine's Day is traditonally for women, they still want to buy things for their peers; whether they be male or female. "Women establish these behaviors during childhood..." They are often gender-neutral. Both men and women as children buy other people gifts. Then when they grow older they change for men and stay the same for women. Which brings me to my next point, Anti-Valentine's Day. "Their primary motives for resisting Valentine's Day were not financial." Women and men who did not celebrate Valentine's Day were not because money was an issue. They just do not feel obligated to celebrate. Which I understand, more women are depressed on that day because they are single and every woman's dream is finding someone who can make them happy.
For seventeen years I regretted Valentine's Day because I was alone and had nobody. Other women just like me felt heart-broken and down because they have nobody to buy a gift for. This article makes a connection to myself, because unlike many women who want lavish things to be bought for them, I on the other hand hate people spending money on me and so Valentine's Day for myself is a depressing day every year.
All in all, gender roles for men and women on this holiday are celebrated differently for each person, but what is never changing are the expections set for men to buy women a little something and when they are with someone they tend to spend more on them. Women will always expect to get something on that day and go out and buy everybody something so they do not feel excluded like so many single women on Valentine's Day.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Book Review #1 Hunted by P.C. and Kristen Cast
After Zoey's Mother was killed by the evil Neferet, she is doing everything to cause caos at The House of Night and around the city. In the last installment to the series trust is put to the test when the people whom were evil turn nice and the nice turn evil. P.C. and Kristen Cast's Hidden shocked me with its altering flip of the story.
The way this book was written has every chapter set on a differnt character and she changes the view of the person talking, from first person to second depending on the character used. The author's style is very different from the way I am used to reading. Different views make the book that much more enjoyable. The way her style is used makes me feel as though I am really there when this takes place. Her use of vocabulary, vivid and action verbs, description of places and things really makes this book likable by all readers. Yes, I know that this book is about Vampyers, but Cast really sets these different than the average steriotypical vampire used in today's language.
In her past books most of the characters are already introduced and I have come to know them and how they react in terms of their friends, enemies, other students, and in all the characters introduced two of them have changed significally since the start of this series. Aphrodite has had one of the major changes in the book so far. She was always presented as the mean popular girl who only had friends who could be in her social clic, well in the last book she and Zoey, one of the main charcters, became really close friends and she has proven several times that the old saying "keep your friends close and your enemies closer," really runs true. Ever since she lost her social status by losing her posititon of the Dark Daughters she became still just as mean, but having no friends for the first time. Zoey took her in and made her the Prophestss. Ever since Zoey took her in she became a little nicer and has helped in a lot of things. The other character who has changed was Shawnee. In this book she holds the place for the Fire Element and she actually changed for the worse. Her and her ex best friend Erin were inseperable. They were always called "The Twins", never by there individual names. Well Shawnee started turning against her friends and being just as mean as Aphrodite was in the beginning of the series. I was shocked when Cast introduced Shawnee turing against her friends. Zoey, Erin, and Aphrodite all were a little shocked to see her go against their beloved Goddess Nyx. In this book Aphrodite and Shawnee both had secrets that broke them down and actually showed there true colors.
This book is mostly taken place in Tulsa's House of Night and all around the Tulsa area, but when Neferet is banned from being a High Pristess from every High Council she has to live in an apartment building. She has the whole top floor only to herself. Towards the end of the book, this is where the final battle is taken place and it is the most significant one. In the apartment Neferet has held Zoey's Grandma hostage because she thinks if she kills Grandma Redbird that Zoey will have no point in living and she will die too. Zoey's death is what Neferet wants the most. Well in the final battle against Zoey and Neferet all her friends have to be strong and use the elements Nyx has blessed them with to come together and destroy Neferet before she can do more harm. This is something seventeen year olds do not want to be part of, but they soon realize that this might be the only way to live freely and have Vampire and Human interactions possible. After they battle for a while and Grandma is safe from Neferets evil clutches, Zoey uses a "spell" given to her by a friend and chants some magic words that cause Neferet to fumble and fall out the top floor of her apartment. And as soon as she hits the ground her body turns into millions of spiders that crawl away. Is she really gone though?
This book is for mature audiences because there are some sexuality parts and profanity thrown through out the book, however; if you can look past all those words I would love to see everyone get a chance to read the series. I recommend though reading the first book to the series, Marked, before getting started on this book in particular. All in all, this series has turned out great read and if I got a chance to re-read the series again I would.
The way this book was written has every chapter set on a differnt character and she changes the view of the person talking, from first person to second depending on the character used. The author's style is very different from the way I am used to reading. Different views make the book that much more enjoyable. The way her style is used makes me feel as though I am really there when this takes place. Her use of vocabulary, vivid and action verbs, description of places and things really makes this book likable by all readers. Yes, I know that this book is about Vampyers, but Cast really sets these different than the average steriotypical vampire used in today's language.
In her past books most of the characters are already introduced and I have come to know them and how they react in terms of their friends, enemies, other students, and in all the characters introduced two of them have changed significally since the start of this series. Aphrodite has had one of the major changes in the book so far. She was always presented as the mean popular girl who only had friends who could be in her social clic, well in the last book she and Zoey, one of the main charcters, became really close friends and she has proven several times that the old saying "keep your friends close and your enemies closer," really runs true. Ever since she lost her social status by losing her posititon of the Dark Daughters she became still just as mean, but having no friends for the first time. Zoey took her in and made her the Prophestss. Ever since Zoey took her in she became a little nicer and has helped in a lot of things. The other character who has changed was Shawnee. In this book she holds the place for the Fire Element and she actually changed for the worse. Her and her ex best friend Erin were inseperable. They were always called "The Twins", never by there individual names. Well Shawnee started turning against her friends and being just as mean as Aphrodite was in the beginning of the series. I was shocked when Cast introduced Shawnee turing against her friends. Zoey, Erin, and Aphrodite all were a little shocked to see her go against their beloved Goddess Nyx. In this book Aphrodite and Shawnee both had secrets that broke them down and actually showed there true colors.
This book is mostly taken place in Tulsa's House of Night and all around the Tulsa area, but when Neferet is banned from being a High Pristess from every High Council she has to live in an apartment building. She has the whole top floor only to herself. Towards the end of the book, this is where the final battle is taken place and it is the most significant one. In the apartment Neferet has held Zoey's Grandma hostage because she thinks if she kills Grandma Redbird that Zoey will have no point in living and she will die too. Zoey's death is what Neferet wants the most. Well in the final battle against Zoey and Neferet all her friends have to be strong and use the elements Nyx has blessed them with to come together and destroy Neferet before she can do more harm. This is something seventeen year olds do not want to be part of, but they soon realize that this might be the only way to live freely and have Vampire and Human interactions possible. After they battle for a while and Grandma is safe from Neferets evil clutches, Zoey uses a "spell" given to her by a friend and chants some magic words that cause Neferet to fumble and fall out the top floor of her apartment. And as soon as she hits the ground her body turns into millions of spiders that crawl away. Is she really gone though?
This book is for mature audiences because there are some sexuality parts and profanity thrown through out the book, however; if you can look past all those words I would love to see everyone get a chance to read the series. I recommend though reading the first book to the series, Marked, before getting started on this book in particular. All in all, this series has turned out great read and if I got a chance to re-read the series again I would.
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