Disconnected Urbanism Response/Summary

In the article “Disconnected Urbanism”, Paul Goldberger states his disagreement with technology on the basis that it homogenizes the world and makes traveling less ‘special’. Goldberger talks about how when someone is talking on the phone they are no longer at the place they are in, and they are really transported to a virtual world. He argues that technology makes public places more private, and gives the places less meaning. Goldberger also talks about how in the olden days people would have to send letters overseas in order to communicate and now people get upset when they have to fax something rather than e-mail. With everyone talking on cell phones, Goldberger says, we are experiencing a loss of culture.

I think there were a few things that Goldberger failed to touch on in this article. First of all, he did not mention how technology helps us to experience all cultures whenever we want in the blink of an eye. In my opinion, technology has done what many thought was impossible: The ability to be in a new place, while still experiencing your favorite parts of other places. I do agree with the fact that technology can interrupt tranquil moments and be a nuisance at times, but when used discreetly it allows people to experience a plethora of different things at once which I believe to be quite stimulating to society. I think that Goldberger focused in on the negative impacts of technology on culture (which of course there are many) and didn’t talk about the positives at all. Transporting to a virtual world may disconnect people for a moment, but the virtual world has so much culture on its own. While I agree that technology can be overused, I believe that it has allowed humans to explore culture even more in depth rather than compromising it.

FINAL DRAFT Paper #2

Michelle LaRosa

Paper#2

Dr. Devine

            In looking at the October cover of the New Yorker made by Erik Drooker, as well as his other covers/artworks, it is clear that he is making a statement about climbing the social ladder and being above New York City itself. On top of that, he is clearly highlighting the chaos and confusion of the city. This cover, as well as his other works, really describes the New Yorker as a magazine because it pinpoints the elitist nature of the New Yorker reader. Even looking at the advertisements for fancy cars and expensive watches on the inside of the magazine show how the New Yorker is trying to make people feel like they are above everything, which Erik Drooker really captures in his artwork.

            The cover has an overall blue color scheme to it. The only color that sticks out other than blue is a yellow glow that seems to come from the depths of the city. The blue parts indicate the tranquility and peacefulness of being above the city as opposed to the hot yellow glow of the chaos down below. I think Drooker chose to make it nighttime to further dictate peace, and show how the streets are bright even at night. The couple standing on top of the building is blue as well, and they are holding hands. This portrays peacefulness, romance, and happiness. In this artwork Drooker builds a contrast between peace and chaos, and he doesn’t necessarily portray the chaos as ‘bad’, but more as something to escape from time to time. Drooker insinuates through his art that by reading the New Yorker the reader will be temporarily at peace and free from the chaos, confusion, and hubbub of everyday life.

One of Drooker’s pieces of art that really struck me was called “The Maze”. It is similar to the October cover in that it is an aerial view of the city. It depicts New York City as a maze of interlocking buildings, and it shows a bird breaking free from it. I thought that was a great comparison to the New Yorker cover because the cover shows a similar image of a couple standing atop a building overlooking the city. Although “The Maze” has more of a theme of freedom and the New Yorker cover has a romantic theme, they both have the thought of breaking free from chaos. Another similar artwork I found by Drooker was a September cover he has created. The image shows yet another aerial view of the city with thousands of similar looking businessmen on stilts walking above the city. This, yet again, is a statement about being elitist/climbing a social ladder. Drooker really puts an emphasis on being above the city, which insinuates that the New Yorker reader is someone who desires to set him or herself apart from the chaos.

In all of Erik Drooker’s artworks and covers, he portrays the New Yorker reader as a normal average person who wishes to escape city life by means of art, culture, and feeling superior. The advertisements in this issue of the New Yorker are for items of luxury. For example, the back cover of the magazine is an advertisement for Breguet watches. The only boutiques advertised that carry these watches are on Madison Avenue and Beverly Hills, which are very expensive neighborhoods. This indicates that by having one of these watches, the reader will acquire status or class. This further proves the supposed elitist nature of the New Yorker reader. Another striking advertisement is one of a luxury car. One of the passages on this advertisement says ‘It’s not just luxury. It’s smarter than that.’ which signifies the New Yorker reader as even being above luxury itself. The tagline for this advertisement is ‘Nobody’s Fool’ which makes the reader feel intelligent by wanting a luxury car that is also fuel-efficient. The tagline grabs the reader by instantly making them feel like the car, as well as themselves, is a cut above the rest. All of these luxury advertisements, plus the statement made on the cover, are evidence that the New Yorker reader wants to feel elitist and superior while reading this magazine. Lastly, there is a political cartoon on the last page of the magazine that grabbed my attention. The cartoon shows a couple who have horse shaped lower bodies. The man is walking into their home out of the rain and says “Sorry I’m late. I had to give the boss a ride home.” This struck me as a funny allusion to the chaos of everyday life that most people deal with, such as sucking up to one’s boss. This depicts the chaos of city living, and allows the reader to reflect on it in a humorous fashion. By doing this, the New Yorker is not only acknowledging everyday life, but they are also making it seem beneath the reader in a sense.

By putting together the statement made by Drooker on the front cover with the advertisements and cartoons inside the magazine, this issue of the New Yorker clearly paints a picture of escaping from city life. Drooker doesn’t depict city life as wrong or bad, but more as something that people should take a break from. Not only this, but the New Yorker also makes the reader feel above it all and that they deserve status and luxury. This makes the New Yorker less of a magazine, and more of a world to pull the readers into that is less tumultuous than their actual lives.

First Draft, Paper #2

Michelle LaRosa

Paper#2

Dr. Devine

            In looking at the October cover of the New Yorker made by Erik Drooker, as well as his other covers/artworks, it is clear that he is making a statement about climbing the social ladder and being above New York City itself. On top of that, he is clearly highlighting the chaos and confusion of the city. This cover, as well as his other works, really describes the New Yorker as a magazine because it pinpoints the elitist nature of the New Yorker reader. Even looking at the advertisements for fancy cars and expensive watches on the inside of the magazine show how the New Yorker is trying to make people feel like they are above everything, which Erik Drooker really captures in his artwork.

            One of Drooker’s pieces of art that really struck me was called “The Maze”. It is similar to the October cover in that it is an aerial view of the city. It depicts New York City as a maze of interlocking buildings, and it shows a bird breaking free from it. I thought that was a great comparison to the New Yorker cover because the cover shows a similar image of a couple standing atop a building overlooking the city. Although “The Maze” has more of a theme of freedom and the New Yorker cover has a romantic theme, they both have the thought of breaking free from chaos. Another similar artwork I found by Drooker was a September cover he has created. The image shows yet another aerial view of the city with thousands of similar looking businessmen on stilts walking above the city. This, yet again, is a statement about being elitist/climbing a social ladder.

            One of the events going on around the time of this cover’s release was a controversy over the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy in place in the military. The romantic aspect of this cover made me think about these events. Even though the cover shows a man and woman holding hands, it could be a statement about love and being open about relationships. The couple on the cover are clearly out in the open and out in the public eye, yet still isolated from the rest of the city. This relates to the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy that meant a lot to a lot of people, because it really shows how isolated the people who are affected by this may feel.

            

Midterm Paper

The October 10, 2011 cover of the New Yorker shows a grim looking picture of a city. What this cover really represents is a struggling economy, and a leader who is making it worse. It is not just an image of a city, but of a country that is polluted by big corporations and businesses that don’t care about people. This cover reflects on our country’s current situation by portraying the gloomy picture of what our country is headed to. By looking at recent articles and events that are happening in the country, it is easy to see that this cover is an allegory for our country’s leadership, economy, and middle class society.

When I first looked at this cover I immediately noticed that it is an overlook of a city, and that it has dominantly blue color scheme. Blue color schemes generally give the impression of depression and sadness, which is what gives this cover a somber feel. I also noticed that the buildings in the city are cluttered and close together and that you cannot see the ground or any people walking around, just an eerie green glow. There is smog and smoke rising from nearly all of the buildings, and staircases and ramps connect many of the buildings. There is a large bull shaped structure resembling a sphinx, which sits atop the two tallest and most massive buildings. Also, if you look closely, you can see what resembles the New York Stock Exchange building sitting just below the large bull, and a structure that looks like the Washington monument. The fact that all of these monuments and places are raised up so high is odd, and must mean that they are supposed to be out of reach in a sense.

I believe that the city portrayed in this cover represents our country as a whole. By sneaking in the Washington monument, the artist clearly made this cover less about just New York City and more about the entire country. The bull structure in this picture that resembles a sphinx really stuck out to me because the sphinx represents Egypt and the Middle East, which is a large epicenter for fossil fuels. This directly relates to our country’s current fuel crisis and the struggles we have with the Middle East in general. Apart from that, the bull could also represent President Obama in regards to our country’s current economic standpoint. Bulls are historically symbolic of power, strength, determination, and perseverance, which is what led me to this connection. As stated in a Seattle Times article, “Republicans blame Obama for the slump, saying he has issued a blizzard of regulations and promised future tax increases that have hurt business and consumer confidence.” This connects with the article because it is clear that Obama’s popularity has gone down as a result of some of his decisions, which is why he is being portrayed in this image as the leader of a crumbling and corrupt nation. The New York Stock Exchange building also struck me because of the recent protests on Wall Street. The protesters claimed that the recession was not over, and to quote the editorial from UFPPC, “On one level, the protesters, most of them young, are giving voice to a generation of lost opportunity.” By not putting any people in the image and only showing building, the image is saying that people don’t make a difference upon big businesses. This is also shown by how the Stock Exchange building is raised up high so people cannot reach it. The cover argues that the people who are not upper class are not given opportunities, and the smog being given off by the buildings symbolizes big businesses polluting society, and how the people are powerless to stop it.

All in all, it is safe to say that Erik Drooker was drawing on the recent protests on Wall Street as well as our current economic status. The high rise buildings and structures showed how the American people are not able to affect, or even reach our biggest issues on their own. It is also clear that this image has undertones of unrest about our country’s leadership. By showing a large powerful leader above a struggling nation, this cover is making a statement about Obama’s popularity, and how many are discontent with the way he runs things.

New Yorker Reader

The reader of this particular New Yorker is someone who wishes to escape from the normal chaos/confusion of the city, and be above all of it. This is shown in Drooker's covers as well as other artworks of his by portraying people or animals above the city and looking down on it. A few articles and advertisements in the magazine also emphasize this by talking about being free from political struggles. This is shown in the multitude of Chevron advertisements that pop up throughout the magazine, which talk about helping people with AIDS, and being "better" than other oil companies. This gives the reader a sense of being above, or "better" than something. There was also an advertisement for Cadillac, which emphasized luxury quite a bit. This escapes from the norm because most New Yorkers take the subway or taxi, so owning a cadillac which is an expensive car would be a form of escape.