Johnny Dinh
Thanksgiving Assignment
Assignment #1- Dumpster
Diving and Value
The essay, "On Dumpster Diving", by Lars Eighner explains the
travels that Eighner had on the streets, homeless and as the title suggests,
diving in dumpsters for food and other necessities. Eighner begins by
describing what foods are safe to eat, noting that the telltale signs of
“safety” are obvious imperfections on the food, as "he" (the diver)
is constantly reminded that most food is discarded for a reason. In addition to
food, Eighner tells of how a "scavenger" like himself often
unintentionally discovers surprises about those who discarded the trash or
predicts where the best disposed items will come from. Simply put, the blunt
and candid manner in which he describes what for many may be a
less-than-appealing topic strengthens his argument that, "one man's trash
is another man's treasure." Overall, the subject of the essay is of value
which is defined by the dictionary as, "the regard that something is held
to deserve; the importance, worth, or usefulness of something." However,
to me, value is both tangible and intangible. Yes, one can place value on
anything object because of its usefulness or sentiment, but one can also place
value on a person because she is trustworthy, loyal, or caring. To me, value is
as simply a degree of significance that is placed on a person or object for perspective
reasons as simple as, "I like it." Much like how the
"scavenger" finds value in discarded items, I find value in the
people who I call my friends and family. Because, people will have a different
perspective on the value of an item one man's trash will always be another
man's treasure, therefore it is important to recycle or donate things you don't
want anymore, since there will always be someone else who mind need or want it.
Assignment #2
Value Essay
Through Eighners’ essay, "On Dumpster Diving",
it was clear that his definition of value is equivalent to the cliche, “One
man’s trash is another man’s treasure”. Upon further analysis I realized how
true of a statement it is when it comes the perspective of value. Over the
weekend I kept track of the things people and I thre away at the Best Buy when
I was working. The things thrown away consisted of: paper,
receipts, empty water bottles, used gift cards, empty chip bags, and candy
wrappers, etc. All the while I tried to put myself in Eighners’ shoes,
and in an overall more appreciative perspective of the “trash”, and how I could
find value in every last scrap.
It was difficult. While Eighner
spent a large portion of his essay discussing the kinds of food he finds whilst
dumpster diving, I was keeping track of literal scraps of paper. Due to my bias
that paper is completely disposable and recyclable (even though it's made from
trees which is a limited resource) I found it incredibly hard to find value in
them. They were trash in my eyes but as I went to throw away my paperwork, I
kept optimistic and thought a person in the future would be able to use this
paper again once it's been recycled and processed. My point is, even used paper
still has a purpose even after it you are done with it.
I also threw away many miscellaneous
items, the plastic bags, broken alarm clock, star bucks cup, old papers,
Q-tips, jars, which could all be recycled by some means, processed, and used
again. The clock wasn’t even really broken; the face had just cracked, easily
ready to be used by someone who maybe can’t afford random amenities such as
clocks. The plastic bag could be stuffed into shoes to keep someone’s socks
dry. The jars could be used as cups. And even the seemingly useless papers,
wrappers, and Q-tips could probably be recycled. All these things in the trash
will just be sent to a bigger pile of items like mine.
This was the first time I truly
looked at my trash with a perspective of someone like Eighner, and came to the
conclusion that nothing is absolutely worthless. I defined value as simply a degree of significance
that is placed on a person or object for perspective reasons as simple as,
"I like it.". So in that sense, whether it is still
consumable, recyclable, or reusable, a dumpster contains hundreds of values.
Just because it doesn’t have a price tag, doesn't mean someone else can take it
and make it into something more.
Assignment #3- Christmas
Ad. OPTIC
O: This image portrays
an old man on the man waving towards planet Earth for an unknown reason (the
reason is displayed in the commercial, not the picture). In the black expanse
of space the words, “Show someone they’re loved this Christmas” are present.
P: The picture is broken
down into the foreground of the moon, with a man waving towards Earth. The
words “Show someone they’re loved this Christmas.” are in the center of the
picture which takes center stage. The man is the detail that stands out the most,
giving an allusion to the fable of “the man on the moon.”
T: There is no title for
this picture, only the words in the center that connote a warm feeling of love around
the holidays. The phrase promotes good will of all people during the holiday
season, and utilizes a lonely “man on the moon” to exercise this point.
I: In the image, the
greatest relationship present seems to be the relationship of the man on the moon
and what/whoever he is waving to on Earth. Along with the text in the picture,
the man and Earth give me clues into the message of being kind to others and
spreading love during the holiday season, regardless of who they are or where
they come from.
C: I believe that this
is intended for all people around the world who are able to see this
advertisement. The purpose is to raise awareness on the importance of being
kind and loving towards other people, and the intended message is to show that
all people deserve love in every corner of the world, and even beyond just as
the image portrays.
Lewis, John. Man on the
moon Christmas advertisement. Digital image. N.p., 2015. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.
<http://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/1467841/john-lewis-christmas-advert-2015-screencap.jpg>.
