Classification of the Terrorist

Terrorism is defined as the use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims. This particular act of violence can be performed by anyone, anywhere. When I think if a “terrorist,” I think of a Muslims, or Arabs. This is the conception some may get when they think of terrorists simply because of al Qaeda. This is a major terrorist organization that is based on Islamic ways. In addition, people relate terrorism to Islam and Muslims. Al Qaeda definitely performs extreme acts of terror. Because of this they are classified in such a way that makes them look like the greatest enemies of all time. President George W. Bush relates terrorism to many classes that are all somewhat similar.

Overall, George W. Bush makes terrorists appear as extreme antagonists, which he should. Terrorists are by no means “good guys.” He first relates terrorists to “enemies of freedom,” for they are essentially opposing all civil liberties. This is in fact the major goal of terrorist, particularly a large group known as al Qaeda.

Next, President Bush uses an analogy to put al Qaeda in a certain class. He says, “al Qaeda is to terror what the mafia is to crime.” The Mafia was, and probably still is, the number one driving force within the world of crime. Subsequently, one can conclude that Bush is putting al Qaeda in a category of being the number one driving force in terrorism. In a more basic sense, al Qaeda equals terrorism.

It is obvious what these terrorist are doing. Terrorists can simply be classified as murderers. Like Bush said, “the Taliban regime is committing murder.” One can easily take the word terror out of the word terrorism, and that is what the Taliban and al Qaeda are doing. They live their lives to terrorize civilizations. They are not just killing people, they trying to kill civilization. “These terrorists kill not merely to end lives, but to disrupt and end a way of life.” Now, one cannot just call this group of people murders, one can call them extremists. The acts they pursue can definitely be considered extreme, and this is ultimately the class they fit into.

Aside from the outrageous title they have gained, extremist murderers, they are also being classifies in other ways by President Bush. Terrorism is strongly related to being power hungry. In addition, Bush put terrorist into new classes, “they follow in the path of fascism, Nazism, and totalitarianism.” These classes are very significant; they are strong ideologies that have negatively impacted many lives. Terrorism has now reached the class that significantly affects people in a negative way. In general, terrorism opposes anything positive in life.

President Bush then says, “any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.” The end of this statement indirectly calls terrorism a hostile regime. If a country is to side with terrorism then they are deemed hostile. Terrorist can definitely be considered hostile to the highest degree. They do not care who they are killing, whether it is soldiers, children, women, or men. Terrorism now covers the class of extreme hostility.

Lastly, terrorism may fulfill the class of uncivilized. Civilized is defined as showing evidence of moral and intellectual advancement; humane, ethical, and reasonable. One can then argue that terrorism by no means human, ethical, nor reasonable. They can care less about other humans, they actually terrorize other humans. They definitely don’t conform to acceptable standards; they do not follow correct moral conduct. So they cannot be considered ethical. And they are obviously not reasonable, that goes without explaining. “The civilized world is rallying to America’s side.” This was said by President Bush in his speech. Terrorists and anyone who supports terrorism would not rally with America. So those who are not associated with terrorism will rally with America and they are considered civil. Bush is classifying terrorism with being uncivilized.

President Bush fits terrorism into many different classes throughout his speech. To put it simply, he put them into the following classes: extremists, murderers, enemies of freedom, fascists, Nazis, totalitarians, hostile regimes, and uncivilized groups.

Beauty Throughout Time

Beauty cannot be determined by the person trying to be beautiful. Beauty is determined by everyone else other than this person seeking beauty. It is a level women reach based on viewers. Women must reach a standard that has been created for them. This standard is constantly changing through time. New generations bring new standards for beauty. These standards are created by people or groups at a high position. And they are maintained by viewers of the beauty, or men.

The first ideal woman is much different than the ideal woman today, and by ideal woman I mean a beautiful woman in which men greatly desire. In the eighteenth century, women were nothing like they are today. Women were deemed attractive based on wealth and riches. A fancy gown with an elaborate hairstyle would represent beauty during this time period. Weight would also symbolize wealth because it related to good health and proper eating ways. The ideal woman from the eighteenth century would not be skinny, they would wear very expensive dresses, and have extravagant hair styles. Not much skin would be revealed on a beautiful woman during this time. Their big dresses would go to their feet and their arms would be covered by the sleeves of the dress. Also, ribbons and jewels and feathers would cover the attire of the ideal, beautiful woman from the eighteenth century. This was the acceptable appearance for the times because this is what men liked. Men were attracted to wealth, for this is what men wanted, riches. This standard for beauty only lasted a so long until men desired a different kind of beauty.



As the 1800’s come around, natural beauty became the new, acceptable beauty. Jewelry, makeup, and other added accessories diminished within women beauty. This became the case because theatre and stage work arrived. Actresses needed all the accessories, leaving the everyday woman with natural beauty. Natural features had to exhibit good hygiene and good health in order to attract men. Men were no longer interested in wealth and riches in their women. They would now seek out natural beauty and this was the standard women had to meet in order to be beautiful.

During the next century, woman started to gain more freedom. They did what they wanted to show off their freedom. Shorter, wavy hair became popular for women. Also, many women looked up to the famous actresses and wanted to look like those who were famous. These actresses wore makeup, powders, creams, and lipstick on their faces. So, the everyday woman would apply makeup, powders, creams and lipstick on their face too. The actresses definitely appeared beautiful, and same went with the everyday woman. Men were attracted to this new beauty with girls dressing up their faces. Women are becoming freer as time is going on and they’re eventually doing whatever they can to appear sexy and beautiful.

This beauty is not up to the woman. Men decide if what they are seeing is beautiful and this causes a competition between all styles. Those in higher power create an appearance of the beautiful woman through their models. When a modeling company exhibits the newest style that appeals to the most people, which is the new beauty. The most popular companies set the standard of beauty through their employees, or models. The model Kate Moss started the trend of extreme thinness because this is what her boss wanted her to look like. This is something that still affects beauty today.

Hollister is currently a very popular clothing company among young adults. To display their clothes, Hollister puts them on models that are considered beautiful and sexy. Each model you see is definitely thin. In fact, they show off their thinness by wearing the clothes that show a lot of the body. The clothing is also thin and it is fitted to the models body. In addition, the viewers can perfectly see the female’s body figure. Each and every female model has an attractive body. Hollister has set the standard of beauty through their female models. As a result, other females will buy Hollister clothing and essentially try to mimic the female Hollister models. The typical female model for Hollister would wear a thin top, skinny jeans, and sandals. They would also have long, straight hair and tan skin. So, the typical women striving for beauty would wear skinny jeans, thin shirts, and sandals. This long haired, tan girl is now considered beautiful and attractive within society.

Women are simply following along with the trends in society. They can only wear what the top companies put out for them to wear. When American Eagle comes out with the latest outfits, that’s what the beautiful girl will wear. When Express creates a new look in their models, other females will follow the models and create this new beauty. It is all up to society what is beautiful and what is not beautiful.

Social Identity of The "Rapper"

Myths of social identity can be created by virtually anything. One simply needs to view something that relates to social identity, and then the myth is constituted. It then becomes apparent that society has control over these myths about social identity. Many have already been created, but throughout time they are subject to change. For example, the ideal “rapper,” or “player,” would look a certain way. They would wear certain brands, have baggy clothes, and wear hats a certain way. Currently, “rappers” still have a social identity, but it has changed with the times a little bit. Clothes are not worn as baggy and different brands have arrived. Even the hat has changed throughout time. Snap backs were big a while back in the world of hip hop. Then New Era made fitted hats that were worn by popular hip hop artists. This caused fitted hats to take over the snap backs, everyone wore fitted hats. Just recently, certain rappers started wearing snap backs again. In addition, many other people follow up on the social identity of hip hop artists and they wear snap backs as well. As new hip hop artists rise up, myths of the “rapper” are constantly being updated. The music video, “Carry Out,” displays many modern hip hop artists that constitute the latest myth of the “rapper.”

First of all, the music video is about women who are basically seducing men. This kind of music video is very popular today and it strongly relates to current myths about “rappers” of right now. Female hip hop artists are usually dressed in a sexy way when they are being displayed through a music video or anything else similar to this. This concept has held true for many years as female “rappers” have always dressed seductively, for the most part. In this particular video, it is basically the female’s job to look and act sexy. The women here are wearing clothing that is very revealing. The clothes they have on show all of the arms, including the shoulders, and just about the entire leg is showing on each woman. The only thing that is covering a portion of these legs is the tall boots worn by the females. Just about all of these female models are wearing high heeled boots that go just below the knee. So from their knees, all the way up to the top of their thighs is showing. The upper body is displayed with low cut tops that reveal the shoulders and arms of each female. The sleeves of these women are ruffled, to give their appearance even more of a sexy look. To finish of the females attractive outfit, they were sure to have straps throughout their outfit. Straps that would connect their boots to their shorts, and other things like that. Overall, the female hip hop artists have fulfilled the social identity of having a sexy appearance to seduce the male “rappers.”

The myth of the female “rapper” has not really shifted with the times. Their general appearance has always been to look sexy. This is still the case today. When one looks at recent music videos that contain females, they will see that the females are dressed suggestively and they know they look good. The female in each video has to look attractive and she knows this. So she gives a very intimidating look which can comes off as very attractive. This is how it was in the past, and this is how it is today.

Male “rappers” are a bit different. They used to appear a certain way now they appear a different way. Back in the day, the common “rapper” gave himself the identity if a “thug” or “gangster.” Hip hop artists from the eighties and nineties were known for wearing baggy clothes and sideways hats. They had to give the impression that they were tough. A lot of them often gave the impression that they had weapons, usually guns, with them. Now, hip hop artists have changed their social identity. There has always been a myth of the “rappers” identity, and there still is. But today’s myth of the “rapper” is different. Many artists wear tighter clothes today. You can see someone of the biggest hip hop names wearing skinny jeans and a tight leather jacket. In fact, the hip hop artists from “Carry Out” are all wearing fitted jackets. None of the clothes worn by the artists from this specific video are wearing clothes that are considered baggy. The “rappers” today are not really concerned with looking tough.

In “Carry Out,” the male artists are wearing clothes that look very clean, new, and fancy. They would rather look nice, and wealthy, than look tough. By wearing nice clothes, I mean these artists are even dressing up in some shots of the video. The “rappers” from this video are seen with suit jackets and bow ties. This is something that would have never been worn by hip hop artists in the eighties and nineties. Looking proper and wealthy is the new look for “rappers.” To further prove their wealth, they will more than likely flaunt some sort of jewelry, whether it’s a necklace, bracelet, earrings, or even grills in their teeth. The male hip hop artists from this video are seen with at least one gold chain, one of them actually has two around his neck. This attempt to appear wealthy takes away from the whole “gangster” identity.

These new “rappers” are creating a new social identity that exhibits upper class looks. No more looking tough and talking about the streets. Current hip hop artist give the identity of the “rapper” a whole new meaning. The idea of wealth took over the idea of gangster. There must be a reason for this. Today, it is obvious that hip hop artists are making more money. “Rappers” today truly love their money; they are often times raping about their money on tracks. So instead of looking like tough gangsters, they give the appearance of upper class society. This creates a whole new myth of the “rapper’s” identity, as seen in “Carry Out.” The artists in this video did not look tough at all. They fulfilled the new social identity of looking wealthy, and being a part of the upper class.

The Cotton Gin

A cultural artifact is anything that is created by the human race. Whatever it is that was created will give society information about the specific culture. These artifacts are found everywhere because all artificial objects are considered artifacts. The human race has been creating objects since the first civilization in the Stone Age. The first ever artificial objects were tools made of stone, wood, and bone. This involved things such as pointed stones (arrow heads), carved rocks (axes), and later on rounded rocks (wheels). The field of archaeology is strongly related to the whole idea of historical artifacts, as an archaeologist’s job is to study human society through analysis of material and environmental information.

As time progresses, cultural artifacts become more and more complex. This is a result of civilization development which only happened because of past culture. Artifacts are left in past civilizations and they are found by the new civilization. For example, tools from the Stone Age inspired those who were a part of the next age, the Bronze Age. People of the Bronze Age made the same kind of tools, but out of different materials. New civilization is easily developed because they are simply building off past inventions. At the beginning of time, there was not much technology. They had no choice but to use what they had. Raw materials were the only way to create new cultural artifacts until times advanced to a new era.

When complexity settled in, machines began to appear in history. Instead of the basic process of carving materials into tools and other objects, mechanisms were being built. Simple devices were created in order to accomplish the basic tasks of the everyday life. The sundial was constructed in ancient times to find the time of day. Pots and other dish like objects were formed through the use of clay. These creations allowed society to eat and drink in a civilized way. Eventually an electrical powered pottery wheel was created in order to make this task easier on the people. This was one of numerous machines created to make work more efficient.

In 1793, the cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney. The real name for this machine was cotton engine; it performed a task that was originally done by hand. Cotton fibers were separated from their seeds when placed through this apparatus. Like most inventions, the cotton gin made life much easier for those who picked cotton. Cotton fields are found in the South of our country. As a result of this invention, cotton production obviously sky rocketed. Over a twenty year time period, cotton bale production more than tripled. However, cotton production was not the only thing that increased after the invention of the cotton gin.

This was an invention that predominately affected the South because this is where all the cotton was. There was more than cotton in the South; there were also slaves at this time. Within a half century of the time this was invented, the number of slave more than quadrupled. The amount of slave states nearly tripled. Plantations soon became the biggest part of Southern agriculture because cotton has such great significance in all communities. This machine lessened the amount of physical labor necessary from the slaves. But the fact that cotton production boomed forced the need for more slaves. The amount of profit coming from this new machine was ridiculous. Plantation owners were making millions of dollars more than they previously were. So why would they get rid of slavery. If anything they would want more slaves because the money was extraordinary at this point. This is what happened, an increase in slavery. As the need of slaves increased, slave families were destroyed. Slave families could no longer live together, or near each other. When there was a need for slaves at a plantation, any slave from any family was pulled and placed in the cotton plantation. The cotton plantations were simply too powerful with tons of money.

Powerful industries were not only beneficial to the people. Yes, businesses were making much more money, but problems began to arise. The increase of slaves caused for more slave territories. Slavery was becoming noticeably widespread when the South began to take African Americans from the North. People of the North were obviously against slavery and the African Americans in the North were free. The North originally bought cotton from the South and made finished goods with the cotton. But slavery got out of control and it had to stop.

Many people see the invention of the cotton gin as a cause to the Civil War. Slavery expanded too much and Slave states multiplied too much to the point where someone had to do something about the situation. In addition there was a war among the North and South. Without the cotton gin, slavery could have still grown and the Civil War may have still happened. But the cotton gin definitely created growth in slavery. This, in the end, caused the Civil War.

It is well known that our nation’s slaves were historically African American. This is why the cotton gin is related to their culture. When Eli Whitney created the cotton gin, he did not propose the idea that the machine is for African American use. The only intention for the cotton gin was to make the process of separating cotton easier. However, during the time of this invention, African Americans happened to be those who labored over cotton. It was a time of slavery and blacks were slaves. Prior to the cotton gin, there definitely was slavery, but to a lesser degree. The cotton gin can be considered controversial because it, in a way, promoted slavery. Again, this was not Whitney’s intention, but the invention factually contributed to the historic problem of slavery. Some say that slavery was declining in the late 1700s. Next they will say that the cotton gin ruined this decline and forced a boom in the slave industry. It is hard to say slavery was ending around the time of this invention. Either way, the cotton gin is a cultural artifact that creates a stereotype that the machine is related to African Americans. When the public thinks of the cotton gin, they also think of African Americans.

Masculinity vs. Femininity

Devor makes a clear distinction between masculinity and femininity. His text depicts the universal stereotype between men and women. The masculine man will have “…aggressive posture, self-confidence, a tough appearance…” While the feminine woman will convey “…gentleness, passivity, strong nurturing instincts…” If these cues are followed, then men and women would be considered “normal.” Each person wants to be normal so they can connect with their innate gender, whether it is female or male. Generally, females are concerned with cooperation and intimacy. Males will focus on their ego and their personal dominance.
Males will follow the traits that define masculinity. In order to be considered masculine, one must physically and mentally represent themselves in a certain way. Masculine physicality consists of holding arms and hands away from the body or sitting with legs apart. This will maximize the amount of space a masculine person can occupy. Taking up as much space as possible shows a sense of dominance, strongly related to masculinity. Masculine people stand and sit up tall, while they will move forcefully when necessary. When it comes to facial expression, it is important that males do not give the appearance of receptivity. Masculinity gives one’s face the characteristics of being serious and stern. Showing a lack of acceptance to others proves dominance and masculinity. Aside from physical appearance, males must communicate in a way which makes them masculine. Those who are loud and assertive embody the stereotypical male. Also, stereotypical males are not very polite and they are known to interrupt during conversation. Lastly, appearing strong and ready will link one with the masculine males, according to Devor.
Within this text by Devor, females represent the opposite of masculinity, femininity. Those who are feminine are physically attractive to those who are masculine. Women will make themselves look a certain way that appeals to men. They are interested in warm relationships with the opposite sex. In addition, women have a strong desire for maternity. It then becomes necessary for the females to create a heterosexual image for themselves that draws men in. Dressing, speaking, and acting in such a way that communicates dependency and sensitivity will attract men. Females cannot follow male traits in order to maintain their stereotype. This means women sit and stand different than men. Women will sit with their arms closer to their body and the legs closed. Therefore taking up less room when sitting, symbolizing less dominance than men. When standing, women are less erect, they do not stand out as much as men. In fact, those who are feminine will stand closer to other people they see as feminine. This is opposite of what masculine people do when standing. When it comes to speech, those who are feminine with come off as very polite. They are not aggressive when conversing and they ask question more often. As far as the sound of the feminine voice, it has a higher frequency than the masculine voice. Overall, masculinity seems to be dominant while femininity acts as the contrapuntal function for masculinity.
My advertisement is by the company Trident and it links greatly with Devor’s text. The ad contains three people, two males and one female. All three are considerably happy, and it is a joyful scenery. The background creates a cool, refreshing feeling for the viewer. To prove this “coolness,” the three models are presented to be dressed warmly. In addition, they are floating above some kind of city. This causes the models to dress as accordingly, as business people, dressed properly. In the top right of the ad there is text, “Trident… Smile On.” The three models above the winter city scene are smiling of course. There are common characteristics between the three people in this ad, but the two different genders have their specific cues. The two men symbolize masculinity, and the one woman signifies femininity, as talked about in Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes.
There are two males who are upright, in the air, and they seem to be in an action position. They are showing readiness while they are not sitting. Their action appearance generates the idea that these guys are aggressive. As the men are in the air, they are posed in an expansive manner. Their legs are very spread out taking up maximum space. One is even kicking, while the other one seems to be leaping. The same goes for the arms of the male models. The male to the left almost has his arms completely spread out. To the right, the male is reaching with one of his arms, taking up plenty of space. According to Devor, it is essential for males to maximize the amount of space they can physically occupy in order to demonstrate masculinity.
This ad relates Trident gum to smiling. However, it is not masculine for men to smile. Only those who are feminine can smile, they are more passive. The two men in this ad have the slightest grins on their face. One can probably argue the these two men are not even smiling. Aside from facial expression, the males are dressed in a very masculine way. Floating above a city, the men are obviously wearing dress suits with dress shoes and their ties on. Clean cut, short hair tops off these masculine men in this Trident advertisement. Trident was very successful in placing the two men into the stereotype of masculinity.
The one woman at the top of this ad was placed in the stereotype of femininity. She is seated in a fine-looking silver chair. She does not show any kind of aggression, opposite of the men. While she is sitting, she fits the feminine cues talked about by Devor. The female is sitting with her arms right at her side and her legs crossed, exactly what was explained in the text by Devor. With the cold setting above a city, the woman is dressed properly, not dressed up though. It is important for a female to dress attractively for men in order for the female to appear feminine. The girl in this as accomplished this feminine requirement. She is sitting with a rather high skirt with tall white stockings. She also has boots, ear muffs, and a vest that are all attractively furry. Her outfit looks very appealing to all views. In fact, one of the masculine men seem to be looking up at this attractive woman. This is because the woman perfectly fits the feminine stereotype explained by Aaron Devor.

Artifacts of Jack Lopez

Jack Lopez is from East Los Angeles, but he was not a cholo street gangster. Lopez aspired to be a surfer at the age of twelve. In order to be considered a "surfer," he had to associate himself with a few "surfer" artifacts. First, it was necessary for him to own an issue of Surfer Quarterly. This was a popular surfing magazine that Lopez, along with his friends, adored greatly. Aside from this possession, Lopez needed to create a social image for himself so that he can be recognized as a surfer. Surfers and cholos dressed differently. If one was a cholo street gangster, it was common to wear wool shirts, baggy khaki pants, and French-toed black shoes. These people were feared by many and they had no desire to own a surfboard. Lopez had all the desire in the world to own a surfboard. In fact, he had a plan to buy a special surfboard from an old friend Lenny, who had recently went down the neighborhood path of becoming a hood, cholo. Lopez also established himself as a surfer by dressing like a surfer. He had to wear his baggy shorts, with a large Penney's Towncraft T-shirt, and no shoes of course. By wearing these clothes and following other surfer ways, Lopez created a social identity for himself that proved he was a surfer in East Los Angeles.