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When I first began reading this unit, the idea of war and its repercussions felt distant to me. I understood that people died, but in a way, I never really thought about how painful deaths really are. I held a sort of objective point of view; I saw numbers and statistics. However, after reading several of these pieces of literature, for example, Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi and Night by Elie Wiesel, my perspective changed. In an instant, one single life held more meaning to me than I ever thought it would. The death of a single person may just be a drop in the bucket for some because it is one in a million people, however, that death brings suffering to many, not just the victim. Individuals or organizations in authority fail to recognize and circumvent the consequences of war and death, instead, choosing to send others into combat for the sake of pride (nationalism) or personal gain. Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front is a short novel regarding the presence of authority and education in civillian life through the description of Paul Baummer, a young soldier, and his comrades, who eventually become jaded as time passes. The Kantoreks, as Baummer calls them, are individuals who praise and glorify war in the name of patriotism whilst sitting on the sidelines, never entering combat nor witness the cruel suffering brought on by war. Although Paul is a young soldier, he is only physically young with his mind already adulterated by the stains of war. War has taken away everything from him : his future, innocence, family, comrades, and eventually, his life. He questions why figures of authority send the young ones into combat or why if they are so experienced and elite, they stand back and watch. Persepolis also shares a similar theme, but unlike All Quiet on the Western Front, it places much more emphasis on the role of the government and the lost of innocence. It tells the story of a young girl in a changing world, struggling to adapt and find answers to the web of mysteries that surround her. Governmental authorities manipulate educational and legislative systems to meet their ends and needs. Individuals in power can not stand losing it nor can they resist the temptation of more power, which is the prevalent theme of Animal Farm by George Orwell. Similarly, this novel concerns the idea of education and manipulation by the government to exploit those who are uneducated. After reading this unit, I have grasped a completely new understanding of war, education, power, survival, and rebellion. These are all intertwined aspects of life and reality. These ideas feel less distant to me because in certain elements of some novels, I can relate to characters such as Paul Baummer and Marjane Satrapi because of their young age. These characters' personal storytelling and first person point of view make me feel the consequences on a sort of personal level, leaving a deep and indelible imprint upon me.

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The Girl, Whose Shadow Reflects the Moon by Walaa

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The Girl, Whose Shadow Reflects the Moon by Walaa

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This short film is about a Syrian girl detailing her experience as someone directly affected by the war, constantly living under bombs and hearing gunshots. All of it is normal to her. Traumatic events follow her one after another at unexpected times. Her description of life in a country currently battling a war is vastly different than what western countries see, for example, those that live the United States. As a seventh grader, I was extremely ignorant. I knew of the concept of war, but that was it, just the concept. I never really understood the meaning and the consequences. The idea of fighting a battle seemed so distant and unreal to me that I never gave it thought. It felt like a history lesson to me, some unforgotten event that just happened; out of sight so out of mind. The young girl who made this documentary forces those with that kind of mindset out of their bubble, showing them how cruel reality is. Her goal is not sympathy, but to help people realize the truth, and possibly, because of that, be able to help those her in similar situations and those around the world as well.

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The Girl, Whose Shadow Reflects the Moon

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Michael Jackson describes the suffering of those around the world and uses images to reinforce that feeling of misery. Using images of children, especially the emaciated ones, makes the me feel a gut-wrenching guilt, especially when I remember times where I'm off put by food and not interested in eating. The song is told in the first person, in which Jackson is talking to himself, the man in the mirror. He tells himself he is hoping to, he is going to make the change, and how marvelous it will be if he succeeds. He realizes the love he has been giving has been towards himself, however, to make the world a better place, he's going to change himself. How can he change such a miserable world if he can't even bring himself to change? The last moments are the song are spent towards motivational words, acting as a catalyst to inspire others to change, but not only that, they're motivation for himself.

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Michael Jackson - Man In The Mirror (Official Video)

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Another Kind of Girl is a short film describing life told from the point of view of Khaldiya, a Syrian refugee. Although many viewers might see the transition to living in a refugee would be difficult and miserable, Khaldiya takes a positive outlook on this change by mentioning how much she has grown; she used to be afraid and show, however, she was able to overcome those fears and became a "courageous girl".

This short film presents the western world with a snapshot of daily life in a Syrian refugee camp. One might imagine such a place to be extremely distinct, but although it has less amenities and luxuries, I notice some similarities between her world and mine. Khaldiya's optimistic point of view influences the audience to hopefully search for some positive light in their world.

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In this short documentary, a 17-year-old Syrian films an intimate portrait of life in her refugee camp.

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Michael Jackson's song Heal the World tells of an optimistic note while presenting the audience with devastating and abysmal situations in the background. The message of the song is one of a plea and request by asking the audience to fulfill the request by making peace and "healing the world." In addition, the song includes many children to further emphasize the heart-wrenching results of war and to influence the audience through empathetic tones. The images show the war stripping the children apart from their innocence.

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Michael Jackson - Heal The World (Official Video)

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Three Little Pigs, Humpty Dumpty, Little Red Riding Hood, and Ring around the Roses

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Three Little Pigs, Humpty Dumpty, Little Red Riding Hood, and Ring around the Roses

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Three Little Pigs : The Big Bad Wolf symbolizes the difficulty and challenges of life, hungry and envious, and striking whenever one is most vulnerable and unsuspecting. The moral of the story is hard work and proper priorities are important foundations for survival because the pig with the best work ethic survives. In addition, being resourceful and clever are important skills in life because of the third pig. One could interpret this story as an alternate version of the story of the Prodigal Son in a much less religious form.

Humpty Dumpty : The theme of Humpty Dumpty is of pride and narcissism. Humpty Dumpty sits on the wall, standing above all the others, however, that actually brings his downfall, becoming unable to recover. Originates from a civil war, where one struggles in a battle against one self.

Little Red Riding Hood : Little Red Riding Hood tells the story of a cycle of children becoming of age, eventually leaving their home to a dark woods, filled with mysteries. One could compare this to a sexual awakening where the forest is womanhood and the wolf is a man. It is a cautionary tale told mostly to girls because during this time reputation was an extremely important factor.

Ring around the Roses : This fable originates from the Black Plague or Black Death, which was a deadly disease  that killed of millions of people. The ash represents the burning of the contaminated bodies to prevent further infections.

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Education: The role of education in animal form is the form of complete manipulation and brainwashing of an individual, becoming unable to think for themselves. Napoleon plays the role of the mastermind behind all this manipulation, for example, his nine guard dogs represent the secret police in the Russian Revolution. Many of the animals are unable to differentiate life between under the pigs and life under humans, unable to realize that life under the pigs is much more harsh. This is most likely the main theme that George Orwell is advocating for, because the people are the main force behind a society.

Power: Power is one of the most important themes that appears in Orwell's Animal Farm. Orwell shows power as an irresistible desire that grasps the pigs, especially Napoleon and Snowball, who struggle for complete power over Animal Farm. It is shown as a devastating and corrupt force that conjures suffering and sadness. The pigs use their power to crush any attempts at rebellion or opportunity for better life. At the beginning of the story, Old Major warns to not adopt the vices of man, to not become corrupt or avaricious like man, however, these warnings are ignored by the pigs, who eventually become like Mr. Jones.

Rebellion: Rebellion is an important idea in Animal Farm that is driven by the will of the people and their desire to change. Rebellion is the vessel and process in which these changes attempt to manifest. It shows that without the will of the people, a leader is hopeless and becomes unsuitable. However, in Animal Farm, any attempts to rebel are constantly quelled and crushed by an absolute authority and "intelligence" because of the animals' inability to read or right, potentially as a result of being constantly overworked. The pigs resort to fear tactics, however, when such techniques failed, they resorted to exploiting the animals' basic desire to live by killing them.

Survival: A basic desire in everyone that drives them towards the most extreme of actions. Survival includes the bare necessities, which the animals are desperate because of their harsh mistreatment under Jones. They realize that many of them are dying, resulting in the animals' desire for a new life, ruled by themselves. Survival is a self-centered interest, however, the pigs, as a result of greed, take this selfishness to an extreme.

War: A method by which leaders can achieve their ends, usually only possible through the support of the people. The masses can often be unaware of their leader's true intentions, which is prevalent in the animals' unawareness of the pigs' power struggle over complete control over the animals. War is also shown to be devastating, affecting everyone, which is shown in Animal Farm, through the Battle of the Cowshed and the Battle of the Windmill.

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Pahlavi, the shah or king of Iran, was an unsuitable leader for the Iranian people. Similarly to Napoleon in Animal Farm, one could observe a similarity between both leaders, an unwillingness or inability to empathize with the people or reciprocate their efforts. The shah of Iran and Napoleon were both forward looking, hoping to implement their ideal version of society. Unlike Napoleon though, one of the shah's most important public appearances, showed him as being a weak and unreliable leader, garnering very little support from his people. Eventually, the shah, similarly to Napoleon, resorts to murdering protestors and dissenters, which leads to tensions rising among the public. Khomeini, a shia cleric, attacked the shah's character, and was able to cleverly unite the fragmented public into one united, ready to overthrow the ruthless shah. Khomeini's skill and charisma as a leader is the driving force behind Iran transition to become westernized and a republic.

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Iran's Revolutions: Crash Course World History 226

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Where Is the Love? by The Black Eyed Peas

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Where Is the Love? by The Black Eyed Peas

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The song "Where Is the Love?" by The Black Eyes Peas focuses on many societal issues regarding violence and hatred that manifest in the form of discrimination, police brutality, and terrorism. It points out all the consequences that hostility towards one another brings about. The singers cry in sadness because of the inequality and pain, praying to God for help. The tone conveys a pessimistic attitude, however, a solution, love, is proposed.

Because this song is relatively new, its relevance has not been undermined in the slightest, if not intensified. It mentions several issues that are still ubiquitous even today such as racial discrimination and even violence towards children, which is a horrible notion to behold. The amount of selfishness in the world is the largest problem because people are self-centered, focusing upon only themselves and their immediate surrounding, resulting in a lack of understanding between people.

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The Black Eyed Peas - Where Is The Love? (Official Music Video)

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The song is a review of all the major historical events and leaders from his birth in 1949 through the release of the song in 1989. The song's message is how the world is an irreparable disaster, filled with conflict. Although the song's implications are somber, there's a slight hint of optimism. The true purpose may be helping the new, youthful generation realize the faults of the past, hoping that history teaches them to resolve the issues of present day. All an individual can do is be the most morally upstanding person they can be to make their immediate world better.

Although this song is approximately 30 years old, it has aged well and its relevance has not been dwindled whatsoever. Even though humans become more advanced as time progresses, sometimes many of the global issues are overlooked, and some of these have even intensified. The conflicts have escalated so much that they have become out of hand and potentially irreparable. Because of this, each individual should set the goal for themselves to behave and act to the best of their ability.

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Billy Joel - We Didn't Start The Fire (Official HD Video)

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War is Peace, Ignorance is Strength, Freedom is Slavery

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War is Peace, Ignorance is Strength, Freedom is Slavery

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What are Education, Power, Rebellion, Survival, and War?

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What are Education, Power, Rebellion, Survival, and War?

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Education : A systematic method of facilitating learning and the acquisition of new knowledge, regardless of validity and verity, which can be manipulated to influence certain ideas, especially within children.

Power : A basic human desire and drive, propelling action. Many associate power with negative ideas regarding world domination and what not, but it is not necessarily a bad thing and can manifest more peacefully. For example, the power to dominate and triumph in sports. However, often, it will manifest in a strong compulsion to to perform more violent actions i.e. war.

Rebellion : The idea of challenging the status quo. Stems from forming an individual's beliefs based upon experience and the desire to redress the modern world to suit a particular individual's ideas.

Survival : A basic human instinct that can drive them towards desperate actions. It is the most basic human right, the right to life. It can also be extended to the desire to live and enjoy life happily without others' infringement on such basic happiness, which may result in contentment becoming impossible.

War : A method of demonstrating superiority and authority, but can also be economical by gaining more power and territory. It can also come about as a result of large-scale disagreements and conflicts with others. A last resort if negotiation and other diplomatic measures fail. Often has many devastating consequences.

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The issue this song addresses is the violence and antagonism in the world, especially prevalent in war, conflicts, and all the other injustices present. The message of this song is that all people are human, we're just like one another, equal in our humanity. Even though people are created differently,  they are all created equal. We all deserve the right to life and happiness. Violence and hatred are not necessary, especially when there is no action deserving of a reaction. This song evokes a strong emotion of sadness and empathy, however, the singers are hopeful, as they say, "But I'm sure it [common decency] exists."

This song is especially more relevant today because of the development of even more powerful weapons, allowing ease to harm others more easily. The song depicts several wars, which throughout history, many have occurred. All of which, resulting in mass death by the millions. In addition, there have been many mass slaughters and genocides. Today, the U.S. is experiencing many different conflicts that may escalate further, for example, the risings tensions with China. Furthermore, the U.S. and other countries are fighting the war on terror within borders and outside in countries like Afghanistan, Sudan, and Syria. During the Cold War, many were fearful of the outbreak of World War III, which weighed heavily on the minds of all of humanity. If we are fearful of such a danger, why do we need all this hatred and antagonism?