Coming of Age as a Global Citizen- Final Project

For our video I constructed and wrote the narrative and recorded the script for the video. As I compiled the narrative I found it challenging not to write on and on, how could I summarize five weeks, five books, and fifteen site visits in about three or so minutes? As I wrote the script I was able to reflect on the once in a lifetime experience study abroad was and how much we, and myself personally, had grown in just a little over a month. The lessons I had learned and different locations and different ways of thinking I was exposed to truly helped me grow as a global citizen. If I had more time for the project I would have continued to perfect the narrative and make it as clean and crisp as possible. I also would have recorded the script many more times so that it's flow and pronunciations were spot on. As I look back on our video, it is a friendly reminder of the amazing memories and experiences we will all forever share. I could not have asked for a more amazing and positive group of people to travel to London with, I am truly grateful to have had the chance to meet each and every one of you all. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaXyMmqPZaU

Coming to Age as a Writer

"Seeking the truth you require and getting it mixed up with some truths the audience wants to hear." 

Propaganda is used to fight wars and combat disease, build unity and create division. Yet it can be difficult to identify. Fiction can be justified through Joseph Goebbels' mentality " it is better and more lasting to win the heart of a people and to keep it." As we come to age, it is vital we observe the influences around us and realize that everything can not be viewed at face value. 

Feeling, thinking, and being is not limited strictly to the experiences a writer has been through. Instead through observation of facts and history, characters and their realities may be created and interpreted according the the writers perspective. What would life on the HMS Belfast have been like and what would be some challenges? Perhaps sleeping in hammock in a mess hall where sleeping arrangements were a mere twenty one inches apart?

Though Robbie did not hold the Private position that his education and upbringing would have expected, his experiences and range of skills he had acquired prior to his time as a soldier in World War II helped him greatly in his survival. As a student of literature, Robbie was able to place himself in somebody else's shoes; the ability to think from the perspective of others. His education in French allowed for communication and an in-tune sense of the environment around him. His education provided him with an open mind and the keen sense of the difference mankind hold as a student of Freud. 

Florence Nightingale fought to be a nurse as she felt trapped by her life of luxury and social duties hailing from a well off, well connected, upper middle class family. As an author of two hundred books and over fourteen thousand letters, she wrote with the intention to share her visions and to argue against the unjust. 

Following the calling she recieced from God to be a nurse, Florence Nightingale paved the road for the medical feild we know and benefit from today. As a woman writing about the events of World War II, she had to, similarly to Briony, have a strong confident voice. This dedication to the individual voice and emphasis they both had on sharing their viewpoints aided both women in coming to age as writers.

Coming to Age as a Skeptic and Believer

    Christ Church, one of Oxford's thirty-eight  different colleges,is a college heavily influenced by prestige. In fact, this college's students have been among the extremely economically, politically, and religiously privileged elite. An education at Christ Church provides not only class privilege, but also an association with powerful and upcoming influential individuals: thirteen prime ministers have come from this college. Sebastian Marchmain, continuing the legacy of his father, attends Christ Church. Christ Church is a college centered around the idea of Noblesse Oblige: with great wealth, power, and prestige come responsibilities. 

"It needs a very strong faith to stand entirely alone and Sebastian's isn't strong" ( ch.5, part 1). 

Christ Church was originally founded by the Catholic Cardinal Wolsey; however, the college was refounded by King Henry VIII as part of the re-organization of the Church of England. King Henry VIII's counter reformation pursued to make the Catholic Church behave and established that aristocrats were Protestants.  Charles Ryder does not view religion through a Protestant perspective, but instead identifies himself as agnostic. As the Protestant religion grew, it was a challenging time to be a Catholic. 

"Loved buildings that grew silently with the centuries, catching and keeping the best of each generation" (ch. 1, Part II).    In 1930, the newly wealthy Stephen and Virginia Courtauld bought the previously unoccupied Eltham Palace and turned it into their very own Art Deco mansion. The Eltham Palace has both historical architectural elements and modern high fashion 1930s architecture. The Courtaulds, a "new money" family wished to preserve certain historical elements of the palace, such as the medieval era mote or the restored Great Hall, in order for them to create personal connections with the aristocratic past of the palace. The Courtaulds sought a position in high class. The interior design of the house reflects a mixture of historical representation, high fashion modern luxuries of the 1930s, and a strong pursuit in demonstrating power and wealth through travel experiences and education. The Eltham Palace is a reflection of the Courtauld's identity as they acknowledge the historical legitimacy of old values, yet declare who they are today as the modern, cutting edge elite.  

    " In the center, dominating the whole splendid space rose the fountain; such a fountain as one might expect to find in a piazza of southern Italy; such a fountain as was, indeed, found there a century ago by one of Sebastian's ancestors"(ch. 4, part 1). The fountain represents belief in originality, returning to the old, the religion of the ancestry: Roman Catholicism. 

 Hampton Court Palace:  The 16th century Italian Baroque architecture emulating the absolute estate and triumph of the Catholic, infused with England's Protestant flavor. This image portrays, through symbolism, the defeat of  Roman Catholic James II by the Protestant William III. This confirms in fact Protestant is here to stay and that is would be the religion of the state- the national identity of England. This time period was a time of change and skepticism as the values of a nation, beliefs in God, and control shifted away from the traditional Catholicism. 

   

A Weekend in Paris

    Le Tour de Eiffel 

    

    Nutella Crepes 

  

    Arc de Triomphe 

   Notre Dame 

    Happy Bastille Day!

    The Louvre 

  

     A view of Paris from the Eiffel Tower 

Coming to Age as a Traveler

As a young man who went on the Grand Tour, John Soane was properly educated on beauty, history, and democracy through his traveling experiences. It is during Soane's time on the Grand Tour that he acquired his taste and preferences about the world around him; however, it was not until later in his life when he had gained wealth, that he was able to purchase items that reflected the three values he had been taught- beauty, history, and democracy. The John Saone Museum is a personal collection of art, artifacts, and literature that represent the life's work of this successful architect and traveler. Through his travels, Soane learned the value of culture and the necessity of preserving history.

"Unintelligent tourists who are going to 'do' Fiesole in an hour in order that they may say they have been there, and I think--think--I think how little they think what lies so near"( Chapter VI, A Room with a View). As Miss Lavish proclaims, there is certainly a difference between the picturesque seeking tourist and the true worldly traveler. " An Old Man Holding a Pilgrim-Bottle" found in The National Gallary reveals the wisdom of an aged traveler who has seen the world.

Coming of age as a traveler means not nessesarilily relying on directions from others, but instead creating your own journey and adventure along the way. "Landscape with Travellers Asking the Way" found in the National Gallary 

A true traveler seeks the knowledge and realism of the environment they are exploring. They are not in pursuit of " the room with a view" but instead long for exposure to the reality of the setting; knowing that the picturesque scene is an unrealistic fantasy of a tourist. " View of Orvieto, Painted in Rome" found in the Turner at the Tate Britian

As travelers we each see the world through a different set of eyes. Our interpretations, the impacts a location can have on us, and the changes we may experience all vary by the individual. Coming to age as a traveler means accepting diversity and individuality. "Venice with the Salute" found in the Turner at the Tate Britian.

Travel is an opportunity to remove yourself from what you know and sail into the unknown; leaving your preconceived notions and biases behind. 

Weekend adventures around London and Brighton

London's famous Big Ben 

 The London Eye 

Morning shopping around the Boroughs Market

A sunny day trip to Brighton for seaside  adventures 

Coming to age as a Worker

Thomas Coram pursued his philanthropic belief that children should be afforded certain opportunities and resources even if they are not born into them. The Foundling Museum is a representation of this belief and served as a home for many children, striving to provide a future for the young abandoned children. 

The Victoria woman understood the restraints of her expected etiquette. Often times she could be found in the drawing room spending her leisurely time either painting, reading, doing needlework, or playing music.

The life of a Governess was often a lifestyle of solitude. She normally received poor pay and had minimal interaction with many different  people.

In the pursuit of being a good woman, purity was an essential virtue to posses. 

As a middle class woman with little money, pursuing an occupation and source of income can oftentimes be quite a challenge