Blog 5

Much of the Caribbean is considered all about sex and beaches and that is part of the reason why Jamaica has so many visitors each year. One of the reasons people may have these misconceptions is because of how Jamaica is portrayed in various ways. For example, in the movie How Stella Got Her Groove Back, a 40 year old stock broker and single mother who has forgotten how to have fun goes to Jamaica and has a fling with a 20 year old Jamaican man to get her groove back. I also know that this misconception exists because being from a Jamaican family, I have heard a lot of comments and questions about Jamaica. A few of my mother's friends whom were divorced or widowed have talked about wanting to go to Jamaica to find a temporary lover. They all seemed to be big fans of that same movie when it came out as well. Another reason why people may have these conceptions may be because of the propaganda such as advertisements used by the airlines and cruises to Jamaica. For example, an advertisement for a villa rental for tourists states that "known for its friendliness, beauty, and laid-back lifestyle, Jamaica is the perfect island getaway"(About).

1. This is an important paragraph because it discusses one of the misconceptions about Jamaica. It explains how I know that there exists a misconception that Jamaica is all about sex and beaches and where this misconceptions may be coming from.
2. The main point is that because of media and other representations of Jamaica, some people think of Jamaica as all about sex and beaches.
3. The main point of this paragraph is stated in the first one or two sentences.

Main Point: Because of media and other representations of Jamaica, some people think of Jamaica as all about sex beaches.

One of the many misconceptions about Jamaica is that it is all about sex and beaches. Actually, many people hold this misconception about the Caribbean as a whole, but Jamaica seems to be the most popular island to sort of "pick on." These misconceptions are spread because of the way Jamaica is represented by the media such as in movies or shows. For example, on the sitcom Martin, the main characters Gena and Martin got married and had their honeymoon on the beach in Jamaica. In fact, Jamaica is known as one of the most popular honeymoon spots for newlyweds hence proving that people think of it as sex and beaches. An example of a movie that conveys this image of Jamaica is How Stella Got Her Groove Back. In this movie, a 40 year old single mother and stock broker has forgotten how to have fun because all she knows is hard work. She takes a vacation to Jamaica and ends up having a fling with a Jamaican man that is 20 years younger than she. This movie was also a true story that happened to the writer of the book. After seeing this movie, a few of my mother's widowed and divorced friends made comments about wanting to go to Jamaica to find a lover. I think such media as I have discussed helps to keep this misconception about Jamaica alive.

What I have learned from this rewrite that might help me revise the original is that the quote that I put in the original paragraph does not really go well with the paragraph as a whole and I actually know of a better place to put it in the paper that will make it work. Also I actually came up with another example and a whole other idea that people think of it as about sex and beaches because that's one of the most popular honeymoon spots too. I had never thought of that before, but I think that would be beneficial to that paragraph to help prove my point.

Essay Prewriting

My topic will be misconceptions about Jamaica. The assumption that I will counter is that it is legal to smoke marijuana in Jamaica. To prove that people have this assumption I will discuss the fact that many people have commented on it and also that people get these assumptions from Jamaican musical artists such as Bob Marley, Sean Paul,etc. Basically almost everybody who either is not from Jamaica or never has been to Jamaica have that assumption; especially tourists. My audience is everybody who doesn't know Jamaican law....so almost anyone. I think that I will have to explain to the audience that marijuana plants are naturally abundant in Jamaica, but it's not actually legal to smoke marijuana in Jamaica. I think I could also throw some other laws in there to show that there are a lot of other things we don't tolerate. For example the law that prohibits profanity in public...u get fined and sometimes sent to jail. My evidence that this assumption is wrong is that the government of jamaica has a law that prohibits marijuana use. Also police pull cars over to check and make sure the people don't have any marijuana in their possession. To make it engaging I think I might start off talking about all the good things on Jamaica, reasons why the country gets so many tourists, the sunshine, the palm trees, the white sand on the beautiful beaches and the water. Then take it to the point that a lot of tourists come to Jamaica and try to buy marijuana. Then I think I will let the audience know that THEY CAN END UP IN JAIL , BUDDY!!! Also I could actually look up what the consequences are like how long they have to stay in jail, how much in fines do they have to pay,etc. For this reason i think i might hold the thesis for closer to the end.

(Can I use this quote as part of my introduction?):"From each glorious morning sunrise to the setting of the sun, Jamaica presents a kaleidoscope of beauty that has made the island the most precious jewel in the caribbean. It is a land of unique experiences, inspiring scenery, and a warm, welcoming people." The country gets most of its revenue from tourism every year, and many of those tourists not only bring their luggage, but their misconceptions as well. :)

Fairy Tale Angle of Vision

Gingerbread Man

NOW you shall hear a story that somebody's great-great-grandmother told a little girl ever so many years ago:¹

There was once a little old man and a little old woman,² who lived in a little old house³ in the edge of a wood.⁴ They would have been a very happy old couple but for one thing -- they had no little child, and they wished for one very much.⁵ One day, when the little old woman was baking gingerbread,⁶ she cut a cake in the shape of a little boy,⁷ and put it into the oven.⁸

Presently she went to the oven to see if it was baked. As soon as the oven door was opened, the little gingerbread boy jumped out,⁹ and began to run away as fast as he could go.¹⁰

The little old woman called her husband, and they both ran after him. But they could not catch him.¹¹ And soon the gingerbread boy came to a barn full of threshers.¹² He called out to them as he went by, saying:

I've run away from a little old woman,
A little old man,
And I can run away from you, I can!¹³

Then the barn full of threshers set out to run after him. But, though they ran fast, they could not catch him. And he ran on till he came to a field full of mowers.¹⁴ He called out to them:

I've run away from a little old woman,
A little old man,
A barn full of threshers,
And I can run away from you, I can!

Then the mowers began to run after him, but they couldn't catch him. And he ran on till he came to a cow.¹⁵ He called out to her:

I've run away from a little old woman,
A little old man,
A barn full of threshers,
A field full of mowers,
And I can run away from you, I can!

But, though the cow started at once, she couldn't catch him. And soon he came to a pig.¹⁶ He called out to the pig:

I've run away from a little old woman,
A little old man,
A barn full of threshers,
A field full of mowers,
A cow,
And I can run away from you, I can!

But the pig ran, and couldn't catch him. And he ran till he came across a fox,¹⁷ and to him he called out:

I've run away from a little old woman,
A little old man,
A barn full of threshers,
A field full of mowers,
A cow and a pig,
And I can run away from you, I can!

Then the fox set out to run. Now foxes can run very fast, and so the fox soon caught the gingerbread boy and began to eat him up.

Presently the gingerbread boy said, "Oh dear! I'm quarter gone!"¹⁸ And then, "Oh, I'm half gone!" And soon, "I'm three-quarters gone!" And at last, "I'm all gone!"¹⁹ and never spoke again.

Citation: Heiner, Heidi. "SurLaLune Fairy Tales: The Annotated Gingerbread Man." SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Jan 1,2004.SurLaLune Fairy Tales. September 9, 2004.

Angle of Vision: Scared Gingerbread Man

There once lived a little old man and a little old woman in a cottage in the woods, which is where they chose to live so they could isolate themselves. They would have been happy, but the fact that they never had a child made them bitter and desperate. One day while the old lady was baking gingerbread she came up with the sick and twisted idea of cutting the gingerbread into the shape the body of a young child. She stared at it for a while and then became so angry that she had no child that threw it into the blazing oven as if it were a voodoo doll.

The gingerbread boy could not stand the torture of his captivity; being locked into an inferno with no way out. As soon as the old lady opened the oven slightly, he escaped for he knew his life was in danger! He ran as fast as his little legs could take him because if he had stayed he thought he might be mutilated and eaten alive!!

When the little old evil woman saw him run away she called her husband for backup and they chased after the gingerbread man because they didn't want to let him get away, but the gingerbread man ran as fast as he could to get away from them now that there were two people chasing him .When the gingerbread man came to the barn of threshers he called out to them "I've run away from a little old woman, and a little old man," people were still chasing him though and by this time he was frightened and sweating from fear, but he motivated himself and kept telling his chasers "I can run away from you, I can!"

Angle of Vision: Little Old Lady

There once was a little old lady and her husband who lived in a small house in the woods. They chose to live there because they wanted to live where not many children lived, for it would be torture to them because they were never able to have their own. Not having children was especially hard on the little old lady and so she always wished that one would be brought into her life. So one day while she was baking gingerbread, she decided to lift her spirits a little by cutting the gingerbread into the shape of a little boy. She treated it as if it were a real live son of hers. She even dressed him in a red jacket with buttons made of gumdrops and gave him all the features of a real person...eyes, nose, mouth,etc. With joy she was anxious to finish so she quickly put her little gingerbread boy into the oven. She was so excited and eager that she kept checking the oven to see if he was ready yet. Finally when she thought it was ready, she opened the oven , but to her shock her little gingerbread child ran out the door. Well after all the hard work she had done and all the joy it had given her, she was heartbroken , but she didn't give up. She called her husband to help her and they ran after her little gingerbread child, but he was too fast for the old couple. He was gone. The little old woman wept because she knew that someone out there would capture him, kill him, and eat him especially since they were in the woods. She watched worriedly as the gingerbread boy passed by a barn of threshers. She worried that they would catch him.