Ads and Stereotypes

• Do you think that advertisers have a moral duty to avoid stereotyping people? Respond in a minimum of 250 words.
  
  
  Before reading this blogpost, didn't you come across an advertisement primarly to persuade you to purchase an item you possibly dont even use? Whether we are aware of it or not, mass media plays a vital role in shaping the manner that we individuals perceive our surroundings. The ultimate essential need of mass media is offered in forms such as newspapers, radios and the television. Its eventual purpose is effectively to reach specific perspectives of topics through to the vast majority of the public. Since Mass media is a indispensable form of communication, advertising companies gain the advantage of societies everyday use and fond necessity of the media by utilising what is being portrayed in the desire they want society to view certain ideologies, cultures and people. Essentially, with the dominion power that our need of media endows to advertising companies- its depiction of specific subjects resultantly manipulates the way we think. This is because they have the power to showcase what they desire the world to perceive specific topics regardless if it is not the complete, accurate or wrong representation. 
  This leads to my point of  "Stereotypes" that are representations of generalised opinions towards a certain group of people usually adopted from the influence of media that portray incomplete, subjective and false conceptions of reality. The corruption of culture values by contradicting tradition values develops a sense of superficiality and ignorance that instantly contributes to the stereotyping of a particular group. Similarly to the misconception of morals that deliberately appeals to motives of status seeking and lust. This is evident where the typical women stereotype that is manifested through ads where a beautiful women embraces and praises male cosmetics. Undoubtedly, the women is perceived as an "accessory" since she is treated as a guarantee of its quality by the men. As of mens stereotypes whom are usually characterised as professional and successful "real men" if they have a beautiful women by their side. Even though people are aware of the dangers occurred due to generalisation, they incline to be conformist and would rather submit to the dominate patters than oppose them and fear negative response of such behaviour from others.
  The question is why do advertisement companies continue to indulge themselves in the explosion of society through the use of stereotypes in media? Although advertisement companies are possibly aware of what they are doing, they are conscious of the fact that the majority of the 21st century generation usually rely on media to access their information. This allows advertisers to evoke a sense of secureness and focus on their excessively benefit of obtaining financial earnings. Obviously this elevates the tendentious question: "Do advertisers have a moral duty to avoid stereotyping people?"
  In my appraisal through my critical evaluation of the use of stereotypes as a tool in the media to control societies perceptions of people, groups and ideologies- I believe that advertisers have a moral duty to avoid stereotyping people. This is the case because the bigoted nature of mass medias superior power as a medium for our knowledge causes specific individuals and subjects to be viewed more negatively or even superior than others. Such fallacious beliefs sets standards in one's society that develops a latest version of the way society functions. Although some advertisers usually approach the stereotype as a way of dark humour to appeal to viewers, they do not take into consideration that stereotypes can be seen as sensitive content to part of their audience. Regardless of advertisers having positive or negative intentions through their use of stereotypes, I believe they should not be included in advertisements in order to create a society that is able to achieve an adequate level of social readiness, so that messages breaking stereotypes could be effective.
  
  

Pitch Reflection

Main appeals that were used in our pitch include Band wagon and Rational. We decided they would be the most effective appeal since Band wagon would include appealing statements that would allow a satisfaction for their need to affiliates as it will portray how the program will build societies and social groups. As of Rational Appeal, this would spark public or personal goals that may fill the need to achieve this imagery as biking would be a break from everyday life style.

Specific persuasive techniques used illuminates the originality of having a new idea that is an outdoor biking program in Abu Dhabi. Although Abu Dhabi has has a growing tourism industry, it would not be complete without having Fit for all bike share program since most sports programs occur indoors. We believe this is the most effective technique as the ad will accomplish a sense of innovation as it would introduce a brand new idea that would appeal to the audience with the use of logos. This will be done by expressing a Cause VS. Correlation. For example, the cause of UAE high diabetes rate is due to an individual's high blood sugar however, sitting around at home does not improve their health therefore the correlation to this would be biking since exercise reduces the glucose in your blood.

Not to forget the second persuasive technique where we aim for the ad to express what this product could do for Abu Dhabi and it has the possibility to bring this community together as well as helping people affiliate or socialize. The ad will highlight the groups that will form causing it to in my opinion be the most effective way of persuasion as our ad will demonstrate how this new exciting activity may help foreigners and/or locals of Abu Dhabi communicate. It’s so simple any could use it so why not take advantage of the opportunities given.

The awareness of the audience and context influence our overall approach to this activity as we have to keep in mind that we are in the 21st century and most people enjoy exploring new activities especially in Abu Dhabi therefore; the advert targeted varied demographic of abu dhabi citizens. This allows us to approach the activity aware of the fact that there are variety of different citizens and we must attract as much as citizen as we can by advertising something new that is enjoyable for most people.

Something that I would do differently in terms of content and preparation would be spending more time rehearsing my presentation before actually presenting. I think this is the cause because although I was able to communicate my ideas clearly- I did not engage with the audience as much as I wanted to. Something that limited me for doing this wa snot having enough time but I still believe we worked well as a group since we were able to share ideas at the same time we divided the work equally.

Rhetorical Analysis- of Advertisements

The intended audience of this L'Oréal Paris infallible lipstick advertisement are for prosperous women particularly, younger women whom are interested in the pleasure of makeup or perfection of their lips through lipstick. In the modern day, most women are aware of societies beauty standards causing them to be vigilant as they take more caution of their appearance. As a top beauty Brand sold in retail outlets, L'Oréal Paris creates the most innovative products accessible for wealthy women that are able to take ownership and pride in their luxurious purchase. 

There is no doubt that the advertisement appeals ethos rhetoric of persuasion as it convinces women that the L'Oréal lipstick can be trusted by appealing the authority and credibility of the worldwide American singer, songwriter and actress, Beyonce. Obviously the authority of a famous celebrity like Beyonce instantly influences the purchases of customers that tempts her own Beehive fans to buy the product. Not only does this establish a stronger position of the brand L'Oréal but it also, initiates a larger customer base for L'Oréal. 

Not to forget that the advertisement appeals pathos rhetoric of persuasion as it convinces the audience to buy the lipstick by using descriptive imagery which evokes emotions. This is evident when the use of vibrant colors sets a lively theme that creates movement in order to attract the viewers where Beyonce says: "Live your life in non stop color". Clearly, the idea of living a lavishing lifestyle promptly meets the purpose of directing affluent women as the ad emphasises the pleasure and joy of owning such extravagant lipstick. This is also evident when the use of vivid contrasting colors come into play where the ad pauses at the striking moment of Beyonce's appealing smile that evokes happiness of which convinces the audience to buy the lipstick.

Additionally, the advertisement appeals logos rhetoric of persuasion as logic and factual information is used to persuade women by reason in order to purchase the lipstick. In the beginning of the ad, it introduces the lipstick as a lipstick that "lasts up to 24 hours in 24 shades" and continues to persuade the audience by saying: "Long lasting colors and moisturising balm that is perfect in two cool step compact". Undoubtedly the clear and blunt use of words establishes a very reliable tone that convinces the audience to buy the lipstick. This is also evident when Beyonce uses logic and says that she is able to wear the lipstick while eating a strawberry and singing without smudging the color. Clearly the ad uses logic to appeal to the audience as smudging lipstick is relatable to everyone however can be solved with this lipstick. 

Overall, the advertisement uses the rhetorics of persuasion such as ethos, pathos and logos to intensify the message that owning such extravagant lipstick meets the expectations of women that want to live a lavishing due to credibility of Beyonce whom elevates the overall message of the ad.

My Letter to the Editor of "Twtr? It's Majorly Bad!"

To the editor of 'Twtr? Its Majorly Bad!:

          After reading the ideas expressed in this article against the influence of text type in the English language, I decided to write a letter expressing my opinion towards the article.

           I believe that the article has a bias perspective and negative attitude towards the use of Text type and the form of slang used by the younger generations with descriptions like text type "Erodes pupil's language skills". Although 81% of teenagers use the internet, more adults use the internet with an increasing amount of 87% in 2016. This means that adults are the victims whom are most likely going to have, in the authors opinion an "affect" on their language skills since their are more of them using the internet rather than teenagers.

          The article continues to argue that youngsters are "in danger of growing up with limited vocabularies" because of how much time they spend on social media sites however, 96% of students with internet access report using social networking technologies use these tools to discuss educational topics. As a student, the internet is one of the most important key to success as it plays a vital role in delivering and accessing a variety of reliable educational sources. This means that not all of us waste our time on the internet but rather educate our selves and take the advantage of accessing online educational sources. Compared to previous generations, I believe that the internet does not limit our vocabulary but rather expands our knowledge of a language that is evolving in a whole new way of writing. Having a balancing act between the "formal" way of English and  the "slang" text type way is in my opinion a linguistic miracle as recent studies proved that being "Bi-dialect" allows the individual to learn new words easily and are better listeners compared to a monolinguial.

           Furthermore the article mentions how teachers realise the students who tend to use text type like "ur" and "gr8" are often the ones who achieve the lowest SAT marks but in my opinion, the emergent complexity of a language gradually evolves a whole new way of writing. This allows students to embrace the difference between speech and writing therefore expanding their linguistic structure and way of dialect. 

           I understand that Text type and the use of slang has a lack of concern with rules but, this does not mean that a solution is teaching English the "traditional way" in order to maintain the proper English. So now the evolvement of a language is a crime? With all honesty, different dialects of English expands ones knowledge on the language. As the Irish play-write George Bernard Shaw once said: "Progress is impossible without change" therefore the the English language will not progress unless changes occur like the evolvement of Text type.

          Clearly the article shows a thorough understanding of the negative impact of text type on the “formal” English language with varied and reliable sources to back up arguments given. However I highly recommend that you offer insights of the positive impacts that text types has on the language because the article is too bias therefore, I truly urge that you deeply look into the topic. By doing so, you will be able to write in a receptive manner as you would accept other ideas easily and would not be one-sided.


Best Regards,

Hala Ariqat

Fictional Interview: Did you just pull a Beyonce on me?

During the award winning Interview Show "What's cookin this week?", the famous television host Hala Ariqat got a chance to interview world-wide singer Beyonce. I was thrilled as a Journalist to experience such an interview as Hala was able to thoroughly discuss Beyonce's impact of music on her community after her album "Lemonade" dropped this Friday.




Hala Ariqat: Welcome back from our short break on "Whats cooking this week"! I'm sure you are all curious about checking under your seats to see if you won those tickets to the Beyonce concert, but I just have to discuss all this hype on Beyonce's album Lemonade itself. Alright please be honest with me, were any of you even expecting Beyonce to drop her album?

Audience: (Shakes their head with surprise)

Ariqat: Wow... Well I guess only Beyonce can pull a Beyonce. I think we should just ask her. Ladies and Gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for.. Please give an applause and a warm welcome to Queen B herself!

Audience: (cheering and applauding)

Hala Ariqat: Good morning Beyonce, it is great to have you here on my show today!

Beyonce: Good morning to you too Hala! Thank you, it is my pleasure to be here. Honestly I love starting my day with enthusiasm and I feel like interviews are the best way to begin my day.

Hala Ariqat: Wow, I am really glad to here that! You know, I always tell my family and friends how you've always been such great inspiration to me. Not just personality wise but also, with your music. I feel you really empower younger generation of girls, especially after your new album drop with your strong and passionate lyrics.

Beyonce: To be honest, I always tell myself that we are not taught to know what we want to be in life, it is just something natural. As a young girl, I always knew that I wanted to become a famous singer but not any famous singer. I always wanted to be different and have that strong impact on my audience. So my goal is to always work hard to be a women of worth and empower younger generations through my music.

Hala Ariqat: I can totally agree with your statement! Now tell me Beyonce, in your recent hit "Flawless" you quote a definition stated by the Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adicie where he says: "Feminist: the person who believes in the social, political and economic equality of the sexes"...

Beyonce: Oh yes absolutely!

Hala Ariqat: Compared to early hits during 2007 like "Upgrade U" and "Single Ladies", I feel like you now have a different drive and message you want reach to your audience which is empowerment, why do you feel the need to incorporate this to your song?

Beyonce: Well I need to take the advantage of being able to reach to many younger generations, especially girls so I decided to shift from writing music only about love and relationships, but also embrace topics like empowering women. I made this shift because I think important women's issues sphere of politics , education and social equality are usually over shadowed.

Hala Ariqat: What I love about the song is how the most popular lyric from that song which is "I woke up like this" that lit up literally all of social media and became a lyric printed on items like hats and I-phone cases.

Beyonce: Gotta love my Beehive fanbase!

Hala Ariqat: Definitely! Now as Beyonce, how do you feel being a voice for younger girls looking up to you as you earn you title of a modern day feminist? Do you feel like its a lot of pressure?

Beyonce: I'm going to be totally honest with you, it is pressure knowing the amount of press-talk and news articles being published about you and your work however.. this does not stop me for sending my message out their to younger generations. Empowerment. Specifically, the advocacy of women's rights.

Hala Ariqat: What you're saying about empowerment, I feel like this is evident through your album Lemonade specially the song "Formation".

Beyonce: Yes I honestly worked hard for the finished outcome of the music video "Formation" and I feel like I'm getting great feedback already which is what I am proud of.

Hala Ariqat: You surely embrace aspects of your culture like "Baby hair with afros" and "Jackson five nostrils" as well as cultural remarks like having hot sauce in your bag. Being "A texas Bamma" as you mention in your song,  in your opinion, what makes this hit so important to the empowerment of black culture?

Beyonce: Well, with the song "Formation" I am expressing a deeper perspective of empowerment specifically, empowering of black culture. The video as you probably watched is set in Louisiana which is a famous slave port. I chose to set it there to express freedom and resistance towards the horrible crimes committed in history. You can see scenes of black women making a circle and taking pride of their natural hair.

Hala Ariqat: Something that also caught my attention was the image of little boy in front of the cop. What was the purpose of this visual?

Beyonce: Speaking frankly, I wanted to highlight the next cut which is the phrase "Stop shooting us". I mean the purpose of this whole video is all about embracing our culture that empowers us to have a black visionary, a "formation" of a black future with power and equality.

Hala Ariqat: With that being said, did you hear how dropping a surprise project is known as "pulling a Beyonce" after half a million copies of the album "Lemonade" was sold in the first day with 1.2 million tweets in 12 hours?

Beyonce: (Laughs) Wowww! I actually never heard of that statement.

Hala Ariqat: Well you do now and if I may ask, what was your overall intended impact of your R&B music in your community?

Beyonce: I always strive to express my message through music in terms of political, social or racial equality of women in order to empower ones cultural identity and feel confident with who they are. You know, I always thank my Beehive fanbase for always being there for me because as an artist, I feel like you need that boost to get you going and success to me, is their true love and support. I really cannot thank them enough.

Hala: It is great to here you are truly appreciative of your ride-or-die beehive fanbase as they perceive you as their role model. Honestly speaking, do you having any role models you look up to that inspire you?

Beyonce: To be honest Hala, my mama is my number one inspiration because I believe she's the one that always motivates me to follow my dreams and work hard. I'm truly blessed to have her in my life.

Hala: I'm so happy to here that she supports your dedication to work. Do you think there will be any upcoming projects?

Beyonce: You never know, I might pull a Beyonce anytime soon!

Hala: Cant wait for that! Well, thank you so much for taking your time to attend this interview. It was great to here your intended purpose of your style of music as well as opinions on your fanbase. I truly appreciate it Beyonce.

Beyonce: No, thank you Hala for having me on your show I've always been a fan of "What's cookin this week" and I am glad we had a wonderful time discussing my album drop.

Hala: Can everyone give a big round of applause to Queen B!

Audience: (Applauses)

Hala: Stay tuned so we find out who's the next winner of the Beyonce tickets. I'm Hala Ariqat and you're watching Whats cooking this week.




Published by Journalist: Katy William

4/27/2016

Analytical Consolidation of Language and Identity: Does language define who we are?

Prompt:

Language shapes our identity, but doesn’t define who we are.

As humans we are born to curiously discover and explore our surroundings with the use of language as we develop our identity. Language plays a vital role in this case as we are able to express our emotions through words, make sense of abstract ideas, learn to communicate and satisfy our necessities as we create rules and conserve our culture. Merriam-Webster defines Language as “A system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other”. Realizing its role in fabricating our mental lives allows us to understand how language shapes our identity and defines who we are.  Unlike the definition of identity however that is known for being: “The qualities, beliefs etc., that make a particular person or group different from others.” (Merriam-Webster, 2008). This means that one holds onto there master identity that comprises of stable features of people that exists prior such as ethnicity, nationality, social class, gender and age. Though, the way you perceive your self to others or in a specific situation varies therefore identity can be categorized in four different ways including-

1-    Master Identity: Relatively stable and unchanging.

2-    Interactional identity:  Identities refer to roles that people take on in a communicative context with specific other people. IE: A mother, cousin, friend, boss etc.

3-    Personal Identity: Personal identities are expected to be relative stable and unique IE: I like cats.

4-    Relational Identity: Refers to the kind of relationship that a person enacts with for example: In a specific situation or with a particular conversational partner.

With out a doubt, identity is a developmental process that one evolves through in there lifetime. Of course language enables us to express our emotion, satisfy our needs and make sense of abstract ideas. Language shapes our developing identity as it provides us empowerment to establish a sense of identity in the way we picture and distinguish ourselves.

Identities and varying cultures enables the evolvement of the English language into a variety of different pronunciations and accents. The history of the English language really began with the coming of three Germanic tribes whom conquered Britain during the 5th century AD. These tribes include the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes replaced the Runic alphabet by the Latin alphabet from the 7th century, and after the 9th century the runes were used mainly in manuscripts and were mainly of interest to antiquarians. This impacted the way one communicated another that influences the way one another perceives each other because an indivuals way of speaking reflects their identity. With over 100 English dialects and 6000 languages around the world, elements of a specific language are not stable but rather developing through time. This allows us to appreciate the fact that there is no “Standard English” in a society because the geographical or social separation of countries causes shared languages they speak differentiates from one another.

The language spoken by someone plays a vital role in defining the way they communicate therefore influencing his or her master identity. Tan expresses this perception in the story “Mother Tongue” as she describes the struggle she had expressing herself through language. This is evident when she explains how her “Mothers English almost had an effect on limiting my possibilities in life as well”.  Because her mother spoke broken English, she was forced to learn how to speak broken English that is not a common language in reality. This affects her sense of identity in the way people would picture and distinguish her as she became weaker in English. However this made her spend a great deal of my time thinking about the power of language — the way it can “Evoke an emotion, a visual image, a complex idea, or a simple truth.” allowing her to embrace how language shapes her developing identity. Similarly to the text “Names/Nombres” by Julia Alvarez, the text discusses the struggle of conforming to a language. This means that Alvarez focuses on how her classmates were able to tell her ethnicity that is part of her identity by the way she pronounced certain words. Although both texts provide readers insight to the power of language, they also express how language shapes our developing identity as it provides us empowerment to establish a sense of identity in the way we picture and distinguish ourselves.

An extremely significant change of ones identity occurs because of the language that shapes who they are. This is evident in the text ‘Me talk pretty one day’ where the author expresses how he wants to “create some sort of identity for myself” which he struggles to by learning to develop his speaking in French. This portrays how he moves to another country (France) in order to challenge himself and learn another language other than his mother tongue. This is obviously something that requires skill a and patience as he explains being Bilingual is that “its everybody into the language pool, sink or swim.”The technique that varying people decide to communicate with reflects on there evolvement as they are able to grow and establish their development identity.

A language is a powerful tool that gives us the chance to shape and develop ourselves, or allows us to forget about our identity. The mother tongue language you speak is a part of your culture, and your culture is what defines a person the most. Your culture is apart of your identity allowing language to define who you are and shape your identity. Realizing its role in fabricating our mental lives allows us to understand how language shapes our identity and defines who we are. With out a doubt, identity is a developmental process that one evolves through in there lifetime. Of course language enables us to express our emotion, satisfy our needs and make sense of abstract ideas. Language shapes our developing identity as it provides us empowerment to establish a sense of identity in the way we picture and distinguish ourselves.

Summary of A Bilingual Mind

The article summaries the importance and benefits of being bilingual as it critically compares and contrasts the difference between Bilingual, trilingual or just learning one language. This means that one of its purposes is to justify the vitality of language with a variety of perspectives.


As a human, learning to speak is in our nature and plays an important role in shaping our master identity. However accomplishing developing a variety languages allows scientists to explore the influence on our brain and its connection to the languages with our behaviour and structure of the brain itself. To justify,  the Lycée Français de New York is a great example of where students that are able to speak both English and French including the Cultural Services of the French Embassy allows experts to explore the science and its connection to being able to speak a variety of languages.

The article then continues to mention how we are crude linguists from the moment of earth since we can hear spoken sounds and begin to recognise different combinations language sounds. This is evident where a speech therapist with the Ecole International de New York Elisabeth Cros explains how: "Parents will react to the phonemes they recognise from their native tongues, which reinforce the baby's use of this selected ones."Moving forward, being Bilingual is something that children aren't really aware of doing. Studies show that they face the dog-chien dilemma where one encounters an object, action or concept and instantaneously toggles between two different words to describe it. This leads researchers to often point out the famous Physiological "Stroop test" where subjects are asked to read out for example, the word "red" in a different color. Undoubtedly, everyone experiences a slow lag but for bilinguals its measurable shorter. Not to forget a recent study in 2013 that expresses the advantages of being able to speak two languages where bilinguals were faster as well as more metabolically economical in executing the cognitive mission, using less energy in the frontal cortex than the monolinguals. 

Lynch also claims that multilingual children might exhibit social empathy faster than children who grow up learning only one language, which makes developments sense. This means that some studies have proven that a thickening of the cortex in two brain region specially in the left inferior parent establishes come for language and gesturing. Obviously structural difference are evident as the new science is really revealing.


However not every research or study out there finds advantages to bilingualism. This is evident where a psychologist at Concordia University in Montreal studied found that kinds had smaller comprehension vocabularies than kids being raise monolingual. The reasoning to so is because of parents mixing their languages when speaking to their kids which leads to what linguist call cod-switching. Not to forget that Bialystok agrees that this is a short-term disadvantage of bilingualism, and says in most cases the kids catch up therefore when they do, language skills acquired early can pay late-life dividends. In one study, bilinguals experienced the onset of age-related dementia 4.1 years later than monolinguals, and full-blown Alzheimer’s 5.1 years later.

Although multilingualism is not the only path to staying cognitively healthy, it is something many researchers and scientists are conducting valuable time to understand the relation between language and the brain.

Mother Tongue

A topic that is discussed in the article "Mother Tongue" is the importance of a person's home language. This is evident when the author Amy Tan mentions how her mother used to speak in broken English as she was not able to conform to the standard English causing her to stick with speaking her mother tongue, Chinese.

 I believe that conforming to speak Standard English is someones choice and shouldn't be something someone is forced to speak. However, moving abroad puts people in a position people to learn and develop the language that is most common in that area/region. For example, I've lived in the UAE for all my life which allows me to develop and hold onto my mother tongue that is Arabic. But if I for example moved abroad to a non-Arab speaking country, I would put myself in a situation where I would expand the common language that most people speak. This means that ones mother tongue is vital as it shapes your identity and provides you the empowerment to establish a sense of master identity and value towards your culture.

 I think this is the case because holding onto your mother tongue allows to:

1- Develop and maintain a positive, cultural identity in which children know that their home language is valued and important. Although some people may argue that not everyone is raised in there home country, allowing them to soley drift and feel that it is unessential for them will not allow them to exceed in any another language if they are not aware of their own mother tongue. Therefore holding onto there mother tongue will not only allow them to exceed in the language but also remember who they truly are and value their cultural identity.

2- Communicate and express themselves, freely and in increasingly complex ways. Even though some people may claim that not every mother tongue is something enjoyable to understand, it is the language you were born to speak and relate with amongst your family. This obviously helps children nurture relationships with family and friends in their home country for a continued sense of belonging. 

3- Transfer linguistic strengths, general skills and knowledge from their home languages to the language being learned, thus promoting proficiency in two languages and fostering bilingualism. This means that it is important to strengthen other languages as well because you will be able to communicate with different people and gain a variety of perspectives from one another. 

Overall, everyone must be able to express and distinguish themselves with the language that they speak yet seize the chance to learn another language that is most common in the area they are unfamiliar with because being bilingual allows you to expand your knowledge.

A Good Name

Hala pronounced /Ha-la/. Simple isn't it? What if I tell you that my full name is something I cannot fully know. Culturally in Islam, your middle name comes from your fathers name.  With that being said, my name Hala Raied Ahmad Darwish Mohamed Ahmad Ariqat is merely the beginning of my name because each name is a generation older beginning with Raied whom is my father and continuing off with my great grandfathers fathers etc..

To justify,  I come from an extremely large family (approximately 3000 people) causing it to be quite challenging to find out everyones name in history that came from the family "Ariqat". Although there are many evidences and explanations of family trees, with what I am aware of-  Five generations is the farthest my name can go in history.

Not to mention that the meaning of ones name plays a vital role in the world. You will find many couples/families listing the names that they plan on naming there baby or even having it planned before the baby is even born. This is highly evident throughout history and still is a tradition in the Arab culture today. For example: I am named after my grandmother "Hala" and my youngest brother is name after my grandfather "Ahmad". I think this is the case because we believe that a name is the greatest representation of who you are therefore passing a name down not only is a symbol of respect towards the elderly but also a sign of good luck. This means the parents hope you will share similar characteristic traits with the person you were named after.

With that being said, the meaning of someones name is usually either metaphorically powerful meanings or reflect importance religiously. As of my name Hala and no not like the song "Aint no Holler Backgirl" or "We Dem Boyz", my name is both for a Muslim and Christian female name giving the meaning "Halo"or initially the halo that illuminates glory and bright light around the moon. Wow! Who knew such a short and simply name would have such a powerful meaning. Technically speaking, I think this makes me become a living metaphor.

When I asked my parents why they named me Hala, they explained to me how it was rare to find a name that would not only match my grand mothers name but is easy to pronounce yet holds great value. They also continued describing how when they first saw my face, it was as if "Your face radiated moonlight because of how blessed we were to have you and how fair you were as a baby." Deep I know. My fathers name on the other hand literally means BOSS. This reflects characteristics like being strong and in control. As for my family name, it originates to the meaning "Alorooq" that literally translates to someone/something that is original and precious. Historically speaking "Ariqat" originally came from a tribal group of Bedouins whom were called after what people thought was the most suitable name based on there identity.

Without a doubt, this brings me back to my point that is how names not only help shape ones identity but also represents your self specially your uniqueness that you establish in this world as well as the easiest expression of ones cultural and historical background. Not to forget that one develops their identity as they grow and experience variety of challenges and journeys throughout their life. However the most vivid and logical symbol of yourself that you represent is initially your name which is in my opinion like your trademark. As the author Siri Hustvedt once said: "There is not future without a past, because what is to be cannot be imagined except as a form of repetition".

Jordanian Cultural Markers and Misconceptions

Assalamualaykum from the Arabian dessert dunes of Jordan! Allow me to escort you to your tent with my Camel and sweeten the Knafeh for desert while I ask Khadeeja to get your Sheesha ready. A day in the Middle East you may ask? Maybe whats shown on the media , but definitely not our reality today. 

According to Scribt.com, Language is known for being a "Communicative act that is social which is tied to cultural context as culture is shaped through our language use." With out a doubt, this leads to my point on how cultural markers are events or facets of our society that illustrate or reveal cultural or societal norms, and shifts in those norms.

Being part of the Arab community, I believe that most of Arabs share similar cultural aspects and traditions. This includes culture markers like being family-oriented and conservative people. Although I lived in the UAE for all my life, I still identify myself as being part of the Jordanian culture. An important culture marker in our society is spending quality time with family and friends in the desert alongside our delicious desert called Knafeh. This means you'll find us in desert areas like Wadi Rum and Wadi Alqamar. With out a doubt this is something that is important to us because as Jordanians, we believe we should take pride of our Bedouin historical context as it is part of our tradition to hold onto our customs and values. 

However, a misconception I think people have based on this cultural marker is that Jordan is not civilised in terms of infrastructure (houses and buildings) where most people still camp in hot desert dunes. Although Jordan isn't as rich in goods like oil, it is a civilised country with a relative high literacy rate as its illiteracy rate remains among the lowest in the Arab world with 9.1 per cent of residents aged above 13 classified as illiterate, according to the 2015 Population Census. As of the weather, Jordan's Winters are generally short and cool with temperatures of 5-10°C. One digit celsius? Yes, it does get this cold in Southwest Asia. 

To justify, understanding this cultural marker will promote more effective communication with one another where people would be able to talk to us normally without having to either translate what they say to Arabic or talk slowly in English. Not to mention how some tourists that I know of would pack their bags with shorts and sunglasses expecting a hot summers day during January.  Little did they know that Jordan has four seasons and they would come back freezing! Being aware of such aspects like weather and the development of the country/ people would allow people to not only pack a more suitable set of outfits but also would gain a wider perspective on the cultural norms and development throughout history. Unfolding such misconceptions and cultural markers develops an educated society where we are able to express and share our culture with one another.

Introductory

Greetings from my first Grade 11 English blog post!

 I would first like to introduce myself as Hala Raied Ariqat a 15 year-old Jordanian living in the UAE. I’ve been living in the UAE for all my life and this is my seventh year at Raha International School. As a student in the IB, I’ve always learnt to express myself considering important aspects such as the IB learner profile that comprises of characteristics like being knowledgeable and reflective. In my first blog post I would like to reflect on my self specifically my future goals as well as my interests and things I value most in life.

Personally, something I value the most is my time spent with my family and friends and getting to travel around the world.

I think these are things I am appreciative of because traveling allows you to gain new perspectives, as you are able to experience and become open minded towards the varieties of cultures and beliefs around the globe. Some of my favorite cities include:

1-    Milan: I think that this is one of my favorite cities because of the cities fascinating historical architectural throughout its lively streets. Not to forget the finest shopping experience that the city has to offer.

2-    London: London has to be one of my favorite cities because of the ideal breeze that you can enjoy while strolling around the streets in addition to the delighting culinary experience.

Overall I would say I am more of a city person rather than a nature person because I find it more fascinating and enjoyable to acknowledge the vast majority of things in a city.

Not to forget I find it important to spend time with my family and friends because you will be able to explore common bonds that develops building strong bonds with one another. This means that you would be able to establish a sense of being comfortable and truthful to one another.

Although I find myself enjoying time spent with my family and friends as well as traveling, I enjoy doing Zumba classes as well as swimming. I have been doing Zumba for four years now and this is my second year of swimming. I think doing weekly sports on a regular basis not only organizes your time but also physically allows you to be fit and active.

Something that I would also like to mention about what I care is how I am prideful of my cultural values. Without a doubt I find it crucial to be aware of ones traditional background. I think this is the case because history has always been a subject that interests me ever since I was young therefore I find it highly valuable to hold on to heritage because without a past, one has no future. With that being said, I am still very passionate about the latest trends and style in the fashion and beauty industry. Of course a celebrity that reflects both beauty and humanitarian work is definitely Angelina Jolie that is someone I will always look up to. I believe she reflects the perfect balance of being a ravishing style icon while playing a major role in the United Nations. Obviously building such a major role in this generation inspires a younger audience to fulfill their passions and goals. This leads to dreams and goals that I have for this year and in the future that I am motivated to achieve such as:

Academically in Grade 12…

1-    To be able to maintain my honor roll grades (High predicted IB grade)

2-    To be able to achieve a 6 in English class

3-    To be able to know exactly what I want and where (I am contemplating either Business Retail Management or Business Corporate Law specifically in London, UK)

By the end of university…

1-    To be able to graduate with a Masters Degree

2-    To be able to know where I will be working

By the end of my 30^th year on earth…

1-    To be able to love what I do

2-    To be able to live happily with my own family

3-    To be able to work in the UAE with my own business

In my opinion English class will allow me to achieve my goals by the end of grade 12 because if I work hard in English by staying organized and motivated, I will not only achieve a 6 in Language and Literature but also it will help me boost up my high average IB points. This means that such rigorous and critical course will allow me to know exactly what I want to study by the end of grade 12 as It expands my sense of discovery and shapes my perspective of the world more effectively.

Not to forget that by doing so, English class will also develop my critical thinking skills that’ll be useful in important life decision like knowing where I will work as well as what in specifically.

I believe language has a vital role in my life because it a form of communication with one another and is one of the most basic parts of ones individuality. With out language, we would not be able to achieve the needs of developing our society since language is originally the constitute element of civilization. This is evident where language established a form of uncivilized state of humans to todays 21^st century generation where people are able to fly planes and discover inventions for solutions to our problems today. I also think that it is important to study language because you will be able to easily convey your ideas with one another and develop easy social contact with one another. Although language allows you to exchange ideas in order to create a better society, I have somewhat felt excluded due to language barriers. Obviously this happens between one another especially in an International school where not every language is your mother tongue. However this also expands other forms of communication such as sign language as well as face value that play an important role when one another do not speak the same language. This also enable you to appreciate and further value upon the importance of language in ones society that we sometimes take for granted.

Overall I am extremely looking forward for English class this year as I believe that English is one of the most important subjects to learn and further advance in ones educational years. I hope that with motivation and hard work I will definitely be dedicated in achieving an overall of 6 in English.

I forgot to mention my love towards my endearing and enchanting cat called MUFFIN (Yes I am a cat lover too Mr. Micheal).


Best Regards,

Hala Ariqat