A Love Affair with Television

By: Alex

Graphic by Alex 

It would be wrong for me to describe myself without using the word ‘television.’ In the most non-antisocial way, I say that television is one of the most important parts of my life. What I love about TV isn’t laying on a couch and passively watching a screen; it’s actively watching, getting attached to the characters, and becoming inspired by the writers. What makes me excited to watch TV is the value of a story.

I love nothing more than relating to a character; it is so endearing and refreshing. That is why I love TV, because it’s a nice escape from a life that I don’t really know my place in yet. Whether I’m laughing or crying with a character, there is always at least one person on a show that I feel a bond with, and that is what makes me excited about it. TV makes me feel like I’m not that much alone.

Of course, I have to credit this bond that I feel with TV to the genius behind it all—the writers. Television writers inspire me because they are so precise and thorough; they’ve got an agenda. Over the years they map out where a character is going, how they will grow, and how their struggles will drive the story. The profession fascinates me.

I love to see a character grow, and television has the means to do that. The writers get a whole series (rather than 200 pages of a novel or 2 hours of a film) to create and shape these characters to drive powerful stories that hit home. We can watch them go though their times of happiness and triumph or despair and anxiety.

That’s what makes them so real—seeing characters change is just like watching the people around you grow—its life. And that’s what makes it so relatable. I can identify with the spirit of TV more than I can with most people. Watching TV fosters my creative spirit and gives me hope that one day my stories can be heard. And for about an hour of the prime time line up, I feel like anything is possible.

I would not be ashamed to leave a party on the weekend to find a room with a television to watch SNL. I will gladly put aside my homework to watch a few hours of Freaks and Geeks via Netflix. And I’m not opposed to running across campus so I can catch the premiere of this week’s episode of Glee.

Television is magical. It has the ability to create respect and love among it’s generations of viewers. One day, I hope to be satisfying my love affair with television by serving it to my greatest potential; writing my own stories for America to fall in love with all over again. 

The Perks of Being a Coming of Age Novel

By: Alex

Bildungsroman—my new favorite word.

In fancy German terms, it means ‘a coming of age story,’ which just happens to be my favorite genre of literature. Being a lover of the bildungsroman, I’ve collected many angsty novels that resonate with a certain piece of me. But one bildungsroman that is especially relevant to my life right now is Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

Without difficulty, Perks captures the spirit of the bildungsroman that I love so much. Chbosky channels the overwhelming desperation that goes along with growing up through his true-to-life teen characters, who can flawlessly execute these complicated feelings.

Perks’ protagonist, Charlie, is an anxious, troubled soul beginning high school. And through his journal entries, we get an insight into Charlie’s struggles to find his place and forget about his unsettling past. Charlie’s journal takes us through his first encounters with relationships, heartbreak, drugs, abuse, suicide, and true friendship.

Charlie gives a voice to every misunderstood and troubled teen. His muted cries for help and introverted personality reveal that when you’re growing up, nothing is easy.  Charlie’s experiences are so relatable, yet so unique. I find myself feeling for Charlie’s yearning to find his place and prove himself. He embodies the conflicted element of the teenage brain, when you never know what to do, what the next step is; how it’s so hard to see your future but even more difficult to let go of a troubling past. It’s easy to be a wallflower--to be stoic and refrain from participating. To keep anxieties numb by feeling so little. But Charlie proves that those you love can make growing up a little easier.

Because of this story’s ability to describe what teenagers fear, dream and struggle with most, it remains one of my favorite novels. Chbosky understands what it means to long to escape, to become something better than yourself, and to grow up with a purpose. This book has taught me that when you’re growing up, you don’t always have to fit in. What made Charlie unique were the things that brought him the most happiness and taught him the most about himself. Seeing a character like Charlie makes me feel like I’m not so alone in a world where I feel like everyone has it all figured out and I don't. Perks provides solace for teens who just want to know there’s someone out there who understands.

Perks lends itself to the grand question of 'who am I?' and 'what do I stand for?', and it speaks to me exactly for that reason. Through his deeply personal journal entries, Charlie gives an effortlessly accurate description of the angst and desperation of growing up that goes unsaid. It’s very hard for teens to share their hardships, or even put their effusive emotions into words, but Chbosky did just that. He is a hero of the bildungsroman. This is not just a paperback book—it’s a powerful story. The story of a life. 

Hipster Hop: The Battle Between Fly and Mainstream

By: Emily

Graphic made by Emily

The genre of rap and hip hop music isn’t all mainstream. In fact, there’s much more to rap than just Chris Brown’s obsession with women (preferably beating them) or Snoop Dogg’s undying love of weed. Granted, these are expected staples in the "popular" hip hop world, but if this is true, then hipster hop might as well be the planet Neptune.

Like music classified as "hipster," hipster hop is usually not familiar to a large audience. It's usually deemed "indie" because it cannot be found on the radio. Instead, much of hipster hop is broadcast via free mix tapes on the internet or through remixes or mash-ups.

Now as a typical white girl who covers herself in sunscreen and wears 3D glasses ironically, not many people would picture me as the type to enjoy the musical stylings of such rappers as Kanye West or Tyler, The Creator. But the reality of the situation is that these creative lyricists are, to me, geniuses of the musical world. Their rhymes are undoubtedly clever and that’s what draws me to them. In one of my personal favorite hipster hop songs, Childish Gambino says, “rappers used to laugh like I tripped and fell/Cause I don't stunt a gold cross like I Christian bail.” Like this song, called "That Power", it’s not hard to uncover a new line that might make you laugh or even think deeper than you’d have originally imagined possible.

The thing that’s so great about the hipster hop genre isn’t the fact that no one else has heard of many of the artists. It’s the fact that these rappers aren’t afraid to express their inhibitions and worries. While they may appear hard and intense on the surface, underneath their fly exterior is quite possibly the most relatable person on the planet. Kid Cudi, for example, in his super jammable hit “Soundtrack 2 My Life” says, “I’ve got some issues that nobody can see and all of these emotions are pouring out of me.”

And so I leave you with a list of just a few songs that exemplify the genre of Hipster Hop. Granted this is only a sampling of the many rappers you might discover yourself, so keep looking! And don’t be afraid of 50 Cent’s Thug Life. There are plenty of talented rappers who just want to live the normal life like you and me.

1. That Power by Childish Gambino
2. Teleport 2 Me, Jamie by WZRD
3. Welcome to the Jungle by JAY-Z and Kanye West
4. Last Name London by Theophilius London
5. High Again by Hoodie Allen
6. Man on the Moon by Kid Cudi
7. 4AM Monday by Watsky
8. Lost in the World by Kanye West and Bon Iver