Sunday, December 9, 2012

The pre-pre-final post. (Get it?)

I am going to write mostly in this post and we are going to post all of our pictures and videos tomorrow. The first thing I have to say is, I wish we had more time to work on this project… You were so right about this project's end coming quickly!

I really can't think of a better way to sum up the concept other than, 'in the name of safety, where does it stop?'

We come up with laws (most specifically the 'click it or ticket' seatbelt law) that are meant to protect people, but ultimately we arent really protecting anyone and offenders of these laws are guilty of victimless crimes and have to go through the stress of going to court and/or have to pay fines. It just doesn't make sense to me that we would penalize people for these things. If someone doesn't wear their seatbelt when they are driving and they get into a wreck, the joke is on them. Laws should protect people from other people.

 I really don't know what to refer to the piece as, I want to call it a shell, and I love the idea of it being a shell because that really goes along with the concept very well so from now on I am going to refer to it as a shell.

I really enjoyed watching the Star Trek episode about metaphors. I am trying to figure out the difference between what a metaphor and what an analogy is, and I just haven't gotten that 'eureka' moment with them yet. I know for a fact that I think in analogies. Like for a lot of things. Is that a weird thing to know? A metaphor is literal comparative description, while an analogy is just a comparative description? I think of this project as an analogy of the current day seatbelt and drug laws, but in an overly exaggerated way. This shell is like these laws in the sense that it is there for you to protect you, to keep you safe, but is it really protecting you from anything? Are these laws really protecting you from anything? This shell is LIKE the laws. The like makes it an analogy. How can I make this a metaphor? "This shell is the laws". Well thats how, but that doesn't make sense to me.

The piece consists of a 'shell' that one would wear on their back. The shell is equipped with left and right blinkers, brake lights, and a horn. The features are operated by buttons held in both hands.  I am going to talk about the project how it is now.  My hesitation with calling it a shell is simply because, well, I just don't think it looks enough like a shell that it will be identifiable to viewers as a shell. Looking at it now, I think that black was not a good choice for it. If safety was really the objective, I think making the shell a more visible color would have benefited it not only in a safety sense, but in a  shell sense as well. I am thinking of a more super mario style red or green shell.

I am interested in taking this project further. I mentioned to Amy about me possibly continuing on with this project next semester, but that is still up in the air. I really would like to have had Amy in my group to continue with the project because she had really great ideas, but she won't be in our class next semester. There is still a possibility, but not until further discussion with her. We mentioned a lot of extra features being added to the shell such as gas sensors, carbon monoxide sensors, etc. This is where I am stuck, I want this shell to be an item that is farfetched, but plausible. Plausible in the sense that, in one parallel universe, everyone wears them because if you didn't wear one you would get a ticket for putting yourself in danger by not wearing your shell. How do you balance getting your point across by making it ridiculous, but keeping it seemingly realistic enough that one could see it in some future.

Now to see what people think in crit.
ps I dont think there is anything to get.

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