So here's our comic again... even though it was posted on Jan. 19. It was located in the "older posts" so many may have not seen it yet. 
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Money See, Monkey Do....FINAL!
Have you every questioned why fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge (Smith). Effects can be positive, such as a movement to stop global warming, or negative, such as the numerous people who believed in Hitler’s ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz”, has succeeded in demonstrating how a bandwagon effect can be started and how it can end. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus he ordered another kat, Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade caught on and spread, until all the katz were holding onto one another’s tails. The last kat, being the only one left with his tail dragging on the ground, decided that this was very unfair and so he threw down the tail he was holding. This then continued until all the katz were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. This story, regardless of being fiction or intended for children, tells a very real and common story, of how one cat carelessly following another can create a much bigger affect. It is then easy for one to see how the plot from the story can be related to many real-life situations, whether in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. “The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction,” (Smith).
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie Katz” and this website. In Dr. Seuss’s story, Fooie who was the kat, told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says “I felt pressured into opening my Facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop and I wasn’t invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up too and to add myself into the picture.” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the katz followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds, this being “one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies” (Newton). Similarly, the katz in Katzen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other katz aware by visual advertisement.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is almost always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. People such as Jesse Jackson, Reggie Jackson, and Michael Jackson were well-known in the 1970's, not only being noted as media icons, but also for the fashion statement they made with their hair; the afro. The hairstyle was symbolic to the Black consciousness movement, as it represented “a shift away from the "conservative" peace movement of the civil rights era to the more aggressive, militant expression of Black power” (Badfads.com). In “King Looie Katz”, the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it had been an ordinary kat other than the king, that had asked Fooie to pick up his tail, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, fashion items that begin fads are around long before they’re made well-known. The bandwagon effect allows something that would normally go unnoticed to be appreciated by all. Perhaps King Looie allowed the katz to realized the importance of taking care of their tails and therefore taking care of themselves.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many styles. This is another example of how a bandwagon effect, because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether the shoes were actually worth the money.
Bandwagon phenomenons regularly occur in the toy industry. During the 1980's, Cabbage Patch Kids were immensely popular. Each doll came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate, being unique and one of a kind. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales (Patten). On a smaller, but just as odd scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959) (Hoffman). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The katz in Katzen-stein held up another kat'z tail simply because someone told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for that matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say, or perhaps because someone had told them to. Most people aren't too keen to buy something, or follow something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to jump on the bandwagon. In essence, there's a comfort in large numbers and this follows through not only with the katz in Katzen-stein, but with the toy industry as well.
The bandwagon effect is clearly displayed in Dr. Seuss’s, “King Looie Katz”. The katz in the book began the bandwagon effect by jumping on without considering their actions or the consequences. They didn’t consider that they would be holding a selfish cat’s tail in front of them, without a real fundamental purpose. Most likely the katz in the book were afraid of being singled out. They all admired their king and followed him because he was important and held authority. They saw every other cat doing it, so they did it too. The only way this bandwagon effect could end was if one person realizes the negative aspect and chooses to speak up about it. It is very easy for us to take these points and see how they are present in our everyday lives, whether it takes place in fashion, toys, or hobbies. Perhaps if we take the time to ask ourselves why it is that we are taking part in these activities or agreeing with someone or even buying that toy, we will notice how we have been absorbed into these trends and fads. The kat in Dr. Seuss’s story who chose to throw down the tail he was holding was not really important, he didn’t hold much authority and he didn’t spread the word so everyone could hear his choice. He simply did what he felt was right and what he felt would benefit him. It doesn’t take someone with power to create change, it just takes one person or one kat to choose to do something for themselves.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz”, has succeeded in demonstrating how a bandwagon effect can be started and how it can end. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus he ordered another kat, Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade caught on and spread, until all the katz were holding onto one another’s tails. The last kat, being the only one left with his tail dragging on the ground, decided that this was very unfair and so he threw down the tail he was holding. This then continued until all the katz were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. This story, regardless of being fiction or intended for children, tells a very real and common story, of how one cat carelessly following another can create a much bigger affect. It is then easy for one to see how the plot from the story can be related to many real-life situations, whether in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. “The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction,” (Smith).
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie Katz” and this website. In Dr. Seuss’s story, Fooie who was the kat, told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says “I felt pressured into opening my Facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop and I wasn’t invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up too and to add myself into the picture.” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the katz followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds, this being “one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies” (Newton). Similarly, the katz in Katzen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other katz aware by visual advertisement.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is almost always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. People such as Jesse Jackson, Reggie Jackson, and Michael Jackson were well-known in the 1970's, not only being noted as media icons, but also for the fashion statement they made with their hair; the afro. The hairstyle was symbolic to the Black consciousness movement, as it represented “a shift away from the "conservative" peace movement of the civil rights era to the more aggressive, militant expression of Black power” (Badfads.com). In “King Looie Katz”, the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it had been an ordinary kat other than the king, that had asked Fooie to pick up his tail, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, fashion items that begin fads are around long before they’re made well-known. The bandwagon effect allows something that would normally go unnoticed to be appreciated by all. Perhaps King Looie allowed the katz to realized the importance of taking care of their tails and therefore taking care of themselves.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many styles. This is another example of how a bandwagon effect, because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether the shoes were actually worth the money.
Bandwagon phenomenons regularly occur in the toy industry. During the 1980's, Cabbage Patch Kids were immensely popular. Each doll came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate, being unique and one of a kind. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales (Patten). On a smaller, but just as odd scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959) (Hoffman). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The katz in Katzen-stein held up another kat'z tail simply because someone told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for that matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say, or perhaps because someone had told them to. Most people aren't too keen to buy something, or follow something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to jump on the bandwagon. In essence, there's a comfort in large numbers and this follows through not only with the katz in Katzen-stein, but with the toy industry as well.
The bandwagon effect is clearly displayed in Dr. Seuss’s, “King Looie Katz”. The katz in the book began the bandwagon effect by jumping on without considering their actions or the consequences. They didn’t consider that they would be holding a selfish cat’s tail in front of them, without a real fundamental purpose. Most likely the katz in the book were afraid of being singled out. They all admired their king and followed him because he was important and held authority. They saw every other cat doing it, so they did it too. The only way this bandwagon effect could end was if one person realizes the negative aspect and chooses to speak up about it. It is very easy for us to take these points and see how they are present in our everyday lives, whether it takes place in fashion, toys, or hobbies. Perhaps if we take the time to ask ourselves why it is that we are taking part in these activities or agreeing with someone or even buying that toy, we will notice how we have been absorbed into these trends and fads. The kat in Dr. Seuss’s story who chose to throw down the tail he was holding was not really important, he didn’t hold much authority and he didn’t spread the word so everyone could hear his choice. He simply did what he felt was right and what he felt would benefit him. It doesn’t take someone with power to create change, it just takes one person or one kat to choose to do something for themselves.
Another Annotated Bibliography from Ruqayyah
This blog I found online and cited in my paragraph on Facebook was extremely helpful in backing up my idea of how the bandwagon effect can spread. The main idea that I took form this blog was that Facebook uses a marketing strategy that works very well. That strategy being, that you are able to invite all your friends to join Facebook in literally seconds. I found this blog useful for my particular needs because it gave me a fact to back up my idea. I also know that the information was reliable because the author of the blog, Vincent Newton is the creator of another website known as friendinviter.com which is also related to marketing strategies. The website where the blog is located is: http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Did-Facebook-Become-So-Popular?&id=680293
Another Draft by Ruqayyah
Have you every questioned why fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge (Smith). Effects can be positive, such as a movement to stop global warming, or negative, such as the numerous amount of people who believed in Hitler’s ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz”, has succeeded in demonstrating how a bandwagon effect can be started and how it can end. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus he ordered another kat, Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade caught on and spread, until all the katz were holding onto one another’s tails. The last kat, being the only one left with his tail dragging on the ground, decided against the unfair situation to throw down the tail he was holding. This then continued until all the katz were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. This story, regardless of being fiction or intended for children, tells a very real and common story, of how one cat carelessly following another can create a much bigger affect. It is then easy for one to see how the plot from the story can be related to many real-life situations, whether in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. “The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction,” (Smith).
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie Katz” and this website. In Dr. Seuss’s story, Fooie who was the kat, told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says “I felt pressured into opening my Facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop and I wasn’t invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up too and to add myself into the picture.” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the katz followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds, this being “one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies” (Newton). Similarly, the katz in Katezen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other Katz aware by visual advertisement.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is almost always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. In “King Looie Katz”, the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat, other than the king, that asked Fooie to pick up his tail, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, fashion items that being fads are around long before they’re made well-known. The bandwagon effect allows something that would normally rather go unnoticed to be appreciated by all. Perhaps King Looie allowed the katz to realize the importance of taking care of their tails and therefore taking care of themselves.
When it comes to following trends and fads, it's no surprise that the fashion industry is the creator of many large bandwagon effects. Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected (BadFads). The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money. (Darien, you need to possibly take the idea of how they only became famous after Chuck Taylor wore them and relate that to the fact that the King held authority when he started the band wagon in the story)
Another place where bandwagon effects are regular occurring is in the toy industry. During the 1980's Cabbage Patch Kids were a big fad. Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd, scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein, held up another cat's tail because some one told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to. Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”.
In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz”, has succeeded in demonstrating how a bandwagon effect can be started and how it can end. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus he ordered another kat, Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade caught on and spread, until all the katz were holding onto one another’s tails. The last kat, being the only one left with his tail dragging on the ground, decided against the unfair situation to throw down the tail he was holding. This then continued until all the katz were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. This story, regardless of being fiction or intended for children, tells a very real and common story, of how one cat carelessly following another can create a much bigger affect. It is then easy for one to see how the plot from the story can be related to many real-life situations, whether in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. “The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction,” (Smith).
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie Katz” and this website. In Dr. Seuss’s story, Fooie who was the kat, told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says “I felt pressured into opening my Facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop and I wasn’t invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up too and to add myself into the picture.” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the katz followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds, this being “one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies” (Newton). Similarly, the katz in Katezen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other Katz aware by visual advertisement.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is almost always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. In “King Looie Katz”, the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat, other than the king, that asked Fooie to pick up his tail, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, fashion items that being fads are around long before they’re made well-known. The bandwagon effect allows something that would normally rather go unnoticed to be appreciated by all. Perhaps King Looie allowed the katz to realize the importance of taking care of their tails and therefore taking care of themselves.
When it comes to following trends and fads, it's no surprise that the fashion industry is the creator of many large bandwagon effects. Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected (BadFads). The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money. (Darien, you need to possibly take the idea of how they only became famous after Chuck Taylor wore them and relate that to the fact that the King held authority when he started the band wagon in the story)
Another place where bandwagon effects are regular occurring is in the toy industry. During the 1980's Cabbage Patch Kids were a big fad. Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd, scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein, held up another cat's tail because some one told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to. Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”.
In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Monkey See, Monkey Follow
Monkey See, Monkey Follow
Have you ever questioned why fads and trends occur? Most likely, you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear, or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things, or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge. (Smith). Effects can lead to both positive effects, such as movement to stop global warming, and negative effects, such as the numerous amount of people who believed in Hitler’s ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz” demonstrates an example of the bandwagon effect. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus, he ordered another cat, Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade followed on with the other cats, and everyone began holding each other’s tail, until the last cat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding. This effect continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. Seuss’s stories, regardless of being fiction or not, hold a sense of truth to them. “King Looie Katz”, sets an example of how one cat following another can create a bandwagon effect. It's easy to see how the plot from the story can be relatable to the real-life situations and similar occurrences, whether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
Looking at the very popular social-network site known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the cat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, and his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says, “I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture”. Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the cats followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says, “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarly the cats in Katzen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word, or otherwise just made the other cats aware by visually spreading the word.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is usually always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. People such as Jesse Jackson, Reggie Jackon, and Michael Jackson were large in the 1970's, not only noted for being large media icons, but for their fashion statements they made with the hair; the afro. The hairstyle was symbolic to the Black consciousness movement, as it represented “a shift away from the "conservative" peace movement of the civil rights era to the more aggressive, militant expression of Black power” (Badfads.com). In “King Looie Katz”, it can be considered that the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat. chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, the fad was around before that person made it popular, but what makes it popular was the person wearing it.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money.
Bandwagon phenomenons took place with children's toys as well. During the 1980's, the Cabbage Patch Kids was immensley popular. Each doll came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate, being unique and one of a kind. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales (Patten). On a smaller, but just as odd scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959) (Hoffman). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein held up another cat's tail because someone told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to? Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to jump on the bandwagon. In essence, there's a comfort in large numbers and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
The bandwagon effect is clearly displayed in Dr. Seuss’s, “King Looie Katz”. The cats in “King Looie Katz” jump on the bandwagon without considering their actions. They didn’t consider that they would be holding a selfish cat’s tail in front of them, without a fundamental purpose. In Suess's story, the reason to why the bandwagon effect occurs varies. Perhaps it was because none of the cats wanted to be singled out. Perhaps it was because they admired their king and followed him because he was popular. Perhaps it was because they saw every other cat doing it, so they did it too. Or perhaps it was all of these reasons that caused the effect.
Regardless, this phenomenon is also present in our everyday lives, whether it takes place in fashion, toys, or hobbies. So the next time one plans on doing something, they should wonder if they are doing it for themselves or just jumping on the bandwagon like the cats in Katzen-stein.
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Annotated Bibliography (so far - Uzma's)
Source #1:
“Afro Haircut” Badfads.com 2006. January 25, 2009. <http://www.badfads.com/pages/fashion/afro.html>
This small summery about the afro haircute was very useful the the essay. The website contains a numerous amount of fashion fads throughout the years. All of them were simple, giving a short back history to when it occured, and straight to the point. Previously, a different fad (Hot Pants) was used from this site, however, it was found that the afro hairstyle was more relatable to the topic at hand, as it could be relatable to a reason on why bandwagon effects take place.
Source #2:
Hoffman, Leah. “Popular toys of the last 100 years” msnbc.msn.com December 12, 2005.
January 16, 2009. <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10387831/ >
This article was helpful, as it noted the most popular toy trends of each era, starting from the 1900's – over 100 years ago. It gave some breif information on several toys that were quite popular and how much they have sold (Potato Head and Crayola). The article also gave insight on how “toys aren't always a hit the year, or even the decade, they're created.” Quickly brushing over some playthings that were one hit wonders. Overall, only a small part was used for the essay, however, it was a very insightful and interesting article on popular toys.
Source #3:
Patten, Denise Van. “Whatever Happened to Cabbage Patch Dolls?” About.com 2001.
January 17, 2009. <http://collectdolls.about.com/library/weekly/aa090101a.htm >
The article sheds light on the Cabbage Patch Dolls, and gave a lot of insightful detail on how popular the toy really was back in the day. Patten gives a good introduction and pre-history of the dolls. She also wrote about the craze of the toys, and “After the Craze, the Crash”. She ends with asking about what happened to the cabbage patch dolls, and giving “One Final Cabbage Patch Moment”. The article also gave side links to related resources and articles similar to the topic. In the essay, the article was used to give a little bit of the backstory of the dolls and what came with the package (adoption papers, names, etc).
Responsiblies
Ruqayyah: Introduction + Social networking paragraph
Darian: Conclusion + Fashion paragraph
Uzma: Comic + Toys paragraph + added Afro part
Yet Another Draft
Remove/look at bolded parts.
Have you ever questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely, you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear, or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things, or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge. (Smith). Effects can be both positive, such as movement to stop global warming, and negative, such as the numerous amount of people who believed in Hitler’s ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz” demonstrates an example of the bandwagon effect. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus, he ordered another cat, named Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade followed on with the other cats, and everyone began holding one another’s each other’s tail, until the last cat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding. This effect continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. However, Seuss’s stories, regardless of being fiction or not, hold a sense of truth to them. “King Looie Katz”, sets an example of how one cat following another can create a bandwagon effect. It's easy to see how the plot from the story can be relatable to the real-life situations and similar occurrences, whether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. Taking this plot from the story and relating it to real-life situations is makes it easy to find a variety of similar occurrences.(This is repetitive of the sentence before it)The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
A Looking at the very popular social-network site known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the cat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, and his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says, “I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture”. Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the cats in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says, “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarly the cats in Katzen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word, or otherwise just made the other cats aware by visually spreading the word.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is usually always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. In “King Looie Katz”, it can be considered that the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat, other than the king, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, the fad was around before that person made it popular, but what makes it popular is the person wearing it.
When it comes to following trends and fads, it's no surprise to consider the fashion industry to be the creator of many large bandwagon effects. There are a several fashion fads in history that can display the Bandwagon Effect like “King Looie Katz” does. For example, Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected (BadFads). The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. Is this necessary? (I think this is necessary because we’re proving the point that Chuck Taylor’s only became necessary after he started wearing them, not before-Darian) After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money.
Another bandwagon phenomenon took place during the 1980's with Cabbage Patch Kids. These dolls were all the craze with kids (This is an awkward sentence-Darian). Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein held up another cat's tail because someone told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to? Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”. In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
CONCLUSION: The Bandwagon Effect is clearly displayed in Dr. Seuss’s, “King Looie Katz”. It is “an observed social behaviour in which people tend to go along with what others do or think without considering their actions” (S.E. Smith, WiseGeek.com). The cats in “King Looie Katz” jump on the bandwagon without considering their actions. They didn’t consider that they would be holding a selfish cat’s tail in front of them, without a fundamental purpose. The Bandwagon Effect is also present in our everyday life, in fashion, toys, and hobbies. When one plans on doing something, they should consider whether they are doing it for themselves, or to prove something to other people by just jumping on the bandwagon.
Have you ever questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely, you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear, or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things, or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge. (Smith). Effects can be both positive, such as movement to stop global warming, and negative, such as the numerous amount of people who believed in Hitler’s ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss's story, “King Looie Katz” demonstrates an example of the bandwagon effect. In the story, the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus, he ordered another cat, named Fooie, to hold up his tail. Fooie, upset with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade followed on with the other cats, and everyone began holding one another’s each other’s tail, until the last cat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding. This effect continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. However, Seuss’s stories, regardless of being fiction or not, hold a sense of truth to them. “King Looie Katz”, sets an example of how one cat following another can create a bandwagon effect. It's easy to see how the plot from the story can be relatable to the real-life situations and similar occurrences, whether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among children’s toys. Taking this plot from the story and relating it to real-life situations is makes it easy to find a variety of similar occurrences.(This is repetitive of the sentence before it)The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
A Looking at the very popular social-network site known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the cat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, and his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular Facebook user says, “I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture”. Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the cats in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says, “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarly the cats in Katzen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word, or otherwise just made the other cats aware by visually spreading the word.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is usually always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. In “King Looie Katz”, it can be considered that the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat, other than the king, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have taken place. Usually, the fad was around before that person made it popular, but what makes it popular is the person wearing it.
When it comes to following trends and fads, it's no surprise to consider the fashion industry to be the creator of many large bandwagon effects. There are a several fashion fads in history that can display the Bandwagon Effect like “King Looie Katz” does. For example, Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected (BadFads). The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. Is this necessary? (I think this is necessary because we’re proving the point that Chuck Taylor’s only became necessary after he started wearing them, not before-Darian) After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money.
Another bandwagon phenomenon took place during the 1980's with Cabbage Patch Kids. These dolls were all the craze with kids (This is an awkward sentence-Darian). Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein held up another cat's tail because someone told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to? Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”. In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
CONCLUSION: The Bandwagon Effect is clearly displayed in Dr. Seuss’s, “King Looie Katz”. It is “an observed social behaviour in which people tend to go along with what others do or think without considering their actions” (S.E. Smith, WiseGeek.com). The cats in “King Looie Katz” jump on the bandwagon without considering their actions. They didn’t consider that they would be holding a selfish cat’s tail in front of them, without a fundamental purpose. The Bandwagon Effect is also present in our everyday life, in fashion, toys, and hobbies. When one plans on doing something, they should consider whether they are doing it for themselves, or to prove something to other people by just jumping on the bandwagon.
Another Draft
Have you every questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Suprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge.(Smith). Effects can be both positve, such as as movement to stop global warming, and negative, such as the numerous amount of people who believed in Hilter's ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss's story “King Looie Katz.”demonstrates an example of the bangwagon effect. In the story the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus he ordered another cat named Fooie to hold up his tail. Fooie, uspet with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade followed on with the other cats, and everyone began holding one anothers tail, until the last cat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding. This effect continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. However, Suess's stories, regardless of being fiction of not, holds a sense of truth to it. “King Looie Katz”, sets an example of how one cat following another can create an bandwagon effect. It's easy to see how the plot from the story can be relatable to the real-life situations and sililar occurances,
whether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among childrens toys. Taking this plot from the story and relating it to real-life situations it is easy to find a variety of similar occurances, The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
A looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the cat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular facebok user says “ I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the cats in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarily the katz in Katezen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other Katz aware with visually spreading the word.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is usually always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. In “King Looie Katz”, it can be considered that the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat, other than the king, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have took place. Usually, fad was around before that a person makes them popular, but what makes it popular is the person wearing it.
When it comes to following trends and fads, it's no surprise to consider the fashion industry to be the creator of many large bandwagon effects. There are a several fashion fads in history that can display the Bandwagon Effect like “King Looie Katz” does. For example, Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected (BadFads). The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. Is this necessary? After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money. BUT WHY? AND how can we relate this?
Fads usually last for only a short period of time, and quickly die down, like the fashion examples that were shown. (NECESSARY?) + need to find a way to work this into the next paragraph
One of the greatest bandwagon phenomenons took place during the 1980's with Cabbage Patch Kids. These dolls were all the craze with kids. Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd, scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein, held up another cat's tail because some one told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to. Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”.
In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
NEED CONCLUSION
Also I think I found the website in which Darian used to talk about Hot Pants: http://www.badfads.com/pages/fashion/hotpants.html which we should probably annoite, unless we use a different thing...
One thing I'm not sure of is how to relate the Hot Pants to King Looie Katz.... should we try to find a different fashion trend?
need to work on the transitions between paragraphs...
Dr. Seuss's story “King Looie Katz.”demonstrates an example of the bangwagon effect. In the story the King of Katzen-stein, King Looie, decided his tail was too lovely to drag on the ground. Thus he ordered another cat named Fooie to hold up his tail. Fooie, uspet with his tail dragging on the ground, ordered another cat to hold up his tail. This charade followed on with the other cats, and everyone began holding one anothers tail, until the last cat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding. This effect continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. However, Suess's stories, regardless of being fiction of not, holds a sense of truth to it. “King Looie Katz”, sets an example of how one cat following another can create an bandwagon effect. It's easy to see how the plot from the story can be relatable to the real-life situations and sililar occurances,
whether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among childrens toys. Taking this plot from the story and relating it to real-life situations it is easy to find a variety of similar occurances, The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
A looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the cat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular facebok user says “ I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the cats in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarily the katz in Katezen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other Katz aware with visually spreading the word.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is usually always present. Many fashion trends become popular after people see them on a celebrity or someone that is admired. In “King Looie Katz”, it can be considered that the king was the figure that every cat looked up to. If it was an ordinary cat, other than the king, chances are, the bandwagon effect would not have took place. Usually, fad was around before that a person makes them popular, but what makes it popular is the person wearing it.
When it comes to following trends and fads, it's no surprise to consider the fashion industry to be the creator of many large bandwagon effects. There are a several fashion fads in history that can display the Bandwagon Effect like “King Looie Katz” does. For example, Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected (BadFads). The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. Is this necessary? After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money. BUT WHY? AND how can we relate this?
Fads usually last for only a short period of time, and quickly die down, like the fashion examples that were shown. (NECESSARY?) + need to find a way to work this into the next paragraph
One of the greatest bandwagon phenomenons took place during the 1980's with Cabbage Patch Kids. These dolls were all the craze with kids. Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd, scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein, held up another cat's tail because some one told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to. Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or valued highly by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”.
In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
NEED CONCLUSION
Also I think I found the website in which Darian used to talk about Hot Pants: http://www.badfads.com/pages/fashion/hotpants.html which we should probably annoite, unless we use a different thing...
One thing I'm not sure of is how to relate the Hot Pants to King Looie Katz.... should we try to find a different fashion trend?
need to work on the transitions between paragraphs...
Ruqayyah's Reflection
When approaching this project I was keen to get started, as we haven't done group assignments in Lit before. I thought the Dr. Suess comparasent idea was great because Dr. Seuss's books always have such great underlying messages. After reading the story of King Looie Katz I told my group about my ideas, particularly of how one person can influence others to do things without them really questioning it. My group members really liked this idea above the ones they had previously been thinking about so we began to look at comparasents such as Hitler and the Nazis, the Pyramid Scheme, bullying, and then eventually the bandwagon effect. Sticking with the bandwagon effect we decided to base our essay around this idea of how King Looie Katz clearly shows how a bandwagon effect can start and end. I then went to work on two introductory paragraphs for our essay as well as a paragraph comparing the book to a current bandwagon effect, Facebook. I do have to admit that our group has had some major issues in completing this essay, as during the work week at school we were rarely there all together and I think communication out side of school was very limited. This last weekend I felt very abandoned with a lack of much communication from my group members till the evening before the due date. I ended up doing a huge amount of editing. If I were to do this project over I would probably try to have a plan set up of how we could get the work done on time and so that all efforts on the project were fair. I also found issues in citing inside the essay. I was unsure wether or not I needed to put things cited into quotations marks or if just the name in brackets was enough. I also was unsure of whether or not we needed to write more at the end of the essay about our citations even if our annotated bibliography included the same information. Looking at the final of our essay I hope that we have completed what was asked. When I did my editing I tried to go through and give comparasents to the story which was our goal in the first place as my partners often forgot to do so. Also I ended up really adding to the conclusion because I found that it didn't close up things enough or really get out what our message was. I'm really sorry that our assignment was completed and handed in so late. I regret not asking for help when I noticed that the efforts in my group were not evenly spread out.
One Annotated Bibliography
The main points of this article are to explain what the “Bandwagon Effect” is. This article says that the Bandwagon Effect is “an observed social behaviour in which people tend to go along with what others do or think without considering their actions.” The article talks about how the Bandwagon Effect starts, why people do it, the psychology behind the effect, and the results from it.
Wisegeek.com is a very useful source because it has so much different information about the Bandwagon Effect. The article goes into detail about the topic instead of only defining it, like some of the other sources did. This website is reliable because the author, S.E. Smith has a liberal arts degree from Goddard College. This source is objective because the author is looking at the topic from both perspectives, harmful or not. She is just stating the facts about where the term “bandwagon effect” originated and some definitions. The goal of this source is to give people clear answers to common questions they may have.
I was very pleased when this article was found because I knew what the thesis for the Dr. Seuss essay would be, but I did not know that there was an actual term for it. It was great when we found it because it was exactly what we were looking for and talking about. The term “bandwagon effect” can now be used in the essay instead of writing the definition every time. This article has not changed how I think about the topic because the topic was thought of first, and the name for it was found after, on this website.
(Source: S.E. Smith, What is a Bandwagon Effect, January 19, 2009 http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-bandwagon-effect.htm )
Wisegeek.com is a very useful source because it has so much different information about the Bandwagon Effect. The article goes into detail about the topic instead of only defining it, like some of the other sources did. This website is reliable because the author, S.E. Smith has a liberal arts degree from Goddard College. This source is objective because the author is looking at the topic from both perspectives, harmful or not. She is just stating the facts about where the term “bandwagon effect” originated and some definitions. The goal of this source is to give people clear answers to common questions they may have.
I was very pleased when this article was found because I knew what the thesis for the Dr. Seuss essay would be, but I did not know that there was an actual term for it. It was great when we found it because it was exactly what we were looking for and talking about. The term “bandwagon effect” can now be used in the essay instead of writing the definition every time. This article has not changed how I think about the topic because the topic was thought of first, and the name for it was found after, on this website.
(Source: S.E. Smith, What is a Bandwagon Effect, January 19, 2009 http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-bandwagon-effect.htm )
Ruqayyah's Work on the Essay
Draft 1: Have you ever questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. Basically what this term stands for is when people choose to follow others without contemplating why it is that they are doing this. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge and even negative such as Hitler's ideas of eradicating the Jews. Once people get an idea into their heads, it can be hard for them to get it out. Wizegeek.com looks at the political term “jumping on the bandwagon” which is when voters begin agreeing with the leading campaign, making the campaign more well known. “As more and more voters express support for a candidate or measure, the group grows exponentially larger.”
Dr. Seuss has succeeded in demonstrating through a children’s story, “King Looie Katz”, how it is that the bandwagon effect occurs. In Dr. Seuss’s story a cat named Looie, the King of Katzen-stein decided that his tail was much too beautiful to drag on the ground so he ordered another kat to hold up his tail. This tail holding activity began to catch on as all the Kats in Katzen-stein picked up each others tails, all except for the very last kat who had no one to hold his tail. So he took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding and so this continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone’s tail, other than their own.
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, I found many similarities with the story of King Looie and this modern day fad. Firstly I looked at the idea of not really questioning things. In King Looie, the kat who was told to hold the King's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was it because of his authority, his influence upon the people of his city? I know that personally when I first heard of Facebook, I didn't ever wonder why I wanted an account so badly, I just knew that all my friends had one and that I didn't care what my mom's thoughts were. Perhaps it had to do with popularity, in my case. I desperately wanted to be in the loop of things and not feel left out. Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. I think the Katz in Katzen-stein followed king Looie because they didn't want to be the one's left out. I also wanted to take a look at how Facebook has rapidly expanded and become such a popular site in such a short time. Vincent Newton, the creator of www.friendinviter.com has written about Facebook's marketing tactic to bring in new people.
Draft 2:
Have you every questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Suprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge. Once people get an idea into their heads, it can be hard for them to get it out (Smith). The bandwagon effect can be positve and negative. A positive example of a bandwagon effect would be the movement to stop global warming whereas a negative example of a bandwagon effect would be Hitler's ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss has succeeded in demonstrating through a children's story, “King Looie Katz”, how a bandwagon effect can begin and end. In the story, a kat named Looie, the King of Katzen-stein decided that his tail was much too beautiful to drag on the ground so he ordered another kat to hold up his tail. This tail holding activity began to catch on as all the kats in Katzen-stein picked up each others tails, all except for the very last kat who had no one to hold his tail. So that very last kat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding and so this continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. Taking this plot from the story and relating it to real-life situations it is easy to find a variety of similar occurances, wether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among childrens toys. The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the kat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular facebok user says “ I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the katz in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarily the katz in Katezen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other Katz aware with visually spreading the word.
Dr. Seuss has succeeded in demonstrating through a children’s story, “King Looie Katz”, how it is that the bandwagon effect occurs. In Dr. Seuss’s story a cat named Looie, the King of Katzen-stein decided that his tail was much too beautiful to drag on the ground so he ordered another kat to hold up his tail. This tail holding activity began to catch on as all the Kats in Katzen-stein picked up each others tails, all except for the very last kat who had no one to hold his tail. So he took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding and so this continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone’s tail, other than their own.
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, I found many similarities with the story of King Looie and this modern day fad. Firstly I looked at the idea of not really questioning things. In King Looie, the kat who was told to hold the King's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was it because of his authority, his influence upon the people of his city? I know that personally when I first heard of Facebook, I didn't ever wonder why I wanted an account so badly, I just knew that all my friends had one and that I didn't care what my mom's thoughts were. Perhaps it had to do with popularity, in my case. I desperately wanted to be in the loop of things and not feel left out. Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. I think the Katz in Katzen-stein followed king Looie because they didn't want to be the one's left out. I also wanted to take a look at how Facebook has rapidly expanded and become such a popular site in such a short time. Vincent Newton, the creator of www.friendinviter.com has written about Facebook's marketing tactic to bring in new people.
Draft 2:
Have you every questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Suprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. The bandwagon effect is when people choose to follow others without thinking over their actions. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge. Once people get an idea into their heads, it can be hard for them to get it out (Smith). The bandwagon effect can be positve and negative. A positive example of a bandwagon effect would be the movement to stop global warming whereas a negative example of a bandwagon effect would be Hitler's ideas of eradicating the Jews.
Dr. Seuss has succeeded in demonstrating through a children's story, “King Looie Katz”, how a bandwagon effect can begin and end. In the story, a kat named Looie, the King of Katzen-stein decided that his tail was much too beautiful to drag on the ground so he ordered another kat to hold up his tail. This tail holding activity began to catch on as all the kats in Katzen-stein picked up each others tails, all except for the very last kat who had no one to hold his tail. So that very last kat took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding and so this continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone's tail, other than their own. Taking this plot from the story and relating it to real-life situations it is easy to find a variety of similar occurances, wether it is in the fashion industry, in social networks or even among childrens toys. The bandwagon effect happens on almost every level of human interaction (Smith).
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook it is clear that there are many similarities between the story of “King Looie” and this website. In King Looie, the kat who was told to hold Looie's tail, didn't really object or question him. Was this because of Looie's authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Avril Autopsy, a regular facebok user says “ I felt pressured into opening my facebook account. All those invitation emails and questions from friends pushed me to set up my profile. When I didn't have my account I felt out of the loop. When I didn't have an account I wouldn't be invited out as much. Facebook allows me to see what everyone is up to and to add myself into the picture” Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the katz in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to feel left out, or punished. But how was it that the tail-holding caught on so fast? Avril says “I first started to notice Facebook when invitation emails began filling up my inbox.” Facebook allows you to import all of the contacts in your address book into invitation emails, that way you can inform everyone you know in a matter of seconds. This being one of the most powerful viral marketing strategies (Newton). Similarily the katz in Katezen-stein most likely used some form of communication to spread the word or otherwise just made the other Katz aware with visually spreading the word.
Friday, January 23, 2009
The messy version
Have you ever questioned why it is that fads and trends occur? Most likely you haven't bothered to worry about it. As a society, when it comes to what is the latest thing to wear or the coolest word to say, the majority of us either jump right into the loop of things or take a convicting stand as to why we choose otherwise. Surprisingly enough, there is a term for this behaviour known as the bandwagon effect. A behaivior people choose to follow others without contemplating why it is that they are doing this. The bandwagon effect grows as more people join on and eventually can lead to something huge and even negative such as Hitler's ideas of eradicating the Jews. Once people get an idea into their heads, it can be hard for them to get it out. Wizegeek.com looks at the political term “jumping on the bandwagon” which is when voters begin agreeing with the leading campaign, making the campaign more well known. “As more and more voters express support for a candidate or measure, the group grows exponentially larger.”
Dr. Seuss has succeeded in demonstrating through a children’s story, “King Looie Katz”, how it is that the bandwagon effect occurs. In Dr. Seuss’s story a cat named Looie, the King of Katzen-stein decided that his tail was much too beautiful to drag on the ground so he ordered another kat to hold up his tail. This tail holding activity began to catch on as all the cats in Katzen-stein picked up each others tails, all except for the very last kat who had no one to hold his tail. So he took it upon himself to throw down the tail he was holding and so this continued until all the cats were no longer holding anyone’s tail, other than their own. Add on what we'll be talking about (social networks, fashion, toys)
Looking at a very popular social-network known as Facebook, there are many similarities with the story of King Looie and this modern day fad. One of the reoccuring ideas is not asking questions to why things took place. In King Looie, the cat who was told to hold the King's tail, didn't object or question him. Was it because of his authority, his influence upon the people of his city? Similarily, there are many people who created an account because one of their friends told them to. Feelings of acceptance are vital to humans as we constantly need reminders of importance to others such as family and friends. Perhaps the reason the cats in Katzen-stein followed King Looie was because they didn't want to be the left out. I also wanted to take a look at how Facebook has rapidly expanded and become such a popular site in such a short time. Vincent Newton, the creator of www.friendinviter.com has written about Facebook's marketing tactic to bring in new people.....(and as you can see I have to complete my paragraph on facebook and tonight is not really a good night. Okay =)
There are a several fashion fads in history that can display the Bandwagon Effect like “King Looie Katz” does. For example, Hot Pants were very popular among young women in the 70s, but frowned upon in the workplace because they were so short and revealing. Surprisingly, this fad only lasted during colder months and faded before the warm weather came, probably because showing legs was more shock-provoking during the winter months when they weren't expected. The bandwagon effect is present in this situation because people went along with what others were doing, even though their whole legs were exposed in freezing weather.
Another fad, which has become popular again in today's date, is Chuck Taylor's Converse. First made in 1917, Converses only became extremely popular in the 1980s when the famous basketball player, Chuck Taylor adopted them as his preferred shoe. After this was established, billions of pairs were sold worldwide. Despite the cheap rubber and canvas material, people pay approximately $70.00 per pair, and buy many different pairs. This is another example of the bandwagon effect because people jumped on the Converse Wagon, without thinking about whether they're worth the money.
In fashion, the bandwagon effect is usually always present. A fashion trend doesn’t become popular until it is started by a celebrity or someone that is admired. Usually the fad was around before that person started wearing them, but it doesn’t start until later. Fads usually last for only a short period of time, and quickly die down, like the fashion examples that were shown.
One of the greatest bandwagon phenomenons took place during the 1980's with Cabbage Patch Kids. These dolls were all the craze with kids. Each came with their own birthday, adoption papers, and birth certificate. Every single one was unique and “one of a kind”. In the year of 1985, they sold over $600 million in record sales. On a smaller, but just as odd, scale, Pet Rocks also seemed to hit it big with the kids in the '70s. In fact, the original rocks were just ordinary gray stones, brought from store, and marketed as live pets. Other similar phenomenons took place with Raggedy Ann Dolls (1910's), Mr. Potato Head (1950's), Beanie Babies (1990's) and Barbies (first launched in 1959). But what made these toys so popular? What made each child want to have one? Similarly, what made the cats want to hold up another cat's tail?
These examples all relate to the bandwagon effect, where a group of people do things because many other people do the same things, without really thinking for themselves. Many times, people follow others by word of mouth. The cats in Katzen-stein, held up another cat's tail because some one told them to. Since everyone was doing it, they felt that they should do it too. In retrospect, parents of the 80's, or any generation for the matter, were most likely following the trend of the time by observing and listening to what other people had to say. Or it was because someone told them to. Most people aren't too keen on buying something, or following something that isn't popular or received high marks by the majority. However, when people hear good things or see other people with a certain product, they feel more comfortable to “jump on the bandwagon”.
In essence, “there's a comfort in large numbers” and this follows through not only with the cats in Katzen-stein, but with toy industry as well.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
Coming Close to the Deadline!
As our group hurries to get things together, we are glad to have all members with us today during our last in-class work period. We have split up the sections of the essay and are busy working individually to get our parts done before we have to join everything together. We are looking positive to making the deadline, but there is lots yet to be done.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Email sent to our absent group member
Hi Darian,
It's Ruqayyah and Uzma. We are emailing you cause you haven't been here for two days and we're kinda running out of time for our Dr. Seuss project. We have talked to Mr. Blaur about our idea and he thinks it's good so we're going to go with the bandwagon theme. We need to split up the project at this point so Uzma will work on the comic tonight cause we have figured out what it will look like as well as toys, I will work on religious cults, and we need you to work on fashion trends. So maybe examples like skinny jeans and big glasses, greaser hair, converse ect....You need to come up with a paragraph or two useing this to compare to doctor suess's book. Please bring what you have tomorrow to class so we can put our essay together. We will probably have to work via email or something on the weekend. If you have any questions just email one of us.
Ruqayyah and Uzma
It's Ruqayyah and Uzma. We are emailing you cause you haven't been here for two days and we're kinda running out of time for our Dr. Seuss project. We have talked to Mr. Blaur about our idea and he thinks it's good so we're going to go with the bandwagon theme. We need to split up the project at this point so Uzma will work on the comic tonight cause we have figured out what it will look like as well as toys, I will work on religious cults, and we need you to work on fashion trends. So maybe examples like skinny jeans and big glasses, greaser hair, converse ect....You need to come up with a paragraph or two useing this to compare to doctor suess's book. Please bring what you have tomorrow to class so we can put our essay together. We will probably have to work via email or something on the weekend. If you have any questions just email one of us.
Ruqayyah and Uzma
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Alone today
With only about 3 minutes left in class, Uzma sits alone, comtemplating on what the group's comic should look like. She thinking of having two cats standing beside each other, one holding onto a tail of another cat, saying "Everyone's doing it." With the other cat simply saying, "Why?" The cat who is having his tail held up, is also holding the tail is of another cat (and so forth).
She thinks this is a good way to show "people" following other people, without realizing why they do so. AKA, "The Bandwagon Effect".
Uzma looks forward to speaking about this idea to her group memebers.
She thinks this is a good way to show "people" following other people, without realizing why they do so. AKA, "The Bandwagon Effect".
Uzma looks forward to speaking about this idea to her group memebers.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Mission: To find three main sources that we used for our assignment.
Searched up Fads on google":
1. Amy, “History of Crazy Fads”, Varsity.co.nz, www.varsity.co.nz/content/view/805/2/, January 6, 2009
As the group were researching for a thesis, Uzma found an interesting theory called the Bandwagon Effect. It is an observed social behavior in which people tend to go along with what others do or think without considering their actions. People feel more comfortable, being a part of the majority. According to InfoWorld.com, "Simply put, there is a safety and comfort in numbers." The group searches for examples of this effect.
The examples they came up with were:
- cults
- fashion fads
- politics
-entertainment
Seached goodle for the bandwagon effect:
S.E. Smith, "What is the Bandwagon Effect?", http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-bandwagon-effect.htm, January 11,2009
Thesis statement: King Looie Katz shows how the bandwagon effect causes people to follow a certain trend or fad without thinking of what they're doing.
http://www.infoworld.com/weblog/openresource/archives/2006/12/open_source_and_9.html
Searched up Fads on google":
1. Amy, “History of Crazy Fads”, Varsity.co.nz, www.varsity.co.nz/content/view/805/2/, January 6, 2009
As the group were researching for a thesis, Uzma found an interesting theory called the Bandwagon Effect. It is an observed social behavior in which people tend to go along with what others do or think without considering their actions. People feel more comfortable, being a part of the majority. According to InfoWorld.com, "Simply put, there is a safety and comfort in numbers." The group searches for examples of this effect.
The examples they came up with were:
- cults
- fashion fads
- politics
-entertainment
Seached goodle for the bandwagon effect:
S.E. Smith, "What is the Bandwagon Effect?", http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-bandwagon-effect.htm, January 11,2009
Thesis statement: King Looie Katz shows how the bandwagon effect causes people to follow a certain trend or fad without thinking of what they're doing.
http://www.infoworld.com/weblog/openresource/archives/2006/12/open_source_and_9.html
Thursday, January 8, 2009
As Uzma sits, wating for her partner Darian to come back (Ruqayyah's gone to an apointment), she decides to research some things on her own...
She comes up with nothing. Lame.
Uzma: I refuse to find nothing!
She finds something on this website: http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/NPE/CulturalAtlases/Yupiaq/akula/stdwtd7.html
Way back in the olden, golden days in the year one thirty-nine a fancy cat named Looie was the King of Katzen-stein.
King Looie was a proud cat, mighty proud of his tail. He had it washed every morning in a ten-gallon golden pail. "My tail is such a lovely tail," King Looie used to brag. "My tail must never touch the earth. My tail must never drag."
So Looie Katz made Fooie Katz follow him around. And Fooie kept the kingly thing from dragging on the ground. Well, all was fine in Katzen-stain. The King's tail wasn't dragging. But one day Fooie looked behind and saw that his was sagging! "My lovely tail!" he sighed with pride. "Oh, this will never do! If Looie has his tail held up, I'm going to have mine, too!"
So Fooie Katz made Kooie Katz follow him around, and Kooie Katz kept Fooie's tail from dragging on the ground.
Now all was fine in Katzen-stein... Till Kooie's pride was hurt, when he discovered his fine tail was dragging in the dirt!
So Kooie made a cat named Chooie follow him around, and Chooie Katz kept Kooie's tail from dragging on the ground.
And so it went on in Katzen-stein. Next, Chooie got Hooie, and Hooie got Blooie, and Blooie got Prooie... Till all the cats in Katzen-stein, were hiking round and round, all keeping one another's tails from dragging on the ground.
All proud! Except for one small cat, the last cat in line. The last, last cat of all the cats that lived in Katzen-stein. A most unhappy little cat named Zooie Katzen-bein.
His tail would never be held up. And poor old Zooie knew it, because holding up a cat's tail takes another cat to do it. Poor Zooie got so awfully mad so mad he could have spit. But he did a far, far braver thing. He simply yelled, "I Quit!" "I can not, shall not, will not lug this stupid thing around!" He slammed the tail of Prooie Katz! He slammed it on the ground.
Zooie realized that he could hold his own tail up. Then Prooie slammed Blooie's tail, and Blooie slammed Hooie's, and Hooie slammed Chooie's tail, and Chooie slammed Kooie's. All tails in Katzen-stein were slammed including proud King Looie's.
And since that day in Katzen-stein, all cats have been more grown-up. They're all more demo-catic because each cat holds his own up.
Uzma: Isn't that the story we are comparing our findings to?
Uzma: Yeah. Yeah it is.
She comes up with nothing. Lame.
Uzma: I refuse to find nothing!
She finds something on this website: http://www.ankn.uaf.edu/NPE/CulturalAtlases/Yupiaq/akula/stdwtd7.html
Way back in the olden, golden days in the year one thirty-nine a fancy cat named Looie was the King of Katzen-stein.
King Looie was a proud cat, mighty proud of his tail. He had it washed every morning in a ten-gallon golden pail. "My tail is such a lovely tail," King Looie used to brag. "My tail must never touch the earth. My tail must never drag."
So Looie Katz made Fooie Katz follow him around. And Fooie kept the kingly thing from dragging on the ground. Well, all was fine in Katzen-stain. The King's tail wasn't dragging. But one day Fooie looked behind and saw that his was sagging! "My lovely tail!" he sighed with pride. "Oh, this will never do! If Looie has his tail held up, I'm going to have mine, too!"
So Fooie Katz made Kooie Katz follow him around, and Kooie Katz kept Fooie's tail from dragging on the ground.
Now all was fine in Katzen-stein... Till Kooie's pride was hurt, when he discovered his fine tail was dragging in the dirt!
So Kooie made a cat named Chooie follow him around, and Chooie Katz kept Kooie's tail from dragging on the ground.
And so it went on in Katzen-stein. Next, Chooie got Hooie, and Hooie got Blooie, and Blooie got Prooie... Till all the cats in Katzen-stein, were hiking round and round, all keeping one another's tails from dragging on the ground.
All proud! Except for one small cat, the last cat in line. The last, last cat of all the cats that lived in Katzen-stein. A most unhappy little cat named Zooie Katzen-bein.
His tail would never be held up. And poor old Zooie knew it, because holding up a cat's tail takes another cat to do it. Poor Zooie got so awfully mad so mad he could have spit. But he did a far, far braver thing. He simply yelled, "I Quit!" "I can not, shall not, will not lug this stupid thing around!" He slammed the tail of Prooie Katz! He slammed it on the ground.
Zooie realized that he could hold his own tail up. Then Prooie slammed Blooie's tail, and Blooie slammed Hooie's, and Hooie slammed Chooie's tail, and Chooie slammed Kooie's. All tails in Katzen-stein were slammed including proud King Looie's.
And since that day in Katzen-stein, all cats have been more grown-up. They're all more demo-catic because each cat holds his own up.
Uzma: Isn't that the story we are comparing our findings to?
Uzma: Yeah. Yeah it is.
Today, all group members are present. They think about other issues that may relate to the story, on a more serious level.
The group decides to further research the Hitler's influence and the "trend" he created.
Darian: We have to find more trends that are serious to add to our project.
Ruqayyah: Drugs are a serious trend.
Darian: Oh yeah! That's such a good idea!
The group searches the internet for information on the serious trend of drugs. They find many different drug trends such as, inhaling cleaning products, taking prescription drugs, etc. Darian searches many different things on Google, but nothing of interest is found. The group is finding it hard to find serious trends that are similar to the story. Ruqayyah has the idea to go back to doing something lighter, like a fashion trend.
Darian: A trend in the present, or a trend in history?
Ruqayyah: We should do a present fashion trend.
Ruqayyah: We should do a present fashion trend.
Uzma: Our blog is very bland.
Trend: the general course or prevailing tendency
Fad: a temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc., esp. one followed enthusiastically by a group.
The term "fad" best relates to "King Looie Katz" because they only hold eachothers tail for a short period of time. It's not a prevailing tendecy, it's a temporary manner of conduct that was followed enthusiastically by a group.
Darian searches "Fads of the 21st Century" on Google. Keeping it present. On http://www.howstuffworks.com/, there is an article called "5 Cyber Chic Fads of the 2000s".
1. Reality TV
2. Text Messaging
3.Sudoku
4. YouTube and MySpace
5. Speed Dating
5. Speed Dating
Uzma: Have you noticed that all the fads were looking at relates to some form of entertainment?
I think we should try to search more kinds of these fads.
Darian: Such as?
Uzma: Well, let's search the net...
Moments later...
Uzma: HOLY *****
Darian: How can they walk in those?
(See pictures below)
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
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Setting: Uzma and Darian sit, staring numbly at the screen, wondering where to start.
They start searching the web for more sites about Pet Rocks! They read an article from the trusted website *cough* Wikipedia *cough* and discover that Pet Rocks lasted about 6 months in the 70s. They started in California and took off from there. The first Pet Rocks were ordinary gray stones bought at a builder's supply store and marketed as if they were live pets. The fad ended in December 1975. After it ended, Gary Dahl was a millionare. The Pet Rock came with an instruction manual on how to teach your rocks tricks. While "sit" and "stay" were effortless to accomplish, "roll over" usually required extra help from the trainer. "Come" was found to be impossible to teach, but "attack" was fairly easy. The trainers also found that potty-training their pets was rather hard.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
As the group researched online for fads of history they came across a new zealand website that enlists crazy fads such as rubik's cube, friendship bracelets ect... The group decided that the most interesting one was pet rocks. More than a million people bought pet rocks, which were really just rocks. They came with a little habitat as well as a booklet of tips on how to handle an excited rock and how to teach it tricks. By 1976 the guy who inveted pet rocks ( Gary Dahl) , had become a millionaire.
The group also found a different article on pet rocks on this website: http://www.tumblerridgenews.com/story.php?id=203245
The group connected the pet rocks trend to King Looie Katz because people mindlessly followed the Pet Rock trend, spending $3.95 for a rock, when everybody has a rock in their backyard. It is like King Looie Katz because the cats followed the King, without thinking for themselves.
The group also found a different article on pet rocks on this website: http://www.tumblerridgenews.com/story.php?id=203245
The group connected the pet rocks trend to King Looie Katz because people mindlessly followed the Pet Rock trend, spending $3.95 for a rock, when everybody has a rock in their backyard. It is like King Looie Katz because the cats followed the King, without thinking for themselves.
On the first day, Darian and Uzma chose the book King Looie Katz. The week following the break Ruqayyah joined our group, and now today they sit discussing the choice between democracy and the pyramid scheme. They think the story is similar to democracy because in the story, the cat at the back's needs were not being met. He decided to stop holding the cat's tail in front of him. This is like Democracy because if the government in power is not meeting the needs of their people, the people will not vote for them/stop holding the tails.
The group thinks the story also relates to the "Pyramid Scheme" of the work place. This is when, for example somebody wants to sell something, they get somebody else to sell it for him, and that person gets someone else to sell it for them, etc. If the person at the end fails, everyone fails. The person at the beginning realizes that they need to sell it themselves. This connects to the story because the cat at the end "failed" to hold the tail, which affected every cat in front of him.
Ruqayyah comes up with another theme that is connected to the story. That theme is how one person/cat can influence a trend in other people, and how everyone mindlessly follows. The group thinks that it would be very easy to find articles about how people mindlessly follow trends.
The group choses to further research Ruqayyah's idea. Uzma thinks that a real life connection to the story is the Nazis. The rest of the group and Mr. Blauer agrees. There were many other ideas the group came up with such as :
- Music
- Fashion
- Fascism (Nazism)
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