The Perilious Impact of Video Games

“I withdraw my consent from reality. I deny it my assistance. I dedicate myself to the temptations of escapism, and throw myself wholeheartedly into the endlessness of unreality.” This quote from the book, Erebos, expresses how video games manipulate children into thinking real life is parallel to what’s shown on the screen in front of them. Do we want our children to grow up only to confuse reality and fiction? A survey polled by ABC news concluded that 2/3 of the children living in America play video games. As a society, we accept it and think that it is normal, when in reality it shouldn’t be. It’s like telling your children that running around with guns and walking into strip clubs is alright. Though all video games aren’t bad, most children play violent video games and do it often, making it part of their daily lives. Violent video games increase aggression in people and reduce social interactions. Parents, I would hope that after reading this, you might reconsider your position and understand what I am trying to convey.

One of the main concerns when playing violent video games around the world pertains to the increased aggression in players and the affect it has on children from a young age. According to a scientific study held by ‘Anderson and Bushman,’ those who play violent video games are more likely to “have increased aggression in thoughts, feeling or/ and behaviours.” Children are awarded for being violent in most games, and are more likely to do the same in the real world, like the Columbine shooters Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, who were both known to be active members in the community of the violent video game called Doom. A question many ask is whether playing video games would result to their child becoming a mass murderer. If this was the case, then neighbours, friends, etc would all be killers. While this may be true, we cannot deny that playing violent video games are a harmless form of entertainment.

Another significant problems is that violent video games also contain very stereotypical and biased characters. It seems to me that the message they are trying to give us is controversial to the one we are trying to resolve. In most video games, women are very sexualised, and have very minor roles to portray them as weak characters. As a world, do we want to progress or regress? As of today, we are still unable to achieve a balance between the two genders everywhere around the world. And as a community, we need supporters, not opposers.

A Stanford psychologist Albert Bandura concluded that “social scripts presented on screen will guide children's behaviour in real life.” As a society, I think that we are losing the ability to empathise and communicate. Before this era of gaming on laptops and on mobile phones, humans would spend their free time reading, understanding and taking values from books. This is significant because young people these days prefer directing their energy and time online playing video games, learning and being awarded for violent behaviour, vengeance etc.  rather than have face-to-face conversations  or do something more productive, like reading.

Parents, I have experienced this myself. 4 years ago, I went to a friends house, where we all stayed up playing board games and interacting with each other. A week ago I went to another friends house, where everyone was either on their device playing a game or watching Call of Duty being played on the T.V screen by the host. This is how quickly we have evolved as human species. How do we know if we are going the right way?

I understand that when we play video games we do not fully comprehend its effect. Absent minded teenagers play for some form of entertainment, allowing their minds to be influenced by the screen in front of them, causing them to become more aggressive and have less social interactions. Therefore, I think violent video games should be banned, and as parents, you should engage your child in face-to-face conversations than one with an anonymous user.

By Ananya

"Ocean At The End Of The Lane" and "The Garbage King:" Comparitive essay

"Everybody wants to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down” Oprah Winfrey once said. In the books “The Garbage King” by Elizabeth Laird and “The Ocean At The End Of The Lane” by Neil Gaiman, a similar universal truth is explored, relating to the quote above. One of the themes both books explore is pertaining to the effect of money on relationships. That it is not the money that affects you negatively or positively, but rather how you let yourself get affected by money.

In “The Ocean At The End Of The Lane,” we spectate a fight between a husband and a wife over money. The husband accuses the wife of doing illegal things when he sees her purse stashed with money. “She says she doesn’t know where they [the shrilling notes] came from, and he doesn’t believe her. He doesn’t know what to believe.” This particular scene shows how money can affect your relationships negatively and shatter existing trust. Here, the money was the catalyst for their fight, but the couple could have taken it forward another way instead of fighting, even though some may think otherwise.

In “The garbage King,” by Elizabeth Laird, we notice how the two main characters, Dani and Mamo, bond over time because of the lack of money. “He was completely dependent on Mamo, for food and water and everything. If Mamo deserted him, he’d either have to go back outside and get picked up by the police or stay, a prisoner, right here in this cemetery until he starved to death.” In this particular example from the garbage King, we understand how reliant Dani is. After living a life filled with money and material, he realizes the true meaning behind friendship because of Mamo, which just becomes stronger everyday because the lack of money.

Even though these two scenarios are very different, we can find similarities between them. In both the books, it is up to the characters whether they will use the stick or not after the author gives them the carrot. For instance, in the garbage King, Mamo and Dani’s relationship could have ended [the stick] the moment Dani gave Mamo money [the carrot] to buy some food for both of them. Inspire of finally being able to hold a 10 birr note, Mamo was true to his word and came back to help Dani. After this, both boys trusted each other with their lives, instead of letting the money ruin their relationship.

Some may counter this by saying that it is not the people who chose to be affected by money. They may say that instead of the money being the one affecting you, it is the situation you deal with. While both of these might be valid, many situations in life are challenging. The authors chose to show money as a greater threat, even standing on it’s own, instead of just being a mere factor in a situation where someone's relationship is affected.

In conclusion, both “The Ocean At The End Of The Lane” and “The Garbage King” explore the theme of money and it’s important in our lives. Without money, we wouldn’t be able to do much. Readers might conclude that ultimately, it is up to us to chose how we are affected by money. Like in everything in life, there is a reaction. It is up to us whether we chose for that reaction to become a positive or a negative factor in our lives.

By Ananya

Ocean At The End Of The Lane: Thematic Essay

Neil Gaiman’s book, “Ocean At The End Of The Lane,” is a dystopian novel narrating the childhood of a man [the narrator]. The seven year old version of the man recalls his past, where crazy magical things happened. In the book, Neil Gaiman explores how money holds the power to alter interactions with friends and family, change it’s own value and peoples personalities.

A particular scene in “Ocean At The End Of The Lane” teaches that the greed and paranoia money causes can lead to conflict between people. One example of this is when an argument breaks out between a couple. The husband accuses his wife of doing illegal things when he sees her purse stashed with money, but the wife claims she doesn’t know where it all came from.This causes tension and paranoia between the two, and the trust in his wife is diminished.

In reality, all this money had been put in her purse without her knowledge or consent by Ursula Monkton, who the Hemstocks call “a flea”, the antagonist of the story. “Something’s [the ‘flea’] causing trouble. It’s giving people money. In their dreams and in real life.” Ursula Monkton believed that the principal reason everyone was unhappy because of money problems. Now, some may argue “everyone wants money ,” and it is what gives them happiness. But as evidenced above, this is not always the case.

Ursula Monkton’s decision to give money to the people, assuming it would resolve all their problems, wasn’t very realistic. Despite her seemingly good intentions, the real problem was the fact that she gave them the money and more so, anonymously. This is significant because the characters and their relationships with each other begin to fall apart with this unknown source of wealth, creating further problems.

The book also has evidence pertaining to how we base our dreams in anticipation of wealth and how these dreams fall like dominoes when things don’t work out as expected. One such example of this is when the main character is told that he’d won the premium bonds, a competition all babies are entered in when they’re born. He becomes greedy and ambitious; “I already knew what I was going to do with it. I would buy a place I could go be alone, like a bat cave with a hidden entrance.” When he is informed that he’d won only 25 pounds, he is disappointed and alters his dreams accordingly.

Money, especially the lack of it, can overpower you with negative emotions like sadness and jealousy. Taken as a whole, the smallest issues can occasionally turn into the biggest arguments relating to money, as is evidenced in conflict in relationships. Being in control of money can make you take drastic measures to keep it in your possession; “A lady in that house has gone mad. [...] She has money in the mattress. Now she won’t get out of bed, in case someone takes it from her.” This shows how money changes it’s own value depending on who possesses it. The lady in that house obviously didn’t have much money before the “anonymous” source gave it to her. That money meant so much to her. If compared to someone very rich, these measures wouldn’t have been taken to keep it in possession.

Some may argue that while this may be true, money can also make people happy, if you let it. Depending on how it is used, money can make powerful changes in the world. Instead of letting money get in the way with people and things, it can be used for a better purpose. It gives people the ability and power to make a difference in lives and give back to society by creating a livelihood through job opportunities.

In conclusion, having money allows us to function more easily in the world, provide comfort in our lives and in the lives of others. However, because attachment to money is based on fear, it always creates insecurity. The desire to have more money, and thereby feel more secure, never ends. Security can never come from money alone. Some of the people who have the most money are also the most insecure. Therefore, it is all about creating the optimal balance.

By Ananya

The Silent Ones

The teacher picked on her again. Her discomfort in constantly being picked on was visible, but the teacher either ignored it or turned a blind eye towards her.
One Mississippi: The question was thrown at her. She doesn't catch it and asks the teacher to repeat the question. With exaggerated exasperation, the teacher repeats.
Two Mississippi: Her eyes are glued to the floor. The teacher hovers above her, like a bee circling a flower to see if there is any remaining nectar, impatiently tapping her foot without a constant beat. The teacher adjusts her glasses to position them below the bench of her nose and looks at the student from above the rim. "Well? Do you know?"
Three Mississippi: Her mind wanders. She thinks about the first time the teacher picked on her and how everybody laughed at her for answering incorrectly. She wishes she was someplace where “quiet” was valued and practiced.
Four Mississippi- She takes more time looking at the intriguing white floor before she finally answers.
Five Mississippi- Everyone's laughing and the teacher looks like she could bang her own head repeatedly on the wall. The student slides deeper into the chair, wishing she was invisible and wonders why the teacher constantly picks on her even though she is a smart but quiet child afraid of attention.

Research shows that this event is not an anomaly. In fact, you may be surprised to find that this happens often, but we’re too caught up in ourselves to really understand why. About 1/3-1/2 of the worlds population is made up of introverts. The oxford dictionary defines an introvert as “A person predominantly concerned with their own thoughts and feelings rather than with external things.”

So why do teachers pick on the quiet but smart kids? Many people often confuse introversion with shyness. In fact, being shy has nothing to do with being an introvert. When questioned, 7/22 grade 8 students answered or included “shy” as part of their definition of introverts. Susan Cain, a very educated professor in this branch of psychology says that “Shyness is the fear of social disapproval or humiliation, while introversion is a preference for environments that aren’t over-simulating. Shyness is inherently painful. Introversion is not.”

While extroverts tend to gain energy when being in the spotlight, introverts recharge from solitude and feel drained when in the spotlight. It is easy to think that those who move or prefer fame are extroverts, but that doesn’t apply to everyone. In fact, many famous people / world changers, in whatever time frame, have been distinguished as introverts, some among them being Bill Gates, Mahatma Gandhi, and our very own Hermione Granger. Yet, we make such little room for introverts, and try to change their personality instead of appreciating and understanding it. “We are told that to be great is to be bold, to be happy is to be sociable. We can see ourselves as a nation of extroverts- which means we’ve lost sight of who we really are.” says susan cain

If the statistic proving how many introverts there are in the world surprised you, it’s probably because so many introverts are changing. Acting different in front of others. Shivani Dayal, a grade 8 student from UWC said that “Earlier, I used to be a complete introvert, but gradually have become a bit of an ambivert (a mix of introversion and extraversion) because of how much more the world prefers extroverts.” “This affects me because I always put on a smiley face even when i don’t want to be with [some people] because its what [those people] expect.” Mr Raisdana, an introvert says. “They call me depressed when i’m actually not.

Is this what we want our world to turn into? Monsters for not appreciating those angels around us? Confusing two morally very different topics, shyness and introversion? We need to spread the word about this topic. Parents, teachers, colleagues, bosses and friends make mistakes by only preferring the loud ones. What they don’t understand is that everyone is unique. Discrimination between black and whites would still be there if not for Rosa Parks. If her family disowned her for saying one of the most powerful words- "no" - if Martin Luther King Jr. didn’t help her, we wouldn’t be living in a world where discrimination between colors was significantly reduced. She was an introvert.

If Mahatma Gandhis act to gain independence for India wasn’t supported by the people, India might be under the rule of the Britishers right now. He was also an introvert.

If you are a parent or teacher that don’t know if your child is an introvert or your student is an introvert, watch this video by Susan Cain or read her book called “Quiet”. Parents, interact with your child more. Understand their problems in school. Look at their past and see if they have ever not liked to go to over-simulating places like homecoming. Teachers, stop picking on kids who might be quiet but are smart, because as Susan Cain said, “There's zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas.” . Find another way like using the internet to get the child to “talk.” And children. If you have a friend you know is introvert, don’t leave them alone saying that they are boring or shy. Many people believe that you can choose what path you want to take going forward, but we are giving introverts only one road called “extroversion is better.” Lets change that.

Written By: Ananya

Do Charity Events Actually Mean Something To People?

Many people take charity events for granted. Is proving an achievement more important than finding the deeper meaning and doing it for the cause? One example of this is the ALS ice bucket challenge. The challenge was recently set up so that those taking it up would get a chance to experience what it’s like to live with ALS during the split second when the ice cold water touches your warm and hydrated body.

Within 2 weeks after holidays, the students @ UWC had caught “the buzz .” As soon as many grade 8 students were home, they made sure that they did the ice bucket challenge before starting their homework so that they completed it within 24 hours and saved themselves $100. To prove it, they then posted it on social media sites such as Facebook, continuing the tradition. But, according to healthycompanies.com, “Its about the cause, not the ice bucket.”

The problem with this is that those doing the ice bucket challenge, not only at UWC but around the world, didn’t know what ALS is or who or why the ice bucket challenge was started. Most people did it to have fun or to tell their friends/ family that they had completed it.

The requirement was that those doing it would have to pay $10, and if they didn’t complete it within 24 hours from the time of their nomination, they would have to pay $100. One of the grade 8 students said:

“I think those who simply do the challenge without topic about the cause or foundation are the ones who aren't contributing very much to the organization.” Maybe it’s time for us to really consider why we are doing what we are doing.

Written by Ananya