Journal 6

September 24th In-Class

We were put into small breakout groups to discuss groups of people who had been dehumanized in areas of legal, social, in the realm of politics, financially in relation to economics, as well as forms of education. My group focused on education and social aspects in where people are no longer included due to their social status within a school setting whether it be elementary, secondary, or collegiate level. Examples of this would be socially awkward kids no longer feel welcome to enjoy extracurricular activities that relate to physical strength within athletic sports like football games and things of that nature.

September 27th in class

The reading of El Muerto in where a overlooked character takes his power and fame from right under the noses of those in power at the time. It is a good example of taking your power regardless of class, religion, social opportunity and economic placement. They achieve the feeling that one man is no longer limited by the constrains that society has put on him and breaks through societal write offs to achieve things that they said were far from possible.

September 29th Notes

Motivation One: A sense of duty or obligation

• The person showing leadership may be acting out of the sense that leadership is owed to others because specific others have done something for them or because the community at large has done something. This may be tied to a sense of gratitude or fairness arising from a feeling of mutual obligation among community members. The duty might also be tied to some contractual obligation or it might be construed broadly under a theological or humanitarian rationale that we are all obliged to help each other or that our very capacity to help mandates that we do so.

Motivation Two: In order be in control or have power

• The person showing leadership has the sense that they are best at fixing the problems facing the community (problems that may affect the person in question as well) and this person worries that things may go badly if they do not intervene and take charge. They might also have a general sense of insecurity or unease at the thought of others being in charge based on their own inability to predict what will happen. This motivation might derive from an accurate or inaccurate appraisal of the competency of others and themselves. Such a person likes to see things in order or organized.

Motivation Three: Domination

• he person showing leadership has a strong desire to be in control per se–not so much because they believe they are best at achieving order or organization or because they envision the general well-being of the community (though they may claim these things in order to justify their dominance). In this person there is a satisfaction, perhaps sadistic, of being “over” or “on top of” others. It is a desire to give orders and watch others follow them, a glee at being obeyed for its own sake. Such a person is inclined to flex their authority, threaten, bully, plot against others, and generally to view the world as a constant zero-sum rivalry between winners and losers.

Motivation Four: Honor, Praise, Recognition

• The person showing leadership desires to be regarded highly or favorably in the minds, speech, and memorials of their community members. Such a person may or may not care that the regard is merited. Such a person may find it hard to recognize the achievements of others for fear or diminishing their own status. This person may pursue leadership in environments where performance is easier to be quantified and ranked

Motivation Five: Prestige

• The person showing leadership has a desire to stand out or be distinguished, on a regular basis, in social or political settings, e.g., by occupying special seats at a performance, wearing special clothing, or adorning themselves with special implements (badges, medals, signs of group affiliation) that make them the center of attention or mark them out as somehow “better”. They themselves often pursue opportunities to perform,

Motivation Six: Love of Design

• he person showing leadership takes an intrinsic enjoyment in drawing up plans/rules/laws, coming up with a coherent vision, or just figuring out how everyone can work together as a team in a happy, harmonious way. Such a person enjoys intellectual challenges that involve many variables and offer the opportunity to be creative in problem-solving. Such a person might really enjoy games, or explaining the rules of games to others. Leading, under this motivation, might be akin to architecture, gardening, or perhaps weaving, any craft that involves long-range planning. Such a person might find it difficult to listen to or entertain the ideas and visions of others because they have dedicated a lot of time and thought to their own vision and thus remain stubbornly committed to it.

Motivation Seven: Love of Humanity

• The person showing leadership has a generalized and indiscriminate desire for all humans to fare well and takes a general pleasure in the success of others and has concern for their misfortune that is not tied to any particular advantage for themselves and is not tied to a particular group affiliation, like family, tribe, state, or political party. This person has a desire for the overall condition of humans to improve, e.g., in terms of health, safety, education, dignity, or comfort. This desire may be informed and inspired by the example of a divinity or it may derive from a deep connectivity or empathy with others, including random strangers. Such a person may see and feel all others as extensions of themselves and vice-versa.

Motivation Eight: Nurturing Concern

• The person showing leadership takes pleasure in working closely and intimately with others to address their needs. This person might be described as akin to a parent, a nurse, a physician, or a healer in the way that they listen closely to diagnose problems, express sympathy, and tend to others moment-by-moment as the needs arise. Such a person tends to be vigilant and attentive to detail.

Motivation Nine: Profit

• The person showing leadership seeks monetary compensation for their services, often along with other material benefits and perks, like cars, clothes, stock options, retirement plans, and the like. Such a person typically sees this compensation as essential to their leadership, if not the principal motivation.

Assignment for next week, I did the wrong assignment because I clicked on the wrong week

“The Normal Heart”

Consider whether you agree that these behaviors work against him:

• Ned does not always seem to care about the feelings of others especially when he feels that he is right. This is both hindering as well as levitating because in the aspect of social engagement it no longer gives the other person’s opinion power. On the flip side in the internal way it no longer allows him to be swayed in his opinions which means he is focused and straight to the point.
• Ned thinks less of others who don’t fight for causes as strongly as he does. This is good in the view that you surround yourself with people who are likeminded to ensure that you achieve what you want and in the fastest means possible without conflict or opposition.
• Ned expects too much of himself. Setting high goals for oneself is a good thing but when they are set knowing that they are unattainable they become unrealistic and frustrating for you and others around you regardless of what is said.
• Ned is afraid of being–or seeming–weak. Or, to put it another way, Ned does not seem comfortable with his status as an outsider/gay man. The view of others upon you should not matter because the ability to be yourself is an important thing to show individual strength. As a leader you should be able to show both strength and weakness to ensure that people around you understand that you are human as well
• Ned cannot work with those he does not respect. This is a good trait in the aspect of being transparent and honest. No point giving someone an impression or perspective that isn't true because at the end of the day it always come out into the light no matter how hard you try to hide it.
• Ned does not seem to be very aware of how he comes across to other people. The ability to understand how people feel about you and your actions is a key element in understanding your strengths and weakness as a leader so in this case this is bad on his side.

Which Best characterize who you are as a person.

• I believe that I could be a good advocate for a cause but I don’t know what my cause is yet.
• I care deeply about a lot of issues but I find it difficult to advocate for them.
• I feel that I am supporting important causes with all of my talents and energy.
• I don’t feel much like an advocate right now and I don’t have any causes. I’m still working on me.

Realistically they all describe some part of me and with that being said I can not choose certain ones of the other just due to the fact that I show all of these things.

Reading/Movie and summaries

• El Muerto by Jorge Luis Borges
• The story deals with the life of a young compadrito from Buenos Aires, Benjamín Otálora, who has killed a man and must leave the country. He heads for Uruguay with a letter of introduction for Azevedo Bandeira, a local caudillo. While searching for this Bandeira, he participates in a knife fight and blocks a lethal blow intended for the man he discovers later to be Bandeira himself. Having earned Bandeira’s trust and gratitude, Otálora joins his band of gaucho smugglers. Little by little, Otálora becomes more greedy and ambitious, taking more risks, making more decisions, and befriending Bandeira’s body guard, Ulpiano Suárez, to whom he reveals his secret plan to take Bandeira’s place as leader of the group. The plan is the result of his desire to possess Bandeira’s most important symbols of power: his horse, his saddle, and his woman with the bright red hair. One day, after a skirmish with a rival band of Brazilians, Otálora is wounded and on that day, he rides Bandeira’s horse back to the ranch, spills blood on the saddle, and sleeps with the woman. The end of the story occurs on New Year’s Eve in 1894 when, after a day of feasting and drinking, at the stroke of Midnight, Bandeira summons his mistress and brutally forces her to kiss Otálora in front of all the men. As Suárez aims his pistol, Otálora realizes before he dies that he had been set up from the very beginning and that he had been permitted the pleasure of power and triumph because in the end, to Bandeira, he never was anything more than a soon-to-be dead man.