“So, what have you learnt from your experiences in this course?” is what I’m trying to ask myself, writing my first ever proper “Reflexive Piece”. It’s quite a loaded question if you think about it – no straight answer to that! I guess I’ll have to try and come as close to an easy-to-understand answer as possible. Because for me, as much as this course was centred around the theory of narrative and genre, and journalism in new media in general, being a group-work assignment, it also taught me much more than just that. It opened my eyes to my own abilities and showed me how strong and successful a good team can be.
Much of the formulation of our blog was centred on planning from the perspective of teamwork, and scheduling which would enable us to work together successfully enough to bring the blog in fruition and success. Initially, I found the prospect of working in a team in which all the other members are girls quite daunting and intimidating, simply because I know how tough it can be to work with some (defiantly not ALL) girls. Luckily, the group I had been placed in was made up of girls who did not fit this generalisation at all. Planning was the key factor which held the group together, especially in terms of formulating a basic idea for our blog and its theme, as well as later on producing the actual stories to be published on the blog. Although sometime ideas and opinions might have clashed, I feel that what we ended up with was a well-rounded, well-formulated, and attractive blog with quality articles being posted. I am proud to say that our blog came second in the competition between the blogs of the first year Journ blogs.
In the beginning, I felt that our productivity and freedom of expression (even within journalistic limits) was slightly cramped due to our blog having to conform to certain standards set by the Department of journalism and the other blogs being posted. However, we quickly grew accustomed to the form and style that was expected of us, and succeeded in publishing, and commenting on, the issues we wished to discuss, or chose to examine on our blog. Many of these stories and their ideas were relatively easy to formulate and come up with, since they were almost pre-dictated by the theme and personality we decided to give our blog. All the issues involved with surviving the “Sotally Tober” side of First Year were perfect for discussion. I believe we chose an appropriate theme, since it enabled us to engage with issues which others would be too afraid to raise, to relate to, and attract the actual first year population at Rhodes, as well as other Universities worldwide, and still produce journalism with value and literary worth.
At tutorial meetings, as well as our own team-meetings which we privately arranged for ourselves, our team worked together to bring what we thought were the most important issues and aspects of the things being discussed, and the relevance to our blog in the best way possible. Not knowing what to expect when we were given the brief for the initial blog plan, I was surprised by the focus of the members of my group which helped us formulate a clear picture of what we were expecting from our blog. In terms of my personal input and growth at these meetings, I offered the most I could, hoping that my computer studies classes back in high school would come in handy, since the blog would be purely internet-based, and would need to be well formatted and attractive, as well as functional, interesting, and entertaining. Luckily, I was fortunate and my basic past experiences with simple html-editing and internet and website control and creation, turned out extremely handy and helped us a great deal in achieving the look and function we desired the blog to have. I believe that my personal input and growth was substantial and greatly helped the blog get to where it finally is today, and was an important part of the experience I gained from this course in new media.
However, this course, being new and completely different from the courses we had previously done in other semesters in journalism and media studies, did raise certain doubts and questions among members from both my tutorial group as well as blog group. Questions such as “Does this actually really count as true journalism?” began to rise very quickly. In my opinion, this course was extremely relevant and greatly important, and is without a doubt, a form of journalism. I feel that these, as well as some other forms of new media are vital parts in the evolutions of journalism. Although the new types of sources which we had not properly encountered prior, which include first year students themselves, lecturers, and mostly online media and research sources, and new forms of research, such as other blogs, polls, and large-scale interviews, were new ground for us to conquer and not only gave us a great deal of new experience, but also gave us new alternatives to the traditional forms we had initially been introduced to.
The entire experience of creating, and maintaining the blog together with my team-mates was extremely entertaining and eye-opening encounter. It gave me a completely new perspective on journalism and its newest forms, and how it is produced. I found the new course extremely entertaining and enjoyable and a great way of working together with a team which succeeded in creating a blog which I personally truly enjoy.
Well done and thanks guys!!! =)
Friday, October 24, 2008
To blog or not to blog
I missed my first lecture on blogging. No, its not because I was too hungover to function, contrary to popular belief I am not an alcoholic in the making. No, I missed it for academic reasons-I promise! The precise academic reason was a drama rehearsal. This is not, however, the point of my story. The point is when I heard that this term we had to create a blog my first reaction was to try to stop myself from throwing something. Of all the things the journalism department could have given us a course on, they had to give us one that involved computers! Please don’t get me wrong, I love my laptop as much as the next person but it (the laptop) does not hesitate to do everything I don’t want it to do, especially late at night when I have an assignment due at midnight or early the next morning. For this reason (among others) my laptop has been nicknamed the monster. Another aspect that made me want to stomp into the journalism department, sit in the foyer and yell until someone paid attention, was the fact that I am terrible when it comes to working computers. I must be one of the most technologically illiterate people I know. Friends, one in particular who sat next to me in high school when they forced us to take computers and who I turned to every time something went wrong with my computer, joke that I am cursed when it comes to computers. So, as I made the long walk up the hill to the journalism department for my first tutorial I was slightly nervous, very irritated and muttering every expletive I could think of about the journalism department.
Sitting in that first tutorial, having been divided up into groups made me no less nervous. I was no longer so irritated; rather I had that terrifying sinking feeling that made me realize how much trouble I was in. Looking back on it, I should have just taken a deep breath and realized that this is all part of the ride called university, and in particular journalism. Being afraid of something doesn’t stop you having to do it even though, for me, this meant hours of fighting with my laptop (aka. The monster), running from drama rehearsals to journ meetings and generally behaving like someone who has three assignments due the next day and hasn’t started any of them. It also meant embarrassment. The type of embarrassment that you feel when you look at photo’s (on facebook) from your last drunken night out. The embarrassment was due to the fat that more often than not I had no idea what was going on. Oh, I knew what assignments were due when and what they were supposed to be on, getting them onto my blog with photos, backlinks and all those wonderful technological things was another story.
The first time that we met as a group to make our blog look ‘interesting’ made me sigh with relief. I was not the only one who felt totally clueless about how exactly to give our blog a ‘skin’, add widgets or gadgets (whichever you prefer) and make our blog something that everyone would want to look at! Sitting in the computer labs trying desperately to apply a skin, but because the html address was written in what looked like Japanese (!) it was not possible, got me thinking about what the point of this ‘nightmare’ course was. I seriously questioned as to whether this could actually be considered journalism. Our tutors had shown us how easy it is to set up a blog-anyone can do it and they do. Soon everyone will have a blog-an online diary to share details about their live that most people won’t care about. So if blogging is a diary then it can’t be considered journalism surely? On the other hand has blogging just opened up the media to a larger group of producers? Will blogs have the same influence that mainstream media does? Will they be able to influence people’s thinking, help shape ideas and provide people with an understanding of the world in which we live?
So maybe I have to re-consider my opinion on blogging. Now that I have acquired (most of) the skills that you need to be able to blog I realize that blogging is journalism. It may not be seen as mainstream media but it is gaining more and more recognition. Despite spending hours hibernating as I struggled to finish yet another journalism assignment, despite constantly threatening to hurl my laptop out the window and despite constantly questioning myself as to whether I was doing things ‘right’ I have live through my blogging experience. It was not always easy - writing to a particular theme and in a particular style when the last thing you were thinking about was drinking. Although to be fair, drinking is never that far away in a Rhodents mind.
Well now that I have completed my last official blogging assignment and lived to tell the tale I am off to the Rat. Like I said, drinking is never that far away in a Rhodents mind.
Sitting in that first tutorial, having been divided up into groups made me no less nervous. I was no longer so irritated; rather I had that terrifying sinking feeling that made me realize how much trouble I was in. Looking back on it, I should have just taken a deep breath and realized that this is all part of the ride called university, and in particular journalism. Being afraid of something doesn’t stop you having to do it even though, for me, this meant hours of fighting with my laptop (aka. The monster), running from drama rehearsals to journ meetings and generally behaving like someone who has three assignments due the next day and hasn’t started any of them. It also meant embarrassment. The type of embarrassment that you feel when you look at photo’s (on facebook) from your last drunken night out. The embarrassment was due to the fat that more often than not I had no idea what was going on. Oh, I knew what assignments were due when and what they were supposed to be on, getting them onto my blog with photos, backlinks and all those wonderful technological things was another story.
The first time that we met as a group to make our blog look ‘interesting’ made me sigh with relief. I was not the only one who felt totally clueless about how exactly to give our blog a ‘skin’, add widgets or gadgets (whichever you prefer) and make our blog something that everyone would want to look at! Sitting in the computer labs trying desperately to apply a skin, but because the html address was written in what looked like Japanese (!) it was not possible, got me thinking about what the point of this ‘nightmare’ course was. I seriously questioned as to whether this could actually be considered journalism. Our tutors had shown us how easy it is to set up a blog-anyone can do it and they do. Soon everyone will have a blog-an online diary to share details about their live that most people won’t care about. So if blogging is a diary then it can’t be considered journalism surely? On the other hand has blogging just opened up the media to a larger group of producers? Will blogs have the same influence that mainstream media does? Will they be able to influence people’s thinking, help shape ideas and provide people with an understanding of the world in which we live?
So maybe I have to re-consider my opinion on blogging. Now that I have acquired (most of) the skills that you need to be able to blog I realize that blogging is journalism. It may not be seen as mainstream media but it is gaining more and more recognition. Despite spending hours hibernating as I struggled to finish yet another journalism assignment, despite constantly threatening to hurl my laptop out the window and despite constantly questioning myself as to whether I was doing things ‘right’ I have live through my blogging experience. It was not always easy - writing to a particular theme and in a particular style when the last thing you were thinking about was drinking. Although to be fair, drinking is never that far away in a Rhodents mind.
Well now that I have completed my last official blogging assignment and lived to tell the tale I am off to the Rat. Like I said, drinking is never that far away in a Rhodents mind.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Risky Business: Are Rhodes Students Snobs or They Are Influenced By The Gtown Environment??
Risky Business: Are Rhodes Students Snobs or They Are Influenced By The Gtown Environment??
You say that you haven’t become a snob yet you insist on using words that you then have to explain in brackets. Is this you presuming that your readers are dim-witted and won’t know what the word means or are you just trying use complex vocabulary because hey, you can. However, on the other side of the coin I believe that your Rhodes experience is what you make of it. I think that it’s a personal choice to become a snob-yet what exactly constitutes a snob? Is it knowing and caring about the problems that affect us today, is it the way we speak, is it that our world view may have changed? What ever it is I don’t think that these things make someone a snob. You become a snob when you regard yourself as superior to others simply because you may understand certain concepts or see things differently. I think that’s its always important to remember that we are in the top 2% of the world (by being at university) and a lot of other people don’t get this amazing opportunity. It’s up us to begin to fix the problems which we have created for ourselves and if this means using our ‘snobbish’ knowledge then so be it.
You say that you haven’t become a snob yet you insist on using words that you then have to explain in brackets. Is this you presuming that your readers are dim-witted and won’t know what the word means or are you just trying use complex vocabulary because hey, you can. However, on the other side of the coin I believe that your Rhodes experience is what you make of it. I think that it’s a personal choice to become a snob-yet what exactly constitutes a snob? Is it knowing and caring about the problems that affect us today, is it the way we speak, is it that our world view may have changed? What ever it is I don’t think that these things make someone a snob. You become a snob when you regard yourself as superior to others simply because you may understand certain concepts or see things differently. I think that’s its always important to remember that we are in the top 2% of the world (by being at university) and a lot of other people don’t get this amazing opportunity. It’s up us to begin to fix the problems which we have created for ourselves and if this means using our ‘snobbish’ knowledge then so be it.
Monday, October 20, 2008
First Years… alcoholics? I don’t think so… or could it be a possibility?
Alcohol, every first year drinks it, and probably quite regularly too, but does this mean we are all raging alcoholics? According to Alcoholics Anonymous if you ask yes to any of their twenty questions then you have a problem. Questions like “do you drink to build up your self confidence?” and “have you ever had complete memory loss due to drinking?” may sound quite familiar to most of us.
But surely this doesn’t mean that we are all alcoholics. We don’t all need alcohol do we? We don’t reach for more in the morning, right? I was not satisfied with being classed as an alcoholic just because I answered yes to two of the twenty questions above so I took another test. This test gave me immediate feedback according to my answers and I, thank goodness, was not classed as an alcoholic anymore, however, it did mention that due to the number of drinks I have a week, or on one occasion, it is a serious risk to my health.
What does alcohol actually do to our health? We’ve all heard that it kills brain cells but apparently we’ve got so many that just a slight knock to head causes a loss of millions, so if we’ve got that many to spare who cares? So apparently being more self confident, not being able to walk straight and passing out is a bad thing; but why? These effects are caused by the alcohol getting to the main centers of our brain (now that doesn’t sound good). Did you know that women get drunk faster than men? This is because men have more muscle tissue than fat, whereas women have more fat than muscle. Alcohol cannot dissolve in fat but can in the water found in muscle and therefore it is diluted more. This means that women end up with a higher concentration of alcohol in their blood and therefore they get a lot drunker, faster. Let’s not forget the not-so-fun part of being drunk; the vomiting, due to the alcohol irritating the stomach lining and the sweating, due to increased blood flow to the skin.
This may all be true, but no first year really cares about their body when it comes to having fun (not to mention we wouldn’t be able to cope with the claustrophobic Friars without a couple of drinks). So what about the long-term effects, will they be enough to convince us? They include hardening of the liver, stomach ulcers and the one that might sway the men, decreased sex-hormone production. Oh dear, watch out boys!
Finally, we come to the penultimate of a great night out… a hangover. So how do we get rid of it because we’ve got essays to do and tests to write, which we are not willing to sacrifice a night-out for. There are many myths about the remedies for a hangover. Carrying on drinking is one of them and this definitely does not work, it just delays the inevitable. Another myth is that burnt toast is the cure. Stop putting yourself through the pain of eating that disgusting black stuff because it doesn’t work. What about the Wimpy breakfast that we all insist on having the next day? That doesn’t work either; fatty food is a prevention and not a cure so, if anything, go to Wimpy before you go out. The stuff that does actually help is fruit juice, water, eggs and bananas.
So, have we reached a decision as to whether we are all alcoholics? According to the facts we are extremely close. Students are unaware of what their binge drinking is doing to their bodies and if they do they choose to ignore it because no-one wants to be a social outcast and that is what non-drinkers are perceived to be by most students. Alcohol has become such a social norm that students don’t even know when they are abusing it. The question we have to ask ourselves is whether we are only avoiding being labeled as an alcoholic because it is seen as normal to drink and to drink often at university. I don’t think, however, that the majority of students are alcoholics despite what the facts say. Students are just having fun while they can, before life gets a little more serious.
But surely this doesn’t mean that we are all alcoholics. We don’t all need alcohol do we? We don’t reach for more in the morning, right? I was not satisfied with being classed as an alcoholic just because I answered yes to two of the twenty questions above so I took another test. This test gave me immediate feedback according to my answers and I, thank goodness, was not classed as an alcoholic anymore, however, it did mention that due to the number of drinks I have a week, or on one occasion, it is a serious risk to my health.
What does alcohol actually do to our health? We’ve all heard that it kills brain cells but apparently we’ve got so many that just a slight knock to head causes a loss of millions, so if we’ve got that many to spare who cares? So apparently being more self confident, not being able to walk straight and passing out is a bad thing; but why? These effects are caused by the alcohol getting to the main centers of our brain (now that doesn’t sound good). Did you know that women get drunk faster than men? This is because men have more muscle tissue than fat, whereas women have more fat than muscle. Alcohol cannot dissolve in fat but can in the water found in muscle and therefore it is diluted more. This means that women end up with a higher concentration of alcohol in their blood and therefore they get a lot drunker, faster. Let’s not forget the not-so-fun part of being drunk; the vomiting, due to the alcohol irritating the stomach lining and the sweating, due to increased blood flow to the skin.
This may all be true, but no first year really cares about their body when it comes to having fun (not to mention we wouldn’t be able to cope with the claustrophobic Friars without a couple of drinks). So what about the long-term effects, will they be enough to convince us? They include hardening of the liver, stomach ulcers and the one that might sway the men, decreased sex-hormone production. Oh dear, watch out boys!
Finally, we come to the penultimate of a great night out… a hangover. So how do we get rid of it because we’ve got essays to do and tests to write, which we are not willing to sacrifice a night-out for. There are many myths about the remedies for a hangover. Carrying on drinking is one of them and this definitely does not work, it just delays the inevitable. Another myth is that burnt toast is the cure. Stop putting yourself through the pain of eating that disgusting black stuff because it doesn’t work. What about the Wimpy breakfast that we all insist on having the next day? That doesn’t work either; fatty food is a prevention and not a cure so, if anything, go to Wimpy before you go out. The stuff that does actually help is fruit juice, water, eggs and bananas.
So, have we reached a decision as to whether we are all alcoholics? According to the facts we are extremely close. Students are unaware of what their binge drinking is doing to their bodies and if they do they choose to ignore it because no-one wants to be a social outcast and that is what non-drinkers are perceived to be by most students. Alcohol has become such a social norm that students don’t even know when they are abusing it. The question we have to ask ourselves is whether we are only avoiding being labeled as an alcoholic because it is seen as normal to drink and to drink often at university. I don’t think, however, that the majority of students are alcoholics despite what the facts say. Students are just having fun while they can, before life gets a little more serious.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
1st years - easy target 4 seal clubbing!
‘Seal clubbing’ is when an older ‘scores’ (kisses, or anything more) a first year. It’s become quite the craze at Rhodes as it seems newcomers make for an easy target, especially during o-week where the phenomenon is at its peak.
Talking about first year guys, Kupe (a fourth year student), says “they're new to varsity and the prospect of older chicks showing interest in them is so appealing it’s almost complementary”, which corresponds with Duncan (1st year) saying “as a guy it’s always sweet to get with an older woman, kinda like bragging rights”. For boys it seems to be a thing of pride and ego boosting. Since they’re already open to the idea of being ‘seal clubbed’ they’ll embrace the opportunity making them an extremely easy target for older girls. They’re out to impress their newly made friends so anything to put them in higher status from the start is welcomed eagerly.
Girls aren’t usually looking for bragging rights, since being with an older guy is seen much more normal in society, hence the kick out of seal clubbing differs across genders. “Girls are too open to the new found freedom, and are attracted to the concept of being with an older and apparently "more experienced" man... and of course copious amounts of alcohol don't exactly stiffen one's inhibitions” says Emily (1st year). There seems to be a social mindset that it’s better for girls to go for older guys, hence their willingness when someone flatters them off their feet. They’re usually more naive to the idea of seal clubbing and welcome the attention of new people in unfamiliar territory.
Generally, most first years have come from school where their lives are largely restricted in comparison to the varsity freedom. Entering o-week, they’re keen to go wild and enjoy it as best they can. There’s a lot of socializing, partying and alcohol consumption. The naivety of it all is quite humorous to look back on, as drinking at Rhodes is way more advanced than drinking experiences through school. They can’t handle as much as they like to think so after the influence of a few too many and the exciting atmosphere, first years tend to completely forget their sober selves and run wild on the town doing things they may not usually do. They don’t know the older people yet, so past reputations don’t come into play. You could be seen as the nerdiest guy/girl around or the biggest jerk, yet an innocent first year wouldn’t have these reasons to judge so they give in to the older person anyway. They may also be a little insecure in their new life and jump towards any hint of affection.
Older girls don’t really have to charm the younger guys; the mere fact that they’ve been taken interest in by her is satisfying enough. Older guys on the other hand seem to know the perfect ways to seduce first year girls with cheesy phrases and pick up lines. Compliments like “you’re the most beautiful first year I’ve seen” can have a girl blushing in pride and seal clubbed in no time.
It is generally known at Rhodes that first years are the easy target due to their naivety and off-the rails nature upon arrival. Their inexperience and crave for attention and fun is their main weakness which allows the whole tradition of seal clubbing to continue, although for the clubbers it’s all fun and games in finding easy ways to just get some action, have a laugh or win a bet.
Talking about first year guys, Kupe (a fourth year student), says “they're new to varsity and the prospect of older chicks showing interest in them is so appealing it’s almost complementary”, which corresponds with Duncan (1st year) saying “as a guy it’s always sweet to get with an older woman, kinda like bragging rights”. For boys it seems to be a thing of pride and ego boosting. Since they’re already open to the idea of being ‘seal clubbed’ they’ll embrace the opportunity making them an extremely easy target for older girls. They’re out to impress their newly made friends so anything to put them in higher status from the start is welcomed eagerly.
Girls aren’t usually looking for bragging rights, since being with an older guy is seen much more normal in society, hence the kick out of seal clubbing differs across genders. “Girls are too open to the new found freedom, and are attracted to the concept of being with an older and apparently "more experienced" man... and of course copious amounts of alcohol don't exactly stiffen one's inhibitions” says Emily (1st year). There seems to be a social mindset that it’s better for girls to go for older guys, hence their willingness when someone flatters them off their feet. They’re usually more naive to the idea of seal clubbing and welcome the attention of new people in unfamiliar territory.
Generally, most first years have come from school where their lives are largely restricted in comparison to the varsity freedom. Entering o-week, they’re keen to go wild and enjoy it as best they can. There’s a lot of socializing, partying and alcohol consumption. The naivety of it all is quite humorous to look back on, as drinking at Rhodes is way more advanced than drinking experiences through school. They can’t handle as much as they like to think so after the influence of a few too many and the exciting atmosphere, first years tend to completely forget their sober selves and run wild on the town doing things they may not usually do. They don’t know the older people yet, so past reputations don’t come into play. You could be seen as the nerdiest guy/girl around or the biggest jerk, yet an innocent first year wouldn’t have these reasons to judge so they give in to the older person anyway. They may also be a little insecure in their new life and jump towards any hint of affection.
Older girls don’t really have to charm the younger guys; the mere fact that they’ve been taken interest in by her is satisfying enough. Older guys on the other hand seem to know the perfect ways to seduce first year girls with cheesy phrases and pick up lines. Compliments like “you’re the most beautiful first year I’ve seen” can have a girl blushing in pride and seal clubbed in no time.
It is generally known at Rhodes that first years are the easy target due to their naivety and off-the rails nature upon arrival. Their inexperience and crave for attention and fun is their main weakness which allows the whole tradition of seal clubbing to continue, although for the clubbers it’s all fun and games in finding easy ways to just get some action, have a laugh or win a bet.
Friday, October 17, 2008
I Did It! I Promise!
(photo copyrighted by DeviantArt. original image at http://fc10.deviantart.com/fs12/i/2006/302/c/3/The_arch_again_by_mahleu.jpg)Wake up at 9, only to find out that you have a Tut exercise to do for 10, or get back to Res after supper and discover through one of your friends that you have a 2000-word essay due for the next day. I’m pretty sure most of us have experienced something along those lines. The question is; what makes students at Rhodes (namely First Years) end up doing work last-minute or the day before? From personal experience, it just seems to happen – things get a bit out of control, and before you realise it, you’re staying up until 5am trying to finish an essay that was meant to have been done over three weeks. Some people try to reason that they “work better under pressure” or “had other work to do”, but we all know how it goes. All subjects have essays or projects, and we have all, at some point fallen victim to the unavoidable last-minute assignment. I, like many others have learnt the hard way, that this isn’t always the best option – especially when there is more than one assignment due for that one day. Lecturers complain about students doing work sloppily and the day before, tutors comment on students not preparing for tuts, and students believe that the workload is far too much. This issue affects all sides involved – and is more common than we think. Most of the time, its due to a late night before (whether it be partying until the early hours of the morning, watching series or movies until the sun rises, or naps somewhere), an innocent “lapse of memory”, or a genuine LOA-worthy excuse which lead to work being handed in late or just on time, and being “slack”. What many people don’t realise is that this problem has existed for much longer than any of us have been at varsity, and happens in probably every single university. I believe that its part of finding our feet as students, and that it’s an element of what university is and the life experience that we gain through coming to varsity. Pressure builds up students, and especially around the time of exams (like the one we are approaching now) people tend to become more forgetful and affected by the stress. And this in turn also leads to more sleepless nights and last-minute work. It is without a doubt, not easy to find a balance of when to do work, and when there is still space to put it off. I think it’s a learning curve that we all experience at some point, and only through the experience we gain from it, can we overcome it. In my opinion, the ever-present distant assignment is something we (as students) will never be without, and we need to get used to it. Getting in “The Zone” is quite tough, especially when it’s a Wednesday, and you know that at that very moment some of your friends are probably jamming under the air-con at Friar’s. But trust me, getting annoyed or irritated about the matter will only make it harder to deal with as a whole – I think its best to just play the deadline game, and try and get as much work done before its due date as possible. Not only does that clear the conscience, but it also means more sleep, and more time to do what Rhodents do best: party!
Good luck,
Nev
Seal-Clubbing: Sport of Sorts
Rhodes legend has it that older guys love coming back for O-week. This is because they like to be the first to spot the new ‘talent’ and take advantage. This drunken past time is known as seal clubbing and one of the first things that your house comm. tell you when you arrive for O-week is to watch out for older guys. This trend no longer seems to be a past time exclusively for males, Rhodes women seem to have got in on the trend as well. For which I say well done! If men can do it so can we.
Yet if we look at seal clubbing you will find that it happens during O-week when it is generally regarded as easy picking because, lets face it, the majority of first years spent the week in a drunken stupor. I mean, can anyone really remember any of the lectures that they went to? Did you go to any lectures? This is however beside the point. Seal clubbing is the first year trying desperately to look cool, fit in and make new friends, for the older student its all about seeing how many people they can hook-up with and seeing if they can get with the hottest person they can find on that particular night. I suppose it is a sort of sexual competition.
Yet what about the fact that women are joining (and loving) this trend? It is another victory for women or it just sad. Maybe it is as simple as another drunken night in good old Grahamstown. Everyone knows how it goes, a big night out, lots of drinks and plenty of dancing and then just like that you are hooking up with someone that you never intended to. (And more often than not these hook-ups happen under the air-con at Friars. Don’t say that you haven’t been warned!) These things happen and for the most part, it’s okay. The general rule is what happens in O-week, stays in O-week. However does this rule apply to everyone or just first years?
Personally, I think that people who go out with the intention of hooking up with as many first years as possible are slightly twisted, be they guys or girls. It’s as if it (seal-clubbing) has become a sport, just another thing for people to measure their popularity, or lack of, with. I think that the ‘legend’ of seal-clubbing makes it seem worse than it actually is. Amy Green, a first year, thinks that “seal-clubbing is pretty sad but the reality is that these things happen, so it’s not really our place to judge.”
I have a problem with people going out with the express purpose of ‘seal-clubbing.’ How sad that their idea of a good night out in O-week is getting with as many first years as possible! I guess it is the whole ‘fresh meat’ concept and this university is a small place so I guess that an influx of new talent is a cause for celebration!
Yet if we look at seal clubbing you will find that it happens during O-week when it is generally regarded as easy picking because, lets face it, the majority of first years spent the week in a drunken stupor. I mean, can anyone really remember any of the lectures that they went to? Did you go to any lectures? This is however beside the point. Seal clubbing is the first year trying desperately to look cool, fit in and make new friends, for the older student its all about seeing how many people they can hook-up with and seeing if they can get with the hottest person they can find on that particular night. I suppose it is a sort of sexual competition.
Yet what about the fact that women are joining (and loving) this trend? It is another victory for women or it just sad. Maybe it is as simple as another drunken night in good old Grahamstown. Everyone knows how it goes, a big night out, lots of drinks and plenty of dancing and then just like that you are hooking up with someone that you never intended to. (And more often than not these hook-ups happen under the air-con at Friars. Don’t say that you haven’t been warned!) These things happen and for the most part, it’s okay. The general rule is what happens in O-week, stays in O-week. However does this rule apply to everyone or just first years?
Personally, I think that people who go out with the intention of hooking up with as many first years as possible are slightly twisted, be they guys or girls. It’s as if it (seal-clubbing) has become a sport, just another thing for people to measure their popularity, or lack of, with. I think that the ‘legend’ of seal-clubbing makes it seem worse than it actually is. Amy Green, a first year, thinks that “seal-clubbing is pretty sad but the reality is that these things happen, so it’s not really our place to judge.”
I have a problem with people going out with the express purpose of ‘seal-clubbing.’ How sad that their idea of a good night out in O-week is getting with as many first years as possible! I guess it is the whole ‘fresh meat’ concept and this university is a small place so I guess that an influx of new talent is a cause for celebration!
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