The Sell Out was a two part short story in The New York Times written by Simon Rich. In the story a man named Hershel is pickled at a factory he works in in the early 1900s and brought back to life in modern day New York. He lives with his great great grandson, Simon, who is lazy, narcissistic, and edits movies scripts for a living. His girlfriend, Claire, who Hershel thinks is on the brink of death because of her thinness, also frequently visits.

http://mixedmindsalad.wordpress.com/2010/08/14/a-critical-view-on-modern-society/

The story shows an interesting parallel between common practices in America at the turn of the century versus common practices in modern day America. For example, Simon often complains about minor inconveniences he experiences from his job, such as the internet being temporarily out of service, while Hershel experienced people dying at his job from getting caught in machines (something Hershel treated rather nonchalantly).
The story also really emphasizes the leap in technological advances between these two time periods. The food is much more bountiful, and the quality of life is much higher. I feel as as Hershel has a hard time dealing with the fact that despite these breakthroughs, there seems to be much less moral integrity. These is clear in the situation where Claire is hit on in a bar and Simon does nothing to help her get rid of the unwanted suitor.

http://obrag.org/?p=60

It's sort of interesting how someone with such an outdated mindset has a much more level headed way of dealing with the world in general. I also find it interesting how Hershel is many times the voice of moral righteousness, but is often alone in his stance, which is relatable to many instances in modern society.

The Storm

In The Storm, a woman  commits adultery while her husband and son are stuck at a grocery store during a storm. This was an interesting story considering the time period it was written and the fact that the author was a woman. The story affirms that women often times share the same approach to sexuality that men often, a notion that was unheard of in the 1800s. It seems as though the intimacy shared between Calixta and Alcee is full of passion, which seemed absent in their marriages, despite the fact that they both have children with their spouses.

http://www.katechopin.org/

Presently, society holds a much more forgiving attitude when it comes to extra-marital affairs. Movies such as American Beauty, Damage, and Chloe display elaborate stories centered around being unfaithful to one's partner. Even more current forms of entertainment, such as the hit The Walking Dead, showcase two people caught in a juicy affair. It seems as though we have always been enthralled with the idea of affairs, but have only recently began to openly display it without remorse
.

http://www.sheknows.com/holidays-and-seasons/articles/1020529/controversial-halloween-costumes-for-couples

On Sale at Old Navy

In his article “On Sale at Old Navy: Cool Clothes for Identical Zombies” Damien Cave discusses the negative effect big store chains such as Old Navy can have on a society. He argues that established companies that make profit off of pushing identical, cheaply made products sold at “reasonable” prices convince consumers that they are getting a bargain when, in fact, they are contributing to the growth of a company dead set on making millions while failing to ensure quality. According to Naomi Klein, an author who collaborates with Cave, “Consumers are being scammed. Stores like Old Navy and Ikea are duping millions, inspiring mass conformity whole pretending to deliver high high culture to the masses”. Customers are made to think, at first, that they are getting a great deal, when in reality, the article of clothing (or furniture) is made so that it will disintegrate in a short amount of time, securing the replacement of the original purchase, thus contributing to the dependency of the customer to the place of business time and time again. In the long run, the higher quality, more expensive item would probably have been cheaper.

http://freshome.com/2014/03/06/broken-furniture-functionality-kills-fun-lennart-van-uffelen/

 In addition to these companies cheating the consumer out of their money, they are also aiding to the death of individuality. Cave states “What's really happening...is that clever marketers are turning us into automatons who equate being cool with buying cheap stuff that everyone else has”. Klein adds to this idea by making such statements as, “It's mass cloning that's being masked in a carnival of diversity. You don't notice that you're conforming because everything is so colorful”. When you look at the number of large retail stores selling practically the same item to a multitude of people around the country, or even the globe, it's hard to deny the duplicate effect it has on the way we present ourselves. In a way, does it not seem that we are becoming more like the infamous Old Navy mannequins standing windows of the store. We hail from different races and backgrounds, but all stand in storefronts clad in the same cheap, nondescript attire, oblivious to the underlying intentions of the business occurring behind our own backs.

http://erinfitzgerald2.wordpress.com/

The Birthmark

In Nathan Hawthorne's The Birthmark a well-to-do scientist (Aylmer) gives up his preoccupation to take on a wife (Georgiana) and lead a normal life. Georgiana was an incredibly beautiful woman who displayed one minor flaw; a birthmark on her left cheek shaped like a small hand. Rather than loving his wife and her flaw, or even just ignoring or seeing past the birthmark, Aylmer soon becomes obsessed with it. He acknowledges the fact that his wife is physically attractive, but proceeds to make negative comments about her birthmark. When she tries to defend the mark as more of a charm, Aylmer makes such statements as "Ah, upon another face perhaps it might, but never on yours. No, dearest Georgiana, you came so nearly perfect from the hand of Nature that this slightest possible defect, which we hesitate whether to term a defect or a beauty, shocks me, as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection." Aylmer's refusal to accept his wife's blemish could perhaps be compared to modern day societies compulsion to constantly judge women (often times beautiful women) in terms of outward appearances alone. It is impossible for a woman, or even human in general, to be completely immaculate. Every person has defects and faults that they work with or even emphasize to create their own unique persona. A perfect example of this is Cindy Crawford, an undeniably gorgeous woman who has a mole between her upper lip and cheek.

http://www.sheknows.com/beauty-and-style/articles/967917/celebrity-body-flaws

Rather than allowing people to criticize her for her imperfection, she has done a rather good job of turning it into her trademark.

As the story progresses, it is not only Aylmer that becomes infatuated with the removal of this mark, but Georgiana herself soon becomes engulfed with the idea. When Aylmer is speaking of the possible danger of his last experiment, Georgiana exclaims "Danger? There is but one danger—that this horrible stigma shall be left upon my cheek! Remove it, remove it, whatever be the cost, or we shall both go mad!”. At this point she is becoming increasingly illogical about her self consciousness that is suffering because of her birthmark. Again, this bares a striking similarity to a situation in modern society. There are people that obsess about every feature being so perfect that they subject themselves to plastic surgery time and time again until they resemble nothing close to a cartoon character or Muppet (Melanie Griffith and Donatella Versache both come to mind).

http://www.thedayafteryesterday.co.uk/2011/10/plastic-surgery-gone-wrong.html

It is rather paradoxical that in the effort to achieve the ideal form of human perfection that one can end up looking completely in-human.

In the end of the story, Aylmer becomes so possessed with ridding his wife of her blemish that he ends up poisoning her. As she is dying she tells her husband, “My poor Aylmer, you have aimed loftily; you have done nobly. Do not repent that with so high and pure a feeling, you have rejected the best the earth could offer. Aylmer, dearest Aylmer, I am dying!” Only as the life is slipping from her does Georgiana's birthmark finally fade. In many ways this is reflective of the lengths people are willing to go to to shed what they perceive as deficiencies in themselves. In ridding ourselves of these defects are we losing ourselves (essentially dying)? Why is it that we are willing to risk our well being to gain the admiration of others instead of fulfilling our own personal happiness? 

The Modern Primitives

In his essay, John Leo touches on the ever-growing subculture of body modification. It is undeniable that piercings and tattoos have become less taboo over the past few generations. There was a time in America when only sailors proudly flaunted their blurry, poorly executed tattoos that were barely above prison tattoo standards. Now, however, men and women alike (all hailing from different professions and walks of life) brandish elaborate works of art on the outer layers of their skin. Entire limbs are often adorned with dazzling illustrations that may represent significant periods in a person's life (such as symbols representing a person's inner-most emotions, the names of children or loved ones, or entire pieces dedicated to the passing of an individual). Other times, a person bears no greater explanation than “I like the way it looks”. Whether the reason for getting tattooed is deep-seated and meaningful, or simple and straightforward, this form of modification is perhaps the most popular. In addition to the increased demand for tattoos, the skill that goes into many of these pieces is astonishing. Some works are so realistic that one would think that the image could either walk straight off the skin, or that one could touch the image and feel the texture so perfectly depicted.

http://emgn.com/entertainment/22-amazing-realistic-tattoos/2/

In addition to tattoos, many people take part in body piecing. Leo starts his article by declaring, “The days when body piercers could draw stares by wearing multiple earrings and a nose stud are long gone”. His statement holds more and more true as time goes by. In the nineties, it was a rarity to see a person with one visible piercing. Currently, it is fairly common practice to display a number piercings in plain sight. It is also frequent to see a vast array of studs, barbells, balls, hooks, loops, trans-dermal implants, surface piercings, as well as more complex piercings, such as the corset piercing.

http://www.piercingtime.com/belly-piercing-and-corset-piercing-for-girls/

Unlike tattoos, which often times can be perceived as poetically justified, piercings seem to embody a primitive, almost animal-like attitude (perhaps because of the existence of tribes that have been known to insert metal and other materials into their bodies in order to stretch their lips, ears, or even necks). Leo refers to piercing as “part of the broader body modification movement”. It is possible that he meant that piercings are influencing new methods of body modification.

Practices other than tattooing and piercing exist and are becoming easier and easier to both observe and obtain. Scarification is one such practice. This process originated in many tribes in Africa as well as South America, where the process was and still is a right of passage. Leo references an article in Spin magazine where one individual claims that scarification
Creates intimacy”. They go on to say that “My scars are emotional centers, signs of a life lived”.

http://www.body-modification.org/index.php?seite=cutting

Other less well-known methods of body modification include tongue splitting, tattooing of the eyeballs, branding, sharpening of the teeth, and even temporarily inserting a saline drip into the forehead to create the infamous “bagel head”.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/bagel-head-saline-injections-new-body-art-fad-article-1.1168711