Throughout the majority of this story one can hear Gladwell’s disappointed, sarcastic tone ringing through, culminating in his final jab of “Viva la revolucion”. Gladwell is clearly far from impressed with how activism in the modern times is carried out. This is demonstrated through the obvious shift in tone that occurs just after the first couple pages. As you begin the story the author conveys a tone of pride and triumph. You applaud these brave, young people that were willing to place themselves in harm’s way in such a volatile time in our nation’s history. You cheer for them and hope to yourself that you would’ve taken part in the sit-ins if you had the chance. Then, you feel the author switch from this feeling of pride to one of critical questioning and irritation. Gladwell is trying to make the point that there has been a major shift in the way that people approach revolutions and activism these days. Though he does not deny that social media had been beneficial in many ways, he is very critical of those who believe that they are accomplishing the same weight of change that others have accomplished in the past.

Gladwell believes that the weak ties that are established over social media coupled with a lack of hierarchical structures within these groups have seriously inhibited our ability to make effective changes. Gladwell says, “Weak ties seldom lead to high-risk activism” (234). People are not really willing to commit on the level that is needed for significant change to actually occur. He claims that the only reason people participate in the causes are because nobody “asked too much of them” (235). While equal rights and the celebration of the individual are highly prevalent in our culture today, Gladwell point out obvious flaws with this system of networking contrasted with a hierarchical system. He poses the question, “How do you make difficult choices about tactics or strategy or philosophical direction when everyone has an equal say?” (236) Overall, Gladwell is trying to make the point that although social media may affect our culture in a big way, it will not and cannot move people towards  big changes due to inefficiency and  lack of meaningful relationships; not to mention there is often a lack of worthwhile causes to participate in. Gladwell sums up his disapproval in this blunt statement, “We are a long way from the lunch counters of Greensboro (235)”

Throughout Aburawa’s “Veiled Threat” Princess Hijab’s main focus is to re-humanize the men and women that are being objectified in advertisements. Most of the world perceives these models on posters and billboards as nothing more than they appear to be just a picture on a piece of paper. However, Princess Hijab saw much more than toned abs, flawless skin, and a perfect figure. She saw actual human being. Human beings that had been stripped down to nothing more than what they had to offer at face value. She saw women objectified as things that did not have feelings or opinions and ideas. Princess Hijab was greatly distressed by this de-humanization and greatly desired a way to bring the life back into these models. In “Veiled Threat: The Guerilla Graffiti of Princess Hijab” Princess Hijab says, “Like that poster of Farrah Fawcett…with her teeth clenched in fear above her perfect polyester swimsuit. When she revealed her cancer, we had to see her and her body as something capable of tragedy. It’s that sort of re-humanization that I aim for with hijabization.” I believe that this quote sums up Princess Hijab desire re-humanize and would serve as the thesis statement of article. Although Princess Hijab’s intentions can be easily misconstrued due to the secrecy that surrounds her work of hijabization, I believe that this statement clarifies her point in a very bold manner. However, I do not think that it is a very well formulated thesis statement. Her intentions could be misunderstood or maybe even found offensive due to the fact that it is about such a sensitive subject as cancer. Also, it may appear that she is implying that she wishes some sort of ill on others due to her comment about seeing tragedy in someone’s life, but in reality she is simply referring to the fact that in that picture of Farrah Fawcett one is finally able to see actual human emotion instead of the standard, pre-made looks of all the other models. This statement can be easily misinterpreted which is why it is not the most effective thesis statement, but if one take a minute to study what Princess Hijab is really about, her message will surface with clarity.

            Nathan set out to study the life of college students, and in her studies she discovered a lot about diversity and community on the college campus. She found out that the traditional definition of community is not what actually exists on the college campus. In her book “My Freshman Year” Nathan discovered that, “Community is the American University is paradoxically a private and an individual decision.” I think that this statement serves as the thesis from the chapter that we read out of her book. It is a strong thesis statement because it clearly and concisely defines how community exists on campuses in the U.S. Community can be defined as a feeling of fellowship with others due to shared beliefs, goals, or interests. However, Nathan discovered that in college, community is not a campus-wide or even hall-wide occurrence. It is much more personal to each student and usually involves those only directly in the individual social circles. This idea is clearly conveyed in the thesis, especially in emphasizing the unexpected results by calling them paradoxical. Through this statement Nathan shows the differences in community on a college campus as opposed to community in daily life.

                Commercial advertising has a significant hold on society as a whole, as well as on the individual. According to Princess Hijab in Aburawa’s “Veiled Threat”, advertising is not only influential, but has progressed to be “visual terrorism”. There is a strong connection between advertising, the objectification of women, and the desire that women have to be “normal”. Advertising has an especially strong grip over the way women view themselves and those around them. Advertisers present women in a very stereotypical way. To be considered beautiful or sexy you must be extremely thin with flawless skin and perfect hair. Women’s bodies are the focal point of most advertisements and they are always flawless. When viewing these women’s bodies you cannot see their expression, understand their emotions, or hear their opinions. Nothing matter besides how well their bodies can sell a product. In short, they are being objectified. They are no longer people, but objects that others can criticize or compliment without giving thought to the fact that they are discussing an actual human being that has insecurities, fears, and dreams just like themselves.

Since women are taught that these models are the most beautiful women to ever exist, and in fact, you cannot be beautiful unless you look exactly like them, there is a desire that is created within women everywhere to change themselves until they are the mirror image of the women in the advertisements they are subjected to everyday. However this goal is unattainable because just as Kilbourne says, “failure is inevitable because success is based on absolute flawlessness”. Women desire to be “normal”, like the models they see on television, billboards, and magazines. However, many women know that what they consider “normal” is not actually reality. Supermodel Cindy Crawford said “I wish looked like Cindy Crawford”. This goes to show that even these models admit that the way that they are presented is not true to life. Nathan points out in her book “My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student” that what society perceives as a norm is often very misconstrued from reality. Women need to come to the realization that the way that advertisers portray beauty in their commercials and advertisements is not reality, and that beauty runs deeper than the pictures of women’s bodies that are so carelessly displayed.