Gossamer: Noun
Definition: a very light or delicate material
In the essay ” The Brooklyn Bridge the author uses this word to describe the Brooklyn Bridge. ” The Brooklyn Bridge is more endearing… like granite and gossamer.”
Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/analogy?show=0&t=1387250842
Now that I know the meaning of this word I understand the author was referring to the bridge as a place that is strong but at the same time very delicate.
Dissonance: Noun
Definition: lack of agreement; especially : inconsistency between the beliefs one holds or between one’s actions and one’s beliefs
In the essay “The Brooklyn Bridge” by Philip Lopate, the author stated ” It was this very dissonance of sleek steel and old fashioned granite that annoyed Montgomery Schuyler…”
Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/analogy?show=0&t=1387250842
Now that understand the word I know it meant that this disagreement was the cause that Montgomery Schuyler became annoyed.
Aesthetics: Adjective
Definition: of or relating to art or beauty
Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aesthetics?show=0&t=1385186698
In the reading ” The Brooklyn Bridge” by Philip Lopate, the author expresses his feelings towards the bridge by saying ” Aesthetics and tradition both came to the rescue.”
Now that I understand that word I know it meant that the bridge was both tradition and beauty to him.
There are many beautiful places in New York City. When we mention New York City the first thought people have is Manhattan. You should know that aside from the City, New York City has a lot of interesting things and places in all 5 boroughs. One of the most interesting boroughs is Brooklyn. Brooklyn is filled with a lot of historic places. One of them is Fulton Ferry Landing. This was one of the first ferry services between Brooklyn and Manhattan in 1642. The restore pier was re-opened in 1997, This Ferry Landing offering visitors spectacular views of the harbor, Brooklyn Bridge and the Lower Manhattan skyline[1].
As I was walking around the neighborhood of City Tech I came up with this beautiful place where I was able to watch the Brooklyn Bridge and also a splendid view into Manhattan. To get to this place was very simple. When getting out of the main entrance of the Namm Building turn left and go straight staying in Jay Street. Then you make a left going to Prospect Street. Lastly turn right to Cadman Plaza. From there you keep on walking straight and you get to Fulton Ferry Landing. This place is very comfortable because you can just sit there and explore everything that is around you there are little chairs for you to make your experience even more amazing because you can just sit there and observe.
When I got to my point it was impressive how beautiful the view was. You can see all of Manhattan even the Statue of Liberty. The buildings were huge! The image I got to capture is good but you can capture the juxtaposition. To admire its location you got to capture a larger image like I did. For example, by taking the picture in this point of view you are able to appreciate the contrast it has, You are able to see the left side of the Brooklyn bridge that there are a variety of unique buildings with a impressive architecture and in its right side of the bridge there’s buildings that look all the same and aren’t as big as the ones you see in the right left side. As you can see they also look old compared to the other buildings that are in the left side of the
bridge. Thus, in this case I think it did capture its juxtaposition even though it would be better to see this location in person to understand and see its juxtaposition more clearly.
I decided to pick the Fulton Ferry Landing as my topic because I find it fascinating how a place that was so important in history is still with us today. When I see this place I instantly imagine thousands of people traveling from Manhattan to Brooklyn or vice verse through this ferry landing to go to a important event in history.
“One day the city we built will be gone, and when it goes, we go.” This quote is from “City Limits”[2]. Through out this project we are learning about new places that exist in New York. there’s going to be a time were this places are going to change to new places that would be way different than what we saw the first time we looked at it and that’s when the place we knew will be gone. That’s why we should appreciate when the place we picked is still here because when is gone it would be like if a part of our life was erased.
“You start building your New York, once you lay eyes on it”[3]. This quote is also from “City Limits” it relates to my writing because I think that when I first saw Fulton Ferry Landing that was the starting point of my interest towards Fulton Ferry. Now I know this place and it became part of my life because is a memory of something new to me. Thus, the moment I first saw this place is going to stay in my memory regardless of any changes it makes in the future.
As a next step I would like to know more about the Ferry Landings history. For example, how many people were allowed to go on each ferry. Also if there was any discrimination on who was able to ride on the ferries. There’s so much that I would like to know about my location and is surroundings that am going to continue doing research about this to have more knowledge about the place I picked and become more fascinated with the things I find out that make this place even more special.
There are many historic places all over New York City. I never would have thought that Brooklyn would have as many historic places as I came to know now by enrolling to City Tech. Maybe because only few people have the time to really get know Brooklyn and explore its wonders. Thus, personally I am pretty impressed with the beauties the borough of Brooklyn has to share, especially Fulton Ferry Landing. This project helped me appreciate and examine thoroughly the history of the Fulton Ferry Landing. Therefore, now every time I visit this place am going to enjoy being there more than before because now I know perfectly were I am standing which brings me a whole lot of comfort and happiness to my system.
Citations
[1] Granger, Russel. “Fulton Landing, 1850s.” White Mans Brooklyn . 2010 n. page. Web. 15 Oct. 2013. <http://www.whitmans-brooklyn.org/2008/06/fulton-landing-1855/>.
[2] Whitehead, Colson. “City Limits.” The Colossus of New York: A City in Thirteen Parts. New York: Random House, 2004. 1-12.
[3] Whitehead, Colson. “City Limits.” The Colossus of New York: A City in Thirteen Parts. New York: Random House, 2004. 1-12.
The location I chose is the Brooklyn Bridge. Its just a few blocks away from City Tech. Its very beautiful and taking a walk on the bridge would be a dream come true. I always heard how Brooklyn Bridge is really a place to go and see and when I found out my college is next to it I was really excited. It was opened for use on May 24, 1883 and is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. That’s what I find fascinating about it. The view of the East River and The Statue of Liberty also makes it want to go there.
“You start building your private New York the first time you lay eyes on it”. I chose this quote because even though I was born here there are many places in New York that I have not seen yet and many places are still a dream come true. Brooklyn Bridge was one of it and when I saw it made me happy and to think how beautiful New York is.
“Maybe we become New Yorkers the day we realize that New York will go on without us”. I chose this quote because when we come to New York it takes time getting around and knowing it well. As time passes by many things change. The day you see that even without you New York will go on is the day you are a New Yorker because you know how the city is changing day by day.
On Monday our class went to a small field trip to know and learn of many places including the BHS. While we walked we came upon a really big court house. Prof. Rosen explained to us that that court house was once a big movie theatre but sadly it burned out. We learned that there were only 2 main exits thus, the people couldn’t get out on time. There we about 300 bodies found the next day! Then we crossed the street and saw a statue of Henry Ward Beecher. He looked so brave and with his eyes straight forward like if he was someone very important. there were Also kids trying to reach out to him like if he was their only hope. That’s when prof. Rosen explained to use that he was a very important preacher who use to help slaves. He received a lot of hate from people for trying to help slaves but many people use to cross on boats from Manhattan to Brooklyn just to listen to him. We also saw one of the church that he used to preach at. We also walked up to the edge of Brooklyn were we observed from across all of Manhattan. We was even able to see the Statue of Liberty. Lastly, we visited the BHS. it was very pretty and historic. There were heads of very important people surrounding the building. When we went to their library it was quite unique. Gladly I got to see these things in person not only through pictures. Its always better to see things in person that can see many more details that in a picture is not visible.
My walk towards the Brooklyn Historical Society was a good experience, I enjoyed the walk and learned about several places and people. I had the opportunity to go inside the Brooklyn Historical Society and the inside looks nothing like the outside, the inside is a totally different place. While we were there we learned about several people. One thing that got my attention and left me thinking was a sculpture that they had of a girl named pinky. At first I thought it was a simple sculpture , but then they pointed out we had to also observe the details and we noticed there were poison leaves surrounding her. That small but important detail was interesting, she looked like an innocent slave, and then I learned that – that kind of leave was surrounding her made me think of her as a girl that no one wanted to mess with. Later they explained it was a symbol of the topic of women rights and that no one wanted to touch upon that topic. Another thing that was great to learn was the obsession in taking care of the historic books they have in there. They have several rules, and many might think their not that important but in all honestly those rules are a crucial part in keeping those books in a good condition. The place has so much wooden detail and sculpture wise as well. Over all the place was a great experience and left me wondering what other things there are to learn about.
In the memoir Forte Greene Dreams, music and cultural critic, journalist, and filmmaker Nelson George speaks about his experience of moving from Queens to Forte Greene. Immediately George pointed out the differences between his old and new apartment. The contrast between two was so great he mentioned that his upstairs was so spacious that you can fit his whole Queens apartment up there. The only reason he was able to afford the place was because of the crime that surrounded the neighborhood. During his seventeen years at 19 Willoughby he wrote five books, one was his breakthrough work The Death of Rhythm and Blues.
When walking out to pick up some soul food from a basement spot on Dekalb, George mentioned all the creative energy he adored in his neighborhood. He mentioned people like filmmaker/actor Spike Lee, and many other artists of different types. Despite all the inspiration the neighborhood still had its crime. He noted the only time he was robbed was when he mistakenly left his door unlocked. The thief took his VCR, but most of all his satin Soul Train jacket with his name embossed on the label; he says that still bothers him till this day.
While living in Forte Greene George learned what kind of what kind of writer he was. He wasn’t just a inspiration he realized that he was mentor and a teacher. Later he became a hands on mentor collaborating with younger artists and critiquing screen plays, essays, or recordings. At the end he tells us his important life lesson to not to measure yourself by sudden success or rapid failure but by the body of your work.
Being in Brooklyn is a collaboration of two courses, Prof. Justin Davis’s Effective Speaking and Prof. Jody R. Rosen’s English Composition, as part of the First-Year Learning Communities program. It will be taught in the Fall 2013 semester, but draws from previous Learning Community collaborations entitled “Telling Brooklyn Stories,” from Fall 2011 and Fall 2012. This learning community considers Brooklyn, communication, and location as topics for study.
Brooklyn is a collection of neighborhoods and location, a microcosm of the world. This semester our Being in Brooklyn Learning Community will explore Brooklyn through archives at the Brooklyn Historical Society and library research, integrating our own experiences in the City Tech vicinity. Our goal is to communicate effectively, through reading and writing and listening and speaking, what it means to exist in Brooklyn. We will use a variety of approaches including spoken and written assignments that employ interactive technologies including City Tech’s OpenLab digital platform as well as YouTube and Google Maps. These assignments will create a digital archive of life in Brooklyn that will be available to explore in the future.
This Learning Community will provide students with a foundation in effective spoken and written communication. By exploring the relationship between place and identity, this first-year experience encourages students to locate themselves both within our Learning Community as well as the larger City Tech community.
The OpenLab is an open-source, digital platform designed to support teaching and learning at City Tech (New York City College of Technology), and to promote student and faculty engagement in the intellectual and social life of the college community.
