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MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2013
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
PAGE17
Documentaries to complement study breaks
Finals are finally here and I am sure I am not the only one stressing out. Unfortunately, the best way for me to de-stress is to watch a movie and just take some time to relax. However, when I do that, I suddenly feel guilty for wasting time. Therefore, I have made a handy list of documentaries to watch, dependent on your major, so that way, when watching the documentary you can feel like you are at least learning a little something while taking the much needed break. Obviously, I cannot add every major here, but these are also documentaries that I would argue everyone should see. So, check them out fellow procrastinators.
EDUCATION: "Bully"
This particular documentary focuses on the story of five families struggling with the harms of bullies during their time at school. Fair warning, it is a very difficult documentary to watch. However, as most future teachers will probably tell you, it is just as important for the future educators not only to know the information of their subject, but also how to make a positive impact on young students.
ENGLISH: "Salinger"
"Salinger" was met with mixed reviews from critics, mostly because the film seemed to not add anything new to the story of Mr. Salinger and instead focused on sensationalizing his personal life. However, Salinger was one of the most influential writers of all time, and it is quite interesting to see exactly where his stories came from and how his writing affected those around him.
PSYCHOLOGY: "The Imposter"
While this might be a bit of a stretch for psychology majors, I will say personally that I
found this documentary insanely interesting. Although, I will say, if you watch the film while also trying to figure out the subject and why he did what he did (spoiler alert: he impersonated over 500 missing children), it would probably just make it only more intriguing.
FILM: "This Film is Not Yet Rated"
A brief history of the MPAA and the major players in the rating game doesn't sound interesting, but this documentary has become one of my favorite films of all time. It's cool to see how the ratings not only reflect the time period the films come out, but also society's attitudes toward film.
Based off the popular book, "Freakonomics" uses statistics and other economic concepts to explain things that happen in our society at large. Not only does it go over interesting things that have made an impact in our society, but it also shows just how interesting economics and economic theory can be, as long as you put into perspective.
Edited by Lauren Armendariz
ECONOMICS:"Freakonomics"
MAGNOLIA PICTURES
Next year's Common Book will hit close to home — literally.
"The Center of Everything," by University professor Laura Moriarty, set in the fictional town of Kerrville, Kan., during the 1980s, has been selected as the 2014-2015 Common Book.
"It's the first time that we've chosen a book that was written by a professor here at KU," said Howard Graham from the Office of First-Year Experience. "That lends itself to the community aspect of the goal in a really unique way."
Incoming first-year and
The novel, the first fictional Common Book, is a coming-of-age story. It deals with poverty, religion, evolution, role models, family and Reagan-era politics, following the fictional character Evelyn Bucknow from 10 years old until going off to college.
"It's not exactly a high-concept plot," Laura Moriarty said. "The readers who like it tend to like it for the narrator's voice and the characters and the ideas."
receive a copy, Graham said this builds a community and creates a shared academic experience that helps students transition into college.
Moriarty is an English
The University Daily Kansan:
What should KU students who read "The Center of Everything" take away from it?
Laura Moriarty: I would never want to tell a reader what he or she should take away from my book. But for me, the novel is very much about a girl who, at least when she's young, clings to black-and-white thinking as a survival skill. That kind of thinking does serve her for a while, when her circumstances are pretty desperate. But as she gets older, new experiences encourage her to consider a
degrees at the University
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
Laura Moriarty, a University english professor, shares her book, "The Center of Everything," which has been selected as next year's Common Book. The book is set in the fictional small Kansas town during the 1980s.
SEE BOOK PAGE 9A
Index
CLASSIFIEDS 2B
CROSSWORD 5A
CRYPTOQUIPS 5A
OPINION 4A
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2014 The University Daily Kansan
SPORTS 1B
SUDOKU 5A
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