AY '06-'07 2nd Sem English10 report final draft

Juan Gabriel L. de Leon

2006-07148

Mrs. Anna F. Sanchez

English 10 MHW

Philippine Culture and Advertisements Interact With Each Other

Advertisements that people see daily in the media use Filipino culture as a means of attracting more supporters and consumers, but rarely do people notice that these advertisements have shaped and are continuously molding their ways of life as Filipinos. Filipino culture is seen through what Justine Yapyuco, a student-writer, calls “cultural symbols” – any object, event, trait or idea that have become part of a certain society’s culture and identity (2, 4).

Yapyuco’s paper on “The Link Between Advertising and Culture” presents some of these evident cultural symbols: common traits like respect for the elderly, close family ties and hospitality; events like the heavily Spanish-influenced fiestas; and, according to Wikipedia, even staple foods like sinigang, adobo, and lechon all have been part of the Filipino tradition, and are being used to promote many products like Mister Donut’s pastries and Knorr’s food additives. Yapyuco noted that “advertising works by relating a product with an idea that we can relate to,” and “the better we can relate to an advertisement the better we understand why we need the product or service being advertised” (1-2; “Philippine Culture”).

All these, of course, are made possible through the popular forms of mass media, especially in billboards, radios, TVs, periodicals and the Internet. A study conducted by the Philippines’ National Statistics Office back in 2001 reported that 1.8 percent of the general population was not exposed to any form of media (“Exposure,” par. 31). Thus one could expect that as time progresses and technology develops, this ratio will decrease significantly and would all the more give “advertisers a sturdy foundation for creating product awareness” (Yapyuco, par. 1).

However, Yapyuco’s paper also suggests another thing: that these ads, in turn, also influence one’s culture. In his own words, he states “one can see advertisements as indirectly being hosts for the spreading of culturally defining trends along with other ideas spread through mass media” (4). Advertisements usually try to tickle the interests of its audience subtly, with the promoters hoping that their audiences would make associations with their personal interests and the product they are showing off, albeit sometimes through desperate means.

A vivid example of this is a BayanTel billboard which, according to its observer, portrayed “a semi-naked woman with a “pleased expression’” coupled with the words “SATISFACTION GUARANTEE,” which gives connotations of sex, yet does not in any way associate with the supposed advertised product, the BayanTel phone service. The woman who commented on the ad even concluded that “sex sells,” therefore its usage in the ad (“Billboard”).

Another example, presented by Yapyuco, is that of “Dove’s campaign for real beauty,” noting beforehand the plethora of beauty ads in shampoo commercials and NLEX billboards, which show white and beautifully curved women models as having the ideal, desirable and perfect bodies. Dove, with their lines of “extra sexy or extra large,” conveyed the message that beauty is “a relative thing,” attacking the Filipino’s modern notion of beauty as the formerly stated (4).
Josefina M. C. Santos, a media and culture analyst, suggests that the Filipino’s overly open attitude towards advertisements is due to an increasing trend towards globalization, saying that this “so-called increasing interdependence of societies and flows in capital, products, people and ideas across national borders has accentuated a global view of societies” (par. 2).

List of Works Cited

“Culture of the Philippines.” Wikipedia. 9 Feb. 2007. GNU Free Documentation License. 11 Feb. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_Culture>.
“Exposure of Population to Mass Media.” National Statistics Office. 8 Mar. 2001. 4 Feb. 2007 <http://www.census.gov.ph/data/sectordata/fl94-expmmedia.html>.
Lardizabal-Dado, Noemi. “Bayantel Ad/Billboard: Sex in Advertising?” Touched by an Angel. 8 July 2006. 11 Feb. 2007 <http://aboutmyrecovery.com/2006/06/06/sex-in-advertising/>.
Santos, Josefina M. C. “Globalisation and tradition: Paradoxes in Philippine television and culture.” World Association for Christian Communication. 15 Feb. 2007 <http://www.wacc.org.uk/wacc/publications/media_development/archive/2001_3/globalisation_and_tradition_paradoxes_in_philippine_television_and_culture>.
Yapyuco, Justine T. “The Link Between Advertising and Culture.” Unpublished. Requirement for English 10: 2nd Semester AY 2006-2007.

AY '06-'07 2nd Sem English10 report draft

Juan Gabriel L. de Leon
2006-07148
English 10 MHW
Mrs. Anna F. Sanchez
Report [First Draft]

Philippine Culture and Advertisments Interact With Each Other

Advertisements that people see daily in the media use Filipino culture as a means of attracting more supporters and consumers, but rarely do people notice that these advertisements have shaped and are continuously shaping their ways of life as Filipinos. Filipino culture is seen through what Justine Yapyuco, a student-writer, calls “cultural symbols” – any object, event, trait or idea that have become part of a certain society’s culture and identity (2, 4).

Yapyuco’s paper on “The Link Between Advertising and Culture” presents some of these evident cultural symbols: traits like respect for the elderly, close family ties, hospitality, events like the heavily Spanish-influenced fiestas, and, according to Wikipedia, even staple foods like sinigang, adobo, and lechon all have been part of the Filipino tradition, and are being used to promote many products like Mister Donut’s pastries and Knorr’s food additives. He noted that “Advertising works by relating a product with an idea that we can relate to,” and “The better we can relate to an advertisement the better we understand why we need the product or service being advertised” (1-2; “Philippine Culture”).

All these, of course, are made possible through the popular forms of mass media, especially in billboards, radios, TVs, periodicals and the Internet. A study conducted by the Philippines’ National Statistics Office back in 2001 reported that 1.8 percent of the general population was not exposed to any form of media (“Exposure,” par. 31). Thus one could expect that as time progresses and technology develops, this ratio was expected to decrease significantly and would give “advertisers a sturdy foundation for creating product awareness” (Yapyuco, par. 1).

However, Yapyuco’s paper also suggests another thing: that these ads, in turn, also influence one’s culture. In his own words, he states “one can see advertisements as indirectly being hosts for the spreading of culturally defining trends along with other ideas spread through mass media” (4). Advertisements usually try to tickle the interests of its audience subtly, with the promoters hoping that their audiences would make associations with their personal interests and the product they are showing off, albeit sometimes through desperate means.

A vivid example of this is a BayanTel billboard which, according to its observer, portrayed “a semi-naked woman with a “pleased expression’” coupled with the words “SATISFACTION GUARANTEE,” which gives connotations of sex, yet does not in any way associate with the supposed advertised product, the BayanTel phone service. The woman who commented on the ad even concluded that “Sex sells,” therefore its usage in the ad (“Billboard”).

Another example, presented by Yapyuco, is that of “Dove’s campaign for real beauty,” noting beforehand the plethora of beauty ads in shampoo commercials and NLEX billboards, which show white and beautifully curved women models as having the ideal, desirable and perfect bodies. Dove, with their lines of “extra sexy or extra large,” conveyed the message that beauty is “a relative thing,” attacking the Filipino’s cultural mindset of beauty as the formerly stated (4).

Josefina M. C. Santos, a media and culture analyst, suggests that the Filipino’s overly open attitude towards advertisements is due to an increasing trend towards subtle assimilation, and eventually, globalization (par. 2).

List of Works Cited

“Culture of the Philippines.” Wikipedia. 9 Feb. 2007. GNU Free Documentation License. 11 Feb. 2007 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_Culture>.
“Exposure of Population to Mass Media.” National Statistics Office. 8 Mar. 2001. 4 Feb. 2007 <http://www.census.gov.ph/data/sectordata/fl94-expmmedia.html>.
Lardizabal-Dado, Noemi. “Bayantel Ad/Billboard: Sex in Advertising?” Touched by an Angel. 8 July 2006. 11 Feb. 2007 <http://aboutmyrecovery.com/2006/06/06/sex-in-advertising/>.
Santos, Josefina M. C. “Globalisation and tradition: Paradoxes in Philippine television and culture.” World Association for Christian Communication. 11 Feb. 2007 <http://www.wacc.org.uk/wacc/publications/media_development/archive/2001_3/globalisation_and_tradition_paradoxes_in_philippine_television_and_culture>.
Yapyuco, Justine T. “The Link Between Advertising and Culture.” Unpublished. Requirement for English 10: 2nd Semester AY 2006-2007.

AY '06-'07 2nd Sem Psych101 learning paper

J. Gabriel L. de Leon
2006-07148
Psychology 101 TFW-2
Prof. Jose Antonio Clemente
Paper on Learning

“Early to Bed, Early to Rise” Through Operant Conditioning?

It is really hard, waking up early, which according to many, ranges from six to half-past eight in the morning. It might sound crazy, at the least, to others – being a college student just fresh out of high school and its daily seven o’clock schemes, one should have no trouble coping with the lighter schedule college life offers. Yet, up to this day my peers wonder in amazement whenever I arrive at our tambayan one hour before my first class, which starts a half-hour before twelve noon. Not only that, but even my parents laugh hysterically every time I ask of them to wake me up early the next morning, knowing that doing that would all be for naught.

They [my parents] often point out, “Eh pano ka magigising ng maaga kung hindi ka marunong matulog ng maaga?” I could provide many reasons for that – reasons that adolescents usually make so as to get away with an excuse, like homework, tomorrow’s test and the need for cramming, while the teenager is either on the verge of confessing to his love interest thru text, creating an entry about parents for his blog, or simply logging on to Yahoo! Messenger just to see if there are friends who are making the same excuses.

All of these were fun, which makes it real hard for me to just give up on those pastimes. However, compared to my friends who don’t have a problem rising up early for class, I find it difficult to please my parents by waking up early to make them cups of coffee. The good thing, however, is that at least my parents have the nerve to consider this as one of my major concerns, and unwarily gave me an idea how to make them teach me how to wake up early…

One Wednesday morning, my father screamed from the garage, “Gabriel! Kapag di ka pa bumangon dyan hindi ko ibibigay baon at pamasahe mo!” Those were the first words that I heard for that day, and funnily, it kind of scared me a bit, me having that very strong penchant for earning and saving some bucks. A few moments later, I felt like I had that “Eureka!” moment (Finally, a skill that I can learn! *hyena-like laughter*), the same one that old philosopher also had centuries ago. One might seriously doubt the nature of early rising as a skill per se, it being common to many people, but to a person who has been called a “latecomer” half his life, he might as well consider it as such.

Now my proposal is pretty simple; it involves one mode of learning, operant conditioning. This procedure will aim to teach me how to wake up early by reinforcing the said response with a very common reinforcer – money. My definition of “early” would be any time from six to eight-thirty in the morning; the teachers would be my parents, both of them early risers by habit. If I wake up just in time (about 8:30 AM) to see that my parents are about to leave, they would give me my daily allowance. However, if I don’t, no money would be given to me for that day (negative punishment); on the other hand, if I wake up at least 30 minutes earlier than the time they usually leave the house, I get an incentive (positive reinforcement) which hopefully would make me do things that would make me wake up earlier than usual (i.e. tire myself out in order to be able to sleep earlier). Then after two weeks, my parents will evaluate my progress, if there was any; and if the results were positive, the previous time goal will be set earlier by 30 minutes, and the same procedure would be implemented again. My personal goal is to be able to wake up as early as 7 or 7:30 AM, so within one or two months’ time I would realize that waking up early would have its perks, and that I would achieve nothing if I do otherwise. (“,)