Summary and Analysis of David Mamets Play Oleanna

Summary and Analysis of David Mamets Play Oleanna Oleanna, a powerful two-character drama by David Mamet, explores the destructiveness of miscommunication and excessive political correctness. It is a play about academic politics, student/teacher relationships, and sexual harassment. Plot Overview Carol, a female college student, privately meets with her male professor. She is concerned about failing the class. She is frustrated because she doesn’t understand the professor’s overly verbose lectures. At first, the professor (John) is callous with her, but when she explains that she feels incompetent, he expresses empathy for her. He â€Å"likes her† so he bends the rules and decides to give her an â€Å"A† if she agrees to meet with him to discuss the material, one-on-one. Act One During most of Act One, the teacher is abrupt, interruptive, and distracted by continual phone calls about real estate problems. When the student does get a chance to speak, it is difficult for her to express herself clearly. Their conversation becomes personal and sometimes upsetting. He touches her shoulder on several occasions, urging her to sit down or to remain in the office. Finally, she is about to confess something deeply personal, but the phone rings yet again and she never discloses her secret. Act Two An unknown amount of time passes (probably a few days)  and John meets with Carol again. However, it is not to discuss education or philosophy. The student has written a formal complaint about the professor’s behavior. She feels that the instructor was lewd and sexist. Also, she claims that his physical contact was a form of sexual harassment. Interestingly, Carol is now very well spoken. She criticizes him with great clarity and mounting hostility. The teacher is astounded that his previous conversation was interpreted in such an offensive way. Despite John’s protests and explanations, Carol is unwilling to believe that his intentions were good. When she decides to leave, he holds her back. She becomes scared and rushes out the door, calling for help. Act Three During their final confrontation, the professor is packing up his office. He has been fired. Perhaps because he is a glutton for punishment, he invites the student back to make sense out of why she destroyed his career. Carol has now become even more powerful. She spends much of the scene pointing out her instructor’s many flaws. She declares she is not out for revenge; instead she has been prompted by â€Å"her group† to take these measures. When it is revealed that she has filed criminal charges of battery and attempted rape, things get really ugly! (But this article won’t spoil the ending for the reader.) Who Is Right? Who Is Wrong? The genius of this play is that it stimulates discussion, even arguments. Is the professor attracted to her in Act One?Does he behave inappropriately?Does he deserve to be denied tenure?What are her motives?Is she doing this simply out of spite?Is she right to claim her professor is sexist? Or is she merely over-reacting? That’s the fun of this drama; it all about the perspective of each audience member. Ultimately, both characters are deeply flawed. Throughout the play, they rarely agree or understand each other. Carol, the Student Mamet designed her character so that most of the audience will ultimately loath Carol by Act Two. The fact that she interprets his touch on the shoulder as sexual assault shows that Carol may have some issues that she does not reveal. In the final scene, she tells the professor not to call his wife â€Å"Baby.† This is Mamet’s way of showing that Carol has truly crossed a line, prompting the enraged professor to cross a line of his own. John, the Teacher John may have good intentions in Act One. However, he doesn’t seem to be a very good or wise instructor. He spends most of his time waxing eloquently about himself and very little time actually listening. He does flaunt his academic power, and he does unintentionally demean Carol by shouting, â€Å"Sit down!† and by physically trying to urge her to stay and finish their conversation. He doesn’t realize his own capacity for aggression until it is too late. Still, many audience members believe that he is completely innocent of the charges of sexual harassment and attempted rape. Ultimately, the student possesses an underlying deviousness. The teacher, on the other hand, is overtly pompous and foolish. Together they make a very dangerous combination.

How to Use Pinterest for Your Job Search

How to Use Pinterest for Your Job Search So yes, we all know of Pinterest as the go-to place to design a wedding mood board or pin recipes to try for summer barbecues. But did you know that you can also it for your job search? On this the fastest growing social media network, you can either waste endless amounts of time pinning â€Å"shoes to buy,† or you can spend your procrastination time by making a job board for yourself. Can’t hurt, might help! Here are a few ways you could use your Pinterest to help boost your job search.1. Pin your resume.Thousands of people do this. You might even see some traffic. Better yet- make a resume Pin Board and fill it with pins that represent all the different parts of your resume highlights. Pin links to the schools you’ve attended, the companies you’ve worked for, the projects you’ve worked on. Make those text boxes work for you- write commentary as you would in your resume for each pin.2. Link it up.Your beautiful Pin Board isn’t going to do yo u much good if no one knows where to find it. Add it to your LinkedIn portfolio, your Facebook and Twitter profiles, even advertise on your Instagram. Add the link to your email signature and business cards. Just make sure there’s nothing unprofessional on your Pinterest (or make those boards private) before linking far and wide.3. Be a follower.For both inspiration and career tips, try following the greats on Pinterest as well as other platforms. CareerBliss is a great place to start, as is your college career office, if they have an account. If you’re unemployed, try the 405 Club. FlexJobs and Brazen Careerist are other great options, but you can always just type â€Å"career advice† into the search bar and see what turns up!4. Stalk potential employers.If the company or companies you want to work for have Pinterest, follow them! You can learn a lot about company culture and what may be expected of you in an interview situation by studying what they post. Re-p in their content if you like it, establishing a connection or- at minimum- making sure they see your little account name pop up every time you do.5. Build your brand.Choose images and words that support the brand you’re cultivating across other platforms. Be professional, of course, but yourself. Never underestimate what a well cultivated Pinterest board can do to show your strengths and tastes and sell you at your best.6. Get inspired.If you’re feeling bored or discouraged in your job search, you can always sift through other job seekers’ Pinterest boards for inspiration. What are some creative ways other people are using social media sites to maximize their search and build their brand? Spend 20 minutes going down the rabbit hole and see whether a better idea strikes you!