Mona Lisa Smile

I saw the film Mona Lisa Smile last month.  I found it very enjoyable and it also helped me to understand Lowell’s history.  This was one of the many movies shown to go along with this year’s common text.  It was shown in O’Leary Library in a small auditorium.  I came to this without any knowledge of what the film was about.  I heard that Julia Roberts was in this movie, so I figured it would be good, and I was right.  It took me quite a long time to realize this, but this film had a lot of significance to the history of UMass Lowell.

The film takes place in the 1950’s.  Julia Roberts’ character, Katherine Watson, comes from California to a conservative school in Wellesley to teach at an all girls school.  She came to this school with new ideas that were completely unheard of.  Because of this, Katherine had to overcome many problems with both her students and her colleagues.  On her first day of teaching, her students had planned to memorize the syllabus and all of the ancient paintings she planned to show the class. She came to Wellesley College with completely new and modernized teaching methods that were not at all approved of.  Katherine continuously tries to teach her students to be more independent.  All of the women are stuck in this conservative mindset and Katherine does everything she can to free them from it. The school focuses on the correct way for women to behave.  They are required to attend classes on grooming and table setting.  She was hired as an art history teacher, but instead, she shows the girls modern art pieces that are like nothing they have ever seen.  When she began teaching, she got no respect from her students, but she did not let that stop her or her mission to change these girls. 

The school had always taught their students that becoming a housewife and a mother is far more important than pursuing a career.  They expected these women to forget about all that they had worked so hard for, and live their life how every woman should, with a family.  This made me sad because there were many women in this film who were very passionate about their studies, but everything they had ever known told them to quit.  One student, Joan, had always wanted to be a lawyer.  She never mentioned her dreams to anyone because they were so far from the norms of society.  Joan had a fiancé from Harvard; she thought that was her only future.  She became very close with Katherine, who instanttly realized Joan’s desire to become a lawyer.  Without telling her, Katherine applied Joan to Yale and she got accepted.  This was such an unusual opportunity for women in the 1950’s and if it were not for Katherine, Joan would not be able to pursue her dreams as a lawyer.

I cannot imagine living as a woman in this time period.  It seems so unfair that women’s futures were so limited.  If I were a student at Wellesley College, I would feel so grateful to have a professor like Katherine to show me that there is so much more to life.  She showed her students that they could live out their dreams and have the career that they longed for, and also have a husband and family. 

Katherine was able to overcome the adversity that was so present at Wellesley College, and she helped her students to do so, too.  Katherine stood up for her beliefs, even though she was risking her job, and I find that to be very inspiring.

            Mona Lisa Smile can be compared to Marie Frank’s University of Massachusetts Lowell, our common text for this year.  In this very same time period, women were studying in Lowell and facing the same exact struggles.  There was a two-year teaching college in Lowell for only women.  The only profession seen appropriate for women was teaching.  This school prepared women to become teachers, although most of them eventually put aside these studies to become housewives and mothers.  It is so hard for me to fathom living in a society such as this.  I do not think I would get along in a time where women were not treated equal to men and had certain roles that they were expected to fulfill.  This being said, I am so thankful for the progression that has been made in society, making it possible for me, and all women, to strive for greatness.

Open Response 1: UML Hockey

Sports have always held a special place in my heart.  I grew up in a family that loved sports, too.  Ice hockey has always been my favorite sport, and I think it always will be.  Every winter my father builds an ice rink in our back yard.  Some of my favorite memories have happened when we were all together on the rink just having fun, and doing what we love. What I love most about sporting events is the atmosphere.  At my high school, the student fan section referred to themselves as “Wamp Nation”.  This brought about a sense of pride and unity within all of the students.  Everyone went to every game, no questions asked.  We loved it.  During playoffs, our girls basketball team played at The Boston Garden.  Our fan section was unbelievable that night; we even made the news for it!  Going to these sporting events is what made high school so much fun and so memorable.  But all that time, I had no idea that I would eventually become a part of an even greater fan section.

On Friday October 10^th my friends and I attended the season opener against Sacred Heart University for the UML hockey team.  I was excited to see the team play, especially after how well they did last season.  I walked into the Tsongas Arena having no idea what to expect.  I had only been in the arena once before, and that was for Convocation.  The arena looked nothing like it had before; it was packed with thousands of excited and energized fans all dressed in blue in red. We arrived a half an hour early and it was still difficult to find seats.

This event lifted everyone’s spirits.  Everywhere you looked you saw friendly faces that were so happy to be at the game.  There was a real sense of community amongst everyone in The Tsongas Arena, and I found that to be very special.  There was music blaring through the speakers, getting the fans roweled up.  All different clubs and sports teams came together to support the hockey team.  There was tables set up all over the arena for activities to do during the game.  This gave the arena such a welcoming vibe.

The music got louder.  It was time for the Riverhawks to come onto the ice.  All of the stands stood up in unison, it was like a mass of blue moving about the arena.  We went wild when they announced the player’s names.  That night was especially important, and not just because it was their season opener. Banners that marked this teams incredible accomplishments would be raised in the arena for everyone to see.

Last year, our hockey team did things that nobody thought they could do.  They defied all odds and showed everyone how good they could really be.  They were Hockey East Champions and made it into the Frozen Four.  These were both huge successes and I had the honor of seeing the ceremony that celebrated each of them.  The ceremony was unlike anything that I had ever seen.  As the banners were uncovered, fireworks and explosions went off on the ice.  Cheering echoed throughout the arena.  Chills ran down my back as I looked at the line of players standing on the ice.  These players and their outstanding accomplishments had such an impact on the University and the city of Lowell.  It gave this town something to cheer for, as well as the university.  This team’s hard work and dedication was able to better this school’s reputation in so many ways.  The raising of these banners made me proud to be a Riverhawk.

The fans were chanting cheers the entire game.  Between periods a UML Riverhawk blimp came flying above us.  Everyone went wild as they screamed in confusion.  This blimp added to the excitement as it soared through the arena.  Everyone, even those people who were not particularly hockey fan, were so unbelievably engaged in the game.  There were moment of anxiety and moments of pure excitement.  For the first time, sitting in the fan section, I felt like a Riverhawk and I could not have been more proud.  Unfortunately, the Riverhawks lost to Sacred Heart that day.  Nobody let this loss dampen their spirits.  After this great experience, I am looking forward to a season full of UML hockey games!