Philosophy:
In Unit 1.2, whether or not anything is real was questioned. Following, in Unit 1.5, the notion that we only see what is shown to us is highlighted. In 1.7, we questioned the validity of “Bullshit.” All of this is represented in “After Truth” as we explore the effects of fake news in society. More specifically, distinguishing between fact and fiction– a concept that we have been exposed to as early as Kindergarten. Where did we begin to lose sight of what is real and fake?
This documentary was a representation of how powerful conspiracy theories truly are in developing minds in society. It has me questioning the validity of Covid-related information that is being spread around the internet. Who can we trust if all of the media is monitored by imperfect beings? If you type in a random number along with the phrase “covid cases,” a news article pops up with that specific number. I tested this out a couple times, putting different numbers each time with the similar effect. Are news sites “making up” these numbers? How can I distinguish between real and fake without completely emerging myself into the field? These conspiracy theories emerge because society will do anything to fit the pieces together, whether it is true or false.
“After Truth” further showed that politics is a game and we are all players– some with more “strength” than others. Fake news is effective in driving a story but it is morally correct to fight fake news with more fake news? The mentality of “if others are doing it, then I will too” has driven a lot of sources to be corrupt and unreliable.
Black Bodies:
“Venus in Two Acts” closely resembles the thought process of a writer who is conflicted with creating an accurate representation of a lost story. The transfer of recounting this experience into cohesive sentences that do Venus justice is a hard task. The Black Venus has become an idea that is truly understood by those who can relate to it. We know so little of these stories, and the archives are dedicated to true accounts of history. How can Hartman combat this while representing Venus with awareness? Generating this narrative is a tough call to make on Hartman’s part (as explained throughout “Venus in Two Acts”) but without an effort, these stories would only be passed on verbally.
Dance:
Discuss the Undiscussable
What I saw:
Life, death, and every emotion in between. These people used their bodies as a vessel to carry an emotional spectrum in Still/Here. I watched as Bill. T. Jones planted a direction in the heads of the people attending his workshop yet the raw emotions of each individual was truly personal. I saw as the once group of strangers found a level of comfort in one another as they exposed their bodies to these raw emotions. As Jones asked this group to express themselves through movement and speech, he drove them to be in touch with their emotions, which was shared within the group of strangers.
Jones uses these emotional bodies to create a show, enhancing the vitality of life, death, sickness, and health.
Poetic Description
Diversity, unity, complexity
I see the people around me
And I know they see me too
One story aligns with another,
And creates a familiar connection
They see me, I see them
Sadness, remorse, death
We share these traits
Mere humans in a mortal realm
The inevitable has become unpredictable
We now ask the question: When?
What I felt
All I could think of was how brave these individuals are. To be so exposed to a group of strangers and create a sense belonging and establish a comfortable environment is no easy task. This is something that I am not accustomed to, especially through virtual learning and hiding emotions behind masks. In addition, the shear amount of pain that one individual felt, amplified by the pain that the others felt, was truly overwhelming and almost impossible to comprehend. As a teenager about to enter adulthood, we are ignorant to the world around us. Personally, I do not know the gravity of pain and suffering that comes with sickness and death. To see a secondhand account of the emotional impact of these traumatic events is a lot to take in.
History:
This reading expands on the U.S.-Mexican border as a physical means of separation with historical undertones that shape the modern climate of this separation. Focuses on the patterns of immigration, violence, integration, and societal dynamic through personal stories in history enhanced by poetry and symbolism. This forced immigration created generations of mestizaje, or “mixed” races due to interracial reproduction. It is important to notice the silenced and repressed narratives of those who lost and consider how and why historical accounts are very eurocentric. “The Gringo, locked into the fiction of white superiority, seized complete political power, stripping Indians and Mexicans of their land while their feet were still rooted in it.” These people were disproportionately “separated from our [their] identity and our [their] history.” Taking into consideration the marginalization of the already disadvantageous peoples, it is important to notice an unbiased account of the people on the other side of the border, no matter how unsettling the narrative is.
Religion:
Baader Meinhof
-Is there a justification for violence? Murder? How did the RAF justify their actions?
-Taking a more passive vs an aggressive approach when protesting and an organization attempting to try to get a point across.
-Violent but not murdering…?
-In the case of war, in the case of the RAF they were fighting imperialism and lasting oppression (which is very different from the Vietnam war)
-Rhetorical parallels in those who are facilitating the war vs those who are propogating genocide
-Who decides who lives and dies? → tying to eugenics: sterilizing to prevent MORE poverty but who gets to decide that? Playing God? Who (or what) puts value on life? Aggressive self defense…
-Would you sacrifice yourself to save another person?
-Murdering one’s enemies is the way to promote political vision
-Frustration in entitlement, frustration in privilege, frustration with power (Jordan concentration camps)
-Distinguishing the contrast between people under the influence of colonialism (and their sense of self in fighting colonial rule) vs the motives of the RAF
