Workshop 4: Know Thy Self

Workshop 4: Know Thy SelfOr once upon a timeTodays WorkshopToday we will:

Think about what makes you/us in context, by looking at where we were born

Explore cultural, geographic, national identities in socio-political terms;

Discuss this as an inventory of the self as suggested by Gramsci and Said

OutcomesBy the end of today, you should be able to:

Understand the construction of alternative histories in relation to spaces, places and theories;

Think of space and place beyond the obvious surface level;

Apply this work to an inventory/archive of yourself;

Use this inventory to feed into this weeks task (clue to be revealed at the end)

What are our normative constructions of New Zealand?

Postcolonial New Zealand Pakeha colonized for reasons of hunting and resources of natural environment (e.g. Dow Chemicals) but also in bid to stop French.

Treaty of Waitangi a document lost in translation, and not rarefied into (colonial) law.

Prior to urbanization 80% Maori rural, post-urbanization 80% urban.

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7Another Orientalism

The commodification of Otherness has been so successful because it is offered as a new delight, more intense, more satisfying than normal ways of doing and feeling. Within commodity culture, ethnicity becomes spice, seasoning that can liven up the dull dish that is mainstream white culture. (hooks 1992)8Once Were Warriors

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Pisa, Italy What could you expect to find if you travelled to a tourist paradise such as this?

Natural and artistic beauty Excellent foodGreat weather Civilised people adept at the art of good living

Or

Alternative

Facing criticism, Barilla issued an apology.With reference to statements made yesterday, I apologize if my words have generated controversy or misunderstanding, or if they have hurt the sensibilities of some people. In the interview I simply wanted to highlight the central role of the woman in the family.Stop digging?

Paolo Seganti: homophobic crime in Italy2005: Paolo Seganti is beaten to death and his body mutilated while he was gardening in a public allottment. His killer(s) were never found.

2008: 45 aggressions, 9 murders

2009: 52 aggressions, 8 murders

The starting-point of critical elaboration is the consciousness of what one really is, and is knowing thyself as a product of the historical processes to date, which has deposited in you an infinity of traces, without leaving an inventory Therefore the task at the outset, is to try to compile an inventory Gramsci, Prison Notebooks15Postcards from BelowFor this activity, you will have to stand and move quickly across the room. Please do your best to make it all go smoothly!

Statements will refer to your place of birth: based on your answer, you will have to arrange yourself.

We will repeat this process several times, so you will have to re-position yourself. Be on your toes!Go LEFTIf you were born in the UKGo RIGHTIf you were not born in the UKWhat does it mean to be a UK national? What are the privileges? What is it like to arrive in the UK? Whats strange/normal/indifferent?

Do you know how to reply when people ask where youre from?

Do you think nationalism still exists and what does it mean today?17Go LEFTIf you were born in an urban areaGo RIGHTIf you were born in a rural areaWhat has happened to traditional rural areas? What does it mean to get out? What are the social stereotypes of city types? What are the limitations/possibilities of youth in each context?18Go LEFTIf you were born in a capitalist countryGo RIGHTIf you were NOT born in a capitalist countryDo you need to be born into capitalism to understand its mechanisms? What is capitalism today, and what is non-capitalism? Do we have a global economic system?19Go LEFTIf you were born as the ethnic minorityGo RIGHTIf you were born as the ethnic majorityIn what ways does ethnicity shape our cultural, social and political expectations? Does multi-culturalism offer more than middle-class peace of mind?

According to Gilroy, there Aint no black in the Union Jack what do we understand by Britishness (or any other national identity)?20Wish you were here?Go LEFTIf where you were born would result in a postcardGo RIGHTIf where you were born would not result in a postcardHow do we define places that are considered beautiful? Does their image match their lived experience? What geographical objects result in a place being defined as beautiful/ugly? How does the socio-political context delimit this (e.g. in terms of wealth, crime, poverty, industry)

Does Coventry have postcards?! Gilroy

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SummaryUnderstanding the self and the histories that make you who you are is important to critical thinking it means we are able to position ourselves, not in a bid to be more objective, but as a way of understanding ourselves in relations of power.

By now you should be able to:

Understand the construction of alternative histories in relation to spaces, places and theories;Think of space and place beyond the obvious surface level;Apply this work to an inventory/archive of yourself.

Give us a clue!And the reading for this week!

Clue to this weeks task isIt is commonly understood that Freud's theories have been absorbed into the way we understand ourselves as people. However, what drug is Freud widely know for using?