changing identity

You Are The Change / Temptation

tori238 20-1 A, Critical Essay, Personal Response, Response to Literature, Writing , , , , , , 0 Comment
You Are The Change / Temptation

YOU are the present, but YOU are also the future.

“I stood there, shivering from both cold and shame. They brought me to a strange place, wouldn’t let me speak my native tongue, and chopped most of my hair off. I sniffled as I thought about my mom stroking my hair as we said goodbye. She told me everything would be alright, and at the time, I believed her. That was, however, before they stripped me down to nothing, covered me in flea powder like I was a dog, and then left me there to dry. I was supposed to put my itchy clothes on without even toweling off. No matter who you are, this would’ve been terrifying. It was even more terrifying for me, an eleven year old First Nations girl. I’ve come a long way since then, but my experience at the residential school still haunts me every time I close my eyes. As if the punishments I received during my time there weren’t worse enough, I still have scars to remind me of them. These scars, however, aren’t sad for me to look at. Instead, they show me how strong I am, and remind me to fight so other kids don’t have the same experiences I did. This is what brought me here in front of you today, and why I am thrilled to be speaking before you.  Residential schools are not only discriminatory, emotionally scarring, and abusive, but they are truly inhumane. We need to put a stop to them, and YOU are the only ones who can do it. YOU are the present, but YOU are also the future. Who’s with me??”  

With tears in my eyes, I watched the audience rise to their feet, both cheering for me and cheering for change.

 

 

 

 

 

Another poem I found interesting is “Siren Song.” This song is discussing sirens and their power to draw men into the ocean to their deaths, but it has a much deeper meaning then just that . It illuminates the idea of the societal roles of both women and men. The poem portrays men as being ignorant and

helpless, and they fall victim to the fact that they think the women need help. This is due to the fact that they wish to show off how manly they are, and play the charming savior. In the olden days especially, women were seen as helpless, and the sirens used this attribute to their advantage. This poem integrated a lot of descriptive language, imagery and metaphors. For example, some of the descriptive language used in the writing piece is  “even though they see the beached skulls”, “with these two feathery maniacs,” and “to leap overboard in squadrons.” All of these quotes enhanced the poem and allowed readers to,  better visualize the image of men that the author was trying to show. I thoroughly enjoyed this poem and it really helped me develop my analysis skills as there were a multitude of hidden messages within it.

 

References:

Forbes. 2021. Planet Ocean: Why Is The Blue Economy So Important?. [online] Available at: <https://www.forbes.com/sites/esade/2021/04/15/planet-ocean-why-is-the-blue-economy-so-important/?sh=32926db77c16> [Accessed 16 December 2021].

USC News. 2021. Fear of public speaking could be solved with a virtual audience. [online] Available at: <https://news.usc.edu/137567/fear-of-public-speaking-virtual-audience-can-help/> [Accessed 16 December 2021].

Peakpointre.realtor. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://peakpointre.realtor/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/bruce.jpg> [Accessed 16 December 2021].

Personal Cave

aliyah4675 20-1 A, Personal Response, Response to Literature, Writing , , , , , , 3 Comments
Personal Cave

My eyes were tightly bound
With a cloth made of blood and steel
I knew not of freedom and love
Reliant solely on the invisible hands around me
Like a puppet-master playing with strings
And even if I spoke out
I could not
For my lips were sewed shut
With a thread spun from silken lies
I screamed myself hoarse in my mind
And eventually that too became silent
As there was nobody to listen to me
And everybody for me to listen to
I crumbled underneath the pressure
I yearned for the truth but I feared it at the same time
Could those invisible hands be my jailers
When they were supposed to be
Helpers but no I should not
And yes I should, I will
For the light burns with more fire than
Morningstar used to create the sun
But it is the light I am determined to see
And it is the truth I determined to know
The whole truth
And so I swear
Nothing but the truth

This poem is in response to one of the journal prompts from ‘Allegory of the Cave’: “Using Plato’s ‘Allegory of the Cave’ as an allusion, write your own version of the story.” In Plato’s ‘Allegory of the Cave, the philosopher uses the concept of the cave to ruminate between belief and knowledge. Specifically, the ways that belief can interfere with the perusal of true knowledge. Plato implies that for true enlightenment to be reached for all people, those who have knowledge must not only say what they know without proof. Instead, they must come to where they used to be (the dark cave) and teach that same knowledge personally to the prisoners. Meaning, only experience can start the process of enlightenment.

On many occasions, I have experienced different caves in life. Some of them have been unwittingly, some of them have been purposefully done (either by myself or others, in an attempt to showcase and track my growth as an individual), and others still that I have no doubt undergone, but currently do not have any idea of. Those sorts of caves are the ones that will take me many more life experiences and some more maturity to fully understand and accept as a stepping stone towards my growth. However, in this case, there is one particular cave that I had (and still, occasionally, do have) that I feel that’s important to talk about. That cave is a blind belief in authority.

You might chalk it up to filial piety or familial obligation, whichever one fits better for your own personal use and experience. You might also think of it as a side effect, of sorts, as a result of the societal norms that I’ve gotten up in. Either, it is one that exists nonetheless. I grew up — I am growing up — in a culture and time where respect to authority and elders is heavily put on my shoulders. 

Perhaps it might not be the same if I was born in another time period (it is likely my experiences would be wildly varied), but this is my opinion as I see it. In terms of authority, it might be considerably far off, in a distant land like a government official. Someone I do not know but know enough to give respect to, respect to a higher position and rank. Most of the time, however, these figures of authority are close by. The teachers and guardians, my parents, adults that have direct interference in my day-to-day life.

The cave, of itself, is not the issue of respect. Humans deserve respect, and I am human and they are human. It is simple in that regard. The cave is blind obedience and belief. Dangerous things come out of blind obedience. It’s a recurring theme throughout history; it is good to obey the laws, but it is better still to challenge them. Not too long ago, obeying laws included slavery and racial segregation. But they were still the laws. They weren’t meant to be respected and obeyed. But just because they were laws, does not mean they were right. And I feel like that’s something highly important to remember.

Throughout our entire lives, we are constantly told to respect authority without question. Your teachers know better than you. (In many aspects, perhaps not all). Your parents want what’s best for you. (That may be true, but what if their wants for you aren’t what you want, and thus, what will make you the best person that you can be?) Politicians know what they’re doing. (Let’s… not even get into that. There’s a reason why a democracy is one of the best governments in the world).

I’ve had my fair share of issues that came from blindly respecting authority. An example would be when I was in 2nd grade. For some reason, my teacher didn’t like me. I couldn’t comprehend why it was. Had I done something wrong? Not as far as I knew. But my teacher would push me apart, single me out in front of the class for the strangest of reasons. I had an untidy desk. 80% of my entire class had an untidy desk. We were a group of 7-and-8-year-olds; what did they expect? My teacher wouldn’t take the time to explain things to me, and disliked it when I went up and asked questions directly.

As a result of my blind belief in authority, I automatically thought that whatever it was that I had done was my fault. It took me 7 years, and a series of pointed remarks in my earshot, as well as the careful explanations from my mother and the books I had read, to realize that it wasn’t my fault. My teacher didn’t like me because of the colour of my skin. Was it fair? Absolutely not. But it was still something I couldn’t understand. My teacher was supposed to be fair and understanding and have all those other teacher-like qualities. I was supposed to trust my teacher with my education and my learning. Anything else was supposed to be my fault. It wasn’t, and that’s when I first realized that firstly, some people are prejudiced for no reason. Secondly, the world wasn’t as black and white as I thought it was supposed to be.

I’m not saying that obeying authority is a bad thing. Quite the opposite. As Socrates said, “Without rules we are nothing but animals.” That quote has its own issues, but it works well enough for this purpose. And this purpose isn’t to get into a philosophical and moral explanation on societal rules and the ways people change over time. The point is, it is not bad to obey. It is unwise to obey without question. Especially when you consider that it is in human nature to be highly reluctant towards admitting mistakes. Without the knowledge of our mistakes, history repeats itself, and we’ve seen the various, devastating ways that history repeats itself.