Crichton. Michael Crichton. After reading State of Fear, I don't think I'll be able to look at global warming the same again.
It's not because I think Crichton was a totally trustworthy source on the topic, though he knew much about it. But the book opened up discussion for us, the discussion about credibility and just where all of this shit comes from. This actually was one of the themes for our class...semantic contagion, black boxes, money... Now that we all have these terms to put on these cultural devices, it is easier to pick them out when they are happening. Instead of making the world more clear, however, it is as though we just put a name to all that complexity and ambiguity, so now we know how big it really is. That is something we talked about on the last day of class - how unsure of the world so many of us now are. Even before I came to this class, I was a person who hesitated to hold a firm position on some issues, just because I knew there was no way that I could possibly understand the complexity of them, and therefore would not be able to back my opinions up. This isn't to say that I don't have opinions, it's just that I am very careful. And now...Fie, fie!
The difference is that now I understand a little better what questions I need to be asking, most of which would be directed at the motives of any involved parties. Another reading that stood out to me this semester was the Carl Elliot piece about ADHD. It wasn't just about ADHD, though, it was about our capitalist consumer society in general. I found what he said to be disturbing, not just because what he said was gross to me but because the echo it threw around in my head was familiar - thoughts I had but had not quite thought. So much of American culture and so many of its movements in the last sixty years or so have gone hand-in-hand with consuming. Marketing to sell goods. Female equality increased cigarette sales. ADHD. Marking our identity by our jeans. The green revolution. Global warming...
Tough stuff. A bit disillusioning, but it's good for ya, right?
Part of the fun of not knowing or being able to really take a position on a topic is that you can take any position on a topic. But as you mention in the second part a lot of these topics we've dealt with are about american culture. So maybe rather then taking a position on a topic create an opinion to influence the culture that you may or may not like. It is your reality, do with it as you will.
ReplyDeleteenjoy your summer,
Charles
I agree with what you're saying. Before Crichton and our class discussions on the topic left me questioning more and more about what we're told about certain issues. It being that I researched Scare Tactics and misinformation revolving around global warming, a lot of the findings and discussions were kind of eye-opening for me. It's hard to take a side when you can't even be sure about either side to begin with.
ReplyDeleteOh, and about the capitalist society: ending the cycle starts with you, us, everyone, the consumers. At least, that's my belief. It may be hard to deal with but we can at least try to do something about it.
Cheers, it was a pleasure this semester to share this class with you (and everyone else)
Megan