Wednesday, February 18, 2009
a condensed response to malcolm cowley's exile's return
i do not want to be an exile returning. i want to live in a literary group, one that is not without purpose and indifferent to society and the outcome of our nation. i am tired of being surrounded by smart lazy people. i need movers and shakers. i need people who are fearless and daring and rebellious with a revolution in mind. people who will not commit intellectual and artistic suicide. who know things that matter. that care about things other than obscurity. i am angry and lost in any other crowd.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
My very first in-depth radio broadast
A Pragmatic View of America
My Pragmatic America
1.23.09
I have toyed for some time with this idea of "America". I consider myself a member of the diaspora once removed. So naturally, I am compelled with this land, it's ideals, policies, and culture. I've come to think of America not as a place limited by geography, or a political power divided in two, but as an abstraction measured by its inhabitants. A moniker that, without conscious effort each person subscribes to. In a sense, this abstraction dismantles the typical social construct of a pure, homogenous, virginal, "white" America. Not because this outdated notion is wrong or sinful, but because it is inaccurate. Constant images in the media and even at times my own personal view of America are limited to this perspective. It is a falsity that must be corrected. While outside forces may sway us to believe otherwise, we must not be fooled. America is too precious a nation to not celebrate our diversity. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, non-whites compose roughly 25% of the population (2006). America grows in diversity while what we consider to be "American" stagnates.
It was recently brought to my attention the highly influential philosophy of Pragmatists. I do believe the time is ripe for reflection of such a theory. The meaning of words, according to Pragmatists, are social constructs. In other words, words have meaning because we give them meaning. These words are reliant upon society's collective agreement. An individual's conclusion of what a word should mean or what a word means to that individual holds no merit against what the collective conscious deems the meaning behind a word. The meaning behind America is a socially-constructed moniker. It is as abstract as "justice" or "freedom." While these words hold value in our society, they are not inflexible. Freedom, for example can hold multiple truths. While it is widely accepted that America is definitively diverse both though its land and its people, the word itself often does not conjure anything more than the white America aforementioned. America is a cultural phenomenon neglected of the meaning it deserves.
Think of America as though it is under infinite construction. The different quantifiable trends including political, intellectual, consumer, etc. can be measured and correlated to the current state of the nation. These measurements tell us about America, but do not define it. .This is in one way that we can better understand the phenomena, because there is no concrete definition of America. Even an American maxim as ubiquitous as the beginning words to the Declaration of Independence has a progressive meaning that we are constantly measuring against society: "We hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal." If the truth is such, who is "men" and what constitutes "equal". The application of these words have changed as America has changed. The socially constructed truth once held in this statement is temporary because they are continually challenged, as many socially-constructed truths are.
If we are to apply Pragmatism to a social philosophy, then the concept of "right" or "good" must be consistent with the other "goods" observable in society. What is observable the diverse American population. Another truth currently subscribed to is that all citizens are equal. Thus, the meaning of America must encompass all diversity, all people. Based on this basic socially constructed truth, no one is exempt from the title. We are all entitled to America, to be American. This is why a conscious effort must be taken to alter the broad ideal of America as a pasteurized, sterilized, homogenous, purely white state. We must force ourselves to see America as it is and what it has become.
Pragmatism references the consequences of an action rather than the inferred essence to determine if a concept is sound. To ignore the true state of the nation -- the diversity within -- and continue on the path of obsoleteness would be not only to neglect citizens deserving to be measured as an American, but also to become the nemesis. To exclude the former from "America" is to be un-American. Just as the bigot takes place of the oppressor, so too does America collapse into that which it stands against. It is not only the practical decision, but the necessary one to expand the notion of America to properly fit the current state of the nation.
1.23.09
I have toyed for some time with this idea of "America". I consider myself a member of the diaspora once removed. So naturally, I am compelled with this land, it's ideals, policies, and culture. I've come to think of America not as a place limited by geography, or a political power divided in two, but as an abstraction measured by its inhabitants. A moniker that, without conscious effort each person subscribes to. In a sense, this abstraction dismantles the typical social construct of a pure, homogenous, virginal, "white" America. Not because this outdated notion is wrong or sinful, but because it is inaccurate. Constant images in the media and even at times my own personal view of America are limited to this perspective. It is a falsity that must be corrected. While outside forces may sway us to believe otherwise, we must not be fooled. America is too precious a nation to not celebrate our diversity. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, non-whites compose roughly 25% of the population (2006). America grows in diversity while what we consider to be "American" stagnates.
It was recently brought to my attention the highly influential philosophy of Pragmatists. I do believe the time is ripe for reflection of such a theory. The meaning of words, according to Pragmatists, are social constructs. In other words, words have meaning because we give them meaning. These words are reliant upon society's collective agreement. An individual's conclusion of what a word should mean or what a word means to that individual holds no merit against what the collective conscious deems the meaning behind a word. The meaning behind America is a socially-constructed moniker. It is as abstract as "justice" or "freedom." While these words hold value in our society, they are not inflexible. Freedom, for example can hold multiple truths. While it is widely accepted that America is definitively diverse both though its land and its people, the word itself often does not conjure anything more than the white America aforementioned. America is a cultural phenomenon neglected of the meaning it deserves.
Think of America as though it is under infinite construction. The different quantifiable trends including political, intellectual, consumer, etc. can be measured and correlated to the current state of the nation. These measurements tell us about America, but do not define it. .This is in one way that we can better understand the phenomena, because there is no concrete definition of America. Even an American maxim as ubiquitous as the beginning words to the Declaration of Independence has a progressive meaning that we are constantly measuring against society: "We hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal." If the truth is such, who is "men" and what constitutes "equal". The application of these words have changed as America has changed. The socially constructed truth once held in this statement is temporary because they are continually challenged, as many socially-constructed truths are.
If we are to apply Pragmatism to a social philosophy, then the concept of "right" or "good" must be consistent with the other "goods" observable in society. What is observable the diverse American population. Another truth currently subscribed to is that all citizens are equal. Thus, the meaning of America must encompass all diversity, all people. Based on this basic socially constructed truth, no one is exempt from the title. We are all entitled to America, to be American. This is why a conscious effort must be taken to alter the broad ideal of America as a pasteurized, sterilized, homogenous, purely white state. We must force ourselves to see America as it is and what it has become.
Pragmatism references the consequences of an action rather than the inferred essence to determine if a concept is sound. To ignore the true state of the nation -- the diversity within -- and continue on the path of obsoleteness would be not only to neglect citizens deserving to be measured as an American, but also to become the nemesis. To exclude the former from "America" is to be un-American. Just as the bigot takes place of the oppressor, so too does America collapse into that which it stands against. It is not only the practical decision, but the necessary one to expand the notion of America to properly fit the current state of the nation.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
