Reflection of Writing with Media

I am a person who is afraid of Theory. Whenever I absorb new knowledge, I try to 'translate' it into a language that I understand, and could apply it in my everyday life. In other words, I am someone who prefer using colloquial to learn things.

That is how I approach this class. I apply whatever I learn from the class, whether is presentation method, bias, master narrative into my everyday life. I use my friends, Dartmouth, my life as subjects to study, and I can't help putting emotional elements into my homework.

One thing I learned, and I am simplifying again, is NOT to TRUST one source of information. Media CAN manipulate, and we have well established its capability and capacity, via our own usage and our study of the media and internet. Nothing is coincidence and accidental, thus we have to open our eyes to analyze various information from different sides to understand a topic, even with the widely used sources like TV station, Official News Channel and Wikipedia.

Knowing that, I still prefer to see my world with one lens, my eyes. Call me ignorant, for not using youtube clips and other source of evidence in my video projects. I believe I have to connect with my subject I study in order to get the 'truth'. I believe that people have to trust the cameraman to be them 'selves'. If my subjects of study are assigned to me, I would still spend more time in familiarizing myself with my subjects, whether my subjects are people (privately), environment, or people in an event(public).

This leads to another topic of interest, positionality.How do I place myself when studying someone/something?Do I announce my role? Do I disguise myself to gain trust (like Borat)? Do I lie? Do I just hide? Or Do I just simply, make new friends? I even try to answer all this questions in my other course, using oil painting as my media.I thought it is one of the core topic when exploring the level of bias of a work.

Maybe, I am someone who needs to understand the author (master narrative?) in order to understand a work/information presented.I am interested with the author's identity, inspiration, feelings, intentions and agenda whenever I see a piece of information. However, authorship and Master narrative can be confusing if you are looking at news, magazines, and perhaps websites.The news anchor who reports the news to us might not control how the information is presented. A writer of a magazine simply fulfills one of the many pieces of the Editor in Chief's main objective. Who is the author then? Is there real authorship without power?


Is it only interesting to study the author when he or she holds enough power?

Events and relationships

feel the beats!

Liberal Arts Institution

(Pic: Barcelona LSA , Fall 2009)

My fellow year, Yang, quoted Aristotle in his article about liberal arts education, " its good to know how to play the flute, but don't play it too well".

For two years, I have been struggling to understanding whether liberal arts education is truly embraced in this prestigious institution. Since freshmen year, I have taken a wide range of classes: from political anthropology, drawing, international politics to multiracial identity, thinking that I am enriching my self besides the knowledge I am receiving. I even continued my Spanish lessons even though as a mandarin native speaker, I do not have a language requirement to fulfill. I ended up taking 5 courses in Spanish, including an LSA in Barcelona. My parents struggle to understand what exactly I am learning and think most of the time I am having fun.

Well, fun is finally over as Sophomore Spring approached. I came back to Dartmouth in the Winter, only to find myself flipping frantically through the coursebook pages and browsing the different departments' homepage. I have not consider my major, not to mentioned careful calculation of distribution required to graduate. Many have learn the art of "killing two birds with one stone" , where they choose course that fulfill both major and distribution courses. In comparison, I became the idiot who seems to be wasting half of the time shopping for "interesting" courses.

I used to be motivated back then, when President Wright speaks about "embracing the confusion that liberal arts bring us" in his 2009's graduation speech; when successful alum/TV producer like Paul Lazarus' 76 , talks about chasing after "exciting projects" in Hanover, and how he appreciates the process of " learning how to learn, rather than anything in particular."
But despite how Dartmouth prides itself with its liberals art education, the liberal arts narrative is constantly challenged by " practicality" and the "learning by doing" arguments. A Dartmouth reader thinks its a luxurious question to think about the vivacity of liberal arts education when Dartmouth as a brand would have been enough to open many doors of opportunity for its student.

Thus, I am not surprise to find more than 100 students each year major in Government and Economics but only 25 students ( year 2003) opted for the only Geography department ( that was argued a "core" of liberal arts education due to its crossed-discipline focus) in Ivy League. More students flocked to resume building courses such as Mathematical Finance and Computer Science so that they could be prepared for the ever emphasized corporate recruiting. In her article, Kieley reported that "The entire recruiting process disproportionately favors economics majors."

Yes, we are told over and over again, that we are not taking course for a potential career; we have to make full use of the vast resources of Dartmouth to maximize our learning experience. Ironically, I find myself slowly shifted toward the "practically" aspect of my education. After all, I am an international student who eventually has to think about her future ( to stay or not to stay in the land of opportunity). I applied for unpaid internship in New York to test the waters of the 'afterlife' of Dartmouth. I decorate my resume with the different jobs on campus and taking leadership in student organizations. Whether I do it for the passion or for the future career is no longer clear to me.

Funny enough, I opted for a Geography major and am taking Painting class. And just today, I received a note that I am accepted to a FSP to Morroco next Spring. Perhaps I still have some faith in myself , that even though I might be pressured to be practical, my heart is still in love with the liberal arts education, for it gave me amazing, unimaginable choices to learning.

The Chinese!!!

Before writing this blog, I did a lot of digging here and there, mainly from official websites of the Chinese related cultural organizations, student newspaper articles, different departments within the cultural pockets of Dartmouth and interviews with exec members of the organizations. I wanted to make sure that my personal opinion as a Chinese on campus towards the different cultural organizations is unbiased and legitimate.

Yes, we have discussed enough issues about race, diversity and segregation on campus, but I would like to bring it to another level, discussing how and why people of the same skin color do not necessarily fall into one category. In fact, we might celebrate some same traditions and cultures, but when it comes to certain issues, the Chinese might just break down into even smaller pieces compare to other cultures, thus the existence of what I called 'Chinese related' cultural organizations on campus: ASEANO (South East Asian Organization), DAO (Dartmouth Asian Organization) , DCCS (Dartmouth Chinese Culture Society) , SoHK (Society of Hong Kong), DTA (Dartmouth Taiwanese Association), and perhaps KSA(Korean Students' Association) , VSA(Vietnamese Students' Association).

You might be confused with all the acronyms already, so was I when I was making my choice during freshmen year. I signed up and started shopping in all the organizations mentioned. I imagined being a part of the big Chinese family in Dartmouth. I should have the freedom to join any of those organizations because I am all of them: I could be an ASEANO member because I am from Malaysia; DAO (I am Asian); DCCS ( Chinese ); SoHK ( I speak Cantonese and grew up watching HK soaps); DTA ( I grew up listening to Taiwanese pop artists and watching Taiwanese TV shows); KSA ( I love watching Korean dramas) and finally VSA( we were all once from China?). I can't help but amused by my own thought process, "I am truly everything, ain't I? "

However, I can't possibly be in all of the organizations. Choosing any of the organizations means dropping something out from my interest and the 'culture' that is attached to me. But joining all of them is also a waste of time, because people flock into meetings for the food, and sometimes you see the same faces in these organizations, talking about the same things! Almost all meetings start with ice-breakers, describing personal interest in a restricted format of " if.....then.." and " why am I here?" etc. The biggest events of the term would normally consist of a Boston trip, Bubble tea day, and ultimately Legacies (Chinese New Year event). To Dartmouth students hiding in the middle of no where, Boston trip, or rather Chinatown is the most luxurious (expensive) way to 'experience' Chinese culture. It make sense, Instead of inviting a group of friends to Boston, why not get some funding from Dartmouth in the name of cultural experience, and go to Boston Chinatown for free? Monetary resource could be one of the reasons for students to start many 'Chinese' organizations, as each organization can only get a limited amount of funding for students activities. Assuming each organization gets $300 for a Boston trip, we could have collected $ 1200 for the students for holding the same events in 4 organizations! When asked the founder of SoHK the necessity of starting a society when all members are already friends, his told me that his motivation was exactly the funding. Getting money from the school to socialize with Chinese food that is not offered in DDS is a very attractive idea when forming an organization is encouraged, not to mention the importance of food in our culture.

It may seem superficial to mention food as our only cultural tool. Growing up in a homogeneous Chinese society, participating in these bubble tea, and hunting for Chinese food in Boston look lame to me. But I might have overlooked the diversity within the Chinese society if I am only questioning the authenticity of Chinese culture from a very subjective point of view. But authenticity is a legitimate factor to attract or chase members away from the Chinese organizations. For DCCS which focus on promoting Chinese culture, some members question about the language used during meeting. This comes back to the ISA discussion, is DCCS for Chinese or is it for all who are interested in learning Chinese culture? DCCS risks loosing members like me who prefers to speak Mandarin in a Chinese club, as that was my way to create my comfort zone. Language in this case dictates the form of self I prefer to be in the environment. However if DCCS try to please native speakers like me, they might lose Asians Americans and none-Asians who grew up in the states who are genuinely interested in Chinese culture, and might perhaps work or study in Chinese speaking country.

DTA and DAO were started for political purposes. They were more compelled to organize international borders conflict discussion and dinner discussion about recent news in Asian countries. Rumor says that DTA supports Taiwan’s independence (if occurred) while other organizations are politically neutral. SoHK members tend to have a more ‘liberal’ view since Hong Kong is a more ‘westernized’ place due to its tie with the Brits and its more practical way of living.

Even thought there were instances of conflicts between the organizations, I doubt the members differentiate themselves from the others due to their political views. Though we might eventually question the lack of integration between the Chinese from diverse origins who opted for one organization’s image and agenda over the other, at the end of the day, the options are known and available. If I want, I still get to choose which organizations that I want to participate in.

Some opted to socialize in the Chinese Department, which provides many opportunities to master the language, study abroad, or resources for a potential job in Asia. Some live in the Chinese Language House, enjoying the big kitchen and more socializing through food and the cozy space. Who would guess, in the midst of choosing and differentiating myself from the rest, I actually learn more about my own people (based on our eventual roots from China): how we are different or similar in the ever evolving culture, social space, learning environment and the people who is influencing us till date.

Analyzing the Chinese organizations has made me realize the different group of audience that these organizations has successfully targeted: non-Asians who are interested in Chinese culture, Asian American, ABC(American born Chinese), and non Chinese speakers of different or neutral political views. However, they might be weaker in targeting audience who are native Chinese speakers eg: native Chinese from China or internationals, and Chinese who have high expectation and ambition in presenting the more 'authentic' cultural aspect of the Chinese. Therefore, even though there's a dire need for an organization where Mandarin speakers can express themselves in their mother tongue, given the circumstances where grouping and labeling culture seems prominent on campus, the diverse Chinese on campus might have to sacrifice some of their preference in order to stick together in this healthy alternative social space, or don’t choose at all.

Jamming jamming...

After reading a classmate's post about Jamaica, I do not know how to react to my own interest with Jamaica. I have never lived there, yet some of my best friends are from Jamaica. They taught me how to be 'chillin' and laid back, something I do not know how to do back in the competitive Chinese society. I was usually nervous and miserable even though I have worked hard for certain academic work, activities, exams etc. Some identify this trait of 'laid back'ness to the South American culture too.Through my friends' influence, I have adopted laid back-ness as part of my being, where instead of achieve success through stress, why not wait for success to come peacefully when you have put in enough effort?

This mentality is strikingly similar to how World Music Percussion Ensemble (WMPE) is run. Started exactly 25 years ago, the WMPE is always led by the music director and spiritual leader, Hafiz Shabazz. Everybody calls him Hafiz. A percussionist since he was 7, you could tell he knows everything about drumming. I recently found out that he is Jamaican, but I wonder that has anything to do with his cheerful and laid back personality.

Everybody is welcomed to join the percussion group, and Hafiz make sure everyone in the rehearsal room grade their feeling at that moment from 1-10. It is his ritual, and a way to find out how everybody is doing. I was drawn into the group since freshmen fall because of my interest to African drumming. Comparing to most student-run organizations on campus, our group dynamics is a little different, where it used to be sustained solely by the students tie to their love and respect for Hafiz. students will come and go from practices without really talk to each other but Hafiz. Of course, the sound of the drums can be too noisy to start a conversation during rehearsals.

Before organizing bonding activities outside rehearsals, our group was more about competition than friendship. Perhaps our competitiveness rooted from how Hafiz lead the group. During rehearsals, we would sit in a half circle surrounding Hafiz in the middle. He does the teaching, calling, and selection of who does what in our group. I would like to think that I am better when I was chosen to play certain rhythm. Turns out Hafiz usually delegate the rhythm according to the hierarchic order of age and experience in the group. He does it so subtle, then when I found out, I gave up trying to improve myself. I was a freshmen, therefore I had a long way to go before I can have my own solo part.

Every term, we would have a themed concert at the Hop. We usually recycled the rhythms we have learned and use them according to the music theme. We drum to cuban music, irish music, and sometimes jazz. The members are fully aware of how concert is run: after we master the rhythms, we become the backdrop, and Hafiz will get external guitarist, saxophonist, percussionist into our practice. Why do I associate this to "laid back"ness? Come to think of it, no matter how bad we do, there will always be somebody else playing the same rhythm. You are always covered. You can be on stage with little practice or maximum practice. That's why we never have full attendance during rehearsals.

Before you think I will continue my criticism, I will share some positive side of WMPE. Perhaps its main aim of accepting everyone from different music levels and background is to show that there should not be a preset condition to play music. The group has experienced membership from the most diverse background not only limited to students. Even though the flip side of the coin is we can never do challenging rhythms as a group, Hafiz welcomes individual contribution to the group. Anyone with a creative musical piece can have his or her own solo moment on stage. Last winter, I was featured in the concert because I brought in a Chinese music piece from home. Some terms when we lack experienced musicians among the members, Hafiz will call his musician friends to guest featured in the concert.

Therefore, our concert is always a huge success. The exotic drumming twinned with various music genre produce a new kind of hybrid, regardless of how easy it is for the members to achieve it. Our members continue to come and go as they please, but I guess WMPE take Hafiz for granted, because he will always be there, guiding the group with unlimited inspiration and network of musician friends. I intend to take as much as I can from WMPE: the diverse group of friends, inspiring leader and musicians, the community beyond the conventional Dartmouth setting and occasionally, shutting down my mind and chill.

Who are we serving?

The International Student Association (ISA) is a representative group for international students, but is open to Americans with an interest in international culture.- The Dartmouth, 9/1/2005

Having been in Dartmouth for almost two years, I am constantly pestered to join different organizations on campus, most of them claim to provide a comfortable place for a group of student to be them'selves', a home away from home. Indeed, involving in student organizations is a good way to meet people and form tight-knit communities.

Seeking a comfort zone in Dartmouth is not just a task for international students; most Americans find themselves in similar situations where they have to navigate their social groups based on their interest, skin color, or where they come from in USA.Therefore, all of us, in my opinion, is searching for an organization that resonates with our 'identities' and personalities.

However, unlike many cultural organizations, ISA seems to fail in capturing its members' interest to stay in this "home away from home". Over the two years, not only have I experienced major changes within the organization in terms of leadership, I also felt the absence and the need to find out how do the international students form a community here on campus. Instability of ISA may be caused by the rapid shift of leadership thus the regular elections,but is ISA doing too much here?

ISA wants to be a community for international students, advocate for international students with the administration, at the same time educate the Americans about international culture. Its objective allows extremely easy membership for anyone who is interested to join the organization. Easy access to membership also means easy "ownership". Doors open, anyone can come into your 'home' (sometimes become the head of the household). Relate to the previous post, if I find it hard to own hip-hop, I probably do not associate with the "image" of hip-hop entirely. However if everybody could easily own ISA, does it mean that ISA's image is easy to relate? Then how do we explain the disloyalty of membership? Is ISA facing a problem of dual(or none) images (identities)?

Many organizations require one to prove their eligibility to join them. With easy membership, we often hear whispering about " how international are you?". Many international students felt uncomfortable to join the organization simply because they are not understood, felt it does not resonate with their expectation. It is already established that international students are the minorities on campus , not because of their exotic culture ( which many colored American students share), but the unique experience in terms of adapting in a foreign land with foreign language and dietary. Some already came with stable career goals and most of us are probably financially independent from our parents. Not many spend time figuring themselves out through a typical college party scene.Thus, We all need some sort of support network that we could talk about all these difficult transitions. Assuming ISA realizes all of that, why is it so difficult for ISA to focus prioritize such platform without bearing the burden to 'promote' our culture to the larger community? Why is it so hard exclusively serve the international students and just deal with our own problems? Is it because international students have received a large portion of financial aid, therefore bearing more responsibilities in shaping the campus' diversity?

Without question, money is always a cause for how things work. For years, ISA 'struggles' to abide by rules set by COSO, a student organization that funds the running of ISA and hundred other student organizations on campus. COSO has categorized ISA as a cultural organization, limiting its power as a liaison between international students and administration, nor offers a safe and comfortable platform for international students dealing non-cultural transition issues even though they are stated in ISA's mission statement.

Nonetheless, ISA is still the formal representative of international students in Dartmouth regardless of its underrepresented members. Three years ago, ISA negotiated the need-blind admission for international students; every year, ISA members aid the popular international orientation program; and just last week, ISA met with President Kim to talk about issues pertaining international students' life on campus. More are expected from ISA to perform well as a united international voice, but before that, ISA needs to better manage its image to its audience in order to have that true voice reflected by its roughly 600 members. Right now, I can claim, ISA holds only 'big' voice decided by 9-10 people and a confusing image; At the mean time, the scattered international students find their own ways to form smaller pockets of community-- the classrooms, interesting international programs offered by Tuckers, Dickey Foundation and Rocky, the international newspaper, or in the limited rooms available in the international residential clusters--while keeping their commonly shared concerns remain unknown to ISA.