Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Proper Structure, Please.

I've been slow posting again haven't I, my apologies for that. It seems University has taken my brain hostage this past week, filling it with both the nonsensical and serious. It is from these teachings that this post is manifesting.

That said let me get to it.

I have found myself always pushing my boundaries in my field, I've been doing my utmost to put a cap on my bias mind (at least when I'm putting myself in the context of anthropology), last year I attended a course about strange religious rituals and by the end of the year I found myself more obedient to the discipline and no longer snickering and making atheistic jabs.

This year I attempted the same goal in taking an anthropology course which was supposed to focus on the environmentalism and how it effects society in an anthropological sense. Seemed pretty straight forward, but the problem for me is that the course forces an agenda. The agenda may be positive, but its taken to an extreme the course requires you to take notice of how the environment is being killed by you and everyone else in your life and tries to reinforce the point through guilt.

I'm all for being a contentious species, trying to maintain some sustainability in the would wouldn't hurt anyone. However I do not want to step into a classroom and have the vegan elite sneer when they find out you're a near carnivore. The bias and judgment for an anthropology class is intense, and I feel that the structure creates a cliquishness in which defeats the fundamentals of being in an anthropological type of course. The prof does not fall prey to this, at least not directly, she although an environmentalist nutcase has maintained a non-partial openness to me in my consumption of meat, cutting down of trees, and giant eco footprint.

I have tried to return to this kindness and being interested in her tree huggy, lets all be green philosophical choice.  However the resentment my peers are creating are causing me some displeasure being in the course, I absolutely refuse to drop it to cater to them but its causing me to withdraw my attitude of non-bias and intentionally be an oppositional figure. This opposition has caused me to argue against peers who wish to enforce a a fascist vegan only diet on the world, destroy all large industries, immediately cut off oil usage... the list goes on. Its kept me on my toes but I refuse to give into radicalism of this kind.

So I continue to combat this class through determination that I will be then counter argument. I'm displeased with the course structure, and I'm making plans to formally challenge the structure at a level that my peers and profs will have to listen and accept that the social sciences should be as non-partial to side as possible.

A slightly anecdotal post, had to get the frustration out.

1 comment:

COUNT SNEAKY said...

Bravo! You do well to oppose these self-righteous ideologues. Anthropology
is not an environmental forum. Personally, I am a dedicated carnivore,
herbivore, and omnivore. Evolution made me do it. My best