Man, it has only been two weeks back at school and I am slacking off already! I totally forgot to post a learning journal last week. Oops! So this will be a two-in-one deal.
It seemed like first semester in TiS we focused a lot on English and Religious Studies and Journalism did not get as much attention. When Michael, Thom and Russ explained the new schedule for the beginning of this semester I was really excited about the new direction that the class is taking. It just feels like there is more unity and a better sense of direction within the class. It seems like the profs are on the same page and because of this my motivation for learning and also my love for learning have both increased.
English hasn’t been our main focus yet. However, what Russ has been helping us with has been carried over into all of our other subjects. He has really helped us read sentences differently and gain more insight into what the author is actually saying. I am so guilty for just reading (and not re-reading) and assuming that what I am reading on the surface is what the author is trying to communicate. I am realizing that this is generally not the case. When Russ first asked us to work with sentences that he had slightly changed I was not sure what exactly he wanted us to do. This happened again when we read paragraphs from two pieces of writing. When he explained what he was looking for and what he wanted us to begin to see it clicked and I saw it. I am finally seeing how most writers lace their writing with sarcasm or nonchalantly toss in a few clues that lead me to see what they are really saying. As I am learning this and being taught to see what is not made obvious, my love for reading has grown. Sometimes a simple reading can turn into a treasure hunt for the meaning in the words.
Religion and sexuality, the end of the world, ‘The Passion of the Christ’ according to Mel Gibson have all helped create a very interesting time in religious studies. I have never heard the many opinions about Mary Magdalene’s importance in the Bible and the conspiracies that surround her relationship with Jesus. There are so many conversations that are involved in this topic and before this reading I was not aware of that. Conspiracies have always interested me to an extent, but I do not think about them a lot or analyse their authenticity. Maybe I should. I loved listening to Russ discuss the role that conspiracy theories play in our world. Many of them are very well explained and therefore are believable. However, in the same breathe most of them, once you consider what they are telling us, are absolutely ludicrous. This was interesting to hear, especially in the context of Religious Studies. It helped too, that Russ seemed so sarcastic and hilarious, for me at least, as he explained this.
I have never thought too much about the role that journalists play when stories of war are being told. It is a little strange that I haven’t been more curious about this because I am interested in both telling people’s stories and also war and the many effects it has on individuals and places. I have gained a new and deeper appreciation for people such as Ernie Pyle, Hannah Arendt and John Hersey. While reading ‘Hiroshima’ I realized how much of the story we miss sometimes when we rely solely on ‘our’ news broadcasters. I am not in any way disqualifying the importance they have. However, sometimes I forget that underneath the bomb that was just dropped there are civilians-people with stories and lives. I think this was the biggest wake up call for me in journalism this week. I am glad that Hersey was able to write in a way that gave an outsider like me such a personal glimpse of underneath the mushroom cloud. It was also a little unnerving as I read Hannah Arendt’s story. The many people who orchestrated the holocaust were ‘normal’ and sane people. Their idea of normality seems so skewed to us, but at the time they believed they were just following orders. I mean did they not seem the injustices they were committing? What a human being is capable of (both good and bad) really astonishes me. The amount of power that some people hold or have held (Hitler) makes me realize how careful I have to be when choosing to follow someone and even something. I could write quite a lot about all that I have learned in Journalism. However, it all comes down to the risks we are willing to take to tell the stories of people. There are so many stories that NEED to be told from many different viewpoints. It is not just about relaying the facts it is about sharing PEOPLE’s stories.
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