Yes Katherine Evans
Thomas Arcaro
Being and Becoming a Global Citizen
May 17th, 2019
The Final Blog Post: My Final Blog Post
To begin my very last post––EVER––at Elon University, for my favorite Professor, I would like to start, by saying, “Thank You!” Now that we have that out of the way, I’m gonna get a little bit sappy, before I discuss the nitty-gritty stuff I learned this semester, and over the past four years as a Sociology Major, who, was forced to take other Liberal Arts Classes (I’m so glad I did! I’m so much more well-rounded!). Over the past four years, I have learned more than I would like to know regarding pain, pleasure, evil, and good. I have learned that we live in a society, and a world, crafted by dead white guys, and, currently, living white guys. I have learned that humans are social species, with many sociological a priori baked into our lives: race, gender, sex, sexuality, religion, wealth and power structures, and statuses, to name a few. Furthermore, humans are a social species, who, quite literally live in their own heads. According to Cooley––and Durkheim and Goffman––we are beings that imagine how others see us, and, then, act accordingly: The Looking-Glass Self. Furthermore, too many of the dead white guys mentioned the term “Anomie,” or deathly loneliness. This kind of pain stems from lack of connection, and isolation (we are a social species; mirror neurons), dehumanization, neoliberalism, capitalism, bureaucracy, and the Iron Cage of Rationality. In fact, the way we (by “we,” I mean WHITE MEN) have designed our culture, and our world, actually makes us depressed and suicidal (Think Putnam’s Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community). So, why then, do we do it? Honestly, because humans are lazy, shy away from real pain, bottle their emotions, and seek gratification and happiness in the physical, ignoring their biological real need for love and affection (Think Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business). And, at the end of the day, everything we have created is replicated over and over: ideas, things, stuff, memes, clothing, art, food/cuisine, etc. This idea of a cultural replicator “gene,” is what Richard Dawkins refers to as a “meme,” in his book, The Selfish Gene. So, which of the dead white guys is right? Well, none of them, completely. But, on a more optimistic note, all of them, in different ways. Without Marx, Weber, Durkheim, Mead, Freud, Nietzsche, modern Sociology––the most important topic one can study, because we are studying ourselves, and how we work––would not exist.
I’m going to try to keep this as long as it needs to be, but we all know I have a “way with words.” Throughout the Semester, we discussed many wonderful and horrific topics. In great detail, and through candid discussion, we learned about the genocide in Rwanda, the Dunant vs. Nightingale debate, sociological, or, “baked-in,” facets of a culture, problems with bureaucracy (in the office vs. on the ground), when the aid sector is saturated with need, and, also got to speak with literal superheroes over skype. While I would love to sit here for the full three hours and drag out this post, I’m going to keep this short, and sweet, for once, and discuss the prompt topics that are important to me.
First, “How have you changed this semester? How are your thoughts different?” To answer, I will say, that I change, a lot, each day, without fail. It was ironic that as we were discussing the hellish conditions, that other humans are experiencing, across the globe, while I was also going through hell. While different, but both terrible, I felt kinship with those struggling. I felt I was peering into the souls of these humans: maybe it was the teaching style :-). I felt it was necessary for me to see those images, hear those cries, and tales of horror, just, so, I can do something about it (And I will, I promise).
The second, and, final topic is the Skype talks we had throughout the Semester. I’ve always hated Skype…until this class! It was so validating, fascinating, and just fucking cool to talk to actual Aid Workers! You never see that! They are literal superheroes! While, clearly, Aid Workers are trying to help and make a difference, that isn’t always the case, although, sometimes it is. Anyways, I loved hearing their real, raw, and candid responses. They did not sugarcoat it for us privileged, Elon Kids, and boy, I was thrilled! You truly can’t learn if you choose to be ignorant. Anyways, I felt a kinship to each superhero. In fact, aid workers are held to a high standard, both in the office, and on the ground. Additionally, they are expected to provide light, while absorbing insurmountable amounts of darkness, despair, pain, and destruction. Aid Workers are empaths, like me, and we, will keep saving others, as long as we have out health, our strength, and our will.