The Frankfurt School

The second group presented The Frankfurt School. To be honest, the video they presented didn't catch my attention. The video included a lot of information that was presented not in a way that it's viewers would easily understand. With that said, I really had to listen to the discussion about the topic. The group also added a somewhat comedic touch with their fake mustaches which is a plus point for me. Overall, the group did a pretty nice job.

Here's some of what I learned:

I learned about the four (4) theorists of the Frankfurt School : Marx Horkheimer, Theodore Adorno, Herbert Marcuse and Jürgen Habermas.
I learned that according to Horkheimer, knowledge is consisted of propositions that are formulated to correspond to facts, and hence be regarded as true. That is very interesting and I think is very true. I sometimes question what I read in the internet and I try to filter everything.
I learned that Habermas pushed thru the theory that all people are equal and they have the right to express their feelings freely. I strongly agree with his theory. In a democratic country like ours, we are all deemed as equals and as much as I want to say that we feel this always, sometimes it is not the case. 

Im looking forward to all the topics. I think all the topics that were discussed and will be discussed are very interesting.

Birmingham Culture Studies

The first group presented the Birmingham School of Cultural Studies. To be honest, I was quite happy that we were not the first one to present since our video presentation for the French Culture Studies was not yet finished. Moving on, the first group showed to the class a video with regards about their topic. 

Basically, the Birmingham school viewed everyday occurring events as part of political discourse. It considers the idea of the interaction of people as a contributing factor in the field of politics. Some examples were given for us to further understand the main idea of the topic. The interaction of motorists in traffic and the dealings made during bargaining at stores were some of the instances they have mentioned. Another significant feature of the Birmingham culture studies that I learned during the discussion was that, culture is considered to be perceived by both practice and experience, not by received wisdom. The practices and processes of production, distribution and reception of the culture of a society must also be given importance aside from cultural artifacts. 

The last video the group presented summarized everything about Birmingham culture studies. It really caught my attention to watch and listen attentively. It showed children and adults doing the same actions that are seemed to be very disturbing. The message that it particularly conveyed was that, children imitate their actions and responses based from what they see. I believe that this video, really did help everyone in the class to understand and appreciate the contributions of the Birmingham Culture Studies. 

Identity Politics: da who? Sino ka nga ba?

Sino nga ba ako? Nang naitanong ko ito sa aking sarili, kaharap ang salamin, wala akong maisip. BLANKO. na blanko ang aking isipan at tila hindi ko kilala ng lubusan ang aking sarili. 

Nang tumakbo ang oras, sa wakas, may pumasok na sa aking isipan. Bago ko bigyan ng laman ang tanong na ito, magsisimula muna ako sa pinaka basic facts patungkol sa aking sarili: Ako si Karen Gem Durante Torres, 20 taong gulang, pang lima sa pitong magkakapatid, lumaki sa napakagandang probinsya ng Daet, Camarines Norte. 

Mahilig akong mag-surf. As in surf sa dagat. Hindi nga lang halata dahilan sa aking malusog na pangangatawan at maputing balat. :))) Aminado akong hindi ako magaling, pero sinusubukan kong mag imporve sa tuwing magkakaroon ako ng pagkakataong makapag surf. Simula noong nasubukan kong makapag surf at makatayo sa surf borad, tuluyan nang nahulog ang loob ko at na "inlab" sa isports na ito. Hindi man ako sigurado kung ano ang tatahakin ko pag ako ay grumaduate dahil hindi ko pa alam ang gagawin ko sa buhay, may isang bagay akong siguradong gagawin ko. Yun ay ang pagtutuloy ng isports na surfing. Isasama ko ito sa aking weekly routine. Gusto kong gumaling. Gusto ko mag improve. :)

Sino nga ba ang aking kabaliktaran (my other) ?

Ang kabaliktaran ng aking personalidad ay isang taong maarte, konyo, mayabang, matapobre, malandi (playgirl/easy to get),walang paniniwala sa Diyos, plastik, at ang taong walang pakialam o pikit-matang nagbubulag-bulagan sa nangyayari sa lipunan. 

Biniyayaan man ako ng lubos Diyos pagdating sa buhay, pamilya, at kabuhayan, kailanman ay hindi ako nagmalaki o nagmayabang man lamang ng kung anong mayroon ako. Sa katunayan, paminsan nga ay ako pa ang nahihiya sa tuwing may nagpag-uusapan tungkol sa akin. Ako rin ang tipo ng babae na hindi damsel in distress; kaya kong mag-isa. Independent ako.  Ako rin ang tipo ng babae na sobrang ma-inlove. Toping stick to one lang talaga. Once na may gusto ko, siya lang. Wala nang iba. Period. Ilang taon bago mawala talaga nang tuluyan sa aking isipan kung sino man ang makakapag pa-inlove saakin. HAHAHAHA :))) Ako rin ay may pakialam sa mga sosyal and politikal na isyu ng lipunan. Ako ay interesado sa mga ganitong bagay. Mga praktikal na bagay kumbaga. Mas pipiliin ko ang mga ganiting isyus patungko sa realidad ng buhay kaysa sa mga pang akademikong bagay (Math, Science, etc.). 

Ano nga ba ang gusto ko sa buhay?

Hanggang ngayon, nakakahiya mang aminin, ngunit hindi ko pa rin talaga alam kung anong gusto ko sa buhay. Lahat ng bagay ay hindi ko sigurado. Wala pa ako sa puntong naka-ayos lahat, planado. Ewan, sadyang magulo lang akong tao. Ano nga ba ang gusto ko? Hindi ko alam. Sa ngayon ay hindi ko pa masasagot yan.