Agency

With the current crisis in Ferguson, Missouri, following the shooting death of a young African American teenager by a police officer, I have been thinking from a historical perspective. This conflict which has escalated to riots, destruction of property (at least one building has been burned to the ground as of August 13th), and "crowd control" techniques from police officers, to me, is a marker of our current culture in several ways. 

1)- it shows the prevalence of violence in American culture. From the incident itself, a young man killed by a police officer, to the riots that followed, we can see that violence is the answer in America. Whether the police are trigger happy because of a power trip or because they have dealt with so much violence that they are nervous. In response, protesters looted businesses, burned down buildings, and held riots. Instead of peaceful protesting, their first response was violence. Then the followed response from the police was caution and more violence when it appeared the protesters might get violent again. 

This truly shows the vicious cycle of violence in America. We as a culture tend to answer violence with violence and hope that one act of such violence will cancel out the other, or end the cycle. But it never truly ends. Instead, the violence remains in our mind and years later, we justify our most recent act of violence upon the previous act. This discourse of violence is perpetuated by films, media, video games. 

2) the second issue that is brought into sharp focus with this crisis is that of inequality in America. It is very true that inequality still exists within this country and culture. Minorities including women, Hispanics, and African Americans are the primary victims of this system. For the record, I am writing as a 26 year old white woman. I understand that I do not face the same challenges as people of color, however, I can make observations from a historical perspective and I understand that there is a complex discourse which is ingrained in American culture. 

A discourse in this sense is a set of ideas which is wide spread by media, advertisements, books, films, music, and more. It teaches us all how we should act dependent upon our race, culture, sex, gender, and social status. It teaches us how to treat others and affects how we think about others and ourselves. It teaches women through visual clues, "girl toys," and films, etc that they are subservient to men. That you are required to dress and act a certain way to be a good woman and get a good man. It teaches people of color the ways they should dress, talk, and act. It teaches them what they should expect to do with their lives. It teaches them that it's okay to have a lower status of living. It teaches different values that those of Caucasian descent. At the same time, Caucasians are taught from a young age that they should act a certain way. They should expect certain ways of life. Some call this "White Privilege" and yes, they are privileged. It is a very real thing. 

That being said, all of this is because we are taught from birth that we should expect to do, say, and get certain things out of our lives based upon our bodies. We are all a product of a culture which is very slow to change. 

This brings into question the issue of "agency." We are also a culture in which you are expected to take responsibility for our actions. Many questions come to mind with this situation. I have already established the violence happy aspect of our culture and the discourses which direct how people learn to act and think of the world. How, where, and when do we determine who is responsible to their actions? 

Many argue that we are the master's of our own fate. People argue that people of color shouldn't be held to the stereotypes of their race. However, death threats are being made to the police officer? Is he not as much a product of his culture as the boy who was shot? Do we blame the boy for being where he shouldn't have been? Do we blame the officer who likely faces life and death situations every day? 

I am not condoning the way our American culture is. However, this is not something that can change over night. Its just not possible. However, we can all work to expedite the change by looking at ourselves and starting the change there. How can we expect others to treat us differently if we continue to act like our stereotypes? 

Floundering in the Historical Ocean of Thought

Today is one of those days when I look at the road ahead of me and wonder if I can actually make it through it all. I know what I want to do. I know the direction I need to go in. I'm just not sure my strategy for the obstacle course. Right now, I'm working on doing research for my Thesis and I find myself floundering. What direction to take this Thesis is proving to be very difficult.
I know that Witchcraft in Early Modern England is my basic realm of topic. But the more I read from other historians, the more I fluctuate within that topic sphere. I just keep coming up with more and more interesting directions and questions.

What is reality for these people of Early Modern England? How did they view their own world? How did that factor into the question of Witchcraft? Everything from gender questions? Power? Religion? Identity- both of the country and the individual? Crisis on the Domestic and Foreign levels? Monarchical power? Henry, Mary, Edward, and Elizabeth?

On the very basic level I can see a swirling, mingled whirlpool of how all this interacts and intersects into the question of Witchcraft, but how do I nail it down? How do I take all of this and find evidence in primary sources to back some sort of argument? This is where I am struggling.

I thought I had this idea about how Witchcraft was determined by the the dominant religious force's decisions based upon what was 'good' and what was 'evil'. This was usually based upon saying that magic that was associated with the religion itself, ie miracles, was good and all other forms of 'magic' where 'otherized' and therefor bad. This further was influenced by other religious ideas based on power structures within the society. Therefore, women in the society who stood out and didn't follow the social norms where lumped into the same 'otherized' category as the 'magic.'

This still feels like a very valid point in my mind, but there are so many other ideas rolling in my head concerning so many other questions. Is it possible to take all these ideas and mold them into some sort of Frankenstein historical argument that works?   

History of the Futurr

Sometimes I like to think about the history of the future. That is, what will they be teaching in 10, 20, or 50 years from now about today. For instance, the events of the 90s, 80s, going back to the 50s and before, they couldn't have known what current events would resonate through the following decades and which would fade from all memory. Sure we all knew that Pearl Habor, Hiroshima, the Fall of the Berlin wall, and September 11th would be major parts of upcoming history books. But what will the books say about the Aurora cinema, New Town, Boston Bombongs, and explosions in Texas. Will the history books remember that in 30, 50, 90 years? Will the stories that fill our news programs for hours today even make it into the historical record? Or will it all fade into the memory of those who lived it? Will it become the obscure focus of history students, desperate for a PhD dissertation topic? Its just something I think about.

Changes

Up until this point in my graduate career I have pursued what has been one of my great loves in history: The Ancient World. Specifically, the period of shifting from traditional Greco-Roman religions (paganism) to Christianity. I was researching and fully intending on writing about the discourses of magic and how it all fit together in a complicated and tangled web if power structures.
Then the struggles occured and a crisis of faith hit me. This wasn't where my heart was. My heart lay in the field of Early Modern Britain, with its witchcraft trials, its gender conflicts, religious turmoil, and poltical revolutions that were tied up in theses issues. With the country's struggle to establish an identity that seperated it from the continent. This is where my heart had been the whole time.
Yes I loved and still love the ancient world, but England/Britain has always held a fascination for me. That is what I have to follow. Will it add a year onto my Masters? yes. Will it mean more work? yes. But in the ed i think i will he happier for it.

Graduation/ The Future

As I sit here on the eve of my graduation from college, I can't help but look back on the years I've spent here. I started off at University of West Georgia, then transferred to Kennesaw State University. I've been at KSU since 2007. I've made friends, gotten to know professors and staff. It has been an amazing experience.
 I have learned a lot from my time as an undergrad. How to do research. How to write a paper. How to coherently express my ideas. In the last five years since i graduated high school, I have grown from a shy young girl to a confident, intelligent, young woman. I have learned to stand up for myself and my ideas. I have learned that I can survive on my own. I have a new set of skills and an education that I can be proud of.

As this chapter of my life closes, I look towards the future. It is unknown and veiled in shadows. I await acceptance letters. But I have faith, and hope, that I will receive that desperately awaited letter soon. With that letter, I will be working on graduate work. To gain my Masters and then my Doctorate in World History is my ultimate goal. To spread my knowledge to other people. To open their eyes to new perspectives. To understand that history is still something worth learning. To inspire people to think. To reevaluate what they already know. That is what i aspire to. To through teaching and writing, that people might walk away from me knowing a least a little bit more than they thought they did.

History Months

Living in the south presents many problems for a scholar, as I like to consider myself. One faces problems with race, political correctness, and the uneducated. It is difficult to express an opinion in the south without raising the ire of someone. However, I feel that opinions need to be expressed.

The current opinion that I feel needs to be expressed deals with this month of February. Technically, every month is supposed to be dedicated to celebrate the history of a particular group of people. February is Black History Month. March is designated as Women, Greek, and Irish Heritage Month. May is for Asian Pacific and Jewish Heritage. June for Caribbean Heritage. September is designated for Hispanic heritage. German, Italian, and Polish are supposed to be celebrated in October. Finally, November is Native American Heritage Month.

This sounds like a great idea, but living in the south you come to recognize a serious disproportionate amount of attention being placed on February. Every channel from ABC, to NBC, to CBS, to Disney, to the History Channel, they all pay special attention to Black History Month. I can’t turn on my TV without seeing some special segment highlighting some figure in African American History. This is wonderful. I am not saying that it is a bad thing to learn about the contributions of African Americans on history, the world, and America.

Not only is the whole month dedicated to one group but what about all the other months? Rarely do I see a special in March about great Women how have contributed to history, much less the contributions of Greek or Irish Americans. I cannot think of a time where I saw a commercial while waiting for a show to come on in May that highlights Asian Pacific or Jewish contributions. Or the Germans, Italians, or Polish in October. Nor do I see hardly anything besides Thanksgiving propaganda in November, rarely anything about actual Native American history or heritage.

Why do we put such emphasis on African Americans in the south and this country? Why is their history so much more meaningful and important than all the other groups in this country? Why can’t we teach and celebrate history as a whole? Why do we have to segment it in order to celebrate it and do it justice?

Oldest Winery Unearthed In Armenian Cave

I just had to repost this. I find it to be a very interesting article and just had to share.