Continuing Reading

Ah, we are back!
We, of the never-dying-spirit is back, sans the bang, but we are continuing reading.

We are not reading this book again!

This time, let us look at Foucault, and read attempts to contextualize his works in the South Asian context.

One of the most influential and renowned venture along this line is Partha Chatterjee's lectures on the Political Society.

Chatterjee puts Foucault's theories on governmentality to great use: extends it and illustrates it with brilliant, but sometimes problematic, examples of 'populations' who " define themselves in terms of the very categories of governmentality (...) “Refugees, landless people, day laborers, homestead, below the poverty line …” and yet they insist that they form a “single family.” " (Link)

Without a doubt, Chatterjee's work has been read by us all. So let us go beyond Chatterjee, and read some of the criticism of the work. We will start with Niveditha Menon's critique of the essay from the blog, Critical Encounters (Thank you, Prem!)


Links to Readings

Reading the Original Chatterjee essay

If you want to brush up on the Chatterjee essay, reading this two-part review might be helpful. Part 1, Part 2
A more elaborate summary, from a Delhi lecture (PDF)
If you want to read the Political Society article in full, go here. (PDF)
And if you have lots of time to spare, or would simply love to read the whole book, You are welcome to do so!

The Article for the Theory Tree Reading Club Reading

Niveditha Menon's Critque of Partha Chatterjee's essay

We'll be reading Aloysius's critique next. If Prem gives us the article, that is.

The discussion can continue as comments on this post. 

Adopted - The Movie Poster

For more details on the movie, see the previous post!

Love is not enough….

Of the 1.5 million adopted children in the United States, international adoptees are the fastest growing segment - and most adopted are Asian girls. First-time director, Barb Lee, goes deep into the intimate lives of two well-meaning families and shows us the subtle challenges they face. One family is just beginning the process of adopting a baby from China and is filled with hope and possibility. The other family's adopted Korean daughter is now 32 years old. Prompted by her adoptive mother's terminal illness, she tries to create the bond they never had. The results are riveting, unpredictable and telling. While the two families are at opposite ends of the journey, their stories converge to show us that love alone isn't enough to make a family work.

ADOPTED

(2008/USA/English/80min/Documentary)

Directed by Barb Lee

LECTURE HALL, HUMANITIES

18TH APRIL 2011, MONDAY

2.30PM

'Identity' Practicals

Let us do an exercise!

Stand on one leg and with the finger tip of the other, draw a few circles on the ground. Now assume an expression of coyness ...

Well, well.

We have read two articles on identity, which talked about anything but identity, and now let us try applying it to a text! Our next reading session is a movie and a discussion that should emerge from it.

Adopted. The movie is a 2008 documentary directed by first time director Barb Lee.

It is an American documentary on inter-racial, international adoptions in the US and the problems that entails.


Read the plot summary below.

Of the 1.5 million adopted children in the United States, international adoptees are the fastest growing segment - and most adopted are Asian girls. While many of their stories are heartwarming and play into our self-image of American compassion and generosity, the realities are much more complex. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, adoptees have significantly more behavioral problems than non-adopted children. 'Adopted' reveals the grit rather than the glamor of trans-racial adoption. First-time director, Barb Lee, goes deep into the intimate lives of two well-meaning families and shows us the subtle challenges they face. One family is just beginning the process of adopting a baby from China and is filled with hope and possibility. The other family's adopted Korean daughter is now 32 years old. Prompted by her adoptive mother's terminal illness, she tries to create the bond they never had. The results are riveting, unpredictable and telling. While the two families are at opposite ends of the journey, their stories converge to show us that love alone isn't enough to make a family work.

 Some movie, eh?
So, now on to the trailer.




The movie screening will be held at
2.30pm on Monday 18th April, 2011 
in the Humanities Lecture Hall.
The movie is in English, and no subs.
 
I think the fun will start after the movie ends! We need volunteers for this theory adventure! Try applying what we have read in the previous two classes to the movie we are going to watch and see what happens. Hopefully, something less tragic than the movie itself! :D 

All are welcome for the movie! You should have read the articles to participate in the ensuing argument/ discussion.

Posters coming up soon.

For the link hungry ones:
Movie Website | IMDB | Random Review