#i feel like at least regarding that article which the post is referencing | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

homoerotic-ads · 4 years ago

Text

asexuality is not an ‘internet identity’, a fad, or fake.

as an asexual person myself, it’s difficult to deal with feeling both under-represented and excluded, both in cishet society AND lgbtq+ circles. the general conception regarding asexuality, in my experience, is that it’s a new identity, specifically a ‘tumblr snowflake’ identity, it’s not real, it’s a medical condition, etc etc. not only is this perspective genuinely hurtful and damaging, it’s just plain wrong.

asexuality’s history can be hard to pin down, exactly, outside of writings specifically about it because it’s difficult to write about an absence of something (in this case sexual encounters/attraction) rather than the presence of it. however, the concept has existed longer than our modern terms for it, as is the case with all other lgbtq+ identities.

unfortunately, I’m going to be speaking from an especially western standpoint, because I myself was born and raised in the western hemisphere and the sources I’m currently privy to are western.

before any terminology was coined, 17th century author and poet Catherine Bernard wrote various works that have since been read as relating to asexuality. her views of love, sex, marriage, and personal affairs (or lack thereof) speak to the asexual experience. here’s an article about her and her works for more information.

‘monosexual’ was a term coined in 1869 by Karl-Maria Kertbeny, the same man who coined the terms ‘homosexual’ and ‘heterosexual’ (all 3 in the same pamphlet, actually!). ‘monosexual’ refers to people who only masturbate, rather than have sexual encounters, the implication there being that monosexuals have no interest in sex/feel no need for it. (it’s a myth that asexual people don’t masturbate--some do, some don’t. asexual people have fully functioning equipment, and are perfectly capable of having and even enjoying orgasms. remember that stimulation of sexual organs is not the same thing as feeling attraction).

Kertbeny was a pretty cool dude, actually, or at least he was very progressive for his time regarding sexuality. he wrote that gay men were not inherently effeminate, that homosexuality was inborn and unchangeable, and that homosexuality had a long, long history, and many people they (and we) consider historical heroes were gay. Kertbeny was inspired to advocate for lgbtq+ people by a friend of his who had committed suicide after being blackmailed by an extortionist for his homosexuality.

in 1896 german sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld wrote the pamphlet Sappho und Sokrates, which discussed homosexual love and attraction, and referenced those who don’t feel sexual attraction. it is worth mentioning that he unfortunately connected asexuality with sexual anesthesia, which is the usually psychogenic condition that causes an absence of normal or expected sensations during sexual activity, as in, you have intercourse but can’t physically feel the stimulation. that is not what asexuality is.

In 1907, Carl Schlegel, a german immigrant to the US and Presbyterian minister wrote a speech advocating for lgbtq+ equality, and mentions asexuality by name: “Let the same laws for all the intermediate stages of sexual life: the homosexuals, heterosexuals, bisexuals, asexuals, be legal as they are now in existence for the heterosexuals[...]” Schlegel is considered one of the first modern gay activists in the US.

coming back to Magnus Hirschfeld, he adopted the term asexual in his 1920 work, The Role of Homosexual Men and Women in Society, writing: “we must (if this were possible) describe” philosophers like Immanuel Kant “as being asexual.”

since its development in 1948, the Kinsey Scale has an X category for those who don’t experience sexual attraction.

in the 1960s, the magazine Transvestia (founded by transwoman Virginia Prince in 1960, and ran from 1960-1980) published an article that claimed that, while most trans people “are entirely heterosexual,” “some are also asexual.” in 1965 the same magazine published the “A-Sexual Range”--sort of an early prototype for the modern asexual spectrum--which stated “There are persons who simply have a very low libido—no sex drive to speak of.”

in 1969 Anton Szandor LeVey, founder of the Church of Satan, wrote in his book The Satanic Bible that “Satanism condones any type of sexual activity which properly satisfies your individual desires – be it heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, or even asexual.”

in 1970 the Philadelphia, PA newspaper, Gay Dealer, published an article on trans liberation, saying that it “includes transvestites, transsexuals, and hermaphrodites of any sexual manifestation and of all sexes—heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, and asexual.”

in 1972, The Asexual Manifesto was published by the New York Radical Feminists. although the term asexual is used, it is a radfem publication so bear that in mind and be cautious in reading it.

at a feminist conference in 1973, female and nonbinary attendees were asked to wear a label identifying themselves as one of the following: “Straight, Lesbian, Gay, Butch, Femm, Asexual, Anti-sexual, ?, other, etc.”

in the same year, activists at a conference at Barnard college provided labels for lgbtq+ identities.

in 1974, David Bowie discussed asexuality in Rolling Stones magazine.

in 1977, Myra Johnson wrote one of the first academic papers about asexuality for the book The Sexually Oppressed. she described asexuality as a complete lack of sexual attraction, which is the definition we generally use today!

if you’ve read all the way down here, and needed some convincing, I hope you’re getting the picture. asexuality is a long standing, clearly defined community, with its first term (monosexual) coined alongside homosexual and heterosexual. we have been recognized, by name, for nearly 200 years, and the concept/feeling has existed long before that. asexuality is not a disease, a medical condition, an internet fad, or a joke. asexuals experience discrimination, lack of representation, and a the general misunderstanding that other sexual minorities experience. asexuality has not been institutionally discriminated against because, as previously said, you can’t really prove or prosecute an absence in the same way one can a presence. however, in 2015, Russia banned people with “disorders of sexual preference” from obtaining drivers’ licenses, and the list included asexuals.

this post is not nearly an exhaustive list of asexual history. if you want/need more information on asexuality, I’d recommend @historicallyace, the Asexual Visibility and Education Network, the Asexual Census, and this great article on cracked.com about general ace experiences.

if anyone reading this post has more info and sources, please add them!

happy reading!

#lmk if i fucked something up in here....it looks fine but i dont trust my eyes #asexual #asexuality #aven #lgbt history #lgbtq history #queer history #my post #please feel free to add on sources n such or further commentary #but not exclusionists. is2g if you clown on this post #like at least read it man

424 notes · View notes

everything-laito · 4 years ago

Text

Hypersexuality and Laito Sakamaki (UPDATED)

Hiya guys! Been a long ass time since I’ve made a post like this, I’ve been getting so much ask box activity + had school so I haven’t had the time to make an original post! This has been something I wanted to write for a while, and not only was I busy with school, but this one hits home hard to me personally, so I was going back and forth for a bit writing it. But I think I’m ready :)

I know there’s kind of a general consensus that anything DL related comes along with a trigger warning whether stated or not, but just a TW considering I’ll be talking about some real life experiences; not in depth or detail of course, but just mentions of it :) Not only is this a Laito analysis but it’s also an educational tool to help other people know about this!

So, without further ado, rant under the cut!

Hypersexuality is something that many sexual assault/harassment and rape survivors experience after the abuse. People associate asexuality or sexual repulsion as the only (or common) psychological affect after experiencing those situations. However, there is another affect that can happen, and it is more common than people think, and aforementioned, it’s hypersexuality. It’s basically having more sexual feeling and urges after the experience, in order to cope with the nonconsensual one. And it’s exactly what Laito experienced after Cordelia’s abuse.

I’ve also experienced something like this. I don’t believe I’ve experienced it in full swing, but definitely something like it. I haven’t been raped thankfully, but I have been sexually harassed/assaulted before a handful of times. I know I’ve briefly mentioned that in other analyses, but I’m just explicitly stating it here.

I first learned about hypersexuality this year actually, and my Laito nerd brain was like “holy shit that’s the name of what Laito is going through.” Then I was like “oh fuck I’ve gone through that a little bit too.” I thought going along with would help me “heal” myself, and it really was doing the opposite. (UPDATE: realized that what I thought was a lot of sexual trauma/hypersexuality was mostly compulsory heterosexuality (but still with those dabbled in too—quite a terrible combo) because last month I realized I’m not attracted to men! Although those experiences I mentioned did mess me up a bit, realizing this is a huge step in the right direction for my own mental well being. Just had to make this correction on my part, since the original post had more emotional investment than I would have liked it to :))

Like I have said in my little update, I realized I was going through mostly compulsory heterosexuality while also going through some minor sexual trauma/hypersexuality. Although again, I have not had it as bad as Laito has or other sexual assault survivors (which I am grateful for that), I still have a personal grasp of coping mechanisms with traumatic experiences or experiences I did not particularly enjoy. (If you are interested in learning more about compulsory heterosexuality, feel free to send me an ask! I just don’t feel that it’s appropriate to talk about it in regards to Laito or make a post about it, since it doesn’t relate to him)

And that’s probably also why I can resonate with Laito so much, at least on that scale, and even if I experienced a grain of what he’s going through. I know he’s fictional but these are definitely real experiences and real feelings.

Laito’s case is a bit different than just feeling overtly sexual. Although he’s trying to heal himself through sex and other intimate actions, he’s also doing it as a type of revenge. He doesn’t like purity, and in fact, he’s quite jealous of it. I’ve heard this is also a pretty human way of coping with this type of abuse, and it is why I love Yui as a character. She’s incredibly strong and sets an example for Laito. This makes Laito jealous yet entertained by her, and that’s also a reason why he probably keeps her around. He also attempts to use Yui as a vessel to avenge his own feelings (even not knowing about Cordelia being in her at first). I personally wasn’t like that, but given the circumstances, there’s definitely people who are. Laito’s character can be so human to me sometimes, its astonishing, despite him being a character, a vampire, and just generally does some wacky or terrible shit.

You could say his hypersexuality could also be similar to typical Pavlovian Conditioning. You’ve probably heard of the whole experiment of training (conditioning) a dog to expect food when they hear a certain sound and thus, his mouth waters. We’re conditioned by a lot of things in our lives, from triggering a “flight or fight” response from this specific ringtone or high school bell. It’s just a built in “routine” our minds utilize to process pattern recognition. I know I say this a lot, but we don’t know how vampire brains in the DL universe compare to human brains (and quite frank, I don’t think we will), so I will just do my typical human brain picking.

In Laito’s case, he was conditioned to “love” Cordelia in a fashion that was incredibly gross. No, I won’t sugar coat it. In my Cordelia/Laito analysis, I talk about how Laito was probably groomed. Grooming is another type of conditioning. Although I don’t believe his grooming was sexual, it definitely “prepares” the victim to be exploited in that fashion later on. It’s to build a false sense of trust to be betrayed. Later on, when Cordelia started having sex with Laito, he became used to it in a “conditioned” fashion. When someone said that Cordelia was calling him, he knew what it was. He also thought it’s what he wanted, even though he knew that he didn’t. I believe I have referenced his MB Dark Prologue monologue before, but not this part of it. Here’s the monologue:

――Who is it that I give my love to? Throwing myself away, I caught the sight of someone Someone I didn’t recognize, Suddenly, I realized I was looking into a mirror. The mirror reflected myself within it. I couldn’t see anything else. I am disgraceful for this greed. I was wearing a visage. What I wanted, certainly was love. It’s not that easy. Because of these words, I suffer. No matter how many times love is said, The only thing that will be important to me, Is only the physical contact and body.

I know I've said it in the Laito/Cordelia analysis, but Laito is visibly confused in his flashbacks. He’s trying to grasp what love is, but then convinces himself that love is physical contact, and not emotional connection, especially near the end. He knows he’s suffering but he is still conditioned to think like this. Same case for people who suffer from hypersexuality.

Although many people do not know why it occurs, it can be a symptom or “side effect” from disorders, medication, and the like. In the sexual trauma case, I believe a main reason is that the person utilizes sex to cope with trauma, or because they are used to sexual acts being forced upon them. That’s where conditioning still comes in. He’s treated as one of her suitors, lovers, or the like. Even as a stand-in for Richter and Karlheinz. He doesn’t consider Cordelia to be his mom until the DF Vampire ending. On top of him not receiving emotional gratification which leads to all sorts of just awful stuff for him, sexual attention is the only type that he receives until Yui comes along. He is used to not having emotional support or connections, which is why physical contact is what he is more “comfortable” with, while at the end of the day it still does not satisfy him.

It creates a positive feedback loop of him being unsatisfied, while being confused about where he’s unsatisfied in, leading to him trying to “fix” himself or avoid his own personal, emotional problems through lust and sex, but then still finding himself not “healing.” Then the cycle continues, enthusing his hyper sexual behavior even more.

I was sent some great articles from @souchiika on the DL discord (thank you so much!) and one of the articles stood out to me, since I did not talk about this type of topic on this blog yet. Here’s the link to the article, and here’s the quote that stood out to me!

Furthermore, indirect effects were also statistically significant, providing support to the hypothesis that depression and guilt would be serial mediators of trauma-hypersexual behavior relations. The paths through depression and guilt have been found to be the most significant with moderate and high indirect effects on hypersexuality. Moreover, male gender, as covariate variable, is a relevant risk factor for hypersexual behavior.

Hypersexuality is something that is still being researched like I mentioned earlier, but since these findings came out, it definitely makes sense in Laito’s case (and in general). Like I said, Laito does feel unsatisfied and even shameful of his actions, which is more apparent in the beginning of his and Cordelia’s “relationship.” In those flashbacks, he asks himself if this is what he really wants, and although he attempts to force himself to like these actions as a coping mechanism, there is still a relative degree of shame and guilt he has. It is also apparent nearing his DF Ecstacy ending when he finds out that Karlheinz foresaw Cordelia having sex with him, and even wanted it to happen. All that shame and guilt came bellowing out while he was in a fit of distress. In initial attempts to mediate this guilt and shame, he projected his feelings onto other women through sexual acts, leading to more of this hypersexual loop. I know I talk about Laito projecting a lot, but it is frequent in his character. Like I’ve always said, it’s typical “bully” power dynamic manipulation. If Laito can bring a victim of his down to his level, then he feels better about himself (but it satisfies him for only a short while, until Yui in MB+).

Also, note that this is no excuse or justification for him to rape or sexually assault others. It is merely an explanation as to why he does it (as for my posts in general, it’s not a justification, it’s an explanation).

Another reminder that rape and sexual assault isn’t about the sexual urges, but about power. That’s why anybody with any background can do it, given the circumstances.

This post was a bit hard for me to write, so I apologize if I got too overtly personal for your liking. Like I’ve said in the past, I’m not writing this to gain sympathy too, and sure that sounds superficial of me to say now (although I truly mean it), I just want to use my platform as an educational tool. Sorry about the change in my typical tone :)

Sorry if this was too much of a doozy, I really wanted to talk about it and to educate people, despite it being a bit personal. I just felt like the most effective way was to convey how real this topic is, despite this fandom knowing about it in a fictional setting.

I hope you have a great day! -Corn

#analysis #laito sakamaki #sakamaki laito #corn gets personal #sakamaki raito #raito sakamaki #diabolik lovers #dialover #dialovers #dl

136 notes · View notes

margridarnauds · 4 years ago

Text

@inkandglitter21

This is a VERY good question! And one that I think keeps quite a few people in the field up at night, to be honest, but I’m going to give the best answer I possibly can, hence why I’m giving it its own post. My apologies in advance if this gets slightly technical - Some of this is kind of inherently technical and complicated. I also am going to HAVE to mention that I’m doing my best to represent the closest thing we can get to a consensus of the field, but that doesn’t mean that someone, in a week or so, can’t publish an article that blows this out of the water. It happens.

As a further warning, which I give every single time I discuss the issues inherent to the study of this material: I am not a religious authority. I’m a Celticist. I love the Tuatha Dé, but I can’t claim any form of spiritual connection with them. (As LGE would say, “Though the author enumerates them, she does not worship them.”) So, to anyone who reads this who might have a connection to the figures described....I can’t say anything about the relationship that you, personally, have with them. I can only say what we know, what we don’t know, and what we’re still kind of scratching our heads at with regards to the medieval material. Part of why I’ve, traditionally, sworn off talking about Bríg, Danu, and Morrigan is specifically because they tend to arouse some very strong feelings, and I never really wanted to get caught in something I couldn’t handle.

But, also. What use is a geas if you don’t break it, likely leading you to your tragic-yet-inevitable doom?

So, first off, let’s talk Lebor Gabála Érenn. MAGNIFICENT text, and a personal baby of mine. Chock full of information about the Tuatha Dé, the Fir Bolg, the Milesians, the High Kings of Ireland....basically everything a person could ever want to know. A mythographer’s dream and nightmare all in one. But, there’s a problem with it, and it’s one that I feel like Celticists have never stressed enough to the public, not the least because Celticists, as a group, tend to be a little....terrified of LGE. There are relatively few scholars who want to work with it after Macalister’s edition (to understand the reception to Macalister: A personal hobby of mine is collecting remarks other scholars have made about his edition, because they can be BRUTAL.) It has been described as “almost unreadable.” Which is kind of forgivable given the man was DYING when he made it, but still.

Why are so many scholars scared of LGE? Well, primarily, because it’s hard to say that there was one singular LGE. LGE, as we know it, was compiled in about the 11th century. Or, it began to be compiled in the 11th century. It’s a Middle Irish text (so, it’s coming significantly later than, say, Tochmarc Étaíne or Cath Maige Tuired, which are both ~9th century texts, though CMT was given revisions in the 11th century to bring it in line with LGE). And it is based off of a MUCH bigger genre of pseudohistorical texts, with many of the older texts being missing or destroyed. (The one generally most mourned by us is the one in Cín Dromma Snechta, which could have dated to as early as the 8th century and definitely contained a sort of proto-LGE. We know this because LGE cites it on occasion, so the tradition didn’t fully die out, we just don’t have the full thing.) So, to begin with, LGE is a mixed bag, based off of essentially all the work that came before it, with the scribes involved basically playing a juggling game with what prior scribes jotted down. (You can see it every once in a while, where a redactor will say something like “Certain ignorant people believe ____, but it is clearly not the case, for _________.”)

It’s almost better to view it as a scrapbook than a single text - You have about 3-4 recensions (different scholars identified different recensions) spread out over around 20 surviving manuscripts, each recension containing significant amounts of detail that vary from their counterparts. Also, studded across LGE, you have a variety of poems that are believed to date either before or at around the same time that LGE was being compiled. (Part of what drives scholars up a WALL with Macalister’s translation is that, besides not identifying the original poets for the poems featured in LGE, he also separated the poems from the text around them. And, as someone who did have to work with that translation....yeah, it is a hot mess. Sorry and RIP, Macalister, but it’s a mess.)

Now, you might wonder: Why am I telling you this? You came at me with a mythography question and I’m hitting you with manuscript studies. But THIS is the context that it’s existing in - I know it’s fairly popular to kind of talk shit about the scribes writing this stuff down, but it’s very important to understand that they were really trying their best to understand this stuff, just like we were. And, between the various recensions of LGE, we can actually SEE the tradition evolve. One of the key ways to know that Something Pre-Christian is going on is if NONE of the redactors could agree on someone. If you see someone’s depiction REALLY shifting around, you know that the redactors were having an issue with them, possibly dealing with multiple contradictory traditions.

Enter the Bríg/Dana/Anu/Morrigan problem. AKA “Things that will cause me to have nightmares.” So, let’s try to take this piece by piece.

The term “Tuatha Dé Danann” is generally accepted to be a later addition. There was not, before a certain time in the Irish mythological tradition, any notion of a goddess named “Danu”. (Established by John Carey in the article, “The name Tuatha Dé Danann”-- Essentially, the term “Tuatha Dé” was the original, but then, with the influence of the term Tuatha Dé, or “Tribe of God” to refer to the Israelites, they felt they had to disambiguate it to “Tuatha Dé Danann”, or “People of Skill”, and then people mistook “Danann” as being the name of a goddess...if I remember correctly, since I don’t have it to hand at the moment.) It is very important to establish this off the bat. Now, how did this get started? And where does this web begun to be woven? Well, I feel like someone could probably write at LEAST a MA dissertation on the topic, possibly even a PhD, and it definitely isn’t going to be me, but I can try my best.

So. The Trí Dé Dána (Three Gods of Skill).

Originally, it seems very likely that the genitive component Dána in their name was not meant to be a proper name. They were not MEANT to be perceived as “The Three Gods of Dana”, but “the three gods of skill”. As noted by O’Rahilly (and GOD, it hurts me when he’s right), the first time we really have the phrase referenced is in Cath Maige Tuired, where, he argues, and I have to agree with him, that it refers to Goibhniu, Luchta, and Credne, who Lugh goes to for weapons to fight against the Fomoire. Additionally, you have a gloss on the 9th century text “Immacallam in Dá Thuarad: Ecna mac na tri nDea nDána” that says that their mother was Bríg, though also seems to indicate, specifically, a connection with the filid, which keeps neatly with the LGE reference (and to the image of Bríg as a poetess. I don’t have enough time to talk Bríg here, but if you want to see what I had to say a while back, I made a post here) After the 12th century, though, when the name “Danu” became associated with the Tuatha Dé, a bunch of medieval scribes looked at “Trí Dé Dána” and thought, not UNREASONABLY, “Oh? This is a reference to Danu? Let’s fix that grammar!” So you have, in some later recensions of LGE, the name “Trí Dé Dána” replaced by “Tré dée Danann/Donand/Danand.” It is vital to mention, as Williams does in Ireland’s Immortals (189), that “Danu/Donu” is never attested, it’s always Donand/Danand. So, from the get-go, trying to identify “Danand” with “Anu” was going to be problematic at best. The general consensus seems to be that Bríg and Bres were the original parents of the Trí Dé, and that it’s very possible that they were, originally, specifically associated with the filid, or poets, with this fitting very neatly into both Bres and Bríg’s associations with the Dagda, Ogma, and, of course, Elatha, but that, with Cath Maige Tuired in the 9th century and the new tradition of Bres as a tyrant, it all got muddled, with traces of it lingering into LGE. (Myth and Mythography)

But, what about “Anu?” Who is this figure? And THIS, my friends, is where things REALLY begin to get fucky. She is identified in Cormac’s Glossary as mater deorum hibernensium, “Mother of the gods of Ireland” - That is beyond doubt. This ties in very naturally with the conflation of Danand/Danu as the mother of the Trí Dé Dána that we discussed earlier. It was, to a certain extent, natural that the two of them would become intertwined.

So, this means that Anu is a genuine pre-Christian figure who became entangled up with the whole Danu business?

Well....

Michael Clarke, in his exploration of the intellectual environment of medieval Ireland, points out that the reference to “Anu” is, in fact, VERY similar to both Isidore of Sevile and in Carolingian mythographical compilations relating to the Greek goddess Cybele, indicating that the scribe, when he was jotting that down, might have very well had that in mind (52-53). Does this mean that they invented ANOTHER goddess and then conflated that goddess with another invented goddess?

...not quite.

Because we still have to account for things like, for example, a mountain known as “The Paps of Anand”, which isn’t easily ascribed to a classical influence. (As noted by Mark Williams, with the typical mixture of good humor and good sense that characterizes his writing,“It beggars belief to think that the Pre-Christian Irish would not have associated so impressively breasted a landscape with a female deity.”) (189). Also, as noted by Williams, even the most skeptical argument cannot explain where Anu comes from. It seems unlikely that they would simply create a goddess out of thin air. Even Danu, as sketchy as her existence is, came from SOMEWHERE, even if it was a linguistic, instead of spiritual, basis. But THEN we have to deal with another question: If this figure is so important, why doesn’t she show up in any of the myths? Why let the Dagda, Lugh, the Morrigan, Midir, Óengus, Ogma, and Nuada have all the fun? The Dagda in particular is as close to a BLATANTLY pre-Christian deity as you can get on-page, so it can’t be chalked up to a simple “They didn’t want to depict the mother of the gods on page.” Mark Williams suggests, tentatively, that Anu might have been a minor Munster figure who swelled in popularity, possibly dropped in by some Munster-based scribes who wanted to bolster their own province’s reputation and, equally tentatively, without further evidence to go on, I have to agree with him. I believe there’s too much evidence to suggest that there was SOMETHING, but that there’s also too little to say that she had the range or influence described, and that it’s very likely that, at the very least, the scribe writing that entry had Cybele on his mind. It’s really, really a mystery, though.

Furthermore, as John Carey notes in “Notes on the Irish War Goddess”....why conflate Anu with the Morrigan? “While it may be plausible....to explain a war-goddess’s possession of sexual characteristics...it is considerably more difficult to follow that chain of thought in reverse in order to account for a land goddess with martial traits. Not is there any evident reason for a conflation of Anu/Anann and the Morrígan unless the former were to some extent linked with war already” pointing out that, relevant to the first paragraph of this, it SEEMS like her inclusion among the daughters of Ernmas was forced on the redactor by a prior tradition (271). Sometimes, she’s a fourth daughter of Ernmas, sometimes she’s a replacement for the Morrigan, sometimes, in the later texts, she’s associated with Danu. It’s like the various authors KNEW they had to include her in there somehow, but they didn’t know how, and she didn’t fit in smoothly once they did. Are we looking at a war/land goddess , obscure enough that the redactor didn’t know where to put her, deciding that she HAD to be the Morrigan/one of the Morrigan��s sisters but not knowing exactly how to fit her in? It wouldn’t be the first time multiple traditions clashed like this. Also, as noted by Sharon Paice Macleod, who gave a very thorough (if not always, in my opinion, sufficiently contextual) account of the tradition, there is a location called the “Paps of the Morrigan”, further suggesting a fertility aspect to the Morrigan that also features into Carey’s earlier argument of dual aspects to the Irish war goddess, along with Bhreatnach’s suggestion of the sovereignty goddess, who represents the land in the medieval Irish literary tradition (and into the present) also functioning as a goddess of death. (Indeed, as noted by Bhreatnach, the hag Cailb from Togail Bruidne Dá Derga, who functions as a sort of anti-sovereignty goddess, identifies herself with Nemain and Badb, at 255. Sovereignty giveth, sovereignty taketh away when you don’t fulfill your place as king.)

Basically, as with almost everything relating to pre-Christian religion in Ireland, we’ve really, really got to shrug our shoulders and go “Fuck if I know, mate.”

My best attempt at a tl;dr for...this:

LGE - WEIRD

Danu - Help us.

Trí Dé - Who’s your daddy? (Most likely? Bres originally, though it got out of hand after, like, the 12th century.)

Anu - Who are you? (Who, Who?)

Sources:

Scowcroft, “Leabhar Gabhála Part I: The growth of the text" (For the discussion on the different recensions of LGE.)

John Carey, “The Irish National Origin-Legend: Synthetic Pseudohistory”

T.F O’Rahilly, Early Irish History and Mythology

Máire Bhreathnach, “The Sovereignty Goddess as Goddess of Death”

John Carey, “The name Tuatha Dé Danann”

Mark Williams, Ireland’s Immortals (Who, really, puts this all together in a so much more cohesive way in his book, I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to get an idea of how these things develop.)

John Carey, “Myth and Mythography in Cath Maige Tuired.”

Michael Clarke, “Linguistic Education and Literary Creativity in Medieval Ireland”.

John Carey, “Notes on the Irish War Goddess”

Sharon Paice Macleod, “Mater Deorum Hibernensium: Identity and Cross-Correlation in Early Irish Mythology.”

#irish mythology #celtic mythology #danu #the morrigan #long post #REALLY long post

41 notes · View notes

felassan · 4 years ago

Note

Did you think DA is going to be a live service game?

Anonymous said: I was reading some people saying since they just wrote Dragon age on the trailer that's is possible it'll be a live service game? what did u think? i hope not

Hi Nonnies! This answer is under a cut due to length.

Nonnie 2, here’s the only comment thus far that I’m aware of from a dev regarding the title situation. It could mean that “Dragon Age” is what is going to go on the box eventually, or that something else is going on the box eventually and that for now “Dragon Age” is just a placeholder (depending on how you read it, it’s a light-hearted comment also which is important to bear in mind). I feel it’s unclear whether the title is going to be “Dragon Age” or whether that’s a placeholder for something else in the meantime. If it is “Dragon Age” though, I’m not sure that we can say that that would be a hint for or against it being or not being any specific kind of game. It’s still pretty early for a title though for the record.

Title aside, it’s known that the next Dragon Age game is going to have live service elements in it at least. That’s not automatically the same thing as the kind of live service game I’m assuming you’re referring to, but here’s what’s known on the subject for reference -

About one year ago in prepared remarks for investors EA stated that they are “doubling down on live services combined with our core franchises”, although it’s not specified whether or not they were referencing Dragon Age among these “core franchises”, so it could easily not be.

In 2019 a Jason Schreier investigative article reported that:

It led to the departure of several key staff including veteran Dragon Age creative director Mike Laidlaw, and it led to today’s Dragon Age 4, whose developers hope to carefully straddle the line between storytelling and the “live service” that EA has pushed so hard over the past few years. (EA did not return a request for comment.) [...]

A tiny team stuck around to work on a brand new Dragon Age 4, code-named Morrison, that would be built on Anthem’s tools and codebase. It’s the game being made now. Unlike Joplin, this new version of the fourth Dragon Age is planned with a live service component, built for long-term gameplay and revenue. One promise from management, according to a developer, was that in EA’s balance sheet, they’d be starting from scratch and not burdened with the two years of money that Joplin had already spent. Question was, how many of those ideas and prototypes would they use? [...]

When asked, a few BioWare developers agreed that it’d be technically possible for a game built on Anthem’s codebase to also have an offline branch, but it’s not yet clear whether Morrison will take that approach. If it does turn out to be an online game, which seems likely, it would be shocking if you couldn’t play the bulk of it by yourself. (Diablo III, for example, is online-only on PC yet can be played entirely solo.) One person close to the game told me this week that Morrison’s critical path, or main story, would be designed for single-player and that goal of the multiplayer elements would be to keep people engaged so that they would actually stick with post-launch content. Single-player downloadable content like Dragon Age: Inquisition’s Trespasser, while often excellent, typically sells only a fraction of the main game, according to developers from BioWare and elsewhere across the industry.

Emphasis mine.

This was after he reported in 2018 in a prior article that:

The past year has been tumultuous for BioWare and involved some major changes to the studio. One was to reboot the fourth Dragon Age, which at the time was code-named Joplin, according to two sources. (There’s a running theme here—Anthem’s codename was Dylan.) The goal, those sources said, was to implement more “live” elements into the game, although two of those sources stressed that this next Dragon Age will still have a heavy focus on characters and story, whenever it does come out. It’s not clear what a “live” version of Dragon Age might look like, but EA has been public about its embrace of games as a service, and its lack of interest in releasing $60 games that do not have any sort of revenue tail, whether that means paid extra content, microtransactions, or something else.

Emphasis mine. Both articles are worth reading in full really. Saying that, it’s also worth bearing in mind that there could be errors or biases in the reporting, or out of date information.

At that time in response to the second article Casey Hudson tweeted that he had been “Reading lots of feedback regarding Dragon Age, and I think you’ll be relieved to see what the team is working on. Story & character focused. Too early to talk details, but when we talk about “live” it just means designing a game for continued storytelling after the main story.” (Emphasis mine)

The question is what does “live” and “live service elements” mean? And in general, what do we mean when we say “live service” or “games as a service”? Paid extra content? Subscriptions? Season passes like AC Odyssey? Microtransacations (lootboxes are going out of fashion thankfully)? A world that updates and changes? A partially-shared world? Vanity store? Drop-in-drop-out co-op? You have to be online/connected to the internet in order to play? This matters as technically things like the Dragon Age Keep and being able to push patches quickly are live service elements. Along these same lines, the previous DA games had DLC and cosmetic stuff and logging in with an EA account, and Inquisition had an online multiplayer component and the Golden Nug - BioWare have previously pointed out that they see Inquisition and all the previous games in the series really as having had “live service elements” in them. Also, sometimes there’s misunderstanding floating around on what “live service elements” means.

Then what does a game designed “for continued storytelling after the main story” entail? DLC, or an Odyssey-style set-up, or a plan to have an ongoing story after along the lines of what the Anthem world roadmap looked like before it got cancelled? Post-main story episodic content? This next bit is total speculation: it’s possible too that they’re referring more to like, internal strategy and related shifts in terms of the game’s longevity post-launch, as in how they plan to support (and thus monetize - and please note I’m not using monetize here in a panic or gloomy way, I just mean in terms of practical business from that perspective) the game after release. As amazing as the DLC is, only a chunk of players tend to get them, and so maybe they’re needing to reevaluate how they do that kind of thing.

So - I feel like it’s unknown what the situation with the title is, unknown what type of game DA4 is going to be exactly (still, post-TGA trailer), unknown what the “live service elements” are going to entail, and unknown what Casey meant when he said that. Not enough info to conclude. 😅 Do take this post with a grain of salt as I’m not an expert on this subject and if people reading feel that there are errors in it or additions to it that would like to make by all means correct me or share them.

#dragon age 4 #the dread wolf rises #dragon age #bioware #mjs mailbag #anonymous #video games #anthem #I guess this answer isn't really that helpful 😅#sry :(

34 notes · View notes

mahmancat · 4 years ago

Text

Why Are We So In Love With Cats

Cats and also their human followers are a misunderstood lot. This I discovered when I composed "Why cats never ever became male's buddy" discussing how the recently mapped cat genome reveals that, compared with canines, residence cats are only partially tamed. The reaction on Quartz's Facebook page was legendary. The article obtained almost 1,700 remarks more than any other post on Quartz's Facebook page, ever. What triggered this outpouring? I referenced the feline stereotype frequently traded among dog people that cats are passive-aggressive and also psychologically unavailable.

On the face of it, pet people appear to be less touchy. Our short article in 2014 on pets' genetic wildness (" Quit coddling your pet dog he's 99.9% wolf") was widely read, but it sparked minimal feedback from pet dog people in any way as well as certainly no outrage.

So why do pet cat individuals come off as so darned delicate? Possibly since they are. Research studies weightgal.com do without a doubt show feline individuals often tending towards higher nervousness as well as moodiness than the pro-canine team. Current research likewise recommends animal owners with even more aberrant characteristics are additionally inclined to feel more anxiety regarding their animals' sensations towards them. Whether consciously or otherwise, both media as well as society appear to love to massage this insecurity in.

Yet many in the pro-cat camp suggest that the bond they show to their felines transcends to what pet dog individuals experience with their pets:

Sounds quite bitter, possibly. But on this point, at the very least, the pet cat people are not as crazy as the stereotype maintains. Their animal of selection has actually greatly stood up to the human meddling that has actually in some way hewn chihuahuas as well as whippets from the genetics of wolves indicating: cats simply aren't programmed to please individuals the way pets are. And also this might explain why feline people seem to have an extremely deep bond with their animals.

Meowing martyrs

This disliking on felines thing it isn't all that original. The pomposity's real leader was Pope Gregory IX, who declared in 1233 that during Satanic masses, the Devil took the form of a black pet cat.

Throughout Europe edumattress.com , the Catholic Church tortured as well as carried out pet cat proprietors for witchery. Considering that having pet cats could obtain you burned at the stake, individuals started slaughtering residential felines a fad worsened by the false impression that pet cats triggered the Black Fatality

, which started ruining the continent in the mid-1300s. Europe's entire domestic feline population was really nearly erased, and also lots of 10s of countless "witches" were burned at the stake over the following 400 years.

It wasn't simply Catholics who had it in for felines, though; Queen Elizabeth I's crowning celebrations consisted of melting a cat active (so joyful!). To today, cats withstand torture as well as persecution that just doesn't seem to take place to dogs. For instance, individuals could claim this concerning certain pet dog types pit bulls or poodles, state yet not about pets as a whole:

Canines, the people-pleasers

Against that backdrop, it's not actually all that surprising that cat individuals may be tired of combating the dominating knowledge that pet dogs are a lot more charitable of spirit than felines. And also, scientifically speaking, this bias is unfair. Recall that canine genetics have been shuffled around for centuries to suit human requirements. While people throughout the ages were melting and also brutalizing cats, pet dogs were by their sides bring ducks, going after foxes, and also eliminating Attila the Hun's enemies, among others of the abilities they were reproduced for.

This brings us back to the development issue. Once again, house felines are mainly an item of all-natural, as well as not man-made, choice they trained themselves, you could say.

Dogs, not so much. Starting between 11,000 and also 16,000 years earlier, when pet dogs were first trained from old wolves, they have actually been bred to please individuals. The convenience with which people can reproduce them likewise suggests that human beings have selected for genes that make pet dogs extra appealing to them as well as not just for skills, however likewise for aesthetics as well as individuality avantsuccess.com .

That lack of enigma might have something to do with why Hollywood, the media as well as the basic population is extra likely to relate to dogs than pet cats, notes Mikel Delgado, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley as well as an expert cat actions specialist.

" I assume part of the [media prejudice] is because pet cats are less transparent to us they show up to have less facial expression," she states. Canines, comparative, are thought to act on their whims as well as conveniently mirror what appear to human beings to be familiar feelings. Yet pets have probably been reproduced for these traits, states Delgado. "They were fed since they can wrinkle their eyebrows, and also we bred them additionally to mirror our own expressions," she states.

The feline aura

Extra intriguing, however, is what turned up in the comments section at the end of Delgado and also Reevy's survey, in which pet dog owners of both types might mention on their pet of selection. Cat people rhapsodized regarding their cat's uniqueness, composing points like "my feline is the smartest." Canine proprietors, on the other hand, often tended either to celebrate their animal's obedience or make general statements concerning all pet dogs (e.g. "I love pets" or "pets are sweet!"), states Delgado.

The Facebook remark string lends even more proof to the pet cat part of that phenomenon. Dolly, Boris, Buddi, Cuddles, Snowy, Salem, Isis, George Hubert, and Noodle are amongst hundreds of other felines applauded in occasionally TMI-levels of information.

This makes good sense. Pet cats' freedom, absence of openness, and also self-sufficiency implies when individuals ultimately reach harmony with their kitty, they have actually overcome massive all-natural obstacles to develop a bond of mutual respect.

Why do we enjoy cats so much?

We're all cat lovers. That's why we're right here. But have you ever quit to wonder why we locate felines so amazing loveable?

With Valentine's Day just nearby, it seemed the perfect time to explore our attraction with our self-domesticated feline pals.

A few of that innate love could be instinct, based upon felines' one-of-a-kind facial functions manjacompany.com .

Konrad Loren z, that likewise uncovered the concept of inscribing, thought that human beings are drawn to baby-like features, such as large eyes. Because cats have reasonably big eyes symmetrical to their faces, also when grown, we feel an instinctual protectiveness over them.

The response can also depend on just how felines domesticated themselves. Unlike pets, that were bred from wild wolves to be searching tools as well as family members friends, pet cats most likely complied with human beings because that's where the victim was. Throughout background, any place people went, vermin followed, providing an enough food resource. Fast forward hundreds of years and cats have identified that humans will certainly provide sanctuary, safety and security, and food, without all the initiative.

That's one of the reasons it's so vital to have fun with your cat. He has strong hunting reactions that require exercising. Even if he seems material to sleep throughout the day, he actually needs an opportunity to show off his skill at pouncing, chasing, and scratching. Even simply a few mins a day with a wand plaything, like our Wiggly Stick can maintain kitty feeling frisky and also engaged.

There's likewise proof felines see us as part of their "litter," utilizing vocative sounds like mews and also chittering to attract our interest a habits that's just utilized between mommy pet cats as well as their kitties in the wild. Recognizing your cat sees you as an equal is certainly reason to dole out the love.

One more piece of the problem might lie in a pet cat's unique purrs, which they make use of to calm themselves when they're worried or to share satisfaction. Proof even reveals that a cat's purr can heal both pet cats and also humans alike. As well as there's absolutely nothing like a pleased purring cat in your lap.

It's likewise likely that several of us find pet cats to be a challenge, and that's why we discover them so appealing. Unlike pets, pet cats typically just reveal affection on their terms. So when they do finally show how much they like and depend upon us, it seems that a lot more satisfying.

If you're a meme lover, you could adore cats due to the fact that they are "made of liquid" or since "if I fits, I sits" seems to be their concept. Felines can fit in almost any container. In tight spaces, whiskers help them figure out if the area allows sufficient for their body. Yet likewise, pet cats love a basic cardboard box or a play tunnel like our very own Hide and also Sneak.

In all honesty, though, it's most likely the toe beans. Have you seen the tiny cute pads on the bottoms of their feet? Exactly how can you not enjoy an animal with such lovable toes?

4 notes · View notes

haberdashing · 5 years ago

Text

I feel like there’s a lot of misinformation floating around regarding what would happen if Donald Trump got impeached, and while I’m not an expert on the matter, I’d like to clarify a few things.

I’ll be referencing the U.S. Constitution here and there, and while there’s a number of places to read it online, I’d recommend constitutionus.com. Clear, plain text, easy to read and follow along.

First off, impeachment is not the same thing as being removed from office. Bill Clinton got impeached, but didn’t lose the presidency because of it. Impeachment basically means bringing charges against a federal official; only if they’re subsequently convicted of those charges would that official be removed from office.

What does post-impeachment conviction take, you ask?

Per Article 1, Section 3, Clause 6 of the Constitution (bolding mine):

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.

We’d need a two-thirds majority in the Senate to convict Trump and get him out of office. The GOP-led Senate. It’s not impossible, but it’d be an uphill battle.

And what happens if we do manage to get the two-thirds majority in the Senate needed to oust Trump from office? Removal of Pence and his entire Cabinet? Getting rid of everything he’s done in office? Pretending like the last two and a half years were just a bad fever dream?

Per Article 1, Section 3, Clause 7 (bolding mine):

Judgment in Cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.

What happens is Trump gets out of office and can’t get it back, or get any other federal government position. That’s it. Pence is President, all the laws Trump’s enacted over the last two and a half years remain in place, and we’re back to business as normal unless we can get the evidence and the votes to both impeach and convict other officials.

But wait! You say. What about the second half of that clause?

Article 1, Section 3, Clause 7 again (bolding mine):

Yep, Donald Trump can be prosecuted for the laws he’s broken while in office... but there’s a big asterisk there that we shouldn’t forget about.

Namely, Presidential pardons.

In the actual Constitution, it’s a bit unclear whether the President can pardon individuals of crimes tied in to impeachment.

Per Article 2, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution (bolding mine):

The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

Sounds like they can’t pardon impeachable offenses... or maybe just can’t pardon from the actual ousting from office that comes with impeachment and conviction... or something? It’s a little unclear.

But we’ve got precedent to help establish what that bit there means.

Enter Richard Nixon.

Nixon didn’t actually get ousted via impeachment and conviction, instead resigning when it was clear he was on his way out one way or another, but I’d imagine the same principles would apply. (Besides, Trump might well resign instead of getting ousted if it comes to that, too.)

His Vice President, Gerald Ford, takes over the Presidency... and more or less the first thing he does is pardon Nixon for, well, basically everything related to Watergate. Because he could do that now. Because he was the President.

And it’s very possible that President Pence (I know, I shuddered reading that too) would do the same if Trump leaves office due to impeachment, whether it be via resignation or conviction by the Senate.

(This is one reason some have tried to pin crimes on Trump that are state crimes rather than federal ones. Presidents can only pardon “for Offences against the United States,” so state crimes can’t be pardoned by the President, only by the governor of the state in question.)

So does all this mean impeachment is a giant waste, that we’d just be replacing one far-right jerk of a President with another and we shouldn’t even bother?

I don’t think so.

From here on out, this is just speculating based on all of the above and what we know of our current political climate.

Let’s say Trump gets impeached and either is convicted or resigns, and Pence takes over. As the new President, Pence has the power to pardon Trump for federal crimes... but would he actually do so?

With the 2020 election looming, deciding whether or not to pardon Trump would put President Pence (I know, I know) in a bit of a bind.

It’s no secret that the Republican party’s somewhat divided now, into center-rightists who don’t entirely agree with Trump and far-right Trump-lovers, and that a good chunk of moderates can see that Trump’s made some major missteps during his presidency.

If Pence pardons Trump, the moderates and center-right would object, and he’d lose voters who agree that while they’re willing to accept some right-wing policies, Trump took some things way too far.

If Pence doesn’t pardon Trump, Trump’s base would object, and he’d lose voters who agree with everything Trump’s done and would vote for him again if given the opportunity.

(Which they wouldn’t get, at least if Trump’s convicted rather than resigns beforehand. No federal office for him again if he’s impeached and convicted.)

Either way, he’s bound to lose a number of potential voters.

Either way, it makes a Democratic presidential win in 2020 that much more possible.

So impeachment is a step in the right direction, for sure, even if not for the reasons some have been bandying about.

#personal #shitpost #feel free to reblog #donald trump #trump #impeachment #trump impeachment #donald trump impeachment #long post

174 notes · View notes

fatehbaz · 5 years ago

Note

Hello, I hope you're well. Do you have any recommendations about where to start with decolonization theory? I've heard a bit about it but nothing substantial.

Hey, thanks for the question. Before I start rambling, I’ll just give a really short, blunt response: Despite all the jargon-heavy academic content written about decolonization, especially as a trend in the past 15 years, I think that the way to learn about decolonial thought and practice is to read the work of people living in the Global South; the work of marginalized environmental activists and agricultural workers, especially in the Global South; and the work of Indigenous scholars, knowledge holders, and activists who are explicitly willing to share their knowledge with non-Indigenous people. That said, I’m not too well-versed in technical decolonial theory per se, and instead I try to read more of the ecological/environmental, social/anthropological, and activist writing of Indigenous people and people from the Global South, what you might call decolonial thought. Rather than focusing on the technical theory and writing of wealthy Euro-American academics, I prefer more radical decolonial writing that integrates local/Indigenous cosmology, environmental knowledge, and ecology alongside the social and political aspects of radical anticolonial resistance. Something that I’m really interested in, regarding decolonial thought, is the importance of Indigenous and non-Western cosmology (ontology, epistemology, worldviews) because these ways of knowing actually provide frameworks that stand in contrast to extractivist thinking, suggesting alternatives that could be implemented. So, below I’ve listed just a couple of the most accessible authors that I’ve been reading recently, and I’ve split recommendations into four categories: (1) Indigenous authors writing about sovereignty and ecological consequences of colonialism; (2) technical decolonial theory and Indigenous resistance; (3) decolonial theory and ontology; and (4) synthesizing technical decolonial theory with writing on Indigenous worldviews and environmental knowledge. This definitely isn’t meant to be an extensive or definitive list of resources; and I know other people might have some better or different recommendations to make. But I hope this helps, if only a little bit, as an introduction!

Y’know, I think there’s a tendency among a lot of Euro-American academics to make the concept of decolonization much more mysterious, obtuse, and complicated than it needs to be; there’s an awful lot of discourse about metaphysics, ontology, and other intellectualized aspects of decolonization that are probably less important right now than concrete actions like reforestation and revegetation projects; healing soil integrity, health, and biodiversity; dismantling monoculture plantations; ending industrial resource extraction; ending de facto corporate control of lands, especially in tropical agriculture; allowing local Indigenous autonomy; preserving and celebrating Indigenous languages and ways of knowing; etc.

So, I’m not all that knowledgeable with technical decolonial theory. Instead I mostly just try very hard to read the environmental, anthropological, activist, etc. writing of Indigenous and minority communities, people from the Global South, and Indigenous traditional knowledge holders. Often, this kind of writing doesn’t always take the form of “theory.” A lot of decolonial theory - that I’ve seen, at least - is concerned with discussing trends/currents in academia and Euro-American discourse about the Global South. (In other words, a lot of decolonial theory written by white authors seems more concerned with talking about what decolonization means for academia and discourse, rather than actually exploring the worldviews of Indigenous peoples and the Global South.) Instead, the kind of stuff that I try to read explores Indigenous and non-Western resistance, community-building, and ecology; and so the resources that I recommend might not qualify as decolonial theory but they are decolonial, if that makes sense?

In my experience, some of the works that best demonstrate or embody decolonial thought are not works of theory, but are instead works of social history, nature writing, natural history, or works that explore bioregionalism, food, and local folklore. I also like to note that there is a trend among activists and scholars in Latin America to use the term “anticolonial” instead of “decolonial” or “postcolonial.” These latter two terms might imply that existence or identity in the Global South is doomed to always be defined by its relationship to Europe, the US, or imperialism generally. However, “anticolonial” might connote a more active role; you may still suffer the effects of imperialism, but you’re also an active opponent of it, living and thinking outside colonialism, with a unique worldview that exists autonomously rather than being defined always in reference to colonial actions or standards.

Indigenous authors writing about sovereignty and ecological consequences of colonialism:

So here are a few Indigenous scholars that I read, who write not just about decolonial thought, but also about place-based identity, environmental knowledge, and how decolonial theory can often be Eurocentic:

– Zoe Todd: Metis scholar and environmental writer, who famously criticized academic discourse about decolonization for itself being Eurocentric and colonial; here’s a nice interview (from 2015) about decolonial theory, where Zoe Todd criticizes Western academics and the ontological turn in anthropology.– Kyle Whyte: Potawatomi scholar, who writes about Indigenous sovereignty, Indigenous food systems, colonization, contrasts between Indigenous and Euro-American worldviews, and preservation of Indigenous enviornmental knowledge; here’s a list of Whyte’s articles and essays, most available for free.– Robin Wall Kimmerer: Potawatomi ecologist, bryophyte specialist, and educator, who discusses contrasts between Indigenous and Euro-American ways of knowing; here’s one of my favorite interviews with Kimmerer.

Technical decolonial theory and Indigenous resistance:

And here are two recommendations on more technical anticolonial/decolonial theory. These texts are both a bit dense:

– Boaventura de Sousa Santos wrote a wonderful work of decolonial/anticolonial theory and thought, titled Epistemologies of the South: Justice Against Epistemicide (2014). This work is a bit technical but very interesting and thorough, and explores how a major function of imperialism is to deliberately dismantle Indigenous worldviews, ways of knowing, and environmental knowledge, to replace Indigenous ecological relationships with “extractivist” and “industrial” mentalities.

– Arturo Escobar wrote a good work of anticolonial theory in direct response to de Sousa Santos’ work; Escobar’s text is called Thinking-feeling with the Earth: Territorial Struggles and the Ontological Dimension of the Epistemologies of the South (2015).

Both of these texts and authors explore the Global South’s active resistance to industrial/extractivist worldviews; they both also largely focus on Latin America and reciprocity, communal relationships, agroecology, and active resistance in Latin American communities.

Decolonial theory and ontology:

The ontological turn in anthropology is kiiind of a manifestation of decolonial theory, though it’s kind of problematic and often Eurocentric, popular among wealthy academics. The Metis scholar Zoe Todd, referenced earlier in this post, has written about the problematic aspects of the ontological turn. The ontological turn was big news in academia around 2008-2012, happening alongside the rise in popularity of Mark Fisher, “capitalist realism,” and Graham Harman’s object-oriented ontology. Basically, I guess you could summarize the ontological turn as an effort to decolonize thinking in anthropology departments of Euro-American universities, to better understand the the worldviews/cosmologies of non-Western people. Here’s a summary by environmental scholar Adrian Ivakhiv, which references the role of Eduardo Viveiros de Castro and Phillipe Descola, two anthropologists working adjacent to decolonial theory.

Synthesizing technical decolonial theory with writing on Indigenous worldviews and environmental knowledge:

– Phillipe Descola: A renowned anthropologist whose work inspired much of the decolonization trend in US anthropology departments and the ontological turn in anthropology; Descola’s work deals with epistemology and ontology (so it’s often pretty dense) and takes a lot of cues from the work of Eduardo Viveiros de Castro, the Brazilian anthropologist who popularized the study of Amazonianist cosmology. Other Euro-American anthropologists who write about technical decolonial theory: Bruno Latour (kind of problematic); Isabelle Stengers.

– Eduardo Kohn: An anthropologist focused on decolonization and Indigenous worldviews; Kohn also takes cues from Viveiros de Castro and Descola. Kohn authored How Forests Think, which is a study of Indigenous Amazonian worldviews and how Amazonian people perceive nonhuman living things and the rainforest as a community. You can look up interviews with Eduardo Kohn

– I don’t know if you saw this post I made recently, but it shares a fun publication called The Word for World is Still Forest, which is an exploration of the cultural importance of forests from decolonial and Indigenous perspectives, and it’s a good example of decolonial theory being explored by visual artists, geographers, poets, anthropologists, and activists.

So, these are just the first examples that come to mind. I’m sure other friends/readers/followers might have some better recommendations. [ @anarcblr ?]

Often, I feel like a lot of technical decolonization theory is written by white professionals and academics, and I, personally, don’t think it’s important to have a white academic acting as a “middle man” whomst “translates” the thinking of Indigenous theorists and people from the Global South. In my experience, there’s a lot of “decolonization theory” content in journals, books, etc., over the past 20-ish years, mostly written by white academics who seem to have just recently “discovered” the “utility” of decolonization theory for “improving their field” or something. Discussing the “utility” of Indigenous knowledge is itself a kind of colonialist way of thinking, since it sees the knowledge as profitable or valuable or something to be employed like a machine, a way of thinking that is itself extractivist. (I’m not anti-intellectual, and anti-intellectualism is a problem, especially in the US. But I’ve not really found academics willing to just straight-up say radical things like “capitalism has to be confronted if we’re going to be serious about decolonization.”)

Like, they write about decolonization as if it’s major benefit is its practical/pragmatic application to improving science, metaphysics, conservation, or climate crisis mitigation. One example of this behavior is a huge amount of headlines in mainstream US news sources and environmental magazines, from late 2018 and 2019, that say some version of “Indigenous knowledge may be the key to surviving the climate crisis” or “planting trees might be the single best defense against global climate collapse, and Indigenous peoples’ knowledge can help us implement it” And this just doesn’t sit well with me. Firstly, because it frames Indigenous knowledge as an inanimate resource to be “tapped,” appropriated, employed, “put to use.” And secondly, because this not news. This - the role of vegetation and healthy soil microorganism communities in mitigating desertification, biodiversity loss, and local adverse climate trends - has been well-known to Indigenous peoples for centuries or millennia, and has also been very well-known to Euro-American environmental historians and academic geographers for decades.

I guess I’m saying that the current Euro-American discourse of decolonization has a lot of issues.

Anyway, the theory that I personally like best isn’t too academic or jargon-heavy; I like the work that which synthesizes human elements (anticolonial; anti-imperialist; anti-extractivism; anti-racist) with ecology (cosmology and folklore; traditional environmental knowledge; place-based identity), since ecological degradation and social violence and injustice are inseparable issues, and this is an interconnected relationship that decolonial theory and Latin American worldviews seem to understand very, very deeply.

And, I guess another element to the kind of decolonial writing that I enjoy is the importance of Indigenous and non-Western cosmology (worldviews, epistemology, ontology, ways of knowing) to providing alternatives to imperial, colonial, and extractivist mentalities. This is how decolonial thinking is not just about finding ways to defend against further imperial violence, but also proactive in promoting healthier alternatives that can be implemented.

I hope that some of these recommendations are useful!

320 notes · View notes

articlewritingbd · 4 years ago

Text

5 Steps of Writing a Business Article Like a Pro

Does the prospect of writing a service article make you worried? Company writing can feel daunting, but if you damage down the process right into actions, you will certainly recognize that writing a business article is like writing for any kind of another style.

What is Business Article?

A business article writing is any content you create to directly or indirectly share details regarding a service. The different kinds of organization writing consist of blogs, news releases, newsletters, brochures, flyers, emailers, and also presentations.

Business writing entails a range of writing designs.

The content writing design will certainly vary with the sort of company content you have actually been asked to write. For example, compared to a blog, an emailer should have a much more concise pitch. Likewise, a flyer will certainly have to offer a concept really quickly, while in a company sales brochure, you have the deluxe of being extra descriptive.

I have been writing for medium-sized and also tiny companies for practically seven years currently. In that time structure, I have created business articles on myriad markets, such as modern company technology, software advancement, sustainable energy, educational working as a consultant, childcare service, online assistant solution, as well as clinical invoicing.

Over the thousands of short articles composed, I have developed a company article writing approach that I'd such as to show you today. My method of writing a company and looking into the article may not function for you, but it is one you might definitely use as a start point to create your own variation of a writing system.

For this post, I will adhere to the prep work, looking into, structuring, writing, and editing stages of writing a service article.

Here goes.

5 Steps to Writing a Business Article

Let's repaint a lovely picture ... but with words.

STEP 1: PREPARE - Understand what is expected of you.

Allow's think that you are working for a customer for the very first time, and also, you have actually been given a topic 'X Reasons to Have a Blog.' As soon as you tackle this job, you need to get answers to the complying with inquiries:

1. Who is the target audience of your customer?

Understand that you are writing for and also what the customer desires

Is your customer targetting companies or people? The target audience will influence the means you create. A company targetting individual customers will certainly prefer a writing style that is much more conversational, individual, as well as perhaps also tied with wit. On the other hand, a B2B customer might desire an article that is interesting and also highlights the business's expertise.

When we say business article, of training course, do not assume that you require to create content that appears like a monitoring publication remove. Today, every web content you compose needs to be simple to review and have to communicate the benefit the viewers will originate from the 10 mins they invest in reviewing what you have actually written.

2. Does the customer have key phrases in mind for the article?

In my experience, most clients will certainly enjoy letting you organize this and choosing the most effective keywords phrases for an article. Once you have picked the search phrases, make certain that you include them in the article heading, subheadings (where feasible), as well as at a regularity of 3 to 4 times every 500 words of the article.

3. Anticipated format and also the design of the article.

A lot of clients will certainly share an example of the sort of article they wish to create. Look at previous messages on their web site and clarify if the client wants you to maintain a comparable writing design if they do not.

Also, settle on the format of the entry. For example, a customer that I have been writing for a long time is a digital solution supplier called Virtasktik. All blogs submitted to the customer has to contain a meta summary, along with material for social media blog posts on the article for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, as well as Google+.

ACTION 2: RESEARCH-- Evaluate the Available Information as well as Extract the Pertinent Bits

You need to be a master at both trying to find details online as well as selecting the most pertinent bits.

As you start researching the subject, think regarding the 2 to three key factors your article needs to consist of. After that, these concepts end up being the beginning point for research on the online search engine.

Alternatively, various kind expressions associated with the blog site subject you have been provided. For instance, for the topic 'X reasons to blog site,' your keywords can be--.

- Benefits of organization blog site.

- X Reasons why every business needs to have a blog.

- Statistics / Data on the benefits of having a service blog.

As you can via the appropriate posts, Google (or other search engines) will certainly toss-up tips on various other similar search expressions; appearance at those.

While looking into the details readily available online, I suggest doing the following:

1. Stay existing: Reference articles published no later on than 3 years earlier. Because understanding and technology are evolving quickly, you have to publish material that is relevant and progressive.

2. Usage reliable sources: Extract your content from reputed internet sites or blogs of well-known firms in the sector.

3. Provide credit rating: It's important to give credit report where debt is due, so include a minimum of 1 or 2 web links to reputed internet sites within the article.

4. Include information: Where feasible, try to find recent advancements, market stats, or infographics pertinent to your topic.

5. Essence, as you read: Highlight or draw out one of the most pertinent portions of web content as you check out the short articles. Some writers use devices like Evernote to do this, yet I like to do it the old-fashioned way and also paste all the appropriate material right into a solitary word document. Let's call this the 'base file.'.

6. Review several articles: As a thumb policy research study, at the very least 5 to 6 trustworthy sources of info for every single web page of 500 words that you need to write.

7. Include a quote: Depending on who you are writing for, including a genuine quote for your article is a terrific suggestion.

For an article on blog writing, you can approach prominent blog writers for their guidance or reach out to internet marketing experts to contribute to your article. You can contact them with their website, via e-mail, or perhaps their Facebook service page.

Tell them who you are, the customer you are writing for, the subject, searching for a 2 or 3 line quote, and when you require the return. I often use this technique and have a 25 to 30 percent success rate, which means I come close to, at the very least 4 potential contributors to get a solitary quote. The study stage will take you anywhere between one to one hr thirty mins.

ACTION 3: STRUCTURE - The Information as well as Your Thoughts.

Identify essential points and also determine which item of info goes where.

If you are writing a 1000 word article, you should contend the very least a base record of 2500 to 3000 words by the time you have researched the information. As soon as convinced that you have actually collected all the appropriate information, begin reading your base file.

Having actually experienced the paper, open one more word data and begin writing the crucial points, or have to have information for your article. I such as to reorganize as well as highlight the content in the base record, making use of different shades. The material that I want to consist of in the opening para is highlighted in yellow, the primary body in pink, as well as article referrals in environment-friendly. What you are doing at this step, is structuring the details as well as your thoughts prior to you start writing.

By the time you are done, you will certainly have your article skeleton-- opening, subheadings, bullet points under each, and also takeaways from your article (or the ending paragraph), in addition to the information that needs to come under each area.

If you are dealing with a word limit of say 1000 words, you can choose to create 150 words for the article opening, 800 words on the text, and an additional 100 for writing the conclusion. Naturally, it's a good idea to write the initial draft of about 1200 to 1300 words. As you boost the web content throughout the editing and enhancing stage, word count will immediately be minimized.

Structuring the article prior to you begin writing will certainly take you 25 to 30 minutes.

You have, by this time, already invested 2 hours in your article.

Currently, allow's start writing.

ACTION 4: WRITING - Write, Don't Edit

It's time to just compose. Create as you believe as well as talk.

The number one tip at this stage is to create as you assume. Compose as fast as you can type but keep referencing the base record to see the sub-points as well as the details you want under each point. Be careful as to not 'copy-paste' web content from your base documents.

As you write the initial article draft, I highly suggest that you use a distraction-free full-screen editor such as Write Box to aid you to compose without diversions.

Right here some extra tips on writing a business article:

1. Share the article objective in the opening para: Write an appealing opening paragraph that shows the main concern the article is going to answer. To put it simply, why should someone review your blog site? As an example, here's an opening I wrote for an article on task delegation:

" Are you a star at entrusting things to do in your business? Or are you one of the numerous local business owners that shy's far from job delegation due to the fact that you are the afraid job will not occur as expected, or that you will not' understand exactly how points are advancing when you have handed off the job?"

2. Consist of key phrases: As you write, attempt to consist of the essential expression(s) where feasible, however specifically in the article opening paragraph, subheadings of the article, and also within the web content with a frequency of concerning 3 to 4 reps for each 400 to 500 words.

3. Consist of interior and also external links: Add 2 to 3 hyperlinks to posts published on various other reputed web sites, along with links to related content within your customer's internet site. When you include weblinks, use appropriate 'anchor expressions' to explain them. Rather than stating 'visit this site for additional information,' include the links within your text.

4. Encourage readers to do something about it: Close with a takeaway paragraph of what the viewers ought to learn or the final thought you intend to entrust the viewers. For instance, you might invite visitors to sign up for a monthly company newsletter, leave a discuss their very own experiences/ expertise of the subject, or load the sales call type.

5. U.S vs. U.K English: Write in the U.S or U.K English depending upon which country your client is based.

6. Compose in energetic voice: Minimize the usage of passive sentences, write in 'active voice' to the extent feasible.

Writing a 1000 word article can take around 2 hrs. At this stage, depending on your research study and writing performance, you have actually already invested in between 3 to 4 hours in your article.

ACTION 5: EDITING - The Most Important Part of the Writing Process.

Modifying is important to producing a top-quality article, just like polishing a diamond to bring the sparkle.

Consider your article (written thus far) as a harsh ruby that requires sprucing up. Spending significant effort in editing an item is vital to producing quality work that will certainly make your customers coming back for even more.

Paste the content from the message file to an MSWord data. Review the article you have actually created until now. I find that checking out the web content aloud on your own or utilizing the 'Read Aloud Speech' function under the Review tab in Microsoft Word is valuable in recognizing sentences that must be re-written or re-arranged to improve the article flow.

Examine your material on web content editing and enhancing tools such as Grammarly or Hemingway App to boost readability once you are completely satisfied that the article circulation is good. These apps can aid in identifying easy sentences (which you may desire to reword in an energetic voice), recognize expressions with a much more simple expression, or rectify the inaccurate use of spelling. You can reduce wordiness-- as an example,' you have to choose' can be created a lot more concisely as' you need to make a decision.'

Cross-check the performance of the article header using devices such as Coschedule's Headline Analyzer when you find yourself stuck for concepts on writing an engaging headline, attempt the blog site title generator by SEOPressor.

Focusing on the tiniest details at the editing stage will certainly make it a lengthy process. However the end, the outcome will be worth it. For a 1000 word article, I can conveniently invest an hour attempting to modify as well as improve it. On the other hand, there is no end to the quantity of modifying you can do in an article. Past a factor, you should decide if the existing variation of the article is excellent to go. Prior to you release your organization article or send it to the customer, guarantee that you do a plagiarism check. I like to utilize Copyscape.

So there you have it, my tell-all article on writing organization write-ups. As well as would you know it, it also occurs to be the lengthiest blog post ever published on my blog site.

#article #article writing #content writing #content marketing #content #guest post #web2.0

1 note · View note

toadpaws · 5 years ago

Text

a break down of the post made by @staff for pride month:

“Today marks the first day of Pride 2020.... This week has served as a stark reminder that those who have power in this country wield it recklessly and violently against Black people, non-Black POC, and trans people.”

failure to use the terms women or female at all, despite naming Breonna Taylor, Atatiana Jefferson, and trans-identified Tony McDade as victims of police brutality.

“For some, the power is found in their badge. In others, it’s their skin tone, their socio-economic status, their cisgender privileges, or any other number of privileges one can have.”

Inappropriate, unecessary, and misogynistic use of the phrase “cisgender privileges”, in a post discussing, among others, female victims of police brutality.

“In 2018, with at least 26 trans people who were murdered, all but one were trans women, and all but one were people of color. According to data collected by Human Rights Campaign, this pattern is all too common.”

in this article, CBS reports “The number of women who were victims of homicide in the United States grew by [21%] in 2016... rising to the highest recorded level since 2007″. the article further states that “More than half of the women who were murdered in 2017 worldwide were slain by an intimate partner or family member... Of the 19,362 homicides that the CDC reported in 2016, 3,895 of the victims were women, according to Security.org's report.”

Violence Policy Center states “More than 1,800 women were murdered by men in 2016″.

BBC states “An average of 137 women across the world are killed by a partner or family member every day, according to new data released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)... More than half of the 87,000 women killed in 2017 were reported as dying at the hands of those closest to them.” This article was written in November, 2018.

25 trans-identified males. 87,000 women.

“It should also be noted that the number of trans people who are murdered is grossly underreported, with many families and newspapers often misgendering those who can no longer speak up for themselves.”

there is no source provided to support this claim.

“On June 28, 1969, the Stonewall riots began as a response to the constant police raids of nightlife establishments frequented by the LGBTQIA+ community”

according to this article by the University of Illinois in Springfield, “LGBTQIA” stands for “LGBTQIA+ – A common abbreviation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Pansexual, Transgender, Genderqueer, Queer, Intersexed, Agender, Asexual, and Ally community.”

thus the acronym LGBTQIA+ community includes three terms for same-sex attracted persons, one term for “A person who is sexually attracted to all or many gender expressions”, one term for “gender variant person[s]”, one term for “gender variant person[s] whose gender identity is neither male nor female”, one term described as “ A reclaimed word that was formerly used solely as a slur but that has been semantically overturned by members of the maligned group”, one term for “Someone whose sex a doctor has a difficult time categorizing as either male or female”, one term for “A person is internally ungendered”, one term for “ Person who... does not have a sexual orientation”, and one term for “Someone who confronts heterosexism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, heterosexual and genderstraight privilege in themselves and others; a concern for the well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and intersex people; and a belief that heterosexism, homophobia, biphobia and transphobia are social justice issues.” again, the referenced article can be viewed here, and a pdf of all terms here.

in a post intended to address Pride month, tumblr staff chose to honor same-sex attracted people(homosexuals) alongside eight other subgroups, all of which have the ability to contain opposite-sex attracted people(heterosexuals).

“That night sparked a revolution, with many eye-witnesses crediting Black and Latinx trans women for being brave enough to ignite what would become one of the most pivotal nights in LGBTQIA+ history.”

the source cited by tumblr staff is this article.

in the transcript of this podcast, Johnson describes his role in the protests as, “The way I winded up being at Stonewall that night, I was having a party uptown. And we were all out there and Miss Sylvia Rivera and them were over in the park having a cocktail. I was uptown and I didn’t get downtown until about two o’clock, because when I got downtown the place was already on fire. And it was a raid already. The riots had already started.”, and from this article, “Johnson said she didn’t arrive at the bar until rioting was underway.”

this article states, “And in 2001, Rivera said she was at the Stonewall Inn with a boyfriend when it was raided but that she wasn’t the first to resist.”

this afterellen article on Stormé DeLarverie states, “The conversation turned to the night in June of 1969 at the Stonewall Inn where [DeLarverie] made history. Quite a few friends, writers and historians over the years have identified her as the tough cross-dressing butch lesbian who was clubbed by the NYPD, which evoked enough indignation and anger to spur the crowd to action.”

as for the term "Latinx”, this article states, “only 2 percent of America’s Latinos said they preferred the term”, saying “Latinx may feel like an imposition by activists”. the numbers in this article are supported by a sources from reason.com and medium.com.

“Without Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, there would have been no uprising. Without them, there would be no Pride.”

As mentioned above, Johnson and Rivera did not start the uprising. the post by tumblr staff makes no mention of the actions of butch lesbian Stormé DeLarverie.

“At this moment, it would be tone-deaf and insensitive to commemorate Pride in the same celebratory fashion we usually do.”

the staff who wrote this post have already chosen to be quite insensitive and tone deaf in regard to violence against women, same-sex attracted people, and lesbians.

“Spread the word that trans people deserve to feel safe wherever they go.”

yet again, there is no mention of the violence women experience every day around the world. remember the numbers. 25 trans-identified males. 87,000 women.

“The first Pride was a riot. We stand with you.”

from the Library of Congress, “The first Pride march in New York City was held on June 28, 1970 on the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising” and from this pdf, “The Christopher Street Liberation Day March was the first gay pride event. It was created to celebrate the Stonewall Inn Riot that occurred exactly one year before (Desta, 2014).”

“We stand with you”- bullshit. you absolutely do not.

#i have nothing to do and i really like hyperlinks and research papers #i also hate the staff here #pls notify me of any broken links #pride #my posts

3 notes · View notes

uncontrollable-entpness · 5 years ago

Text

The ENTP Cognitive Functions

(NeTi) ENTP

There are many great websites, books, and videos on the internet to help people understand their cognitive functions for any Myers-Briggs type. As a fellow ENTP, I am here to relay any of the information that I have found and put it in a way that I understand so that others may be capable to gain some insight and knowledge to formulate a general understanding or spark questioning within my conclusions.

The Myers-Briggs divides the cognitive functions and uses them to identify with their primary function(s) according to each individual. It’s great to know about cognitive functions because you get an in-depth understanding about your personality type and how it breaks down.

Simply put, the MBTI is the tip of the iceberg. The 4 letters which identify you as an individual are the strongest/prominent functions. As an ENTP, the traits that prevail are Extroversion, iNtuition, Thinking, and Perceiving. Cognitive functions that apply to the ENTP:

Dominant Ne | Extraverted Intuition

Auxiliary Ti | Introverted Thinking

Tertiary Fe | Extraverted Feeling

Inferior Si | Introverted Sensing

According to Carl Jung, there are 8 Jungian Cognitive Functions. Each function is described as either extroverted or introverted. For each personality, these functions are stacked according to their strength or level of consciousness. With the ENTP, the dominant function is extraverted intuition. Dominant function identifies an individual’s strength and/or purpose. Activities that stimulate the dominant function are what fuel roles that satisfy a type. Auxiliary function is the supporting role that assists the dominant function. For an ENTP it is introverted thinking. The lower end of the stack are the tertiary and inferior functions that are least prominent (and most likely least developed). In this case, it is extraverted feeling and introverted sensing. All functions come with high benefits when balanced and reached maturity.

My input towards how accurate Jung was able to encapsulate human complexity is that (personally) I don’t use the functions or types to place people in a box. They are best used as framework to understand people better in a very “broad” manner. If I were to give anyone advice (as unsolicited as it is), is to remember that if you want to know someone, just flat-out begin getting to know them as an individual. The MBTI and cognitive functions are practical when learning to understand oneself. And only supplementary when learning how a person interacts with their inner and external world, and bringing awareness to the communication processes and styles of people.

Here is one thing I liked from an article on Thought Catalogue:

“ Understanding cognitive functions is imperative to understanding type. The four-letter dichotomies cannot possibly explain the complexity of our personalities – we are all thinkers, feelers, sensors and intuitives in various situations. The cognitive functions allow us to understand when we use each function and how it impacts our decision-making process.“ - Heidi Priebe

How To Self-Type?

If you’re taking a test online and it applies to you with 100% accuracy, great! However, if you are skeptical and are willing to dedicate time, I suggest by beginning with reading about all 8 cognitive functions. You are the only one that knows yourself best, so having someone else type you can sometimes (and often does) lead to mistyping. Identify the functions you resonate most with and try your best to organize/order them. Easier said than done for some people.

The Attitudes | Extraversion & Introversion

The indicator of “e” or “i” signifies the effect on a function (Jung). It is also the preference in which a person has over their situational placement (MBTI).

The ENTP extroversion is commonly described to be closest to the border of introversion in comparison to other extroverted types. Among the extroverts, an ENTP has strong capabilities to communicate easily and maintain conversational depth due to a prominent Ne (extroverted intuition). Having a dominant Ne associates with quick wit and ease of articulation. However, Ne also requires a high demand of processing in the mind. It is also followed with Ti as an auxiliary function which is regarded as significantly introverted.

So you have one of the least extroverted functions (of the extroverted ones) and the most introverted functions (of the introverted ones) as the top two. Does that make any sense (?). There is a high demand of a rich inner-world, but the capability to articulate it when necessary/preferred.

ENTPs are very engaged in conversation that is stimulating to their interests but are also easily capable of fluidly transitioning into conversations that aren’t of their expertise.

*the following two paragraphs are coming from personal experience*

As an ENTP, the best way I can justify the introverted extrovert dynamic is that when I am in demand for intellectual stimulation, I easily devote my time to spewing out ideas and exploring logic, theory, and philosophy of other human beings. Whereas, when I demand time for the self, I’d much rather spend time alone. This can vary from individuals. But at its core, an ENTP has very vivid borders for our extroversion that prevent getting into the inner world which remain very tight knit. So there's this weird dynamic as coming off as if we are open books, but in actuality . . . the words printed on that book are either encrypted or full of riddles. This is also dependent on the scenario and individuals in which we are conversing with.

In summary, ENTPs are extroverted to the degree that it is fulfilling when is driven by a purpose. An ENTP will converse when necessary. That necessity is defined differently to each ENTP which is why I think we’re also some of the most complicated types. People see us as mindlessly argumentative, which can be confusing to us when we recognize our true intentions are to figure out and understand just exactly what another person means with their words.

The Brain Process | Perceiving & Judging

The gray-matter’s method to the madness is characterized by its form of taking information and making decisions; that in which is first perceived then judged. Knowing that there are 8 functions, they are comprised of 4 varying ways to perceive and 4 different ways to judge. To understand the 8 functions is to understand the 16 types.

ENTPs have a “P” (taking in information) preference when encountering the outer world. It is a preference that would much rather use spontaneity as opposed to order (which is a “J” function). With the outer world, an ENTP likes to understand it as opposed to establishing order.

Internally, the world of an ENTP could possibly be quite different. Where it has the possibility of taking on the orderly nature of the “J” preference. Bear in mind, judging is referred to making decisions as opposed to placing things under scrutiny/being judgemental.

The Perceiving Functions | Intuition & Sensing

Ne (dominant)

Si (inferior)

The dominant function of the ENTP is extraverted iNtuition which is a perceiving function. Those with a dominant Ne are loaded with ideas. iNtuition is often associated with looking into the future and developing multiple ideas/pathways in which we can reach an end-goal. These ideas can be reached/developed quite rapidly. There is some struggle with having to deal with details due to interest in the “bigger picture”. However, the Ne is really good at making connections and interlinking information between people and events.

The least developed function is introverted Sensing. For those with dominant Si, it is good at applying “action”. The ENTP is commonly known for being terrible at time management and dedication to projects due to an underdeveloped Si. Because the NeTi is a stack of the never-ending thirst for knowledge, the Si often gets disregarded and forgotten. As an ENTP matures and develops their Si, projects are more likely to be brought to fruition and completion. The Si is also referred to memory recollection. Si compares real-time experiences to past ones that can remind the ENTP what was relatively good or bad/ what produced “x” outcome. Due to its inferior placement, the ENTP forgets it. I often catch myself after screwing up and realizing my mistakes or inconsistencies could be solved by “simple solutions”. My favorite reddit referenced Si as “taking care of your shit; the function”

The Judging Functions | Thinking & Feeling

Ti (auxiliary)

Fe (tertiary)

The auxiliary function of the ENTP is introverted Thinking. ENTPs strive for intellectual stimulation and knowledge. While ideas are processed at Ne, the Ti kicks in and analyzes, rationalizes, and elaborates on those complex hypothesis. Ti likes to get clear and logical. This isn’t to say that ENTPs are emotionless, however . . . it is important for an ENTP to have an objective understanding of things within their focus.

Tertiary function Fe kicks in when socializing. Backed by pure logic and drive for knowledge, Fe is the thrill of sharing and exploring those observations made by an ENTP. Fe is what gives the ENTP their charm in communication. Fe knows how to use knowledge to fuel humanitarian/philanthropic causes. ENTP Fe is like “Hey! I’ve got ideas and I would like to share them”.

The ENTP Shadow Functions

It has been stated (sources unknown) that an individual cannot develop all 8 functions. There are 4 conscious functions (2 highly or moderately developed and 2 which still run but aren’t as primary). Shadow functions are the ones which aren’t within the spotlight. When brought up, can cause trouble/turmoil/issues particularly when stressed or induce stress.

However. . . I have been working on this blog posts for 3-ish hours and have come to the conclusion that this is ample information for a post. In true ENTP nature, I am off to go work on something else haha. Thank you!

#ENTP #myers briggs #cognitive functions

3 notes · View notes

ruminativerabbi · 5 years ago

Text

Seventy-Five Years In

I was very moved last Monday to take note of the seventy-fifty anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz by the Red Army in 1945. As all my readers must surely know by now, the Shoah is the backdrop against which I’ve lived out both my professional and spiritual lives for as long as I can remember. And although I could make some sort of semi-rational argument for not feeling personally involved to that degree—my own people, after all, came to these shores long before the First World War—that is not at all how things have played out. Nor is it at all difficult for me to explain why the Shoah looms so large in my thinking: surely no one who professes belief in a just, caring, God can just wave Auschwitz away as a mere aberration in a millennia-long narrative featuring God as the ever-watchful Guardian of Israel who neither slumbereth nor sleepeth. That thought, of course, comes directly from the Bible—from the 121st psalm, to be exact—and has been recited by so many rabbis (including myself) at so many funerals so as almost to sound more like a truism to be embraced than a challenge to be faced. And yet that is precisely not how it works—or has ever worked—for me: in those few words lies the weight that has been pressing down my shoulders from above for my entire adult life.

The summer after I defended my doctoral dissertation but before I began work in earnest on preparing my thesis for publication, I attempted to write a book of post-Holocaust theology. In retrospect, it feels like just so much youthful hubris to have allowed myself blithely to wander into a maze which even rabbis scores of years older than myself had failed successfully to negotiate. On the other hand, surely one of the great gifts of youth is the willingness to run a race merely because it exists and wholly without reference to other people’s successes or failures at running it! Nor was this just a gauntlet I wanted to take up as a way of measuring myself against others, but rather a real challenge that I needed to address for my own internal reasons and not simply to see if I could do better than others in addressing them.

As I’ve mentioned before in this space, the Jewish communities of my great-grandparents’ towns in Poland and Belarus were totally annihilated during the war, the only survivors at all being not “real” survivors at all but merely people like my great-grandparents and grandparents who left decades earlier. So perhaps it was that detail—combined, I admit, with the seminal experience of surreptitiously reading Ilya Ehrenburg and Vasily Grossman’s The Black Book of Soviet Jewry: The Ruthless Murder of Jews by German-Fascist Invaders Throughout the Temporarily-Occupied Regions of the Soviet Union and in the German Nazi Death Camps Established on Occupied Polish Soil During the War 1941–1945 as a boy of eleven or twelve, the single experience that, at least in retrospect, I think probably affected my adolescence more profoundly than any other—it was the contemplation of the fate of the Jews our “our” towns in Europe that created the context for me to feel called personally to attempt to create a plausible version of Jewish theology that specifically led through, not around, the gates of the camps.

I cast around for a long time trying to find a way in. I read all the standard books of post-Shoah theology and found most of them all to be wanting in some specific way. (And some I found wanting in every way.) The best of them, I noted, were predicated on the supposition that the Holocaust was basically a cosmic riddle in need of a solution. If God knew about Auschwitz as people were being murdered there in such unimaginable numbers, then either it either was or was not beyond the scope of divine power to save them. If it was within the scope of God’s might to save them, then either they were not saved for a real, cogent reason or they were left unrescued for no particular reason at all. But because both of the above apodoses—the “then” clauses—are fully inconsonant with traditional Jewish belief, most of the authors I read ended up proposing that the Jewish people in the post-war era simply make their peace with living on the horns of the terrible dilemma that requires supposing either that God could have saved the millions but didn’t (which effectively negates the notion of divine mercy enduring forever), or that God would have saved the millions but couldn’t (which negates the notion of divine omnipotence), or that God would have saved the millions and could have but was simply unaware that they needed saving (which effectively denies the notion of divine omniscience). There was, I admit, a certain wistful cogency to this line of reasoning. But the thought that Jews in the post-Shoah era are condemned by their own history—by our own history—to live forever balanced on the horns of an unresolvable dilemma did not sound like something I could imagine myself teaching others or, to speak frankly, embracing as my own theological stance either.

I needed to take a different tack, therefore, one that would sidestep the Shoah-as-a-cosmic-puzzle motif entirely. For a while, I considered my options. And then, when I felt I had no real choice but to rise to my own challenge, I began to write about the Shoah as the shadow cast on the earth by the demonic realm.

When most moderns think about demons, they think about Halloween-style imps with pitchforks and devilish horns. But that is just the paper-thin veneer that somehow manages to obscure millennia of speculation about a demonic realm and the dangers too close proximity to its boundaries can pose to unwary travelers. It’s hard to think of another area of Jewish culture that has more totally been forgotten, however. The ignoramus who wrote that “Judaism does not have a demonology, or any set of doctrines about demons” in the Wikipedia article on demonology, for example, could not possibly have been more wrong. But he or she is in good company!

The Bible is full of demons who function as evil spirits sent from on high to tempt, to seduce, or to test the moral mettle of uncareful mortals. Some of their names are almost well known, while others are obscure. But Mavet, Lilith, Reshef, Azazel, and Dever—among many other unnamed sheidim of various sorts—are a real part of ancient Israelite heritage. The Talmud is even more full of demons and malevolent sprites, but it is in kabbalistic literature that Jewish demonology reaches its fullest flower: entire works, some many hundreds of pages long, were composed to describe the world of demons, to speculate regarding the relationship of King Samael and Queen Lilith, and to muse about the plausible ways the demonic realm exists as the dark edge of all existence, as the shadow cast by life itself on the living, as the living embodiment of the evil inclination and the almost irresistible will to behave sinfully to which all but the greatest tzaddikim occasionally succumb. (Readers interested in learning more can profitably consult Joshua Trachtenberg’s Jewish Magic and Superstition, published in 1934 but still in print and still very readable and useful.)

So that was the vineyard in which I chose to labor. It allowed me to avoid the theology-as-unresolvable-paradox trap and instead to imagine the Nazi hordes as an army of unholy demons in the thrall of King Samael, as the embodiment not of German imperialist chauvinism or even of German anti-Semitism but of the dark forces of evil that only the moral force of those committed to the service of God can keep at bay…and that even so occasionally overwhelm their opponents just as the sea occasionally rises up over beach and sea wall to wreak havoc on those unfortunates who live too close to the sea always to escape its wrath. I imagined the Einsatzgruppen that travelled across Ukraine and other parts of Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe with the sole mission of murdering the entire Jewish population in whatever town or village they found traces of Jewish life—I imagined the members of those killing squads not as men or even as beasts, but as part of a demonic horde that exists in the first place to destroy any who serve God and who promulgate God’s word in the world.

I worked for almost a year on that book and eventually finished it. But I never published it, never felt confident enough to show it around to publishers or, even, to too many colleagues or friends. Eventually, I took one chapter, the one about King Samael, and published it in the margins of the Sabbath and Festivals volume of Siddur Tzur Yisrael. But I abandoned the rest of the project, uncertain of my own conclusions and yet unable seriously to come up with an alternate explanation of how men and women who in their “regular” lives were bakers, schoolteachers, and letter carriers could suddenly turn into the kind of people who could shoot babies in their mothers’ arms, who could murder entire villages of people, who could display a level of cold-hearted cruelty that cannot even be referenced as “bestial” since it is impossible to imagine actual animals displaying that level of callous brutality and heartless malice towards each other.

As I read about the symposium in Jerusalem that attracted so many international personalities and then about the parallel commemoration last week in Poland at Auschwitz itself, and I read the stories of survivors and their descendants in article after article on-line and in print—I was brought back to that project. I called the book then The Dark Lamp, a phrase used in the Zohar to denote energy that exists to obscure rather than to illuminate, to cast shadows rather than light. I even re-read a few chapters, curious to see how my prose would stand up after all these years. I haven’t ever shared the details of that project with anyone before. I’m not even sure that I’m doing the right thing by sharing them now. But I find myself more sure than ever that I was right, that the sole way to keep faith with traditional Jewish beliefs without feeling obliged to look away from the details surrounding the Nazi war against the Jews is to seek refuge in the realm of the demonic and to cultivate the sense that it surely must be as important to note that the forces of evil were eventually beaten back and defeated as it is that they surged forth in the first place, briefly—and unimaginably tragically—overwhelming the barriers erected in the first place to protect the world from their fury, from their rage. Should I publish my book now? I suppose I might! (But maybe not.)

#Auschwitz #Jewish demonology #Red Army #Shoah #Holocaust

3 notes · View notes

buncompass · 6 years ago

Text

I guess I’m gonna blog about it now. This turned way longer than I thought it was going to, so it’s going under a read more.

A few months ago I was filling my time by researching depression. My depression is chronic, and though it fluctuates in intensity, it’s always there. I was debating getting back into therapy or finding alternative options when I stumbled upon an article about how women with undiagnosed autism are more likely to have chronic or persistent depression. I read through it and all of a sudden something clicked.

As a preschooler I was incredibly intelligent. I could read, write, and speak well. I had an endearing (that became annoying) quirk of mouthing my sentences again after I’d spoken them. Despite being friendly, I didn’t like being touched. I hated hugs and cuddles unless I initiated them. I was very aware of my personal space and didn’t like it when people got too close to me. I liked being by myself, and only had one friend until around third grade. My isolationist tendencies were favorable because they made me the “good one,” and I was never alone in a house with two brothers and my mom’s daycare. My parents divorced when I was 7, right after my favorite cousin had died. My family put me in therapy and patted themselves on the back for being proactive while also assuming that any problems I had would be addressed.

As I grew up, I learned that people like eye contact, so I trained myself to look at the point in between their eyes to give the appearance of it without actually looking into their eyes. At school, I was the queen of over-sharing. I was obsessed with my family’s heritage and talked endlessly about being half Indonesian. Without ever having to study, I aced every class except for math. I hated math because I couldn’t do it automatically. I got irrationally stressed over it, and would panic and forget everything I learned. I counted with my fingers, and if someone made fun of me for it, found ways to be discreet. I excelled in English, and fell in love with characters who didn’t tease and stories that made sense.

I had a vivid imagination and used toys to practice talking to people, and notoriously carried some sort of security item around with me until I was much older. I saw Toy Story and then Chuckie not too long after, which gave me a pervasive feeling that my toys were alive and could communicate and could also get upset with me. I worried endlessly about accidentally hurting my toys’ feelings and never gave them away, amassing an insane amount of stuffies on my bed and in a hammock on my wall. It annoyed my mother, which scared me. She was an alcoholic with a lot of feelings, and I felt every person’s emotions as deeply as my own. It overwhelmed me.

Middle school was a tricky transitional time. Puberty was rough. My stepmom got me an American Girl book called “The Care and Keeping of You” which I treated like my how-to guide for both puberty and socialization. There were sections on how to talk to friends and sections on how to brush your hair; it was a goldmine of tips for me. I referenced it every day. I memorized it as the Way To Do Things, and when my stepmom teased me about it, I found ways to adapt so it wasn’t so obvious.

I had spent my life up until that point wearing clothes that were comfortable. People started mocking me for wearing sports bras and men’s clothing. I hated the feeling of denim, the tightness of women’s clothing, and the overall feeling of exposure regular bras gave me. When I started wearing women’s clothing, I made sure to have at least one day a week where I wore baggy clothes, but made sure that they looked good; baggy jeans or sweatpants with tight t-shirts, tank tops layered under zip-ups, and various other combinations. I learned that my appearance mattered more than my comfort, and I resented it. My parents accused me of being dramatic, but the feeling of a bra strap digging into my shoulder was not one I could ignore; I was aware of my clothes at all times, and I hated it.

My friends started expressing interest in sex and I was always uncomfortable during those conversations; I never had sexual thoughts. While my friends fantasized about their crushes being their ‘first time’, I fantasized about my crush and I going on heists and adventures. I went along with what others wanted from me, and had a few not okay experiences because of it. When everyone started flirting by hugging and tickling, I was always a target. My friends would hug me and laugh when I stimmed and pushed them away, imitating the way I moved and calling me “twitch”. I started cracking my knuckles or wiggling my toes in my shoes instead of flapping my hands. I trained myself to hug, even though I hated it.

People knew that I misunderstood blunt statements. Sarcasm had already been a defense mechanism at that point for me; if I said something stupid people thought I was joking and it helped me learn. Boys at school would ask me out and then laugh at my confusion. If they weren’t mocking me through fake flirting, they made do with the fact that bluntness threw me off. They’d see me in my comfy boy clothes and asked me how much I could bench or challenge me to races. If I agreed to their challenges, they’d laugh the entire time and I wouldn’t understand why until later. At home, it wasn’t much better. My stepmom would buy my birthday present in front of me, tell me it was for my cousin, and then laugh when I would open it and be surprised. She’d tell people how naive and gullible I was.

High school made things easier for me. I had solid friends at that point, though I was caught between two cliques, which made the popular kids unsure of me. I coasted through the social side by being nice and smart. I learned to hide parts of my personality away depending on which group I was with, and learned to read body language to avoid being seen as weird. I repressed my need to stim, though I cracked my knuckles whenever I got anxious and played with my jewelry often. At that point, people understood that liking to read wasn’t bad, so anytime I got overwhelmed in public I’d pull out a book and people left me alone. My isolationist tendencies came back, but being a teenage girl gave me some leeway in regards to hiding in my room and being emotional over nothing. I found ways to balance things that set off my sensory overload; I only read under lamps and never used overhead lights; I wore comfortable clothing that didn’t set off any tactile issues; I learned what volume setting I could handle on various TVs and computers. I began using self-deprecating humor to beat people to the punch, and was known for my jokes as a result. I was already dealing with depression, so I feigned happiness every day to make sure that no one would ever find out about all the things that I kept hidden and locked away.

I am autistic. As a child my traits were favorable compared to my rambunctious peers, so no one questioned me. When I started going through the more difficult parts of life, my family and therapists attributed my feelings and actions to the divorce, my cousin’s death, and my mother’s addictions. By the time I got to high school I had developed coping mechanisms based off of the treatment I received from my classmates and family that kept me under the radar. I’ve always obsessed over my special interests, I’ve always been on the edge of socially acceptable, I’ve always found ways to deflect and mask.

I lived for 25 years without understanding a piece of who I am. I read that post a few months ago and the world fell into place. I took questionnaires and read studies and got lost in finding myself. I researched how doctors formally diagnose and found out that I have Asperger’s, which is now referred to as Autism Spectrum Disorder. It doesn’t change anything, but it helps me understand. I am autistic, and that’s okay.

#actuallyautistic #autism #long post #personal #journaling #just a casual timeline #i've been thinking about this stuff forever #so many of the things i was teased for were traits of my autism

180 notes · View notes

communitygoesdigital · 6 years ago

Text

blog fiiiiiiiive

“Participation includes activism, resistance and conflicts…” (McCosker, A 2014)

I couldn’t agree more with this statement. As unpleasant as internet trolls can be, part of having a voice is the ability to use it in disagreement. Bülent Diken is referenced by McCosker, who quotes Diken’s “main principle of life” statement, regarding the “omnipresence of violence in society” (McCosker 2014). And in relation to McCosker’s explanation of Chantal Mouffe’s work, I agree that contest is healthy for democracy. Necessary as well. Trolling, however, is not specifically necessary for democracy to survive. Personally, I like to think there’s a level of civility we could agree on, but that’s misplaced optimism at this point.

McCosker notes that both the Christchurch earthquake and Auckland flash haka “serve as a form of provocation and stimulate passionate responses…” which “cannot be generally disentangled from the video(s)…” and what they represent. Each person would probably have some kind of reaction to either of these videos, but this quote prompted me to question why some of us share these reactions and some don’t? I react to things I see on the internet all the time, but I rarely post my responses. I found this article which explains that when the autonomic nervous system is enhanced, so too are our social interactions – “Simply put, evoking certain emotions can help increase the chance a message is shared” (Association for Psychological Science, 2011). In terms of the examples in “Trolling as provocation”, there is obviously a lot of emotion informing the comments.

In his conclusion, McCosker highlights provocation as an “agonistic sense of searching for an adversary and trying to best them, or at least maintain contact”. My first thought upon reading this was trolls trying to pick fights from the safety of their homes, hiding behind the anonymity provided by the medium of online communication.

danah boyd’s article about bullying points to Dan Olweus’ characteristics required to use the term: aggression, repetition and power imbalance (boyd, 2014). This definition caught me off guard – I had never thought of bullying as having to be repetitive in nature for it to be defined as bullying. The word ‘repetitive’ seems subjective to me, but I guess the only sentiment it really needs to cover is ‘more than once’.

The internet, and social media specifically, does afford more accessibility to communication avenues for communication, so I prepared myself for ‘increased options = more bullying’. Especially considering the range of interpretations that one text-based piece of communication can endure; the tonal ambiguity can lead to the exact opposite of the intended meaning. But according to boyd, this is not the cause of the bullying experienced by teenagers.

Finally, boyd’s interviews with teenagers around the word “drama” was interesting. I particularly liked her explanation of the use behind the word, around it allowing emotional distance from the situation: “Drama does not automatically position anyone as either a target or an abuser.” Thereby leaving no one specific holding the bag or to be stood up to, and no one in particular to feel sorry or stand up for. Everyone wins!

REFERENCES

Association for Psychological Science 2011, Why Do We Share Stories, News, and Information With Others?, viewed 5 February, 2019, <https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/why-do-we-share-our-feelings-with-others.html>.

boyd, D 2014, 'Bullying: Is the Media Amplifying Meanness and Cruelty?', in It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens, Yale University Press, New Haven, USA, pp. 128-52.

McCosker, A 2014, YouTrolling as provocation: Tube's agonistics publics, Convergence, vol. 20, no. 2, pp. 201-217.

3 notes · View notes

s3791650 · 3 years ago

Text

Week 6

Responding to A1 feedback:

PDF:

“These are potentially 3 frames that you could explore. Perhaps you could at least frame your written work to communicate that you intend to explore all 3, but your focus for this phase of your work is transition? Separation and Incorporation as known elements outside of the frame and yet still influencing your current focus on transition might help locate the work so that it is not in a vacuum or isolation. We can discuss this perhaps more soon”

The idea of looking at communicating the pre-liminal, liminal and post-liminal space definitely did not cross my mind - with my current idea of transforming something like a backroom to a nightclub mainly through the use of colours this could most definitely be interesting and dare I say feasible. My main task would then be to focus on how I intend to clearly get across that transition and transitional state and do that through colour solely...

A physical example of moving through the three states: “For example, practicing the piano can seem laborious and yet when entering into liminal states where the mind is simultaneously focused on motor memory whilst the passive or receptive experience is focus on memory of harmonic pattern, the brain/mind integrates higher order function. It can be a difficult process, but a greater and more nuanced understanding of 'harmony' and 'colour' emerges from it. No one wants to work to achieve this state. Everyone wants enlightenment without the journey there. “

Words and emotions I associate with the 3 states

pre-liminal: familiar, nostalgic?

post-liminal: odd, eerie, transient/fleeting, heading towards unfamiliar

post-liminal: euphoric, trance, unknown, confusing?, enlightenment

Colours attached to these states: “how emotions can form these colours”

post-liminal: black is one of them...?

Technical Research: should aim to discuss and demonstrate information and data that forms the foundation of your production design. Of course you may reference elements of your methods for production design but it should stop there in this section

2d and 3d: “I think the wording of this is problematic. I dont agree that 3D elements may explicitly help to embody a liminal space necessarily. What I mean by this is that the idea of liminal space, in the context we are discussing, is largely an internal experience. Yes, a certain environment may present itself in a way that is conducive to creating or facilitating a liminal experience, this much is true. You do go on to state that you intend to conduct and experiment on this hypothesis that 3d elements may, but how? Viewing 3D assets within a 2D frame? Perhaps.. Motion/Movement can trigger certain classic visceral reactions and response... hmm.. more discussion and thought needed here. Something else to consider which we can discuss more is the idea that colour itself is a dimension... In that it can elicit some kind of spatially referenced neurological response or reaction ie does this colour feel more spacious or less spacious than another colour”

“Yes. Patterns that modulate. In 2D. In 3D. Modulate between 2D and 3D... We're getting somewhere. This information is relevant to technical research if you were to dive deeper. Aim for this in A2“

Sound design:

9AM in Calabasas - 808 DEAD: “This one feels like its roots are in vaporwave territory. especially with regards to vocal treatment. In the previous track (Joji), the vocals are very vivid and sit on top of environmental sound design. This track the vocals sit way back. In a way we are not as aware of their meaning for that reason. Arguably, the production on the vocals is more liminal. The phaser towards the middle/end of the track is very vaporwave. This aspect of sound modulation works as a modulator of the harmonics. I found this, which might be a good resource for you https://online.ucpress.edu/jpms/article/33/1/70/116330/Reconstructed-NostalgiaAesthetic-Commonalities-and”

Reconstructed Nostalgia: Aesthetic Commonalities and Self-Soothing in Chillwave, Synthwave, and Vaporwave

- does this genre/any of these sub-genres fit into the pre-liminal, liminal or post-liminal space

“Although these genres certainly approach nostalgia in different ways, they each rely on imagery that evokes nostalgic feelings or memories in a form of collective, imaginative self-soothing. The memories evoked, however, tend to rely on unrealistic depictions of reality and center on times and places that have perhaps only existed in the listener’s imagination.”

“These fictional situations may have ties to popular culture of the past; for instance, much of the synthwave visual and musical style references 1980s sci-fi movies.“

- I find it interesting that much of synthwave has ties to 1980s sci-fi movies. I think tied together with the concept of nostalgia, sure science has us quite grounded? and in the pre-liminal maybe but its with the idea of fiction that creates a sort of grey area with impossible situations “the specific, personal nostalgia becomes merged, in real-time, into a past which the listener already knows never to have existed.”

“Listeners collectively embrace the chillwave, synthwave, and vaporwave reinterpretations of these eras, often relying, in some part, on their own memories, but ultimately creating something that is simultaneously nostalgic and new.“

- look into sci-fi aesthetics?

>>> adding to this, Nova’s ‘Not Around’

Chillwave - pre-liminal ... maybe even liminal >> hypnagogic, transitional

“In chillwave, the vacation, summer, and vintage-related themes are certainly more realistic than those of other genres along the nostalgia genre continuum“

>> I also find it interesting how here in this reference image the colour scheme is befitting of a yellow monochromatic colour scheme similar to one found in backrooms but the emotion/vibe it gives out is completely different - could be completely different depending on what soundtrack i use?

chillwave - using cooler tones? desaturating warmer colours?

Synthwave - liminal?

>> the Californian palm tree aesthetic is also present with synthwave perhaps in a more stylised and animated manner

Vaporwave - starkly different to chillwae and synthwave aesthetically

“As Born and Haworth state, vaporwave engages with “technological imaginaries of the present and recent past…through ironic remediations of sounds, images, and practices characteristic of earlier phases of the internet, the historicity of the net becomes focal for vaporwave aesthetics.”

“Chillwave, synthwave, and vaporwave each highlight a different form of this reconstructed nostalgia while sharing similar pop culture iconography. While chillwave and synthwave certainly share a predilection for images of Californian sunsets and imagery reminiscent of that of the ‘80s, synthwave tends also to posit impossible scenarios, potentially involving science-fiction themes. Vaporwave likewise follows the tendency for impossible scenarios, although pushed to surreal and bizarre lengths and often involving ironic references to consumerist imagery of the 1990s. Subgenres of vaporwave, such as mallsoft, highlight the links between consumerism and vaporwave, often to an absurd degree, while vaporwave highlights links to Asian culture through the use of samples from Japanese city pop. All of these are related by the individual listener’s willingness to accept the impossibilities (as well as the elements of truth) in the “reconstructed nostalgia” inherent in this music on the nostalgia genre continuum. This reinterpretation of cultural memory acts not only as a musical element in several of these genres, but also as a key structural feature in understanding how this music is heard by listeners.“

Perhaps by deconstructing elements of chillwave, synthwave and vaporwave in playing around with the pre-liminal, liminal and post-liminal stages I could create a more sycnhronous and flowing piece that transitions more smoothly between the phasess (as opposed to also considering the trance/psytrance music genre...this idea may still be used in perhaps the post-liminalm stages of my work however...? should focus be drawn to vaporwave instead?)

Blog:

Your writings on your blog addressing colour management through various software programs relates to your technical research and production design. This level of information communication is at a higher level and should be included in your PDF 2.0 >>> is this in reference to the stuff I made for HME?

#week6

0 notes