"Reflexive" -or- "Storytelling #2: the importance of laughter (preferably self-directed)"
So, I'm a very reflexive writer, if you didn't notice (ha!). Technically, reflexive in the sense that I am using it means "self-directed." I remember that reflexive anthropology was one of my favorite topics in my Anthropological theory class, because it served as such a refreshing departure from the idea of the anthropologist as a "detached, objective observer." In reflexive anthropology, the anthropologist must be self-aware of his/her own biases, preconceived notions, etc etc when making observations about a culture...Anway, I know lots of people deplore reflexive writing because it can be very tiresome to tread through the disclaimers ("maybe it's just because i'm from middle class suburbia, but..." or "well, i probably only think this because i was never fed pizza as a child, but..."). I definitely agree, but i have shrug my shoulders and proceed with it regardless. Above all I hold "truth" as my guide, and my truth is that there are no thoughts without the brain, and the brain is a very specific, individualized, biased entity; it simply must be acknowledged as confounding factor when one tries to make generalized statments (which i just made...so i should technically insert a reflexive statement here...wait i think that fragment in itself constitutes a reflexive statement...see how it's easy to get tedious here?).
Anyway, I actually started off with the idea that I'd tell you about a recent event I attended in Seattle's Belltown called the "Salon of Shame." Check out the Stranger article for more info about it - anyway, the idea is that a bunch of writers get together and excise the demons of their bad writing from the past by reading their "most mortifying" writing samples to an audience of enthusiastic voyers. The writing samples can be anything from 10th grade diary entries about one's first sexual encounter to 4th grade essays on world peace to one's poetry written for a college class (that seemed sooo deep at the time).
Firstly, the whole idea of "embarassing" oneself in an organized way is sort of funny - can embarrassment truly arise in a context in which one is willingly putting oneself "out there?" I was immediately drawn to the event because I absolutely love so-bad-it's-good writing, but I was afraid it may have drawn people who were more interested in attention*** than joining in a collective love of shame-worthy writing (***I love attention - i don't mean to imply that getting attention is a problem, but when it is one's primary goal, it's often-times obvious to the audience and thus less funny/poignant).
Oh, but I was wrong! How happy I was to be wrong. This event...ROCKED. I haven't laughed that hard in a loooooong time! At first, I was nervous because the initial few readers' topics were very sexual and written in the 15-20 age range, whereas my entry was written when I was 11 years old. However, to assuage my fears, a girl came up and read her essay about whales which she had written when she was in 4th grade. Now, i don't remember it word for word, but here is an excerpt from what i can recall:
"there are 3 kinds of whales: humpback, sperm, and orca. which is your favorite? if you said orca whale, you are wrong! the orca whale is not a whale. it is a dolphin. the orca dolphin was discovered by lewis and clark on the snake river in idaho. the orca dolphin can swim up to 35 miles an hour, which is faster than most bicycles."
I cannot possibly relate to you how funny it was to hear this twenty-something girl read this essay. Soooooo funny! A lot had to do with context - we were at this awesome, tiny theater (i believe the max capacity is 70) and everyone was laughing freely and clapping people on. Ooh, and there was a sign-language interpreter, which made essays such as "how to give a blow job" very very entertaining!
I read a story and poem I had written in my diary when i was 11 about a love triangle which ultimately wound up in me and Adam becoming "boyfriend girlfriend." People laughed SO hard, i was totally surprised and delighted! i think what killed them the most was that i was writing in such a sort of adult-like way about these issues, yet i was 11. It's hard to believe that kids think about those things back then, but they do! Ooh, i should publish the poem on the blog, i don't have it at the moment but it's definitely classic.
Anyway, I think we all agreed that the cherry on the top of the event was a 50-something man coming up and reading 3 love letters which he himself had written, pretending to be a girl named Kelly whom he really loved in high school. The letters detailed the good times, their tumultuous fights, their subsequent reconciliations...and just the way he reflexively described the time in his life when he wrote these was classic.
I will definitely be going to this event again!
In general, to relate this back to the idea of reflexivity, I think it's important to identify those moments when it's important to not take oneself too seriously, and reflexive storytelling can definitely be one of those moments. The "Salon of Shame" event is an intrinsically reflexive experience, because the idea is that we are reacting to our writing, distinguishing which are the most "mortifying" pieces, but through accepting them as embarassing or "bad," we allow ourselves to laugh without judgement...does this make sense?
Anyway, it doesn't even have to make sense. It doesn't have to have a point! (one of my fave movie quotes: "it doesn't have to have a point - it's candy!" from charlie and the chocolate factory). It's just good old fashioned fun. Writing and storytelling are fun! I'm so glad i got into a job where i can encourage a love for these forms in kids! | posted by Cheryl, 7/19/2006 04:42:00 PM
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