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LissetteDuranFirstPaper 2 - 16 Feb 2012 - Main.LissetteDuran
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| | | Introduction | |
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< | My family has always urged me to get an education so that I can be a contributing member of society. Growing up, I watched those in my community drop out of school and resort to less legal alternatives to provide for the community. I have also watched the few that have completed their studies, leave and never look back. They both contribute to a society but one is chastised while one is revered. Thus, if we are a one-society state, how do we contribute to it? | >
> | We all want to be contributing members of society. It is one of those lofty goals like equality and world peace. But what does it actually mean? How can we contribute? And, does everyone? | | | | |
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< | Do we live in a society or societies? | >
> | Absolute Society | | | | |
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< | It is hard to believe that we all belong to one great club where admission is free and exclusion is based on the sentiments of the whole. Yet, we often refer to one large society. I take it that this society is very much like Robinson’s civilization. It is some type of “idealized sense of what makes us human.” What are these ideal factors that make us one society? Are they shared beliefs, goals, understandings? If we look to our political discourse today, it would be difficult to pinpoint which one of these we agree on to makes us one society. | >
> | It is hard to believe that we all belong to one great club where admission is free and exclusion is based on the sentiments of the whole. Yet, we often refer to one large society. I take it that this society is very much like Robinson’s civilization. It is some type of “idealized sense of what makes us human.” But what are these ideal factors that make us one society? Are they shared beliefs, goals, or understandings? If we look to our political discourse today, it would be difficult to pinpoint which one of these we would agree on. | | | | |
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< | I think we have tricked ourselves into thinking that there are actually factors that join us as one absolute society. But, to concede that as a people we are fragmented and can have irreconcilable differences would be to undermine our idealized notion of how we progress as a people. We believe that we progress as a "people", or as "Americans", or as any other extremely large grouping. In reality, we progress as individuals and as small societies. Our progression and success is measured in relation to someone else's. We determine who contributes and who does not by comparing the different members. Thus, saying that we progress as one society goes against how we measure progress. | >
> | I think we have tricked ourselves into thinking that we can be joined as one absolute society. We hold this society sacred. For us, it sits next to absolute truth and absolute justice as the attainable end of an eternal struggle. Because to concede that as a people we are fragmented and can have irreconcilable differences would be to undermine our idealized notion of how we progress. We need to think that we move as one and that no one is left behind. So, we believe that we progress as a "people", or as "Americans", or as any other extremely large grouping. When in reality, we progress as individuals and as small societies. Some get far in life and some inevitably die out. Our progression and success is measured in relation to those of others. | | | | |
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> | Our belief in one society is therefore ungrounded. To say that we progress as one would go against how we measure progress. We are a conglomeration of societies. And as a whole, we share nothing but space. | | | Multiple Societies | |
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< | If we are just various different societies in proximity, then for students/young people, the question becomes to which society do we contribute? | >
> | If we are just various different societies in proximity, then the question becomes to which societies do we belong? I believe that we are all born into a society. As we mature and create relationships, we become members of others. As the number of your individual memberships grow, it becomes more difficult to maintain the memberships of the previous societies. This cycle is inevitable. Yet, we are judged by our handling of it. With each new membership comes a test of belonging. | | | | |
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< | I believe that we are all born into one society. As we mature and create relationships, we become members of others. As you become a member of more societies it becomes more difficult to maintain your membership in your previous ones. | >
> | Now at the end of my schooling, I am dealing with these tests. Although I think that memberships can be held simultaneously, this conception is challenged on a daily basis. I am a part of the Columbia society yet, I am still part of the Washington Heights society. I am part of the rich schooling society but I am still a member of the poor. But I can no longer traverse these societies seamlessly. The memberships I have added on often create tension with my previous ones. I find this tension mostly when reconciling my home society with my school one. Right now, I am part of the Columbia society. I am the privileged law student tackling the questions our very expensive law books create for us. But right outside, is my other society. This one is less privileged. It is composed of people--including my father--holding signs denouncing the unfair treatment of workers by the Columbia administration. Their picketing outside of JG does not bother me, that is, unless I am trying to read for class. | | | | |
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< | Can we be simultaneous members? Do we lose membership to one society by becoming a member of another?
Can you be both part of the Columbia society and the Harlem society?
Tensions
--unions boycotting while I am trying to study | >
> | My reaction to the boycotters outside is sustained by the way the Columbia society treats nonmembers. Although it sits in Harlem, Columbia prides itself in the difference between them. When Columbia's world and Harlem's worlds interact, it is usually through an Anthony Pallone email. Their differences are highlighted as negative. Those emails are a constant reminder that "they" are not part of "this society." | | | | |
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> | For those who traverse various different societies, these tensions force us to choose to which society we will belong and contribute. | | | | |
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< | Since we are very different societies in proximity, how can we contribute? Do you have to choose between them? | | | | |
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< | I think that our educational systems force us to choose. They are institutions that overlook these distinctions and stray away from our fragmented realities. Thus, I believe that they do not equip its students to traverse seamlessly through the different societies of which they might be a member. | >
> | How do we choose? | | | | |
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< | Schools create their own societies. They are their own bubbles shielded from the realities of the outside. For the most part, the rules you learn within them can only be only applied within that society. Schools make it difficult to be members of different societies simultaneously. You are taught one thing, one certain way, and are allowed very little wiggle room to bring in your own experiences from your various memberships. | >
> | Although I do believe that memberships in different societies can be reconciled, I have yet to figure out how to reconcile mine. The more college/law school/graduate school friends I have made, the less Washington Heights and Harlem friendships I can maintain. The more I immerse myself into this Ivy League bubble, the less I find myself understanding and sympathizing with the people and the struggle I knew back then. | | | | |
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< | Let’s take Columbia. Columbia sits in the middle of Harlem. These are two separate societies, in proximity, but with very little overlap. I find that when Columbia’s world and Harlem’s world interact, it is usually through an Anthony Pallone email. The differences between these societies are seen as negative. Columbia’s society is always seen as helping, not coexisting with, that of Harlem’s. Those emails are a constant reminder that “they” are not part of “this society.” | >
> | Law school makes this decision even more difficult. They create binaries--nonprofit or corporate; make money or make change--that I think are detrimental to the way we process the societies in which we live. There is an assumed permanence to these choices that I think is unrealistic. You don't relinquish your membership to one by joining another. You can choose the corporate or nonprofit sector and switch. Especially as attorneys, since we are engaged in practice, we have the ability to change what we do with more ease. | | | | |
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> | I think that the first step to achieving this goal of "contributor to society" is to define a society. Instead of trying to conform to one general undefined society, we can define one specific society and focus on that. We can use what it does to gauge what we want it to do and then tailor our contributions to those desires. | | | | |
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< | Thus, for a student who is a member of both, how can you contribute to both? | >
> | At the end, I think that we are all contributing. It is easier to say to society in general because figuring out to what and how is too difficult. Nonetheless, I still think it is an exercise worth doing. | | | | |
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< | As both a Columbia student and a member of Harlem, it can be very difficult to reconcile the two. Particularly, as a law school student, I have been stressed with the decision between corporate and nonprofit—the choice indicating which membership will be relinquished. I am not convinced that memberships in societies are mutually exclusive. However, I do believe that your contribution to one will inherently be a detriment to another. Schools do not prepare you for the existence in many societies. They create uniform students who, if they can contribute, contribute to a mystical society. It makes sense when you think about the graduates who move out of their neighborhoods into ones that have memberships similar to those at their schools. | | |
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LissetteDuranFirstPaper 1 - 16 Feb 2012 - Main.LissetteDuran
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Contributing Member of Society
-- By LissetteDuran - 16 Feb 2012
Introduction
My family has always urged me to get an education so that I can be a contributing member of society. Growing up, I watched those in my community drop out of school and resort to less legal alternatives to provide for the community. I have also watched the few that have completed their studies, leave and never look back. They both contribute to a society but one is chastised while one is revered. Thus, if we are a one-society state, how do we contribute to it?
Do we live in a society or societies?
It is hard to believe that we all belong to one great club where admission is free and exclusion is based on the sentiments of the whole. Yet, we often refer to one large society. I take it that this society is very much like Robinson’s civilization. It is some type of “idealized sense of what makes us human.” What are these ideal factors that make us one society? Are they shared beliefs, goals, understandings? If we look to our political discourse today, it would be difficult to pinpoint which one of these we agree on to makes us one society.
I think we have tricked ourselves into thinking that there are actually factors that join us as one absolute society. But, to concede that as a people we are fragmented and can have irreconcilable differences would be to undermine our idealized notion of how we progress as a people. We believe that we progress as a "people", or as "Americans", or as any other extremely large grouping. In reality, we progress as individuals and as small societies. Our progression and success is measured in relation to someone else's. We determine who contributes and who does not by comparing the different members. Thus, saying that we progress as one society goes against how we measure progress.
Multiple Societies
If we are just various different societies in proximity, then for students/young people, the question becomes to which society do we contribute?
I believe that we are all born into one society. As we mature and create relationships, we become members of others. As you become a member of more societies it becomes more difficult to maintain your membership in your previous ones.
Can we be simultaneous members? Do we lose membership to one society by becoming a member of another?
Can you be both part of the Columbia society and the Harlem society?
Tensions
--unions boycotting while I am trying to study
Since we are very different societies in proximity, how can we contribute? Do you have to choose between them?
I think that our educational systems force us to choose. They are institutions that overlook these distinctions and stray away from our fragmented realities. Thus, I believe that they do not equip its students to traverse seamlessly through the different societies of which they might be a member.
Schools create their own societies. They are their own bubbles shielded from the realities of the outside. For the most part, the rules you learn within them can only be only applied within that society. Schools make it difficult to be members of different societies simultaneously. You are taught one thing, one certain way, and are allowed very little wiggle room to bring in your own experiences from your various memberships.
Let’s take Columbia. Columbia sits in the middle of Harlem. These are two separate societies, in proximity, but with very little overlap. I find that when Columbia’s world and Harlem’s world interact, it is usually through an Anthony Pallone email. The differences between these societies are seen as negative. Columbia’s society is always seen as helping, not coexisting with, that of Harlem’s. Those emails are a constant reminder that “they” are not part of “this society.”
Thus, for a student who is a member of both, how can you contribute to both?
As both a Columbia student and a member of Harlem, it can be very difficult to reconcile the two. Particularly, as a law school student, I have been stressed with the decision between corporate and nonprofit—the choice indicating which membership will be relinquished. I am not convinced that memberships in societies are mutually exclusive. However, I do believe that your contribution to one will inherently be a detriment to another. Schools do not prepare you for the existence in many societies. They create uniform students who, if they can contribute, contribute to a mystical society. It makes sense when you think about the graduates who move out of their neighborhoods into ones that have memberships similar to those at their schools.
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