6.+Knowledge+Theories

=Basics:=
 * This page of the wiki includes information on Poststructuralism and information about Foucault. This section explores the notion of breaking free from any structure that contains or suppresses freedom of expression and thought.**



=Team Teach on Poststructuralism - Tierney, Travis & Alex=

Materials:PowerPoint and supplementary handout



=**Overview of Foucault - Sarah**= Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was a French philosopher whose genealogical method concerned the relationship between power and knowledge. He studied various subjects by viewing them in the larger context of history. Power, he argued, is married with knowledge. Humans are no longer subject to sovereign powers as much as productive power practices and discourses that they enact themselves. The prezi below gives a brief overview of two lectures he gave on power and knowledge, which you can read in full [|here.]

media type="prezi" key="o8aumpfm8hg8" width="550" height="400"

One example of Foucault's work, "The History of Madness," outlines how over the centuries, "madness" has slowly become "mentally ill," and the change has sweeping ramifications for society. This is merely one of the topics he covered, but gives a clear example of how Foucauldian discourse analysis can show the relationship between power and knowledge. ====**Hey, I wonder what would happen if you googled "summary of history of sexuality"? Here's the second top result.**==== =**Teaching Foucault through Tetris - Brandon**= With Foucault we begin to see that we can't escape discourse. There is no way for us to be outside of it. Essentially he argues that we are all positioned by discourse and this determines our relative subjectivities. What we come to know results from where we're placed within a particular discursive environment. This is not to say that those positions can't be **changed** albeit for better OR worse.

As a habitual time killer, I was playing Tetris online and thought it served as a good metaphor for Foucault in this respect. Essentially we are at the whim of the computer. Whatever shape it gives us, we've got to work with. How we articulate and position those texts (our OWN positioning) comes as a result of the shapes we're surrounded by. As more and more shapes come into the picture, we can either align the shapes so that they disappear line-by-line OR they pile up to such an extent that we're worse off than where we were when we started. Our subjective conceptions of knowledge are a lot like how we handle a game of Tetris. The more we're exposed to, the easier (or harder) it gets to negotiate our own position within the greater discursive environment.

=**Scientology -** Michael=

Scientology is not your average religion. Unlike most religions Scientology was just discovered a few years ago and instead of having their followers ACCEPT the doctrines they put forth they have people find their own way. Perhaps this is a better way to look at religion, perhaps this is just a rejection of the religious world in general. Whatever the reason for the rise in Scientology it has grown extremely fast, while still being misunderstood in many ways.


 * [|Scientology]**

media type="youtube" key="y2Wx2M7a5Wg" height="315" width="560"

=
= = =**Post-Structuralism -** Sarah and Maddie= ==== Grounded in a pool of French philosophy, in early the twentieth century, post structuralism is a branch of thought derived from a variety of opinions and understanding of previous conceptions. Broadly, this deals with b reaking free from social and formalized structures that oppress behavior and free flow of thought. This stated, there is no one cohesive definition or identifiable "grandparent" of this lens of understanding. The following diagram attempted to clarify that Post-Structuralism is not isolated to one sect of time or group of thinkers. Rather, it appreciates, understands, and revolves around previous ideals. Below you can find a PowerPoint highlighting some key players in the early conception of Post-Structuralism. ====

====The PowerPoint highlights two videos. The following links connect to these videos. Please watch and take into account how your personal structures influence the way you think about these. What structures (formal or social) are in place to make these provocative?====

1. Pretty Women: // Pretty Woman // is about a prostitute (Vivienne), who meets and starts working for a wealthy businessman (Edward) while he is on business in L.A. This clip shows a montage of the story.

[|http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8KdsMpaZ7M//Pretty//]

2. Born Free (WARNING: Violent and controversial video)

// Born Free // is a song-movie released by rapper, M.I.A. after he uprising success releasing Paper Planes in 2007. This short film received mixed reviews and is incredibly violent. The clip from the song-movie is preceded by images of hat seems to be military personal raiding homes.

http://www.youtube.com/verify_age?next_url=/watch%3Fv%3DIeMvUlxXyz8%26ob%3Dav2e

End Note: Post-Structuralism is not static to one group of disparate people. Instead we see that many roles affect perceptions given greater social structures, therefore to be a post-structuralism then breaks down these structures attempts to look beyond influence of roles. Instead we are all individuals, no one person can be or should be generalized based on cultural and socioeconomic status, because there is no real status.

=**Christian thought- Body needs to be tamed: Lauren**=

As entertaining as it is to make fun of Miley Cyrus, her last single before she dropped off the face of the entertainment world called "Can't Be Tamed" best describes the common Christian thought that the body inclines one towards sin and needs to be tamed. Additionally, Miley takes upon the fault of arousing men by leading them on and manipulating them for her own agenda, but is unapologetic. The spirit-body connection is voiced in the chorus which states "I can't be tamed, I can't be changed, I can't be saved, I can't be blamed". This song acknowledges common Christian thought that the body needs to be tamed, but refuses to fall under such a structure. media type="youtube" key="LOH7CkLxJok" width="425" height="350"

=**Comic Strip: Colleen**= An oh so funny comic strip to help understand the confusion of post-structuralism. In response to structuralism, claiming that one, exact, true meaning of a culture could be properly interpreted, post-structuralist proves they were wrong and allows individuals to form their own interpretation of society which allows each character to have an individual perspective on a situation. The comic strip below shows that their is many outcomes for one scenario. Just as post-structuralists uncover the real interpretations are up to the reader who will always carry their own biases that may not be culturally structured.

This was just a website I found that helped me understand post-structuralism after initially reading the articles and class. []
 * Clarification: Colleen**

=Poststructuralism: Word Clouds= I was curious to see what would come up if I made some word clouds surrounding poststructuralism, here are three of them that I made with Radian6. I think they contain some interesting words to talk about. -Beth

**Story after Titanic - Jack and Rose live happily ever after?! - Dongni**
Titanic Video

This video became a viral video on China's social media platforms! I can see it everywhere... I don't know if you all can open this web page, but it is a video made by people who love the movie Titanic. To be more specific, the video was made by different movie scenes which Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet were in through cut and paste. The scenes are from movie such as Inception, Revolutionary Road, The Reader, etc. Since this is the week of Titanic, the movie is coming up in 3D and people are trying to go to theater to watch it one more time after 15 years. Maybe the video clip was made by some PR professionals for the publicity of the new 3D movie, but if you search "Jack and Rose" on Youtube, you will get a lot of results on all kinds of cover video on Titanic. Although the movie already has an end, people who love the characters or love the love story didn't want to agree with the "official" ending. I guess at some level, you can almost interpret these behaviors as post-structuralism practices to add in their own understanding to the story. "Hooray, the author is dead!"