Blog Post #2

This past Monday in class we did two exercises. The first was an exercise where the class had to stand in the middle of the room. Our teacher would then read out instructions for us such as: “place your hand on someone you are close to” or “place your hand on someone who has more power than you” or even “place your hand on someone you feel shy around”. This exercise was really interesting because it required you to tear down any barriers you had about power or class or race or your emotions down. Sometimes the game made you feel uncomfortable. It was hard to admit that you felt someone near you held more power than you not only because of your own vulnerability but because in the real world we are taught not to admit these things. The next exercise was a play on power. Our teacher pulled 5 identical chairs into the middle of the room and we were to construct the chairs in such a way that one chair appeared to have “more power” than the other 4 chairs. The game had an ominous feel to it. The sound of the chairs dragging on the floor was loud and dramatic. Then one of the chairs would really appear to “be in charge” of the other chairs. More than anything it was interesting to see people come up with arrangements I had not thought of myself. The most memorable to me was one of the first arrangements. Our teacher had placed four chairs in a row and one chair “sitting” in front of them facing them. I had thought of turning the “power chair” around to face away from them so it appeared as if that chair was leading the others. Next, another boy in my class took the “power chair” and placed it behind the row so that it appeared that it was watching the other four chairs. It was something that I hadn’t thought of at all and seemed even more powerful. After the class I was talking to one of my classmates, Kaleigh, about the exercises. Both Kaleigh and I live in cooperative housing. We began talking about the way that power is divided in our own homes, whether it is through proper election, or in some cases through the overpowering of someone’s personality. It really made me think about how there is this notion of cooperation and equality in our houses, we all pay rent, we all make decisions, but there is a power dynamic. The person in charge of the kitchen and the meals that we eat has a lot of power that I’d never considered before. It’s interesting to see how I could overlook power dynamics in my own home so easily. It almost frightens me to think about what power dynamics I am overlooking in "real" life.

Observation: When you shop at buffalo exchange you can either take a bag for your purchased clothes or choose to donate the cost of the bag to a charity.