play

17 Broder Crossings contained many aspects of deep play in many ways. The most obvious deep play was Thadeus Phillips and his performance. It was clear to anyone in the audience that Thadeus was in the moment and was exhilarated, with adreneline flowing through him. His was not only physically engaged but also mentally engaged in his performance, and I truly believe he was experiencing deep play. But deep play was not only was found on the stage, it could also be found in the audience. From the very begining we were all enthralled. By having us close our eyes and imagine we were in the train, Phillips pulled us into the performance. From then on I felt like I was in every location and imagined experiencing all of the crossings he recreated. I felt very invested in the crossings, I realize now that I was experiencing some of the aspects of deep play.

Samantha Plate

Play In The City

11/17/2013

Deep Play in Critical Writing

Samantha Plate

Play In The City

11/10/2013

      Solitary confinement. Two words today known as one of the worst types of punishment. However, back in 1829, solitary confinement was thought to be the solution to crime in America. Reformers thought that they could help criminals rather than merely punishing them. They hoped this brand new prison system would be the start of a great reformation across the country. However, human nature is not made for solitary confinement. The conditions of the prison began to cause a huge detriment to both the prisoners and the workers. Both groups had to struggle to keep from growing insane, causing an even bigger tension between the two groups. However, once the prisoners and guards realized that they weren’t all that different, they were able to work together to create a better environment for the both of them.

Eastern state penitentiary is an exemplary pioneer in the pursuit of reforming prisoners through isolation. Eastern state was a place for prisoners to come to terms with what they’d done, and to pray in solitude for forgiveness. It should work [be]cause the nature of human beings is kindness, so as long as they stay alone and contemplate, they will eventually find the way to their true heart.  Upon their release they would live more wholesome lives.

Eastern State was more torture or prison than reform center. Eastern State tried to mentally break me down with silence and darkness. Eastern State Penitentiary is an unusual prison where inmates rarely have the chance to communicate with others, which makes me try to find ways to talk to other inmates more. Solitary confinement was not a situation to be accepted without a fight. Eastern State was an eerie place, not necessarily having the effects on its prisoners it hoped to. It is a place where prisoners try to fight against isolation, which is meant by the builders in order to make the inmates contemplate and reflect towards reformation. The prison would seem useless-does it really do anything for reform and penitence? The methods were so damaging to the human spirit.

Samantha Plate

Play In The City

10/27/2013

The Sole Author: Keisha's Identity through Existentialism

            Child birth was not quite what Keisha expected it would be. She had heard the stories of countless others. She seemed to think she might experience some sort of epiphany. Instead, Keisha experiences it almost from a third person perspective, detached and candid about the whole thing while under a haze of drugs. There is a sense that something is missing. And in fact there is, “the brutal awareness of the real that she had so hoped for and desired…failed to arrive” (Smith 323). She had been told it would be “like meeting yourself at the end of a dark alley” however giving birth is very uneventful for Keisha (Smith 323).

Throughout NW Keisha seems to be searching for something. She keeps looking for opportunities and ways in which she can define herself. Keisha even hopes that giving birth will be what she is looking for. She wants a life altering experience, one that is “large or brutal enough to disturb” what she calls “an image system at work in the world”, but “this moment never arrives” (Smith 322). There is one moment where “she almost thought she possibly felt it” (Smith 323). This ‘it’ being some sort of life changing moment in which Keisha ‘finds herself’. Where she can finally define her identity. What she gets instead in that ‘almost moment’ is a reminder that the “entity Natalie Blake” does not exist (Smith 324).

Samantha Plate

Play In The City

10/27/2013

The Sole Author: Keisha's Identity through Existentialism

            Have you ever wondered who you are? Have you ever thought “Why am I here? What is my purpose?” Have you ever thought everyone knows themselves except for you?  If so, you are not alone. You are questioning your existence just like Keisha Blake does all throughout NW. In Zadie Smith’s novel NW, Keisha Blake questions her identity in an attempt to understand herself while struggling with the concepts of existentialism.

            Existentialism is extremely prevalent throughout NW. It is always there in the background, breaking through every now and then to make obvious appearances, other times passing by in the background. Leah introduces Natalie to the ideas of Kierkegaard during chapter 55 and it is shortly after this that Keisha becomes Natalie. Much later in chapter 138, Keisha tries to understand this philosopher better by doing a Google search. It is shortly after this that she begins to visit the listings site. The ideas of Kierkegaard and Existentialism can be seen in Keisha’s thoughts and actions and can be used to understand her better.

The separated parts of NW create the sense of separate stories that only come together at the end. They share some similar characters and settings, and even sometimes the same story, but yet they each have their own distinctive nature, made more evident by the structure. This makes it difficult to consider the novel as a whole, one way to examine the novel as a whole would be to look at the reoccurring themes and symbols throughout the novel. By examining the themes of identity, the need to the "good guy", and growing up we can see the similarities between the characters and their stories. The symbols of 37, the apple tree, Leah's dog, and many others, help to add more insight into the development of the characters. I hope to gain more understanding of NW and Zadie Smith.

Samantha Plate

Play In The City

10/17/2013

Playing in the City and in the Classroom

I can’t quite remember what I expected this course would be like. It seems like so long ago that I was scrolling through the Emily Balch Seminar choices and the one entitled Play in the City caught my eye. Whatever it was that I did expect I know I was nowhere close to imagining the amazing experiences I have had this first quarter.

While I came in knowing that we would be playing in the city, I did not realize that we would also be playing in the classroom. From the first day, when we spent time exploring the physical classroom, I knew this Emily Balch Seminar was going to be a different experience than the other seminars that had been options. This thought has only been enforced over the past few weeks. Our unconventional assignments have really encouraged the idea of playing in the classroom and I have enjoyed every minute of it. One of my favorite assignments was when we created a mosaic out of the reading. Not only was this a nice break from writing responses and other dull assignments I had in my other classes, but I also really connected with the reading and this assignment helped me to view it in a different way. These assignments have helped me to read in different ways and view readings from different angles.

Samantha Plate

Play In The City

09/29/2013

What Is Play?

            What is play? This is the question that Mary Flanagan tries to answer. She is unable to come up with one specific definition. When asked to describe the reading in class I said “refreshingly indecisive”. The fact that Flanagan admits there are many definitions of play is truly refreshing. Theorists, psychologists, are scientists are always trying to pin “play” down and give it a strict definition. But play in itself defies definition- it is playful. Play sets all the rules and breaks them too. There are so many ways to describe this essential part of life, but no way to define it.

            I truly felt this idea that play cannot be defined on my last trip to Philadelphia. After visiting the mosaic garden my group and I decided to wander around the area, hoping to stumble upon more mosaics. We found ourselves walking in the “wrong” direction, but now I realize it was the right one. We ended up at a playground.