February 17, 2015 - 02:09
I think by discussing the Great Divide and noting how we, as humans, have separated the world into "animal/human, nature/culture, organic/technical, and wild/domestic," (15) Haraway is describing how human beings feel the need to make ourselves feel important and as though we are supreme. She talks about the four wounds that humans have experienced which inlude Copernicus showing that the earth was not the center of the universe, Darwin connecting humans to other animals explaining that we all come from a common ancestor, Freudian showing the existence of an unconsciousness, and the emergence of the cyborgian that blends organic and technological flesh (11-12). These major "blows" to the importance of humanity have given us even more reason to create a separation between "us" and "them" ("us" being humans and "them" being nonhuman entities). We have to find a way to distinguish ourselves in order to focus on proving why we are superior and worthy of the utmost respect. I really liked how Abby pointed out that it was indeed "possible to balance both a lapcat and a laptop at the same time." It made me think about how the Great Divide is not much different from the streotypical girlfriend in movies that declares "It's me or the dog." It's very much is possible to keep both, but someone is making you decide to show where your true loyalties/priorities lie. In the case of the Great Divide, it's the humans that are posing the questions, but in a way that guides you to a certain answer by demonstrating all the reasons they are right. As a result, whoever chooses the "wrong" answer could potentially be seen as someone who simply decided to not look at all the facts placed in front of them.
I can't totally say I fully undestand what Haraway wanted us to take from the discussion of the Great Divide, but I think it was something along those lines. From what I understood, Haraway made me think about how almost everything humans do serves as a testament to our greatness. I don't know if she's pointing out the interconnectedness of everything as a way to bring us down from our pedestal or if she's just saying it as a true fact. She throws around so many ideas and stories, it's difficult to keep track of it all.