Hey, we did the stairwell podcast again.

In this thought-provoking podcast episode, Hosts Kevin Perolli, Ryan Chowdhurry, and Carty Caruso delves into the rich and diverse literary landscape, exploring four remarkable works: No-No Boy by John Okada, Everything Everywhere All at Once, American Sunrise by Joy Harjo, Project 562 by Matika Wilbur, and We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks.

 

At first, we discussed the class trip to see the play: Quarter Rican.  Since there was a sense of different themes of Masculinity and Identity, the experience really fit in well with the rest of the discussion. 

 

The next discussion begins with a deep dive into No-No Boy by John Okada.  We examined Okada’s portrayal of the internal struggles faced by the protagonist as a No-No Boy who refused to pledge loyalty to the United States. The book’s exploration of identity, belonging, and the aftermath of wartime injustice serves as a poignant reminder of the lasting effects of historical trauma.  We then compared No-No Boy to Everything Everywhere All at Once, a visually stunning film that embraces the concept of multiverse and interconnectedness. The host reflects on the film’s ability to weave together various narratives, blurring the boundaries of time, space, and personal histories. Through its inventive storytelling, the film encourages audiences to consider the vast possibilities of existence beyond conventional frameworks.

 

The conversation then turns to American Sunrise, a powerful poetry collection by Joy Harjo, the first Native American Poet Laureate of the United States. The host delves into Harjo’s profound reflections on indigenous experiences, spirituality, and the healing power of storytelling. The collection stands as a testament to resilience, cultural revival, and the enduring spirit of Native peoples.

 

Next, the podcast examines Project 562 by Matika Wilbur, a captivating visual project that aims to photograph and document Native American tribes across the United States. The host emphasizes the project’s significance in countering stereotypes and giving voice to Native communities. Through stunning portraits and personal narratives, Wilbur’s project challenges preconceived notions and fosters a deeper understanding of Native American culture and identity.

 

The episode concludes with a discussion on We Real Cool, a seminal poem by Gwendolyn Brooks. The host unpacks the poem’s themes of rebellion, identity, and societal marginalization, as well as the powerful commentary it offers on the struggles faced by Black youth. The poem’s succinct yet evocative style underscores Brooks’ mastery as a poet and her ability to capture the essence of a generation.

 

Overall, this podcast episode provides a captivating exploration of these literary works, shedding light on the diverse voices, experiences, and narratives that contribute to the tapestry of American literature.

 

Works Cited

Brooks, Gwendolyn. We Real Cool, 1959.

Everything Everywhere All at Once. Directed by DANIELS, A24, 2022.

Harjo, Joy. An American Sunrise, 2019.

Hernandez, Gabriel. Quarter Rican, 2023.

Okada, John. No-No Boy. New York, New York, Penguin Books, 2019.

Wilbur, Makita. Project 562, 2022.

This class trip was very interesting.  I felt like going to the tenement museum is a rite of passage for anyone who lives in NYC, but at the same time the museum had their main exhibit closed!  We were unable to see the original and famous tenement, and instead we visited an apartment that felt almost spacious compared to some of the places I have lived in Harlem and Brooklyn.  I felt like the density of people would have made a difference in living situation, but not by that much.  The fact that the entire place was essentially a sewing factory though…. that would have made living in the space much more difficult.  Overall my experience of the tenement museum was that…. I don’t have too much to say.  I feel like If i had seen the original exhibit then there might have been more of a reaction, but this isn’t anyone’s fault.  The old place is literally falling apart.  Yeah, I just am glad that I live in the era of technology and hygiene because I KNOW it did not smell great when people were living there.

Carty Caruso

ENG 3025

05/01/2023

Blog Post Sam Pollard

 

From seeing this talk, or interview, I was left with one main theme.  That theme was courage.  Sam clearly did not know what would come of any of the choices he made, and how that would lead to his success in film.  What struck me about the choices and the way he fell into the industry was that he just gave it a try.  He didn’t shy away from thinking that it wasn’t for him, or that the industry would only accept him once he was “good enough.”  The way that he was able to become an editor was by showing up every day and getting better.  It is inspiring to me, although times are different now.  The way that he could just start editing, get told that he isn’t very good, and then become a full time editor in the span what he described as months.  That was both very impressive, and feels like it would be impossible today.  He also didn’t know everything that he didn’t know, which I believe was an advantage.  Since he wasn’t comparing himself to someone else, he just focused on the work and getting better.  Sam Pollard’s story is a great example of courage.

 

This podcast was about The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. We considered the effects of the novel in terms of it sociopolitical impact. We also discussed what the American Dream meant to both the characters in the novel, and the greater American Dream at the time. I took on the role of Podcast host, editor, setting up the recording, and choosing the topics to elaborate on. I also chose the questions that we would be answering after the group reviewed our options. I think to improve this podcast, we could have more of a coherent structure. What I mean by that is: having the entire group ready to answer each question in order to form a better conversation. What ended up happening was each participant could only really answer one question, so it was more of an interview than a discussion. I would also have every person hold their own microphone so that the audio and conversation could flow more naturally because every time we wanted clear audio, I would have to either hand the microphone to someone or lean over to get their response. I think podcast voices are important because it is a very easy way for the public to digest material. I also think that having access to your words and language in written form is a skill and a talent, and that more people are better at talking than writing. Therefore giving people the opportunity to talk rather than write gives them more freedom and creative expression on important topics. Hearing people talk about important topics in a podcast might also inspire those who hear it to continue the conversation. There is also the possibility of sharing a work. When sharing the written word, there is a lot more time that it takes for things to be distributed and consumed and talked about. Meanwhile, having a podcast gives listeners the ability to share pieces or passages from that important conversation much more easily. The amount of information that can be transmitted through podcasts is greatly increased, even if the finer details of writing might be more precise. I think should I do another podcast for this class, it has to be in the stairs for consistency. But on a more serious note, the conversations and thought provoking questions might take more precedence over the literary analysis. When discussing significant work, the conversations we have in class don’t always quote the text, but I feel that important points are constantly being made. Bringing personal experience to the conversation is exactly the medium that podcasts were made for. There is no better way to engage people who might be scared of literature than to take out the reading. This is maybe not the right mindset to have about it, but I believe that inclusivity is not straight forward.

In reading John Okada’s No-No Boy, I reflected on my personal life.  I grew up in a similar, but different way to the Japanese Americans on the west coast.  As I grew up, I was always treated as different than my white classmates or neighbors, but I didn’t have an Asian American community that I was a part of.  So I can deeply relate to the isolation that Ichi felt throughout our readings.  No matter what clubs I participated in or how I dressed or what my interests were, I was always known as the “pokemon kid” or “anime face.”  Since my parents had grown up in very different circumstances, and in fact they wanted me to assimilate to White American culture, I was unable to relate to my family.  Ichi is isolated for different reasons, but to his own community he is ostracized because he said “no-no.”  In choosing to say no to getting drafted and no to renouncing Japan, he had also said no to both his American citizenship and his Japanese community.  Honestly, since I did the welcome to the week for this reading I will just include the photos of Japanese internment camps that I found for that video.  What strikes me the most about these images is that American Citizens who were born in this country were having their Great Writ of Habeas Corpus violated for years in an indefinite term.  It just goes to show again that the government in America has hypocritical definitions of who “Americans” are and what their rights are.

People wait in line for their housing assignment at the Manzanar internment camp in the California desert in 1942. More than 110,000 people of Japanese ancestry were removed from their homes and placed in camps in several states during World War II

An American soldier guards a Japanese internment camp at Manzanar, Calif., May 23, 1943. (AP Photo)

“Moloch in whom I sit lonely! Moloch in whom I dream Angels! Crazy in Moloch! Cocksucker in Moloch! Lacklove and manless in Moloch!” – Part II

 

I think this is the line where he says Moloch the most times.  It stuck out to me because the entire poem is written with almost the same starting phrase or word that differs with each part.  This example is ginsberg taking it to the extreme in my opinion.

 

“who threw potato salad at CCNY lecturers on Dadaism and subsequently presented themselves on the granite steps of the madhouse with shaven heads and harlequin speech of suicide, demanding instantaneous lobotomy” – Part I

 

I love this line because of the descriptive imagery.  I think throwing potato salad is such a real and pedestrian phrase, but in this context it is more visceral and powerful.  I also love how the second half of the line is so vulgar, it exemplifies the public reaction to the vulgarness of the poem.  The speech of public suicide is this poem in itself because of how risky it is to publish.

 

“I’m with you in Rockland

   where you’ve murdered your twelve secretaries

I’m with you in Rockland

   where you laugh at this invisible humor

I’m with you in Rockland

   where we are great writers on the same dreadful typewriter” – Part III

The connection between secretaries and typewriter is strong.  Then the connection between the typewriter as a tool to write that Ginsberg also uses connects him to the murders.  It is the sense that all people are being assaulted by the same force, but that the solidarity that Ginsberg has with his people is an almost invisible connection.  It is stronger than murders because of the power of literature.  One can share the written word, and those written words can connect people beyond what is observed on the surface level.

“Hark! was it music, or the hurry and shouting of men? Yes, surely! Clear and high the faint sweet melody rose and fluttered like a living thing, so that the very earth trembled as with the tramp of horses and murmur of angry men.” (XIII. Of the Coming of John) 
In this moment, John is confusing the trample of horses as something that is alive to a melodic rose. The fluttering strikes me as the most distinct part of this metaphor. Living things that flutter aren’t horses, they are usually butterflies or something more delicate. However, when thinking about the language used, one’s heart can flutter when excited, nervous, or fearful. So at this point, John’s heart is fluttering but also recalling his most fond memory of the theatre. It is described almost like a near death experience in the sense that John is essentially dissociating from his current circumstance: death by lynch mob. I felt like this passage perfectly encapsulates the struggle that black men faced at this time. Even someone as educated as John is facing the end of his life because of a lynch mob. The whole story up to this point is to emphasize the tragedy that is happening. John was doing something most people would consider the right and just action of defending his sister from assault, but in defending her he sealed his own fate. This highlights the inequality in the eyes of the law that Black people faced constantly, and DuBois was trying to highlight in the south particularly.  In this sense, Black people were not joining America or becoming citizens.  They were being hunted down for any and all excuses during the Nadir.

I would like the film adaptation to have colorblind casting.  Since The Jungle is about the working class, I believe that casting two white actors to play the roles of Jurgis and Ona would just reinforce the typical historical narrative that white people are inherently hardworking and their stories are more important to follow.  I would cast Zoe Kravitz as Ona, she is a very petite actress and she has an incredible emotional range.  Ona needs to appear physically delicate, and I think Zoe would embody the physicality of the role very well.  

“She was so young—not quite sixteen—and small for her age, a mere child; and she had just been married—and married to Jurgis,[1] of all men, to Jurgis Rudkus, he with the white flower in the buttonhole of his new black suit, he with the mighty shoulders and the giant hands.”

 

In terms of Jurgis, I think the one star in Hollywood who could really embody a working man of his size would be Jason Mamoa.  I think the opening of chapter 2 embodies Jurgis’ attitude for casting.  

“Jurgis talked lightly about work, because he was young. They told him stories about the breaking down of men, there in the stockyards of Chicago, and of what had happened to them afterward—stories to make your flesh creep, but Jurgis would only laugh. He had only been there four months, and he was young, and a giant besides. There was too much health in him. He could not even imagine how it would feel to be beaten. “That is well enough for men like you,” he would say, “silpnas, puny fellows—but my back is broad.” ”

Jurgis needs to be cast as someone who physically appears indomitable.  I think Jason would take to this role very well.  The contrast between these two physically would be enough visual interest on a movie poster, but I also think the acting capabilities and chemistry between the actors would show on screen as well.  We need to portray the delight and dismay of new immigrants, so some actors with a slight edge to them would also help.