If I cared enough, I would come up with an artsier and less American (and less white, but that's a whoooole other topic) version of Myspace. Reframing no.1: it is somewhat American to describe who you are through movies. I won't lie and say I haven't enjoyed quoting the same lines from certain movies repeatedly (Life Aquatic comes to mind here) -- that would be me assimilating. Growing up, I never watched the same movie twice. I didn't own movies I had already seen. Repeated viewing of a favorite movie was a habit I learned in the US (the paragon of all: Princess Bride taught me everything I needed to know about Americans' relationship with movies). Let's just say, there was zero chance for a Turk to come up with Netflix. So now I have to wonder, of course, what a non-Americanized Turkish version of Myspace would ask for instead. Favorite soccer team, for sure. Favorite food. (Favorite music would only generate Americanized answers, of course.) Favorite Nasrettin Hoca joke, perhaps? Reframing no.2: Favorite books. As an English teacher especially, I appreciate the assumption that everyone reads somewhat regularly. But let me limit what I wonder about and work with that assumption for a second. Why only favorite movies, music, and books? Why no room for favorite artists/artwork? If you want to know me and you believe you can know me through some pages on the internet, fine; go look up Carrie Mae Weems' work and Nikki S. Lee's Projects and ask me some questions about them. If you want to know me, go look at a world map, Google "birthplace of Homer," Google "capital of Turkey," Google "Ladino," Google whatever it takes for you to ask me more informed questions so we can have a conversation rather than a one-sided imparting of encyclopedic knowledge.
Meow.Fine. I just finished watching "24," and if not my identity, I do define my Mondays through my favorite television show. Bite me.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment