29 March 2020 Entry

In the past week, I've written an explication on the first few chapters of Martha Nussbaum's book The Monarchy of Fear, which discusses how fear disrupts agency in contemporary politics. It also draws on Greek philosophers like Lucretius and Aristotle. This week I will read the chapter that is focused on hope and compile the most important aspects to add to my philosophical framework. 

I'm also considering analyzing the fear and hope relationship in the Hegelian dialectic as well as applying black existentialist philosopher Frantz Fanon's ideas on the topic. I've recently read Black Skin, White Masks, and I'm hoping his concepts will tie in well with what I want to examine. My program mentor Alexandria has also provided me with a lot of black existentialist literature and some useful research tips and motivation.

I've been looking into some statistic data on what people in America fear the most, how they voted, and also how the conservative mind is more prone to fear than others.

Working with Professor Steinberg has allowed me to have some sense of how academics analyze contemporary political issues mainly through the philosophy of Spinoza. I've also had the opportunity to examine his essays and book excerpts, made suggestions to add or omit things.  

I started reading The Plague by Albert Camus written in 1947, and many of the same issues that he explores in the book hold true today; the reluctance of government officials to take seriously warning signs, citizens not adhering to social restrictions. It's a very, easy, relatable, and I must say eerily prophetic book to read.

Week of 3/28 Updates

Hanyan and I skyped with Professor Chang to keep track of the work we were doing. We were able to hear what each other was doing and the difficulties we had. Professor Chang advised us to continue doing research on related sub-topics to enrich the research project. During the meeting with my advisor, I mentioned the appearance of motherhood in Mushroom Rings, the grandma loved and cared about the mushroom rings, while other people in the book were looking at mushroom rings as profits. Professor Chang would provide questions for us so that we could think critically about the readings and what each character could represent under capitalism.
When I told Professor Chang about the documentary "The Magic of Mushrooms", which I watched previously, she said I could use that for my introduction to inform people why we should pay attention to mushrooms and the close relationship between us and mushrooms.
Also, Professor Chang provided some other sources that Hanyan and I could read about and see if we could use them.

3/24/2020 Post

Before I submit my abstract, I had a conversation with Profress.Chang. Since Kishi Chen already used mushroom as the research topic, and when we were doing our research, I discover there are some things repeat to her study. Therefore, I change my mind. Since the COVID 19 give me the idea, most of the people are balm bats. So I was confused about what kind the role that human endows to the animal? What is the position that animal belongs in the earth? So I change my topic to the Mermaid. All of us know what Mermaid is. But throughout that research, I discover the human gives all the meaning of Mermaid. The Mermaid can be a research object, can be sold as food. It is a tool for Capitalism to earn money and support for peoples. So I will watch and compare the Mermaid movie in the Eastern and Western regions. For example, Disney Visions, The Little Mermaid(1989), The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea(2000), Hayao Miyazaki's cartoon film Ponyo(2008), Stephen Chow's comedy The Little Mermaid, and Lou Ye's feature film Suzhou River (2000).In those films, Mermaid as the protagonist, and we will look through Mermaid's eye to see the world. Like in Disney's movie, Mermaid fell into love, but the separation of sea and land block her, so she must pay some blood and hurt to go to ground. And, for Lou Ye' film, Mermaid becomes a tool for the bar to attract consumers. As a human, we all forget that other living things are part of the earth; we can expel them. So far, I already finished movies and a few readings like Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid, etc. Next week, I will collect and organize the idea and start my research paper.

Welcome to the MTSRP Blog

Dear Students,


Unfortunately with the rising COVID-19 situation classes for the rest of the semester are being moved online and so will our program. This blog will be used for updates on the progress of your projects as well as any research related questions/concerns you may have. We will update you all more about the logistics of the program moving forward once things are finalized.

Best,
MTSRP Team