Self Evaluation and Reflection

At the beginning of the course I had no idea where this course was going. I originally thought this class would be largely focused on environment and environmental issues, which it eventually did, but because the course begun with discussion of culture and identity, I was confused at first. I was thinking about culture interaction at the most literal level. Since then, as I read the readings and listen to the in-class discussions, I started to see the deeper level of the phenomena. I used to think culture as something transparent and distinct, but now I don’t. I see culture now as a bubble surrounding everyone, a bubble that absorbs part of another bubble and expands when they come to interact with each other. 

I think like many people in this class, I really had no idea what this ESEM was going to be about. Identity and environment are vague enough buzzwords that it could have been about anything. I was pleasantly surprised as the goal of this class became clearer to me. I really enjoyed grappling with the intersection of human identities and environmental justice. I also loved finding connections between the content of this class and things I am passionate about/knowledgeable about outside of school (I'm thinking specifically about the field trip to Norris Square Garden which was really impactful for me.) As someone who is interested in science and humanities and isn’t sure how to bring the two together, I think this class was perfect for me.

Dear Jody,

I can’t believe I’m at this point in time right now. I feel as if it was just yesterday when I first stepped foot on campus and left my old life behind. It’s been quite the journey. I’ve changed so much as a person, and this class had so much to do with that. My writing has grown, I’ve grown as a person, and I feel like I know so much more about my own identity, as well as the importance of the identities of others.

Dear Anne, 

Hello! I apologize for the late posting. This was a challenging but enriching first semester with you! I believe that challenges in life helps one become a better person! My mind has been broadened to a variety of opinions from your selected readings and weekly discussions. Writing essays every single week definitely helped me become a better writer. I am still trying to figure out how to make my paragraphs transition better but I think that skill will come over time. 

Dear Jody,

Dear Jody,

When I arrived at Bryn Mawr college three months ago, I was excited. I was ready to start my adult life and meet new, smart, passionate people who would influence my mind and my educational growth. However, as I slowly acclimate to the culture and the bubble that bryn mawr is, parts of my identity felt polarized. That the community embraced specific diversities in a neo-liberal sense but failed to accept all of my identities. I, specifically, saw a movement toward LGBT politics and women's issues but a lack of race awareness and a complete blindness to socioeconomics.

" I think that it is easy for us to agree that, in modernism, people are not equipped with the mental and emotional repertoire to deal with such vast scale events... this call for action has none of the traits of their older revolutionary dreams."

"To be a subject is not to act autonomously in front of an
objective background, but to share agency with other subjects that have also lost their autonomy."

"The concatenation of causes and consequences—and that’s what the real material world is made up of—does not trigger any dramatic effect, because, precisely—and that’s the beauty of it... no suspense to expect, no sudden transformation, no metamorphosis, no ambiguity. Time flows from past to present."

First, I believe the 3 main points he argues is

- humans ability to dismiss their responsibility to their declining world around them because of the vast changes that would need to be made. "I think that it is easy for us to agree that, in modernism, people are not equipped with the mental and emotional repertoire to del with such a vast scale of events" (1).

- How objectivitiy is unreal in its role for climate change

- Historic narratives and storytelling of the environment bid for a large underplaying of the severity of the issue or "casuality."

"The enviroment"