Reflection

By Anonymous

    I enjoyed writing the blog posts. I think I chose to write the blog posts because I thought I would utilize the materials of the class better through this medium rather than in a regular essay. 

    The first blog post I wrote was the one on the anime Attack on Titan. I love the anime because of its plot, and also I have been following the series since I was in middle school. The ending of the anime is near, and the manga is already finished. But the anime might change the ending, which I am looking forward to. Before reading the book by Hashimoto, I already knew that there was discourse online about Attack on Titan and the subtext it had regarding WWII and Imperial Japan. Some people argue that Isayama supports nationalism and imperialism, while others say that Isayama is simply portraying the story of how rhetoric and different beliefs can divide humans and lead to destruction and hatred. I’m leaning towards the latter, but I am skeptical at some points of the anime where it does seem to imply that Japan needs to be restored. 


    Regardless of whether or not what Isayama thinks or believes, it is clear that as a Japanese citizen he is trying to reckon with the past of Japan. When Professor Villegas mentioned in class that Doraemon was an example of history from below on Japan, I knew that I had to write about Attack on Titan that had clear instances of symbolism. I think the blog post would have been more effective if I had written less about the anime and more on the actual concept. However, I’m not sure how I would have done that considering that the background information I gave was vital to making the connections.


    The second blog post I wrote was on the effects of NAFTA on the Mexican diet. My final paper was originally going to be about the trauma that NAFTA had on Mexico, so I decided that I still wanted to write about it but just in the form of a blog post. I vaguely knew about the effects of NAFTA. I knew some details about how it negatively affected the diet of Mexican people, but I did not know how or why. I think applying the concepts of class to this trauma helped me learn more about what is happening in Mexico. The effects of NAFTA are still ongoing, but it is interesting to think about if the effects of NAFTA are a singular event or multiple ones? It is also important to think about who are the victims, perpetrators, or witnesses. I think my argument would have been stronger if I spoke more on the concepts and included it throughout my paper rather than just explaining and making all the connections at the end.


    The third blog post was on the Alaska Native Heritage Center. The event that transpired in this museum I did not know about. I had to look through articles and newspapers to find something unique about museums. Once I read the article on the Alaskan Native Museum I immediately noticed how much of the article talked about politics and the economy. This then made me think about the article we read on the political economy of memory. The fate of the museum depended largely on Alaskan politics and the economy. Without grants or funding, the museum would shut down. This is important to note because the museum is run by indigenous people, and without their input or organization on the museum, then the collective memory of the indigenous people in Alaska would not be easily accessible. I think I did well in connecting the concept to the example that I chose to talk about. 


    Overall, I enjoyed writing the blog posts. They were difficult, however. I enjoyed taking the class as well. It is a unique class that made me think about multiple concepts that were intriguing and fascinating. I also really liked the case studies since it exposed me to a lot of different knowledge and experiences. I think that the work I did in class was great. However I do acknowledge that I did not participate a lot in class. That is something I would change from my time in the class.

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