Understanding_Belonging

To what extent has studying the concept of belonging expanded your understanding of yourself, of individuals, and of the world' Belonging is a connection which can be formed with a person, group, country, gender, or a culture. I believe we can form this connection on a universal level with a several people,or perhaps in a country, as part of a cultural identity , and there are universal connections shared with or culture or indeed the whole of humankind. TOr, this bond can be established on a personal level, with simply another human. Nevertheless, whether this sense of belonging is formed on a universal or personal level, it is complex and multi-faceted. My own concept of belonging has been shaped by the poetry of Emily Dickinson, Truman Capote’s short story, A Diamond Guitar and the 2006 foreign film, The White Masai directed by Hermine Huntgeburth. Better ! In poem 66 Dickinson proclaims, this is my letter to the world which shows us immediately that she is connecting with all of humankind. Through this letter and her voice in the poem she is communicating with her sweet countrymen. Looking at the first line, it is interesting to notice that they contain both the individual persona, in my, and then the world which I believe is her community. In the second line there is strong use of negation in never which gives the opening a slightly gloomy tone, suggesting a sense of isolation. I think that the possessive my shows us that the persona has a strong sense of herself, but her sense of affiliation with the world is lacking. She asks her sweet countrymen to judge her tenderly. I think this means that the persona is aware that she doesn’t have a bond with her are you sure ' isn’t it rather that she is DIFFERENT community and is asking for those around her, her sweet countrymen, to accept her for who she is. In this way, I think Dickinson has created a tension between the persona and the community. There is a similar tension created in The White Massai when Carola struggles with her own values and those of her husband’s culture. ( give a contextual sentence – ie outline the context of the film don’t just launch into it This is well represented in a scene where a young girl is being circumcised. The camera angle is quite high and looking down on a group of woman around the young girl. We can see several black heads and on the outer of the crowd, is Carola’s blond head. This image shows us that she is on the outer of this culture and its ways. While she is horrified at the idea of female circumcision, Lemalion simple remarks, it’s our tradition. Therefore what is unacceptable and disgusting to one person, is widely accepted as a fundamental part of life, by many other people. Therefore, we can see that when we are forming a universal connection, be it with a community or culture, a tension within us sometimes arises between our sense of self and everyone else. good Capote, in his short story, A Diamond Guitar, shows us that we can belong universally through our inevitable death. Mr Shaeffer thinks to himself early in the story that what happens to us on earth is lost in the endless shine of eternity. On first reading it is obvious that this statement links all humans on earth through the use of us and shows that we all have a place in the wider world. I think, however, that by eternity Mr Shaeffer is hinting at death. I think Capote is showing us that through death, which will overcome everyone, we are all united. While this seems perhaps slightly morbid, Capote creates a serene and peaceful scene, which changes the tone. He creates imagery in the evening stars as they opened in flower above him with their worldly glitter. I think this peaceful tone shows that he has a very tranquil and passive place in the world. Dickinson hints a similar idea that we are united in death, in her Poem 67. She begins the poem with I died for beauty. The emphatic position of I at the beginning of the line highlights that she did in fact, die alone. It is not until the last two lines of the second stanza where Dickinson writes we bretheren are. There is a slight spirituality in this statement and I think it shows that in death, these two individuals are united on a spiritual level. Good It was not until the persona had died, however, that she was united with someone else and they are as kinsmen. I think this is a very important choice of world as it joins the two as if they were related by blood, which is a very strong bond. In the final line, Dickinson shows us that not only are we united with everyone in death, but we even lose our identity. The personae talk to each other until the moss had...covered up our names. This metaphysical imagery suggests that while they each died as individuals, they became one in death. Good Therefore, I think both these texts have shown me that everyone on the planet is brought together in death. While some may think this is a very sad reality, I think that it is a satisfying truth because despite all our differences in race, gender, language, values and culture, we can all be unified in something.and this ma y be a spiritual connection ‘brethren’ in spirit. In Capote’s A Diamond Guitar, I have learnt that when forming a connection on a personal level, we are drawn to those other individuals that we least understand. When we are first introduced to Tico Feo, he is described as having a fun loving face, a voice that was soft and sweet as a banana and at the same time, as being a lazy fellow and a terrible liar. These qualities make up his identity and determine where and to whom he will belong. Similarly, Mr Shaeffer is described as a lanky, pulled-out man who is looked up to and respected. Despite their differences, from their first meeting, they are drawn together. I think that they were actually joined by their differences. We are told that they were as lovers. By this statement I believe their friendship was based on a spiritual connection, rather than a sexual one. Why 'Tico Feo’s youth and carelessness were interesting to Mr Shaeffer’s reserved and quiet manner, and vice versa. This story has shown me that sometimes when we form a relationship, we are drawn to the things we don’t understand because they seem interesting to us. I believe this is a part of the human psyche, and Capote hints that sometimes, the difference between two individuals is too vast and it actually breaks apart the connection. We would never know, however, unless we formed the personal connection. Huntgeburth represents another personal bond in The White Massai. Lemalian and Carola, despite their many differences, fall in love and become joined in matrimony. In their wedding scene, through the costumes and camera angles, we see just how many contrasts there are between the two and we begin to question whether their love is enough to keep them together. Carola wears a traditional Western white wedding dress with a veil, while all the men and women of the tribe are dressed in bright orange and red colours. The camera angles emphasise how peculiar she looks as she walks through the village of mud huts, contrasting even against the red ground. The fact that she wears the white wedding dress shows me that she cannot give up her own traditions of her culture. Good analysis – but what does it convey about belonging ' When I first saw this film, I saw it through Carola’s eyes and saw Lemalian’s tribe, as I believe she does, as complete foreigners. I now, however, understand that she is the foreigner, the outsider in their culture. Carola and Lemalian are joined emotionally and sexually, however in the end it is clear that this is not enough to maintain their sense of belonging to each other. Therefore this film has shown me that when our differences are too great, a sense of belonging is extremely hard to achieve, perhaps impossible. While I believe that Carola was naive to pursue a connection with a man very different to herself in a culture, very different to her own, I believe she was only human because she was drawn to something she had never experienced before. And what doe sthis have to do with belonging how and why dopeopl thinkthey can be DIFFERENT and STILL belong Together ' Finally, Dickinson ties these two texts together by showing us that belonging is never clear cut, and there is no correct answer to why we are drawn to certain people. In Poem 83, two personae are joined through the solemn contract of a life. I believe this is marriage, however it can also be seen as a spiritual connection with God. Dickinson creates this ambiguity to show us that a sense of belonging can be reached on any angle with anyone; the connections are not limited by anything. The personae are also ambiguous which furthers this point. In the first two lines, I gave myself and took himself for pay we do not know who she gave herself to, it could be God, a father, or a husband. In this way, Dickinson shows us that belonging is a multifaceted concept which is not easily defined as just one thing. It’s an active choiceTherefore, Dickinson, Capote and Huntgeburth have all taught me that the connections we form are never clear cut or easily understood. Connections can be formed on a universal and personal level. They are never, however simple to understand, but rather, are a complex part of the human psyche. I have learnt this through my study of Emily Dickinson’s poetry, Truman Capote’s A Diamond Guitar and Huntgeburth’s film The White Massai. In conclusion, I believe it is part of human nature to form bonds universally and personally with many different persons and places things in our life. Sometimes, however we take a great risk in forming our connections, in that the wealth might disappoint. Much better !