PS since I wasn't allowed to edit my above post, I'm adding a link to a post with my previous playa projects here :
http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic.php?t=23157
"To Be Continued…"
American DREAM
some very good points here...
i personally am for the theme. i think its been left wide open to interpretation on perpose. i dont think its intended to capitalize on "america"... i think focusing more on the "dream" part is what they're after, as was pointed out above. picture yourself 100 to 150 years ago and think about what would be your most prominent needs and wants... and what it was that a huge number of people at the time had in mind. i dont know... i know im full of it, and im ok with that :D but i think the theme was an interesting move yes... a good or bad one? time will tell. my only fear is that some with strong feelings toward america dont get too carried away and wind up making enemies at the show...
i personally am for the theme. i think its been left wide open to interpretation on perpose. i dont think its intended to capitalize on "america"... i think focusing more on the "dream" part is what they're after, as was pointed out above. picture yourself 100 to 150 years ago and think about what would be your most prominent needs and wants... and what it was that a huge number of people at the time had in mind. i dont know... i know im full of it, and im ok with that :D but i think the theme was an interesting move yes... a good or bad one? time will tell. my only fear is that some with strong feelings toward america dont get too carried away and wind up making enemies at the show...
"the desire for safety stands against every great and noble enterprise" tacitus
Thanks OZ and Dadara for a voice from the UN!
This will be my first BM and I look forward to seeing your work Dadara, the others are astounding!
Where would we be without the rest of the world?
Everyone who comes here brings a little bit of their former life.
Weaving a little bit more into the American mosaic.
and/or
The Black Rock City mosaic
This will be my first BM and I look forward to seeing your work Dadara, the others are astounding!
Where would we be without the rest of the world?
Everyone who comes here brings a little bit of their former life.
Weaving a little bit more into the American mosaic.
and/or
The Black Rock City mosaic
And we've got to get ourselves back to the garden.
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playafucker
- Posts: 16
- Joined: Sat Sep 15, 2007 12:38 pm
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playafucker
- Posts: 16
- Joined: Sat Sep 15, 2007 12:38 pm
Being American??
Hello Fellow Burners,
Being from Canada, I refer to my self as being "Canadian", I live on a continent that is called "North America". From my perspective "American" refers to a person who lives, or comes from, "the United States of America" (USofA, US)... It has been my observation, that only people from the "USofA" call themselves "American". How do my fellow, non USofA burners feel on this subject??
That being said, "The American Dream" theme, at first pissed me off. It seemed that the powers that be within Black Rock City were excluding everyone except people from the United States of America. However, on reflection, I believe that "The American Dream" is a concept of desire. There are people who want to travel to a new land, re-start their lives, starting at the bottom and working themselves up to, well, a better life than they had when they started. Sometimes it works, other times, not. So to sum it up: "The American Dream" is essentially a personal desire for change towards prosperity. Leaving the comforts of home and taking risks...
Or, to take a patriotic, nationalist approach: "The American Dream" is to become Canadian
Here's hoping to see you on the Playa...
Rice. aka Stretch
Being from Canada, I refer to my self as being "Canadian", I live on a continent that is called "North America". From my perspective "American" refers to a person who lives, or comes from, "the United States of America" (USofA, US)... It has been my observation, that only people from the "USofA" call themselves "American". How do my fellow, non USofA burners feel on this subject??
That being said, "The American Dream" theme, at first pissed me off. It seemed that the powers that be within Black Rock City were excluding everyone except people from the United States of America. However, on reflection, I believe that "The American Dream" is a concept of desire. There are people who want to travel to a new land, re-start their lives, starting at the bottom and working themselves up to, well, a better life than they had when they started. Sometimes it works, other times, not. So to sum it up: "The American Dream" is essentially a personal desire for change towards prosperity. Leaving the comforts of home and taking risks...
Or, to take a patriotic, nationalist approach: "The American Dream" is to become Canadian
Here's hoping to see you on the Playa...
Rice. aka Stretch
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myredcarpet
- Posts: 50
- Joined: Sun Nov 11, 2007 2:38 pm
- Location: Mammoth, CA
I am sure you all have read this more than a few times by now, but to reiterate the part where they try to be more inclusive of other countries:
"This imposing monument, emblazoned with the images of flags, will represent the countries of the world. Ranging from Canada to Chad, from Brazil to Burundi, from Vatican City to the Republic of China, these emblems will shine brightly in the night, gleaming like illuminated gems that stud a giant jewel box ... Each of these may be imagined as a dream no less radiant or precious than the rest. Each country is a source of culture and identity; yet each may also be regarded as a glimmering illusion: a sovereign artifact, an arbitrary puzzle piece, an isolated fragment on a map."
"Perhaps, it's time Americans began to face themselves. Maybe, it's also time that they began to listen to other countries of the world. All of us are immigrants to Black Rock City. What can we dream America to be?"
So this is the "to be continued" part they came up with. Do these statements make anyone feel better? Specifically, I would love to hear back from SFNathan.
"This imposing monument, emblazoned with the images of flags, will represent the countries of the world. Ranging from Canada to Chad, from Brazil to Burundi, from Vatican City to the Republic of China, these emblems will shine brightly in the night, gleaming like illuminated gems that stud a giant jewel box ... Each of these may be imagined as a dream no less radiant or precious than the rest. Each country is a source of culture and identity; yet each may also be regarded as a glimmering illusion: a sovereign artifact, an arbitrary puzzle piece, an isolated fragment on a map."
"Perhaps, it's time Americans began to face themselves. Maybe, it's also time that they began to listen to other countries of the world. All of us are immigrants to Black Rock City. What can we dream America to be?"
So this is the "to be continued" part they came up with. Do these statements make anyone feel better? Specifically, I would love to hear back from SFNathan.
"Reach out, take a chance. Get hurt even. Play as well as you can.. LIVE!" Maude
myredcarpet and others who took an interest in this thread:
I am very happy with the changes they made to the theme. Things that I notice they did to improve it:
1. BMORG's original suggestion that Burners shouldn't burn flags was removed from the theme language. This was smart, because people burn all kinds of symbols at Burning Man, and this is not done in disrespect, but often done with great respect (as is the case with the Temple Burn, which burns images of loved ones etc., an act of great respect through burning art). Asking people not to burn flags is also kind of a misguided idea at an event that promotes 'radical free expression'. People would burn flags just because they asked them not to. So I think it was smart that they remove the request for people not to burn flags.
2. The theme language is much more globally inclusive now. While the original theme had a sentence about all of us being immigrants to the playa, the modified theme has much more language that specifically invites a global perspective, and makes a clear statement that all people are welcome to participate no matter what part of the globe they come from.
3. They reworked the language around patriotism and nationalism to explicitely state that the theme is an exploration of these subjects, but not an endorsement of these subjects. All of the Burning Man messaging about the theme (website, mailers) have dropped the American Flag as the symbol, and used American cultural icons. If flags are part of the imagery (as is the case on the website right now), it's not just the American Flag, but international flags. This is smart on their part. A lot of people were feeling when the website had the image of the Burning Man with an American flag behind him that this theme was about patriotism/nationalism. The changed imagery is a smart way of saying that this theme isn't really about Burning Man adopting nationalism but is an exploration of America - whatever you make of it.
I especially appreciate some of the new language about Americans taking a good look at themselves, and that introspection is critical, especially at this time in our history. For this, and because they fixed some of the problems I saw in their original language, I am now actually excited about the theme and feel like they listened to our feedback here and incorporated it.
I am very happy with the changes they made to the theme. Things that I notice they did to improve it:
1. BMORG's original suggestion that Burners shouldn't burn flags was removed from the theme language. This was smart, because people burn all kinds of symbols at Burning Man, and this is not done in disrespect, but often done with great respect (as is the case with the Temple Burn, which burns images of loved ones etc., an act of great respect through burning art). Asking people not to burn flags is also kind of a misguided idea at an event that promotes 'radical free expression'. People would burn flags just because they asked them not to. So I think it was smart that they remove the request for people not to burn flags.
2. The theme language is much more globally inclusive now. While the original theme had a sentence about all of us being immigrants to the playa, the modified theme has much more language that specifically invites a global perspective, and makes a clear statement that all people are welcome to participate no matter what part of the globe they come from.
3. They reworked the language around patriotism and nationalism to explicitely state that the theme is an exploration of these subjects, but not an endorsement of these subjects. All of the Burning Man messaging about the theme (website, mailers) have dropped the American Flag as the symbol, and used American cultural icons. If flags are part of the imagery (as is the case on the website right now), it's not just the American Flag, but international flags. This is smart on their part. A lot of people were feeling when the website had the image of the Burning Man with an American flag behind him that this theme was about patriotism/nationalism. The changed imagery is a smart way of saying that this theme isn't really about Burning Man adopting nationalism but is an exploration of America - whatever you make of it.
I especially appreciate some of the new language about Americans taking a good look at themselves, and that introspection is critical, especially at this time in our history. For this, and because they fixed some of the problems I saw in their original language, I am now actually excited about the theme and feel like they listened to our feedback here and incorporated it.