"Language does not exist apart from thought, and thought does not exist apart from language; they are one and the same."
James Berlin--Rhetoric and Reality.
What do you want? What gets in the way? How do you get there? What defines your journey?
Desire is a language we all understand... or struggle to understand. For the purpose of this discussion, however, we will stand outside the weight of this word and examine. We will ask ourselves: What does it mean?
Consider the numerous narratives that stand before you--school, career, family, relationships, and the persistent demands of self-discovery. Consider the narratives that have carried you to this place: the scope of your lived lives, the streets, the houses, the communities and families that have dressed you, built your belief systems, formed your values. How do these elements of language continue to define you? What part of you strikes out against them?
This conversation can be broad and far ranging, but always in the spirit of discovery. I encourage you to ask difficult questions but maintain a vigorous atmosphere of inquiry. Paulo Freire, the great liberation theorist writes: "Hope is rooted in men's incompletion, from which they move out in constant search--a search which can be carried out only in communion with others. Hopelessness is a form of silence, of denying the world and fleeing from it." As your moderator, I will steer the conversation towards this communion and into the nuts and bolts, the foundation and framing, the structure and manifestation of this language of desire. I ask you to do the same.
As always, please maintain an atmosphere of community and support. We are attempting to develop an "academic" approach to an unacademic topic. In other words, you can disagree, but respect each other's opinion. Be supportive and generous with your discussion.
So, once again, what do you want? What gets in the way? How do you get there? What defines your journey?
