experience

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The Real Cost of Microaggressions

Constant microaggressions is something that really is a shared experience. My introduction to phenomenology was not that microaggressions takes a large toll. Microaggressions are comments that can be so subtle even I shake it off and disregard it with expression and then internalize it. Whenever I read something in this class, I always find myself reflecting on experiences and realizing how quickly I will “simply” internalize it and not express the discomfort. I put the term simply in quotes because how simple can it be to internalize the feeling of being put in a majority when you are not the same as every person in that majority? For me, the word “simply” in that context is the repeated, chronic discrimination is something that I have had to deal with my entire life. There is never a time when I think about what would be the outcome of this everyday internalized discrimination against myself.

“Perceptual practices can be organized, like bodily movements used to perform various operations, into integrated units that become habitual.”

Alcoff, Linda Martin. “Towards a phenomenology of racial embodiment.”

Alcoff’s article made me critically think about my own and shared experiences with discrimination. In her article, I took away a new perception about microaggressions. I think this shift is because of that “simple” term I mentioned before. Someone in a constant routine usually will start to be able to do those things with so much ease that it becomes automatic. So automatic I never thought about these costs. An emotional performance is put on when faced with microaggressions. An example is suppressing anger. Something you are constantly emotionally performing for is something that takes on the body. That constant suppression can lead to a breakdown and an overwhelming feeling that makes you feel exhausted. Some days there will just be all those performances that take a toll on self-efficacy.

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Reflecting on the Philosophy of Consciousness in the Context of Embodiment

The concept of consciousness and individuality has always been of great interest to me. The idea that every individual is experiencing something utterly unique in every moment goes beyond what I believe we can adequately perceive or understand as humans; it is like the concept of infinity. In a way, we’ll never know if everyone around us experiences things consciously or exists in the way we do, because when it comes down to it, our world is how we perceive it on an entirely individual level. I have thought that it is interesting to approach the subject of the human experience in an objective way, because this seems like a paradox to me. The idea of the “human experience” is directly linked to our humanity and therefore identity, so I wonder then how it can be examined in an objective way when the idea of experience is entirely subjective in it’s own right. 

If we assume that an “experience” is a conscious thing, and then that our consciousness is shaped by our identity and individuality, then experience by nature cannot be examined objectively. Because we ourselves are conscious beings we cannot strip ourselves of subjectivity because it is exactly that that makes us who we are and constructs our very thought. We are, in a way, burdened by our consciousness and thought, but then again this is in essence our humanity. Therefore if we dismiss this notion of objective examination and embrace our consciousness and the effect of our identity, we can discover new ways to address experience and accept this examination as a subjective thing.

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“Unfortunately you will be placed in the back of formations for our next performance”

Requirements for dancers have changed over time in order for a team to give a top quality performance. Many factors are taken into consideration when put on line-up for a competition. Continue reading →