ARH 411 Theory & Methods ~ R Zink

  Blog Post Topic: " Difference: 'A Special Third World Women Issue' " by Trinh T. Minh-ha Trinh T. Minh-ha was asked in the late 80s to write this piece as a part of a special edition magazine on Third-World Women filmmakers. She is an award-winning filmmaker, but her Vietnamese background and identity was commonly emphasized as special when she was considered by the art community. Her writing goes over so many vital topics and I found this reading to be full of our most significant and deeply rooted societal issues. From the very beginning, she outlines that racism, superiority, and oppression are major elements in what she is talking about, and these points become clearer throughout. She covers how differently women are treated when they are not white, and how they are asked to prove and do more for just existing in this way. Duality is a concept Minh-ha goes over multiple times in the way that differences are meant to be both good and bad. The superiority of white...

  Blog Post Topic: " The Death of the Author " by Roland Barthes & " Statement " by Sherrie Levine “The Death of the Author” was our main reading for the week which captured complicated concepts around interpreting an author’s work separate from themself. My foremost understanding of his ideas is that a piece of writing has a voice of its own that can be distinct from the author who wrote it. Although the work can be part of a person’s voice and the author’s perspective can be very involved or helpful, it’s also possible that a piece’s voice can live on within its own life and context which can be different and/or longer lasting than the author. I’m usually not a fan of separating an artist from their work because I think knowing about the author often does tell us crucial information about the piece’s message, but I do also have to agree with Barthes’ writings that it’s possible a powerful or unique voice doesn’t need its author to help it speak, and also that ...