I am looking for an object that is liked by some people and viewed differently/disliked by others. I am writing an essay about this. If you could please list at least one object that you think may link it would be great.
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Identity & Object
- Thread starter Lionel Messi
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Hm. Interesting.
I wonder whether this encompasses anything that may be liked or disliked?
Or, are there any limits, or parameters to your essay? Things, foods, fads, fashions, (in thought as well as in objets purchased, for there are fashionable thoughts to think) - football teams (your username brings that topic to mind), political parties, what had you in mind, or are there any areas you would prefer those who respond to focus on?
Moreover, do you wish those to reply to give reasons for why they may passionately like or strongly dislike something?
I want an object(s) that is powerful enough to impact identity and other people may not comprehend it the same way.
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I should have phrased my question better. It's not so much about like or dislike, I'm just trying to find an object(s) that is understood by some differently than others and may impact their identity.
No parameters in my essay as I get to choose the topic relating to my class, but I am mostly looking for religious (such as Buddhist statues) or cultural objects, probably related to aboriginals for example.
Very brief reasons would greatly help.
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For example, an object that is used to convey a message to the government that only those in the country will understand, while others will not really know what the object means/how impactful it is. Preferably something like the Koh-i-noor diamond or Cyrus cylinder.
In your own country the football teams Real Madrid and Barcelona seem to have acquired much by way of robust cultural (and, dare one say it strongly expressed political) identities, (some of which seems to have been rooted as far back as the time of the Spanish Civil War) so that supporting either 'Barca' or 'Real' becomes - or can become - a statement of identity, cultural affiliation and political preferences every bit as much as a preference for a soccer team.
Then, there are the cultural and political illiterates - such as used to appear during the Apartheid era (in South Africa) when discussions of sporting boycotts for say, rugby, would take place - and witter on at tedious and mendacious length, "But all we want to do is play football. We know nothing about what is happening here, and if we did, have no thoughts on it anyway…."
Is that the sort of thing you are interested in discussing and exploring further?
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That is something I will be more than happy to work with and I do have background about how football and sports in general have had such a great impact on people. Not entirely sure whether my professor will allow me to use FC Barcelona jerseys in general as an object and would prefer if I could focus on one specific historical Barcelona object that impacted the team or other people, which I doubt I will find other than legendary jerseys and trophies.
I like how you described the political and cultural illiterates. It is something that dimly exists till this day and still has some impact. I just thought of how racist men would throw bananas on Brazilian players during matches, and a huge campaign by Barcelona player Dani Alves was launched by celebrities around the world. I may be able to write 3k words on that...
Your user name made me think that a football related subject - and how that can tie in with political, cultural (regional, and and even social class) identities might be - or make - an interesting essay.
In my experience, (and I used to teach politics and history for the best part of two decades) students write far better, more engaged , and more original essays when the topics - when self selected - they write about are of interest to them and have a personal resonance for them.
Personally, I have little to no interest in sports, in the classic sense of paying heed to the fact that 'x' scored controversially in the ninety-fourth minute when the clock's hand seemed - mysteriously - to have become glued, and time, inexplicably, somehow suspended as a result....
However, I am hugely interested in expressions of identity, and how, when and where this intersects with sport, and sporting identity, (be it national, regional, political, social or whatever) I pay very close heed, as it can often offer a fascinating means of obtaining an understanding of something otherwise somewhat esoteric and difficult to crack.
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I have got to agree with you on that. I wrote many other essays which I selected the topic and I believe that the more interesting the topic is to me, the better I can write. The latest is a history essay about the possible origins of ISIS which I linked to the Sykes-Picot Agreement.
You can tell that I am a huge football fan and I have a personal attachment to FC Barcelona. Identity also intrigues me as something ubiquitous yet still mysterious, and as you described it as esoteric.
I think I will go ahead and write about sport objects and identity. I do not know how much I appreciate your prompt and comprehensive responses. Thank you, sir.
The Smartphone.
or a specific product (e.g. iPhone)
any popular tech product will have its share of fanboys and haters, and the tech in general will have enthusiastic supporters balanced by fierce Luddites.
alternatively, not specifically an 'object', but Facebook seems to be on a lot of best and worst thing ever lists
or a specific product (e.g. iPhone)
any popular tech product will have its share of fanboys and haters, and the tech in general will have enthusiastic supporters balanced by fierce Luddites.
alternatively, not specifically an 'object', but Facebook seems to be on a lot of best and worst thing ever lists
Art in general can give you plenty of cases. Take Beuys' 'Fettecke' for example.
![beuys_fettecke_2-1024x680.jpg]()
5kg of butter in the corner of the room (museum btw) 2m below the ceiling. I'll spare you his intentions why he did so but there were definitely people who liked that artistic comment ("That's true art! - I love it!") or not ("WTF?! That's terrible, I can do that myself.") or just didn't realize that was an object at all and just destroyed it when cleaning up - as was the case here. And not the first nor the last time IIRC with Beuys' work.
5kg of butter in the corner of the room (museum btw) 2m below the ceiling. I'll spare you his intentions why he did so but there were definitely people who liked that artistic comment ("That's true art! - I love it!") or not ("WTF?! That's terrible, I can do that myself.") or just didn't realize that was an object at all and just destroyed it when cleaning up - as was the case here. And not the first nor the last time IIRC with Beuys' work.
Are you trying to say that people have a problem with the way I indicate footnotes?! Those pathetic swine!
Dagger (typography)
I would suggest McDonalds or something like that. Some people cherish it like it is a treat, and some people look at it like it is nothing better than slime. There were some good ideas up above, too.