General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: University of Chicago Tells Incoming Students: Don't Expect Safe Spaces or Trigger Warnings [View all]thucythucy
(8,168 posts)it doesn't support trigger warnings. Saying you don't "support" something is not the same thing as saying you don't "require" it. Perhaps this is an instance of poor wording, but the tone doesn't seem very neutral toward trigger warnings or safe spaces, and certainly many of the comments in this thread can hardly be seen that way.
As for what a college undergraduate taking a film course might or might not know, you'd be surprised but not all young people are totally conversant with the film lore of the 1970s. I know people for whom '70s film is like ancient history.
Mark Twain: yeah, if I was teaching Huckleberry Finn I'd definitely want to discuss the use of the n word as part of the general instruction. It's bound to come up anyway, so pretending it isn't there, or pretending that there won't be some people at least uncomfortable with it from the get go seems fairly obtuse. To not recognize that there are people in our society who may have been traumatized by the use of the word, and may need some discussion around this, is, well, pretty oblivious to the reality around us.
Elie Weisel: probably no trigger warning needed, though it's been a while since I read any of his work. Has anyone to your knowledge ever asked for one? Then again, "The Painted Bird" might be a different story. There's a very graphic rape and murder scene that I would definitely want my students to be aware of before they dive into the book. Same with Primo Levi's "Survival at Auschwitz." I'd certainly leave a space for my students to react as I would expect many people would: shock, depression, disbelief, anger. I'd say upfront that these are reactions they might have, and to be prepared for them. To do otherwise I think would be a disservice.
I have tremendous respect for the power of literature, the power of images. I'm not blithe about their impact on others, especially young people, especially young people entrusted, to some extent, to my care. To treat depictions of rape, violence, racism, genocide, as just another walk in the park seems to me to say that art in general is more trivial than it truly is.
I have no problem allowing individual classes to be run as individual professors see fit. But the tone of the university pronouncement seems to be dissing people who provide trigger warnings and safe spaces, and certainly people who might want them. The whole tone of this thread is one of "right on, let's not coddle the snowflakes." And those professors who launch into, say, "The Painted Bird" or "A Clockwork Orange" without some preparation shouldn't be surprised if the works elicit some fairly extreme reactions.