Month: October 2013

Martha Nussbaum’s Democratic Citizenship and the Narrative Imagination and Willie van Peer’s Literature, Imagination and Human Rights invite us to explore the idea of literature and its effects on our outlook on the world. According to both writers, literature develops our imagination, and through imagination, we can picture the perspectives of others. Allowing our imaginations to run free and change perspectives  change our thoughts and actions in the world. In short, literature yields imagination, imagination yields empathy, and empathy yields change in our world.

This chain of effect really stood out, as it made perfect sense to me.

Although I have not read much past the sixth chapter of Joy Kogawa’s Obasan, I can already tell how much this novel supports the ideas of both Nussbaum and van Peer. The historical fiction truly changes perspectives and views on the world.

The novel is based on the evacuation of Japanese-Canadians in Vancouver during WWII. The War Measures Act allowed to government to brand everyone of Japanese descent as an “enemy aliens.” These innocent citizens were then thrown into interment camps where life was extremely harsh and cruel.

Through this small introduction of the novel’s background information, I could immediately tell this was the perfect example of literature that affects people’s perspectives. Reading and living through the memories of Naomi Nakane allows one to imagine the suffering and hardships she must have gone through, and empathize for her.

What if I were in her position? – Being unfairly removed from her home and be labelled an enemy of the country you were born in. I myself would be devastated if such an event happened to me. What if I, who was born in Vancouver, was suddenly told I was an enemy of Canada and was forced out of my home…? I have lived in Vancouver all my life, and my knowledge of China and Taiwan, and my fluency in the Chinese language are very limited.

In the past, not many felt sympathy for the Japanese-Canadians, as many died and lost everything they owned. Canada wished to only

However, through reading this novel, many find that what Canada had done in the past was horrific. As such, in 1988, Brian Mulroney, the Prime Minister of Canada at the time, made a formal public apology to the Japanese-Canadian families that were harmed. I was further surprised when he read from Obasan during his apology!

I was also extremely moved by the video at the end of our most recent class, where Japanese-Canadian university students that were evacuated in the past, were given honorary diplomas very recently.

The two works and the novel made me realize just how fortunate I am to live with rights and freedom. I love how multicultural and diverse my home is and how limited the existence of racism and discrimination is. I could never imagine that Vancouver experienced such a dark history. The city I have lived in all my life is beautiful and peaceful. I guess this proves just how far humanity and human rights has advanced since the beginning of Canada’s history.

The past week, we were to read and analyze Martha Nussbaum’s “Democratic Citizenship and the Narrative Imagination” in our course package and it immediately sparked faint interest in me. Nussbaum argues that the arts, more specifically, literature, has the ability of “cultivating powers of imagination.”

In turn, imagination yields compassion, and compassion is a necessary requirement to become a responsible citizen. Furthermore, compassion helps us  recognize the suffering and misfortunes of others, and ultimately, we relate to their misfortunes. Apparently, we can only feel sympathy for others if they are suffering. As a result, we imagine ourselves taking up their roles in misfortune, and realize we can be subject to such misery as well. Why is this?-Because we are imperfect beings.

Reading this left a bitter taste in my mouth.

We can only feel empathy for others when they are suffering? Is there no one in the world who would put their feet in another person’s shoes when that person is happy? That is too cruel.

Initially I felt disappointed in humanity. However, after more speculation, I found that this atrocious theory was the painful truth.

Earlier this summer, I was walking through downtown Vancouver after a BC lions game, all jacked up with energy and excitement from the win over the Toronto Argonauts. However, my enthusiasm was short lived after I walked past a homeless person on the side street.

Of course you might be thinking, homeless people are not scarce downtown. 

This homeless man, however, had no legs.

Struck with pity, my mood instantly converted from ecstatic to pessimistic. I felt unbearable compassion for him. I am an athlete. I love physical activity such as running and jumping-actions this homeless man can never perform. I cannot bear the thought of losing my legs and my mobility. Through this one small experience, I realized that I am incredible fortunate to be financially stable, as well as be physically healthy.

We who live our everyday lives in ease-although you may not think it-take many things for granted.

Through relating this experience to Nussbaum’s work, it only makes sense that we feel bad for those who are suffering. Never do we feel empathy for people who are content with their lives. There’s no point. Although this is common sense, it really did take me a while to realize this.

I know this is cliche, but it is something we can never stress enough:

We cannot take anything we have for granted. There are people out there in the world that are suffering, living in poverty or despair. In comparison, we are given so much support by our families an friends everyday of our lives. Through imagining ourselves in the shoes of others, as Nussbaum implies, we are given the opportunity to reflect on what we have. To be a responsible citizen, as well as a responsible human being, we have to be able to feel sympathy for others.

We have to always work towards our future with our own two feet.

We have legs, let’s use them.