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Hello,
This is an interesting discussion to which I would like to contribute my
own thoughts. To me MASSOBS has always been about reflecting the micro
themes of our society, identifying the ways in which seemingly small
actions/activites reflect our underlying culture and beliefs. MASSOBS
gives everyday people a voice and a chance to reflect on their lives
whilst documenting it so that future generations can glimpse into the
past. Whilst I can understand that Mr Marshall feels that some of the
issues may be trivial compared to global concerns, I think it is
important to understand that for many people they will have little or no
knowledge of many of the situations he refers to. It is also important
to realise how relevant many of these seemingly meaningless topics
actually are and how intertwined activities such as gardening may
actually be with issues of climate change, personal safety and space.
Such links however are not always easy to identify and it can often take
peoples reflections on such mundane actions to enable us to highlight
them. I personally think that MASSOBS should not become a mouthpiece for
the discussion of such detailed issues on which very few people would be
able to comment. However I may be wrong so perhaps a question on this
situation in Darfur should be included in the next set of themes and see
how fruitful it proves, it would all provide good research feedback!
With thanks
Becky
-----Original Message-----
From: A discussion and announcement list for the Mass-Observation
community [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Dorothy Sheridan
Sent: 23 July 2007 15:38
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [MASSOBS] Debates about the Directive themes
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Dear Jiscmailers,
Thought you might like to see - and join in with - the discussion I have
been having with one of our Mass Observers about the themes we shoose
for the directives.
Mr Marshall doesn't mind you seeing his name.... and has given me
permissiont o put this on the JISCMAIL discussion list so I shall
include that. I have suggested he join the list so he can see what
others say so please don't write directly to me on this. The idea is to
share the discussion and broaden it out. I shall be reading it!
Best wishes,
Dorothy Sheridan
MOA Director
Below four messages - two from Mr Marshall and my replies.
From Mr John Marshall (1st message)
>> Thank you for the Summer Directive 2007 and the long and informative
>> letter from the Director, Dorothy Sheridan. I am answering the
>> question on page 3 - 'Do you want to stay on our mailing list?' Yes
>> please, even though I have not responded to recent Directives. I
>> think it is more than a year since I made a contribution. There are
>> two reasons for this. The main one has been demands on my time for
>> other writing projects, as well as being away from home on a series
>> of lengthy overseas trips.
>>
>> The second reason is that the subjects chosen recently - with two
>> possible exceptions - have not really grabbed my interest. Take the
>> last three Directives. Autumn 2006 - 'home and contents' and
>> 'quotations'. Neither is likely to set the world on fire. I did
>> attempt the other offering, some thoughts on 'age', but other, more
>> pressing demands made me put it to one side. Some day it might be
>> finished because I did a deal of background research.
>>
>> Spring 2007 - The smoking ban. An excellent measure - and that's
>> about all there is to be said. I haven't smoked for 40 years.
>> 'Domestic violence' - so predictable and I have no personal
experience.
>>
>> Summer 2007 - Shopping - no thank you. 'Gardens and gardening' - no
>> interst in either subject.
>>
>> With respect I would suggest that the subjects chosen over the last
>> twelve months could have been lifted from an editorial meeting of
>> 'Woman's Own.'
>>
>> Because I enjoy contributing my thoughts to the Mass Observation
>> Archive, and wish to continue doing so, I would beg you to provide
>> your contributors with worthwhile subjects which go far beyond the
>> Virago feminist agenda.
>>
>> For the record I shall send you my thoughts on Age and Mourning,
>> together with a form to renew my membership of the Friends, by
separate letter.
>>
>> And I do wish to remain on the mailing list. With best wishes -
Reply from Dorothy
>> Dear XXXX,
>> Thanks for your email and thoughts on the themes. I appreciate you
>> giving us time to comment and I take your critique seriously although
>> I think your allusion to "Women's Own" and "feminist virago" (what's
>> that?) were uncalled for! Do I detect a bit of male chauvinism?
>> Actually women's magazines often tackle very important issues -
>> certainly as far as women are concerned.
>>
>> You are a fairly new correspondent with us and I wonder whether
>> you've seen the full range of themes that we have covered since 1981?
>>
>> See
>>
> www.sussex.ac.uk/library/speccoll/collection_catalogues/massnewproject
> dat
> e.htm> l
>> Maybe you could tell me which themes would stimulate you to write
more?
>> Send us a list!!!!
>> Also we are always happy to receive contributions independently of
>> directive themes.
>>
>> It is ironic that all the themes you cite have all been the basis of
>> serious academic research projects. I don't just dream them up and I
>> think quite hard before accepting a commission on a theme. We have
>> been collaborating with researchers in other universities on the
directives.
>> Can I just defend the themes you mention for a moment?
>>
>> The gardening one is funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council
>> and is the concern of a team from the University of Brighton who see
>> gardening as a way of understanding the changing nature of time use,
>> leisure, social meanings and social practices. It feeds into
>> understandings of gender, economics, work and life style.
>>
>> Domestic violence is a very difficult to research area. It is easy to
>> look at police records and statistics or at alarmist press coverage
>> but harder to get at the less public experiences. Most people would
>> be nervous or cautious about opening up to a stranger interviewing
>> them on this subject. This is where the stories sent in by Mass
>> Observers are gold dust for researchers. Of course (and thank
>> goodness for that) lots of people don't have direct experience to
>> report. We are still interested in their views.
>>
>> Shopping is something everyone has to do and may be regarded as
>> trivial but in fact this directive which had at its heart the theme
>> of Fair Trade goods was looking at how we make moral choices and it
>> allows people with political or ethical views to describe their
>> experiences. It raises issues about attitudes to global poverty and
>> inequality in the world.... I see that as being a very important
issue.
>>
>> The Smoking ban - well that does affect everyone ebven non-smokers
>> and will have an impact on the health services. Personally I have
>> never smoked and loathe the practice and the smoke so am enjoying
>> the new smoke-free atmospheres. My parents both died of smoking
>> related illnesses so I have strong feelings on the subject. the
>> social practice of smokinbg has so many links - health services,
>> advertising, economics, tax, business and the interaction between
people in social settings.
>> fascinating for the anthropologist, the health specialist, the
>> economist and so on.
>>
>> Home and contents was also commissioned by an academic - issues of
>> life style, spending, fashion, family relationships, economics,
>> design, social policy on housing..... key issues.
>>
>> Quotations is a complex question - understanding how people
>> communicate is important, and written communication is changing
>> rapidly - again of interest to sociologists, anthropologists and
>> educationists. You say it doesn't set the world on fire but MO is
>> precisely about the details of everyday life - again that's why
researchers use us.
>>
>> Finally - if you are still with me in this long reply, would you mind
>> if we put this correspondence (yours and mine but of course without
>> your name appearing) on the MOA email discussion list as maybe other
>> people would like to comment on our choice of themes. I will also
>> show your letter to the researchers who collaborated with us on these
>> subjects. I am sure they'd be interested in hearing what you feel
>> would be good subjects for directives.
>> Let me know!
>>
>> And glad you are staying with us after all, Dorothy
Mr Marshall's second letter
Dear Dorothy,
Thank you for taking the trouble to write such a detailed reply to my
views on recent directives. However, having read the reasons you put
forward in their defence, I still maintain the subjects are relatively
trivial in nature.
In paragraph 4 you say the themes 'have all been the basis of serious
academic research projects.' That this may be so endorses my view -
which I suspect is also held by other non-academics - that no matter how
these topics may be dressed up in jargon-laden gobbledygook, they are,
neverthless, are of no value to the general good of the nation. It also
leads to the occasional media stories that is possible to attend certain
colleges and eventually graduate with a diploma in flower arranging or
ballroom dancing.
Phrases used in favour of the gardinging project, such as 'understanding
the changing nature of time use, leisure, social meanings and social
practice' illustrate my point. People have been gardening since Adam
was a lad. It cannot be argued that over the centuries the nature of
'time use'
in gardening has changed. Gardeners dig over and prepare the ground;
they plant the seeds; they tend the shoots; and, eventually, they
harvest the crops and enjoy their flavours in a meal, or they cut the
flowers and display them in a vase. It is an activity which gives our
many gardeners a sense of pride and satisfaction in a job well done.
That is enough for them. They can exisit quite happily for the
remainder of therio fulfilled lives without feeding 'into understandings
of gender, economics, work and life style' - whatever that may mean.
Perhaps the Arts and Humanities Research Council would benefit from a
breath of fresh air while undertaking a spell of manual work in the
garden.
Similar comments could be made about researchers in their ivory towers
expressing interest in domestic violence or shopping. I think it may
be
for the best if we agree to differ.
You ask for a list of subjects which would stimulate myself (and other
contributors) to write more. I'm only too happy to oblige. When
discussing shopping (paragraph 7) you mention the moral choices
involved.
There are several subjects, listed in no particular order of preference,
where moral choices have a genuine significance.
Dafur The new Prime Minister and the new French President have
demonstrated their concern about the plight of the hundreds of
thousandsof wretched souls living and dying in abject squalor and
poverty while the Sudanese Government denies - as it has done for many
years - that any problem exists. It is a complex problem with (as is so
often the case) religious bigotry a root cause of hatred between people.
Zimbabwe What a frightening place must be. Rampant inflation. Chronic
widespread unemployment. Brutal intimidation of any opposition to
Mugabe and his fat-cat bullies. A lack of any information about daily
life. A brave Catholic archbishop as a lone voice of protest. A lack
of will among neighbouring African states unwilling to criticise Mugabe
(particularly South Africa which should know better after years of
apartheid). And Britain, the former Colonial power which helped bring
Mugabe to office after the racisit Ian Smith had been toppled, washing
its hands of the whole sorry affair.
The conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan Now Tony Blair has gone how much
longer do our young men and women in the Armed Services have to
continue giving their lives in these futiler conflicts?
As unforgivable as having military personnel locked into these dangerous
places is the way we, as a nation,treat these brave people and their
families. There is the scandal over the delayed inquests on those who
are killed in these conflicts. There is the scandal over the apparently
indifferent attitude by the authorities to those who are wounded (many
of them seriously, both physically and mentally). All the military
hospitals were closed down years ago. The strap-cashed NHS finds itself
carrying this additional burden (and the state of the NHS is another
subject upon which all your contributors must have a view). There is
the scandal of the slims they call 'married quarters' where Service
families are housed while their loved ones often face unecessary
danger, hardship and equipment shortages.
Multi-cultural Britain A vast subject which would possibly call for
several directives covering religious issues, asylum seekers, workers
from the new EU countries taking jobs the indigenous population scorn,
lack of English-speaking skills, styles of dress, policing the
minorities - are they treated differently because of the colour of their
skins? The millionaire business men with dubious backgrounds who are
taking over our football clubs, our public utilities, our supermarkets,
our enegy supplies.
Politicians - lack of public trust Honours for cash donations. Dodgy
dossiers about weapons of mass destruction which didn't exist. Promises
made and never kept. Spin. When mistakes are discovered blaming the
media for getting the story 'out of context.' A reluctance to say
'Sorry.' An even greater reluctance to resign when mistakes have been
made. A general attitude of treating the public with contempt except
once every five years when their votes are required. Increasing
corruption at elections. A general tendency to explain away bad
election results as 'encouraging trends.' And a general inertia among
all politicians to seek solutions to any of these problems.
Climate change The local perspective - flooding, drought, seasonal
difference, the relevance of individual 'carbon footprints'. Does being
'Green' make any difference? And the wider picture of melting ice caps,
deforestation, Bush's denial that climate change is a problem. There
are also the 'Great Polluters' - India and China. Is it too late to
conserve the future for our children and grand-children? Within fifty
years will the planet still be habitable? How will the suvivors regard
us. Might we have done a great deal more to ensure their future was
worthwhile?
The terrorist threat (which I separate from multi-culturalism). Two
years ago 52 people were murdered in London by a small group of
British-born fanatics. A short time before July 2005 hundreds more died
on commuter trains entering Madrid. Scores of young people died in a
fire bombed nightclub in Bali. Two thousand plus died horrible deaths
when the World Trade Center and other US icons were attacked. The world
has become an increasingly dangerous place. How do we cope with these
images always at the back of our minds?
Just a few items which ought to attract a decent response because
everyone can relate to them. We are all involved.
I would be delighted if this correspondence appears on the MOA e-mail
discussion list. I can see no reason why my name should not be attached
to my contribution.
It has been a most stimulating exchange of views. With best wishes -
John Marshall
And my reply:
Dear John,
I have no argument with you about the importance of the international
events and major national issues you list. We have - as you will have
seen
from our list - covered many similar issues in the past from the war in
Iraq, 9/11, the bombing of the underground in London, the floods in New
Orleans, the Tsunami, through to immigration, race, crime, the middle
East
and the Gulf War. Because the number of directives is necessarily
limited,
we will never be fast enough to coincide with current affairs as they
happen and we rely on people to to write spontaneously if they feel an
issue is crucial.
My own analysis is that all these issues are related. What we feel about
ethical shopping, for example, links to our attitudes to global
poverty,
war, racism. I saw a film about US interests in South America last week
by
John Pilger. Perhaps you have seen it ? It begins by focussing on
Venezuala. So much of what happens in the world is determined by the
power
of vested interests. I see personal and plitical issues being completely
intertwined.... and I think that the researchers who use us also work
within this framework. It's the relationship between the macro and
micro.... and thew ay we are individuals navigate our ways through the
broader sweeps of ecomonic and political history. MO in the 1930s was a
pioneer in understanding this relationship.
But bear in mind that many media and polling organisations ask for
opinions
on these issues all the time. There is no shortage of quantitative data
on
UK public opinion around for the present or future researcher.
MO aims at something very different and is set up to document direct
life
story *experience*. That's our particular strength as I said before.
And
that is what most writers for us seem to prefer to do. It's harder for
some
people to write about things that are not part of their direct
experience.
The issues are still important - eg health and domestic violence seem to
me
to be crucial issues for all of us. I am a bit shocked at your critique
of
our including domestic violence. But maybe that's one of the problems -
some men don't take it seriously. Your response in itself will
contribute
to the research data!
I must repeat that you are welcome to set your own themes and write
about
those. Many of our correspondents do just that from time to time and we
welcome unprompted contributions.
Thanks for giving me permission to put our correspondence on the
discussion list. It will probably appear next week. If you want to
join,see
www.massobs.org.uk/join_our_email_list.htm
I must stop here as I must do other work..... on the Jiscmail i am sure
others will take over the discussion!
All the best
Dorothy
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