Contact Zones Essay - 1325 Words

The reader is introduced to a term coined and repeated by Pratt throughout the piece, contact zones. She uses this term to refer to social spaces where cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other, often in contexts of highly asymmetrical relations of power, such as colonialism, slavery, or their aftermaths as they are lived out in many parts of the world today (Pratt 584). Contact zones were not necessarily a positive interaction because these social interactions usually came out of ignorance resulting into an obdurate conflict. Dubois The Negro in the United States and Griffith’s The Birth of the Nation, and Pratt’s very own Arts of the Contact Zone correlate through Pratt’s terminology of contact zone, autoethnographic texts,†¦show more content†¦In this movie the African Americans were treated nicely but in reality they did not feel this way. The masters mistreated their slaves but in the movie they were actually having conversations. There is a scene in the movie where a group of African Americans were shaking hands with the white Americans. The producer of the movie wanted to inform others that the â€Å"birth† of America was founded on the basis of equality rather than discrimination. If the producer of the movie did not show how the slaves were mistreated, the people will just see the world in only that point of view; the slaves’ point of view does not exist. Ruling countries oppressed both the undeveloped, barren places and the African Americans. The Birth of the Nation is a perfect example of a form of travel writing; the Americans wanted to inform others about America but this movie was only produced in their perspective. Rather than recording the reality, the produces or writers record history with the input of their own influences. Slavery is a contradictory subject in American history because â€Å"one hears†¦of the staid and gentle patriarchy, the wide and sleepy plantations with lord and retainers, ease and happiness; [while] on the other hand on hears of barbarous cruelty and unbridles power and wide oppression of men† (Dubois 2). Dubois’s The Negro in the United States is an autoethnographic text which is a representation â€Å"that the so-defined othersShow MoreRelatedContact Zone588 Words   |  3 PagesMary Louise Pratt defined contact zones as â€Å"social spaces where cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other, often in contexts of highly asymmetrical relations of power, such as colonialism, slavery, or their aftermaths as they are lived out in many parts of the world today.† A contact zone is a place where two cultures can mesh together. People from different cultures are able to interact with each other through these contact zones. A contact zone allows people to l ook into cultures otherRead MoreCultural Contact Zone1027 Words   |  4 PagesThe world is like one ‘small village’ during the twenty first century. As such, there is a lot of contact among different people, from different corners of the world. Essentially, this means that several cultures come into contact with each other more frequently, and over short durations of time than it was possible during the previous decades. Consequently, not only are the differences in these cultures magnified in the course of their interaction, but there is also a tendency by these culturesRead MoreContact Zone Essay1766 Words   |  8 PagesCaroline Kelly Professor Ober First Year Writing 29 September 2014 The Contact Zone The Holocaust happened because two groups of people were grappling with each and one was stronger than the other. Wars typically occur because two cultures disagree and choose to settle it, and the strong culture prevails. African American and Caucasian people used to be exiled for getting married, because they were different. There are millions of different cultures in the world today and everyRead MoreArts of the Contact Zone Essay1167 Words   |  5 PagesMary Louise Pratt wrote the essay â€Å"Arts of the Contact Zone† with the purpose of explaining that society would benefit if people were exposed to and understood the concept of â€Å"contact zones†. She refers to contact zones as social spaces where cultures meet and clash with each other, usually with one culture being dominant over the other. A person living in a contact zone is exposed to two different cultures, two different languages, and as a result is presented with a struggle in each culture toRead More Pratt, Arts of the Contact Zone1353 Words   |  6 Pagesordinary thing. Therefore, writing a response to Pratt’s essay in a language that is comprehendible by regular people can be very helpful to those struggling students. In Arts of the Contact Zone Pratt discusses the mix of two different cultures in one area. Where one person is born and lives in a contact zone he/she is surrounded by two different conflicting cultures, and there are two different languages. She also introduces us with a new word autoethnography, which means the way in whichRead MoreTaming Anzalduas Contact Zone Analysis984 Words   |  4 Pages â€Å"The Contact Zone†, is defined by Mary Louis Pratt as â€Å"the space in which transculturation takes place – where two different cultures meet and inform each other, often in highly asymmetrical ways.† Pratt describes what she calls ‘contact zones’ and elaborates on the pros and cons of these cultural interactions. She sees the contact zone as a place that allows people to exchange cultural ideas and break down the dividing cultural borders. When a contact zone is started, people are able to interactRead MoreComparing Arts of the Contact Zone and Animism and the Alphabet882 Words   |  4 Pagesyou. In â€Å"Arts of the Contact Zone†, Mary Louise Pratt defines contact zones as â€Å"the space in which transculturation takes place – where two different cultures meet and inform each other, often in highly asymmetrical ways.† Both â€Å"Arts of the Contact Zone† and David Abram’s â€Å"Animism and the Alphabet† attempt to form an interpretation between the relationship of our natural environment and our everyday lives. According to both the author’s writing, Pratt’s concept of contact zone is useful in helpingRead MoreArts of the Contact Zone by Mary Louise Pratt999 Words   |  4 PagesThe â€Å"Arts of the Contact Zone†, an article w ritten by Stanford professor Mary Louise Pratt, discusses many different ideas about culture and communication by utilizing what she calls the literate arts. Pratt explains many terms that she believes are beneficial in gaining a further understanding of a literary piece. Key terms such as, contact zone, autoethnography and transculturation are introduced in her essay. She describes contact zones as â€Å"social spaces where cultures meet, clash, and grappleRead More Arts of the Contact Zone by Mary Louise Pratt Essay575 Words   |  3 PagesArts of the Contact Zone by Mary Louise Pratt   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Arts of the Contact Zone by Mary Louise Pratt opened up a whole new concept for our class. The new term â€Å"contact zone† appeared and Pratt defined it as social spaces where cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other, often in contexts of highly asymmetrical relations of power, such as colonialism, slavery, or their aftermaths as they are lived out in many parts of the world today. The idea of the contact zone is intended in part toRead MoreEssay on Arts of the Contact Zone, Mary Louise Pratt1245 Words   |  5 Pagesdelivered a keynote/lecture that revolutionized how people think about their social spaces. She introduced a revolutionary way to think about these social spaces, instead of calling them communities she started calling it the â€Å"contact zone†. According to Pratt a â€Å"contact zone is a place where cultures meet, clash, and grapple† (Pratt 487). While lecturing her fellow colleagues Pratt argues that our idea of community is strongly utopian. She continues to plead her case by saying that societies often