Territory: Graffiti. Object: Graffiti Art. Graffiti as an art movement and global phenomenon, originates in the early 1970’s in New York City. The unique dynamics of the city gave rises to an artistic battleground of expression in a cultural climate of alienation and class divide. As the youth at the heart of American capitalism struggled to gain recognition, the graffiti subculture was born. Using unconventional mediums and the alternative canvas of the urban landscape, graffiti, enveloped the city, the nation and eventually the entire world. Philosophical Concept: Heidegger- The Origin of the work of art. Heidegger’s intent is always to bring us closer to the understanding of Being. Art in its origin, is art; the happening of truth of a people’s historical existence. Great artworks in the current tradition of aesthetics are ripped away from their essential truth when classed as objects to be judged and experienced in pleasure, losing their authenticity and ability to ‘set-up’ a world and ‘set-forth’ the earth. Graffiti’s philosophical relevance: The Truth of Being. Graffiti writing rose out of a particular ‘world’, a horizon of disclosure dominated by capitalist alienation. The struggle of the youths in New York City was a battle of resistance to authority and conformity that led to an artistic battle of expression. In graffiti’s expression, the ‘world’ of the American culture is opened up, the ‘earth’ rips through this ‘world’ in the form of undefined and sublime images of the New York subway trains, taking us out of our everyday world and reminding us of other existing realities. We forget the mysteriousness of truth in its dual essence of aletheia, and the works of the original underground graffiti movement disclose this struggle of world and earth; the truth of Being. It is this struggle that graffiti writers sought to sustain in their works, therefore, graffiti did not originate from art but rather from the truth of a people’s historical existence; the historical truth of being.
Category: Stage 3
Yves Klein produced over one thousand “works” during the seven year period he devoted to painting. Although he is most commonly associated with his monochrome canvases (leading the patenting of his own International Klein Blue; IKB), Klein’s work is not abstract but conceptual. However prolific, his production was not the end goal of his efforts, but rather only an “interval” in his spiritual accomplishment; the quest for pure sensibility; the quest for the void. Klein fought all his creative life the “French defect” (as his role model Eugene Delacroix first spoke in his journals) the obsession with line, compositional prison bars of our own contrivance that delineate and concretize existence, drawing boundaries for our emotional and spiritual life. His works are a final and fatal wounding for painting-the impossibility of painting thereafter. This project is an attempt to chart the aesthetic progression of his painting towards the immaterial and the revelation of the artistic project situated in the quotidian. A pictorial quest for ecstatic and immediately communicable emotion; the painting of a future anticipated in the present.
In this project I examine the working class in Britain and compare the conditions that they have to work in the time of Marx and now. My main objective here is to show that the working class exist as a class and a narrative, and to disprove Lyotard’s famous claim that we no longer through narratives. I intend also to show that capitalism is unfair and that it is not a system that the working classes can benefit from. I provide a solution and conclude that through Vattimo’s philosophy of pluralism, and Lyotard’s theory of language games, capitalism can be destabilised, which would therefore help the working class. Habermas is briefly explored with reference to his claim that ‘modernity is dominant but dead’. In this sense modernity can be compared to the values of the working classes today, as research shows their values to be dormant in the postmodern society. Research for this project involved concentrating on the ‘White Season’ this spring which the BBC2 produced. The ‘White Season’ aired programmes about the working class today, and how times have changed. There is also an array of class reports and books that I focus on as well, and to explore my territory of class conditions in Marx’s era, I looked at in depth The Conditions of the Working Class in England (1993) by Engels. To apply philosophical concepts to my project in order to prove influence, I looked at Vattimo’s The Transparent Society (1992), and Nihilism and Emancipation (2004), Lyotard’s The Postmodern Condition (2005), and The Communist Manifesto (1973) by Marx and Engels, amongst others. I feel that my project is of wider importance because I am exploring the effects that the capitalist system has on the class system, and this is a factor that can affect everyone. On completion of this project, my knowledge of the working class and the philosophical concepts I applied to it is greater, and more accurate than before.
THE HOME Taking architecture as the territory, the object I have chosen is the home. ⇒ Everyone has a different idea of home – not necessarily always a building. ⇒ Factors such as politics, society and culture affect where and how we live. ⇒ How free are we to live as we choose? DWELLING ⇒ How does the way we dwell shape our characters as individuals? ⇒ Levinas’ notion of the Other – dependant upon being welcomed into a dwelling place. ⇒ Adorno feels capitalism subsumes art, limiting it to only the bourgeoisie whilst reifying all others. ⇒ Mass-produced homes = hundreds of people living the same? HEIDEGGER ⇒ Effects of technology, or techne: bringing-forth truth, unconcealment ⇒ Identity: for us to develop ‘Being-one’s-Self’ we need truth as a basis. ⇒ To be true to ourselves we must live authentically, but instead most of the time we are trapped in the inauthenticity of the ‘they’.
The idea that I decided to look at was that of technology, more specifically the internet. The reason I used this was to enable a sense of relevance to my peers as we have all enjoyed a privileged upbringing when it comes to the availability we have at our disposal of technology. We are all able to use the internet through the resources we have had at school, in local libraries and even here at university. As a result of this we are inflicted to a multitude of facts and opinions. When looking at it philosophically we are bound to notice that with this growth in technology we have inevitably felt a shift in culture. I intend to show a radical change in the way that we are now able to interact with the world and voice our opinions. This will inevitably be shown through tracing the line from which the newspaper changed from being the only means of global information, to the culmination of the internet and its use for informing people of the news. My project aims at showing the change in culture due to the growth in communication technology.
Key concept: Looking to the employee within the labour market and trying to determine the degree of freedom one has within this work environment. Main Objectives: Within this project I have reflected on the changing nature of employment and the employee within it, through initiating a direct comparison between the Industrial Revolution, Adam Smith and 21st century Britain. I have investigated the concept of labour with regards to how it is perceived; whether it be as a determined aspect of life or a practice which we choose to freely feature within our lives. I have highlighted the dramatic transformations between these two time frames and investigated the emancipation humanity has experienced particularly in relation to one’s work life balance and our freedom to negate different aspects of our careers. Philosophical Concepts: Hegel: A ‘philosopher of freedom’ who emphasised how we develop freedom and become united within a peaceful society through recognising each other’s existence. We can discover our ‘abstract right,’ and individuality through freedom, a human right which must not be infringed upon by others. Humans must use logic to attain absolute freedom within a rational state. We must create individual thought and put it to society for verification. At work we must respect one another and not use others to attain immoral, individual desires. His conception declares we are free and have the right to choose at work. Any submission to authority is voluntary because we have not identified our own freedom yet. Locke: Freedom focuses on living morally with others within society. Individual freedom relates to one’s ‘power to order actions and dispose of their possessions and persons as they think fit.’ Our freedom is contained within society’s laws, which aid our action and offer guidance. We own our labour and place it where we choose, to obtain property. We must contribute through work to sustain society. The labour theory of value claims we can recognise the efforts of one’s labour and creativity within all objects. We must abide by the spoilage and sufficiency principles, to ensure we maintain a minimum level for all around us and do not violate their rights; upholding equality and mutual respect is a duty of humanity. Marx: Argues against capitalism, which encourages separation, alienation and further develops the distinctions between the proletariat and bourgeois. Communism is the apparent solution, to equalising humanity and preventing production dominating all aspects of life. Capitalism ensures work takes over one’s life and turns the worker into a commodity, an easily disposable dehumanised product. The labour theory of value shows how individual labour is not paid in relation to production; the object’s price is significantly higher than the worker’s wage. Freedom comes when we realise the negatives of capitalism and reform the economic system; hence we are not truly free within work. Personal Change/ Development: My project has allowed me to critically evaluate the concept of labour and relate it directly to two distinct time periods. It has allowed me to further my historical knowledge on the Individual Revolution and the conceptions prevalent within that period. Also it has allowed me to collect research on human rights and break it down to communicable points of reference. I have been able to look to three distinct philosophers and tie in their conceptions, regarding our freedom in the labour market, to provide a rounded summary of opinions. I have had to assess their applicability and work within their theories to determine their potential thoughts on this topic. Sources: The Philosophy of Right by Hegel. The Second Treatise of Government by John Locke. Communist Manifestos by Karl Marx. Article research and literary discussions of employee rights.
TERRITORY: THE DRUG WAR As the world’s largest exporter of Cocaine, accounting for around 80% of all Cocaine consumed in the USA, the impact on Colombian society has been profound affecting every aspect of society. Colombian drug trafficking up to the early 1990’s was run by 4 main Drug Cartels who controlled every aspect of society including infiltrating the government using ruthless methods to maintain dominance such as, murder, kidnap intimidation, bribery etc… OBJECT: FARC – EP This left wing Colombian Marxist-Leninist paramilitary group originated in the 1960’s and are fighting the government to make communist reforms. These guerrillas are located in the hard to reach jungles of Colombia and are one of the richest terror groups in the world due to their involvement with drug trafficking. Other methods of financing include kidnapping high profile figures for ransom and exchange of prisoners. Recent military attacks and the deaths of the two top leaders have put the future of the organisation in doubt. Has the revolt com to its end? PARALLEL: PARAMILITARIES IN N. IRELAND POST GOOD FRIDAY AGREEMENT After 30 years of civil unrest in N.I. paramilitaries position in society were effectively made redundant. Many of the organisations turned to criminal activities such as drugs, extortion, gun crime and racketeering. Many of the activities had previously used to fund the groups in their political ambitions but with ideology gone all that has been left is criminality. This is comparable to FARC where their adventure into drug trafficking has blurred their political ideology. CONCEPTS: REVOLUTION AND HISTORY USING MARX AND FUKUYAMA I will be exploring the territory and object using Marx and Fukuyama and their respective theories of history both influenced by Hegel. Using Marx I shall be asking whether or not communism is a redundant ideology in the 21st century due to the dramatic shift in the political climate in the past 100 years. Using Fukuyama’s ‘End of History and The Last Man’ I’ll be investigating whether in fact Liberal Democracy is the final frontier in political ideology as it has proven to be the most stable over since its genesis. Is this the final stage or is Revolution still possible in the 21st Century?
Territory: I have chosen to explore the power and impact of electronic devices that act as mediators when we perceive the world. I will focus on the way in which the position of the ‘subject’ is continually shifting in this increasingly technological and mediated society. Questions that need addressing: I wish to discover the shift in the material condition of humanity and how communication systems and technology have changed the role of the individual within the world, and thus the way we live, learn and interact with each other. Questions that necessitate investigation include: what is knowledge and truth if all information is mediated through several networks? This will lead to a discussion of whether mediated knowledge in any way deflects from the final product or image, that is to say whether it makes digital information and knowledge less authentic or second rate in anyway. To open this territory up for philosophical investigation I am going to look at the notion of presence and absence and what it means to be present as a human being using the philosophers Heidegger and Derrida, and whether there are different levels of being, in relation to mediated reality as proposed by some thinkers. In addition, I am going to use the concepts of authenticity and simulation and apply them to media by looking at Baudrillard and Debord. Key thinkers and sources: The main sources of my research will lie within the philosophical thought of Jacques Derrida, Martin Heidegger and Jean Baudrillard. I will also be drawing upon the ideas of G. W. F. Hegel and the modern sociologist Mark Poster.
Object: Islam in the West. Concepts: Liberalism, Pluralism, Postmodernism. Thinkers: Bell, Vattimo, Habermas. Main Objective: This project will critically examine the normative relationship between Islam and the West in order to explore the metaphysical divide which purports to propel the two world-views into a so-called “clash of civilisations”. Intended Knowledge Outcomes:By engaging in this project, I intend to accomplish four objectives: Firstly, I seek to research the recent emergence of Islam in the West as a produce of post-colonial migration. Secondly, I aim to become acquainted with the motivations for its growing influence among the “disenchanted” Muslim communities within the West. As a third objective, I plan to use the thought of Daniel Bell, Gianni Vattimo, and Jurgen Habermas to investigate the arguments for and against liberalism, pluralism, and postmodernism. Finally, I wish to demonstrate the connection between the philosophical debate over postmodernism and the contemporary debate on Islam and its place within the Western liberal model.
This project will look at the Sorrows of Young Werther in Conjunction with an example of emotionally hardcore internet blogging in order to establish the significance of emotional intensity seen today in youth groups. The sorrows of young Werther depicts a fictional 18th century character that holds many similarities to the type of life many modern youths aspire too. Primarily this project is concerned with exploring the emotionally hardcore movement that is taking place, and how this will affect future social change. Werther channelled his emotional intensity through art and literature, using it as a way of expressing his anguish. The emotionally hardcore individual uses art and music as a form of expression, and literature as a way to ‘blog’ this way of life, through means of fictional and factual storytelling, and also poetry. Using concepts of alienation, aesthetics, romanticism and existentialism, this project will analysis the emotionally hardcore individual, society’s objections and the emotionally hardcore movement as a whole. In historical format this project will look at how the sorrows of young Werther symbolises an apparent social theme of alienation from the masses. Secondary to the above, the thoughts of Schiller will be examined with reference to romanticism as a whole. This hopefully will shed light on the importance of emotion, passion and Romance within. Hopefully this project will look at the emotionally hardcore movement in a way that has never been undertaken before, therefore examining a section of social progression that is personal and individual to me.
-Are the ideas of institutions such as museums and libraries relevant any longer in postmodern society? – People are increasingly becoming very distanced from their past and their heritage. Within postmodernity, the past seems to have been separated from our everyday lives. It is frequently looked at as something that is no longer relevant. We sometimes seem so focused on progress that we ignore how we came to be where we are in the first place – Can development exist without any reference to the past? – In modernity we look at the past because we can see the ways in which it has affected and created the present, and will do also, for the future, therefore, we cannot fully separate the idea of development from a narrative of history. I am looking at the ways in which institutions such as museums and libraries contribute to growing knowledge and inventiveness, by enabling us to have access to the knowledge, discoveries and great works of the past.Table2[@Title]
Territory – Pulp Fiction. Object – Jules Winnfield. 1994 Quentin Tarantino cult classic set in the glamorized gang culture of the Los Angeles underworld. Hitman Jules works alongside Vincent Vega for mob boss Marsellus Wallace. The film portrays Jules’ lifestyle as a double existence in which his brutal career disposing of those who have fallen out of favour with Mr. Wallace is contrasted by his integration into legitimate society. Aims. To uncover the drives and mentality behind Jules’ lifestyle I focussed the project around two main questions; • Why does Jules live this lifestyle of crime outside of the sphere of legitimate society? • Is he at any point truly disenchanted with the constraints of capitalist society? Philosophical Ideas I used Marx’s work to develop a foundation for a critique of modern western society. This theory displays the weaknesses and problems of a consumer-driven market that is based on profit and hierarchal discrimination of classes. The systematic manipulation of the consumer market by the predominant corporative sphere in contemporary society is then analysed using Adorno’s theory of the culture industry. This provides me with perspective for the use of the theme of Americana which is so prominent throughout the film. I then used Beck’s theory of individualization to examine Jules’ character and uncover how and why he has assumed his double role within society. Conclusions. The penetration of the American culture fits with Adorno’s notion of a culture industry; it demonstrates how invasive the extreme exposure of specified and manipulated creativity can be in the lives of the average person. Jules immerses himself in this element of western life while maintaining his role as a hitman, displaying the autonomy he exercises to work both within and outside of this framework of legitimate society. His existence within gang culture in its totality reflects the two-faced nature of capitalism; we see a prosperous exterior that hides the brutal capabilities of a paranoid core.
This project investigates the motivations behind different terrorist attacks. From what drives them to become involved in terrorism to the different positions that are open to them and finally the effectiveness of their role and the influence of society’s perception. I decided to title my project “The War on Terrorism”. By my title I do not mean the campaign that was initiated by America and joined by other countries throughout the world to ‘curb the spread of terrorism’. My project will discuss the reasons why this campaign will not work. This War on Terrorism was authorized by the United States Congress under the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorists and was passed on the 18th of September 2001 after the attacks on America on 9/11. The object I plan to focus on is a scene from the film ‘The Kingdom’. The reason for this is because it is a film about terrorism, which I think compliments the objective I am trying to prove. The reason why I chose this is film is because at the start of the film when the terrorist bomb goes off in the housing compound, Agent Fleury whispers in one of his associate’s ears in comfort something we as the audience cannot hear. Then in one of the latest scenes when the leader of the terrorist group is shot and is dying he whispers to a young girl in comfort something that again we as the audience can’t hear. Then in the final scene each person reveals what was said to them. It was, “Don’t worry, we’ll kill them all.” This for me is very significant because it showed that even though the American agent was claiming to be bringing justice to the terrorists he was actually just looking to kill them all for killing his comrades. Both sides had the same objective, they both wanted to kill. How will this ever stop terrorism? My parallel territory was the Cold War as I believe no other event in history has affected world politics as the same way the Cold War did in the mid 1940’s till the early 1990’s. Terrorism has taken its place in modern day politics. The concepts I identified throughout my project were power, identity and the loss of identity. I believe America’s waging of war on terror was just an assertion of power and way in which to reinsert them as the main hegemonic power throughout the world. A philosophers whose work I have used is Ted Honderich, especially his work terrorism for Humanity which raises many difficult questions that are unavoidable at this moment in time as the war on terror rages. Questions related to the morality of terrorism and the use of political violence. In this work Honderich’s arguments for and against terrorism are directed towards the goal of the Principle of humanity. The questions which are raised throughout run along the lines of when is terrorism right, if ever? And when is it wrong? And what are the reasons for it being wrong? The main reason I chose this philosopher to focus on is because throughout this work he implores us to open our minds and explore political philosophy but he reminds us that even though we are opening our minds to see the bigger picture it does not mean we have to lose our convictions. Other philosophers I chose to look at are Castell and his work on resistance and identity, Habermas’s philosophy at the time of terror and Baudrillard and his fatalist theory,
The nature of this discussion does not lend itself to a specific object on which to focus, the subject is simply too vast. However, the central topic of this discussion is the question concerning the possibility of existence or extinction of authenticity in a highly consumerist culture. The topic led me to discuss many subsequent questions: Heidegger’s temple, in which ‘world’ becomes manifest. Can this relate to contemporary song? Can life affirming, world reflecting, active truth be found in a contemporary song? Is it possible to be both a ‘mainstream’ and an authentic artist? Can art and artist ever really validate or justify their influence on social change and politics, does it exist at all or, does surrealism and artistic social/political/philosophical commentary fall inevitably back into consumerism? If we conclude that ‘symbolic authenticity’ (the representation in art of underlying popular, time and culture specific ‘feeling’ and opinion) is compromised by capitalism and consumerism, are the feelings and opinions themselves compromised? The main areas of focus as outlined above are discussed with reference to Martin Heidegger, Theodor Adorno, Sigmund Freud and Andre Breton.
In his online book, Gamer Theory, McKenzie Wark posits the idea that games reflect a more perfect world. He argues that real life has become a gamespace and that it proclaims itself to be fair, promising an ideology that it can’t deliver. This ideology masks the underlying status quos and oppression present in our society. Games, he argues, because they follow exactly those rules that they promise, are a means by which to uncover this schism. Adorno too thought there was a conflict between ideology and actuality. He proposed a theory of negative dialectics and art in order to expose this. Adorno believed that the consumerism that motivates current capitalism was part and parcel of this trend. I will explore both of these thinker’s theory through my territory of games and gaming. The change I will chart is that of the progression of games themselves from the most basic text-based games, such as Zork, to fully-rendered graphic 3D worlds. The pictures above are examples of this. This will become important in my discussion of gaming and how its progression relates to mass culture and the problems Adorno foresaw within mass culture. Gaming ostensibly seems to feed into Adorno’s notion of the culture industry. New consoles, such as the Wii and DS sell 100,000 units every month in Europe and the international games market is expected to reach a gross of £23bn by 2010. I will examine McKenzie Wark’s theory thoroughly to discover if this has any bearing on his claims. I will also look at open source software, such as the Lassie and AGS engines, as a possible solution to this.
From the birth of modernity mans values have been forced into change with the diminishing role of religion in society and the subsequent rising of science and rationality. The object that seems to have become of most importance since the decline of religious beliefs is money. Is there a case then that money has become all that modern society values? Cases of modern day philanthropy, such as those pledges made by famous entrepreneurs Bill Gates and Richard Branson offer an alternative to this view. After the oppressive feudal system governed by the Church, the move onto a capitalist approach was thought of as bringing an otherwise unheard of amount of freedom to the common man. That the individual could now accumulate wealth and use this commodity to raise one’s social standing offered much hope for a liberal future. The modern day philanthropists seems the ideal modern man, whose success in accumulating wealth is then transferred into helping other important social ‘goods’. There is of course criticisms aimed at these capitalist ideals, in this project the works of Marx and Marcuse are of significant interest. Marx is perhaps the most famous opponent of capitalism and his work is used here to describe his idea of money ‘alienating’ man from his fellow man. Marcuse’s ‘1-Dimensional Man’ is a work very critical of those institutions in our advanced industrial society that keep the common man under control. In particular, the mass media and the use of advertising as tools used by modern society to plant ‘false needs’ into the consumer in order to support our ever-increasing rationality. The discussion thus follows whether in modern society there is more to the successful man than wealth. Surely the accumulation of wealth on its own is not something to be admired within a man, instead perhaps it should be that the sharing of wealth is that which we value.
The Territory: Park Güell chosen after my visit to Barcelona. It has been declared a Heritage to Humanity by the Spanish Government and is a beautiful Park to experience first hand. However, it did not enjoy the success it was expected when first built as it was considered too far away from the central city of Barcelona. The Object: The most inspiring part of the Park was the undulating bench situated in the central recreational square, which Gaudi decorated with recycled tiles It is where many locals can meet one another and also holds markets for its citizens as well as tourists. Change: Capitalism has continued to grow for many years. Our almost obsession with buying commodities is further exploiting labourers and making millions for the bourgeoisie. It is no wonder then with capitalism and reification in factories that workers need to escape the alienation and objectification they come to experience through the idea of utopias— whether in nature, physically, or mentally, for some t is there only release from the stresses and strains they become accustomed to. Concept: Looking primarily at Marx; class divisions, exploitation of proletariat class by the bourgeoisie and the effect capitalism has on society as a whole (Communist Manifesto). Secondly, looking at Adorno; Thought a utopian moment could be found through creating true art – reification of workers in a factory, art reflecting the distortions of reality and makes us question our society (Aesthetic Theory). Lastly, looking at Habermas; Believed socialism and liberalism do not bring about solution to crisis of our times, problems in society stem from social and political structures of capitalism (Theory of Modernity).
Boredom and Alienation have become common symptoms of capitalism and can be found in workplaces all across contemporary society. In this project I set out to identify jobs in which these tendencies are most prevalent and to look at how and why this situation has arisen and what can be done to alter this damaging situation that we now find ourselves in. Case Study: Call centre workers workers are more satisfied at work when they: ‐ have a variety of tasks to complete ‐ are not just taking calls all day ‐ have more control over their methods used during conversations ‐ are provided with training to develop their skills. However, due to capitalist demand for the best possible profits from the least possible expense of resources mean that such conditions are not considered to be important and therefore call centre workers are often bored and frustrated with their jobs. Alienation: The philosophical concept of alienation denotes the state in which a person feels foreign to the world around them. This can occur, according to Marx, when labour no longer belongs to a worker but becomes a commodity to be bought and sold by the ruling classes who dominate the working class. Is Postmodernity to blame? Habermas believes that the fragmentation which has occurred in postmodernity is to blame for the crisis in communication. He claims that the ‘unfinished project of modernity’ needs to be completed by uniting all the different language games, created by the capitalistic colonization of knowledge as a commodity, by striving to reach consensus through negotiation and thus progressing towards Modernity’s goal of universal emancipation. This could be achieved, Habermas argues, through his theory of communicative action, which envisages a set of ideal conditions for genuine communication which could be used as a reference to ensure that negotiations were just. In essence, the breakdown in genuine communication and the instrumentalization of reason have led to people being dominated in a way which renders them un‐free. Therefore, if people could communicate in a way that was mediated by what is just and what is fair then people could break out of the shackles that their employers put them in and act in a way which is responsible and free at work.
Territory: I have chosen to consider the individual through the concept of identity within contemporary society in order to ascertain whether it has truly been ‘lost.’ I also want to consider through this that if it has been lost, what has caused this, and is this necessarily a bad thing? What does it mean to be individual today? Areas of Investigation: I will explore the relationship between the individual and society by looking at the evolution of the individual and what it has meant to be individual. Change: I will compare my territory to the Elizabethan period in the 1600s, as the affect religion and the monarchy had on the individual and on shaping identity compared to nowadays will provide an interesting point of difference. I will also explore why this has changed, and the effects of this change. Philosophical Ideas and Concepts: I will use the work of both Adorno and Levinas to explore my territory within the concept of identity. Adorno focused upon critiquing the concept of identity thinking by exploring it through the way individuals and objects can be subsumed under cover concepts. I will use this to explore what enables this to occur and what in fact happens when people are subsumed, such that it will provide information about what constitutes the individual, and how it could be lost. I will specifically look at his work regarding the Holocaust, where people were subsumed under the concepts of vermin or as merely scientific tools I will also consider Levinas’ work in regards to the Other in order to explore my territory in opposition to Adorno’s ideas. Levinas’ Other will demonstrate the importance of defining the individual in relation to society through the Other. Conclusions: I seek to show that identity can be both fixed and fluid such is the nature of society, our modern identity and our relationship to it.
Territory: My initial study took place in West Jesmond Primary School, in Jesmond, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. I spent time in the school and particular classrooms collating information and observing the ways in which values are promoted within the school. Aims: My intentions were to discover the ways in which children are educated beyond the curriculum within school. I paid close attention to the following questions: • In what ways are we educated outside of the classroom? • What impact does our upbringing and initial education have on adulthood? • What consequences does education regarding values have on society as a whole? • Is there a responsibility for teachers/parents to introduce children to a set of values? Philosophy and Sources: After much deliberation I cut down my interest in philosophers to the work of Sartre and Freud. I concentrated my study on Sartre’s Existentialism and Humanism and Freud’s New Introductory Lectures on Psycho-Analysis. I used documents from the National Curriculum to support my findings and in particular the Statement of values by the National Forum for Values in Education and the Community.