New Keywords tells us that “diaspora” literally means, “the scattering of seeds.” The text then goes on to describe certain cultures that have diasporic histories. Thinking about this word, I realize that I cannot personally identify with this term. Even through my ancestry, I can only use the Irish as an example for a “personal” diaspora when the potato famine caused many to leave Ireland.
The most prevalent example of a diasporic community is the Jewish people. Throughout their history, the Jews have been displaced from the land they have called home. I could retell any number of Biblical stories, or describe the horrors in Europe during World War II. As a German major, the discussion of WWII is prevalent in many classes. However, many people already know these histories, so I thought about how the word could be attributed to society today. Hundreds of thoughts and examples raced through my head, presently, there are still many cultures that are displaced by genocide or war.
However, I decided to actually relate the word diaspora to the class. Interestingly enough, if the class itself is used as an example of a society, it has no choice but to become diasporic. Every person will leave the class at the end of the session, and go off to take classes required by their perspective majors. The class will be scattered after it ends and though others may meet again in different classes, the whole will (most likely) never be together again. Since its inception, this class was doomed to a diasporic identity.
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15 years ago
2 comments:
I was enrolled in 2 high schools simultaneously: public school where I took my normal classes and Los Angeles Hebrew High School, a private high school where I took language and learned about my culture and religion.
I found it really interesting that you used the Jewish people as your example when describing the diaspora, because that is exactly what I have been taught since I was young. The Jews in modern history have never had a homeland and were always scattered and in someways considered its own culture and "people" all over the world, but countryless.
Even today now that the Jews have their own homeland (Israel) it is still considered that any jew not living in the homeland is a diaspora jew. Which is in no way derogatory but has some sort of equivalent of us saying an expatriate.
I just found your understand and discovery of the word really interesting as it is a word that hold a lot of meaning in cultures such as my own. Thanks for a good read.
Isn't it interesting that humans are metaphorized as seeds in the schema of diaspora? I wonder how human behaviors and interactions would evolve (paradoxically) if we actually took ourselves seriously as plant life?
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