Yes, it is deeply saddening, but after such an awesome time in class these past two days with the fantastic presentations, at least we're ending on a fun note. :) The tango today made me a very happy girl. Just saying.
Now, to answering the questions we have been given! Muahahahaha!
1. What is something you learned about another culture this term that surprised or intrigued you?
Wow, big question first... There was a lot that really intrigued me... One of which was gamelan music... I don't really like it, because when you first start listening it sounds like noise to me... but as you kept with it, it became strangely hypnotic... I really prefered the bamboo gamelan we heard to the metal ones, but that's just my personal opinion.
I also found the music of the Arab world completely facinating -- I love it, and I'm completely obsessed! :)
2. What is something that you realized about your own culture through our discussions.
I really realized that our culture is very bad about giving negetive connotations to other areas of the world. For example, I was literally raised and taught to dislike anything from the Middle East because it is apart of the world with so much conflict and it has personally impacted my family. (You remember the story of 'Dad's going--Dad's not going' when we first started talking about the middle east... yeah... Not a happy time for my mom, dad and very young sister. I actually found out that if my dad had gone to Iraq/Kuwait [not totally sure where exactly he would have been sent, but it was one of the two] I wouldn't have been concieved...)
Anyway, I love music from the middle east or the Arab world, as well as music from India. The micro tonality makes me happy... I also love listening to Qur'an recitations (believe me, you do not want to know how much yelling there was when my parents found that out... "Don't you know it says to kill Christians in the Qur'an?!" Turns out it does not say that. It does say that nonbelievers will have eternal death, sort of like how in Christianity true Christians will have eternal life thanks to the sacrifice of Jesus. In fact the only mention of killing anyone in the Qur'an that I found was that practitioners of Islam are supposed to kill people who left the faith. Having never been Muslim, I'm safe and okay in the eyes of the Qur'an...)
3. What is something that this course has inspired you to learn more about.
As I've said previously, I love music from the Arab world -- my boyfriend and his mother both know this and have been finding me all kinds of web sites where I could listen and download to Christian songs translated to and sung in Arabic... My boyfriend has also been finding me some funky youtube videos of Arabic and Indian music... we're also going on a date for Indian food since I fell in love with it on our little class trip to Namaste... :) yummy!
I would really love to learn to sing in the same style that they do in the Arab world... I think the microtones are very beautiful and can help singers convey many more emotions than the music we're accustomed to. Also, some nice flute music that makes me want to ride a camel is definately in my future. :) Hope Dr. Mr. Vaneman is ready...
I'm actually very sad that this class is over. Despite the early mornings, it was the most enjoyable class I've taken here at Converse... I expect that I'll visit it next year if I can. :)
You'll be more than welcome to come sit in on any of the classes next year, Katie--I try to do something new every year, just to keep learning new things myself. And I'm terribly happy that you're so taken with Arabic music, as I've really come to love it myself. Don't let it come between you and your parents too much, and enjoy that it's becoming a link to your boyfriend and his family. If he's willing to go with you on this, he's probably ok. :-)
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