my thoughts and possible realizations of getting a ph.d. in a "liberatory" field
what can i say?
i’m not so sure of anything anymore. just got out of a “discussion”
about neoliberalism and its various impacts on social systems, especially
higher education. metaphorically the outcomes of these actions were equated
with a “zombie culture” a system of the living dead that preys on the living.
we acknowledged how steeped in neoliberalism higher ed was and especially
programs like cultural studies. i wondered, how can we know about this but not
do anything about it? how can such a program that critiques these systems
simultaneously perpetuate them? i spoke about the process of getting a
dissertation, especially the preliminary exams and dissertation process. i
noted how the experiences reiterated to me were deeply alienating, soul
crushing experiences (which oddly enough was done out of love somehow).
i am having trouble signing on to the belief that this
process is in any way humanizing given its legacy of being the exact opposite—it
makes or breaks you after all right? you must remove yourself from your loved
ones, work in isolation with these unreasonable expectations hanging over your
head of becoming an expert in your field, an intellectual, that you are
cultivating this intellectual capital that puts you above the rest; a
perpetuation of these deeply oppressive hierarchies.
i did not come to
this program to learn how to play the game, go off and play the game and teach
others how to play the game! same goes for sociology. i idealized this program—and
sociology—of being a place where i would acquire the tools needed to enact some
kind of change in these types of systems! not simply know what is going on for
the sake of understanding it in and of itself and just continue on my way happy
with the knowledge i’ve gained. i know the process of becoming and getting a
ph.d is hard work and i’m okay with that part. not okay with how dehumanizing
that process continues to be, and the implication of higher ed being part of a
larger system steeped in neoliberalism is that i shouldn’t expect anything
less of any higher ed program, no matter what clothing it wears, what ideals it
spouts.
someone used the analogy of the process being one where
individuals have to give up and rearrange their thinking about things; that
that is what is painful about the process. i responded with what i feel this
means i have to give up: the ideals that i came in with, ideals that i am here
to not only understand but somehow use what i have learned to enact more just
ways of being in whatever situation that is i find myself being of service—to practice
the ideals of social justice and wellbeing of myself and others.
i wrote this found poem from transcripts of an interview
with a meth addict in which s/he describes her/his experiences with the drug.
here is the poem i wrote:
in the beginning?
yes.
ravenously.
it gave me energy
for a while
but...all it does is just deteriorate and break you down
it’s humbling
lies like you wouldn’t believe
changes your brain structure so much
and i thought we had a connection
that’s what i fell in love with
looking at it made me
wonder if i am addicted to education and the idea of it as a liberatory space
while having experienced it as the opposite of that? fixated on the feeling
that what i come away with is something that allows me the ability to enact
social justice when that is nothing more than a fantasy in ‘real’ life? it
reminds me of the silly kid i was in thinking i was going to be an astronaut,
traveling the galaxies and jumping off the rings of Saturn, or becoming a
scientist who discovers the cure for AIDS; a childhood fantasy i had to let go
of once my relationships with science became problematic.
academia does the same things this poem about addiction
describes and the process of learning these exciting things about structural
and systematic oppression—the ability to put a theoretical face to what is
happening in society—fills me with the joy of knowing but the anxiousness of
wondering what i could do about it. it breaks my heart to think that i was in
love with nothing more than an idea; a fantasy and that love doesn’t live here
at all—not the kind that propels anyone to meaningful action.
i want a ph.d. so i can teach others about these troubling
ways of society but now i feel at a loss. how can i move forward knowing what i
do? i want to think that i would do things differently, but after having taught
once and knowing the implications of the education system i participate in...i
just don’t know how can i be happy where love is not valued, encouraged,
accepted or fostered? i don’t want to become a zombie. and is that what moving
forward means i’m signing on for?
being at my alma mater seemed like such a humanizing place in comparison.
i didn’t understand a lot but my soul was never desecrated for my lack of
understanding nor was i being trained to play some kind of game ...everyone here seems too busy to care about making anything
humanizing possible...
what does it mean to get a ph.d. in a place that does care about humanity and love? that practices what it preaches about social justice?
where do i go from here?
