Emerging into Exile

The message depicted by the author Edward W. Said in his book “Reflections on Exile and Other Essays” published about 11 years ago, yet still vividly applicable today, allowed me to connect with the new psychological state of emerging adulthood, as explained in the book “Emerging Adulthood” by Arnett.
 
“ . . . the age of anxiety and estrangement” is the modern revelation of exile and it is exactly how older adolescents and younger adults have identified themselves in previous studies.

“ . . . the displaced person” is the precise description for individuals who do not define themselves as a high school teenager nor an independent adult.
The exile of uncertainty and detachment from the main source; life . . . future . . . purpose. Unplugged from the

inner-self . . .  native roots

longings . . . native desires

The core of a persons emotional need,“ To be rooted,” ~ Simone Weil. In the generation known as the baby boomers, an individuals psychological and life development was quickly established by age 22. The adult had graduated high school, earned a bachelor’s degree, had a stable job, and probably married in pursue of a firstborn. If this same person were interjected in today’s society, the individual would grow into the 21^st century exile. 

The exile of not following the preconceived cultural norm.
The exile of detaching from the cultural standards of the “ideal” life time-line. 

        Modern day adults between the ages of 18 –24 are still “testing the waters” and are avoiding exiling from their parent’s home. These adults, known as emerging adults are graduating high school oblivious as to which path to take while living a 6-year journey (as oppose to a 4-year journey) to graduate with a bachelor’s degree. 

Some people might question the wrong in taking longer than what it should do accomplish certain goals. 

I think it is a matter of not elongating the inevitable exile that is to come to each one of us, because it is only a matter of time until we are all 

. . . exiled from our native roots, which ever those might be.


***The video presented in this blog is a great description of the "emerging adulthood" state and its association to exile, as I view it. It touched upon one of the discussions we had in class too.

Roller-coaster Through Intellectualism

Joe Clifford’s blog writing about Anti-intellectualism: the Enemy within is like a roller-coaster ride, one my mother never allowed me to ride on while a minor and one I don’t like to ride on as an adult. Throughout the beginning of some the author's writing, like, “Anti-intellectualism: the Enemy within,” I thought he lacked credibility. Clifford’s self-question to being in front of “true intellectuals” had me thinking of why he is even admitting to being self-conscious. Throughout the reading, I see how he does these “back-handed credibility” comments. Using “advanced college degree” and “shit” in the same sentence creates a sense of doubt in the importance of a college education. Unexpectedly he throws a curve ball using high-end words like “verisimilitude.” Which one is it or what is he favoring?

Clifford writes about that which he tries to stay away from, intellectualism. This is a writer I would learn much from because he can identify with probably any and all audiences; uneducated, educated, non-intellectuals, even intellectuals, but especially with the average Joe! Clifford’s angle of vision are all of these different audiences and the message I perceived from his writing is that to be intellectual, one must get practical and dirty, though this is probably not the message he is trying to portray.

His argument presents logical statements and reasoning behind some of his indirect comments. For instance, Clifford expresses his belief about the stereotypical correlation that good-looking muscular men are not smart. He argues the fact that people may think he is not smart by making philosophical questions such as, “Why are we here?” As a reader, I start questioning whether this writer thinks that intellectualism is the ability to make such questions; however, he does prove himself to be capable of expressing his thoughts well in his style of writing. I connected with Clifford in one of his points of knowledge and the purposeful lack of it. I coincide in that the more one knows; the more one realized how much one doesn’t know. To know is to know nothing at all!

Regarding Clifford’s writing about Mainstream, I think people can identify with exile in various ways. Though I am Cuban and exile has been extremely evident in its history, I have not yet identified with feelings pertaining to the exile experience. It could be because I was raised in America. Specifically, because I was raised in the city of Hialeah, where Cuban people are prevalent, which allows me to feel “right at home.” I have visited states like Tennessee where White Americans are the majority. I noticed differences like that “they” had an accent. When, in reality, I was the one with a South Florida accent. Being raised in the U.S. and not recalling ever experiencing difficulties like my Cuban family has, I feel like I have taken freedom and certain rights for granted. To gain a closer perspective on exile, I believe that conversing with my grandmother will enlighten my basic knowledge about the exile experience.