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Volume CXXXIII, Number 16 |
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V-Day comes to Bowdoin
To The Editors:
The V-Day Bowdoin College Committee is writing to encourage the community
to help stop violence against women and buy tickets for Eve Ensler's The
Vagina Monologues (TVM). Ensler's Obie Award-winning play is
the centerpiece of the V-Day Movement-a global effort to end violence
against women and girls.
Bowdoin is fortunate to be part of The V-Day College Campaign, which
has over 550 colleges around the world participating after only three
years.
In purchasing a ticket for TVM, you are contributing to Sexual
Assault Support Services of Midcoast Maine (SASSMM), which provides an
invaluable service to Bowdoin and the region. SASSMM offers 24-hour support
for victims of sexual assault. In addition, it holds support group meetings
and works with local high schools for sexual assault risk reduction and
prevention.
Ten percent of proceeds will go to the Revolutionary Association of Women
of Afghanistan (RAWA). This grassroots organization of Afghani women is
helping to rebuild a war-torn country as a safe place for its women and
girls.
In addition to supporting these causes, purchasing a ticket to TVM
is a show of support and respect for all women of the world, especially
those who have been brutalized. We strongly encourage the men of the Bowdoin
and Brunswick communities to take this opportunity to hear women's stories
and celebrate their womanhood. Men often feel excluded from the V-Day
movement, but while V-Day is about women, we assert that our efforts to
end violence are only possible with the help and support of our male family
members, friends, and lovers.
TVM is a funny, heartbreaking, and at times outrageous performance
piece. Although seemingly controversial, Ensler's and V-Day's missions
are simple: to use creative methods to stop violence against women and
girls and create a more peaceful world. We encourage all those who attend
to live in the sometimes-uncomfortable space that TVM can create
and to use its complicated power and energy as a catalyst for necessary
and positive change.
The Vagina Monologues will be performed in Kresge Auditorium on February 21, 22, and 23. Tickets are $5 for students and $7 for the public and can be purchased at the Smith Union Information Desk.
Sincerely,
Barbara Condliffe '04
To the Editors:
In a recent issue of the Orient, there was an article on stolen road
signs. Bruce Boucher and the Deans need to emphasize the seriousness of
stealing signs, particularly stop signs.
A number of years ago, maybe 20, a student took the stop sign at the
corner of Coffin Street and Longfellow Avenue on the way to Pickard Field.
A young woman and her small child, new to the area, drove into the intersection
from Coffin Street without stopping. The car was broadsided.
I do not know the extent of their injuries, but I think that a Bowdoin student was at least suspected, if not charged.
E.O. LaCasce
Professor Emeritus
Rubio clarifies Jung lecture review
To the Editors:
In the February 1 edition of the Orient, Hannah Dean wrote a review of
my lecture entitled "Weaving Our Vessels: Wood, Wool and the Weird
Sisters" that was given at the Bowdoin Jung Seminars. While I'm delighted
that Ms. Dean attended the presentation and shared her perceptions, there
are a few clarifications and enlargements that I would like to make.
First was the description of the audience. It is fortunate that a deep
and abiding sense of humor seems to be a prerequisite for graceful aging/saging.
Ms. Dean likened the audience members to a "flock of delicate birds
with hollow bones…who seemed to be seeking out some kind of comfort…."
Since many of us love to tease and jest, these descriptions shall probably
enjoy a mirthful longevity. However, I would like to offer a different
perspective.
Although I don't know them all individually, it is my impression that
participants in the seminar are capable, full-bodied individuals who have
led and continue to lead deep and full lives. Filled with a lively curiosity,
they gracefully give and receive without pretense. I treasure many of
their kind offerings.
Second were the quotations. During my presentation, I quoted several
authors. Somehow, in these quotations' travels from the Beam Classroom
to the Orient, the words became detached from their creators. To give
credit where credit is due, the following quotes are reunited with their
respective owners:
"Who is the Potter, pray, and who the Pot?"-Omar Khayyam
"The greatest things in life can't be spoken of at all. The best
we can do is point to those things by using metaphor and symbol to indicate
the center of the whorl." -Paraphrase of Joseph Campbell
"What's fitting in the morning of one's life, may not be fitting in the afternoon." -Paraphrase of Carl Jung
Perhaps the most significant clarification surrounds Ms. Dean's concluding
summary of my presentation. Something did not connect here.
While I certainly think that our thoughts, actions and ways of being in
the world, both individually and as a society, INFLUENCE our destiny,
by no means did I intend to imply that they were the totality. "East
of the Sun, West of the Moon" (better known as the Greek story of
Eros and Psyche), the Weird Sisters (Norns, Morai) and the symbolism of
the various phases of the wool all encompassed the idea that there are
other mysteries afoot which deepen, enrich and alter the courses of our
lives.
Again, I would like to thank Hannah Dean for prompting more discussion
of a very ancient and vibrant story.
There are still several intriguing presentations scheduled before the winter season comes to a close on March 12. The Bowdoin College Jung Seminar extends a warm welcome to anyone who may be interested.
Jeanie Rubio