I really appreciated all the comments and discussion that our class gave during my appetizer presentation. Thank you all!
After the presentation, I was struck by Matt’s comment about the ways that disease and disability can overlap and be distinguished from one another. I realized that I had gone into this discussion thinking of amputees and chronic illness, but my discussion questions had primarily focused on general illness. I think most people rightfully answered about carnivalesque moments when they’ve been sick. I’m still thinking about this theme, and as I go forward I’ve been thinking more about how can an able bodied but temporarily sick person take part versus how can a disabled person take part?
During the discussion, a lot of people mentioned that they simply wouldn’t want to take part in festivities when they’re feeling sick. If you feel bad, the carnivalesque isn’t fun. For me, this raised the question of whether or not the carnivalesque must be “fun.” Does the carnivalesque have to be enjoyable for everyone taking part in order to be truly carnivalesque? If that requirement does exist, does that requirement force the carnivalesque to be more accessible to people of all bodies and statuses? Or does that requirement exclude people? If the purpose of the carnivalesque is for a community to rebel against hierarchies, are you in the community if you choose to not partake in these festivities?
Juliana, I really genuinely enjoyed this appetizer presentation! I think it was nice to have a conversation that directly relates to our lives in the present and the connections to the Carnivalesque and Grotesque in much older literature. It was super interesting to see how college life mirrors many of the central themes of the carnival.
This appetizer presentation raised a lot of interesting questions about who can fully enjoy the carnivalesque, and I think it will really impact our class discussions, and definitely how I think about the carnivalesque going forward. The questions you asked brought these concepts close to home in a way that helped me understand how the carnivalesque manifests in real life. Thanks for bringing this discussion to the class!