grrrrrr...

want to cheer myself up with archigram. the departmental graduate meeting about the hiring of faculty, today was a total disappointment. because of the unconscious prejudices and preconceptions of otherwise really nice friends of ours.

the turkish candidate who applied theory to turkish literature (a postcolonial study on peyami safa's novel- nationalism, language reform etc.) was found too narrow in specialization whereas the french candidate's work on vietnamese diaspora or russian candidate's work on eisenstein was thought to be really wide-ranging. incredible.



few said that department could use someone teaching an east asian literature. what about a middle eastern literature i asked? why do you weigh it as less important? could get no answer.
worst part though was that i could not support or advocate the turkish candidate for the fear of being thought of as putting my national sympathies first.



the jokes about my favoring her was ok but i guess some people had the feeling that i only favored this harvard+columbia graduate with references from spivak, damrosch and who demonstrated a clear knowledge of theory just because she was turkish. it's unfair to her, and to us who had to take up this strange position.

it was a good experience demonstrating the inner unconscious prejudices which regard a middle eastern language and literature dismissable.
but the argument also reaches into the nature of the discipline. isn't comp. lit. supposed to be comparative? what determines the importnace we give to certain literatures? is theory not the binding link of all our diverse interests and specializations?

so ends the diary entry of this tiring and tense day cheered a bit by archigram...