In these couple of lessons, we looked at conflict – trying to define what it is, what it means to experience it, sources of where it can stem from, and analysing other conflicts in the world. Here we did a couple of activities (analysing images, having mini debates, simple rock, paper, scissors or arm wrestle games) to try and discuss the different viewpoints and lenses to which both sides can see things from.
We also lined up on a spectrum based on how much we agreed/disagreed to the statement ‘conflict is always good’. This visually displayed how much we varied as a group in terms of opinions, with some people on the more extreme ends and people in the middle scattered throughout. I personally felt more in the middle, leaning toward the side in support of the statement, since I saw conflict as a way to challenge tradition, norms, ideologies – and by doing so, helps voice new ideas and encourages creativity and development. I think one of the biggest misconceptions about conflict is that it always has to be violent or physically destructive. And this is where we regrouped and discussed how we actually define conflict and where it stems from.
Most interestingly, we learnt about the different types of violent – and that violence itself is not always physical. Although it is most often direct (examples being torture, war, destruction, hate speech, bombing), it can also be structural and cultural, and occur in a variety of domains (from personal all the way to global).
We specifically looked at an example of conflict – the controversy surrounding the movie Crazy Rich Asians. We read a review from Sangeetha Thanapal, and she brought up criticism of the movie’s exclusion of minorities in Singapore, only featuring Chinese cast, although set in Singapore, a multiracial country.
I thought it was quite fascinating to discuss how media and Hollywood play such an essential role in representation and shaping social, cultural norms. Especially since racism is such a prevalent issue and occurs worldwide on different scales – for instance, the media was an important platform for the BLM movement and its ability to reach different countries all over the world.