Week 1 Discussion
Sound in the context of our class can be used to take a closer look at the effect of capitalism and settler colonialism. Taking Jamaica for example, if we examine the effect of Chinese arrival in Jamaica, we can see the utilization of sound to heighten ones effectiveness in integrating into a foreign country. In using both their Chinese shops and Jamaican music, they elevated their own race’s prosperity in Jamaica. However, in a previously underdeveloped Jamaica, this rapid capitilization forced Jamaican society in action. With this rapid developement, Chiney Shops became almost a community hub where both Jamaican and Chinese cultures melded into something entirely unique. This new cultural center for the Chinese even further promoted Chinese immigration to Jamaica to participate in this melting pot of culture. However, engaging with Goeffe’s concept of extra-coloniality, this pseudo-late stage capitalism where the Chinese ethnic minority control a large portion of Jamaican resources can lead to rifts in an otherwise burgeoning cultural hub. As such, in paying attention to these soundscapes, we can almost tell a story based on the history of a new culture in a foreign country, integrating their own cultural flair, yet inevitably clashing due to the unsustainable nature of capitalism.
Week 2 Discussion
In understanding the effect of settler colonialism, we must first understand how it has affected the current maps of East Asia. In our current understanding, Hawaii is a part of the United States. But we know that Hawaii only came to be a part of the U.S. through coercion and a coup that removed the Queen from power. Prior to this, Hawaii had been a haven for East Asians to stay while legislation like the Chinese Exclusion Act were in place. But if we ignore the effects of settler colonialism, and we allow what could have been a sovereign nation of Hawaii to take place, then it could have served as an extremely important economic hub across the Pacific ocean. An important stop for ships coming between America and East Asian. If you then consider the Caribbean and British imperialism the same could be said with the Atlantic Ocean, a necessary middle stop to South America or Europe. The issue arises when we consider whether the effect of settler colonialism could be halted at all. It is difficult to imagine the U.S. in its current state had it not commited to a path of overreaching capitalistic imperalism.
