Darbagel Delingus

Darlene McCoy

Karen Barad

FMST 80K

4 May 2011

Week 5 Readings

            Doing the readings this week, I realized that I’ve had quite the interesting college career so far (especially for being a Lit Major!). Last year, I took a class called The Quantum Enigma, so the concept of diffraction did not boggle my mind as much as a person who hasn’t been introduced to the idea before. Though, I must say, the concept that an atom is both a wave and a particle is pretty strange. I’m incredibly interested to see how Karen uses diffraction in her book, though, because I feel like it is a wonderfully different way to look at phenomena.

            I was incredibly excited when Karen brought up Judith Butler’s theory of performance versus performativity. I read the essay that Karen quotes in her book in a different class. We also went very in-depth when we discussed it, so I had a fairly good idea of what she was talking about. It was so relieving to have Judith’s theory compared to what we’re talking about in class, because it made it so much easier for me to comprehend. I love the idea that a tree isn’t a tree because I can look at it and say, “This is a tree.” A tree is a tree because of the way it looks, the way it moves in the wind, the whole producing oxygen thing – a tree performs its role constantly, therefore it is a tree. If a tree were to not perform what I would think is the regular role of a tree, it would be something else. At least, I think that’s how it works. Judith’s original explanation involved performing gender roles and whatnot.

            I was also incredibly interested in the idea that a phenomena’s “realness” depended on its interaction with an apparatus or another object. I believe that quantum physics is more or less justified because of this idea. I think that while scientists don’t exactly know what is science is taking place in quantum mechanics, quantum mechanics work and interact with other objects or phenomena.

            I was also very excited to eat raisins. There sure is a lot more than sunshine and grapes. Horray, raisins!