I visit Madison Square Garden very often on my break. I usually sit down in the center with the chairs, connect to the free wifi, and work on whichever assignment is due that week. For this assignment I decided to sit in the same spot and observe what everyone else was doing during this time. There are so many people doing different things that it was a little overwhelming to watch. I was a student from a nearby school doing homework, there were people taking a break from work in their suits, people taking their children on walks, people walking dogs, tourists taking in the beauty of the area. Everyone was on a different mission.
When I started observing people I did what I usually do when I’m at the park and put on headphones to listen to classical music so I can concentrate on my work. As I began watching people go about their days, what I was seeing was a little more surreal because I had the music playing in my head. I didn’t hear extra outside noise or people talking. I had no idea what people were discussing or what their relationship towards each other was. This definitely reminded me of the silent films we watched. The music in my head set a certain tone to the whole process and completely changed how I was seeing different interactions. Once I took my headphones off and got to listen in on whatever people around me were saying, the theme kinda changed. I could now understand why one couple was upset or why the woman beside me was excited to be talking on the phone. From where I was sitting, everyone just seemed like actors playing out their roles in their life.
What I saw:
I noticed how popular dogs are at this park. I kept seeing adorable dogs being walked by their owner. So many people were stopping to pet them. A lot of the dogs were very friendly and were excited to have so many people wanting to play with them.
I also saw a man nearby with buckets of soap water. He has these big sticks with strings attached to them. He would dip the sticks in the soap water, and then hold them up and the strings would create giant bubbles that the wind would push out. All the kids in the park were going crazy for them and all wanted to try blowing the bubbles. The man was more than happy to let the kids try. He never asked for any money and was doing it just out of the happiness that it brought everyone.
I saw a lot of people having lunch with their coworkers and having very dry conversations about office life. Some people were meeting up with their friends for lunch and those people seemed happier on their breaks. A lot of people were also taking the time to have conversations with their family on the phone. I overheard one woman talking to her mom on the phone about dating life in NYC. It was nice to see people taking time out of their busy schedules to call back home and connect with their parents. I think a lot of people often forget to do that.
I also like to listen to music and watch people while I’m sitting or walking and it makes a mundane scene so much more dramatic. I like your insight about how it reminded you of the silent films we watched. I also listened to the conversations of the people around me, it can be so interesting sometimes but also sometimes it just reminds you how everyone’s lives are just as boring as our own.
I really think you did a great job of illustrating how Madison Square Park exemplified Mumford’s ideas of the park being a “theatre for social action,” especially with the line about how everyone just seemed like actors playing out their own roles in life. The examples you used and the things you noticed also helped clarify different ways in which the park achieves these ideals. Great job!