Midterm Proposal- Simha Alex Gulkarov
Proposing an idea for our class to take into consideration is difficult because we all have different interests, however I tried my best to stick to entertainment as that is something we all can relate to somehow. For the group project I believe we should explore something that plays a major role in helping make the lives easier for new immigrants. My proposal is that we group together into 2’s or 3’s that would divide the class into a range of 6-10 groups. Each group will then explore the social events that immigrants created, attended, and used to feel more at home. Social events can include things like music, instruments, gatherings, festivals, etc. We can trace its cultural use for each immigrant group. We can even show how their lifestyle may be shaped around it, and even learn about interesting objects used for their social events. For example, the Holi festival that I just learned about during the presentations has its own style of music that is played for the people there. Even further, we can trace the purpose of the color powder that they use and see if we can interview the older generation of each immigrant group and see how certain social events made their lives easier or even harder. The theme may seem scattered but I believe if the class comes together and solidify it, then it can really be an interesting project to do. To throw some ideas around we can look at music in social events. What kinds of instruments are used? Are they still present in today’s society? Were the instruments brought by the immigrant groups new or similar to what we had before they came? In my neighborhood presentation, I noted how important music was for Koreans. They began putting karaoke in taxis, and even have karaoke bars present all over New York City. This is, in my opinion, a great way to explore the entertainment side of every immigrant group assigned, and really get a feel of their impact on New York City. We should make a list of different forms of entertainment, and objects used in entertainment, that come to our mind before we are even assigned any immigrant group. I already listed a few: music, instruments, festivals, gatherings, and types of alcohol, dances, and ceremonies.
The exploration of the various forms of social events and entertainment brought by a range of immigrant groups can bring up some interesting discoveries. As for my own immigrant group, I know we brought new instruments to New York, and in turn that created new social events that my group has in parties. I think if all get together, find an immigrant group we’re interesting in, and explore various forms of entertainment, then this project will be something many of us can look forward to.
