Showing posts with label policy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label policy. Show all posts

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Embodying Argument

Ever since Nilu's interesting post about protesters and the arguments they make, I've been thinking about different ways people argue with their bodies. Protest is an interesting test-case of argumentation because it combines the use of the body with the more familiar use of words/speech. Add some witty signs to this mix and there's a lot to consider.
Another example of this that's been in the news lately, is the Democrat walkout of the state Senators from Wisconsin. Having a controversial legislation forced upon the State Assembly without the expected political process, the dissenting Senators left the state, leaving the Republicans without the quorum necessary to enact law. At first I was skeptical of this move, but after a very interesting conversation in a coffee shop today, perhaps this rhetorical act by the Senators is more justified than I originally thought. With no other recourse for action, these lawmakers used their bodies to make very loud arguments about the legislation, about the state of democratic politics in Wisconsin, and about their role in the lawmaking process. Utilizing their silence as a rhetorical move is different than my understanding of protest, and leads to some very interesting questions.
This might be an example of a Performance, but that's a post for another day. Can you help me think of other ways to argue with your body?