So, I recently subscribed to a blog authored by Dr. Boyce Watkins, a professor and scholar who currently works at Syracuse University. He has also been featured on several talk shows, presented at conferences and more.
One of his latest blog entries discusses the "new" phenomenon of planking. I've heard many students talking about this and couldn't understand the hype around something that seemed, well, silly. But, then I realized folks who actually participate in this are just using their creative juices. In his blog entry, Dr. Boyce referenced the possible origin of planking, and I wondered if the people who "planked" would have a different point of view on this "activity" if they really thought about from where this thing derived.Dictionary.com defines a plank as a long, flat piece of timber, thicker than a board. It then goes on to define planking as creating lumber into such pieces (long, flat pieces of timber, thicker than a board). So when an individual is planking they are making their bodies emulate long, flat pieces of timber, thicker than a board. Now, with that vision in mind, let's look at one of the possible origins of planking.
Dr. Boyce's blog highlights the following:
I'm sure that as folks are creating outrages ways to plank and capture them via photograph, they're not thinking about the possible origin of this craze. Truthfully, without the knowledge of this background, it would be considered harmless fun. So, is it now to be considered blasphemy because there is this connection to the slave trade? What do you think?
I'm all about students using their creative juices. Great ideas are born when people allow themselves to just play around sometimes AND it fosters CRITICAL THINKING. A necessary trait when it comes to being a SUCCESSFUL college student.
I encourage you to be creative and uninhibited as you grow academically. Be mindful of the activities in which you participate and never stop striving to educate yourself on what’s happening around you. One of my favorite lines in Dr. Boyce's article reads "...when I heard about the trend of planking, I thought to myself, “Why don’t we start another wild and outrageous trend and call it ‘studying’!”" Just food for thought :-).
Check out Dr. Boyce's blog. Click on this link "Dr. Boyce: Why You Should (or Should Not) Go Planking" to access the entry for this particular topic. Share your thoughts below. The college team would love to hear from you!
Dr. Boyce's blog highlights the following:
"...there has been some controversy about how to deal with the planking phenomenon in light of the fact that the act has a clear visual connection to the slave trade. Camilo Smith at TheGrio.com does a wonderful job of laying out the historical roots of planking, and argues that while the connection is not entirely clear, there is evidence of a relationship. Smith mentions the book, Upon these Shores: Themes in the African-American Experience, 1600 to the Present, which lays out this graphic description:Some ships had tiny bunks, really nothing more than shelves, on which slaves could recline; in others, the slaves lay side by side on the planking, rolling with the ship, bodies virtually touching, for weeks on end."
I'm sure that as folks are creating outrages ways to plank and capture them via photograph, they're not thinking about the possible origin of this craze. Truthfully, without the knowledge of this background, it would be considered harmless fun. So, is it now to be considered blasphemy because there is this connection to the slave trade? What do you think?
I'm all about students using their creative juices. Great ideas are born when people allow themselves to just play around sometimes AND it fosters CRITICAL THINKING. A necessary trait when it comes to being a SUCCESSFUL college student.
I encourage you to be creative and uninhibited as you grow academically. Be mindful of the activities in which you participate and never stop striving to educate yourself on what’s happening around you. One of my favorite lines in Dr. Boyce's article reads "...when I heard about the trend of planking, I thought to myself, “Why don’t we start another wild and outrageous trend and call it ‘studying’!”" Just food for thought :-).
Check out Dr. Boyce's blog. Click on this link "Dr. Boyce: Why You Should (or Should Not) Go Planking" to access the entry for this particular topic. Share your thoughts below. The college team would love to hear from you!
