With Dr Bayo Akomolafe, 30 May 2024
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Summary
This session with philosopher Bayo Akomolafe challenged mainstream, capitalist notions of sensation and problem-solving, urging participants to move away from “hero” narratives. The “monster” concept was explored, not as an agent of evil, but as a disruptive force to unmask systemic violence, shatter existing normativity, and invite new ways of being.
Key Learning Points
- The Problem with the Hero Addict: Society remains deeply dependent on the “hero’s journey” to save the day. The “monster’s journey”, aligns with the perspective of the dragon rather than its slayer.
- The True Function of the Monster: Monsters do not bring chaos or pathology. Instead, they disrupt our cartographical precision and expose the invisible networks of systemic suffering and inequality that support our “normal” everyday lives.
- The Coronavirus as a Mirror: The COVID-19 pandemic is presented as a prime example of a monstrous disruption. It did not create our issues; it simply forced us to look at our broken healthcare systems and the hidden exploitations behind our daily technology.
- Senses Have Us: Senses are not individual, biological properties. Sensation is a shifting, socio-material, and political field—a sensorium. Human perception adapts to normalise baseline horrors through a process similar to “olfactory fatigue”.
- The Trap of Repair: Normative solutions and typical environmental/social activisms often act to repair a fundamentally destructive ship. Fixing the breach merely guarantees a return to a harmful destination.
Key Action Points
- Adopt a Weaving Mindset: Listen deeply to complex concepts not just to gather facts, but to actively map out patterns, connections, and emergent possibilities.
- Engage in Ideological Composting: Intentionally pause in silence after hearing radical ideas (p. 2). Let words digest and naturally breakdown before reacting.
- Collaborative Text Weaving: Break into small groups to pool isolated words that “sprouted” from the silence, weaving them together into shared, creative expressions.
- Shift Your Posture: When faced with a massive disruption (like an eclipse or a crisis), change your approach. Do not try to comfortably embrace it; adapt your posture respectfully to survive the shift.
- Reject Quick-Fix Normativity: Question activist efforts that aim to simply bring things “back to normal”. Focus instead on sit-ins, cracks, and alternatives that break the cycle entirely.
References
- Achebe, C. Things Fall Apart (referenced regarding West African masquerade thresholds).
- Akomolafe, B. The Decade of the Fugitive (poem)
- Various Authors. Capitalism and its Senses (referenced text on the historic transformation of perception)
- Deleuze, G. & Guattari, F. Conceptual framework of Bodies without Organs (implicitly referenced via liquid matrix and sensation fields)
Knowledge Base Categories: 1) Weaving Methods 2) Regeneration and Universal Wellbeing
