Week 12
In the class we had last week it was mostly centered around the post discussion of the black panther and our quiz discussion after the quiz. The question that was asked was does the white straight man name himself and have we studied any white men throughout this course. After the discussion I am one hundred percent sure we have not studied any heterosexual white men within this class. Another thing that stood out from Thursday’s conversation is the more thorough analysis we had on black panther. When Professor Sandridge spoke on women in the black panther I immediately went toward the obvious such as Nakia or Okoye because they were featured in a majority of the film. After class I began to think of the women who are closest to me and give me power and strength and they were more so my family than anything. The way I see it the women played more of a leadership role in this movie than maybe Chadwick himself. When T’Challa was thought to have fallen to Killmonger the women were the ones who took charge and took the fruit. We also see T’Challa get strength and love from his mother and sister so they may be what fueled his leadership just like the women in my life do as well. Terry brought up that in today’s society the leader would be more so Killmonger than T’Challa and I have to agree with him in some ways. The reason for that is because the Wakandans have the resources to help people of color all across the world but instead they hold on those resources. I do not agree with Killmongers methods because he murdered a lot of people and it was more so fueled by revenge than justice. His final words in the movie sold the character for me and is still one of my favorite quotes in the MCU.
“Why, so you can lock me up? Nah. Just bury me in the ocean with my ancestors who jumped from ships, ’cause they knew death was better than bondage.”
This line gives me a captain who jumped ship vibes and it truly resonates with me because he was willing to die with his ideals still intact. Does that make him the best leader? No, but it did make him a developing one. Erik Killmonger represents an uncomfortable truth. He is the Black Panther’s weakness he is the truth that the wakandan bloodline wanted to keep hidden. The pain of Killmonger’s conflicted reality completely demolishes T’Challa’s ideal, fantasy world. The ultimate victory of Black Panther is only given because the plot said it had to be this way. Even then, the Black Panther cannot find it in himself to end the life of Killmonger; it is Killmonger himself who chooses his own demise which is poetic in a way.
Inside out
The first groups project is based on inside out and honestly I love this movie because what better way to talk about leadership than one of the things that drives every human action, emotion. The group asked us if we have any unhealthy or healthy coping mechanisms and how do we deal with our emotions. Personally I am a very nonchalant person for a majority of the time so I am told but the truth is I am very emotional. People don’t realize that because I typically handle my emotions in silence because I don’t really like to trouble people. I would say the emotion that leads me is either sadness or joy because while I feel all the emotions in the movie. (Joy, sadness, fear, anger, and disgust) I had to learn that holding in my emotions only causes them to burst. I had to learn to step back and take control of my emotions because I was only hurting myself and those around me. In all honesty being at home with my parents has made it worse because I never have felt like I could be open with my mom about how she made me feel when I was but in my experience most African American parents are this way. I feel most people have these problems but no one really talks about it in our community because it is looked down upon.
Inside out overall is a great movie that comments on the little leaders and how their emotions work. Riley is a great example of a growing leader who makes mistakes and lets her emotions determine her reactions at times. This is honestly what makes her a good character to follow because she is young she is gonna make mistakes and the emotions are prime examples of that. The movie does conclude with a very satisfying ending. Riley was able to fix her relationship with her parents and also show that she may no longer be the little girl they still saw her to be. Riley grows as a character and learns that sadness is normal but as long as it isn’t permanent you should embrace sadness as a normal emotion.
My favorite part about the emotions are their individual roles of keeping Riley safe. Out of all 5 of Riley’s emotions, Joy seems to be the leader, she keeps the others in check but reminding them that they all have an important function. She states that Disgust keeps Riley safe from being poisoned, Fear keeps her safe from a bad situation by imagining worst case scenarios, Anger protects her from others and also allows her to be a better hockey player, while Joy ensures that Riley is happy. However, Joy fails to see the importance of Sadness and tries to shoo Sadness away from anything Riley-related, forbidding this emotion in every way possible. She even draws a circle on the floor and makes Sadness stay inside it, forbidding her to leave or to touch any of Riley’s memories, so as not to taint them with sad memories. This is kind of a commentary how people believe that they’re not allowed to feel sadness and have to keep a positive demeanor at all times. The truth is though that even leaders get sad sometimes.
Assignment:
It’s time to get inside of your own head! For this assignment, first identify what the essential emotions that one needs to become a leader. Now, imagine you have emotions controlling your brain too. Which emotions would be in charge of the console inside your head and why. Are the emotions in your head essential emotions needed for leadership, and if not, what can you change or reflect on in your own personality that can help you figure out how to cultivate the right emotions for leadership (be honest!)? Finally, let’s take it farther and think about based on these emotions what type of core memories you would have that make up your emotive islands and what those memories consist of. Have these memories helped you in your own leadership development or aided you in becoming the leader you are today?
I feel the essential emotion a leader needs is courage I know that is not an emotion in the movie but I am making it one because this is my journal. Courage is a quality I believe all leaders should thrive to have because it gives them the ability to stay strong and speak up against wrong acts. The emotion in charge of my brain would probably be sadness and joy like at the end of the movie because those are my primary emotions. I would say yes and no for if my emotions are needed for my leadership because like I said earlier I suppress my emotions majority of the time. I can change how I am to other people. I feel like some times I am not my best self to others and that can cause for problems not only with my self but the relationships I form as well. My core memory would be when my step dad took me to the movies when we first met. It was a while after my parents divorce and I was uncomfortable with my mom dating but then I met him and realized how great he was. He was like a true father to me in some ways. Another core memory for me would be getting accepted onto my mock trial team I feel that accomplishment was one of my best things I have ever done because it helped me find my true passion.
