We visited the Bowery as a class yesterday and had an in-depth tour on it. I have been to the current Bowery countless times, I had always observed the multiculturalism present in the area, however, little was I aware of these amazing stories and sub-cultures that were present in the Bowery in the past. I realized the importance and the significances of cultural studies and exploring the social dynamics and vibes that originated in the Bowery that eventually played a huge role in shaping the history of New York City.
As I observed the area, there were some points from Suri’s article that helped me as I gathered my primary source data on the walking tour at the Bowery. It really spoke to me when she mentioned to “reveal what is intuitive, be conscious of subconscious, spontaneous reactions.” It inspired me to notice even the slightest mundane details of the Bowery. I also really liked that she mentioned “to speculate and to not be right. To be curious—as opposed to being definitive.” I think this is really important for me especially when I have little knowledge of the history of New York City. Observations should also be objective, after all, I have not lived during the eras of the Bowery in the past so no observations should be jumped to conclusions especially when approaching a culture and society that we have not been a part of.
“thoughtless—without deep conscious thought—not careless. These are actions, prompted by our relationship with the world, that seem automatic or intuitive. The idea is about stopping to really look at these things. We like the term because part of the paradox of this whole issue is that they’re very mundane.
I was intrigued by the eccentricity the history of Bowery holds. The streets are filled with all kinds of things from lighting stores, to cash register stores to banks and freak shows. It really portrayed the vibes that were in the Bowery in the past. I heard a lot of stories about riots and multiracial gang groups which interested me a lot. I always felt that the presence of gangs, the reasons they form and their social standing can play an important role into insights of society at that time. What makes it even more interesting was the racial variety of the gangs. These are the topics I am probably going to look into for my Integrative Seminar 1 writing.
