[Xmca-l] Re: a linguist and a child on D. Trump

[Alfredo Jornet Gil]

Carol, interesting that you mention feeling 'helpless' as a best way to describe how many of us feel. This, along with Andy's mention of the type of perezhivanija that he was expecting would have emerged among trumpists but didn't, made me wonder if one good way to try to make sense of this non-sense (as Greg describes it) would be to analyse the situation in terms of the 'types of affects' that relate to the present economico, environmental and political situation. This sort of analysis is what Bruno Latour has done with respect to capitalism. The article can be downloaded here: 
http://www.bruno-latour.fr/sites/default/files/136-AFFECTS-OF-K-COPENHAGUE.pdf

In the article, he writes, 'I will take *capitalism* to mean not a thing in the world, but a certain way of being affected'. So, could we try to analyse what the current politico-economical situation is that surrounds 'trumpism' in terms of the affects it generates. Helplessness was indeed one of the affects Latour identifies with respect to capitalism. He starts with the idea that 

'one of the *affects of capitalism*, that is, of *thinking* in terms of capitalism, is to generate for most of people who don't benefit from its wealth a feeling of helplessness and for a few people who benefits from it an immense enthusiasm together with a dumbness of the senses'

Which definition of this sort would be appropriate for the situation today? Perhaps this one would actually work? 
Alfredo
________________________________________
From: xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu <xmca-l-bounces@mailman.ucsd.edu> on behalf of Carol Macdonald <carolmacdon@gmail.com>
Sent: 10 July 2017 12:56
To: Andy Blunden; eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity
Subject: [Xmca-l] Re: a linguist and a child on D. Trump

That would be the vice-President!

I think Trump enjoyed being the fly in the ointment at G20, and then ...
offered to work jointly with Russia on cyber security. And now we hear that
his son went to a meeting with a Russian because he believed they had some
damaging information on Clinton.

Alfredo I think lots of us are feeling 'enfadado' -- but rather helpless
with it too.

Carol

On 8 July 2017 at 11:43, Andy Blunden <ablunden@mira.net> wrote:

> I was thinking ... does the US system allow for the appointment of a
> Regent?
>
> andy
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> Andy Blunden
> http://home.mira.net/~andy
> http://www.brill.com/products/book/origins-collective-decision-making
> On 8/07/2017 7:40 PM, Alfredo Jornet Gil wrote:
>
>> We've been perplexed (some may say horrified) by Trump's speech in this
>> list before, as many others in the media have. A linguist in the Washington
>> post (see link below) comments on this and notes how Trump's speech sounds
>> like (American) everyday speech, like he 'could be a family member or a
>> friend'. She also notes his use of hyperbolic verbal and gestural devices.
>> ??I was watching the video and my two-years old daughter passed by and saw
>> Trump talking. Pointing at him, my daughter said, 'enfadado' ('angry' in
>> Spanish). Honestly, I am glad that not many of my family members or friends
>> sound like that, even the American ones!
>>
>>
>> https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/politics/this-linguist-
>> studied-the-way-trump-speaks-for-two-years-heres-what-she-
>> found/2017/07/07/12f310c6-627d-11e7-80a2-8c226031ac3f_video.html
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>


--
Carol A Macdonald Ph.D (Edin)
Cultural Historical Activity Theory
Honorary Research Fellow: Department of Linguistics, Unisa
alternative email address: tmacdoca@unisa.ac.za