In the "Dinosaurs in the attic" Reading, interesting points caught my attention specially one about Boas believe on myths and its importance in order to understand a culture. Myths are a collection of stories by which we explain our beliefs and our history. It encourages and creates values within a society. Through these communal tales, we are connected to one another, to our ancestors, to the natural world surrounding us, and to society. They justify a culture's activities; establish customs, rituals, religious belief, laws, social structures, hierarchies, arts and crafts, and other cultural information.
“Like the majority of artifacts, myths reveal influences, contacts, and ideas from other cultures”. A myth is a narrative about the origins of the world and therefore an essential part of a culture. There is no better way to understand a culture deeply than to know and appreciate its mythos, its stories, and its dreams. They teach respect for another culture though understanding what is valuable and important for them. For me, myths demonstrate what a culture stands for in a creative and open way.
Learning about the American Museum of Natural History in “Dinosaurs in the Attic” was interesting because of the information it gives on the history of the museum. The museum has had a long and sometimes difficult past and learning of this past has given me a greater appreciation for not only the museum itself, but also for all of the artifacts in the museum. Millions of animals and objects make up the museum, and before reading this piece I didn’t really give any thought to how the museum came to acquire it’s artifacts. Reading stories of anthropologists who traveled on arctic adventures and Asian journeys in order to learn more about our world has put into perspective all that the museum has done for our society. The museum has taught countless people about their own world and has contributed to a greater understanding of our world in general. The information that the museum has within it is an invaluable source in our world today.
ReplyDeleteWhen reading “Culture/Power/History” I found that some of the ideas in the reading were difficult to grasp but I feel as though the connection to the American Museum of Natural History is clear. The piece discusses the exhibitionary complex and traces its effects on history, resulting in the museum as we know it today. Learning about the history of museums beginning with only private viewings for wealthy and now with the modern museum was interesting because of all of the theories and ideas that go along with the evolution of the museum. From allowing the working class to enter museums, to the happenings of the world fair, the piece discusses the theories and ideas that go hand in hand with the different steps of the evolution of the museum.
I found the author of "Dinosaurs in the Attic", Douglas J. Preston, to be a very effective writer. He painted vivid and captivating pictures of the history of the museum and the many characters that have played parts in its development. I never thought about how the museum came to be, and now that I know, it gives me new appreciation for all it has to offer.
ReplyDeleteI was particularly interested in Franz Boas and his study of the Northwest Coast Native Americans. That has always been my favorite room in the museum of natural history; the green room with all of the totem poles. That room reminds me of the movie Deadman, by Jim Jarmusch, and as I was reading I wondered if Boas has been to the places shown in the movie.
The Arctic expeditions were also very interesting, especially the part about Green and his savage survival skills.
In comparison, the article "culture/power/history" was much less enthralling. This was more of a theoretical history of the museum, which is also very interesting, however, I found the language of the article to be dense. I liked the phrase "a collection of separated individualities" as I feel that it accurately describes the museum-goes of today.
I think Dinosaurs in the Attic is great in the sense that it gives a very adventurous and magical story of the creation of the American Museum of Natural History. Or at least from what we’ve read. I think this is really typical of texts that discuss anthropology in the early 1900’s, and often I find myself wrapped up in the sensationalism of the adventure and less interested in the criticism of these explorers. This isn’t to say that I don’t also enjoy the romance of these stories, but I none the less think that Douglas J. Preston gave a very singular reading of the histories of these men. For one, I don’t believe that items were acquired solely through bartering or gifts, which Preston lightly touches on. In fact I found it weird in the section where the Peary Iron Mountain expedition is taking the meteors, and the Eskimo’s just allow this. Not that I think there was great upheaval over the taking of the meteors since I’m assuming most people didn’t think it could be done, but I’d imagine there was some criticism of taking them.
ReplyDeleteDespite my dislike of the criticism in the book I did thoroughly enjoy it. The museum definitely had a strange group of characters running, investing, and working for it. I really enjoyed the section on Jesup and Boaz, and how they really changed pedagogy and mission of the museum. From Jesup’s point of view he felt the museum was for the common man and used a lot of spectacle selling points, while Boaz wanted it to be an intellectual artifact. It’s interesting how you can see that the museum if actually a hybrid of both men’s conceptions.
It's so strange, when reading about the history of the museum, to think that New York City once was so disinterested in "cultural" institutions! When one thinks of New York now, it is as one of the most, if not THE most culturally rich cities in the US. It must have been such an exciting time, though - so many new discoveries being made, every expedition a gamble. It's kind of sad that there are no more unexplored regions on Earth.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading about the failed expedition to find the land that turned out to be mist. Of course, it wasn't very good for the museum, but just the fact that such a mission was still possible is very exciting to me.
Preston does a great job telling the stories - and they're fun to read like stories, sometimes you even forget that it's history. And like Kortney said, it's very possible that things were omitted in order to give this effect.
I really enjoyed reading "Dinosaurs in the Attic." Douglas J. Preston formats it in a way that makes it really enticing and quite easy to read. Each section stands on its own as a totally interesting, bizarre, and informative story. Since I have never been to the American Museum of Natural History before, I was glad to read about some of its basic history. They seem to have a massive collection, which I can't wait to explore! Often, I don't think about, and take for granted how big projects, like the museum, are started and pursued. It was clearly a lot of work to get the funding and support they needed, and people still have to work very hard and spend tons of money to keep it active. This makes me feel guilty about never visiting it! I'm really glad that all of this was brought into my universe before visiting the museum- I think it will enhance my perspective and experience upon my first visit.
ReplyDeleteI also really liked how he started with the section about the B. intricata. The idea of a "type" specimen it kinda odd to me. It's like, whatever that one scientist decides is average becomes the identity of an entire species. It would be very difficult to do this for humans... being as we are so varied, and have a pretty long lifespan within which we undergo a lot of change.
I also really like the old-fashioned term "cabinets of curiosities" :)
I enjoyed the opening section of Dinosaurs in the Attic. I found it interesting to read about the different approaches towards opperating the museum--mainly whether to focus more on scientific collections or entertaining exhibitions. The text makes it apparent that for the museum to be financially successful, both of these approaches need to be taken into account; The resulting lack of commitment to either discipline is a neccesary evil.
ReplyDeleteI also find it interesting the stories of the expeditions took on such a grand tone. It seems to me that such tales are the modern equivalent of the very myths that the explorers sought to record.
In his work Dinosaurs in the Attic, Douglas J. Preston does a fascinating job of making the ‘history’ behind the American Museum of Natural History come alive. Although he provides a sense of the historical background of the museum, he also gives the reader a fascinating first person account of ‘the people and passions behind the collections’. His readings may well have served as the inspiration to Night at the Museum, the popular movie that literally brought history alive by tracking Ben Stiller’s escapades as a night guard at the museum.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the two articles assigned for today, I am left with several main thoughts. First, the extraordinary string of circumstances that came together to create what is now heralded as one of the finest collections in the world. Second, that if it were not for the hard work of several key individuals, included among them Albert Bickmore and Morris K. Jesup, the collection would not exist at all. Third, the amount of funds expended to obtain these collections, which are now priceless, is a pittance in comparison to the funding now required for security and technologically advanced storage to adequately maintain the collection. That the role of the museum extends beyond a repository, where the main difficulty is in the protection of the current collections instead of blindly acquiring objects. Keeping these artifacts safe and secure provides far more than a sense of history for school children. It forms the basis for scientific understanding of many of the physical and cultural phenomena that distinguish and shape our world. And finally, I was struck by the recognition by Franz Boas, that the myths unique to a culture are what truly set it apart and they are the most fragile key to truly understanding a culture. The truth of that statement solidified much of what I had only peripherally recognized. The physical elements of a culture remain, but the individual elements that piece those physical remnants together into a cohesive story are a critical part of any social puzzle and once lost, can never be recaptured. ‘Myths integrate – in one structure – the many traits of a culture’ (Preston, 27). Telling the story from physical remnants is nice and provides basic information about a society, but it is only through knowing the subtlest details of the use, emotions, and essence of those broken pieces of pottery that the tale comes alive.