Has anyone read, “I Find That Offensive” by Claire Fox? Wow. I’ve been very uneasy about the “trigger warning” trend ever since my D, who attends an Ivy, told me that some students said they found reading Lolita to be “traumatic”. They said they should have been “forewarned”. How will these students function after university?
More worrying, my D. said that she recently was lectured in a seminar by another student who said they “found it offensive that she was offended about having to use a trigger warning if she wanted to post a joke on the school’s chat page”. I guess Stand Up Comics no longer perform at universities.
This has all the makings of a VERY interesting thread!
Is there a book coming out on the need for “safe spaces” on campus where students will never hear any idea, opinion or fact that runs counter to their beliefs?
Here’s a short video by John Cleese where he " says political correctness has gone too far, especially on America’s college campuses, where he will no longer go to perform. …, the very essence of his trade — comedy — is criticism and that not infrequently means hurt feelings. But protecting everyone from negative emotion all the time is not only impractical (one can’t control the feelings of another), but also improper in a free society."
I lean left, but find this has gone a bit too far. i had a sibling commit suicide with a gun – and a co-worker made some really insensitive comments on suicide with a gun last year. She kept on talking… so I had choices. Either speak up and ask her to stop, leave my desk, or stay and be quiet. I left my desk. This last week was Mother’s Day. My mom died in January this year. Every 'Happy Mother’s Day" wish from Facebook, Snapchat, etc almost brought me to tears. Do I need everyone to stop celebrating Mother’s Day? Did I tell my friends to stop posting? No… I teared up and kept going. I think people need to not make abrasive, insensitive remarks. But every person can’t know every other person’s triggers. And sometimes stuff is going to remind you of a bad thing, and you will be sad. I certainly wouldn’t expect a literature prof to say, “Hey, this book has suicide references or talks about mothers – trigger warning!”. But overreaction is a common trait of the young, IMHO – this is this young generation’s gripe.
“I certainly wouldn’t expect a literature prof to say, “Hey, this book has suicide references or talks about mothers – trigger warning!”.”
I agree. I wouldn’t expect it but if someone was thoughtful enough to choose to do it, I would have no problem with that either. There’s nothing wrong with some sensitivity. No harm, no foul. I don’t necessarily get all the hype about it but I don’t get the negative responses either.
I think the problem is that then everyone starts to expect trigger warnings on their own personal issues. And when they don’t get it, then somehow the person who didn’t issue the trigger warning is at fault.
^^ "I agree. I wouldn’t expect it but if someone was thoughtful enough to choose to do it, I would have no problem with that either. There’s nothing wrong with some sensitivity. "
There are literally dozens (if not hundreds) of perceived triggers, and the list is growing. How could a professor, or anyone, possibly be sensitive enough to warn of every possible oncoming trigger?
“How will these students function after university?”
I think you already know the answer to that question. If they cannot function in the safe environment of college then they have no chance in the real world.
I think the key is you just don’t give a damn. I mean, obviously, don’t be a jerk, but you also shouldn’t be a push over. Adults caving to this silly behavior is why trigger warnings continue to be a thing…
There are times when being sensitive to others’ feelings is appropriate, and there are other times when people are just acting like babies.
There was a time when polak jokes were funny. A time when people said, “he Jewed me out of it.” Now people find these comments offensive and (thank goodness) they mostly disappeared.
Political correctness? If so, I’m all for it, and wish it were more prevalent.
I wanted to point out that the issue of trigger warnings is not just an issue of potentially hurt feelings. Some women who have been violently raped subsequently suffer from PTSD and experience flashbacks. If these women are fearful that discussions of violent rape will trigger a flashback for them, because they’ve had that experience (especially in a context where it is unexpected), then I think that trigger warnings are 100% appropriate. As for the future, many workplaces do not include discussions of violent rape as a “feature.” But recovering from PTSD is genuinely difficult.
Micro aggressions and trigger warnings. I told my kids aggressions are when I choose to offend you, micro aggressions are when you choose to be offended. Sorry but I can’t affect what you choose to be offended by. I find it interesting that it’s kids going to some of the most prestigious universities in the country, no the world, that have the audacity to complain that the world is somehow offensive or unfair to them. That’s just…offensive:)
Surely just hearing the trigger warning will trigger you?
Maybe each student should enter a list of desired trigger warnings into a database, which will generate a compiled list for the whole class for the professor to use.
^^I don’t see the convenience in it at all. People usually know what to say if they intend to offend. We (meaning people in general) may be unintentionally offensive because we don’t know local customs and such. Most, once they learn the customs will not choose to offend. Most trigger warnings and micro aggressions seem to be everyday interactions that some choose to be offended by. I for one don’t want to have to filter out thousands of different offenses for each and every group or person. Most people aren’t offended by these everyday interactions and can determine if some one is being deliberately provocative. I think many who are claiming trigger warnings and micro aggressions are being coaxed by others to believe they are being wronged.
The problem that I see with trigger warnings is that life doesn’t come with trigger warnings. The workplace doesn’t come with trigger warnings. I would think that the treatment of PTSD must involve exposure and desensitization therapy. Trigger warnings enable avoidance, which just reinforces and worsens the sensitivity problem. I think microagressions are a separate issue, but both trigger warnings and microagressions are related to “concept creep” where the meanings of things like trauma, bullying and abuse are diluted and expanded way beyond their original meanings.
I think @intparent’s post is very helpful for considering this issue. First of all, I’m so sorry to hear about your brother and I think if you were comfortable doing it, it would have been entirely appropriate (and potentially valuable to your co-worker) for you to have told him/her that their comments were offensive to you. However, I don’t think it would be appropriate for your office (or school, if you had been a student) to define those comments as micro aggressions or feel the need to try and anticipate any such comments. With respect to people who have been the victims of sexual assault, It is much easier for a professor to advise students in advance that a book contains graphic depictions of a rape. This is not far off from movie ratings where we know in advance if there will be violence or sex or crude language. It’s very different for a university to decide to ask professors to try, where possible, to point out those situations in advance. It is impossible to try and micromanage every communication that takes place on a college campus, nor do I want my student in such an environment.