The First Class

The first class reminded me of summer camp. Not the kind of summer camp with counselers and cabins and s'mores but the summer camp I went to: Shakespeare Camp. We would always get in circles and break text down, image by image, foot by foot. Like we started to do in class.

I came into class late and entered a dark room. I usually do not go into dark classrooms but this class's number matched the number printed on my schedule so I did. The video got my attention (obviously, it was the only light thing in the room!) but after a while I had to look away. It is impossible for me to stare at something that is not moving (essentially) for more than a minute.

If I look at somebody for a long time, I look at different aspects of her; my eye moves over, around. In the film, there was no place for my eye to go but the straight forward view. I found it frustrating. It was really unnatural because even if we are thinking to ourselves, our faces connect with our thoughts, that is, they react to them; we will look around, we will gesture. The film got my attention but it also drew my attention away from the screen. It drew my attention into the darkness around me.