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I went to the campus event put on by the Ohio State Theatre Department called College Life. It took place in the student union building on December 8th. My primary reason for going was to see my good friend Owen perform as part of a grade for his theatre class. This event relates to international affairs because the song that my friend was performing was an old Irish song called “The Rattin’ Bog.” My group of friends discovered this song when my friend Hayden went to Ireland for the entire summer last year. While he was there and being immersed in the culture, he picked up a lot of songs and chants that Irish people might do when they’re spending quality time with their friends. On top of the fact that Owen presented a song that comes from a foreign country, there were other performances of that nature. Another student gave a performance about the Ethiopian naming conventions. It’s pretty interesting, given that unlike our naming conventions, the last name is just the fathers first name, so there really are no such things as family names. I can’t imagine being named Aidan Robert instead of Aidan Seidman. The production was very interesting and I’m glad I attended.

The event that I went to was the late night breakfast in the Smith Steeb Kitchen on December 4th. This was a social event. This was a great opportunity to spend some time with my international affairs community before I left for winter break. Something that stood out to me was that even after living with my fellow IA members for an entire semester, I still had yet to formally introduce myself to a large group of them. This event related to international affairs because it was hosted by the people who run the international affairs scholars group, of which I am a part of. I am very glad that I made it to this event because the food that was served to us was very tasty. The only thing I was bummed out about is that there was some food that I was unable to eat because I am allergic to eggs. Eggs being a staple of the traditional American breakfast lineup has severely limited my enjoyment of this meal. Regardless, I was very grateful to have been given the opportunity to spend time with my IA peers as a group before I had to go home for the winter break.

I watched the documentary 13th on Netflix, which is an academic event. This documentary affected me as it made me see the mass incarceration of African Americans in the US as more than just a punitive measure for crimes being committed. The film opens up by discussing a line in the 13th amendment, which is supposed to make slavery unconstitutional. This line says that involuntary servitude is unconstitutional, except for punishment for a crime. In historical context, this was used as an excuse for the South post civil war to use African Americans for free labor. I never realized how this had evolved into a systematic bias that targets African Americans specifically for prison sentences. This relates to the topic of international affairs as it reveals the flaws in our prison system domestically, and how we can use foreign prison systems to improve our own. I personally gained from watching this documentary because I now have a more extensive view of the need for prison reform in the US, and how many people are suffering because nothing is being done. This relates to economics, as the prison system in the US has become intertwined with parts of our economy, so there are now monetary factors that play into our justice system. Questions I have about this are how to ensure that the justice system is not biased against any racial group, while still maintaining its integrity.

I watched the highly acclaimed Korean film Parasite, which is a campus event. Watching this movie impacted me because it was such a well written social satire. In the movie, a poor family all get jobs working very close with a very wealthy family. The juxtaposition between their lives and their worldview allows the director to paint a stark image of inequality in his society. For example, in the movie, when it rains, the wealthy family gets to enjoy a beautiful spectacle that inspires awe and emotion. Conversely, the poorer family has to worry about their home flooding, as just like in society, they sit lower than the wealthy family. This movie related to the topic of international affairs because it satirized a foreign society in the same way that some mediums satirize the one I live in as an American. This movie related to my Intro to Film class, as there were masterful uses of visual cues by the director during the film to draw focus to different ideas and emotions. The questions I have after watching the film would be primarily about the technical side of the filming of the movie. More specifically, I am curious about how director Bong Joo-ho used different film techniques to entice his audience to pay attention to and focus on different emotions, ideas, and visuals.

I attended the career fair at the Ohio Union on 10/16, which was a professional development event. This event impacted me because it made me realize for sure that I did not want to go to medical school. Before I came to Ohio State, I contemplated majoring in neuroscience with the goal of attending medical school. However, since I was not sure that I wanted to do that, I switched to Data Analytics. After my first months of classes I am very glad I switched because I have enjoyed them. This event related to international affairs because groups such as the Red Cross and others that work with people in need in foreign countries were at the fair as well. I gained from this event insight into what kind of company I would want to work for once I am done with my undergraduate education. Given that I am a freshman, I have a lot of uncertainties about what I want my professional life to be like, so I am always grateful for events like these to help me shine a bit of light on that question. This event relates to other classes I’m in such as my College of Arts and Sciences seminar, because both are geared toward getting me on a path to being the person I want to be. The only questions that I have after attending this event are what job interviews are really like, and how the process of becoming more senior within the company you work for goes.

I attended the global engagement on global fashion, which was a campus event held on 10/07 in the Enarson Building. This activity greatly impacted my understanding of the way people dress throughout the world. Clothing is not only a personal statement, but a reflection of culture, values, and way of life. This topic is related to the topic of international affairs because it takes a look at how people in places that might be unfamiliar to us dress and style themselves. It did change my perspective, because I am so used to living in a place where American streetwear is the most common thing people wear, rather than more cultural garments such as scarves or shawls. I also didn’t realize that clothing could serve such important roles in improving functionality in people’s lives. This topic relates to a course I took in high school called Human Geography. A topic we learned about in that class was how the way people dress can be a reflection of the way they live and their status, as well as their taste. The question I would want to ask about this topic is when clothing in the United States began to become more focused on style and the way things look, as well as how the fashion culture developed here. I know so much is based around French and Italian styles, so I’d like to know more about American influencers. I’d also like to ask about why South America and Africa have such little influence in the world of fashion. There are so many people from those continents that might not be represented.

The event that I attended was the International Internship Panel, which was a professional development event. This event impacted me through making me more interested in studying or working outside of the United States. Getting to hear many students who are a lot like myself describe their time working in foreign countries over the summer made my curiosity for living abroad turn into a desire. It was illuminating to hear how much time and preparation went into making arrangements to work in another country, whether that meant getting a visa or finding a place to live. This related to the topic of international affairs because our country has to have deals and treaties in place to allow its citizens to live and work in a foreign country. This relates to my computer engineering class, as computer engineers are needed all around the world, so there might be a way for me to get a job doing that in a foreign country. Knowing what the students who spoke at the panel know will make getting one of these jobs a much smoother process for me. The only questions I have now that the event is over is how the adjustment to living in a new place so far from home was. Going outside of the country is a daunting process, so I’d want to know how they handled so many new experiences in such a short period of time.

I attended the Scholars barbecue, a social event that would allow me to meet Scholars students who were not in my specific program. I am grateful that I went to this event because I was able to sit down and talk to students who were in the ASIS program, as well as Business Scholars, and see what they were passionate about. The most important way I was impacted by the event was that I became more excited to involve myself with Scholars programs that are not my own. This event related to the topic of international affairs because it was sponsored by the International Affairs Scholars, and centered around providing a social setting for us to get to know each other outside of the classroom. I gained from this event personally because I was able to spend time with my friends from within IA and meet ones outside of the program. This event relates to my coursework because it shares a theme with my IA seminar and my Arts and Sciences seminar, as both encourage getting to know people in my academic program as well as those outside of it. Having a barbecue provided a relaxed, non academic environment where I would be able to interact with my peers in a more natural setting.

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