Memory Vignett

“Change is possible, I believe. Language used consciously a matter of rhetoric, is a principle means-perhaps the means-by which change can begin to take place. The rhetorical includes writing, a means of learning, or discovery; it includes literature, the discoveries of other.”- Victoria Villanueva
This statement evokes a memory from my senior year of high school. I had waited four years to take Sociology, which was strictly only available to the oldest of the student body. It was a mystery to all of us, as under classmen, why this class was constantly on the lips of all of the older students and even teachers. Magical phrases, such as “show me the money” and “casa bonita” flowed through the mouths of students throughout the day always followed by laughs and smiles. The teacher, Mr. Clark walked through the hallways handing out high fives and extra-credit handshakes like a veteran celebrity.
It turns out that this class was absolutely life changing. I would be hard pressed to find a student who has had the chance to take the class with Mr. Clark that disagrees with me. It was because Mr. Clark’s class was different from any other class that we had ever been in, or would ever be in again. The class was called sociology, but it was unique unto its self. After each student found out their personality (I was dramatic, devoted, and self confident) they were put on teams that were picked at random. Instead of desks, there were benches that outlined the edges of class room to allow for as much space as possible. The center of the room was designated for all of the games that we would play throughout the semester. Instead of raising our hands, teams competed against each other doing loud, crazy, and hilarious dances like “boogie woogie bronco”. Whichever team danced the fastest-or loudest- got to play the game for points which had direct correlation to your grade in the class.
It may sound like a silly class, but we learned so much about ourselves, and our peers. To this day, students, including myself, who have taken that class still refer to “idios” or “devos” and “show me the money”. Mr. Clark accelerated that class to the next level simply by the words and rhetoric that was the soul of the class. It gave students to think about life-school- from a completely different angle. The language of the class was conscious and therefore the means by which each student was changed by that class. We were able to “discover the other” by simply changing our language for those divine 50 minutes.