Conflict, photography and a man of constant sorrow
TED posts some really great articles and videos on their LinkedIn page. One that intrigued me was posted this past Wednesday. It’s titled as “3 steps to having difficult – but necessary – conversations” written by Adar Cohen.
Cohen says that, “It’s human nature to avoid difficult conversations, partly because they’re difficult and partly because we’re worried that having them could make things worse,” and in the article he offers three questions to lead you through difficult conversations.
1. Move toward — not away from — the conflict.
“Conflict is information, and handled well, conflict is opportunity,” says Cohen.
2. Act as if you don’t know anything about the situation, even if you do.
When you speak, stick to sharing your own experiences — resist the urge to offer advice or commentary or to speak on behalf of other people. “Take the long way,” he says. (I will be honest, I have the hardest time with this one, I am always offering my own stories. I am learning when it is not necessary to share but necessary to only listen.)
3. Keep quiet, especially in the beginning.
Don’t rush in to rescue everyone from that awkward moment; it’s your job to show them that moment is okay.”
In his work around the world, Cohen has seen that just one conversation can change lives: opening the door to a new way of looking at the world, to collaboration that previously seemed impossible, and to forgiveness, understanding and common ground. Any of us, he says, can change the world in this way. “Conversations create the future. Whether or not we have them and how we have them is up to us.”
Such a great framework to have when you need to have those types of conversations, I have found that when I struggle with doing a task or anything for that matter – having a guide of sorts is extremely helpful.
In 1939 Charlie Chaplin began writing a film that would be his first talking film. Titled “The Great Dictator” it is a satire of Adolph Hitler that was released in 1941. My personal favorite is Herr Garbitsch (sounds like garbage), in the real world we know him as Herr Goebbel. Chaplin plays several characters in the film, including Adenoid Hynkel, the Phooey (Führer). The film is extremely clever in indirectly-directly addressing the known issues at the time of the Nazi leadership.
”Chaplin wanted to address the escalating violence and repression of Jews by the Nazis throughout the late 1930s, the magnitude of which was conveyed to him personally by his European Jewish friends and fellow artists. But Chaplin later said that he would not have made the film had he known of the true extent of the Nazis' crimes.[4] After the horror of the Holocaust became known, filmmakers struggled for nearly 20 years to find the right angle and tone to satirize the era.” [16] (source)
The food fight scene here, with the English mustard, is hilarious.
At the end of the film, the Jewish barber switches places with Hynkel and gives a beautiful speech, which is worth listening to. See the speech or read the transcript here.
Man of Constant Sorrow is a traditional American folk song that was written by Dick Burnett, a fiddler from Kentucky. It was originally titled “Farewell Song” written around 1913, a recording made in 1928 gave it the new name of “man of Constant Sorrow.” The Stanley Brothers popularized the song back in the 50s, listen to their cover here. Ralph Stanley’s version is also good, he has that nice twang necessary for the song (in my opinion). But Home Free released a cover back in 2018 that is really good. If the twang of the first two is too much for you, Home Free’s version is the one for you.
And for good measure, I’ll throw in one more song for you. Peter Hollens, Home Free, and Hollens’ supporters did a cover of U2’S “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” last month and it’s beautiful. And none of them were in the same place while recording, which makes it even better to me!
