Definition: To be service to, to serve, to provide with service

“The idea that every American has something to give and at all times may, can and should give, explains why it occurred to students that they could help Mexican peasants “develop” by spending a few months in their villages.”

In Monsignor Ivan Illich’s piece from 1968 he is addressing the Conference on Inter-American Student Projects. The quote above is relatively in the beginning of his piece where he down and out bashes people (Americans) helping out/volunteering/providing service to other countries, particularly Mexico.

Service: to be of service to, to serve, to provide with a service. 

In his speech, Illich describes why mission trips are so popular among Americans and why people formed the mission organization he is addressing. He declares, “A group like this could not have developed unless a mood in the United States had supported it – the belief that any true American must share God’s blessings with his poorer fellow men. The idea that every American has something to give, and at all times may, can, and should give it, explains why it occurred to students that they could help Mexican peasants ‘develop’ by spending a few months in their villages.” Illich disagrees with this rationale and proceeds to attack it during the rest of his speech. He himself does not feel that American missionaries are “being of service” or “providing a service” to the Mexicans, but as his quote indicates, the missionaries fervently do feel this way. They believe that they have “something to give.”

“I think it is possible to empower learners (through service learning) and not promote the common good (by reinforcing a sense of inferiority among those “served” or a false sense of power among those who “serve”). I found this quote at almost the end of the Nadinne Cruz article. It is functioning as the sentence that sort of explains all of her feelings and concludes her final thoughts. I think that if you insert “process” into the quote you will find how the word “service” functions in this quote: “I think it is possible to empower learners (through service learning) and not promote the common good (by reinforcing a sense of inferiority among those “PROCESSED” or a false sense of power among those who “PROCESS”). I think when you use the definition of process instead of sevice, it shows one of Cruz’s arguements that participating in service learning is a sort of process and does not necessarily come from the heart and support the common good. It extends her arguement that those who “PROCESS” are looking for power and those who are “PROCESSED” are the wounded by-product a processor’s power trip.

 My definition of service is #5, “to supply a person with something”

Illich says that “next to money and guns, the third largest North American Export is the U.S. idealist”. Illich seems to be saying that Americans think that they are supplying Latin Americans with a dream to strive for, motivation and inspiration, while all they are really providing is hopelessness and a pipe dream that many know they can never achieve. Thus, what they think is being supplied and what actually is are two different things, and the US volunteers are not really doing anyone a service at all.

I think this is a good example of my definition; although “to supply a person with something” has more material implications, I think that one can just as well supply people with ideas or goals.

“I am suggesting that reciprocal learning may be more possible if it is not tied to a notion of service.” – Cruz, “A Challenge to the Notion of Service”

Cruz, in her quote from the article she wrote, provides a valid point about people’s perspective of service.  A definition provided defines service “to process” which is very well understood from the quote.  Placed towards the end of the article, Cruz appears to be summarizing the major points, specifically that people can not learn from service learning if they incorporate the literal definition of the word and process the people they interact with  in the same way they’d process the orders in a restaurant.

During Tuesday’s class, we discussed the elements of a complex claim (i.e., acknowledgment of counterclaims, so what?, what’s next?, and detail), as well as the components of a productive research question for 121 (i.e., general subject, time, space, people/group, social issue, and “how”). And two weeks ago, we began our keyword collaboratory project on “service.”

Now it’s time to mobilize claims-making and the generation of research questions in the context of the keyword collaboratory.

On Tuesday, you organized your keyword groups. Do you recall who your group members are and which definition of service you were assigned? If not, let’s chat.

Good? Ok, so the goals for this workshop are to:

• Practice writing and conducting research collaboratively,
• Continue constructing a public Wiki genealogy of “service” as a class,
• Develop skills in exposition, rhetorical reading, and argumentation for your future 121 papers, and
• Examine the ways in which service — as a term — might inform service — as a set of practices — at Boys and Girls Clubs.

This workshop has three main parts.

I. Individual Quote Selection

Individually, please compose a blog entry (categorized under “keyword notes”) that:

• Provides a quote from either the Illich or the Cruz reading in which you think your definition of service is functioning. Here, you might consider your definition a “lens for reading” Illich and Cruz. (Of note, the word “service” or “serve” needn’t literally appear. It could be “evoked,” if you will. For example, “I need to do my homework” evokes “school.”)
• Articulates the context of the quote. In what article does the quote appear? Where in the article does the quote appear? How is it functioning there?

As a class, we will then review some of the quotes you selected.
II. Collaborative Quote Selection and Claim
As a group, review each of your individual blog entries and then compose a single, collaborative entry (categorized under “keyword notes”) that:

• Provides the ONE quote — from all the quotes you have assembled in your individual entries — that you think raises the most productive questions about your definition of service.
• Lists ONE of those productive questions. (Recall: general subject, time, space, people/group, social issue, and “how.”)
• Makes a complex claim for why those questions are worth pursuing. (What other questions could be asked? What’s the purpose of your question? What are possible answers or responses? And where might your question lead us in studies of service?)

After this exercise, we’ll take a break.

III. Sharing and Commenting on Quote Selections

As a group, you will now read another group’s entry and comment on it. Note the group’s quote. Now, re-read it with your group’s definition in mind and as a “lens for reading.”

In your comment, please:

• Respond to the group’s claim by stating how the quote might be read differently through your definition.
• List at least ONE new, productive question that emerges from your “new” reading of the quote.

When you are finished, we’ll reconvene as a class and discuss what’s up next for the keyword collaboratory.

Looking forward!