Inside the Kit Kat Club - Ananya Bhardwaj (Week 10)
What’s the point in turning on the news if everything is so devastating? It’s so much easier to turn a blind eye, it’s much easier to ‘protect your peace.’ It’s just so much easier to live in a state of ignorance.
How else are we supposed to sleep at night?
When most people think of the musical Cabaret, they equate it with similar burlesque-inspired show Moulin Rouge!; in reality, the two are extremely different. While both feature a tragic love story at the forefront of their narratives, one of Cabaret’s most important aspects is the power of knowledge—and by proxy—the power of ignorance.
Source: University of Michigan
Cabaret is set in the Kit Kat Club, a cabaret in Berlin, during the late 1920’s, just before the beginning of World War II and the rise of Nazi Germany; the oncoming violence and disaster is subtly foreshadowed throughout, and its danger is channeled through the main characters, Cliff and Sally.
Cliff, an American writer visiting Germany, recognized the danger and injustice being perpetrated against Jews during this time, especially his friends such as old man Herr Schultz. On the other hand, cabaret performer Sally willfully ignores this injustice. Sally even remarks, “Does [life outside the cabaret] really matter so long as you’re having fun?”
As the play continues, the fascist imagery transitions from being subtle to right in front of the audience’s faces; the songs become duller and the faces of the ensemble actors become stern and cold. The political climate is obvious, clear as day, and yet Sally refuses to leave Berlin or to stand up for people and relationships in her community that the government would disapprove of, such as Herr Schultz and Fräulein Schneider (and even in some alternate endings, the Emcee of the Kit Kat Club)—she abuses the power of knowledge through her ignorance. She’s a bystander who believes that the political warning signs around her have nothing to do with her—she’s privileged.
Privilege and knowledge are a deadly and powerful combination; Sally Bowles’ abuse of both is no piece of fiction—so many people see the devastation in the world, whether it be the fires in LA, the climate crisis, or the oppression in Afghanistan. A problem that doesn’t affect you is still a problem for others, and a crisis that you believe does not impact your life can and will impact your loved ones. Looking at the wreckage the world in from the inside of our personal Kit Kat Clubs only ensures more pain, more grief, and more devastation.
Hello Ananya, I believe that that he world is going through a turbulent patch in history, and out generation of Gen’zrs are living through multiple one in a lifetime events, the most recent one begs us thinks about he complication of our words, We are stuck in a dilemma on upon how much we should spend our time saving and hiding from the world. Should we all go and do a March in all 50 states on February 5th, or if we can’t go we should wear blue to show our support; or should we stop and worry about more important things like our Precis#1’s Grade.
ReplyDeleteA matter that may bring fear into the hearts of the average student. A college student spent a considerable amount of time getting into a college, yet his education was denied due to a small tweet about “[freeing] Palestine.” The thing we must remember is to gain power we must take it to someone else, every time you waste food you're stealing it from the mouths of the one who can’t afford it. Yet we must also remember that every generation before us thought of themselves as the most advanced, important, ingenious, instrumental and the final generation to live in this world. So live your life with not the fear for the death of humanity but the death of your humanity
Hi Ananya!
ReplyDeleteYou really made me ponder on how ignorance is so ingrained in both history and modern society. Cabaret is an EXCELLENT example to explore how knowledge and privilege can be exploited. You have such a compelling comparison that highlights how easy it is to turn away from injustice when it doesn’t seem to directly impact us. It's like when you see a mean comment on social media that isn't targetted for you, so you simply ignore it.
I feel like everyone can relate to parts of Sally; her refusal to acknowledge the warning signs around her mirrors how people today disengage from issues. I think I hear people say, "Oh, I don't really follow politics," as an excuse out of hard conversations all of the time. The tonal shift in the play, from energetic to unsettling, is a powerful metaphor for how some things are impossible to ignore, no matter how much you try to put it off. It makes me wonder, at what point does ignorance shift from being a personal coping mechanism to an ethical failure? Is there ever a situation where choosing to "protect your peace" is justified, or is it always a form of complicity?