Master of None: Season 2

I have already written a blog post about the Netflix Original series Master of None, but when I was considering which show could help teach a lesson, I couldn’t think of a better one than an episode from the second season of the show. There was a specific episode that I felt would fit seamlessly in a classroom setting. This episode, titled “New York, I Love You”, features a long segment about what life is like for members of the deaf community.

 The episode pieces together the lives of three separate lower-class New Yorkers. It explores the day to day lives of a doorman, a bodega cashier, and a taxi driver. As a whole, the episode does an incredible job of showing how hard life in New York can be, and it also shows the immense variety that is all contained by this one city. I recommend this show to nearly everyone that I encounter, but if you only want to watch one episode, I ask that you watch “New York, I Love You”.

 As mentioned, the part of the episode that I felt would be a useful teaching instrument was the scenes involving the deaf bodega cashier. In the scenes involving her, the show is absolutely silent. No background conversation or music, just a very noticeable silence. Watching the show with headphones on made the experience even more interesting for me, because all noise was completely absent.

 The reason I think that this would be a great lesson, especially for elementary school teachers, is because of the perspective it gave me. I experienced total and complete silence for just a few minutes, but by the end of it, I was infinitely more thankful for my ability to hear. It made me more sensitive to the boy who lives on my floor, who has impaired hearing and often needs a little extra time to process things. For the first time, I noticed a mother and daughter using ASL at Walmart while shopping for groceries. I even reconsidered the impact of my sorority’s philanthropy, which provides hearing aids to those who cannot afford them on their own. My eyes have been opened to the vast differences between my life and the life of someone with hearing loss.

 According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 1 in every 8 people in America has hearing loss in both ears. This means that everyday, I interact with many people that have hearing loss, at least to some extent. Obviously, not all of these people are completely deaf, but they are living with an invisible disability. Through Master of None, I’ve become much more aware of the people around me who are going through things I can’t even see.

I believe that this lesson about the struggles of life with hearing loss is crucially important for school-aged children to learn. Allowing them to realize early on that this is an issue that we have to be cognisant of is the only way to improve the quality of life for those with hearing loss.

On Master of None

To a friend:

For this week's post I'll be looking at Aziz Ansari's Netflix original show Master of None. From what I read the show was a commentary on many aspects of life such as: race, age, and parenthood, as well as implementing aspects of relationships and marriage. Ansari fills it with his takes on life and with is perspectives on life. Overall the show was well directed and seemed to bring up some very good talking points for many difficult topics.

Master of None

This week I decided to watch the first 6 episodes of the Netflix Original Master of None. Most of my friends have already seen this show, so I thought it was time for me to get on board. I had heard about Aziz Ansari’s stellar writing, direction, and acting, so I was really excited to see the show that turned Ansari from a supporting character (think Parks and Rec) into the star of his own show.

The storyline of the show is relatively simple: Dev (played by Ansari) is an average millennial navigating life in New York City and all of the modern problems that come with that. He’s a 30 year old actor who has yet to do anything major with his acting career, and is in a less than desirable place, romantically and financially. Like any good comedy, he has a cast of eclectic characters surrounding him that have their own goals and motivations.

In the pilot episode, Dev encounters the risk of pregnancy with a woman that he’s just met, causing him to contemplate the logistics of fatherhood. Next we see him reach out to his parents, asking to know more about the sacrifices that they made in coming to America. He deals with racism and sexism, and tackles each new issue with the same “can-do” attitude.

The first thing that stood out to me about this show was the fact that Dev is based around the personality of Ansari. I’ve seen interviews of Ansari before, and he acts with mannerisms extremely similar to those of Dev. I don’t know if this was intentional or not, but it makes the show interesting to watch. I don’t know if any of you have ever seen the movie The Truman Show, but when I watch Master of None, I can’t help but be reminded of that. Dev feels so real, and it seems like the experiences that he has are legitimate. Like The Truman Show, it appears that we have stepped into the world of a man who is completely unaware that he is being watched by millions of people. We see Dev struggle with heartbreak and disappointment, and it feels more like a long-distance relationship than a completely scripted show.

On a different note, I think that this show speaks volumes about Ansari’s diverse abilities as a comedian and creator. The work that he’s done on this show in particular is really interesting to me. He does not direct every episode, but a lot of the episodes are directed by people who also act in the show. Obviously, this isn’t the first time that this has been done, but it is an element of the show that I find interesting.

I will definitely continue to watch this show. To be honest, I have binge watched 12 episodes over the past three days, so it’s safe to say that I enjoy it. I look forward to seeing more of Ansari’s work!