When thinking about roles at work, maybe it is worth thinking about fantasy. Indeed, the idea of ‘what role do you play’ implies something about imaginary drama – about the play- within-the play. At a conference in Elsinore in Denmark, I attended a socio drama workshop. The session was led by Ron Weiner. He described us to each other as ‘each others’ learning material’. We explored
- roles – some over-developed, some under-developed, some developed, some absent
- the risks of stereotyping, and benefits of it in keeping things as they are (or in sweetening up nostalgia)
- caricature roles – those with no biography, the preservation of which involves knowing nothing about backgrounds
We were encouraged to think about people we knew, and if they adopted the role of a – say – wild animal – which one would they be? which wild animal would I be? which fish? which bird? which landscape….and when I have played a role, what was it like? when a father, mother, lover, sister, criminal….what was it like? We explored how…
- you ‘take on’ a role; and how the role ‘takes’ you
- you ‘take on’ a role, and you ‘hold’ a story
- part of you is used (in both senses of the term) in communication of what role means
- the taking on of a role ‘shows’ a problem – that how you take on a role and what the role takes from you does exactly what a symptom does
- so, what is your ‘take’ on the role? When you are on the ‘take’ what are you doing?
When I thought about this experience afterwards, I realised how abstract are the ways in which we usually attribute meaning to roles. The drama and the ‘role play’ involved in that helped me to get into the more intimate dynamics of how-it-feels-to-be-in-role. And made me wonder ‘who am I to you’ – who do you need me to be…in order for things to stay the same; or in order for them to change. Shall we stick, twist, or bust?
Slingshot