ARTS

from Inklings November 2021 Issue

by inklingsnewsonline

OPINIONS

18 | ARTS Westport Book Shop enriches community, provides support for Westport Public Library

Julia Herlyn ’23

News Editor

WESTPORT BOOK SHOP Managers Ashley Wilson and Catherine Caro (ABOVE) work at the store located downtown. Through volunteers such as Caroline Sorstein (BELOW), the Westport Book Shop places an emphasis on helping their employees and contributing to the surrounding community. Photos by Cami Vynerib ’23 The Westport Book Shop, located in the heart of downtown Westport, is an inviting, intimate space, embellished with seasonal decorations, charming fairy lights and various pieces of local art. Although the book shop has only been operating since January 2021, it has quickly become essential to Westporters and other locals. “The book shop not only supports the Westport community, but it also supports the surrounding communities,” manager Katherine Caro said. “It’s a place for people to meet, but it’s also a place for people to find books at reasonable prices […] there is a book for everyone.” Offering used, antiquarian books, vinyl records, CDs, DVDs and audio books, the Westport Book Shop is the town’s only nonprofit bookstore. It works in collaboration with the nearby Westport Library through the library’s donations. Books that have been donated to the library are selected to be sold at the store based on their condition and/or potential appeal to readers. “It’s important to bring a book shop back to the community,” manager Ashley Wilson said. “It’s nice to have a book shop in the area, instead of everything being online or downloaded.” Since the book shop is a nonprofit enterprise, the revenue generated through book sales is contributed to the Westport Library, which is utilized to fund the programming and activities of the library. The book shop also places strong emphasis on providing employment and training opportunities, specifically to individuals with disabilities or “advancing abilities,” as described by Caro. “I like talking to people here, helping them find the books they want and helping organize the store,” employee Dylan Curran ’20 said. “[Working at the book shop] makes me feel happy and excited. I feel more connected to the people around here.” Community members–including Staples students like Tavan Bhatia ’23–can volunteer at the bookshop weekly, performing activities like ringing customers up, moving supplies and reviewing sales. “[Volunteering] is a good way to help out and feel like [you are] part of the community,” Bhatia said. “It’s a rewarding experience.” Looking forward, the Westport Book Shop hopes to continue serving Westport and neighboring communities, as well as attract more teenage customers. “I think that a lot of the high school kids don’t even know that we’re here or what we offer,” Caro said. “They could start creating their own library that they could use for book reports, research papers and to take to college [...] We want more people to know about us. That’s the goal for this book shop.”

Netflix capitalizes on capitalist criticism

Aidan Rogers ’22

Creative Director

* Contains spoilers

Spreading rapidly through media like a wildfire, Hwang Dong-hyuk’s eight hour, nine episode Korean drama, “Squid Game,” reached over 100 million viewers worldwide in its first month after being released on Sept. 17. The show’s shock value, vibrant color theme, and over-thetop gore perfectly align the Netflix original for success in mainstream culture. At face value, “Squid Game” takes child hood games and brings them to the extreme: winners stay in the running for around $40 million of prize money, but losers are eliminated… literally. The show focuses on the shocking experiences of Seong Gi-hun and other competitors both in and out of the game. Beyond the entertaining plot and visuals, the dynamic between the organizers of the game, the participants and their respective attitudes towards life offers a stark critique of capitalism.

The premise for the game that is played is to take people who are down on their luck, unable to make ends meet, and put them in a game situation where they have fair conditions to succeed. This seemingly controlled, balanced and “fair” game environment contrasts with the hectic, desperate lives the contestants normally live in a capitalist society, where it is almost impossible for those on the bottom to improve their situation. Identified solely by number, the players in “Squid Game” are stripped of all that makes them human, including their name, in order to remove any advantages for winning the prize money.

In the second half of “Squid Game,” a mysterious group of mask-wearing bourgeoisie is introduced as the coordinators of the inhumane games that have played out. It becomes clear that their lives of leisure and comfort are also bare of excitement. As a result of a capitalist system, they have been completely numbed to most human emotions and must resort to the most extreme experiences—death and violence—to truly feel something.

In contrast, the players in the game are impoverished Korean citizens who were tricked into participating with the lure of money and the dream of possibly escaping their life of impoverished struggle. When they find out that the games will result in likely death, they are permitted to leave, but almost every contestant returns on his or her own volition after realizing that either death or winning the games would be preferable to the struggles and unforgiving nature of their daily lives.

While the coordinators and participants are from opposite stations in life—bourgeoisie and proletariat—through the lens of the game, both groups are attempting to escape the unfortunate reality of their lives and seek a chance to truly live. Their experiences illustrate the desensitization of all people—both rich and poor— in a capitalist society.