Presleigh Keplinger- Reflection #6

            While watching the documentary “Promises,” I couldn’t help but feel feelings of thankfulness and gratitude for growing up in a country where I don’t have to fear violent retaliations from my neighbors.  It also provoked feelings of sadness and almost anger that these young, innocent children are growing up in an environment in which they are almost forced to share the same views of their elders.  Throughout this film, the Jewish and Arab children were portrayed as happy children, playing with one another and acting how children in America would act.  But once they began to show the interviews with these children, I began to notice how informed they were of the current war going on between the Arabs and the Jews.  Some of the children expressed views and opinions that seemed far beyond their age.  It was sad to me how persistent some of these children were to gain their land back.  It was almost as if they were trained to have these views by their parents and elders.  This is sad to me because this is how the vicious cycle continues and will continue on into the future.  Each group practices ethnocentrism, thinking that their culture and their group is better or more right.  I did really enjoy how some of the children got together to spend a day together.  I thought that this helped open up their views of the opposing groups and brought together two groups that wouldn’t have ever come into contact.  This was, however, the only time the got together.  I was trying to imagine if all children from these groups got together.  This could bring about a new generation of change.  It makes me hopeful that one day these two groups can see one another's views and express understanding, or at least an attempt to.