Siddhartha Group Project Powerpoint

21^st Century Siddhartha Video Project

In reading Hermann Hesse’s, Siddhartha, we gain a new perspective on goals, success, appearances, the present, and the self.  Through his protagonist, Siddhartha, we recognize the needs that make us human beings.  Siddhartha’s experiences make you think about how you are leading your life and how you can change it for the better.

ž Group Project (3-5 Students per group)

ž Your assignment will be to re-imagine, re-adapt, or re-create a “modern” take on Siddhartha set in your own time– TODAY.

ž Your project will culminate in a 5-10 min video.

What You Will Have to Do,

ž Obviously, you will have to partner up with other peers who have hopefully been following Siddhartha, and understanding it, as we have been reading it in class.

ž Siddhartha comes from a world that appears to be less complex than that of the world you find yourself in.

ž Yet, your job is to come up with a story and characters who will find themselves perhaps dissatisfied with themselves… and who will decide to wander in search of either enlightenment, a more ideal way to live life, or a life with purpose, wisdom, joy, soul, and passion.

First Things First,

ž How is our world, today, different from that of Siddhartha’s? Think about this question for a moment. Think about the video about millennials you have just watched.

ž Backtrack even…

ž Ask yourself, what things today rob us of fulfillment, joy, wisdom, and purpose? 

ž Stop and think about this first, and great ideas for this project are sure to come your way.

Second,

ž Be honest with yourself, too… We are all vulnerable to today’s ills… Think about yourself, personally. What things, tangible or not, have an impact in your life that prevent you from focusing on the things that should truly matter. What things keep you from having peace in your life? What adds stress in your life? Whatever it is, is it worth it to stress over it?

Instructions

ž Create a character… think about where this character is in life… Why might this character decide to opt out of the status-quo in a way Siddhartha did, or in a way the protagonist of Into the Wild did?

ž In a simplified sense, what about our world sucks? What about our world would drive a person to seek something more substantial in life? How would he get there? Would he stumble and fail initially? How much trial and error might it require for him to find his own definition of Nirvana?

ž Materialism

ž Competition (Too much competing prevents us from having time for ourselves to find and feed our own passions)

ž Technology/Distractions/Social Media/Internet

ž Not Deciding Things for Ourselves

ž Materialism

ž Competition (Too much competing prevents us from having time for ourselves to find and feed our own passions)

ž Technology/Distractions/Social Media/Internet

ž Not Deciding Things for Ourselves

The Modern Siddhartha

ž In your group, your assignment will be as follows:

ž 1) Create a character(s) in society who gradually wake up to the reality of many of society’s trivialities.

ž 2) Obviously, you will need to write a script, first!

ž 3) In your group, it will be up to each group to decide your peer’s roles: scriptwriter, actors, director, editor, etc… Some of you will probably assume multiple roles…

ž Your video could turn out to be: a rap video, a film trailer, a short film, a skit, a ted talk… etc.