A Revelatory New Book for Educators

Down a Peg: A Book About Art & Culture That Isn’t Stuffy, Highbrow, Reverential, Boring or Elitist

Down a Peg is a book about the role of art in human connection – and identity. In it I explore – not the creativity or the expressive aspects of the arts – but instead do a deep dive into how they affect us as listeners, audience, readers, viewers. What happens to us on the inside? Part science, part history, all art – in a light memoir format.

I think it is an easy – and maybe even a fun – read. And one that may spark an idea or two for the work you do.

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It’s a secret held long enough. The arts make us human. They pull us together and tear us apart. They help us feel safe – and loved. And they bring that va-va-voom into our days (and nights).

From the bone-shaking stomp-stomp-clap of a live concert to the world’s ubiquitous use of emojis and the chill-inducing impact of a swastika, Susan Adam draws you into the biology and psychology of the arts. She makes it personal and fun – a smorgasbord of experiences so familiar that you will see the arts at play in your own life.

After a career managing culture and change in organizations from L.L.Bean to Chase Bank and in arts organizations from Blue Man Group to The Public Theater, Susan shows her mastery of how we humans find connection and belonging.

What readers are saying:

“Susan has accomplished the impossible – a ‘how to…’ book without the pretension.”

“A perfect mix of humor and humility delivered with dues-paid expertise.”

“A memoir with the spotlight shone outward.”

“A light-hearted, surprisingly moving journey into the biology of the arts and culture in our lives.”

“Susan is honest and vulnerable about how the arts have been woven into her life. That’s why it’s a great book.”

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Prompts for Students

Students can have fun learning about the arts and the cultural forces swirling around them. The ideas listed below can show how the arts communicate human connection and differences, inform our beliefs about one another and become the building blocks of our social lives. In addition, they will learn the biology of the arts – how our brains process all the art forms – making us feel, remember, dance, learn and connect to one another. Enjoy.

Visual Arts

Photographs and images we see can trigger compassion, insecurity, hunger – and more – with a glance. How might constant exposure to unrealistic body types or fashion affect us? What can we do about it?

Why do symbols have power? They bring meaning and emotional value to our everyday activities. Why is it important to salute the right way? Why do we shake hands?

Explore the biological effects of color. Why might surgical teams wear ‘cool’ colors?

Explore school symbols – what does it say to people when you wear them? What if you were to wear the symbol of a ‘competitor’ – what message would that send? What if we were to destroy a symbol from someone’s faith or country?

Explore colors common in marketing. Cereal aisle? How do marketers make you want using color and design? How do they direct your eyes to what they most want you to see?

Emojis – 93% of how messages are understood comes nonverbally. Person’s tone? Shrugging their shoulders? Whispering? – emojis to the rescue.

Explore how colors and designs can indicate different cultures. Why might that be important to people? Is it an American flag if it has baby blue instead of dark blue? Why? Why not?

Patterns – on plates, bedspreads and PJs you see as a kid – will trigger feelings and memories later in life. Why do you think that happens? Do you have favorites now? Why do you like them?

Who does/should control the images we see in public? Dictators often try to control the arts; a mocking cartoon of a leader could get the artist in trouble. Why do you think that is?

Zoning – explore the reasons & challenges of creating neighborhood standards or rules. What might happen if someone paints their home neon orange on a street with all white houses? Do you think it matters? Who should decide?

Music

Listen to/explore the effects of harmony and dissonance. See if they can notice the physical or mental changes. For older students, perhaps explore Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.

Music ‘lives in’ every part of our brains. For older students perhaps show videos of people long lost to dementia – ‘wake up’ when music from when they were young is played. Or how some people with brain trauma can only retrieve their old selves through music.

Explore how music takes us on emotional journeys. For younger students – Elsa’s Let it Go – the song helps us find the resolve we all need.

Explore popular artists. What makes their music so popular? Ask students to revisit music from 5 years ago. What has changed since then? Why?

Explore music genres – particularly those that are familiar. Pop. Metal. Hip hop. Country. Etc. Can they describe the differences? Do you know fans of each genre? Do people from each group show connection to one another in other ways? How is music a connector to one another?

Dancing, moving, marching in synchrony has long been a part of keeping groups together. Explore movement rituals of indigenous groups from around the world. Discuss how it might tighten social bonds. Current version? Stomp Stomp Clap Stomp Stomp Clap. Explore how it feels to participate.

Discuss Eddie Vedder’s statement. “Music saved me, I mean, my upbringing was like a hurricane, and music was the tree I held onto.” How can music save us?

Explore how music carries the emotional load in movies – often subconsciously. It brings our bodies into the story.

Explore the role of The Ghost Dance in 1890’s as a way for Native Americans to try to reconnect to their cultural heritage. Why did it prompt the Ghost Dance War and the Wounded Knee Massacre? Explore other dances that have been banned – Hula, Tango, Flamenco, Irish Step Dancing, Chinese Shen Yun, Scottish Highland Dancing, Belly Dancing, the Sun Dance and ….?

Explore music as cultural markers – bringing a group’s values into the room. Social glue. Pomp & Circumstance, Happy Birthday, national anthem, school songs, religious ceremonies. Discuss how these rituals would be different without the songs. Other groups – other songs?

Theater

Discuss William Saroyan’s: “It takes a lot of rehearsing for a man to be himself.”

Explore mirror cells – how we unconsciously match posture, gestures and even emotional stance when we are in conversation – to show connection and care. We ‘act’ to align. Why one baby crying can set off others.

Acting – we actually choose how we behave throughout our day. How we act in class might be different than how we act with friends – or at a basketball game – and it’s not pretending. We adjust our performance to connect, to respect – to help keep our community at peace.

Etiquette as the great equalizer. Our lives are full of scripts. Greetings and introductions. Thank you. Condolences. Gesundheit. Apologies. It takes exposure and practice to get them right. Lower social status students could benefit from learning all of the protocol basics in school or, once in the real world, their possibilities will be limited.

Ceremonies – live theater. Communities reinforce their membership by reenacting rituals and ceremonies that get people involved in group values. It shows commitment to one another. Religious ceremonies. Sports rituals. Military. Holidays. Awards. Explore some rituals – finding why they help groups stay connected.

Puppets. Young children’s engagement with puppets isn’t pretend. They are actually in conversation with them.

Explore the theatrical aspects of public square demonstrations with large (and vocal) casts. Ideas are acted out. Marches. Music. Slogans. Posters. Choreographed. Scripted. Inviting others into the performance. Broadway musical on local streets.

Explore the difference between having feelings and acting out our feelings. Learning social guidelines. When community expects us to keep our feelings to ourselves and when we are expected to share our feelings – even if we’d rather not.

Explore the concept of our persona – our public mask. We all assume certain ways of acting within our communities to maintain peace and stability. Expected to comply with assumptions about male vs female behavior; regional idiosyncrasies; racial and ethnic expectations; workplace culture.

Role playing – developing a habit of anticipation and practice.

Storytelling

Explore our brain’s involvement in reading stories – from interpreting lines into letters into words into concepts. Explore how our brains process the action as if we were actually in the story. Ie. – the section of our brain supporting our legs is active when reading about a hike – even though our legs are still.)

Explore how reading grows our white matter – the brain’s Slip ‘n Slide – fastest communication network. Reading stories connects to memories, to our feelings – our understanding of our world – and each other.

Have fun with metaphors – exploring how we are able to understand the aspects of the metaphor and superimpose them on a different subject. Our brains notice the patterns in the midst of all the complexities.

Explore how stories help us build empathy – our hearts can grow bigger.

Explore news or historical stories. Consider the myriad of details available. How do the writers determine which points to include out of the myriad available?

Explore the mechanics of jokes – a special form of storytelling. We humans love to be surprised and we especially love to laugh in a group. It’s an important bonding activity.

Explore leaders’ use of the arts to get and maintain power. For example – King Tut would be like any other 10-year-old without the arts. He told stories about how the gods wanted him to be pharoah. He had statues and paintings and grand ceremonies – all to insure people believed him.

Explore gossip – how and why people tell stories about other people.

What if none of the heroes and positive characters in books, movies and TV shows were like you – in gender, race & ethnicity, wealth or body type? Explore how lack of representation can lead to systemic bias. With older students, explore the 1939 Doll Study.

Family history – what if you were tasked with writing your family’s history in ten pages, but you had a hundred pages of notes? How would you decide what to include?

Appearance & Fashion

What can we tell about a person based on how they are dressed? What can’t we tell? Explore how students in school cliques often dress to show membership.

What might life be like if we couldn’t identify law enforcement or medical staff or referees or military crossing guards or … ? Explore the role of uniforms in supporting community life.

Explore how religions from around the world often set expectations for attire and hair style? What if someone from the community chose not to follow those guidelines? When is it appropriate to comment on someone’s looks or attire? Explore the abundance of body and fashion shamers out there. Why do you think they do that? What is the effect?

Does what we wear affect how we feel or behave? Dressed as a cowboy? Wear a crown? Peter Pan? Military officer? A clown?

Wearing a team uniform is a commitment we make to uphold the team’s values – at least while on the job. What if a team member was found doing something offensive on the weekend while wearing the team jacket?

Explore the concept of ‘culture war’ – the struggle between social groups for dominance of their values, beliefs and practices. Explore the Carlisle Indian Schools and mandatory assimilation of Native Americans.

Explore why people seem to appreciate gender differentiators on babies and toddlers. How do they interact differently once they know?

Dressing the part. Explore dress codes for schools and businesses. Purpose? How about informal codes – i.e. would you wear pjs to church or a bathing suit to a school game?

Explore how much people spend on looks alone – in order to assure acceptance and connection. Clothing. Hair appointments and products. Makeup and colognes. Manicures. Shaving. Tattoos. Weight control, gyms and exercise equipment. Belonging – being a part of a community – is an important human priority.