Astra Taylor on the Unschooled Life

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• Astra Taylor's Examined Life screening tonight at Walker
  October 21, 2009

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• Astra Taylor
• Homeschooling
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According to some studies, about two million American families homeschool. The practice is often associated with Christian fundamentalists and other parents who yank their kids out of public school to teach them about Jesus the dinosaur wrangler. But some homeschoolers, like documentary filmmaker Astra Taylor, have found that the unstructured learning made possible by studying at home laid a solid groundwork for a creative and artistic adult life. As part of the Raising Creative Kids initiative, Taylor will be appearing two nights in a row at the Walker. Tonight, she'll screen her newest film, Examined Life, in which nine philosophers are given ten minutes apiece to hold court (the film gets its title from the Socrates' quote "The unexamined life is not worth living"). Instead of having participants give potentially dry monologues within the confines of a stuffy office or library, Taylor picks vibrant settings for philosophers to state their thoughts. Things like hectic crowds and big green vistas surround the speakers, making it easier to place the ideas presented within the real world rather than the realm of the abstract. The following day Taylor comes back to the Walker for a talk aimed at parents to discuss her nontraditional upbringing and how homeschooling has helped her in her philosophical and artistic endeavors.
Wed., Oct. 21, 7:30 p.m.; Thu., Oct. 22, 7 p.m., 2009