The sculpture in Ørstedsparken: Reflexivity and a Feminist Mirror

When I moved to Copenhagen, this statue in Ørstedsparken became my favorite landmark in the city. I arrived from Israel, a place where the daily struggle for gender equality is evident at every intersection, and Denmark revealed itself to me as a kind of feminist paradise.

I thought to myself that perhaps the Danes, through the statue of the man holding a baby in such an embrace, are trying to demonstrate and embody this ideal in their space.

But this statue was actually erected in 1886. It depicts the mythological Silenus cradling the infant Dionysus. It was placed during a time when the walls of Copenhagen were being torn down and public parks were being established in their place. Carl Jacobsen, who donated it, believed that art should be accessible to the people.

I didn’t really see Copenhagen at all. This ancient bronze was more of a mirror for myself and the idealization I had made of Denmark during my first year here.

According to modern anthropology, we do not have direct access to reality. We do not encounter the "thing in itself," but always observe it through the lenses of our past, culture, and language.

Anthropological knowledge is a product of encounter. The researcher must be aware not only of her surroundings but also of her internal frequency: the biases and culture she carries, the physical sensations, and the thoughts that arise within her. It is the ability to see the world while simultaneously seeing oneself meeting it.

This method is called reflexivity.

It is much more than a research tool; it is a state of consciousness that liberates us, if only for a moment, from the obsession to reach a single "objective truth." It invites us to let go of the need to judge the world around us, and instead – simply to observe ourselves encountering it.