"Perhaps, I was born with curiousity, the likes of those of old crows"
--Panic! at the Disco, "The Piano Knows Something I Don't Know"
Humans easily become obsessed with objects or intangible feelings. Not only are we addicted to something appealing (whether it be a cell phone or a video game), but we are addicted to the unknown. How is this certain? DeLillo, Orwell and Huxley all portray insight into this topic through their writing.
The entire situation in "Videotapes" is a mystery. Even DeLillo's essay progresses into the horror later in the piece. This mystery captures our attention, the suspense submerges us into the story. We are fascinated with the what is about to happen; the "crude power" that "impends" in our mind "relentlessly" is the power to experience something outside of our own experience. We want to feel what we have not yet felt, we want to know what we do not know because we want to figure out the complete picture of the meaning of life. And this evolving picture can paralyze people with fear about losing their uniqueness in the pursuit.
Orwell and Huxley "feared" the future and predicted the circumstances. They were fascinated with the forthcoming, the not-so-bright future for humans. Their contrasting viewpoints discussing the same topic prove that although everyone has a different outlook, we are unified by our curiosity. Their main inquisitions are centered around fear. Why fear? When you are afraid, something about the situation pulls you away, and you are held back by your reflexes. You scream at the spider, you want someone to kill it, and just as it dies you check to make sure it is dead and gone. Our fear is the spider- we scowl at it when it arrives, we want it to be eradicated, and as it diminishes we "check" into our minds and wonder why it is there in the first place. DeLillo is so afraid of the crudeness of the videotape he becomes obsessed with watching it numerous times. The need to understand the unknown is crucial for advancement into science and for ourselves. We are afraid that our current situation is not sustainable, so we must learn more to improve it. The drive to understand is written in our blood, and the unknown is what keeps our hearts pumping.
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Sunday, April 19, 2015
Reminding Revelations
But the isle of home is always on your mind"
--Celtic Thunder, "Isle of Hope"
This picture from Art Spiegelman's Maus is an introduction to Chapter Four of the second volume. Pictured is a worried Vladek, with Holocaust prisoners behind him, and towering over them is a sideways American flag. The staring prisoners behind him represent his terrible past always prying on his actions and thoughts. The slight bags and marks underneath his eyes represent his anxiousness towards present-day life. As well as this, Vladek's eyes are not looking directly at the reader, but away into the future, worried because his past pervades all that lies ahead.
If vertical stripes represent being a prisoner in horrific conditions, then horizontal stripes represent the opposite-loveliness. The American stripes are at an angle between vertical and horizontal, resembling how Vladek lives as a prisoner of his memories and a survivor trying to enjoy life. The flag is located at the apex of the picture, resembling the view that the Americans were the heroes of the Holocaust, yet they didn't save any prisoners from memories and reminders of the war throughout life.
The chapter is entitiled "Saved", ironic because
Vladek will never save his future when the past peers into his brain as
he seeks to find happiness. The "S" simulates half of a swastika,
symbolizing that his horrific memories are included in the rest
of his life. He may be saved from the Nazis, but he will never
be saved from the constant reminders of suffering.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Obscure Objectives
"I came into this world to find a reason to live"
--The Afters, "Forty-Two"
Our culture worships physical appearance. Many modern appliances act as a "shrine", promoting self-absorption. Mirrors, for instance, are located "one or more" times in each household, "devoted to" the purpose of making sure we look presentable. Cell phones are an even greater modern tool for this "activity", allowing us to quickly use our front camera, post it on social media, and make sure we look better than our peers. Miner states this process is a "ceremony", an ironic term for something that is not worthy of glorification. This obsessive "activity" sadly becomes "the focus" of our life, and it "looms as a dominant concern" on our days. Our American culture is backwards, just like the term "Nacirema".
Although our culture has weak focal points, we should not compare ours to other cultures and rank them accordingly. We acclaim something and other cultures worship another, and all have beliefs that differ. Therefore, we have to take "careful inquiry" when observing cultures and other people foreign to us, remembering to praise the differences.
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Shopping for Style
"If every fairy tale could thread the knot and take me here to there,
Or grab my hand and tell me what's the difference between"
--Mayday Parade, "Nothing You Can Live Without, Nothing You Can Do About"
On a day when the sky was gray, I headed to the nearest shopping complex. Shopping should be reserved for a day that is dull, because otherwise you are wasting away a perfectly beautiful day. A mall is like a kaleidoscope- there's always something different to catch your eye. Or is there?
I gravitate towards clothing and fashion and I used to go shopping frequently, until recently. In my mother's words, "everything looks the same". When I walked past the glass windows of stores that should catch the eye of a teenager, the mannequins seemed to shout "shop here you will stand out". Walk in, and you will see a sea of crop tops, high waisted shorts, and dresses, all in a variety of colors.
If you chose to shop at Forever 21, Wet Seal, Rue, or the classic Urban Outfitters (1), you are likely to find clothing that best fits the trends of today. A common theory is that "trends" make someone look unique, as if you walked into school wearing a princess prom dress (2) and people actually gave you the attention. However, when things trend, they follow each other and use those doing the same for self-assurance.(3) Stores are forced to make and sell what the public trends to in order to make a profit, enforcing the conformity of difference.
In reality, many trendy stores sell the exact same stuff even though they claim to help form style. Style is not formed by following trend, but is formed by following your inner likes and dislikes. With the "help" of many stores looking out for this interest, shopping becomes more like searching.
(1) Urban Outfitters does have its creative aspects to it. However, it is ridiculous to sell something for $40-50 when you can find it at a thrift shop for $3.
(2) Because it's prom season, express your beauty by shopping at David's Bridal. You'll find a vast selection of gowns in colors like cobalt blue, ocean blue, sky blue, and navy blue. Blue is this season's hottest color, and you'll surely want to look trendy. Shop at David's Bridal to find the shade perfect for you. Call 1-800- DAVE-BRIDE toll free to get that will make you sparkle.
(3) After all, if others are doing it, it's okay. You may experience a few symptoms such as lack of personality, hypocritical mindset, irritability, heart failure, judgmental character, vulnerability, and social fakeness, but it's totally worth it. If these symptoms get severe, call your psychiatrist immediately for assistance.
Or grab my hand and tell me what's the difference between"
--Mayday Parade, "Nothing You Can Live Without, Nothing You Can Do About"
On a day when the sky was gray, I headed to the nearest shopping complex. Shopping should be reserved for a day that is dull, because otherwise you are wasting away a perfectly beautiful day. A mall is like a kaleidoscope- there's always something different to catch your eye. Or is there?
I gravitate towards clothing and fashion and I used to go shopping frequently, until recently. In my mother's words, "everything looks the same". When I walked past the glass windows of stores that should catch the eye of a teenager, the mannequins seemed to shout "shop here you will stand out". Walk in, and you will see a sea of crop tops, high waisted shorts, and dresses, all in a variety of colors.
If you chose to shop at Forever 21, Wet Seal, Rue, or the classic Urban Outfitters (1), you are likely to find clothing that best fits the trends of today. A common theory is that "trends" make someone look unique, as if you walked into school wearing a princess prom dress (2) and people actually gave you the attention. However, when things trend, they follow each other and use those doing the same for self-assurance.(3) Stores are forced to make and sell what the public trends to in order to make a profit, enforcing the conformity of difference.
In reality, many trendy stores sell the exact same stuff even though they claim to help form style. Style is not formed by following trend, but is formed by following your inner likes and dislikes. With the "help" of many stores looking out for this interest, shopping becomes more like searching. (1) Urban Outfitters does have its creative aspects to it. However, it is ridiculous to sell something for $40-50 when you can find it at a thrift shop for $3.
(2) Because it's prom season, express your beauty by shopping at David's Bridal. You'll find a vast selection of gowns in colors like cobalt blue, ocean blue, sky blue, and navy blue. Blue is this season's hottest color, and you'll surely want to look trendy. Shop at David's Bridal to find the shade perfect for you. Call 1-800- DAVE-BRIDE toll free to get that will make you sparkle.
(3) After all, if others are doing it, it's okay. You may experience a few symptoms such as lack of personality, hypocritical mindset, irritability, heart failure, judgmental character, vulnerability, and social fakeness, but it's totally worth it. If these symptoms get severe, call your psychiatrist immediately for assistance.
Friday, March 13, 2015
Haunting Hours
"A women's whole life in a single day; just one day. It's on this day, this day of all days her fate becomes clear to..."
--"The Hours"
The movie we watched in class, 'The Hours', was very perplexing and emotional. It took me a while to fully understand the connection between all three women. At the beginning of the movie, the three women woke up at the same time in the morning with the sound of their alarm clocks but awoke in different states of mind. All three also arrange flowers concurrently, yet each bouquet of flowers (one coordinated with each woman) was a different color. Because the morning occurrences happen at the same time, Woolf's belief that time unites us is displayed. Although we all live cohesively under time, we all spend our time differently, represented in the different colors of flowers. Throughout the movie, a clock noise chimed like the Big Ben in the novel. Despite that the three women live in different locations (Los Angeles, New York, and Richmond I believe) and live far from London, they portray how time resides everywhere, over everyone.
As well as this, Richard's apartment is dingy and located in a seemingly unsafe area. I thought the state of his home represented the progression of Clarissa and Richard's relationship. When first moving into a home, people usually organize it to fit their tastes. Clarissa and Richard, when they were very happy and moved in at an early age, may have kept the home nice. Now, the house looks disastrous because they are unhappy now and the past is pervading their present situation.
Just like the novel, the movie conveys a single day. It was very interesting to see how all the characters "faced the hours of the day".
Sunday, March 8, 2015
Claiming Cycles
"If seconds heal all wounds, I'll put these tips on you.
When faith is left to prove, it's all you have to lose"
--The Cab, "One Of Those Nights
"For this is the truth about our soul, he thought, our self, who fish-like inhabits deep seas and plies among obscurities threading her way between the boles of giant weeds, over sun-flickered spaces and on and on into gloom, cold, deep, inscrutable; suddenly she shoots to the surface and sports on the wind-wrinkled waves; that is, has a positive need to brush, scrape, kindle herself, gossiping" (161).
This passage vividly describes the cyclical pattern of happiness and sadness in our lives. Woolf depicts a fish that swims through "deep seas" and "giant weeds". The fish "threads" a path for her life through the hardships endured by most people. And every once in a while, us humans find ourselves in a time of happiness with the "sun", a time that is irreplaceable. But, these times "flicker" and shine for only a meager amount of time, representing how the precious moments in life are not everlasting. We continue to face each day, but each dawn we face the "inscrutable" mystery of how our lives will progress in the future. Similarly to the fish, we are inspired to "shoot to the surface" and live how we actually want.
Woolf also mentions the "waves" that are continually discussed throughout the novel. In this context, they represent the cycle of contentment and dissatisfaction encountered in everyone's life. They are "wrinkled" and old, symbolizing how this cycle is timeless and continuous. Septimus, for example, faces this cycle profoundly in his time. He finds joy after the "gloom" of war depression with his wife, but fails to let go of the past, depicting how we must let the cycle flow naturally or else we will be tragically stuck in the past. The truth about our soul is found through our emotions during all periods in our life.
When faith is left to prove, it's all you have to lose"
--The Cab, "One Of Those Nights
"For this is the truth about our soul, he thought, our self, who fish-like inhabits deep seas and plies among obscurities threading her way between the boles of giant weeds, over sun-flickered spaces and on and on into gloom, cold, deep, inscrutable; suddenly she shoots to the surface and sports on the wind-wrinkled waves; that is, has a positive need to brush, scrape, kindle herself, gossiping" (161).
This passage vividly describes the cyclical pattern of happiness and sadness in our lives. Woolf depicts a fish that swims through "deep seas" and "giant weeds". The fish "threads" a path for her life through the hardships endured by most people. And every once in a while, us humans find ourselves in a time of happiness with the "sun", a time that is irreplaceable. But, these times "flicker" and shine for only a meager amount of time, representing how the precious moments in life are not everlasting. We continue to face each day, but each dawn we face the "inscrutable" mystery of how our lives will progress in the future. Similarly to the fish, we are inspired to "shoot to the surface" and live how we actually want.
Woolf also mentions the "waves" that are continually discussed throughout the novel. In this context, they represent the cycle of contentment and dissatisfaction encountered in everyone's life. They are "wrinkled" and old, symbolizing how this cycle is timeless and continuous. Septimus, for example, faces this cycle profoundly in his time. He finds joy after the "gloom" of war depression with his wife, but fails to let go of the past, depicting how we must let the cycle flow naturally or else we will be tragically stuck in the past. The truth about our soul is found through our emotions during all periods in our life.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Arduous Acceptance
"Stop there and let me correct it, I want to live a life from a new perspective"
--Panic! At The Disco, "New Perspective"
"A terrible confession it was (he put his hat on again), but now, at the age of fifty-three one scarcely needed people any more. Life itself, every moment of it, every drop of it, here, this instant, now, in the sun, in Regent's Park, was enough. Too much indeed. A whole lifetime was too short to bring out, now that one had acquired the power, the full flavour; to extract every ounce of pleasure, every shade of meaning; which both were so much more solid than they used to be, so much less personal" (79).
This passage discusses the importance of self-reliance and self-acceptance. Peter Walsh reflects on the "shades of meaning" of nature and the world, representing the perspectives of all people. He believes that an entire lifetime is too short to understand the perspectives fully, yet says that living a life all alone is enough. To me, this is contradictory because someone should gain happiness and contentment from knowledge obtained by understanding others. The use of commas to separate phrases about life symbolize the difficulty of finding meaning to your own life. Because Peter is a matured man, he doesn't "need people any more" in order to find happiness. His perception has changed throughout his life, but is "much more solid" due to maturity gained from encountering moments in life. You have to live through "every moment" and "every drop of it" to realize the actual importance of moments that inevitably form your perspective on life and yourself. Now, he relies on his fabricated perspective to find and enjoy things in life. Peter isn't hurt by actions against him; they are "so much less personal" because he fully accepts his present life and his present self. Life would be more pleasant for all if we realized that we don't need others to accept our perspective. We need to accept it on our own.
--Panic! At The Disco, "New Perspective"
"A terrible confession it was (he put his hat on again), but now, at the age of fifty-three one scarcely needed people any more. Life itself, every moment of it, every drop of it, here, this instant, now, in the sun, in Regent's Park, was enough. Too much indeed. A whole lifetime was too short to bring out, now that one had acquired the power, the full flavour; to extract every ounce of pleasure, every shade of meaning; which both were so much more solid than they used to be, so much less personal" (79).
This passage discusses the importance of self-reliance and self-acceptance. Peter Walsh reflects on the "shades of meaning" of nature and the world, representing the perspectives of all people. He believes that an entire lifetime is too short to understand the perspectives fully, yet says that living a life all alone is enough. To me, this is contradictory because someone should gain happiness and contentment from knowledge obtained by understanding others. The use of commas to separate phrases about life symbolize the difficulty of finding meaning to your own life. Because Peter is a matured man, he doesn't "need people any more" in order to find happiness. His perception has changed throughout his life, but is "much more solid" due to maturity gained from encountering moments in life. You have to live through "every moment" and "every drop of it" to realize the actual importance of moments that inevitably form your perspective on life and yourself. Now, he relies on his fabricated perspective to find and enjoy things in life. Peter isn't hurt by actions against him; they are "so much less personal" because he fully accepts his present life and his present self. Life would be more pleasant for all if we realized that we don't need others to accept our perspective. We need to accept it on our own.
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