A Journey

The mentioning of ocean and mermaids can be referenced to the notorious Sirens. Those seductive females make men fall and sunk their ships. In Greek Mythology, Sirens are 3 infamous dangerous bird-women (and sometimes depicted as mermaids in other works) that sang. Their songs make men lose conscious and they sunk their ship, thereby drowning the people on board. In some way, they crush what men keeps. Those ladies in the room completely obliterate confidence of Prufrock. Prufrock did not follow the Mr. Mike McCool's character loop/cycle model. He start out good and go bad bad bad bad ...blah.  Its definitely not an happy ending.  We start out with a man we do not know. Through the depiction and realization of his thoughts, we know him better at the end of the story. The story goes downhill the entire time. The story started out with him walking upstairs and by the end of the story, we end with him giving up and walking back down. We see how he lost confidence in the story through self questioning and paranoia thinking. He experience pure loss in the story. The harsh truth is this is a journey of never-ending pain. There is no happy state.

Prufrock Revisited

As society develops, we learn. Many times in history has romantic and good intentions of mankind been abused. Many attempts of heroic acts failed. We, humans, learn, and we are unwilling to fail again. People turn more cynical and pragmatic. Thus, we are becoming more spiritually empty. Prufrock, this nervous dude that is having problem when it comes to woman, is said to be spiritually empty. He is empty when he is incapable to going up to those ladies that he might hold affection towards. Say, he doesn't have guts, so he is empty. Get it, no guts, so its empty inside??? HAHAHAHA (ok, did I just laughed at my joke?...) Soon, girls like those flashy guys with a lot of that bling bling. At this point, heroes HAVE TO be rich (ex. Batman). The commonly known heroic acts no longer appease those capricious ladies.  Definitely, romance in modern life is more to the bling bling than to the pumping heart. Can't generalize all romance are like that, but there is this trend. Surely, Prufrock who failed to go into the room is seen as un-heroic and un-romantic. The self questioning is anti-hero. Such anti-romanticism is growing as modernism expands.

Anti-hero

This sentimental friend of mine agrees to most if not all of  THIS -> “The hero is today running up against a hard world that is in no way responsive to the spiritual need.” Modern society has become a “stagnation of inauthentic lives and living . . . that evokes nothing of our spiritual life, our potentialities, or even our physical courage.” He strongly believes that its the spiritual life that makes life count (or something like that, anyway he is anti- non-sentimentalists). Enough of him showing up in my blog (I SAID ENOUGH!) It is true that such comfortable lives we have created stripped our keen spiritual senses away. We no longer feel challenged toward difficulties, we avoid them. We no longer live harmonious with the nature because we think its barbaric. Simply, the introduction of technology into our lives make us numb. This is not an age for heroes. We just don't appreciate them for what they do. Our society has changed from a romantic sentimental crowd into cynical hard-nosed population. Spider man is one of the best examples to demonstrate this. People who are gifted, doing stuff out of their own free will, is seen as mandatory duty by the public, even decide to criticize those heroic acts. People blame Spiderman for not arriving on time, not saving others successfully, not doing what they think he should have done. People no longer appreciate the existence of heroes. They demand them, condemn them and seen them as their job. Those would have been heroes in another era lives simple and plain just like others in this apathetic community.

What's His Problem?

J.Alfred Prufrock has a problem. His problem is that of a common one that shared by many many males around the world (possibly females as well, but to express my thoughts objectively, I cannot gesticulate what the opposite sex thinks). We males, not including the pimps, are shy when it comes to matters dealing with females, especially with those we feel affection towards. "Do I dare?" In the Love Song, Alfred continually repeat this phrase. His uncertainty of woman's attitude toward him makes got him into deep hesitation. He is vain, but probably not when he is alone. BUT, he is vain, when it comes to making appearance in front of females. He is afraid that the girls will notice his hair is getting thin (Commerical Break: Tired of hair getting thinner and thinner each day? This new XXX shampoo stimulates your head and make it grow hair back! Makes you young again! Call us NOW and buy one get one free!!) He is scared that they will notice his arms are getting thin (EAT MORE ALFRED!). He is worried of his impression on women which is absolutely normal. So is been shy a problem? That's for you to decide. (IF U SAY YES, go to whoever you like now and propose to him/her NOW!)

Poetry’s Social Function

“I think it is important that every people should have its own poetry, not simply for those who enjoy poetry . . . but because it actually makes a difference to the society as a whole, and that means to people who do not enjoy poetry… Unless people go on producing great authors, and especially great poets, their language will deteriorate, their culture will deteriorate and perhaps become absorbed in a stronger one.”- T.S. Eliot. I find myself ambivalent toward this statement. I strongly object the first part of the statement, which basically states that EVERYONE has to do poetry even if you don't like it. Anyone can write poems. Not everyone can be poets, but poets can be anyone from anywhere. For those that can't, they simply can't enjoy it. As a rationalist, I just don't find any interest in literature and poem. Trying to force such piece of art on people who can't appreciate is only a waste and trying to force such piece of art out of people who can't create depreciate the overall value of poem. After all, its unique quality, elegant composition, and most importantly, rarity, glorifies poem. However, I wholeheartedly agree with Eliot's second statement. Without poem, such elegance sprinkled on the dull literature we know today, our language will only start to crumble and fall apart. People tend to get lazy. Long words are shorten, expression are abbreviated, simple words become symbols. Without poetry (for composers to write it and for others to share it), the very backbone of literature will crumble. Like Eliot predicted, the next thing you know, such language no longer exist.

War and Economics

In the beginning of 20th century, wars happened. The world war 1 kicked off the unfortunate series of disasterous events that happened one after another. The black thursday, the world war 2 and many more happened after this. The world was like a spoiled child before this. The world is so used to the comfortable lives that nobody was ready for those events. The introduction of photography forced people to take note of the harsh reality in the front line. The public was so indulged in past glory and prosperity that they caught expectedly and unready by the Great Depression. Till 21st century, wars still go on. Humans, one of the most belligerent species on the planet, continually raise wars against each other. The Iraq war, the Jasmine rebellion, the Rebellion against Gadaffi and much more happened in less than 15 years of 21st century. Economy crashed once again. The international depression and the unbearable inflation made everyone panic just like the Great Depression. The exposure to world greatest natural disasters also happen in less than 10 years in 21st centruy. Haiti, Sichuan, Japan, Bali and India all experience merciless backfires of nature. The industrialism in the past put too much strain on our Earth and countries one by one fall victim of the Earth vengeance. Humans, defeated again and again, but got back to their feet. I guess in the future, people will label this period Neo-Renaissance, or new-rebirth.

NO Ideas but in Things

Poet write elegant poems. They made it so lofty, about love, about friendship, about fear, about betrayal. And yet those poems seems distant to normal people. Those literature freaks surely do love these but these topics does not resonant with common public readers. So, to get closer to the readers, making them share the feelings the poets felt (the intention of art from ex ex ex (ex, lost count) article), poets resort to make poems, a past exclusive thing, open to the public. Poems no longer need to stay on abstract grand topics. Anyone, even non-poets, gets to write about computer, camera, calculator, pencil, notebook, calculus homework (just naming stuff next to me here).  Now, is the limitation a good thing or a bad thing? I certainly like the idea of limitation. Poems sounds elegant, looks elegant, and supposedly means elegant. However, if people write about stains in the kitchen sink (cough*), the last isn't true. The last bit of elegance is stripped off by the varying and less important subject matter. The core of poems, which I take as elegance, is been stripped of. And thus, I believe the limitation on the subject matter is crucial and necessary for the birth of a good poem.

Historical Influence

There was this question, rather interesting, showed up in a pop quiz/test/some time during class that I do not remember. The most important thing is, is there any literature unaffected by the time its written, and its a NO. Definitely, there are absolutely NO literature that is completely independent of its time. During the start of America, there is excess optimism, followed by some low tide known as the Civil War. Later again, there is optimism, best associated with the American Dream. However, the low tide hits again. Another war, and with the introduction of photographs, more grievance were brought behind the line. Why do people change ideals? simply because its outdated. Its no longer a fit for the time. Optimism isn't suited for bad times and vice versa. Its like you don't put sour milk into cocoa or put cocoa beans with mold all over it in milk. (Ok, I understand this metaphor is a fail, but as long as you get it, its fine)The American Dream is torn by violence, hunger, fury and more. It shattered into pieces. Like my ex-ex- article, arts reflect what artists thought, and events alter those thoughts. So these events indirectly influence those works.

Social Influences – Entertainment

Entertainment, from my point of view, is something that humans invented to hinder mankind development. Think about it, its a waste of human resource as a whole. People waste time to produce it, and people waste time in it. Think about facebook! How many employees are playing farmville or whatever the public obsession lays during office hours? How much time did kids spend on movies, facebook and computer games instead of schoolwork? (Such idea suggested by our school not from personal point of view :D) Not to mention how many smart computer genius that could have improvise the google search engine, enhance wikipedia articles and more instead of designing and planning all those unnecessary follies or how much money and resources  (BILLIONS $_$) can be invested in humanitarian aid, finding alternative energies, increase food production instead of mere movie making. Since 1930s, mankind has become more distracted and less focused. This overall hinders our development. The introduction of Xbox 360, Xbox Kinect, Wii, PlayStation 3, are all distractions for us. We could have been productive, but we decided not to and indulge ourselves in such useless stuff. Humans are doomed to delay our progress and eventually stop evolving, simply because the invasion of entertainment into our lives has stripped away our potential to improve.

Make it New!

Erza Pound once said, "Make it new! Art is an joyous thing!". Art is suppose to be HAPPY! Art is something that is created from the inner soul. Art is something artists used to release their feelings. Art is something that reflects what the artist have in heart. When happy, they share joy. When sad, they share pain. Its a way to communicate. Its a style. It is always joyous to have someone to share your feelings, good or bad alike. Like a caterpillar, there are people who innovates their style. Soon others follow. When cameras were invented, some artists took a sharp turn into abstract art, where its something in mind that cameras can't take a picture of. Epic artists like Picasso, took note of this style and drew many paintings with symbols. It gives a new meaning to the artwork and defines it better as a whole.  Like the Guernica, it has a deeper meaning than realism arts. The eye of light bulb is more than what it appears. It symbolizes the enlightenment. The introduction to the abstraction of art allows artists to pour in more emotion freely without the restriction of been realistic, and thus, allow more creativity in art.

Modernism

After romanticism and realism, a new branch sprout during the 20th century. They, unlike realists, believe in heroes. And yet, unlike romanticist, they reject ideal ones. They only believe in those flawed heroes that shows their true grace under harsh circumstances or pressure. The most distinct characteristic of modernism is the rejection of ideals resulting from the loss of faith in the American Dream. Some famous artist in this belief are Picasso. He drew disfigured humans like both eyes on one side of the face. This belief works more to how the mind works toward simple things than to the actual subject matter. For literature, there is this new disjoint timeline where story follows a random pattern, much like how one recalls an event. For most cases, the works of this belief does not appeal to our normal senses on the first sight. These works tend to confuse us and only and truly show their meaning after some deep long thought. The central idea of this modernism is individual expression. Government, society are all seen as oppressive stuff against expression. In my opinion, this is just another form of realism, or ultra-realism. Something that is beyond natural yet try to show the optimist and despair of the world.

The American Dream

There are 3 parts of this dream. They are dream of the plenty this land can provide,  a time of unstoppable progress, and the prosperity of individuals. People belief everything in this land is plentiful, new and beautiful. They believe this land holds infinite promises for them.  At the time, people are experiencing a leap in mankind progress. This leads people to think life is always getting better and new era is always more prosperous than the old one. They also believe every individual will ultimately succeed and reach their goal, the ultimate triumph of individual. These 3 together combines into this unbelievably optimistic view they share, a fantasy, a dream. When World War 1 comes along, this dream is shattered. When realism showed, it lightens up the real world, enlightening the people and tell them that the world is never perfect. New ideas start to emerge. Traditions, literature, art all took a sharp turn and take a new direction. This is the new view, the shattering of The American Dream.