Current or near current manifestations of the American Dream gone wrong - Breaking Bad, Wolf on Wall Street, Mad Men, American Hustle. The continued art of faking it even when you make it. You may disagree with my comment - especially if you are any kind of feminist.
The American Dream is almost aways looked through a male prism - unless you're Oprah, Sheryl Sandberg, Hilary Clinton, or Beyonce - and this is sad and unjustified. To an extent. The American Dream is indeed just a 'dream' - one wakes up and realises one is living the American Mediocrity, the American Poverty or the American Nightmare. This is not everyone of course, and it goes to show the strength, durability and innovation of the American Dream. It is in fact to be admired with all its flaws and in its many forms.
In other words, the American Dream speaks to the hope in every one of us; none of us can ever more than survive without hope or a [certain community] dream. They are our modern forms of superstition after all.
Thursday, 23 January 2014
The Military and the Internet
Some things seem contradictory. How could such a prosperous country such as Korea advocate the discipline of military service but allow the docile danger of internet addiction to fester? Because it doesn't.
Such an assumption is simplistic to say the least but also wrong. Why? Because for someone ignorant to Korea's traditions, culture, victories and sufferings, I cannot even begin to understand how two things such as this co-exist in relative harmony. It still leaves me wondering what the effect of these two 'institutions' of Korean culture (the military and the internet) are on young people today.
Our late teens, early twenties encapsulate our formative years into adulthood. It is with hope and trepidation that 18, 19 year olds step out into the world.
I cannot imagine being anywhere near an army - unless it was a cosmopolitan, international, pacifist, intellectual one - and I cannot imagine a world where the Internet replaces the real world. Otherwise I would fear losing two of the beliefs I hold most dearly - peace and nature.
Perhaps I am on the 'slippery slope'/pessimistic side to express an alarm at this imaginary reality I have conjured up. But at the age of 26 and in the sphere of regular, long-term employment, I am acutely aware of how things can very much start to slide without you even noticing - your values, beliefs, philosophies, basically your whole life. YOLO all you like but it's worth being conscientious and momentarily thinking about the extraordinary value of idealism and natural beauty, in other words, a world without institutions and super-structures.
Such an assumption is simplistic to say the least but also wrong. Why? Because for someone ignorant to Korea's traditions, culture, victories and sufferings, I cannot even begin to understand how two things such as this co-exist in relative harmony. It still leaves me wondering what the effect of these two 'institutions' of Korean culture (the military and the internet) are on young people today.
Our late teens, early twenties encapsulate our formative years into adulthood. It is with hope and trepidation that 18, 19 year olds step out into the world.
I cannot imagine being anywhere near an army - unless it was a cosmopolitan, international, pacifist, intellectual one - and I cannot imagine a world where the Internet replaces the real world. Otherwise I would fear losing two of the beliefs I hold most dearly - peace and nature.
Perhaps I am on the 'slippery slope'/pessimistic side to express an alarm at this imaginary reality I have conjured up. But at the age of 26 and in the sphere of regular, long-term employment, I am acutely aware of how things can very much start to slide without you even noticing - your values, beliefs, philosophies, basically your whole life. YOLO all you like but it's worth being conscientious and momentarily thinking about the extraordinary value of idealism and natural beauty, in other words, a world without institutions and super-structures.
Donna Tartt's Goldfinch
Chance is a wonderful thing - Donna Tartt claims she did not know the Goldfinch painting would be in New York at the Frick Museum; the Dutch masters exhibition opened on the same day as her book was to be published in the US.
Frickin' genius on behalf of God I say.
Tartt does write very well and I hope to re-visit her writing in the form of "The Secret History" at some point. Reviews of her book have ranged from highly acclaimed to sentiments of disappointment. But for me, it stands out "visually". The worlds she creates are outstanding. And the characters are fucked-up, just as you might expect real people to be sometimes. She encapsulates the idea of life being an adventure; the tragedy and comedy of it all - she is a very human writer and someone who would be quite good honest company at a dinner party. So basically the opposite of Emile Zola who would probably not stop talking in his decidedly naturalist and caviar gauche manner.
In any case, Tartt should be commended for her anonymity - it would be quite hard to write fiction of her level without anonymously researching many small details about antique furniture, Dutch art, Las Vegas etc. The antithesis of celebrity, i.e. celebrity deadens the senses in its mass-market consumerist public relations fudge.
My life has been enriched by reading this book. And so should yours.
Frickin' genius on behalf of God I say.
Tartt does write very well and I hope to re-visit her writing in the form of "The Secret History" at some point. Reviews of her book have ranged from highly acclaimed to sentiments of disappointment. But for me, it stands out "visually". The worlds she creates are outstanding. And the characters are fucked-up, just as you might expect real people to be sometimes. She encapsulates the idea of life being an adventure; the tragedy and comedy of it all - she is a very human writer and someone who would be quite good honest company at a dinner party. So basically the opposite of Emile Zola who would probably not stop talking in his decidedly naturalist and caviar gauche manner.
In any case, Tartt should be commended for her anonymity - it would be quite hard to write fiction of her level without anonymously researching many small details about antique furniture, Dutch art, Las Vegas etc. The antithesis of celebrity, i.e. celebrity deadens the senses in its mass-market consumerist public relations fudge.
My life has been enriched by reading this book. And so should yours.
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