Nothing More Important than the Mula

The other day I was art of a conversation about microeconomics... ok, personal finance. Most of the stuff, I already knew about, but that doesn't mean I actively practiced those ideas - and some I did. Like a job. Ever since the summer after 6th grade, I've held a job. When I think of the times when I wasn't employed or didn't have money, it would have to have been when I was in elementary school. Even though I had a job at a young age, I didn't open a bank account until a few years later. I didn't even open an account in my own name until my senior year. I would have liked to sooner but there's some type of problem or something - I don't remember. One was a savings account and the other was a checking. I used my savings account as a checking account because I didn't have one yet. Now that I do, I don't put money in my savings. It's not in my name and it's connected to my parent's account - sometimes the bank makes mistakes. Because of this, I'm terrible at saving money in an account. Unless, there's something I want to buy or need to buy. I can't save money just to save - even though saving for the future would be nice, I would need to open the savings account in my name for that to happen. But, when I wanted a laptop in high school, I saved up for it - several months on that McDonald's wage. My iPod, I saved up a few months for. I can save, when I know specifically what the incentive is. During the summer of 2013, I tried to save as much money as possible because I knew I would need it for college. Yet, instead of putting it towards the bill - I put some towards it and bought all my books - I spent a lot of it on the weekends ordering out around 11:00.

When I see talks of personal finance, I take it all in. I know I should be doing better but it's hard to break a habit, to break a practice. I feel like once I do open the savings, I'll be more responsible. I want to put a certain percentage away. It's a great idea... I think I'll get this done during winter vacation.

Beat It! Powerpuff Girls

Does my piece have meaning? First, I should at least explain the roots and inspiration for my composition before I even decide to drag you within that conversation. I was home for Thanksgiving break, when it hit me. I walked into the kitchen where my little sister was washing dishes, the tv was on so it wasn’t silent. The channel was Boomerang – this station plays old Cartoonnetwork shows that were prominent for us 90s babies, but leave some of the new millennium kids a little lost. My little sister was part of the group that would watch Boomerang. When I walked in, a new show was about to come on so I sat down to start watching. It turned out to be one of my favorite childhood shows – the Powerpuff Girls. When you’re young, you’re not too strongly affected by society’s gender roles. I would make the great assertion that any 90s child with access to a tv with a cartoon station has watched the Powerpuff Girls – I even played some of the video games. Back to the point, the intro caught my ears – specifically the drum beat. I emulated it by patting my legs and knew it needed to be in my piece. 

From there, I did nothing until I got back to school. That scene happened Friday night I think. When I got back, I remembered how I had an idea with an Xbox controller to simulate the drums in Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” and thought Michael Jackson and the Powerpuff Girls could potentially go great together. 

Looking at the history of its creation, it almost came to together by chance. Looking at the music score, there’s a lot of room from interpretation – which follows my art philosophy that there’s the interpretation of art by the artist and by the audience. I left room for the different players to personalize their parts. The main part that allows that is the person who plays the PPG narrator – they can use any voice they want, pick and choose what lines to say and what not to say, and they even hold the power to say when the piece is finished.

Part of me wants the audience to magically pick up on the two inspirations, but aside from the narrator, it won’t be that easy to tell. The works that inspired the piece are known to many people, not necessarily personal to me. It should be relatable. If not. I’d gladly show someone how it works out.

I may add the instructions to this piece later on. The only thing missing from the score is the narrator's parts.

That Sound Like Poetic Justice

We've gotten to a point in our humanity, that we can now describe ideas using a multitude of mediums. To be as clear are possible, that was a reference to the ever wonderful art form. I just read something called "Chocolate Legato." What starts off as a normal personal essay complete with anecdotes, spins into an unexpected poem. The whole idea of the work is about music and inspirations. It's something that definitely exists but that you don't see every day.

There are two comments I can make about that reading. The first is that I believe inspiration can come from anywhere. I know there is an earlier post of mines where I go into more detail. But it's true. And this even speaks to how the essay/poem went into detail about how music can evoke memory. There are so many items in the world that can evoke memory. Like, I've attached memories to things like a tube of Reese's chap stick as well as a composition notebook. But then you can also receive thoughts and feelings that aren't personally associated with you.

The second comment I'll make is that I love how he intertwines the essay and a poem. Well, he does the essay first, then the poem. I like it because I've done something like this just a few months ago. With the many artists in the world now, it's becoming increasingly difficult to be original. Anything I write will have roots to something else so the wave right now is to experiment. He utilized two forms of art in order to relay a message. A personal essay tells a story; a poem can also tell a story; music can also tell a story. So, there's three forms that all have the same potential being observed at the same time. It's interesting.

Modern

The other day my college hosted literary critic Stephen Greenblatt. He talked about his new book The Swerve and modernity. As a writer, it was a good idea for me to be in the audience for his lecture, but as a person who has never of him or hasn't spent much time looking up modernity, I was lost. When I went in, I noticed the dominant audience right away - old me with balding white hair. The minority in the room were students and female professors. It seemed like the younger you were, the more closer to the back you were pushed because the male professors showed up as early as Springfield teens waiting in line to buy a new Jordan release. It was difficult to keep up between a topic I wasn't learned in and references to dated things like the Rolling Stones.

What I could catch was somewhat important. The way it seemed, and this is something I've actually come across in other places, is that when we plan for the future, we look towards the past. There is a poem the book is based on; the poem is "On the Nature of Things" by Lucretius. When it was found thousands of years after being printed, it sparked a literary gold rush amongst scholars. Everyone was looking for old pieces buried, to initiate these conversations starting Renaissances - I believe it was the European Renaissance specifically. Discoveries help foster new ideas to work with.

Aside from trying to keep up, I think it was important for me to attend this lecture. It's good to see how literary critics think. The reason should be simple, I'm a writer and they will soon be critiquing my work looking to see if there are any ideas to build off.

Liberally Artistic

In what way can a liberal arts education be useful in today’s society? One of the biggest questions we humanities majors receive while in high school – I guess before we actually get to college and a major in a humanity is nothing more than an aspiration. From teachers and parents alike, they fear for our employment. Parents aren’t sure if they want to invest in an education that has no economic promises. One of my English teachers applauded my planned career and side-dream, but asked if I was ready to become a “starving artist.” Wanting to remain optimistic about my life decision, I said I was ready, and that I was after more than just money.

That kind of mindset is what’s featured in an article titled On the Uses of a Liberal Education: II. As a Weapon in the hands of the Restless Poor. We see that a humanities education is a way to interact with society – albeit it’s another form of socialization. It’s a recurring theme for us that we can be rich, we can wealthy, not through economic means, but through education. The article depicts Earl Shorris as he created an experiment based on a conversation with a woman in prison. She told him something he hadn’t expected, but someone like me could’ve said as well, that being educated about society is wealth as well. The experiment consisted of classes in the humanities area for poor or under-privileged persons. Some students’ lives were picking up a little bit, one even applying to an actual college. When you become educated about society, you can be a part of society’s conversation. 

In juxtaposition, the first part of the article was called On the Uses of a Liberal Education: I. As Lite Entertainment for Bored College Students (this one by another college professor Mark Edmundson). Despite not being the wealthiest, that context in terms of monies, I could relate to this one as well. What happens is that classes in the humanities are taken for entertainment. That reason is correct. Edmundson notes that these students’ lives would be unchanged when the course ended – which is opposite to Shorris’ students. It’s not really something they need in their life … nothing more than a fulfilled credit requirement.

I must comment that both articles mentioned the Socratic Seminar. That’s something I’ve been doing in my AP 11 & 12 English classes. Both had two teachers and one of them was our teacher for 11 and also does 12. That one was a big fan of the Socratic Seminar. Instead of being lectured at, or having a discussion that’s emotional based, the seminar makes you think before you answer because anything that’s said will and can be built upon, or “deconstructed” (that was one of my teacher’s top phrases). But, without a liberal arts education, it would be difficult to maintain this type of seminar. Without one, they could easily devolve into simple discussions of identity. Seminars dig depth, discussions scrape width. This paragraph was something I just needed to insert…

When it comes to knowing about your humanity and your own humanity, a liberal arts education will give you the knowledge on how to tackle such philosophies. Putting the whole employment thing down, KNOWLEDGE IS POWER, right? I welcome the argument because you’ll be proving me right. Even if nothing is referenced, you had to learn to think about how you’re going to argue in some way. Liberal Arts teaches society… imagine a life without it. People would know nothing of the Harlem Renaissance, the arts themselves would be as fantasy as teenaged vampires, if even those existed. Would religion even exist? Liberal Arts gives a window into the cultures of societies, so without that window, many things would not exist today. Think of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, where that society burns books because books contain knowledge. It keeps people in the dark with no power, while a democratic government can acquire absolute monarchy qualities. Don’t think of fun, don’t think of imagination, don’t think of creativity, don’t think of freedom… just, don’t think at all – and there you will find a dystopian society. 

 

Collage or Composition

A collage with no title. Actually, not titling it myself, or at least not revealing my title, leads to the theme of my work. I knew what idea I wanted to work with when I first started – and that somewhat expanded into a more broad, abstract concept – although something that everything has no choice but to be familiar with. However, I did not use any conventional or concrete examples for this. I used things from my life… my roommate commented, “Is that supposed to be your desk?”

I hadn’t made that realization until then. During the creation, my mind was lost to both Marshall Mathers LPs playing through the speakers. Sub-consciously I would pick off items – like the Altoid case or my laptop. Anything that got added from my real world, received a touch up. Even though the picture isn’t the clearest (soon I will have a scanned copy up so the detail will be more noticeable), I don’t want to disclose everything. My clippers, instead of saying “Made in US” like the actual pair in my room, say, “Made in HAH-C,” my initials. That’s one of the big hints towards the idea I wanted to convey. Another item present does not even exist yet anywhere but in my head – the cover of my book. There’s no title and I actually printed a partly-legible sentence on a page where the chapter is “Chapter A” and not the usual “1” or “I.” I had some fun with that where I took my old penname and wrote a boastful comment about the book and it’s ideas – the company that houses the penname is called “Hopper-Collins Perspectives,” another hint at this poster is supposed to mean. 

The version posted, and the version I have now are actually a little different. I decided to change two items, and add an entirely new one. I just felt I should point that out. Also, unless you went to my high school or were in my Upward Bound program, I wouldn’t expect you to figure out what “S.Goodbye” and “Public Trans” stand for. They are titles for two poems I wrote, the latter actually called Public Transit – and also has a second marking in another form of writing. They aren’t my favorite pieces, albeit in the top five, but it’s the creation that caused their appearance. Some other items include headphones that interact with my book, a lamp and a fist. The fist is actually interesting because I had originally intended it to be the black power fist – which in my opinion it still is. One of the cords for the headphones runs through the fist, which would change the perspective of what it could mean for different people. Out of all the little scenes in the collage, the fist is the only one I could come up with a color scheme – something personal to my identity. 

And there is a reason this is colorless. Not because that’s how I see the world. Some things might be a different color for different people; different perspectives were important creating this. Look at all the little stick figures. However, don’t just take my words for what my art means. Other people have already expressed their ideas of what things meant that I hadn’t thought of – it’s like literary criticism, for visual art.