A look into a Romanticist museum.

As a pianist, my favourite musical pieces comes from the Romantic era. Earlier in my piano career I was fortunate enough to be able to play "Pavane" by Gabriel Faure and loved it, so here is the piece! That musical history class that I had to take to complete my piano training will surely come of aid here.

Faure - Pavane op 50 (1887)

As with many other composers from the Romantic period, chromaticism is noted in many of their works. The use of dissonance and unresolved tones help to create a more mystical, whimsical approach to music, as opposed to the earlier classical music that follows a strict structure and must always be resolved. In this piece in particular, the term "Tempo Rubato" comes to mind, literally translated to "borrowed time"; the composer speeds up and slows down to induce emotive responses in the listener. These new innovations came as people were straying from the more traditional technical structures of the Sonata, Quartets, and Symphonies. Medieval dances such as the "Pavane", help characterize the more individual, reflective elements of each composer.

The next piece, which is another favourite piece of mine has garnered quite a cult following on the internet. It has become an internet meme, as people are beginning to caption the picture with eloquent, and humorous thoughts.

Joseph- Ducreux Portrait de l'artiste sous les traits d'un moqueur (1793)

This photo is clearly indicative of a rebellion and a divergence from the earlier self-portraits of nobility. Instead of painting a calm, almost expressionless demeanor, Decreux opted to do a series of paintings that showed a range of human emotions. His attempts at understanding his own emotions are documented in these paintings and provide a vivid reminder of the laughter, joy, fear, and anguish that is felt differently for everyone, yet still infinitely the same.

This painting has garnered attention recently on social media sites. An example of a captioned picture is as followed.

This last piece, is undoubtedly my favourite of the three. The following is a poem by William Blake, entitled "The Garden of Love"

The Garden Of Love

I laid me down upon a bank,
Where Love lay sleeping;
I heard among the rushes dank
Weeping, weeping.

Then I went to the heath and the wild,
To the thistles and thorns of the waste;
And they told me how they were beguiled,
Driven out, and compelled to the chaste.

I went to the Garden of Love,
And saw what I never had seen;
A Chapel was built in the midst,
Where I used to play on the green.

And the gates of this Chapel were shut,
And ‘Thou shalt not’ writ over the door;
So I turned to the Garden of Love
That so many sweet flowers bore.

And I saw it was filled with graves,
And tombstones where flowers should be;
And Priests in black gowns were walking their rounds,
And binding with briars my joys & desires

The reason why I like this piece more than other romantic poetry is that it doesn't limit itself to being only reflective and life-affirming or only gothic, but both. This poem, beginning with a critique on love, progresses to images of nature and "the wild" (Blake 5). After much reflection, the abrupt shift in stanza 5, with the repeated use of "and" in the beginning of each line, suggest an dark, horrific epiphany of the reality of life. Life leads to death, and therefore death must be consulted and reconciled with. Blake also stigmatizes religion in the last stanza, which garnered him much disdain at the time. The use of religion and spirituality as representative of death was quite controversial during this time period, as religion was often observed in a noble and dignified setting.

Quotation: 'Women ought to have representatives, instead of being arbitrarily governed without any direct share allowed them in the deliberations of government" (J.S. Mill)


This quote suggests that women should have equal assess to governing the state. It brings forth the idea that women should indeed have a voice in parliament and be able to deliberate and pass bills that ought to help other women. The quote was uttered in a time that held a great amount of gender inequality; women were not given equal rights and opportunities and men were often considered superior. This quote serves as a precursor to the feminist movement, and the fact that a man said it helped aid the validity of the statement during that time period. The need for equality is not something that was an issue only for John Stuart Mill as problems of gender inequality still exist in our modern society to this day, but simply to a lesser extent.

Gummo

"Life is beautiful, without it, you'd be dead!"

I love film-fest movies. The one thing that Ms. Wittlin has instilled in me is my love for such films. Every weekend I indulge in 2-3 film-fest movies, and the one I came across this weekend was Gummo. I can't quite decide whether I love this film or hate it, but one thing for certain is that it is a disturbingly charming piece.

While watching the movie, I couldn't get Sailor out of my head. The plots were just far too similar; a group of nihilist children who isolate themselves from the world and adopt a feline friend of their own. The movie had me sitting on the edge of my seat for an entire hour, every scene was disturbing and beautiful in the same breath. The film reeks of originality, and I guess the entire film serves as a representation of the futility of life. Although the contents of the film may feel foreign to many of the viewers; the strange, off-putting narration made me feel almost intrusive on the lives of these alienated children. Nihilism should not exist as an exclusively black and white term, it should instead be considered as a spectrum, as even the most desolate children, like the ones found in "Gummo", find meaning in the smaller intricacies of life. The strength of human connection; most notably friendship, is present in both Gummo and Sailor.

If sailor was set in the American south, I suppose it would end up something like this movie.

Noboru's bigotry

To be honest, literature often doesn't truly relate to me. Sometimes, I may loosely identify with a belief or perhaps an idea, but as a whole, not many novels have truly influenced me as a person, on a more human level. The beauty in this is that once in a while, you read a novel that truly has a profound effect on you, something that resonates with you on a personal level and influences your lifestyle.

Richard Dawkin's "The God Delusion" had that affect on me. (an absolute MUST read for anyone interested in spirituality)

In the book, Dawkin's identifies; among other things, the classification of children based on spiritual belief. He is firm on the belief that labelling a child a "Catholic child", an "Islamic child" or any other variant, is just as benign as labelling someone a "Marxist child". Therein lies a problem; Catholic schools and other versions of these schools dictate a child's spirituality. I find a fundamental problem in labelling a child, someone who cannot even begin to understand the implications of life, with doctrines that may well dictate their lives. With this perspective, I can identify with why Noboru and his gang hate the concept of parenting. The idea of someone forcibly enculturating their beliefs onto a child is in itself a form of bigotry.

The problem with this is that Noboru himself is no different. Noboru is a bigot.

When Noboru notices Ryuji's fall from grace; his transition from being a sailor to a father, Noboru and his gang are quick to act. By the end of the novel; although it is never written, it is implied that the gang kill Ryuji to return him to his lost glory. This act is no different than the stoning of women, the holocaust, 9/11, and the innumerable range of events that stem from strong, fundamental belief systems. In all of these cases, an individual, or a group of individuals physically enforces their beliefs at the expense of another human being. The irony in this is that Noboru himself eventually becomes what he despises most, someone who forces their ideologies upon others.

Maturity and Role

These days, what does maturing actually entail?

Personally, the idea of growing up seems like an immensely benign task, partly because working seems like it sucks, and partly because the responsibility that comes with adulthood. I guess that's why I want to be immature as long as possible, maturity seems to add far more problems than solutions. In Noboru's world, a mature man and a mature woman have such defined roles, but I find that these roles are more universal and not simply just a "child's" view of the world. The "man" is forced into a life of solitude; that of a sailor, while the "women" is the damsel in distress, waiting for her lover to return. In many ways, this still occurs in North America. The social pressures on men and women are beginning to ease, but turn on the TV or walk into a horror movie  and you'll start to see the different roles right away. I'm sure everyone is familiar with the image of the man, sitting with all his vigor and might, comforting the scared woman while they both watch a scary movie. It's sad that even kids like Noboru are enculturated with these views; even at that young, subtle age he was able to see that the men had the might and that the woman were easily objectified. That idea is truly distasteful.

I wish people would refrain from implying the social aspects that come with gender, and instead view it from a more biological, perhaps anatomical point of view. I guess that's why I treasure youth so much; we aren't as burdened by these roles and are socially allowed to "slip-up". The topic genuinely intrigues me, as the other day one of my peers was telling someone else to "be a man", specifically because the "man" was talking too much about his emotions. As I heard the conversation, I joked about it and replied with "this isn't the 14th century, men are allowed to have feelings now". I guess I played the idea off as a joke, but the matter seems more serious now that I reflect back on it.

I truly love being young, but sometimes, the ignorance that propagates within the teenage community disheartens me.

Glory: Facebook vs. the sea

Glory was relevant throughout Sailor, but glory is a completely universal aspect of life. In the age of the internet and the rise of social networking sites, Facebook seems like the new method to attain the prescribed glory. Narcissicism is something that has plagued humanity and seems to transgress culture and traditions. In that sense, we aren't much different from Noburu. He finds glory in the more subtle aspects of life; his mother, the sea, childhood, while we instead find glory from how many people like our posts on Facebook. With this connection, the modern lifestyle of the western civilization coincides with the traditional lifestyle of the eastern civilization. The ways in which we acheive this glory may differ, but the need to acheive this glory is present in both societies. The East and West aren't that different after all.

Deconstructionalism versus New Critism

A while ago, my english teacher showed us examples of how to interpret texts. She told us to stay away from deconstructionism; it was supposed to be too challenging for us and hard to understand. I kind of took this as a challenge. Deconstructionism actually plays a huge role in Sailor, given the fact that the main character found virtually no meaning in the trivialties of life. Although the author builds Noburu as a character capable of the immoral act of murder, one cannot assume that Noburu actually murders Ryuji. The ambiguity of novels cannot ever be accurately accounted for; character behaviour is far too varied to be quantifiable. This is where a fundamental question arises, did Noburu actually murder Ryuji? Deconstructionalism tells us no. New criticism tells us yes. I guess that's what makes different lenses so powerful. Choice.

Nihilism.

Nihilism in Sailor had a more profound effect in me, given that I myself have been nihilistic before. It isn't unreasonable to see younger children question the purpose of life nowdays, I guess that's why I didn't like sailor much. Everything that Noburu thought was something that I myself have pondered; aside from his voyeuristic tendancies and his cat trials. Reading the book was like reflecting on past thoughts, which was surreal and a tad bit repetitive. Birth, education, jobs, wealth, all seem to lead to the inevitable event of death, the event at which everyone ultimately becomes equal. I guess that the temporary nature of life and it's events is what truly makes life beautiful. Perhaps that it is this reasoning; the need to live in the moment, is what sets me apart from Noburu, someone who I all too much recognize as being a younger, more bold me. The fact that everything is in constant change, constant motion, is what truly quantifies life as worth living. I guess that's why I love change so much, because If I didn't, perhaps I would've killed a sailor of my own, haha. Attached is a picture of everything that has ever happened in your life, in a pale blue dot. It's Earth. How insignificant. : )