As a society, we do not live in a "time". At certain points in history, civilizations have had tiny revolutions on all aspects of life. Wagner had his romantic period, where the arts, politics, philosophy, architecture and design reflect the importance of emotion and aesthetic experience. Societies accomplishments produced at this time are timeless, with beautiful churches, breathtaking symphonies and lip-trembling paintings to leave behind. This could often be explained by their furious love for God and unnatural fear of hell, but at least this created something beautiful (not forgetting the many people who died as a cause of this irreverent 'piety'). When we make things today, we are far more concerned with profit and increased consumption to make things we are proud of, or things which last, which is a great shame. In this sense, the fear of hell is sometimes the only incentive powerful enough for us to surpass wealth in order to create beauty (this shows a lot about the human condition).
The differences brought about by these movements are subtle, often beautiful (excl. post-modernism's ghastly city center concrete jungles!) and always lasting. The problem is, triggering this type of mini social revolution involves effort and that is the key thing us Brits lack.
Things are obviously wrong in our country - noted by the familiar upturn in power of the extreme right wing often associated with recessions we have seen recently - why do we not demand change?
Sound moral thinkers and passionate human beings have stopped expressing themselves, potential Dali's and Oscar Wildes are convinced that art is not a proper career, the outlook is bleak. The only abundance there is, is that of information. Money is scarce, resources are scarce(or made to seem scarce for our own 'good'), but the amount of information is growing exponentially.
Use this information, learn, better ourselves and help fix what our fathers have fucked up.
Thankyou.
Wednesday 17 June 2009
Monday 11 May 2009
Numero dos
A lot of learning has taken place over the past month or so. I should really be trying to internalize pointless knowledge for college at the moment. Exams encroaching in single figure days. I think the comprehensive education system in this country is so out of touch with reality it borders on lunacy. My experience of it is timed exams, where knowledge is to be memorized and then regurgitated. A uniform set of rules which renders any slightly creative and reflective person utterly useless, writing is for jumping hoops and "signposting", not expression and understanding. I have realized why I fail to succeed in my more recent exams, I start off with an initial plan, but my wandering, tangential mind has a plan of it's own.
Here is my problem:
When handwriting an essay, the initial vision we start off with seems unchangeable and precise. Although the act of pen on paper in itself changes this vision, clouding the previously clear path and gently stratifying the novices from the Wordsworths. It is the difficulty of this process which I respect most about writers, how close they can get their finished product to the initial cognition they once had. It is this very skill I am incapable of. Typing on computers is easy, you can delete, add, format and consolidate, but writing is beautifully different. The restrictions of pen and paper make each passage unique and personal. I lust after the ability to write, and I am so intrigued by language, but my new found love of literature seems too little, too late. My writing technique is now part of me and seems uneager to change. Woe is me!
Here is my problem:
When handwriting an essay, the initial vision we start off with seems unchangeable and precise. Although the act of pen on paper in itself changes this vision, clouding the previously clear path and gently stratifying the novices from the Wordsworths. It is the difficulty of this process which I respect most about writers, how close they can get their finished product to the initial cognition they once had. It is this very skill I am incapable of. Typing on computers is easy, you can delete, add, format and consolidate, but writing is beautifully different. The restrictions of pen and paper make each passage unique and personal. I lust after the ability to write, and I am so intrigued by language, but my new found love of literature seems too little, too late. My writing technique is now part of me and seems uneager to change. Woe is me!
Sunday 12 April 2009
"I decree today that life is simply taking and not giving"
Normality, not the idea of a social norm, more the fossilized belief systems found in civilization. The sort of ideas which are so deeply rooted in the human condition that they have become a part of us. Those which allows backward priorities to flourish and inhibit the ability to prioritize the self over entities such as money or deities. In response to the norm - rather than step back and realize the error in our predecessors ways and attempt to fix the fucked up biosphere we are surrounded by - we take up our cardboard throne on our asbestos kingdom and send down the citizens to repair the foundations when they depreciate.
One norm, seemingly hardwired in our nubile brains, is the irrational individual importance we retain. We were delivered by God, to reap the land of all it's possession, and to create a bartering system which allows us to retain happiness from these stolen goods. This happiness is achieved by attaining commodities, solely designed to saturate sensual perception. The profit gained from this bartering system will eventually become a commodity in itself, people no longer strive to work toward an increased welfare of land, but to have a higher number on a sheet of paper. This paper being the working man's incentive to turn his back on the natural world and eventually detach himself wholly from reality.
Rather than a man's reward allowing him to achieve happiness internally through reflection and self-improvement, it washes away at his insatiable thirst for sensual and sexual immediacy. The man keeps drinking to satisfy this thirst and eventually becomes fully independent from his celestial fatherland. The paternal bond between Man and Earth which was once celebrated is now forgotten, all through the idea of abundant normality. The sheer size of planet Earth and the resources he possesses must be too much for just little old "me" to consume... but humanity's wants are limitless, so with enough time there is nothing little old "us" can't consume. In this sense we are essentially the worst of all diseases, working in a unit, sheltered by legal, military and monetary systems, eating away at the Utopian landscape of our only option of home. Fucking up the planet because we want to.
One norm, seemingly hardwired in our nubile brains, is the irrational individual importance we retain. We were delivered by God, to reap the land of all it's possession, and to create a bartering system which allows us to retain happiness from these stolen goods. This happiness is achieved by attaining commodities, solely designed to saturate sensual perception. The profit gained from this bartering system will eventually become a commodity in itself, people no longer strive to work toward an increased welfare of land, but to have a higher number on a sheet of paper. This paper being the working man's incentive to turn his back on the natural world and eventually detach himself wholly from reality.
Rather than a man's reward allowing him to achieve happiness internally through reflection and self-improvement, it washes away at his insatiable thirst for sensual and sexual immediacy. The man keeps drinking to satisfy this thirst and eventually becomes fully independent from his celestial fatherland. The paternal bond between Man and Earth which was once celebrated is now forgotten, all through the idea of abundant normality. The sheer size of planet Earth and the resources he possesses must be too much for just little old "me" to consume... but humanity's wants are limitless, so with enough time there is nothing little old "us" can't consume. In this sense we are essentially the worst of all diseases, working in a unit, sheltered by legal, military and monetary systems, eating away at the Utopian landscape of our only option of home. Fucking up the planet because we want to.
Welcome to the new world...
This blog is essentially mindless self-indulgence re-mediated to move people towards social change.
This will happen mainly through the medium of prose, although there may be some photography and other resources involved. Axiom by my understanding is an unexplained degree of necessity or conformity to a mathematical proposition. This has a profound degree of relevance sociologically, although the entirety of this blog will not be about sociology, but also about philosophy, art, economics and some dabbling in the unknown. If you agree with any of it, my aim is complete.
In solidarity,
H Maguire
This will happen mainly through the medium of prose, although there may be some photography and other resources involved. Axiom by my understanding is an unexplained degree of necessity or conformity to a mathematical proposition. This has a profound degree of relevance sociologically, although the entirety of this blog will not be about sociology, but also about philosophy, art, economics and some dabbling in the unknown. If you agree with any of it, my aim is complete.
In solidarity,
H Maguire
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)