“Any person under the age of thirty, who, having knowledge of the existing social order, is not a revolutionist, is an inferior.”
(George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman)
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Wisdom by Lennon
There's nothing you can do that can't be done.
(John Lennon, "All You Need is Love")
This is one of my favourite John Lennon lines, because it's meaning is very ambiguous - it might be an incredibly life-affirming statement or just a bit of deliberately confusing language. John Lennon was a big fan of Lewis Carroll, the mathematics scholar and author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Caroll used a lot of puzzling wordplay in his stories (for example, at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, the characters spend a full page debating whether "I mean what I say" means the same as "I say what I mean"). Lennon employs similarly maddening wordplay in the above quote.
If we read the line literally, it is saying: If you can do something, and demonstrate that to me, then obviously it is possible. For example, if you can juggle two tennis balls, it can be done. It would not be logical for me to say "it can't be done," because you've shown me that it can.
So it's actually a bit pointless to say "there's nothing you can do that can't be done" - it's a statement of fact so plainly obvious that most of us would never bother putting it into words. And that's why we're thrown off by it when Lennon sings - he's being deliberately playful. On top of that, he's set this line to one of the most upbeat melodies he ever wrote - in fact, the melody is so shiny and heart-warming that when we listen to "All We Need is Love," we instantly assume that the line carries a life-affirming, positive message. Grammatically, it doesn't - it's a very obscure bit of literary wordplay by a Lewis Carroll fan. However, set to Lennon's melody and to the unequivocally joyful chorus, the line does take on a positive connotation: you can do anything that you can dream of. And I suppose that's an argument that can be proven.
Sidenote: Lennon's vocal for "All You Need is Love" was recorded live for one of the first global satellite television broadcasts, a special entitled "Our World" seen in twenty-four countries.
(John Lennon, "All You Need is Love")
This is one of my favourite John Lennon lines, because it's meaning is very ambiguous - it might be an incredibly life-affirming statement or just a bit of deliberately confusing language. John Lennon was a big fan of Lewis Carroll, the mathematics scholar and author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Caroll used a lot of puzzling wordplay in his stories (for example, at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, the characters spend a full page debating whether "I mean what I say" means the same as "I say what I mean"). Lennon employs similarly maddening wordplay in the above quote.
If we read the line literally, it is saying: If you can do something, and demonstrate that to me, then obviously it is possible. For example, if you can juggle two tennis balls, it can be done. It would not be logical for me to say "it can't be done," because you've shown me that it can.
So it's actually a bit pointless to say "there's nothing you can do that can't be done" - it's a statement of fact so plainly obvious that most of us would never bother putting it into words. And that's why we're thrown off by it when Lennon sings - he's being deliberately playful. On top of that, he's set this line to one of the most upbeat melodies he ever wrote - in fact, the melody is so shiny and heart-warming that when we listen to "All We Need is Love," we instantly assume that the line carries a life-affirming, positive message. Grammatically, it doesn't - it's a very obscure bit of literary wordplay by a Lewis Carroll fan. However, set to Lennon's melody and to the unequivocally joyful chorus, the line does take on a positive connotation: you can do anything that you can dream of. And I suppose that's an argument that can be proven.
Sidenote: Lennon's vocal for "All You Need is Love" was recorded live for one of the first global satellite television broadcasts, a special entitled "Our World" seen in twenty-four countries.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
The Beautiful Changes
Here's one on the nature of beauty:
...the beautiful changes
In such kind ways,
Wishing ever to sunder
Things and things' selves for a second finding, to lose
For a moment all that it touches back to wonder.
(Richard Wilbur, "The Beautiful Changes")
The language of this one is a bit tricky. When we read the phrase "the beautiful changes," we initially think the poem is about changes that are beautiful; however, it is beauty itself that is changing, surprising the beholder with fresh variations. According to Wilbur, when we find something (or even better, someone) beautiful, that beauty is not one-dimensional and unchanging: it is not something that can be exhausted, or that we can grow tired of. Just when you one think you've got it figured out what is beautiful about that person or object, you notice something new (the timbre of someone's voice, or the arrangement of brushstrokes in a painting), something undiscovered until now that strikes deep at your heart.
One implication of the poem is that you must know someone/something for quite a while to discover all these beautiful changes - the author persuades us of the value of sustained, meaningful relationships. I suppose another implication is that the full power of someone's beauty is revealed only by taking the time to know them well and understand them thoroughly.
...the beautiful changes
In such kind ways,
Wishing ever to sunder
Things and things' selves for a second finding, to lose
For a moment all that it touches back to wonder.
(Richard Wilbur, "The Beautiful Changes")
The language of this one is a bit tricky. When we read the phrase "the beautiful changes," we initially think the poem is about changes that are beautiful; however, it is beauty itself that is changing, surprising the beholder with fresh variations. According to Wilbur, when we find something (or even better, someone) beautiful, that beauty is not one-dimensional and unchanging: it is not something that can be exhausted, or that we can grow tired of. Just when you one think you've got it figured out what is beautiful about that person or object, you notice something new (the timbre of someone's voice, or the arrangement of brushstrokes in a painting), something undiscovered until now that strikes deep at your heart.
One implication of the poem is that you must know someone/something for quite a while to discover all these beautiful changes - the author persuades us of the value of sustained, meaningful relationships. I suppose another implication is that the full power of someone's beauty is revealed only by taking the time to know them well and understand them thoroughly.
Friday, May 25, 2007
Explanation of the blog's title
I should share the quote from which the title of the blog is taken:
"For this soul needs to be honoured with a new dress woven
From green and blue things and arguments that cannot be proven."
- Patrick Kavanagh, "Canal Bank Walk"
Patrick Kavanagh was an Irish poet who grew up on a small farm in County Monaghan and walked all the way to the city of Dublin to begin his career as a poet. He was never wealthy during his lifetime; he made a few bob (Irish slang for cash) writing for magazines and newspapers, although he was typically fired for his fiery temper or his penchant for wandering off-topic. Late in life, he depended on friends and elderly women for his living.
He suffered a heart attack in the 1960s, and wrote this poem shortly thereafter. It's about the pleasure he takes in simply sitting by the waters of the Grand Canal in Dublin, watching the water and the people passing by. Kavanagh's soul may have grown weary from a life of poverty, hardship, and obscurity - but instead of submitting to weariness, he decides he can "dress" his soul in art and ideas that transcend the material world, ideas and wonders that cannot be proven by physical science. The quote celebrates the power of human thought to overcome the difficulties and set-backs of human life. The quote resonates with me because I believe that poetry - the use of words to express beautiful thoughts - makes my life better, even when material things (or my lack thereof) worries me. This is my "argument that cannot be proven."
Personal note: The last time I was in Dublin, I stole a pint glass from the same bar where Kavanagh used to drink.
"For this soul needs to be honoured with a new dress woven
From green and blue things and arguments that cannot be proven."
- Patrick Kavanagh, "Canal Bank Walk"
Patrick Kavanagh was an Irish poet who grew up on a small farm in County Monaghan and walked all the way to the city of Dublin to begin his career as a poet. He was never wealthy during his lifetime; he made a few bob (Irish slang for cash) writing for magazines and newspapers, although he was typically fired for his fiery temper or his penchant for wandering off-topic. Late in life, he depended on friends and elderly women for his living.
He suffered a heart attack in the 1960s, and wrote this poem shortly thereafter. It's about the pleasure he takes in simply sitting by the waters of the Grand Canal in Dublin, watching the water and the people passing by. Kavanagh's soul may have grown weary from a life of poverty, hardship, and obscurity - but instead of submitting to weariness, he decides he can "dress" his soul in art and ideas that transcend the material world, ideas and wonders that cannot be proven by physical science. The quote celebrates the power of human thought to overcome the difficulties and set-backs of human life. The quote resonates with me because I believe that poetry - the use of words to express beautiful thoughts - makes my life better, even when material things (or my lack thereof) worries me. This is my "argument that cannot be proven."
Personal note: The last time I was in Dublin, I stole a pint glass from the same bar where Kavanagh used to drink.
Almost-Daily Quotes
Emailing quotes to one's circle of friends has become pretty popular. And since I'm supposed to be a literature guy, I thought I would challenge myself to find interesting, provocative quotes to share with a few of my friends. The challenge lies in the fact that I aim to quote only texts that I have read or have some familiarity with - none of the quotes I will share have been ripped from the internet. As a result, the quotes you'll see here will be a measure of my own reading, and will likely force me to read a little more quickly (so as to have a fresh supply ready). The other thing that appeals to me about sharing quotes is that you can really only share quotes that you agree with personally; as a result, the quotes I include here will reveal a bit about my own philsophy.
“The unexamined life is not worth living” (Attributed to Socrates, in Plato’s Dialogues)
In saying this, Socrates was urging us to ask questions about our own lives. When we ask questions, we gain understanding. Further, we can only enjoy what we understand (ex. Pirates of the Caribbean 3 - just kidding!). Therefore, our lives become more worthwhile, more enjoyable, and richer when we ask questions and obtain powerful answers.
“The unexamined life is not worth living” (Attributed to Socrates, in Plato’s Dialogues)
In saying this, Socrates was urging us to ask questions about our own lives. When we ask questions, we gain understanding. Further, we can only enjoy what we understand (ex. Pirates of the Caribbean 3 - just kidding!). Therefore, our lives become more worthwhile, more enjoyable, and richer when we ask questions and obtain powerful answers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)