Swear.by.The.Sword.

Holding Artists Accountable

2008-02-15T09:24:00.000-08:00

Can we hold artists accountable for their work? I believe that we Can hold artists accountable for their work to an extent. The reason I say this is because, even though artists can choose to put whatever they want in theit work, and they might not necissarily put their beliefs into their work, most of the time there will be at least a glimps into what the artists thinks. Most artists will put what they believe into their work, because that's why they do their art, whatever form of art, whether it be, acting, music, or painting, they do that form of art to express their beliefs.

interacting with DARKNESS

2008-02-12T22:02:00.000-08:00

Although it is night, I sit in the bathroom, waiting.
Sweat prickles behind my knees, the baby-breasts are alert.
Venetian blinds slice up the moon; the tiles quiver in pale strips.

Then they come, the three seal men with eyes as round
As dinner plates and eyelashes like sharpened tines.
They bring the scent of licorice. One sits in the washbowl,

One on the bathtub edge; one leans against the door.
"Can you feel it yet?" they whisper.
I don't know what to say, again. They chuckle,

Patting their sleek bodies with their hands.
"Well, maybe next time." And they rise,
Glittering like pools of ink under moonlight,

And vanish. I clutch at the ragged holes
They leave behind, here at the edge of darkness.
Night rests like a ball of fur on my tongue.

What is the significance of the girl interacting with the darkness in Adolescence II? In order to tell you the significance of the girl's interaction with the "darkness," I would have to fully understand what this poem is about. I don't. but I can try mybest to interpret what the "darkness" is, then we can go from there.

The "darkness" is obviously something bad, something that leaves her speechless. the "darkness" is something that keeps beating at her, something that torments her... I think that the "darkness" is the pressures that occur during adolescence.. love, lies, promiscuity, sex, drugs... and possibly cocoapuffs. ;) it is peer-pressure.

Now that we have established what the "darkness" is, we can begin to explain the significance of the girls interaction with it.

In the beginning, the girl resists the "darkness," or what we are calling peer-pressure. it keeps pressing on her, she begins to bend, then she breaks. peer-pressure has had it's way with her. like it does with every adolescent. then in the end, once peer-pressure, the "darkness" has it's way with her, the pressures just toss her aside. and she's left, all alone. broken. the last line is "night rests like a ball of fur on my tongue." have you ever had hair in your mouth? let alone an entire ball of fur. it's the worst feeling isn't it? you can't get ride of it. that's how "the darkness" leaves her. it leaves her, broken. alone. with a taste in her mouth that she can't get out.

This poem shows the torment that all adolescents go through. it shows how we can't avoid it, and as fast as the "seal men" or peer-pressures come, they are gone, like "glittering pools of ink".

Victims?

2008-01-30T09:10:00.000-08:00

How have I been a victim of hyperreality? I believe that movies create a false reality for me. even though I know that you can't believe everything uyou see in a movie.. I still leave the theater thinking to myself "why can't my life be like that?" or " why can't everything just work out in the end like it did in that movie?" but the truth is that movies create a false reality. The fact that I'm imagining my life if it was perfect isn't a false reality. the movie creates a false reality that makes me think that maybe it is possible to have a perfect life.. even though I know that it's not. Hyperreality causes us to all be disappointed with our lives, no matter how great they may be.. because they're not the perfect movie life. this is the hyperreality... not the fact that I want a better life, but the fact that I think that I need a better life because of what I see in movies!

postmodern Christians

2008-01-21T23:19:00.000-08:00

I am a postmodern CHristian... I disgree with postmodernism.. but I tend to think like a postmodernist... ALL OF THE TIME!! I think that it is ok.. as Christians we just have to realize that postmodernism is a compleatly backwards worldview. I believe that many Christians tend to think postmodern.. is this a bad thing? I don't think it's that bad... but we can't get sucked into the dilusion of anti-realsim, and non-bnaturalism, or the celebration of chaos....

Captain Jack is POMO

2008-01-16T11:37:00.000-08:00

He is POMO in the sense that he is so carefree. He lets everything slide. He only does things that will benifit him. Captain Jack believes that whatever is right for him is right, even if it might not be right for someone else. in the same fashion he believes that even if someone elses truth isn't his truth, it can still be truth, as long as it's nothing bad for him. He believes that nothing matters, because he is always subject to this "dream" that his in. he never plans anything out, and he is always just "winging it" He roles with the punches, and lets his life be subject to chaos. He celebrates his disorderly life, and he doesn't submitt himself to social or political systems. he always follows this compass, but he doesn't even know where it's leading him. All he knows it that it is leading him to "what his heart truely longs for".

Ants

2008-01-13T23:30:00.000-08:00

so... we're supposed to break our "antly" pattern. if I may.

I was walking through the mall with my Australian exchange student when I saw a photobooth. I thought. "wow... what a good way to break out of my ant pattern and talk to someone I would have never talked to.

the first person I asked was this older black man. he had this awesome walking stick and a pimp type hat on. he looked legit. so... I walked up to him and asked if he wanted to take some pictures with me in the photobooth. his answer was no. I was disappointed. but he went on to say that the reason he couldn't take a picture is because he would get vertigo from the flash. he said it was from when he used to fight. I asked him "oh... you boxed?" he said. "yes... I boxed in New York." he went on to say that he was the only man who defeated this one boxing champion. (I can't remember his name.) he also said that he was a lower division welterwieght champion in New York. He was really happy that I had asked him to be in the picture though. he said thank you young man. it was nice meeting you. I said back "hey. it was even more awesome to meet you. have a great day."

well... I still needed to get a picture with someone. so I asked this older asian woman... she just said "NOOOOOoooo..." and walked away fast.
then I asked this chubby man, and he just kept walking and didn't say anything.

so... I went up to this girl that was working at Wetzel's Pretzels, her name was Renee. I asked her if she wanted to be in the pictures with me. she was like... "umm... ok?"

we went into the photobooth. it asked us what kinda of layout we wanted. the option were ones like: Love, or bestfriends, or cool people, or western and crap like that. I said to her... "oooo... let's do the love one!" she didn't have any objections.

it took 5 pictures and each one I made her do different things. then after it took the pictures I said thankyou. have a nice night. she went back to work.

it took like 3 minutes to print. and it prented 2 copys so I gave her a copy and wrote on the back "never forget me." then signed my name.

over all it was kinda wierd. but it was really cool hearing the old black mans stories, and taking pictures with a random girl from Wetzel's Prestzels.

Go to it.

2008-01-02T19:51:00.000-08:00

“So Guildenstern and Rosencrantz go to’t”

I am led to believe that it is said in disapproval. The reason being that after Horatio say this, it seems that Hamlet tries to defend himself. Why would Hamlet try to defend himself if Horatio approved of what he did?!

The Play, or the Movie??

2007-12-03T23:19:00.000-08:00

Which do I prefer? I really don't know. I enjoy the movie juust because I love the visual aspect of it. I love movies. Th play on the other hand is the genuine article of what Shakespeare intended it to be. so I'm torn.

I think the director of the play definatly captures the tone and mood of the play. the way that Hamlet is crazy, and the way he rejoices when he kind of "outs" Claudius with the play. I thought that really captured the mood. However, the way that some of the scenes were done out of order really kind of messed me up, it confused me a little bit, just because it changed the tone a little bit for those specific scenes. but the rest of the play I believe the director captures the tone and mood.

Art reflects the Artist's view of society

2007-11-30T01:30:00.000-08:00

Art/ performance is definatly about holding a mirror up to something, not necissarily always society, and it's not always about pointing out what is wrong. Many times art is about pointing out what is good, beautiful, honest, genuine, and awesome, or just to portray something that we are passionate about. It is up to the artist or performer to decide what the piece of art, or performance is about. Every work of art though points out some sort of truth, or reveals a fallocy. From any True artist of any genre, whether it be painting, drawing, writing stories, poems, performing music, or drama, True art will be genuine.

so, in the case of Hamlet, yes, the art of performance is being used to reflect what is wrong with society, because in this case, Hamlet is using it to reveal the truth, to "out" Claudius in front of everyone, so that everyone can be witness to King Claudius' atrocious actions.

Claudius: unsure of who's a threat, but paranoid of everyone... especially Hamlet.

2007-11-30T01:16:00.000-08:00

Claudius sees Hamlet as a threat, but he doesn't for sure think that Hamlet knows about the whole "ear poison thing." He just believes that it could be a possibility that Hamlet knows very little, to everything about the situation. King Claudius killed his own brother, he must be super paranoid, so of course he is going to believe that possibly everyone knows about him murdering his brother. so, yes, Claudius conciders Hamlet as a threat, but how nuch of a threat he's not sure.

Hamlet's "love" for Ophelia decieved them both.

2007-11-30T00:27:00.000-08:00

Leading up to scene 3 Hamlet believed that he loved Ophelia. His human impulses of lust and infatuation caused him to believe that he really did love Ophelia. The evidence proving the fact that Hamlet was blinded by his false feelings is Act 3 Scene 1 lines 112 through 116 Hamlet states "Ay, truly, for the power of beauty will sooner transform honesty from what it is to a bawd than the force of honesty can translate beauty into his likeness." Hamlet is saying that sometimes beauty causes a man to trick himself into believeing he is in love. Hamlet goes on to say "but now the time gives it proof. I did love you once." After a while hamlet finally realized that Ophelia's beauty had destracted him from the truth. When Hamlet says that "[he] did love [her] once." he's telling her that at one time he did basically love her, but it wasn't real, it was a deception. Right before Hamlet has his dialogue with Ophelia in Act 3 he realized that he had never truely loved Ophelia. In Act 3 scene 1 lines 118 through 120, Hamlet says what leads me to believe that He did not truly love Ophelia at all. He says to Ophelia "You should not have believed me, for virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock but we shall relish of it. I loved you not. This is the first scrap of evidence that leads me to believe that Hamlet didn't love Ophelia. Ophelia's beauty caused "Ham-bone" to trick himself into believing that he was truly in love her, when in reality he really just wanted her body.