The Early Western Hero

The hero archetype is defined by current values and beliefs of society at any given time and the western star is no different. The early western star clearly embodies the values of the time. The most apparent of which is the emphasis on creating and maintaining structure. This is achieved through the enforcement of justice, which is needed in a society. The rugged masculinity puts value on standing up for ones beliefs which is an important part of justice. Individual actions affect the whole and without the defense of our own internal beliefs.

Fight the Resistance

              Resilience when pertaining to women and their gender role has a very paradoxical nature. There are many reasons for this divergent function, the main being a positing of position in society. Contextual position is a moving factor in the problem of gendering stereotypes. With this in mind we can now distinguish how this problem arises.

              When someone is viewed in society according to their own stereotype, there is a very real force that controls the action of the group in focus. When the subject pigeonholed, this creates a hierarchy, a separation from the judgmental group. This in turn causes the group being judged to immediately resist the oppressing force. This is a problem, but why?

              When this resistance is an automatic response it takes away the autonomy of those being subject to the judgment. Why is this the case? When the assumed hierarchy is set into place the separation creates a need for the oppressed to rise up and  "prove" themselves. This is to show that they are better than, or altogether do not fit into the presupposed category. It backs them into a corner and immediately places them in a defensive position. So, in turn this resilience does nothing more than force the vague hierarchy to coagulate into a truthful stereotype.

              This then creates a different distinction, one within the oppressed group in question. You MUST fight back or you are not worthy. The only achievement of this separation is reinforcing the negative view, or affirming the subjugation. Autonomy is obscured by the blinding focus on the expected reaction from those in oppression.

Digital Dualism

  The readings lightly touched on the actual physical aspect of the virtual world. I believe this is a very interesting direction to take the discussion. The digital world exists outside the dimension of space but is still very much bound by time. Which is interesting. This separation is unlike anything else in the sense that we can not do this with anything other than the spiritual world.

              When we look at it this way, we can see the commonalities between this and the separation of mind and body. The body is bound to space and time while our mind is free of the corporal constraints of space. There is, somewhere out there, a digital representation of ourselves. The need for individuality, and the feeling of separation is fueled by our ego. This description is just an extension of the separation introduced by Descartes centuries ago.

              If then, this is comparable to the mind-body separation, what role does our involvement have in the process? We have absolute control over how we choose to represent ourselves on the internet. This separate entity is a condensed version of ourselves, a best-of reel if you wish. This means, there is a greater capacity for deception. It is pulling us away from our true selves and positing a false image over our true being. This means, even though the digital world has no physical manifestation, it is still very much integrated with the world around us. It affects our lives on a daily bases and the connection is undeniable.

Condensation of the Self

When assessing the spasm of social media in recent years, we see an obvious race for condensed individualization. That is, a prepared "60 second elevator speech" for our lives. Our desire for acceptance is fueling this raging need for projected self image. We want others to see how unique we are by selectively sharing our lives, an astute determination of how we prefer to be viewed by others. This calculation of our self image is due to the limited nature of social media. We can not share each thought so we generalize. This generalization is in actuality, stripping ourselves of the subtleties that actually create the possibility of individualization. It is important to remember our lives couldn't possibly be condensed into a tweet. This process is Aiken to the plague of over simplification of our culture. As our attention span withers, our output also shrivels. This is because much of what we read on the Internet is subject to "pre-digestion". This trend is dangerous to both our creativeness and innovation. With this soft serving of literature, of information, we are treated as children who need to be lead by the hand. Our culture is loosing the ability to make our own connections without the rabid use of quick fixes. Social media is merely a reflection of our culture, of our hasty assessment of the world around us. This vicious cycle inevitably will continue its repetition until we choose to cut the rope and explore for ourselves. This generation is reliant on others, always in need of direction because we do not want to be bothered with actual interaction. It is a lazy pursuit of the world, one in which is dominated by some pixels on a screen.

Musical Aura

              Music's relation to time and space is a fascinating subject. It has the ability to wash over us and transform our world temporarily. This transformation is very unusual and the explanation of its occurrence is nearly impossible to articulate properly. This transformation happens in many ways, mainly through emotion which is elicited by sensory perception stimulation through the exploitation of language.

              Music's emotional content is the fundamental attribute of its allurement. This property shapes our mindset to that of the recording artist in expressive music. It is a complete state of mind. Memory plays a large role in this state of mind, we hear the music, listen to the lyrical content, then with each passing note we relate it to previous experience. This bonding experience, or the relation of our own experiences, makes us feel as if the music was created to personally speak to us. This intimate relationship between music and its listener opens the door to our imagination and allows us to associate our own thoughts and imagination with that of the music.

              Still, just stating this fact doesn't explain the transcendent property of music.  The capacity of emotional transference is not just due to taking the proper words and stringing them together. This would not explain the sensations correlated to instrumental music. The underlying antagonist forcing this emotional content into our consciousness is the vibe. The totality of each interconnected note, how they are played, the pitch, harmonic relationship and many other factors create this vibe. The intimacy of each passing moment is created by the atmosphere created. This is why live music can literally move thousands of people to tears. This atmosphere is the aura of the music, the "spiritual" element. This is the connection between the notes and our thoughts.

Conflict and Separation

                This post is merely observation about the socially intolerant views of America today. Although, it may be a bit different than the widely held views about the true discriminatory parties. Racism and anti-gay discrimination are two very pressing issues that are very rightly labeled as major problems. These issues are huge and cause a massive rift in the unity of our people. These concerns, though very pressing, also create a different form of discrimination.

              If one does not share the social views of the whole they are abruptly labeled as "primitive" and I see this as a problem. Racism and anti-gay discrimination have their origin in this type of labeling. In the current state of affairs a simple statement is easily misconstrued as a bigoted comment. This movement toward equality is actually creating a intolerance against peoples true beliefs and opinions that do not conform to that of the whole.  It is true that a genuinely prejudiced comment should be met with disgust. Although this does not mean we have the right to impose our beliefs on others. The negative right of opinion means that people have a right to believe as they wish.

              This social shift in discrimination I am talking about is a manhunt for any outliers. Equality is a two way street and I believe it is viable to allow others to have their own opinions about the world, even if they do not agree with what I believe.

Australian comedy group 'Axis Of Awesome' perform a sketch from the 2009 Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Footage courtesy of Network Ten Australia. ...

Composer Nigel Tomm performs his contemporary piano solo improvisation 'Roses Like a Nest from the Parallel Experience' (2012). Played with the Steinway gran...

What is music? Is this still at all relevant with Avant Garde?

No synchronization

Sometimes no consistent beat

No specific key

No type of rhythmic or harmonic unity

How does a certain melody or tone evoke certain emotion?

What role tension or dissonance plays in music and how does the resolution free us of that tension?

If the musical framework is still in place, how can anyone break through with new musical innovations? Will it still be acceptable to the masses?

How is popular music similar to the “quick fixes” and instant gratification of todays society?

“cheap knowledge”

Distraction/inattention

What role does habit play in popular music? Would it be considered conditioned mindlessness?

What role does context play in serious music?

Autonomy was mentioned- how does serious music keep its autonomous nature?

How does ones culture influence their musical choices?

How does superficial acceptance and self-delusion play in to the acceptance of popular music? Why does this blind following breed contempt? What influence does this have on self-image?

Genius

               The conceptualized ideal of what constitutes a Genius has taken several forms. The subjective nature of the term leaves open to interpretation, and the reason for this being there is no concrete criteria. Culture seems to be the driving force in bringing to focus the necessary requisites for genius. This is obvious when you look deeply into the values and ideals of the times. Of course, this is all subjective in the fact that nothing is certain and cannot be held reliable in all cases. Today we seem to value the impact one has on the world. A very quantitative outlook, the more they do for us, the more likely we are to give them the esteemed prestige of genius. Although there are fluctuations in our thoughts on what defines genius, I believe there are a few very common qualities found in most.

                Most of these people have a very passionate relationship with life in general. They approach their field with a certain intimacy that is rarely seen in the masses. This passionate connection is directly related to their ability to transcend the ego. This is due to the limiting factors of our ego. It forces us to act in accordance to false, learned beliefs. These beliefs range from a fear of failure to the discomfort we sometimes feel when acting in a way that contradicts what our culture has deemed as acceptable. Ego desires drive society to act in accordance with the social norms. Fitting in is an evolutionary benefit, millions of years of conditioning tell our primitive minds we are safer with a group. Mindless group mentality that tells everyone to follow the leader is a clear inhibiter to the advancement of the human race.

                This stagnation is only resolved with the innovation that is set into motion by those possessing what we consider genius. This is because they are not bound to the social norms and are free to choose their own path. These new pathways allow the public to build on their successful innovations and start producing at a higher level.

Plato's Symposium creates a rather clear portrait of the inner workings of Greek high culture. More specifically  it shows us the separation of class in the time of Socrates. While discussing the god of love, we indirectly discover the elitist ideal held by those in the higher class. They clearly believe the  intellectual is posited above the commoner of the time. I can see that during this time, the people did not have as many comforts and physical labor was a part of most people's daily life.  This means the commoner was forced to spend more time focusing on survival. Working daily for their food was a necessity. This necessity creates a separation between the classes, this is because intellectual proficiency was held in such high regard. The opinion of the high class about the masses was one of incompetence.  They did not have the capacity  for learning. This is disturbing because not much has changed when we assess the ideas held in today's society.

              Currently, those who have the means to more education, are viewed and treated as a higher class. For example, when one is looking for a career,  someone with a college degree will certainly beat out others with no formal education after high school. Even if the less educated person is better suited for the job. This, for the most part, perpetuates the rigidity in the current class system. Those who cannot afford to attend college, will be viewed in a certain light when looking for a job. In turn, there are less jobs available for the less educated. These jobs regularly pay less than those who require a college education. This puts the next generation at the same disadvantage.

              Intelligence is indeed a very important trait, although I believe we are assessing intelligence in the wrong ways. Education does not equal intelligence.

The infamous Hello Kitty mascot, at first glance, is not an apparent candidate for controversy. Gabriel hits on some very solid inferences, though they are still based on assumptions. These assumptions are easily interpreted through careful examination and deliberate scrutiny. This is not to...

              The infamous Hello Kitty mascot, at first glance, is not an apparent candidate for controversy. Gabriel hits on some very solid inferences, though they are still based on assumptions. These assumptions are easily interpreted through careful examination and deliberate scrutiny. This is not to say the assumptions mentioned are all-together false, but under the microscope of fervent analyzation, one could make various forged assumptions about almost anything. Finding artificial significance in the mundane is a very easy hole to fall into.  So if we should look deeply into the innocent nature of the Kitty, we can easily impose our own perceptions as truth upon this fictional character. For example, the simplicity of this character leaves the door open for your interpretations. By simple virtue of its plain and un-animated character, there seems to be room for intangible judgments.

              Our minds easily bend to believe our opinions and perceptions are correct.  The faculty of thought is such that, once a connection can be made, the idea is readily held as true.  It is very possible the artist who created Hello Kitty had a secret agenda for perpetuation of a certain ideal. Although it would be factitious to assume a correct observation based on the minimalistic design of the character.  This minimalistic design is very relatable due to the use of free space. The consumer now has the ability to impose their own values and believes about the character. The representation of this character may have been deliberately simple to allow for such interpretation, not pointing in any one direction. I do, however agree with Gabriel's view on the "cuteness" of the character. Cuteness is a favorable trait that definitely attracts consumers.

              In my opinion, there seems to be no obvious hidden meanings behind the Hello Kitty product line.  It is simply an example of someone's imagination running wild. Akin to conspiracy theories surrounding our government, it is very likely the author of this article allowed the ghosts of his ideas come to life and embody this unassuming cartoon character.

#UNCCPHILPOP