Top Ten
"The Real Powers of Steroids"
Alex Rodriguez
Boli Steroids
Dragons
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Response
"When is or was sex ever free of culture? Do you feel that the footage of animals having sex on Animal documentaries are then a means to insert (pun intended) them into the realm of culture?"
Well, no, meaning that sex itself is not a cultural act. And the first humans to procreate were not part of any particular culture group, perhaps other than the fact that they lived in different areas and really wanted ass. When most animals have sex, they are doing so solely to reproduce. It is primal. But the deeper meaning sex has acquired for humans is surely a result of adapted intelligence, culture, and materialism, isn't it? Its very hard to imagine this guy
(ignore the space ships)
worrying about setting the mood - much less giving a damn whether his mate was even interested. But this is what Burrough's does. He presents sex free of the culture we attribute to it. Where is the beauty, love...humanity?
Well, no, meaning that sex itself is not a cultural act. And the first humans to procreate were not part of any particular culture group, perhaps other than the fact that they lived in different areas and really wanted ass. When most animals have sex, they are doing so solely to reproduce. It is primal. But the deeper meaning sex has acquired for humans is surely a result of adapted intelligence, culture, and materialism, isn't it? Its very hard to imagine this guy
(ignore the space ships)
worrying about setting the mood - much less giving a damn whether his mate was even interested. But this is what Burrough's does. He presents sex free of the culture we attribute to it. Where is the beauty, love...humanity?
Monday, February 2, 2009
tTTE, class discussions
Well I'm clearly a mile or two behind on the blogging, so I'll be doing my best to make up for that here, beginning with some discussion of tTTE.
Burrough's novel begins with an identifiable structure, but by the third page, I was left what felt like strands of unrelated text plucked at random from the darkest places of Burrough's mind. Which, as class discussion has attempted to point out, may be a way of challenging the reader's perception of what is disturbing, taboo. As the book progresses, or rather as i read on, (progression hardly seems an apt description of the flow of Burrough's story, nor is it necessarily the goal) i become increasingly detached from the story. The style of writing Burrough's uses should be the focus, as long as I can't understand what I am reading. However, I will touch on the abundant, grotesque sexual content in the book, which seems to have usurped the entire storyline by page 5. There has been recent plurking that states, had male characters been replaced with female ones, there would not be such a widely disgusted response to the activities Burrough's so willingly douses his novel in. This is a completely unwarranted assertion. In fact, excerpts such as "the two bodies stuck together in a smell of KY and rectal mucus" leaves no evidence as to what gender either being is, but it nonetheless discomforting. Rectal mucus is rectal mucus. It is not use of gender roles that makes Burrough's work grotesque to us, it is his application of the senses. He applies odors (musty), adjectives (pulsating), and physical actions (diarrhea), to these sexual encounters, giving them an alienity (should be a word) to western humanity. Sex has become a cultural act, and as a result, is regarded with a dignity easily disturbed by otherwise discomforting sensations. This is why the book makes us uncomfortable, and is why it would do so regardless of the gender involved.
Burrough's novel begins with an identifiable structure, but by the third page, I was left what felt like strands of unrelated text plucked at random from the darkest places of Burrough's mind. Which, as class discussion has attempted to point out, may be a way of challenging the reader's perception of what is disturbing, taboo. As the book progresses, or rather as i read on, (progression hardly seems an apt description of the flow of Burrough's story, nor is it necessarily the goal) i become increasingly detached from the story. The style of writing Burrough's uses should be the focus, as long as I can't understand what I am reading. However, I will touch on the abundant, grotesque sexual content in the book, which seems to have usurped the entire storyline by page 5. There has been recent plurking that states, had male characters been replaced with female ones, there would not be such a widely disgusted response to the activities Burrough's so willingly douses his novel in. This is a completely unwarranted assertion. In fact, excerpts such as "the two bodies stuck together in a smell of KY and rectal mucus" leaves no evidence as to what gender either being is, but it nonetheless discomforting. Rectal mucus is rectal mucus. It is not use of gender roles that makes Burrough's work grotesque to us, it is his application of the senses. He applies odors (musty), adjectives (pulsating), and physical actions (diarrhea), to these sexual encounters, giving them an alienity (should be a word) to western humanity. Sex has become a cultural act, and as a result, is regarded with a dignity easily disturbed by otherwise discomforting sensations. This is why the book makes us uncomfortable, and is why it would do so regardless of the gender involved.
Monday, January 12, 2009
The Invention of Morel
From very early in Casares' novella, I was struck by the peculiarity of the protagonist. The unabated curiosity of the character verges on the brink of insanity. His willingness to draw the rashest of conclusions with little to no forethought gives us insight on a man clearly stricken by paranoia. We are reminded often, as a result of his incessant worry of capture, that the man is a felon. Whether his mind has been tangled by fear or prolonged isolation, there is no doubt that he is in less than a stable mental condition.
However, as the story progresses the man appears increasingly intelligent, though clearly eccentric. Casares' fugitive certainly takes a while to discover that something is amiss with the people inhabiting the island. After all, were he not so fearful of capture, a simple attempt to talk to someone other than Faustine would have revealed their indifferent presence much earlier. In addition to this, his devotion to Faustine's image becomes the purpose of his existence, and in altering the records of the eternal week on the island, he preserved that. I find this unsettling, and more an act of obsession than of love. We must remember that he was willing to dive to her feet and profess his love before he knew she was only an image; the fugitive was in love with a woman he did not know. This is hard to believe, and some of his previous actions seem to support the theory that he was not entirely of good mind.
That said, the parallel meanings of the story are more commendable. The author's interest in Louise Brooks seems to provide a valid theory for some of the piece's themes. The fugitive literally refers to the people of the island as images, or pictures. This can be an allusion to films, perhaps starring Faustine's hollywood counterpart Brooks. The fugitive's inability to contact her - his being in a different dimension of sorts- is a metaphor of the separate worlds celebrities and "regular people" lead.
However, as the story progresses the man appears increasingly intelligent, though clearly eccentric. Casares' fugitive certainly takes a while to discover that something is amiss with the people inhabiting the island. After all, were he not so fearful of capture, a simple attempt to talk to someone other than Faustine would have revealed their indifferent presence much earlier. In addition to this, his devotion to Faustine's image becomes the purpose of his existence, and in altering the records of the eternal week on the island, he preserved that. I find this unsettling, and more an act of obsession than of love. We must remember that he was willing to dive to her feet and profess his love before he knew she was only an image; the fugitive was in love with a woman he did not know. This is hard to believe, and some of his previous actions seem to support the theory that he was not entirely of good mind.
That said, the parallel meanings of the story are more commendable. The author's interest in Louise Brooks seems to provide a valid theory for some of the piece's themes. The fugitive literally refers to the people of the island as images, or pictures. This can be an allusion to films, perhaps starring Faustine's hollywood counterpart Brooks. The fugitive's inability to contact her - his being in a different dimension of sorts- is a metaphor of the separate worlds celebrities and "regular people" lead.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Pataphor
Just a test one...
Trees of every nature stood chilled with arthritic pain, their arms frozen to the bone. Had one tried to move, it would surely have fractured at the joints. So they reflected together, gelid old soldiers of a lost season. “Remember!”, cried the battalion. Remember, cried the birds.
Trees of every nature stood chilled with arthritic pain, their arms frozen to the bone. Had one tried to move, it would surely have fractured at the joints. So they reflected together, gelid old soldiers of a lost season. “Remember!”, cried the battalion. Remember, cried the birds.
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