As we move on from The Unbearable Lightness of Being, I just wanted to say that I greatly enjoyed reading the novel and our discussion of it afterwards. It was probably one of my favorite novels out of any we have read in school. I think it was interesting reading and analyzing a more modern novel in school especially with the interesting form of the novel (such as the metafiction aspects of the work). I also appreciated the great historical depth we went into on the historical context of the work. I think the novel really appealed to me because it told an interesting story in a compelling way but was also very much a novel of philosophical themes and ideas. This led to some interesting discussions in class, especially on issues that seem important and even relevant to everyone's life, like the discussion of kitsch and of living a meaningful life. The ability to examine such themes deeply while also telling an entertaining story really made me enjoy the novel.
So what about you guys, what did you enjoy or not enjoy about the novel?
Saturday, September 2, 2017
Lightness vs. Heaviness: Email vs. Text Message
One of the main themes of the novel is the constant conflict between lightness and heaviness. Some characters such as Teresa and Franz are very heavy. They put lots of meaning into everything in their life. Teresa wants a safe marriage in a rural town, and Franz adores Kitsch. Other characters in the novel such as Tomas and Sabina try to live as light as a life as possible. Keeping this in mind and reading the blog posts of others earlier this week, I began to think to myself what are some of the heavy and light parts of my life. One of the first things that come to mind is email vs. text messages. When you send an email it is usually to a teacher or a member of the faculty. Thought goes into every word and detail of the email. Text messages however are often sent to friends or other students. Language is often much more casual and not as much thought is usually put in. But sometimes text messages can be hold a lot of importance. If you are sending a text to a lover a lot more thought will be put into the text than usual. There is a certain heaviness to these texts. Similarly some of the lighter characters in The Unbearable Lightness of Being can have heavier aspects to them as well. An example of this can be Tomas settling down with Teresa towards the end of the novel and moving to a rural town in Czechoslovakia. Heaviness vs. Lightness is not only a big part of the novel, but it is also a common conflict in the real world as many of the posts this week have shown.
Uber lightness
I had the pleasure today have been ubered by a great man named Issac. It was me and my friend Grayson and, as per usual, we started a conversation with the man. The interaction quickly evolved from small talk to an in depth conversation about driving for Uber. Issac, the man driving us, put driving for Uber in very simple terms: "you drive people around and den you get paid". I thought to myself, this man is living a light life, and he's loving it. Issac made his driving job sound like this life changing experience, he lived a flexible life that took evewhere. To me, having a job that takes you everywhere is a light life. You get to explore everywhere and you dont attach much meaning to anywhere; you just enjoy the experience, remember it, and move in to you next great experience.
Vice Samzidat
The beloved news outlet, Vice, is renowned for being a source of journlism that isnt affraid to dicuss and cover taboo and/or troubuling subjects. For example, the Vice TV channed (VICELAND) resently coverd the charleston neo nazi riots; unlike other news sources, such as CNN and NBC, Vice covered the riots from the perspective of the neo nazis. I see Vice to be this modern day from of Samzidat, a news osurce that covers the other side of current events.Vice is a news outlet that doesnt sugarcoat their headlines and gets right to the nitty gritty of all of their stories. Simillar to samziat, Vice dosent strcily cover news, theyre also an outlet for the contempery arts. Vice features, on their website, images of modern art ranging from politcal statment pieces to just pure artisc brillance; simillar to what we know of the samzidat movement, politcal prisoners would compose poems that cover all subjects and that would circulate as underground literature. Vice brings underground literature to the surface.
"Us" – Regina Spektor
 |
| Soviet Kitsch (2004) |
"Us" lyrics
They made a statue of us
Then put in on a mountain top
Now tourists come and stare at us
Blow bubbles with their gum
Take photographs of fun, have fun
They'll name a city after us
And later say it's all our fault
Then they'll give us a talking to
Then they'll give us a talking to
Cause they've got years of experience
Living in a den of thieves
Rummaging for answers in the pages
Living in a den of thieves
And it's contagious
And it's contagious
And it's contagious
And it's contagious
We wear our scarves just like a noose
But not cause we want eternal sleep
And though our parts are slightly used
New ones are slave labor you can keep
They made a statue for us
They made a statue for us
The tourists come and stare at us
The sculptor's marble sends regards
They made a statue of us
They made a statue of us
Our noses have begun to rust
__________________________________
- "Us" refers to Soviet leaders, particularly Lenin and Stalin.
- There were cities that bore the name of these dictators: Stalingrad (1925-1961; now Volgograd) and Leningrad (1924-1991; now St. Petersburg).
- The statues "on a mountain top" are examples of Soviet kitsch.
- The line about fault relates to Tomas's Oedipus article (avoidance of responsibility)
- Tourists trivialize the history, struggles, and Soviet kitsch associated with the cities and take photos for fun.
- The Soviet Union is called "a den of thieves" because of its corruption and the usual capitalist argument that socialism is theft of private property.
- Although it can confusing and open to many interpretations, the song as a whole denounces kitsch and oppression of individuality, as the Soviets had done to artists.
Friday, September 1, 2017
Sabina's Art During "Normalization"
While researching for our Czech film project and listening
to the class present on the period of normalization, I couldn’t help but draw a
parallel between their approach to art and Sabina. Just as with many authors and
filmmakers, Sabina was taught to paint in a certain way. Her style was limited
by the popular opinions of art, and sat within the confines of a government
with restrictive views on expression.
Sabina, however, like the great authors and filmmakers, is
able to break through this mold. Just as with “vault films” and underground
literature, Sabina, through her accidental red drip, is able to create her own
window into the realities of Czech life.
Picasso Kitsch
As an art lover, I always feel paradoxical when I say that I
am not a fan of Picasso’s work. It is not because I think
he is a poor artist that his work doesn’t appeal to me, but it is because after
viewing several of his paintings, especially from his more famous cubism
pieces, they all begin to look alike.
Picasso was a light artist. He was as prolific with his
paintings as Tomas is with his sexual affairs. And just as the majority of
Tomas’s affairs go without consequence, for me, Picasso’s paintings go without
impact. Looking at a Picasso painting, there is a moment of appreciation, and
then it falters into the reality that much of Picasso’s work is the work of
merely a few hours, or perhaps minutes.
It is estimated that Picasso created around 50,000 works of
art, including 1,885 paintings. Ultimately, this averages down to Picasso
creating about 2 pieces a day, for everyday of his life as an artist. He is
thought to have created even more than 2 pieces each day when painting. He was
an art factory, a fine art factory, granted, but still incredibly prolific
nonetheless.
Picasso is also perhaps the most well known artist today.
This is no coincidence, as his prolificacy enables his work to be widely
circulated and held by galleries and museums worldwide. So, that poses the
question: is a prolific artist such as Picasso, whose works are known worldwide
and widely known for their excellence, an artist of kitsch?
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