First of all-I thought everyone had some interesting ideas to present to the class and while I was very distracted by the deliciousness of chocolate cupcakes I still felt I benefited from every ones proposals. So good job to those of us that are finishing out the semester and not withdrawing. Seriously, what's up with that?
Amy-I really was impressed with how you presented the new/old ideas of women's rights. The "assertion to self/heroin ism" and "quest for self/naturalistic" points you brought up will really illustrate just how severe the "oppression of men" was during the 19th century. I think your paper will kick ass. I think you picked out appropriate texts as well. Good luck!
Meredith-I think your paper surrounding "Man Thinking" will be interesting. The local color and transcendental genres you are piecing together will make a strong argument. I especially like that you are pulling in Hart's work to show what Emerson was saying is NOT "Man Thinking." Good topic.
Michael-You had so much going on in your paper that I didn't take enough notes but I think you had some brilliant ideas and if you can fit them all in then way to go! I really enjoyed how you proposed discussing the "reactions to rigidness" and I'll be interested to see what you come up with regarding that topic. Good luck with all the comparing/contrasting and have fun with all the dark literature we got to read this semester. That was definitely my favorite genre we studied!
Janel-Your claims of man looking inward equating inherent evil is really interesting as is the idea that man looking outwards will essentially create/invent new ideas. Very cool discussion points. I think you have a really interesting argument and with the texts you have chosen I'm sure you can support it. Best of luck!
Deb-I love how passionate you were about the texts you've chosen to write on. I definitely can see that there was a certain shift in writing due to the influence of the civil war. I think with your passion and obvious research and preparation you've done you will have a valid argument and you will strongly being able to support your ideas. You made texts that I disregarded as the more boring ones seem much more important. Happy writing!
Caitlyn-It was interesting to me that there were quite a few people in class that are using Fuller as the basis for their proposals. But every one's topics are different. I like that you are going to use her to compare different genres as well as tie in the differences between British/American literature. Way to go with the Feminist Movement!
Sara-I'm really interested to see what you have going on for tying in the Gothic genre to naturalistic/regional texts. I think they definitely share some similarities and I'm sure you can construct some interesting support to point out the elements these writing styles have in common.
Seriously, everyone...best of luck with papers and finals. I know this semester has kicked all of us in the junk but we are almost done!
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Friday, April 23, 2010
The Truth about All Art: It's Quite Useless
I don't really believe that art is useless. Don't get me wrong, Wilde is a badass but sometimes he's a bit wordy and I think he likes to come up with catchy phrases just to create conversation and have them repeated. Which is fine by me.
I'm going to begin with two quotes, one from Norris and one from Zola and then begin my rambling.
"For the novel is the great expression of modern life. Each form of art has had its turn at reflecting and expressing its contemporaneous thought." -Norris-
"There is neither nobility, nor dignity, nor beauty, nor morality in not knowing, in lying, in pretending that you are greater according as you advance in error and confusion. The only great and moral works are those of truth." -Zola-
Honestly I don't really know what genre Wilde's text really fits in but I'm going to force it into a Naturalistic ideal because it fits the mold. There is an extremely pessimistic view of morality, detachment, determination and a plot twist in the end. If we apply Zola's principles of reading as an observer we can certainly see the "truth" that is so incredibly important to both Norris and Zola. Wilde tells a story about what could happen if someone was giving the opportunity to do whatever they desired. Wilde clearly writes Dorian Gray into his grave due to his own vanity and obsession with the corruption of his soul.
Referring back to the two mentioned quotes: Beginning with Zola's...Wilde writes the truly pessimistic side of humanity. People are sinful and corrupt at times and he puts us in a position as spectator to see the true nature and evil that exists in humanity. With Norris's statement it leaves us left to observe and "reflect" at what exactly we are to do with the truth of the potentially gross nature of human existence.
When I first read this back in the day I caught myself reflecting on my own existence and not that I'm a bad person by any means but I'm a totally vain person and some of my favorite things fit into the seven deadly sins category, primarily sloth and gluttony. Dorian thinks to himself "But the picture? What was he to say of that? It held the secret of his life, and told his story. It had taught him to love his own beauty. Would it teach him to loathe his own soul? would he ever look at it again?" (89) Honestly, if I had a straight view into my soul I'm not sure I would want to look into it. Scary.
To briefly summarize: we as readers, and as human beings, need to properly "observe" the "truth" and then figure out what we can do with it. Hopefully we won't end up like Dorian, that would be sad.
I'm going to begin with two quotes, one from Norris and one from Zola and then begin my rambling.
"For the novel is the great expression of modern life. Each form of art has had its turn at reflecting and expressing its contemporaneous thought." -Norris-
"There is neither nobility, nor dignity, nor beauty, nor morality in not knowing, in lying, in pretending that you are greater according as you advance in error and confusion. The only great and moral works are those of truth." -Zola-
Honestly I don't really know what genre Wilde's text really fits in but I'm going to force it into a Naturalistic ideal because it fits the mold. There is an extremely pessimistic view of morality, detachment, determination and a plot twist in the end. If we apply Zola's principles of reading as an observer we can certainly see the "truth" that is so incredibly important to both Norris and Zola. Wilde tells a story about what could happen if someone was giving the opportunity to do whatever they desired. Wilde clearly writes Dorian Gray into his grave due to his own vanity and obsession with the corruption of his soul.
Referring back to the two mentioned quotes: Beginning with Zola's...Wilde writes the truly pessimistic side of humanity. People are sinful and corrupt at times and he puts us in a position as spectator to see the true nature and evil that exists in humanity. With Norris's statement it leaves us left to observe and "reflect" at what exactly we are to do with the truth of the potentially gross nature of human existence.
When I first read this back in the day I caught myself reflecting on my own existence and not that I'm a bad person by any means but I'm a totally vain person and some of my favorite things fit into the seven deadly sins category, primarily sloth and gluttony. Dorian thinks to himself "But the picture? What was he to say of that? It held the secret of his life, and told his story. It had taught him to love his own beauty. Would it teach him to loathe his own soul? would he ever look at it again?" (89) Honestly, if I had a straight view into my soul I'm not sure I would want to look into it. Scary.
To briefly summarize: we as readers, and as human beings, need to properly "observe" the "truth" and then figure out what we can do with it. Hopefully we won't end up like Dorian, that would be sad.
Proposal Numero Dos
Alright, I've been working on cleaning up my proposal/final paper and I think I'm getting closer to a better finished product. I've changed the texts I'm using just slightly and I'm concentrating on a little bit of a different angle. So here are the texts I'm going to use for my paper.
The Picture of Dorian Gray-Wilde
Young Goodman Brown-Hawthorne
Edgar Huntly-Brown
Berenice-A Tale-Poe
I'm going to concentrate primarily on Wilde's text as it has the most support for my argument. So here it goes.
Throughout Wilde's work in TPODG there is a very clear example of influence and impressionism within the text. First, Dorian is influenced by Lord Henry then Dorian himself is able to influence others. Lord Henry acts as the foil to Dorian Gray which spirals the once "pure" adolescent into a corrupt and immoral being. The results of this contamination are visibly seen in the portrait of Gray and the protagonist becomes increasingly obsessed with the visible results of his sins and evil behavior which ultimately is the result for his demise.
The other texts will act primarily as further support that poor/evil influences and/or foils within the mentioned works lead to obsession which leads to an unhappy ending for the protagonists. For example:
In Edgar Huntly, Huntly himself becomes obsessed with avenging his friends death while being completely influence by Clithero's intense guilt. The obsession and influence nearly causes Huntly himself to lose his life but instead he is left feeling just as guilty as Clithero.
In Young Goodman Brown the protagonist is led astray from his path by the stranger in the woods causing Brown to begin to feel obsessively suspicious about his community and his wife leaving him to lead a miserable existence.
In Berenice, Poe's protagonist is influenced by opiates which causes him to brutally murder his love interest which leaves him left guilty and alone.
I know these are still really vague but I'm exhausted. Basically what I'm trying to argue is that the Foils, or variable influences to the protagonists, all are responsible for the constant/protagonists to become obsessed and or guilty and each is left which a negative result. Don't worry, I still plan on discussing the homoeroticism since Wilde's work is drenched in it, but really, you can kind of see it in all of the texts. Feel free to discuss with me how I can support that. Here are some outside sources that I have found.
"Poe and the Theme of Forbidden Knowledge" Jules Zanger
"Carnivalesque Freedom in Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown" S. Selina Jamil
"[Un]consciousness Itself Is the Malady": "Edgar Huntly" and the Discourse of the Other" Leonard Cassuto
"Come See About Me:Enchantment of the Double in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" Christopher Craft
"Aestheticism, Homoeroticism, and Christian Guilt in The Picture of Dorian Gray" Joseph Carroll
"The Strange Interest in Trivial Things: Seduction in Derrida and Dorian Gray" Forbes Morlock
"On the Discrimination of Influences" Andrew Elfenbein
I've really got all sorts of cool things to support my thesis, I just can't think of them right now because 2010 has been a crummy year (terrible excuse).
The Picture of Dorian Gray-Wilde
Young Goodman Brown-Hawthorne
Edgar Huntly-Brown
Berenice-A Tale-Poe
I'm going to concentrate primarily on Wilde's text as it has the most support for my argument. So here it goes.
Throughout Wilde's work in TPODG there is a very clear example of influence and impressionism within the text. First, Dorian is influenced by Lord Henry then Dorian himself is able to influence others. Lord Henry acts as the foil to Dorian Gray which spirals the once "pure" adolescent into a corrupt and immoral being. The results of this contamination are visibly seen in the portrait of Gray and the protagonist becomes increasingly obsessed with the visible results of his sins and evil behavior which ultimately is the result for his demise.
The other texts will act primarily as further support that poor/evil influences and/or foils within the mentioned works lead to obsession which leads to an unhappy ending for the protagonists. For example:
In Edgar Huntly, Huntly himself becomes obsessed with avenging his friends death while being completely influence by Clithero's intense guilt. The obsession and influence nearly causes Huntly himself to lose his life but instead he is left feeling just as guilty as Clithero.
In Young Goodman Brown the protagonist is led astray from his path by the stranger in the woods causing Brown to begin to feel obsessively suspicious about his community and his wife leaving him to lead a miserable existence.
In Berenice, Poe's protagonist is influenced by opiates which causes him to brutally murder his love interest which leaves him left guilty and alone.
I know these are still really vague but I'm exhausted. Basically what I'm trying to argue is that the Foils, or variable influences to the protagonists, all are responsible for the constant/protagonists to become obsessed and or guilty and each is left which a negative result. Don't worry, I still plan on discussing the homoeroticism since Wilde's work is drenched in it, but really, you can kind of see it in all of the texts. Feel free to discuss with me how I can support that. Here are some outside sources that I have found.
"Poe and the Theme of Forbidden Knowledge" Jules Zanger
"Carnivalesque Freedom in Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown" S. Selina Jamil
"[Un]consciousness Itself Is the Malady": "Edgar Huntly" and the Discourse of the Other" Leonard Cassuto
"Come See About Me:Enchantment of the Double in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" Christopher Craft
"Aestheticism, Homoeroticism, and Christian Guilt in The Picture of Dorian Gray" Joseph Carroll
"The Strange Interest in Trivial Things: Seduction in Derrida and Dorian Gray" Forbes Morlock
"On the Discrimination of Influences" Andrew Elfenbein
I've really got all sorts of cool things to support my thesis, I just can't think of them right now because 2010 has been a crummy year (terrible excuse).
Friday, April 9, 2010
Final Paper Proposal
Alright fellow students...I have a vague idea of what I'm going to write about and I'm not going to deny the fact that I'm kinda looking forward to my research. The writing part I'm not super keen on, mostly because I'm a poor writer, but the content will be at least somewhat rewarding to me. I'm going to concentrate on the following texts.
Byron's "The Giaour"
CBB's Edgar Huntly
Hawthornes "Young Goodman Brown"
Wilde's Dorian Gray
I may have to restrict this to only two of the four, but I would like to use all of them as they were some of my favorite readings from this semester.
Here's what I plan on doing:
I will argue that the following literary works all display a certain feeling of Christian Guilt throughout the texts that is illustrated by a loathsome self-image of the central characters in which self-destructive and immoral behavior is prominent throughout the progression of the stories. I plan to support my claim with specific examples which I will desperately attempt to support. I will touch on the fact that each of the protagonists are partnered with a central figure throughout the text that acts as an outside influence ie:Lord Henry to Dorian, the staffed man to Goodman Brown. These secondary characters represent the fight between moral and immoral desires in the characters struggles.
I know this is a grossly vague description of what I'm writing about but I've already found several interesting articles that will help me prove that I'm somewhat accurate in my claims. Also, as per usual there will be some discussion on homoeroticism and other sexual desires throughout some of the texts. I can't help it, sex is fun to write about. Sorry Julie!
If anyone has any suggestions or, more accurately, concerns feel free to leave me some feedback, I'd really like to write a good paper this semester and I tend to drop the ball when it comes to structured essays. Happy research and writing class!
Byron's "The Giaour"
CBB's Edgar Huntly
Hawthornes "Young Goodman Brown"
Wilde's Dorian Gray
I may have to restrict this to only two of the four, but I would like to use all of them as they were some of my favorite readings from this semester.
Here's what I plan on doing:
I will argue that the following literary works all display a certain feeling of Christian Guilt throughout the texts that is illustrated by a loathsome self-image of the central characters in which self-destructive and immoral behavior is prominent throughout the progression of the stories. I plan to support my claim with specific examples which I will desperately attempt to support. I will touch on the fact that each of the protagonists are partnered with a central figure throughout the text that acts as an outside influence ie:Lord Henry to Dorian, the staffed man to Goodman Brown. These secondary characters represent the fight between moral and immoral desires in the characters struggles.
I know this is a grossly vague description of what I'm writing about but I've already found several interesting articles that will help me prove that I'm somewhat accurate in my claims. Also, as per usual there will be some discussion on homoeroticism and other sexual desires throughout some of the texts. I can't help it, sex is fun to write about. Sorry Julie!
If anyone has any suggestions or, more accurately, concerns feel free to leave me some feedback, I'd really like to write a good paper this semester and I tend to drop the ball when it comes to structured essays. Happy research and writing class!
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Daisy is actually a Dandelion...
I gotta say that Henry James is hit and miss with me. I've expressed my undying devotion to The Turn of the Screw on several occasions but I have a really tough time with his female characters. I was unable to complete Portrait of a Lady due to extreme boredom and throughout Daisy Miller I found myself continually rolling my eyes at the ridiculousness of Daisy. Yet there is some sort of genius in the progression of his female protagonists.
In the supplemental article we read for this blog assignment there is a really interesting analogy, or comparison, as to how James depicts his female characters. The author writes "Those who complain that he has not drawn the portrait of a noble and superior woman should remember that an artist may sometimes justly prefer to paint a dandelion rather than a rose." I love this statement. It helps me get over the so-called boredom. James writes and "every woman" type character which when I take a step back a realize this I find it easier to identify with.
Daisy is a somewhat boring character. There really is nothing that separates her from any other girl. She's not completely retarded, but she certainly isn't a genius either. She hits middle class, mediocre and medium in pretty much every aspect. And of course she's "pretty." The thing that sets her apart in this novella is she is the American "foreigner" so it's easy for her to capture the attention of her two suitors as they would find her more aggressive demeanor intriguing.
Really Daisy is no different than any other female and she encapsulates a sort of timeless feel. She could be someone who exists today that is just "playing the field." I hate to speak poorly of my own sex but some of us living ladies are a little overly flirtatious and speaking plainly are just kinda skanky. It's ridiculous to me that any one would string along two people simultaneously but people do that, they did it back in the day, and they do it now. I have to give James mad props for being so skilled at creating a generic female lead while he himself remains to be male. (I suppose that where some of the gay rumors stem from).
So there was one line in Daisy's many conversations that totally made me like her, a little. When having a conversation with Winterbourne he says to her "I beg your pardon if I say it wrong. The main point is to give you an idea of my meaning.' The young girl looked at him more gravely, but with eyes that were prettier than ever. 'I have never allowed a gentleman to dictate to me, or to interfere with anything I do." (40) I like that. Why should anyone let anyone interfere with their choices? Now after saying that I'm going to have to point out that Daisy made some foolish choices, but as she pointed out they were always her decisions. So good on her. I just wish she hadn't been killed off. I feel like this was completely parallel with The Coquette. I've already discussed this with Heather and I'm sure the other 371 students were made aware of the similarities but really it is disheartening that women are killed off for making their own decisions. It really defines woman as irrational and incapable of survival without the help of a man. So pathetic.
Anyway, as per usual our dear professor has given us some thought provoking material and even though I will probably never read this again I'm still looking forward to hearing what everyone has to say. So thank you teacher and thank you Mr. James.
ps-the above photo was taken with my hipstamatic again. I love having an iPhone!
Monday, March 15, 2010
Fenton vs. the Hipstamatic
After reading this article I have to say that our generation is beyond spoiled. Rather than fully devote all of my time to this blog assignment I've been distracted by my awesome iPhone which happens to take way cooler pictures than poor Fenton would ever have been able to accomplish. He certainly didn't have the latest application that I've obtained: the Hipstamatic. And it's not that he didn't have the necessary skills or talent, he merely was without the amenities that are available to us now. With that being said I have to point out how fortunate we are that we even have any sort of pictorial documentation of past events no matter how poor the quality.
It is only because of the recent exposure to Tennyson and his "Light Brigade" work that I'm even familiar to the disastrous events that took place. It's fascinating to partner up the history with the art work and photographs that are available. It makes everything seem more real, even though a lot of the pieces are staged. The Houston article we read states:
"The Crimean war is today less compelling,and the generic conventions
Fenton used to naturalize the scenes of war seem contrived or empty.
The very conventions that make these photographs difficult for us to
read were,however,what made them appealing to a Victorian audience
that desired to possess history."
I have to say that I agree, contrived could certainly be used to describe some of the photographs, but empty...no way. There's something beautiful in the staging of the works. Both the photographer and the subjects new that they were documenting history and for them to have taken the time to create the picturesque representation of the events is pretty profound and overwhelmingly important. Through these photos we don't get a play by play of the Crimean War but we do get to see who was involved.
Check out these proud subjects for instance:
I think these photos capture what Houston meant when she claimed "Victorian audiences understood it[photograph] as primarily truthful and documentary" and photos began to take the role of "souvenirs" which hasn't changed much. We take photos today to keep as souvenirs and documentation only now technology makes things much more accessible. I must mention that as morbid as it would be to see pictures of dead people I think it should have been included in Fenton's paid work. It would help people understand the impact of the Crimean War plus it would appease my naturally perverse sense of curiosity.
It is only because of the recent exposure to Tennyson and his "Light Brigade" work that I'm even familiar to the disastrous events that took place. It's fascinating to partner up the history with the art work and photographs that are available. It makes everything seem more real, even though a lot of the pieces are staged. The Houston article we read states:
"The Crimean war is today less compelling,and the generic conventions
Fenton used to naturalize the scenes of war seem contrived or empty.
The very conventions that make these photographs difficult for us to
read were,however,what made them appealing to a Victorian audience
that desired to possess history."
I have to say that I agree, contrived could certainly be used to describe some of the photographs, but empty...no way. There's something beautiful in the staging of the works. Both the photographer and the subjects new that they were documenting history and for them to have taken the time to create the picturesque representation of the events is pretty profound and overwhelmingly important. Through these photos we don't get a play by play of the Crimean War but we do get to see who was involved.
Check out these proud subjects for instance:
I think these photos capture what Houston meant when she claimed "Victorian audiences understood it[photograph] as primarily truthful and documentary" and photos began to take the role of "souvenirs" which hasn't changed much. We take photos today to keep as souvenirs and documentation only now technology makes things much more accessible. I must mention that as morbid as it would be to see pictures of dead people I think it should have been included in Fenton's paid work. It would help people understand the impact of the Crimean War plus it would appease my naturally perverse sense of curiosity.
Check out my hipstamatic photos, they certainly aren't as important as war documentation but they are pretty sweet regardless of their lack of historical content. I like to think of these as souvenirs from my day today, it sounds nice.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Whitman is my Homeboy
I'm apologizing before hand: I'm still not feeling well plus I'm sleep deprived. Regardless of my illness, I still went and saw the midnight showing of Alice in Wonderland. Hopefully I can write something creative and pertinent...
I hate advertising therefore I watch no TV and never listen to the radio. I'm more of the free streaming online type for my necessary shows and my mix CD's and satellite radio keep me company in my vehicle. I find product placement, billboards, magazine spreads and all other types of media advertising a waste of my time simply because if I'm in a store and the product jumps out at me, then and only then will I purchase it. And it definitely has nothing to do with Oprah's suggestions. Last time I took her advise I read an "autobiography" that ended up being entirely fabricated. That Million Little Pieces guy is an asshole.
As far as whether or not I agree with "McCracken’s claim that advertisers now play the cultural roles that poets played in earlier eras" I have to admit that I somewhat agree with him. Because of advertisers our generation will forever be familiar with "Where's the Beef?", "Got Milk?", and "Leggo my Eggo." And seriously "I've fallen...and I can't get up" still kills me, and I'm pretty sure I was in 2nd grade when that geriatric alarm system came out. Advertisers certainly have skills of creativity and persuasion but again, I hate advertising. I think it's hard to contrast the previously mentioned catchphrases with the insanely awesome Walt Whitman. That "America" commercial is genius. Whitman is a genius and the corporate execs at Levi are geniuses and I actually felt inspired to go buy some jeans. I didn't though, I bought some Van's for my little bro's b-day instead.
So back to McCracken's claim: it's hard to disagree with him because, although to me, there is nothing poetic about commercials, these messages that are sent to the public reach out to us and speak to us as a whole community and try to meet the needs of the generic and mass population. Whether the product is necessary or not, the masses are educated about them and even though I never owned a 'ShamWow' I always wanted one and I was really sad when Billy Mays died. Hopefully I'm making my point a little bit. Advertising along with current movies, music, television, the arts and literature encapsulate our current world and it's trends.
Now with the Levi's ads, I honestly thought they were beautiful. The "America" one in particular was insane. The shots, the people represented, the feel and Whitman's voice heard over the scratchy recording was a stunning collaboration. But what was different is that it felt as though it wasn't advertising jeans. It felt like it was advertising people. I felt as though it was utilizing Whitman's words to celebrate all types of people, which works well because Levi has all types of jeans and other finely crafted products.
I think that even Whitman himself would be pleased with their efforts. He tended to be a little on the pursuasive side when it came to his work. In his "Preface to Leaves of Grass" he writes "The United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem." He's advertising the diversity and the beauty of the country. If Whitman were still alive he would be one of the biggest advertising execs in the world. Just look at some of his sayings that would be killer slogans for different companies,
"The fruition of beauty is no chance of hit or miss...it is inevitable as life."
"Nothing is better than simplicity..."
"Great is the faith of the flush of the knowledge and of the investigation of the depths of qualties and things."
"Whatever satisfies the sould is truth."
"Faith is the antiseptic of the soul."
"The known universe has one complete lover and that is the greatest poet."
All in all, I dig Whitman and I give Levi a valiant A for knowing their shit. They encapsulate a great American to rejoice in the greatness of the American people, all while they are fashionably attired.
Just for funsies...some commercials I do like.
I hate advertising therefore I watch no TV and never listen to the radio. I'm more of the free streaming online type for my necessary shows and my mix CD's and satellite radio keep me company in my vehicle. I find product placement, billboards, magazine spreads and all other types of media advertising a waste of my time simply because if I'm in a store and the product jumps out at me, then and only then will I purchase it. And it definitely has nothing to do with Oprah's suggestions. Last time I took her advise I read an "autobiography" that ended up being entirely fabricated. That Million Little Pieces guy is an asshole.
As far as whether or not I agree with "McCracken’s claim that advertisers now play the cultural roles that poets played in earlier eras" I have to admit that I somewhat agree with him. Because of advertisers our generation will forever be familiar with "Where's the Beef?", "Got Milk?", and "Leggo my Eggo." And seriously "I've fallen...and I can't get up" still kills me, and I'm pretty sure I was in 2nd grade when that geriatric alarm system came out. Advertisers certainly have skills of creativity and persuasion but again, I hate advertising. I think it's hard to contrast the previously mentioned catchphrases with the insanely awesome Walt Whitman. That "America" commercial is genius. Whitman is a genius and the corporate execs at Levi are geniuses and I actually felt inspired to go buy some jeans. I didn't though, I bought some Van's for my little bro's b-day instead.
So back to McCracken's claim: it's hard to disagree with him because, although to me, there is nothing poetic about commercials, these messages that are sent to the public reach out to us and speak to us as a whole community and try to meet the needs of the generic and mass population. Whether the product is necessary or not, the masses are educated about them and even though I never owned a 'ShamWow' I always wanted one and I was really sad when Billy Mays died. Hopefully I'm making my point a little bit. Advertising along with current movies, music, television, the arts and literature encapsulate our current world and it's trends.
Now with the Levi's ads, I honestly thought they were beautiful. The "America" one in particular was insane. The shots, the people represented, the feel and Whitman's voice heard over the scratchy recording was a stunning collaboration. But what was different is that it felt as though it wasn't advertising jeans. It felt like it was advertising people. I felt as though it was utilizing Whitman's words to celebrate all types of people, which works well because Levi has all types of jeans and other finely crafted products.
I think that even Whitman himself would be pleased with their efforts. He tended to be a little on the pursuasive side when it came to his work. In his "Preface to Leaves of Grass" he writes "The United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem." He's advertising the diversity and the beauty of the country. If Whitman were still alive he would be one of the biggest advertising execs in the world. Just look at some of his sayings that would be killer slogans for different companies,
"The fruition of beauty is no chance of hit or miss...it is inevitable as life."
"Nothing is better than simplicity..."
"Great is the faith of the flush of the knowledge and of the investigation of the depths of qualties and things."
"Whatever satisfies the sould is truth."
"Faith is the antiseptic of the soul."
"The known universe has one complete lover and that is the greatest poet."
All in all, I dig Whitman and I give Levi a valiant A for knowing their shit. They encapsulate a great American to rejoice in the greatness of the American people, all while they are fashionably attired.
Just for funsies...some commercials I do like.
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