I close my eyes to the orotund voice resonating from the corner of the room. As my attention began to divaricate, questions began to mount. How did I get here? What are you plans? Where am I going? How are you going to get there? Why don't you do something? Questions attempting to irradiate my future only makes me extremely irascible. My face becomes florid and tepid from my anger and embarrassment from my lack of answers. Even though I fight and larrup, I can not escape this place for hours. The apparitions harbingers of what these hours would hold. The endless possibilities, the two ever haunting words, what if. Is fate fictile or always set in time? No one knows. I try to reason with my friends, but that is impossible for they are not here. Only my doubts exist here. Then in the distant I hear a noise and it increases with time. I open my eyes as my ritual reveille alerts me to the start of a new day.
Reveille-n., a signal to arise
Irascible-adj., easily provoked to anger, very irritable
Irradiate-v., to shed rays of light upon; illuminate
Orotund-adj., (of the voice or speech) characterized by strength, fullness, richness, and clearness
Apparition-n., ghost
Divaricate-v., to spread apart; branch; diverge
Fictile-adj., capable of being molded
Florid-adj., reddish; ruddy; rosy
Larrup-v., to beat or thrash
Tepid-adj., moderately warm; lukewarm
Friday, December 5, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Music
Nearly twenty-seven years ago, in Los Angeles, a metal quartet was forming that goes by the name of Metallica. It all started when an aspiring tennis player and drummer on the side put out an ad to The Recycler, looking for other musician to play music with. Answering his first and second ads, respectively, were James Hetfield and Dave Mustaine. After forming the band, the members recruited Cliff Burton to play the bass. A year later the band kicked Mustaine out for drug and alcohol abuse, then recruited Kirk Hammett to replace him. After gaining popularity for their albums, Burton was killed when the tour bus flipped in Sweden. The banded contemplated breaking up after the incident but ultimately decided to continue. Needing a new bassist, Jason Newsted took the spot. Years later Newsted left the band to start his own project, and he was replaced with Robert Trujillo. This has remained their line up since 2003.
The band lists multiple artists as influences. They range far and wide with soloist such as Johnny Cash to bands like Iron Maiden, The Misfits, Motorhead, and Venom. Some of these bands influenced the band with their ability to perform live or with one of the band's particular style and individuality. Metallica also has influenced its fair share of bands. Along with Slayer and Anthrax, Metallica was one of the pioneers in the metal sub-genre thrash during the 80's. Fast tempos, extensive instrumentals, concise lyrics, and longer than average song lengths. In recent years, Metallica has evolved musically. Instead of keeping the song at one tempo the entire song, the band will slow down and speed up to add variety to each song. Metallica also has been known for some of the band's unique approaches. All members attribute this to Cliff Burton, potentially one of the most talented modern bassist, who fought against the conventional productions encouraged by music labels.
The common fan of Metallica rarely takes notice of the lyrical intricatices that James Hetfield weaves into the songs. He provides the majority of the lyrics for any Metallica song, often putting many of his emotions and experiences into them. Several of the push anti-war sentiments, often through the use of the point of view of a common foot soldier as seen in the songs "Metal Militia" and "Disposable Heroes." Also Hetfield has written a couple of songs about religion, most that came from the death of his mother. The song "The God That Failed," while on the surface looks like another song, actually deals entirely with his mother. Another, "Leper Messiah,"Hetfield criticizes religious hypocracy and organized religion. One of Metallica's most popular song, "Master of Puppets," is one of, if not the only, anti-drug songs written by Metallica. The entire song, except for one stanza, comes from the point of view of a drug. He masterfully pits the user against the drug but the confrontation represents more of something along the lines of stupidity versus exploitation.
It is particularly hard to find explicit defining of any lyrics of any songs by Hetfield or other members of the band. They will discuss member dynamics, writing the music, and what goes on behind the scenes, but hardly talk about the lyrics. Overall, many of the songs have positive messages or neutral and depends upon the listener's interpretation. Though alot depth exists in the lyrics, many of the casual fans do not notice or appreciate these hidden gems. From the outset, the band was regarded as outsiders that did not fall under the norms of curren music. This limited the artist ability found in the lyrics by the critics, and only recently since finding more widespread success has Hetfield's skill been recognized. This stigmatism stuck with the band for a while which created a negative view of the band, backed by problems with alcoholism the band experienced, that now has begun to change as critics look back upon their older works.
End of passion play, crumbling away
I'm your source of self-destruction
Veins that pump with fear, sucking dark is clear
Leading on your deaths construction
Taste me you will see
More is all you need
Dedicated to
How I'm killing you
Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master
Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Needlework the way, never you betray
Life of death becoming clearer
Pain monopoly, ritual misery
Chop your breakfast on a mirror
Taste me you will see
More is all you need
Dedicated to
How I'm killing you
Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master
Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Master, Master, where's the dreams that I've been after?
Master, Master, you promised only lies
Laughter, Laughter, all I hear or see is laughter
Laughter, Laughter, laughing at my cries
Hell is worth all that, natural habitat
Just a rhyme without a reason
Neverending maze, drift on numbered days
now your life is out of season
I will occupy
I will help you die
I will run through you
Now I rule you too
Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master
Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
The band lists multiple artists as influences. They range far and wide with soloist such as Johnny Cash to bands like Iron Maiden, The Misfits, Motorhead, and Venom. Some of these bands influenced the band with their ability to perform live or with one of the band's particular style and individuality. Metallica also has influenced its fair share of bands. Along with Slayer and Anthrax, Metallica was one of the pioneers in the metal sub-genre thrash during the 80's. Fast tempos, extensive instrumentals, concise lyrics, and longer than average song lengths. In recent years, Metallica has evolved musically. Instead of keeping the song at one tempo the entire song, the band will slow down and speed up to add variety to each song. Metallica also has been known for some of the band's unique approaches. All members attribute this to Cliff Burton, potentially one of the most talented modern bassist, who fought against the conventional productions encouraged by music labels.
The common fan of Metallica rarely takes notice of the lyrical intricatices that James Hetfield weaves into the songs. He provides the majority of the lyrics for any Metallica song, often putting many of his emotions and experiences into them. Several of the push anti-war sentiments, often through the use of the point of view of a common foot soldier as seen in the songs "Metal Militia" and "Disposable Heroes." Also Hetfield has written a couple of songs about religion, most that came from the death of his mother. The song "The God That Failed," while on the surface looks like another song, actually deals entirely with his mother. Another, "Leper Messiah,"Hetfield criticizes religious hypocracy and organized religion. One of Metallica's most popular song, "Master of Puppets," is one of, if not the only, anti-drug songs written by Metallica. The entire song, except for one stanza, comes from the point of view of a drug. He masterfully pits the user against the drug but the confrontation represents more of something along the lines of stupidity versus exploitation.
It is particularly hard to find explicit defining of any lyrics of any songs by Hetfield or other members of the band. They will discuss member dynamics, writing the music, and what goes on behind the scenes, but hardly talk about the lyrics. Overall, many of the songs have positive messages or neutral and depends upon the listener's interpretation. Though alot depth exists in the lyrics, many of the casual fans do not notice or appreciate these hidden gems. From the outset, the band was regarded as outsiders that did not fall under the norms of curren music. This limited the artist ability found in the lyrics by the critics, and only recently since finding more widespread success has Hetfield's skill been recognized. This stigmatism stuck with the band for a while which created a negative view of the band, backed by problems with alcoholism the band experienced, that now has begun to change as critics look back upon their older works.
End of passion play, crumbling away
I'm your source of self-destruction
Veins that pump with fear, sucking dark is clear
Leading on your deaths construction
Taste me you will see
More is all you need
Dedicated to
How I'm killing you
Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master
Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Needlework the way, never you betray
Life of death becoming clearer
Pain monopoly, ritual misery
Chop your breakfast on a mirror
Taste me you will see
More is all you need
Dedicated to
How I'm killing you
Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master
Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Master, Master, where's the dreams that I've been after?
Master, Master, you promised only lies
Laughter, Laughter, all I hear or see is laughter
Laughter, Laughter, laughing at my cries
Hell is worth all that, natural habitat
Just a rhyme without a reason
Neverending maze, drift on numbered days
now your life is out of season
I will occupy
I will help you die
I will run through you
Now I rule you too
Come crawling faster
Obey your Master
Your life burns faster
Obey your Master
Master
Master of Puppets I'm pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can't see a thing
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Just call my name, 'cause I'll hear you scream
Master
Master
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Hypno Paragraph
The point of this video is to emphasize the fact that humans ultimately will be responsible for our own. The words echoed in the song,"I am war, I am pain," tells of how we bring evil to our world. All people are capable of both good and evil, but sometimes the atrocities committed outweigh the good seen in the world. As science continues to evolve, so does our understanding of how to use it for destruction. Instead of looking to God for the end of humanity, we should look at our own volatile nature. When we understand this, perhaps we can work to avoid our own end.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Monologue-John
I found my Juliet,
but she hears not what I speak.
She hath taken my heart,
Which I hath offered.
Now this I realize,
Thy heart lies with a strumpet.
Love is a broken word
Here in this prison.
All that exists, sense and sex,
Eroding our nobility.
Everyone exactly the same,
Just different faces.
How can a man be a man
When he has no honor?
How can a woman be a lady
When they are promiscuous
In every sense of the word?
Thou cannot be
When thou hath sold thou souls.
Thou forfeit vindication.
Our demons, our Beelzebub,
Lives amongst us,
The opiate of the masses.
The beloved soma.
I hate it,
Like I hate this place.
I am trapped, caged,
With each moment, It infects
Each day the taint grows.
The nature of bad news infects the teller,
It eats the sword it fights with.
O! How I have betrayed myself.
Heaven me such uses send,
Not to pick bad from bad, but by bad mend.
And by bad will I mend.
but she hears not what I speak.
She hath taken my heart,
Which I hath offered.
Now this I realize,
Thy heart lies with a strumpet.
Love is a broken word
Here in this prison.
All that exists, sense and sex,
Eroding our nobility.
Everyone exactly the same,
Just different faces.
How can a man be a man
When he has no honor?
How can a woman be a lady
When they are promiscuous
In every sense of the word?
Thou cannot be
When thou hath sold thou souls.
Thou forfeit vindication.
Our demons, our Beelzebub,
Lives amongst us,
The opiate of the masses.
The beloved soma.
I hate it,
Like I hate this place.
I am trapped, caged,
With each moment, It infects
Each day the taint grows.
The nature of bad news infects the teller,
It eats the sword it fights with.
O! How I have betrayed myself.
Heaven me such uses send,
Not to pick bad from bad, but by bad mend.
And by bad will I mend.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Pithos
When does a man cross the line?
A man touches the foulness of humanity,
Those words once uttered cripple.
Like the Aegean Beauty's Box,
The filth released won't be contained.
The wounds inflicted never heal,
Those scars mar for eternity.
Checking the Beauty's Box,
Nothing remains, not that slight glimmer.
For that wish to return to the past,
All hope is gone.
A man touches the foulness of humanity,
Those words once uttered cripple.
Like the Aegean Beauty's Box,
The filth released won't be contained.
The wounds inflicted never heal,
Those scars mar for eternity.
Checking the Beauty's Box,
Nothing remains, not that slight glimmer.
For that wish to return to the past,
All hope is gone.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Long Day's Journey into Night
Often in a work, either conscious or subconscious, an author’s personal life experiences or beliefs present themselves. For Eugene O’Neill, many of his works contained pieces of his life, usually revolving around what transpired with his family. Most of these were present in the relationships between the different characters within his plays. The tragedies that he or members of his family went through in his life provided inspiration many of the characters of his plays. Though O’Neill escaped the many downfalls of his other family members, their experiences and his interaction with them provided material to create characters that had full, dynamic personalities. The most common figure who developed into characters in O’Neill’s works was his brother, Jamie O’Neill. His brother’s destructive ways often manifested themselves in the works. In Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey into Night, O’Neill utilizes his experiences with his brother to create a portrait of him and his relationship with Eugene.
In Long Day’s Journey into Night, O’Neill does little to attempt to mask the comparison of Jamie to his real life brother. Many of the actions committed by Jamie Tyrone mirror the actions of Jamie O’Neill. A prime example comes from the fact that Jamie actually did infect his younger brother, Edmund, with measles when he entered into the child’s room against instructions (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). Much like the Jamie in the play, O’Neill’s brother followed a destructive path that followed a road to alcoholism. Like in the play, Jamie struggled to find his niche in life and spent much of his life searching for it in places that no meaning could be found. Part of Jamie Tyrone’s struggle in the play comes from the ‘death’ of his mother, as Mary at that point is just a shell of her former self. This reflects how Jamie O’Neill’s life continued after the death of his mother. “…but after my mother’s death in 1922 he gave up all hold on life and simply wanted to die as soon as possible” (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). This statement from Eugene O’Neill proves that their mother’s death devastated and demoralized Jamie. This devastation ended up affected the relationship between Jamie and Eugene.
Like the relation between Jamie Tyrone and Jamie O’Neill, O’Neill does little to disguise the similarities of the relationship of the brothers in the play with those of with his brother. Just like Edmund does in the play, after the death of their mother Eugene begins to separate himself from the ways of Jamie to avoid following his path. In turn, this caused a falling away from Jamie. In reality, Edmund’s future commitment to a sanatorium alludes to the break in the relationship with Jamie. In Eugene O’Neill’s life, after he was released from the sanatorium he cut himself loose from influence from Jamie (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). In the end this shows the tedious relationship which was formed between him and his brother.
As seen, Eugene O’Neill’s personal experience had an extensive outcome on his works as well as his life. These few examples were not the only present in Long Day’s Journey into Night. Another example of this was the fact that his mother was actually a morphine addict (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). Overall it becomes quite easy to lose track of who represents what in his life as he uses the same names of family members but in many cases mixes them up to give each character a symbolic meaning. In the end, though O’Neill masterfully uses his experiences to create works that readers can connect to, even if not on the extreme level of some of his events.
Hinden, Michael. “O’Neill and Jamie: A survivor’s tale.” Comparative Drama 35.3 (Fall 2001): 435.
In Long Day’s Journey into Night, O’Neill does little to attempt to mask the comparison of Jamie to his real life brother. Many of the actions committed by Jamie Tyrone mirror the actions of Jamie O’Neill. A prime example comes from the fact that Jamie actually did infect his younger brother, Edmund, with measles when he entered into the child’s room against instructions (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). Much like the Jamie in the play, O’Neill’s brother followed a destructive path that followed a road to alcoholism. Like in the play, Jamie struggled to find his niche in life and spent much of his life searching for it in places that no meaning could be found. Part of Jamie Tyrone’s struggle in the play comes from the ‘death’ of his mother, as Mary at that point is just a shell of her former self. This reflects how Jamie O’Neill’s life continued after the death of his mother. “…but after my mother’s death in 1922 he gave up all hold on life and simply wanted to die as soon as possible” (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). This statement from Eugene O’Neill proves that their mother’s death devastated and demoralized Jamie. This devastation ended up affected the relationship between Jamie and Eugene.
Like the relation between Jamie Tyrone and Jamie O’Neill, O’Neill does little to disguise the similarities of the relationship of the brothers in the play with those of with his brother. Just like Edmund does in the play, after the death of their mother Eugene begins to separate himself from the ways of Jamie to avoid following his path. In turn, this caused a falling away from Jamie. In reality, Edmund’s future commitment to a sanatorium alludes to the break in the relationship with Jamie. In Eugene O’Neill’s life, after he was released from the sanatorium he cut himself loose from influence from Jamie (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). In the end this shows the tedious relationship which was formed between him and his brother.
As seen, Eugene O’Neill’s personal experience had an extensive outcome on his works as well as his life. These few examples were not the only present in Long Day’s Journey into Night. Another example of this was the fact that his mother was actually a morphine addict (O’Neill and Jamie: A Survivor Tale). Overall it becomes quite easy to lose track of who represents what in his life as he uses the same names of family members but in many cases mixes them up to give each character a symbolic meaning. In the end, though O’Neill masterfully uses his experiences to create works that readers can connect to, even if not on the extreme level of some of his events.
Hinden, Michael. “O’Neill and Jamie: A survivor’s tale.” Comparative Drama 35.3 (Fall 2001): 435.
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