More Roman Quotes

Seneca, born around 8 B.C., is shown here in this Italian painting from 1684, dying. He was ordered by the Roman emperor Nero to kill himself. Seneca died a slow death; he bled himself. This is what is happening in this painting: Seneca is speaking his last words of wisdom as the blood is slowly draining from the open veins in his legs and arms. Notice the vessel under his leg collecting the blood, and the scribes writing down this famous philosopher's last words. This was a long slow death: after the bleeding didn't seem to be working, Seneca attempted to die by poisoning himself, this didn't work either. He eventually died after placing himself in a hot pool of water in order to open the veins and help encourage the flow of blood. It is written that he finally died from the steam off the water.

You can tell by the look on Seneca's face that he is not a philosopher to be worried much by his imminent death. He appears to be more concerned with getting his point across. Seneca died according to his own stoic philosophy, which taught controlling your emotions. Look into it if you are interested. In the meantime here's a few Senecan quotes:

"All art is but imitation of nature."
"It is a rough road that leads to the heights of greatness."

Everyone knows that, but pay special attention to these:

"A great fortune is a great slavery."
"It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor."

And my favorite:

"It is better, of course, to know useless things than to know nothing."

True, right?

Sir Thomas More's Utopia

Sir Thomas More finished writing Utopia in 1516, nearly 500 years ago. The word utopia derives its origin from this work. A utopia is an ideal society, and this is what More attempts to describe: an imagined perfect society.

This is another short but pithy read that I would highly recommend. Be warned: it's a depressing return trip from Utopia back to today's society. Here's some of my favorite parts:

"For instance, the Utopians fail to understand why anyone should be so fascinated by the dull gleam of a tiny bit of stone, when he has all the stars in the sky to look at - or how anyone can be silly enough to think himself better than other people, because his clothes are made of finer woollen thread than theirs. After all, those fine clothes were once worn by a sheep, and they never turned it into anything better than a sheep."

"But what puzzles and disgusts the Utopians even more is the idiotic way some people have of practically worshipping a rich man, not because they owe him money or are otherwise in his power, but simply because he's rich - although they know perfectly well that he's far too mean to let a single penny come their way, so long as he's alive to stop it."

"And now, what about those people who accumulate superfluous wealth, for no better purpose than to enjoy looking at it? Is their pleasure a real one, or merely a form of delusion?"

"What, they ask, is the good of a treaty? Aren't all human beings natural allies already? And if a person's prepared to ignore a fundamental bond like that, is he likely to pay much attention to a mere form of words?"

"For, according to the Utopians, it's quite unjust for anyone to be bound by a legal code which is too long for an ordinary person to read right through, or too difficult for him to understand."

"They think no one should be regarded as an enemy who hasn't done you any harm. Human nature constitutes a treaty in itself, and human beings are far more effectively united by kindness than by contracts, by feelings than by words."

"Finally, let me tell you about their religious ideas. There are several different religions on the island, and indeed in each town. . .However, the vast majority take the much more sensible view that there is a single divine power, unknown, eternal, infinite, inexplicable, and quite beyond the grasp of the human mind, diffused throughout this universe of ours, not as a physical substance, but as an active force."

"Nobody owns anything, but everyone is rich - for what greater wealth can there be than cheerfulness, peace of mind, and freedom from anxiety?"

"In fact, when I consider any social system that prevails in the modern world, I can't, so help me God, see it as anything but a conspiracy of the rich to advance their own interests under the pretext of organizing society. They think up all sorts of tricks and dodges, first for keeping safe their ill-gotten gains, and then for exploiting the poor by buying their labour as cheaply as possible."

Wow!! Sound familiar? 500 years ago was not that long ago really.

Sorry for any typos. Oh yeah, and The Shins mention Sir Thomas More on the song "So Says I" on the Chutes Too Narrow album. Here's the line:

"Cause this is nothing like we'd ever dreamt/Tell Sir Thomas More we got another failed attempt/Cause if it makes them money they might just give you life this time"

It's a good song, Utopia is a great piece of writing, check 'em out. . .The two of you who might read this.

Olympic Volleyball

is fun to watch. Beach or Indoor. . . don't matter much to me. It should be a professional sport. . .it is, I know. . .you know what I mean though. It should be on TV more, right? Like 'the big 4' sports. I'm sure everyone can name them. F/B/B/H. Yes, hockey. I mean there's got to be some other stuff going on that they could show. . .instead of hockey, or the other three for that matter. Other sports. . .that you aren't even aware of existing until the Olympics roll around. They don't sell, I guess. Well, of course that's the reason, but come on. . .something different occasionaly would be nice.

I mean seriously, they spike the hell out of the ball nearly every play. Play or whatever it's called. . .run. . .I don't know, doesn't matter. The spike in volleyball is something cool that you can kind of look forward to seeing when you watch sports. . .and it happens nearly every play. It's like the homerun in baseball, the slamdunk in basketball, or the showboat in football.

To me, watching sports is more about the specific game being played right at the moment, not about becoming obsessed with one team or one player, tracking the stats, making up inane comparisons and what-if scenarios involving both. Who cares? Half of it comes down to chance anyway. I like sports. . .don't get me wrong. . .but for what they are. If you are playing the sport, I can see how you could become obsessed with it, but if you have nothing at all to do with it. . .calm down about it. 'Your team lost. . .oh well. . .it's not about winning or losing, it's about how you play the game, right? So, since you had nothing to do with either, don't fret. . .just watch it. . .or don't. . .either way.

Read below.

Albert Camus' The Stranger

The Stranger by Albert Camus, published in 1942, is also a very short novel. To anyone who has not read this book, I would highly recommend it. Albert Camus is famous for only a few works, all of which are worth your time. He has: The Plague, The Fall, The Stranger, and a collection of short stories called Exile and the Kingdom. He also wrote a couple of well known essays: The Rebel, and The Myth of Sisyphus. These have all been translated, mind you; Camus wrote in French. . .because he was French, born in Algeria though, where the novel is set.

I would recommend all three of these novels, as well as the collection of short stories. None of the four books are very long. The Stranger is about a man who really has a problem finding any kind of meaning in life. Camus' philosophy, though, personified by Meursault, is coldly comforting. Read it and you will know what I mean. Honestly, this book takes about 2-3 hours to read, total. . .if that. In the mean time here is a funny little story from within the novel:

"One day, when inspecting my straw mattress, I found a bit of newspaper stuck to its underside. The paper was yellow with age, almost transparent, but I could still make out the letter print. It was the story of a crime. The first part was missing, but I gathered that its scene was some village in Czechoslovakia. One of the villagers had left his home to try his luck abroad. After twenty-five years, having made a fortune, he returned to his country with his wife and child. Meanwhile his mother and sister had been running a small hotel in the village where he was born. He decided to give them a surprise and, leaving his wife and child in another inn, he went to stay at his mother's place, booking a room under an assumed name. His mother and sister completely failed to recognize him. At dinner that evening he showed them a large sum of money he had on him, and in the course of the night they slaughtered him with a hammer. After taking the money they flung the body into the river. Next morning his wife came and, without thinking, betrayed the guest's identity. His mother hanged herself. His sister threw herself into a well. I must have read that story thousands of times. In one way it sounded most unlikely; in another, it was plausible enough. Anyhow, to my mind, the man was asking for trouble; one shouldn't play fool tricks of that sort."

Animal Farm

George Orwell's Animal Farm was written during World War II. It is really short, about 130 pages in my edition. The story is one of an animal uprising at a farm. It is symbolic of the Communist uprising in Russia. Nearly each animal has a counterpart from real-life. Napoleon the pig = Stalin. Snowball the pig = Trotsky. Neighbor farmer No. 1 = Hitler. And so forth. Get the whole list on Wikipedia if you decide to read the book.

On Animal Farm, the animals decide to revolt and to create a communal system on the farm. The pigs are put in charge. Just read it. It's so short. It's a good rundown on what happened in Russia, and why, supposedly, Communism can not work.

Recent Reading, Part Three: Herman Melville's Typee

Herman Melville's first book, Typee, is a story about adventure on the Polynesian islands. It's only about 250 pages. Read it if you liked Moby Dick. If you haven't read Moby Dick this book could serve as a good introduction to Melville's style. Depending on your vocabulary you may want to have a dictionary handy. Melville writes flamboyantly. To me, it's fun to read.

After the adventure of reaching the natives ends, the book is mainly about the lifestyle of the Polynesian cannibals. Here's a quote describing one aspect:

"There were none of those thousand sources of irritation that the ingenuity of civilized man has created to mar his own felicity. There were no forclosures of mortgages, no protested notes, no bills payable, no debts of honor in Typee; no unreasonable tailors and shoemakers, perversely bent on being paid; no duns of any description; no assault and battery attorneys, to foment discord, backing their clients up to a quarrel, and then knocking their heads together; no poor relations, everlastingly occupying the spare bed-chamber, and diminishing the elbow room at the family table; no destitute widows with their children starving on the cold charities of the world; no beggars; no debtors' prisons; no proud and hard-hearted nabobs in Typee; or to sum up all in one word--no Money! "That root of all evil" was not to be found in the valley.

In this secluded abode of happiness there were no cross old women, no cruel step-dames, no withered spinsters, no love-sick maidens, no sour old bachelors, no inattentive husbands, no melancholy young men, no blubbering youngsters, and no squalling brats. All was mirth, fun, and high good humor. Blue devils, hypochondria, and doleful dumps, went and hid themselves among the nooks and crannies of the rocks"

Ah, to be a "savage"

The Shins: Wincing the Night Away

is one of the best albums I have ever heard. . .really. Maybe I am behind everyone else on realizing this; I just started listening to it a month or so ago. It took me a little while to really get into it, aside from Phantom Limb, the first single, but now that I have, I love it. Its all I have been listening to lately. I can't get enough. Great lyrics, greater melodies, awesome drumming. Seriously, get it, listen to it three or four times, and you will love it too. Maybe you already do. Was there a better album last year? I since have gotten the previous two Shins' albums. They are good, but this album blows them away. Listen to it and let me know what you think.

Recent Reading, Part Two: Hermann Hesse's Steppenwolf

Written in German and published in 1927, Hermann Hesse's tenth novel, not a biography of the lukewarm band that brought us such classic rock radio hits as 'Born To Be Wild' and 'Magic Carpet Ride,' is decent. It's only 250 pages. It's about a guy who envisions himself as having a psyche that is divided in two. One side can cope in society and the other side, the wolfish side, can not deal with the world and longs to commit suicide. Throughout the novel, the boundaries of fantasy are routinely crossed, especially the ending, the most entertaining part of the book, in which Harry 'Steppenwolf' Haller is described as being in a 'Magic Theater' where he can step through any of thousands of various doors and live out various scenarios. These include a shoot-em-up war scene and an encounter with a chessman who explains life as being chess pieces that are forever being rearranged. By the way, Steppenwolf is a German word that means 'coyote,' literally 'wolf of the steppes.' Some words in English related:

lycanthropy (noun): 1. a delusion in which one imagines oneself to be a wolf or other wild animal.
2. the supposed or fabled assumption of the appearance of a wolf by a human being.

lupine (adjective): pertaining to or resembling the wolf; wolflife; wolfish

Not a bad book, however, if you are going to read something written by Hermann Hesse, I would definately recommend reading Siddhartha first. This seemed to me to be the better book, and it's even shorter. It's a book about the main character, Siddharta's, quest for enlightment. Siddhartha was the birth name of Buddha (so Wikipedia tells me), and the novel is set in 6th Century B.C. India. Whether or not Siddhartha is supposed to be Buddha himself in the novel, I don't know. Buddhist philosophy, however, still abounds.

It's a very good book. Thom Yorke likes it and used it for inspiration on at least a couple of songs on the Amnesiac album, most plainly heard in the lyrics to 'Pyramid Song.' So all you Radiohead fans out there, check it out. Quick read, read it in one sitting, beside a river, honestly. It gives you a good feeling. You'll thank me later.

Recent Reading, Part One: Ivan Turgenev's Fathers and Sons

Sometimes, in order to help stanch the boredom that may consume you when you set out to tackle a novel, it helps to read more than one book at a time. Read for a certain amount of time, or a certain number of pages in one book, then before you die of boredom, switch to something else. It is an easy way to refresh your straining attention span. Then, before you know it you will not only have read one book, but a couple, or a few, or twenty.

Recently I have been reading three novels, reading fifty pages in one, then the next, then the third, then back to the first for the next fifty. These novels range from 200-250 pages each, so I was hoping to be done in five days, reading fifty in each every day. I don't always get to all three, so it has taken a couple weeks, but I feel fairly satisfied if I get through at least fifty in at least one. The three novels:
Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev
Typee by Hermann Melville
Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse

I know what you are thinking. . .two guys named Herman. This was not intentional and did not occur to me until after I began. Interesting comparison can ensue when doing this.

So, the first one I have finished, also the shortest (200 pages in my copy) was Fathers and Sons, a Russian novel, translated, written around 1862. It is a well known Russian novel; some even consider it one of the first of the genre, along with Nikolai Gogol's Dead Souls, one of the next on my list.

It was good. I would recommend it as a good introduction to Russian lit. It's mainly about the generational divide between the characters in the novel, and how they deal with the nihilistic beliefs of one of the main characters, Bazarov, who is representative of an incipient way of thinking in Russia. Check it out, if you are so inclined. It's a quick read.
incipient (adjective): beginning to exist or appear; in an initial stage: an incipient cold.

By the way, I just caught the Hold Steady on Letterman while typing this. Find a way to hear their new album. Good stuff.

Part Two: Hermann Hesse's Steppenwolf, coming soon.

Felice Brothers

Waterspider. If you can find this song in mp3 format, let me know.


There's a time to give 'em hell
and a time to wish 'em well.

T.S. Eliot

I know asking someone, 'What are some of your favorite poems?' is about the equivalent of asking, 'What's your CB handle?' or 'How many 8-track cassettes do you have?' Poetry is dead, I know. It used to be big, when information could only be passed by word of mouth or writing. Now people can record themselves, so all the poets sing. No exceptions....just kidding. I'm sure there are a lot of exceptions, but let's face it: poetry is boring. It can be anyhow. Sometimes it can be pretty cool though. For instance, this poem by T.S. Eliot.

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Kind of like a song. This poem is like the Stairway to Heaven or Bohemain Rhapsody of poetry. I mean it changes its style and form numerous times. It's got the whole 'In the room the women come and go/Talking of Michelanglelo' part. Kind of like a chorus. Some of it sound familiar? The Crash Test Dummies song 'Afternoons and Coffee Spoons' quotes it a little and mentions T.S. Eliot. The best known lines are probably either the very beginning or the little ditty: 'Do I dare to eat a peach?' Not to be confused with the Nicolas Cage line from Face/Off: 'I could eat a peach all day.'

Guitar

You know what song is really fun to play? Black Star by Radiohead. It's what I've been strumming lately when I pick up the guitar. The intro isn't too hard if you know how the song goes. In the verse, through the first four chords, you can just leave your pinky and third finger down on the B and E strings respectively, then it's a sweet Em chord, check it out. Good song. You probably already know how to play it. If not, enjoy.

The Shins -- Coming Soon

In the meantime read below.

Quotes of the Day/Word of the Day

Alright, who doesn't love some words of wisdom from 2000 years ago...literally...probably more like 2050 years ago?

Publilius Syrus is the name. Catamites were his game. Actually I don't know if that's true, but it leads me to the word of the day.

cat·a·mite (noun): a boy or youth who is in a sexual relationship with a man.

No shame though, this was a fairly common arrangement in old Rome...other areas of the Ancient world as well...Japan for instance. Once again, I don't know how Publilius went about things, but I think you will agree, he was a handsome devil.

Whatever he did, however many catamites he may or may not have had, fawning over him, bowing to his every whim, rubbing sensual oils all over his body, he wrote a lot of maxims. Oils and maxims were big back then. Here's a couple to ruminate on:

maxim (noun): a short, concise truism.

Translated from the Latin:

"It is only the ignorant who despise education."

"How happy the life unembarrassed by the cares of business!"

Old Boy

Oh-Dae-Su (pictured) one day discovers himself being held captive in a small, slightly furnished room. He has a TV, a bed, a shower, but has no idea why he is being held, or for how long he is fated to reside there. Fifteen years pass before he is released. Why? Once again, he doesn't know. We eventually find out.

This is a South Korean revenge flick; it won some awards in 2004, and was highly acclaimed by Quentin Tarantino (you will see why). Disturbed minds will love this movie. It has one of the most shocking endings I have seen in a movie for a long time, maybe ever. Cool music, cool cinematography. Do yourself a favor and move this movie to the top of your Netflix queue. Be prepared: it's overdubbed in English, no pesky subtitles.

And don't watch with family.

The Machinist

The Machinst (2004) is a movie with Christian Bale (Batman) acting as the lead character, Trevor Reznick, who has failed to sleep a wink in over a year. Why has he not died from this? No one has ever directly died from insonmia. There are people with chronic insomnia living today who have not slept in years.

From Wikipedia:
"Chronic insomnia lasts for years at a time. It can be caused by another disorder, or it can be a primary disorder. Its effects can vary according to its causes. They might include sleepiness, muscular fatigue, hallucinations, and/or mental fatigue; but people with chronic insomnia often show increased alertness. Some people that live with this disorder see things as though they were happening in slow motion, whereas moving objects seem to blend together."

You may recall other such movies that have dealt with insomnia and its hallucinatory effects, i.e. Fight Club, and you will certainly notice similarities between the two. This is not a bad thing. The perspicacious watcher will also notice many similarities between the plot line and the plotlines (plotline can be written with a space or without, by the way) of a few works by Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. Those alluded to being: The Brothers Karamosov, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, and the novella The Double, in which a character begins seeing and interacting with a human manifestation of his own less desirable qualities. Once again, Fight Club uses this same motif.

Reznick is seen reading a copy of The Idiot at one point early in the movie, and the words Crime and Punishment are seen in the background at one point as well, so the deliberate association with Dostoevsky is palpable. Although there is no time to describe the genius of these books of Fyodor's, I will suffice it to say that they are worth your time, more so than this movie.

This movie was really good though, even without all the literary allusions. I wouldn't think of ruining the ending for you, but it all ties together fairly neatly at the end, unlike another movie that I recently watched that I would also highly recommend, but which doesn't tie up so nicely, Barton Fink, a Coen brothers movie from a few years back, John Turturro, John Goodman. It was good, man, but I am still trying to figure out what happened.

Anyway, Trevor Reznick, Trent Reznor, whoever this character is, can't sleep, starts to hallucinate, and the plot thickening ensues. It's a dark movie: the Dostoevsky, the Trent Reznor reference, the music, and the thing that I have thus far failed to mention. Christian Bale lost so much weight for this movie (he wanted to lose more, but the producers feared for his health) that he literally looks like a walking skeleton. And you thought Tom Hanks was dedicated to his craft when he gained/lost all that weight for Castaway; Christian Bale, in The Machinist, makes Tom Hanks look like the laziest hack in Hollywood, and makes Hanks' skinny character from Castaway look like Dom DeLuise, check it out if you have the time.