Saturday, October 20
Interrupting our regularly scheduled debate... for a "fun fact"
I wanted to keep the debate post up for a few days... to let visitors leave their thoughts. But urgent news has just come in, and I must bear them out to all those who visit my blog.
JK Rowling has just admitted, in an auditorium full of children in New York, that her created character Albus Dumbledore is gay (homosexual, not they happy/jolly 'gay').
Check out the BBC News Link:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7053982.stm
If you want to leave a comment about this, instead of the debate. Feel obliged. :)
Friday, October 19
Fantasy/Science Fiction: creative 'escapism' or insightful 'literature'
Reading the blog of a favorite author of mine (a fantasy writer), I came upon this question.
It reminded me of one of my stronger preferences in reading. Many books on my shelf that are fully read are works by Gaiman, Rothfuss, Adams, Rowling, Snicket (Handler), Tolkien, and Card, among others. Some half-read books remain -- two physics books by Stephen Hawking, a handful of economist and development books, politics & current affairs, plus a couple of G.G.Marquez's.
It is a preference I have not seen many others around me share. And something I have not questioned often, if at all. But being interested in argument and debate, it has merit to be discussed. To not just take an opinion of, but to know what drives that opinion.
I submit then this question for debate -- are works of fantasy or science fiction mostly creative 'escapism', or do they represent part of our history's insightful 'literature'?
To give examples of these works - not limited to written form -- turn to popular culture... the Star Trek or Star Wars series, Harry Potter, tv shows like 'Battlestar Galactica' or 'Babylon 5', the Lord of the Rings, hundreds of paperback novels with illustrations of non-human facial features on the cover, comics / graphic novels, Spiderman, Batman, Superman... ad infinitum.
The argument is not that these works do not have intrinsic value. I think most of us agree they have value. For entertainment, definitely. For some immediate emotional release - humour maybe, or tension-release. Hardly anyone would argue that the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy was not enjoyable.
Enjoyment aside, the question is... do these works add enlightenment and improve the human condition, like many generously praised mainstream literary works do?
I invite anyone who reads this to post a few thoughts by replying to this post.
An opinion, strung from a few phrases, would be generous. An insight into what my friends, or even complete strangers think, is mostly my gain.
I would share my own opinion in my next post.
Your thoughts, Messrs and Mses?
P.S. Procrastinator's Hour, Day#3 spent on 3 1/2 chapters of "The Island of the Day Before"
It reminded me of one of my stronger preferences in reading. Many books on my shelf that are fully read are works by Gaiman, Rothfuss, Adams, Rowling, Snicket (Handler), Tolkien, and Card, among others. Some half-read books remain -- two physics books by Stephen Hawking, a handful of economist and development books, politics & current affairs, plus a couple of G.G.Marquez's.
It is a preference I have not seen many others around me share. And something I have not questioned often, if at all. But being interested in argument and debate, it has merit to be discussed. To not just take an opinion of, but to know what drives that opinion.
I submit then this question for debate -- are works of fantasy or science fiction mostly creative 'escapism', or do they represent part of our history's insightful 'literature'?
To give examples of these works - not limited to written form -- turn to popular culture... the Star Trek or Star Wars series, Harry Potter, tv shows like 'Battlestar Galactica' or 'Babylon 5', the Lord of the Rings, hundreds of paperback novels with illustrations of non-human facial features on the cover, comics / graphic novels, Spiderman, Batman, Superman... ad infinitum.
The argument is not that these works do not have intrinsic value. I think most of us agree they have value. For entertainment, definitely. For some immediate emotional release - humour maybe, or tension-release. Hardly anyone would argue that the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy was not enjoyable.
Enjoyment aside, the question is... do these works add enlightenment and improve the human condition, like many generously praised mainstream literary works do?
I invite anyone who reads this to post a few thoughts by replying to this post.
An opinion, strung from a few phrases, would be generous. An insight into what my friends, or even complete strangers think, is mostly my gain.
I would share my own opinion in my next post.
Your thoughts, Messrs and Mses?
P.S. Procrastinator's Hour, Day#3 spent on 3 1/2 chapters of "The Island of the Day Before"
Thursday, October 18
Productivity
Procrastinator's Hour, Day 2.
Four and a half chapters of an unfinished book -- The Island of the Day Before.
Four and a half chapters of an unfinished book -- The Island of the Day Before.
Tuesday, October 16
The procrastinator's hour
One of the greatest burdens I've carried is a seemingly natural tendency to procrastinate. It's my addiction -- my alcohol, my cocaine, my vice. I either find it extremely hard to admit, hence fooling myself that I'm productive, or extremely easy to dismiss, hence not understanding how it rots inside of me.
Of the many books I own and bought, over half have not been read through.
A few that have, I haven't finished beyond chapter 5.
I love cooking new dishes on weekends. Always a new asian dish every time. However, frozen left-overs litter my fridge, all the way from 3 weeks ago.
I've become interested in starting half a dozen hobbies in the past 3 months alone - guitar playing, amateur photography, blogging, updating my "net 2.0" accounts. I've got the guitar, the camera, the blog, and a reliable internet connection. The strength to see it through? Oops. Forgot that.
Not to mention what happens at work.
It is easy to get caught up 'seemingly busy', with a life full of distractions and to do's. The art of choosing and following through is never taught in the classroom. Frost is lucky he chose a road at all, well traveled or not. My sin is being stuck at the crossings.
It takes an equally insane idea to remedy and equally tough habit. I am starting a 'Procrastinator's Hour' -- 10:00pm to 11:00pm every night. The rule: I am obligated to do something during this hour that I have put off in the past. Begin a book. Finish a book. Practice the guitar. Do that exercise I skipped in the morning. Anything I had previously said I had no time to do.
DAY#1 (Today): Begin blogging again.
Of the many books I own and bought, over half have not been read through.
A few that have, I haven't finished beyond chapter 5.
I love cooking new dishes on weekends. Always a new asian dish every time. However, frozen left-overs litter my fridge, all the way from 3 weeks ago.
I've become interested in starting half a dozen hobbies in the past 3 months alone - guitar playing, amateur photography, blogging, updating my "net 2.0" accounts. I've got the guitar, the camera, the blog, and a reliable internet connection. The strength to see it through? Oops. Forgot that.
Not to mention what happens at work.
It is easy to get caught up 'seemingly busy', with a life full of distractions and to do's. The art of choosing and following through is never taught in the classroom. Frost is lucky he chose a road at all, well traveled or not. My sin is being stuck at the crossings.
It takes an equally insane idea to remedy and equally tough habit. I am starting a 'Procrastinator's Hour' -- 10:00pm to 11:00pm every night. The rule: I am obligated to do something during this hour that I have put off in the past. Begin a book. Finish a book. Practice the guitar. Do that exercise I skipped in the morning. Anything I had previously said I had no time to do.
DAY#1 (Today): Begin blogging again.
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