My Term Paper Topic

"We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
Through the unknown, unremembered gate
When the last of earth left to discover
Is that which was the beginning;
At the source of the longest river
The voice of the hidden waterfall
And the children in the apple-tree
Not known, because not looked for
But heard, half-heard, in the stillness
Between two waves of the sea.
Quick now, here, now, always—
A condition of complete simplicity
(Costing not less than everything)
And all shall be well and
All manner of thing shall be well
When the tongues of flame are in-folded
Into the crowned knot of fire
And the fire and the rose are one."

-T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets, Little Gidding, pt. 5

Quote for MS

Funny little quote I found on the net:

"Oh, if only people knew how frugal we are." -- Sarah Palin on news that $150,000 of Republican money was spent on her wardrobe for US vice presidential campaign trail.

Hearts, Books, and Their Ways of Never Parting

What did I think of the movie?

Hmm... honestly, I thought the movie, overall, was quite wonderful.

I don't really know if I can say it was as great of a movie as I can say it was a wonderful visual essay, however.

When I think of the terms that dictate what a good movie should be these days, I think of all those things like a swiftly moving, highly elaborated plot, deep character development, and a story that can blow your mind.

When it comes to the Sexsons, "My Book and Heart Shall Never Part," I wasn't expecting all those things to begin with, but am happy to say I was surprised by what I did get.

First of all, the images were wonderful. I read how the Cinematographer, Colin McWilliams, wanted the aesthetics of the film to come across before the movie started. "We wanted the film to pull you in, in surprising ways, like a good book does." They accomplished this wonderfully by "flowing" across the pages with the camera, as if it were through the readers eyes, showing us the places we were to look, ensuring we all discovered the same thing at the same time. I can only guess to the difficulty involved in finding all those old primers and reading through each.

Secondly, the narration was superb. Both of the Sexsons did a fantastic job, along with their grand daughter, of narrating the story. I could have listened to all three of them talking to me all night long, reading me stories of long ago children and their amazing adventures as I drifted into a deep sleep.

And there in lies the shortcoming of the visual essay. For me it felt like many of the humorous and attention grabbing moments were in the beginning and it began to slightly drag on at the end. Now, maybe this is because I was looking at it more through the eyes of my date who was much less interested in the movie than I, but even so, I thought the pacing was a little off in that it was quite whimsical in the beginning and became slightly convoluted in the end (if one wasn't paying close attention, you could have very well missed how The Indian Education by The Pioneers fit in with - What a child is? What nature is? and What a book is?).

Shortcomings aside, I enjoyed the evening very much and greatly appreciated the young actors for how well they did in the movie. There were many provocative ideas and visuals throughout the movie, and I would be telling a complete lie if I were to say I didn't come out of the show without learning many a great things about primers, their roots, the ideas of literature in centuries past and many other things.

Congratulations to the Sexsons for all their hard work coming forth in such an educational and interesting look into something that is at the brink of extinction in our minds!

(PS - Loved the Carrot Cake!)

The Hookah and The Girl

White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane

Today in class we just barely touched on a song that has been one of my favorites (for some strange reason) since I was a little man in the big cities of California. So I wanted to do a little looking in to what the lyrics actually were, and I came across them here,( from sing365.com):

White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane
One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small
And the ones that mother gives you
Don't do anything at all
Go ask Alice
When she's ten feet tall

And if you go chasing rabbits
And you know you're going to fall
Tell 'em a hookah smoking caterpillar
Has given you the call
Recall Alice
When she was just small

When men on the chessboard
Get up and tell you where to go
And you've just had some kind of mushroom
And your mind is moving slow
Go ask Alice
I think she'll know

When logic and proportion
Have fallen sloppy dead
And the White Knight is talking backwards
And the Red Queen's "off with her head!"
Remember what the dormouse said;
"FEED YOUR HEAD
_______________

Now the lyrics are quite interesting, and the metaphor is yours to examine here. But I thought the most interesting thing about this website and its lyrics was the fact that so many people felt passionate enough about this song, drugs, and the reasons behind the story and the lyrics to write over ten pages worth of comments on what they may mean. I don't blame them, this story has made such an influence on the literature and the words in our world today, that I too feel like I should write a little ditty about what this song means to me (on their website). But I wanted to let you guys see just a few of the many, many comments left by the users of this sight.

Some of these comments frustrated me, some made me laugh, some made me realize how stupid some people are, and some made me realize how smart people are. It really is a little adventure in itself just to read the different ideas that one little work like this can bring out in a group.I can even go as far as saying that I believe that you could probably pull an entire liberal education from this song, if you knew the right places to look and the right holes to crawl through. ;-)

If you can, leave a comment on what you think of the song and these peoples comments. I'd like to know what everyone has to say about the song, the story, and these very much VARIED user feedback, lol.

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ur all pretti much right but | Reviewer: foxpat226@hotmail.com | 10/25/2008

u ppl dont get the idea to y she wrote this song was intended as a slap toward parents who read their children stories such as Alice in Wonderland (in which Alice uses several drug-like substances in order to change herself) and then wondered why their children grew up to do drugs."maybe u guys should read between the lines every once in a while

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Probably. | Reviewer: Anonymous | 10/21/2008

As a passion person, Who sings along to this song in drug trips, It is about both Alice in Wonderland, as well as a drug trip in the sense that Jefferson Airplane are saying that in a crazy drug trip you should do as Alice did in wonderland as a drug trip is a similar experience to Alice's adventure. Also it points out things that alice see's and does in her adventure that could lead one to query if some how she's tripping out in wonderland. "Feed your head" Tells everyone one of us that if we feed our heads (By taking drugs) we too will have and adventure, like Alice and learn from the experience, like Alice. xx

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Much Ado About Nothing | Reviewer: Argon | 10/24/2008

How much did eating lead paint affect Van Gogh's view of the world? Was Michelangelo gay? Were Beethoven's passages so powerful because he was deaf as a post?

What's the big deal? It's a great song, reflection of an artist's life, and an artifact of an era in American political history. If Grace Slick saw parallels with Alice in Wonderland with her own experience, well, that's what art is all about. Let's get over ourselves.

What I want to know is what did Jimi mean in Purple Haze when he said "Scuse me while I kiss this guy"? ;-}

rg

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lol | Reviewer: Anonymous | 10/21/2008

hehe quite funny.. so many comments but only the last from RUBY is right:))) this song is about drugs so much so it cant be more obvious;-p... about taking pills, eating mushrooms, smoking THC, everythings there;)

and dont forget to feed your head.. if you wont overdo it so its a good way to connect with the world beyond this one;)

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indeed about tripping | Reviewer: bri | 10/21/2008

i agree with all of those who have said this song is about acid, and in particular you Ruby. Alice in Wonderland wasn't written about any kind of psychedelic experience, but when the drug culture came about people discovered that the kinds of things lewis carroll wrote about in this book are "trippy". that's why drug people have adopted it and defended it so highly.

whether or not this song was written specifically about acid, it seems pretty clear to those of us who have had at least one psychedelic experience that this song was written so that it is the perfect song to accompany as well as discribe a drug trip.

to anyone who doesn't think this song is about drugs, maybe you should try tripping face, listen to this song, and get back to me about what you think it means.

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i think .... | Reviewer: chelsea | 10/19/2008

yes this song has to go with drugs but i dont think the movie was intened to depict it since it was for children. and i loved the movie but u know how ppl r they wanna switch things around so that ppl can start believeing a total lie. like barney and the teletubbies they werent intened to be gay they r kids shows and anybody who thinks other wise is nuts in the head. and i totally disagreed when they took bart off of sesime street, they were brothers and nothing else.
like what the heck has this wolrd come to ??

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hmm? | Reviewer: Anonymous | 10/28/2008

To the person who said not all songshave meanings,
While I don't disagree with you,
Even songs without lyrics can have meanings,
A song's meaning is different for everyone,
Even the artists who write the songs say the meaning changes to them as time passes.


Yes this song was written about drugs, so were a lot of the songs written at that time.
Who cares?
It's about how you interpret it.

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DRUGS DRUGS | Reviewer: Silly people | 10/20/2008

Its about drugs, one pill makes you larger one makes you small. that most defiantly means drugs because some make you feel so small you can fit through keyholes and under lines on the road. and the ones mother give you dont do anything at all. Um legal drugs.
Just had some kind of mushroom, Magic mushrooms make you go on hell big trips.

Feed your head- with drugs

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Alice's Tragedy is True, Her Book Inspired the Son | Reviewer: itisdejavu | 10/25/2008

The lyrics in Jefferson Airplane's famous "White Rabbit" tell of a young girls experience with LSD, Heroin, and much more. The story is true. Her name was Alice. She shared her life as a drug addicted teen with stark honesty and vivid detail. Alice did made a gallant attempt to break free of the chemicals. It was during this period she recorded her terrifying experience. Tragically, Alice's writings ended suddenly. Only a few mths. after beginning her heartfelt effort to escape an evil prison, Alice died from an over dose of Heroin. She lost the battle for life, but she did leave us her truth. The book was published after her death, and presented in the format of a personal diary. Hopefully, it has and will continue to divert the curious from destroying their lives.
When Alice was still small, at age 14, she began her chemical abuse to rid intense feelings of inadequacy. Suddenly she was 10 feet tall. This delusion fell when the addiction took her through that looking glass and into a world of insanity. Her life was manipulated by the chess players (drug dealers). When Alice, with sincere effort, returned to this side of that mirror she was ill equipped to cope. She stopped maturing mentally and emotionally at the beginning of adolescence. The awkwardness, inadequacy, and depression reclaimed her. Words of those who cared (the white knight) had no meaning. Alice was living on emotion. She lost all ability to mentally control the feelings that overwhelmed her completely. Grace is sending a message meant to squash the fantasy that drugs will empower anyone. The lyrics in no way attempt to "glorifying drugs". "White Rabbit" delivers a powerful truth told in allegory form. Alice crawled through the looking glass and lost her head. She fed her emotions not her head. Listen again. Feel the haunting melody. And remember, it happened in the sixties to a perfectly normal child. It is happening somewhere right now. It can be stopped with much more success than during the time of Alice. But the results are just the same if all remain in denial. "Remember what the Doormouse said", use your head.

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A deeper message | Reviewer: Anonymous | 10/19/2008

To all the people who say this song is not about drugs, you're wrong. It's about the hardships you go through while experiencing drug abuse and the consequences that come with it. It talks about what hallucinogens do and how they make you feel.
Relate this song to the book Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous. This connection will leave you understanding through a different point of view, hoping to give you a better insight. You'll be melancholic if you fully understand how the cycles of drug use work. People need to view it from a different perspective.

EVERY song has meaning. Even if it sounds like it doesn't, only the writer will know what it truely means.

A Stremmelman

It was the day I saw a man,

A'comin' down the street.

He seemed to me the kind of man

That I would like to meet.

With big white teeth that blazed the trail,

It seemed to me he was the gale,

That lifted me up off my feet.

For swiftly by me he did blow,

On his double bike a'he did go!

It wasn't just the Stremmelman!

It was also Sam, who's not a man!

It seemed to me, by way of pedal,

That nothing in their life could meddle,

With the glee that they both surely share.

Both smiling in a way so simple,

Creating four big, charming dimple,

While streaming 'round them went their hair.

So I asked myself, in the ways we do,

what paths lay ahead of these happy two?

Will adventures abound, both happy and sad?

Will beasts be fought, or wolves be had?

Will slippers be lost, then found and refit?

Will wives be killed or wrists be slit?

Will their bike fly away to the moon with a creature?

Will they walk down gold paths in a motion feature?

For as they road past me with their smiles,

I had to sit and dream of miles,

And miles and miles and miles and miles,

They would continue to go with their shiny smiles.

Whatever road they chose to take,

Whatever story they chose to make,

The one important thing to know,

Is that they were the ones who chose where to go.

For it can be said you repeat the past,

But always remember that your word is last.

You choose the story in which you will live,

The words will be written that you wish to give.

So a new page was added to their book on that day,

In a great, displaced, sorta kooky way.

And I continued my walk while dreaming some more,

Of the places that we all will someday explore.

It was the day I saw a man,

A'comin' down the street.

He seemed to me the kind of man

That I would like to meet.

With big white teeth that blazed the trail,

It seemed to me he was the gale,

That lifted me up off my feet. 

 

Find all the 3 relations in The Storyteller series!

SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU PLAN TO TRY TO FIND ALL THE THREE'S YOURSELF IN THE MOVIES!


That said, I have, over the past week, watched all the stories of the storyteller and seen all these connections to the number 3 in each one. Did you notice them all?

- Hans My Hedgehog - The Princess, after marrying the Grovelhog, learns he sheds his quills each night and she has to keep it a secret for 3 nights in order to break the curse. When she fails and he runs away, she searches the world and wears out 3 pairs of iron shoes in the process.
- Fearnot - Fearnot comes from a family of 3 (father, brother and Fearnot) and was tricked by 3 bullies early in the story. It takes 3 encounters before he finally learns how to shudder (encountering the swamp creature, the half demon in the castle, and the thought of losing his sweetheart).
- A Story Short - The Storyteller loses to the Beggar 3 times while playing Dice. He loses his money, his wife and his own self.
- The Luck Child - Lucky survives 3 attempts on his life by the wicked king (thrown over a cliff, sent to the castle with a letter instructing the queen to kill him, and being sent to the Griffin's lair).
- The Soldier and Death - The Soldier helps 3 beggars and is rewarded each time. He also captures 3 geese the first time he uses the Magic Sack.
- The True Bride - The girl completes 3 tasks given to her by the troll (with the help of the Thought Lion). The Lion also gives her 3 walnuts with gifts hidden inside to barter with the Trollop.
- The Three Ravens - After the Princess's 3 brothers are transformed into ravens, she has to keep silent for 3 years, 3 months and 3 days to break the curse. She also gives birth to 3 sons after marrying the Prince.
- Sapsorrow - Youngest of 3 daughters, Sapsorrow commissions the making of 3 dresses to stall the arranged marriage with her Father. She then wears those 3 dresses on 3 different nights to woo the Prince.
- The Heartless Giant - Youngest of 3 princes, Leo tries to find the Heartless Giant that he released. On the way, he helps 3 animals (bird, fish and wolf) who later aid him. When Leo tries to find where the Giant's heart is hidden, he finds out on the third try.