Prof. Meehan

Literature & Composition

May 2, 2010

The Fall of. . .Us

The world in which we live is one that is constantly under scrutiny and developing through episodic change. This is quite clear when observing evolutions in communication, especially dealing with literary achievements in text up to today’s more modern electronic interface. While the gradual upbringing has (up to this point) proved beneficial in the end, we may have found a roadblock; a massive, digital, empty space. Yes, as tragic as it may seem, the common technologies we perceive to be beneficial due to simplicity may very well be black holes in disguise; swallowing our ability as humans to distinguish ourselves in physical and emotional ways that are not programmed.

As The Gutenberg Elegies suggests;  “. . .our overall American bewitchment with technology is based on the assumption that improvements in the material sphere are intrinsically good.” (222). While this assumption offers us a look into Birkerts mode of thinking, it also reinforces why the belief stands that so many people are swept up in the rush of technology. Accessibility is at a rate higher than ever; people no longer have landlines, the Internet is available through cell phones, and standard radios have almost been forgotten. Contained within Rob Wittig’s electronic text “The Fall of the Site of Marsha” is a clear-cut example of how our newer, more common technologies may be taking over. But is this stepping too far? Am I falling victim to exaggerating the effective direction of digital media, outweighing positive regard and use with completely negative connotation? Perhaps, though along with Birkerts I feel I am growing frightened of the charismatic guest or should I say, our newest installation(s) to life as we know it.

There is however, a theoretical motivation for the extensive use of more recently (say, since the 70’s) applied technologies. Birkerts cites Marshall McLuhan by calling certain circuit-driven tools “extensions of man”. He continues; “We embrace them because they seem a part of us, an enhancement. They don’t seem to challenge our power so much as add to it.” (221) Thusly, thanks to our adaptive nature as humans, we see our inventions and useful outlets as controlled, extended beings of ourselves; connected in someway by an invisible presence that gives us a sense of power and purpose. In “The Fall of the Site of Marsha” Marsha falls victim to the connective aura of the Internet; more specifically, the early workings of homepages in the late 90’s. Her homepage revolves around throne angels, a passion of high interest to her due to her claims (posted on the site) of her coming in contact with a throne angel. Soon after, her message board begins to fill up with threats from multiple throne angels, picking apart aspects of her life and revealing many secrets that ultimately drive Marsha into dismay, madness, and ruin. The clear problem here is access, which leads directly to Marsha’s vulnerability through the personal information she provides on her page. In perspective, this is absolutely terrifying given the amount of growth and modification the Internet has undergone the past decade, since Marsha’s tragic attempt at growth and connecting through her own simple interests.

Perhaps even more frightening than the aforementioned realization is the possibility of it not being fully recognized. Birkerts couldn’t have put it any better; “The evidence of change is all around us, though possibly in the manner of the forest that we cannot see for the trees.” (118-19) That is to say that our vision has been constricted by digital calamity and as a result, we have grown accustomed to our newly found home; somewhere deep in a forest of wires and plastic parts. Marsha serves as a perfect example of our blind nature in that, while she was responding to the messages trying to prevent further torment, she was feeding it by continuing to respond and therefore, gave the tormenters and the machine control. This occurs quite frequently, especially amongst the youth of our time. I couldn’t possibly count the number of times I have heard of a confrontation that stemmed from something that was said or done electronically. I remember as if it were yesterday, girls coming into school on a weekday morning with an Instant Messaging conversation printed out and something to say about it; how I miss those days. But I must say what I miss even more is playing outside with friends; not being glued to any sort of screen or sucked into some electronic dream world where all is possible simply because everything is a click away.

With the vastness of the Internet in mind, one cannot help but meditate on thoughts of the now infamous Facebook, a domain for individuals to advertise and plead with the other non-existents to recognize each others talents and loves. This is a paradox I realize, but there is ignorance afoot. Those sending information about themselves (or not) are giving the machine and anyone with certain access capabilities free reign on their personal database, and whatever it may contain. This was exactly the case with Marsha; by simply posting and sharing her experiences she allowed everyone and anyone who wanted to see them the ability to. In the end it proved to be the purpose of the story, showing how innocent, good-intentioned expressions can lead to dark and terrible things. While I realize that this may not always be the case, more times than none I would bet that altercations and problems are started because of something said/done electronically and not an actual physical altercation. And here is where the wallowing sense of disconnection is felt; whom are you fighting or slandering over the Internet? And besides that, how as a society have we grown from the Roaring 20’s where social interaction was booming and positive to nowadays where people would rather send a text message than even call and hear the other person’s voice? Certainly numerous changes have occurred, but how many more do we need to make before we begin to feel nothing?

The problematic status of our newly “wired” generation pushes and pulls on both sides of itself; though accessibility and connection have increased efficiency in production and business and such, at what price have we utilized these simple expenditures? To draw a definitive line where soul meets body? Where we transfer our essence, everything we like, dislike, believe in, and anything else we wish into a world that would have us as its slaves? I fear we are now reliant on these ideas, just because of popularity. If you don’t have a cell phone, you are in the Stone Age. No facebook = no life. Our super ability to believe we are in high connection is simply fraud; a computer has no free will, nor does it judge what information we give it. It reminds us who we are; a lost cell like Marsha, swept out and drowning in a sea of code that stretches as far as the eyes could imagine.

“I pledge to have abided by the Washington College Honor Code.”

Professor Meehan

Literature and Composition

May 1, 2010

Welcome to the Machine: An Introduction

With the semester coming to its end, it is time we rotate to face our footsteps and carefully examine the shaping of the grains. Words, in this particular instance bask in their lackadaisical world and wait for the day that we mold them into an intricate puzzle for you to read and likewise, examine. The revising of the final project was a process that combined many aspects of editing that have made their way into my brain over our past few months together. Overall, my skills as a writer have progressed in ways that have helped in making my essays more concise and consistent.

The fourth writing project was one that I found most interesting amongst others; one that allowed me to utilize an electronic text and a “hard” text to effectively illustrate the goal of my essay. Unfortunately, my initial draft was more scattered than I would have hoped. So, in revising I focused heavily on connecting the points in my essay; eliminating empty spaces in order to clarify the direction of my thesis and its supporting evidence. Using more words of Birkerts also allowed me to expand on ideas that were previously not incorporated as well. These techniques stem from practice and examples that have been prevalent throughout the entire course and work miracles on papers that need just a little more “umph”.

It’s taken lots of work and lots of writing to move up this semester, and even now I still seek to improve. It will surely be quite sometime until a fine medium is reached; a place at which my brain may rest and be pleased wholly with the work it has completed. But for now, I will be satisfied with all I have created this semester and look forward to the changes that are sure to come in the approaching years.

Prof. Meehan

Literature & Composition

April 20, 2010

The Fall of. . .Us

The world in which we live is one that is constantly under scrutiny and developing through episodic change. This is quite clear when observing evolutions in communication, especially dealing with literary achievements in text up to today’s more modern electronic interface. While the gradual upbringing has (up to this point) proved beneficial in the end, we may have found a roadblock; a massive, digital, empty space. Yes, as tragic as it may seem, the common technologies we perceive to be beneficial due to simplicity may very well be black holes in disguise; swallowing the person and the place they inhabit within the world.

As The Gutenberg Elegies suggests;  “. . .our overall American bewitchment with technology is based on the assumption that improvements in the material sphere are intrinsically good.” (222). While this assumption offers us a look into Birkerts mode of thinking, it also reinforces why the belief stands that so many people are swept up in the rush of technology. Accessibility is at a rate higher than ever; people no longer have landlines, the Internet is available through cell phones, and standard radios have almost been forgotten. Contained within Rob Wittig’s electronic text “The Fall of the Site of Marsha” is a clear-cut example of how our newer, more common technologies may be taking over. But is this stepping too far? Am I falling victim to exaggerating the effective direction of digital media, outweighing positive regard and use with completely negative connotation? Perhaps, though along with Birkerts I feel I am growing frightened of the charismatic guest or should I say, our newest installation(s) to life as we know it.

There is however, a theoretical motivation for the extensive use of more recently (say, since the 70’s) applied technologies. Birkerts cites Marshall McLuhan by calling certain circuit-driven tools “extensions of man”. He continues; “We embrace them because they seem a part of us, an enhancement. They don’t seem to challenge our power so much as add to it.” (221) Thusly, thanks to our adaptive nature as humans, we see our inventions and useful outlets as controlled, extended beings of ourselves; connected in someway by an invisible presence that gives us a sense of power and purpose. In “The Fall of the Site of Marsha” Marsha falls victim to the connective aura of the Internet; more specifically, the early workings of homepages in the late 90’s. Her homepage revolves around throne angels, a passion of high interest to her due to her claims (posted on the site) of her coming in contact with a throne angel. Soon after, her message board begins to fill up with threats from multiple throne angels, picking apart aspects of her life and revealing many secrets that ultimately drive Marsha into dismay, madness, and ruin. The clear problem here is access, which leads directly to Marsha’s vulnerability through the personal information she provides on her page. In perspective, this is absolutely terrifying given the amount of growth and modification the Internet has undergone the past decade, since Marsha’s tragic attempt at growth and connecting through her own simple interests.

Another example of the power of access that comes to mind is the infamous Facebook, a domain for individuals to advertise and plead with the other non-existents to recognize their existence; a paradox I realize, but there is ignorance afoot. Those sending information about themselves (or not) are giving the machine and anyone with certain access capabilities free reign on their personal database, and whatever it may contain. This was exactly the case with Marsha; by simply posting and sharing her experiences she allowed everyone and anyone who wanted to see them the ability to. In the end it proved to be the purpose of the story, showing how innocent, good-intentioned expressions can lead to dark and terrible things. While I realize that this may not always be the case, more times than none I would bet that altercations and problems are started because of something said/done electronically and not an actual physical altercation. And here is where the wallowing sense of disconnection is felt; who are you fighting or slandering over the internet? And besides that, how as a society have we grown from the Roaring 20’s where social interaction was booming and positive to nowadays where people would rather send a text message than even call and hear the other persons voice? Certainly numerous changes have occurred, but how many more do we need to make before we begin to feel nothing?

The problematic status of our newly “wired” generation pushes and pulls on both sides of itself; though accessibility and connection have increased efficiency in production and business and such, at what price have we utilized these simple expenditures? To draw a definitive line where soul meets body? Where we transfer our essence, everything we like, dislike, believe in, and anything else we wish into a plastic and metal box of invisible numbers? I fear we are now reliant on these ideas, just because of popularity. If you don’t have a cell phone, you are in the Stone Age. No facebook = no life. Our super ability to believe we are in high connection is simply fraud; a computer has no free will, nor does it judge what information we give it. It reminds us who we are; a lost cell like Marsha, swept out and drowning in a sea of code that stretches as far as the eyes could imagine.

“I pledge to have abided by the Washington College Honor Code.”

Prof. Meehan

Literature and Composition

March 23, 2010

I Think Bob Geldof Would Make a Damn Good Victor

The attention commanded by the novel Frankenstein is interspersed throughout the entire work, yet the entire story seems to be focused (historically speaking) around the actual creation of the monster; notably referred to as “the birth scene”. Through various film productions and other performances, the legend of Frankenstein and his master has been examined through many beings directly and indirectly. A film more indirectly relating to Frankenstein is Pink Floyd’s The Wall. Through a select number of scenes, themes and placeholders in Shelley’s Frankenstein are found and given new relevance to other audiences, and even a better understanding of The Wall itself.

Film, as a medium electrifies its subjects in ways novels and standard paper tellings could not do in such a precise manner; the execution of film and sound together work as a unique sensory experience that draws deep and powerful emotion from those watching and listening. The Wall, in this instance, is no different in its ability to capture the viewer in its rapturous array of vivid animations and intense, colorful sound and stage technique. The story of Frankenstein is one that leaves many scenes in its blatant textual setting; therefore open to a grand space of interpretation and dissection. Arguably the most famous scene in the novel and that of the entire gothic genre, the creation scene is one that is fantastically orchestrated (in my eyes) within The Wall by animated horror and the exposition of mental creations and the idea of childbirth.

The key moments I wish to bring into focus in the scene are of that in its later stages (in the context of this film, I am defining the length of the scene by the length of the song that is playing in the background); in this case when the instruments and singing begin in “Don’t Leave Me Now” the real episode unfolds. Pink (Bob Geldof) sits in his undies, in a room with only a chair, lamp, and television when the shadow of a slender woman appears on the wall, and quickly evolves into an animated flower beast devil (believed to represent Pink’s inner torture he has created in his own psyche) and intertwines with a sex scene involving his love and some political spook. The scene provides the theme of birth as a strong ingredient in Pink (Victor’s) madness and is a parallel to the shock Victor experiences when his monster is born. The interpretation played out through the film suggests that the absurd action of Pink is natural in its point of creation, while the appearance of Victor’s reaction is caused by the unnatural birth of his creature.

This section of the novel in particular is when Victor’s character begins to undergo a radical amount of change, as does Pink in the film. The consistent torment that both of them experience is similar and indifferent. That is to say, Pink has not created another physical monster but has undoubtedly morphed into one on a serious psychological level. Meanwhile Victor’s creature, in its physical form causes him to attach himself to the life of the monster and collapse under the obsession. From their points of conception (Victor’s pondering of alchemy, Pink’s upbringing, schooling) both creators seem prophesized to become enveloped in their endeavors, and so they entwine with their creations; attached with no hope.

Due to their absurd nature and consequential behavior (Pink’s frantic fits, hallucinations, Victor’s hermit like growth, deaths caused by the monster) both creatures as we shall call them, are cast out of their normal setting due to their own actions whether physically or mentally. An example comes in The Wall where Pink is leading a Hammer rally (Nazis) and he sings; “Are there any queers in the theatre tonight? Get ‘em up against the wall.” This portion of the song “In the Flesh?” ironically singles out Pink as the outcast. Opposed to the various people he continues to name and offend, Pink almost imagines himself living vicariously through his dictator; even though the role functions the same in all of his hallucinations. The rally is also a good example of how film can create wonderful imagery that can only be dreamt of in novels; live, powerful color and noise.

Roger Water’s in depth look of the human mind reminds us that, like in Frankenstein, the monsters we wish to escape are the ones we create ourselves. Pain and mental destruction are the only things that follow in the footsteps of Victor and Pink, two of history’s great monsters. The tragedy darkens the figure in every way, and light may only be uncovered whence the wall falls down.

Prof. Meehan

Literature and Composition

February 24, 2010

Frankenstein; A Behemoth in Paradise

The complications invested within the matter of Victor Frankenstein and his Monster leave a great deal to be discussed at the conclusion of Mary Shelley’s gothic wonder. Shelley’s inclusion of various historic counts of literature infuse the novel with rich, complex thoughts of alchemy, philosophy, and to a certain extent religion just to name a few. The idea of Victor generating a specimen all of his own creation, defining science, exceeding the ideas of physical contents and the nature of creation is completely intuitive; all of which relate back to the inclusions of Milton’s Paradise Lost. The introductory passage so reads; “Did I request thee, Maker, from my clay To mould Me man? Did I solicit thee From darkness to promote me?—“ Paradise Lost [X. 743-5] This quote, I believe, embodies the spirit  of the Monster and clearly bridges his literary brotherhood to Satan; in his isolated manner of existence and essential fall from grace (birth to terror and murder, etc.).

The horror of Frankenstein does not necessarily come at the popular moment of climax in which the molding of the creature is animated, but instead it spreads most intelligently throughout the entire story. The melancholic nature of Mary Shelley’s delivery reverberates the intense altercations between the Monster and Victor, notably in the scene where the monster discusses his reading; “. . .but I was wretched, helpless, and alone. Many times I considered Satan as the fitter emblem of my condition; for often, like him, when I viewed the bliss of my protectors, the bitter gall of envy rose within me.” (117) This relation to Milton’s work directly illuminates some of the complications within the Monster’s conceptual being, and shows further problems regarding the dynamic of the concepts of evil, malice, and further daemon relatives. Satan’s bitter, envious character is the poison apple to the previous Snow White world of Adam and Eve, and the monster of Frankenstein exudes almost mirrored qualities based on his brief and unfortunate experiences in the world in which he was born into.

The central figure in time that perpetuates the drawn out tragedy of the monster is absolutely his initial contact with the world and thusly the first impression he has upon Victor. It so reads; “Great God! His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath. . .his shriveled complexion and straight black lips.”(60) This rejection almost plays as a lucid remake of Satan’s fall from grace, where the monster’s only innocence is his birth, which is quickly swept away by the frightful flare of his creator; sending him into chaotic despair and a fall from a naïve steeple. Satan’s displacement acts as a catalyst for his interference with the free will of mankind and treacherous undertakings in the Garden of Eden. The monster echo’s these actions by mercilessly tearing down Victor’s mental fabric by killing the most beloved ones that surround his life.

Milton’s inklings of Genesis converge most vividly with Shelley’s gothic world and exposition of human torment; adhering to the traditions of villainy and creation, life and death, birth and rebirth. As Satan transforms the view of man, so the monster transforms his peripheral landscape; ultimately, melting his perceptive equilibrium and falsified hopes of greatness that Victor once possessed. The snake and the giant, respectively, have succeeded in nullifying certain dreams of existence, and by their own destruction created their own unique prisms in the glimmer of understanding.

“I pledge to have abided by the Washington College Honor Code.”