Monday, September 29

"You cannot go back and read as an idiot, you must move forward and read like an idiot" ~Dr. Sexson

"The poem means the poem"

tautalogical: anagogical phase

from the bible: "I am who I am" the burning bush from Exodus 3:14

"God said to Moses, "I am who I am . [b] This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' "

literal

anagogical descriptive

archetypal formal

literal: 'motif'

descriptive: 'sign'

formal: 'image'

archetypal: 'myth'

anagogical: 'monad'

everything loops in tautology- all are similar

a poem can only mean one thing: "the poem can only mean the poem"

R. Frost: Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

Whose woods these are I think I know,

His house is in the village though.

He will not see me stopping here,

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer,

To stop without a farmhouse near,

Between the woods and frozen lake,

The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake,

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound's the sweep,

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

When someone asked him what it meant, he repeated the poem. The poem means what the poem says

"everyday is groundhogs day" ~ Dr. Sexson

Batman: he is more realistic than other heroes.

• Who over does it?
• don quixote 'they are fake, but they become real to me'
• revenge motivated batman to become who he was
• archetype of the hero: Joseph Taylor

• Aristotle's layers: powers of the heroes. who is stronger than batman? Many people are stronger. Then why is he so popular?

Sidney's apology: "That imitation whereof Poetry is, hath the most conveniency to Nature of all other, insomuch that, as Aristotle saith, those things which in themselves are horrible, as cruel battles, unnatural monsters, are made in poetical imitation delightful. Truly, I have known men, that even with reading Amadis de Gaule (which God knoweth wanteth much of a perfect poesy) have found their hearts moved to the exercise of courtesy, liberality, and especially courage."

imitation: all that is better than we

"It nothing is real, then wouldn't Batman be as real as everything else that isn't?" ~Chelsey

santa reality---> devestating---> existentialism---> everything is actually real

ARISTOTLE AND PLATO:

• recording reality, not actually reality
• imitate imitations
• if this is true, then nothing is true, making it true?
• verbal arts, then dramatic arts
• tragedy/ comedy came from phallic rites
• poetry
• 'In the name of the rose'~ S. Connery shows Aristotle's views of comedy
• recording vs imitation vs selector of most important things to imitate
• 'tragedy is an imitation of an action which is serious complete and of a certain magnitude." ~Aristotle
• not a crude lie, but an insight into the truth of things- Shakespeare's tellers of truth
• history deals in fact
• philosophers can only give abstractions
• poets give you the truth- sir p. sidney
• it is incite, not lying: instead of drying the actions, it makes you soak them up

In reality:

• 'Gone in 60 seconds' - stealing cars
• 'V for Vendetta' - v signs on church
• 'Jackass' - stupid things people do
• 'don quixote' - imitates art

would you rather have reality or Romantic fiction?

• Oedipus Rex is the best example of literature- can we copy it?
• how to deal with these passions and urges to behave this way?
• Aristotle says: they did it in lit, so we don't have to do it in reality

Aristotle:

• imitation is a significant human action
• catharsis provided
• they did it so that we don't have to
• same with video games

~it doesn't matter if they don't know what a cow is, facts aren't important, accuracy is not important, history doesn't matter