The Role of Language and Mechanization

In most of our current times and positions the ability to read and otherwise effectively communicate ourselves is almost a skill taken for granted, especially when attending a technical institute. However Twain, through his characters, seems to place special emphasis on this skills. One of his first orders of business when attaining power is to establish a reputable newspaper and further train somewhat competent journalist and writers. Later on he is constantly bringing up Sandy's unbearably circuitous mode of speech. He comments on her diction, syntax, and overall effectiveness as a communicator. In this way, Twain can be seen as having some of the same beliefs as Frederick Douglass or George Orwell, who both viewed proper language as not only valuable skills to the individual but as keys to maintaining civilization as a whole. 

In fact, is speech not how Hank distinguishes himself from the so-called  "crazies" towards the beginning of the novel. He views speech and language in general as a certain trademark of the more intelligent. The nobles and royalty, of course, all can read and write, however they still speak rather like children so they also still fall mostly in the unintelligent group.

Stay tuned! Next week I'll discuss the impact of words, ideas, and concept such as chivalry!

Initial Reactions to A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

There are definite interesting statements that emerge when comparing the feudal era of Europe and the "modern" times represented by the blacksmith in Twain's A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court (Arthur's), when viewed through the lens established by Richard Wright's introduction that we previously read. To Wright, the feudal era was something to overcome, and when it was conquered by the sort of bourgeois revolution of the Industrial Revolution, a new dawning of Man was started. Now take Wright's view and compare it to how Twain is describing, at least at this early stage of the book. The blacksmith sees as the people of that particular pre-modern time period as backwards both in knowledge and technology, but also in morality and civilization. So the two seem to match up, and when one considers that this period of time was considered the "Dark Ages" of Man it sort of makes sense. It is ironic though because characters in the book keep referencing Christianity, namely Catholicism, and invoking that particular set of morals, however they seem to be completely devoid of everything that they supposedly stand for. This much is obvious. However, since I know a little of the history of the writing of this novel, I know that the blacksmith is not to be viewed as a sort of paragonic ideal. The question is, how does his unwavering certainty of his superiority reflect on the society that bred him, and following that, Twain's society? How will he, despite his superior knowledge, ultimately fall? Or does Twain completely eschew the route of the tragic hero altogether? These are the things that I am looking forward to seeing answered in the future.

Another question, this really is the main one considering the topic of the class, is how does this all relate to the dehumanization and cheapening of lives due to a due discontinuity between the powers that be and the people, cogs in the machine, that make life go, or in other words the concept of machine politics. How does this pre-modern world, with its lack of advanced technology relate to this this? I suspect that at some, the blacksmiths introduction of technology will start to generate some of the bad consequences experienced in his own time which will start to royally screw things over for the people of King Arthur's court. Exactly how is yet to be seen, especially since they are already, as the blacksmith puts it, behaving like and being treated like animals.

They Both Suck

Is it better to be sexually inadequate or sexually inconsistent?

"Fascination" And The Art Student

Have you ever been fascinated by something? Truly and deeply engrossed in some subject that you think about constantly. It could be a hobby or sport, or perhaps some aspect of your job. Fascination is not a world to be used lightly, such as "love" or "hate." Now, if you have ever taken an art class or perhaps a architecture studio class or anything of the sort, where large groups of so-called "creative minded" people assemble en masse, you will know that this particular group's lexicon is infatuated with certain intense sounding words like "fascinated," "obsessed," and the such. Let me just say this now: if you did not think about the topic of the work for more than an hour--nay 6 hours--then you were not "fascinated" by it. It may have been the subject or main focus of your work, but there was no fascination involved. Don't just use the same words that your instructors or peers use. Use the same vocabulary that you did before; if it was good enough for you then, it is good enough now and people will respect the chance of pace.

Barack Obama And The Social Revolution

            As we are now going through primary after primary and eventually a presidential election, certain questions raised by Wright become again especially current not only in that fact that the new administration of our country will lead, and set the example for many things, including possibly race relations. While this would not normally be considered a major issue of the nation today, the affects of age old racism and segregation haunt our everyday lives and psyche to this day, although perhaps in subtler or in less perceived ways. For example, many would pin the flooding of New Orleans and the subsequent rescue and emergency help efforts to the wall as an event greatly influenced by either subconscious or low lying racism (this sentiment is perhaps epitomized—immortalized?—by Kanye West’s statement, “George Bush hates black people”). It is not only rappers who still feel pressures of an overbearing society. Although Wright citied some works that deal with the topic, I state again: does not the presence of  ghettoes indicate the dehumanization existing today. These are places of the forgotten and the left behind. Mainstream society has no use for them—or hardly anymore, with progress of robotics and other industrial enabling technology less and less emphasis is placed on the value of manual labor (at least American—cheap, Indian is fine but that is another story altogether). I see now that I am straying from my original point about the election.

            This is the first election where minorities have has an immediate, massive, and direct effect on the election at large. At the beginning of the race there were three (four if you count Mormon Huckabee) minorities vying for the presidential nomination. While the number has gone down to two (three), the country is still being confronted by the very real fact it may for the first time ever have a truly minority president—nay, not only a minority president, but a black president at that. Does this mean that America has finally overcome or corrected its behavior in terms of ethnic minorities, specifically Blacks? I don’t think so. I don’t think we as a people, as a whole will ever realize the error of our ways. The stereotypes will never die. They will eventually be changed however. Eventually, be it 10 years or 100, it won’t be Blacks who are stereotypically lazy, violent, or stupid. It will be the whites. Wright was correct in his analysis of the seeds of revolution. While I think the time violent uprisings has come and gone, a social revolution of sorts is stewing right below the surface. The New South doesn’t refer to the reconstruction of the South post-Civil War. The New South and counter-culture movements all over the country are the domain of Blacks and other ethnic minorities that will reshape the land into a completely different social landscape.