On the last day of 2004 BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour featured an interesting report on the history of crossword puzzles (RealPlayer required). Did you know that the first crossword appeared in 1913? Or that the first collection of puzzles gave Simon & Schuster its start?
Category Archives: Culture
Thought for the Day
Yesterday’s Thought for the Day on BBC Radio 4 struck a chord with me. Written and presented by Elaine Storkey, it was about the ambiguity of language and the arrogance of conceit. It’s well worth reading, but for anyone who can’t be bothered to click on the link above, here are two of the best parts:
There is nothing more telling than language for conveying differences of outlook and perception. That is very evident right now in Iraq. Even amongst the key players words tell their own story. One of the marine Commanders outside Falluja describes the assault about to take place on that city as an ‘epic battle’, whilst the Prime Minister of Iraq, declares a 60 day ‘state of emergency.’ The UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan refers to an attack on Falluja as ‘an escalation in violence which could disrupt Iraq’s political transition’, whilst Lt Colonel Brandl commanding one the battalions of the American marines talks about it as uncovering the hidden face of the enemy. His words are graphic. He says, ‘The enemy has a face. He is called Satan. He lives in Falluja and we’re going to destroy him.’
So why does language offer so many perceptions of reality, especially the shape and meaning of evil? One of the obvious answers is that we are all partisan. Each of us uses language to depict our own point of view. We notice most fully the evil done to us or to our group, whilst rephrasing the evil we do to others with the language of justification and exoneration. And when this becomes habitual and uncritical, partisanship can move into self-deception. We can come to believe, at both personal and national levels, that we own the language of evil, that we decide on its use, and it is one from which we are excluded.
As if in support of Storkey’s commentary, today’s Guardian carries a frightening story on its front page that includes the following quote: “They call us terrorists because we resist them. If defending the truth is terrorism, then we are terrorists.” It seems language is also a weapon in this war.
Anything goes
The BBC is reporting that John Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, has topped the US dance chart at the age of 71 with a song supporting gay marriage (see Yoko’s gay wedding song is US hit).
I can’t understand how George W. Bush can argue that he’s in favour of greater freedom for people when he “wants to change the US constitution to specify that marriage can only take place between a man and a woman”.
Thirty-seven years ago while Justice Minister, a famous Canadian communist declared “There’s no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation“. The left-wing Liberal Pierre Trudeau was in favour of freedoms that the current “leader of the western world” is unwilling to give his own nation.
Whenever I hear the Bush Administration arguing rhetorically about freeing foreign peoples, I can’t help thinking of Cole Porter (an active homosexual, but at least he married a woman!). Porter hit the nail on the head when he wrote Anything Goes:
The world has gone mad today
And good’s bad today,
And black’s white today,
And day’s night today,
When most guys today
That women prize today
Are just silly gigolos
And though I’m not a great romancer
I know that I’m bound to answer
When you propose,
Anything goes
It seems to me that the people who talk most about freedom, are really opportunistic control freaks who disguise themselves as liberals (i.e. freedom fighters) whenever it helps their selfish cause. Things are not what they seem, and anything goes!
PS – Is dancing allowed in Texas?
Man Booker prize
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to judge the world’s most prestigious English-language book award? If so, Fiammetta Rocco’s article Man Booker prize in this week’s Economist is for you.
Apparently “More than 100,000 books are published in Britain each year, virtually the same number as in America, which has five times the population”.
Liberals at heart
Given its origin, it’s ironic that the term “liberal” should have become a dirty word in the US. It’s derived from the Latin word liber meaning to be “free”, so you’d think that a nation that was willing to make great sacrifices in the name of freedom must be full of liberals wouldn’t you? Not so apparently, which makes me wonder what all that talk about encouraging democracy and freedom is all about.
The Online Etymology Dictionary has an entry for “liberal” and it’s quite interesting:
liberal (adj.)
c.1375, from O.Fr. liberal “befitting free men, noble, generous,” from L. liberalis “noble, generous,” lit. “pertaining to a free man,” from liber “free,” from PIE base *leudheros (cf. Gk. eleutheros “free”), probably originally “belonging to the people” (though the precise semantic development is obscure), from *leudho- “people” (cf. O.C.S. ljudu, Lith. liaudis, O.E. leod, Ger. Leute “nation, people”). Earliest reference in Eng. is to the liberal arts (L. artes liberales; see art (n.)), the seven attainments directed to intellectual enlargement, not immediate practical purpose, and thus deemed worthy of a free man (the word in this sense was opposed to servile or mechanical). Sense of “free in bestowing” is from 1387. With a meaning “free from restraint in speech or action” (1490) liberal was used 16c.-17c. as a term of reproach. It revived in a positive sense in the Enlightenment, with a meaning “free from prejudice, tolerant,” which emerged 1776-88. Purely in ref. to political opinion, “tending in favor of freedom and democracy” it dates from c.1801, from Fr. lib
Domaine de Rimauresq
Just a note to myself regarding another vinyard to explore in the future:
Domaine de Rimauresq near Pignans, north-east of Toulon.
Woodland wonders
Last weekend Kew Gardens held its sixth annual Woodland Wonders Festival, and fortunately we chose the best day weather-wise to visit.
Bluebells behind Queen Charlotte’s Cottage
This festival is the one event in the year when Kew opens Queen Charlotte’s Cottage to the public, and so we toured the interior of this former royal garden shed along with thousands of others. It turns out that the building is deceptively narrow; really just wide enough for one room plus connecting hallway. It contains two spacious, opposing staircases (very impractical; not even the royals need two ways to go up and down in such a small space), and upstairs the wallpaper of the largest room was designed by one of the Victorian princesses. Apart from a collection of 18th century framed prints (reproductions) which decorate some of the rooms, the cottage is largely unfurnished. All in all it was pretty underwhelming.
Morris dancing at Kew – what’s with those handkerchiefs?
On the other hand the rest of the festival was impressive. Many skilled, woodsy folk had set up tents in which they displayed ecologically-friendly activites: bee-keeping, wood carving, archery, etc. A troop of kooky Morris dancers put on several shows, and swings for children were hung from some of Kew’s enormous trees, while free samples of Kew Brew (a premium ale brewed with hops grown at Kew) were handed out to their parents.
Some azaleas were in full bloom
The plants and flowers were brilliant as usual. Not only were the bluebells all out, but a few of the azaleas and rhododendrons were also in full bloom (many will need another week I think). By far the most spectacular display, however, was put on by the lilacs, most of which were clearly at their fragrant peak; and in the process of admiring them I discovered a strong Canadian connection.
The lilacs were at their peak
British-born Isabella Preston (1881 – 1964) immigrated to Canada at the age of 31 and became one of the world’s foremost lilac hybridists. Working in Guelph, Ontario, she developed lilacs ideally suited to northern climes – late flowering shrubs with prolific blooms. Kew now has several specimens of these eponymous Syringa xprestoniae.
All in all, it was an excellent day out.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
We’ve just returned from seeing Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I have to admit that I was really impressed.
I won’t bother explaining the plot, which can easily be found (if not easily described) elsewhere on the web, but it’s one of the most profound, thought-provoking movies I have seen in a very long time.
In places it’s quite scary. It forces you to remember (!) that everything good about you, everything bad about you, everything you love and everything you hate is contained in the fragile space between your ears. Everything, including you, is in your head; and there’s no escape. I came out thinking about the fragility of even “normal” mental health, never mind the additional difficulties posed by abnormal psychology.
I really need to view it again. All three critics on last night’s edition of Newsnight Review had seen it twice and even the New Yorker admitted that “On the eighth viewing, say, the damn thing might even make sense”. Even if it doesn’t make sense, go see it. It’ll make you think.
Newsmap
Newsmap provides an interesting view of the news media’s priorities, as captured and classified by Google News.
The news in Canada, the UK and the US as displayed on Newsmap
Each news item is allocated screen space according to the number of stories published about it. More popular stories appear larger; less popular stories are smaller. The stories are also colour-coded according to the “section” in which they would appear in a newspaper: World – dark brown, Nation (domestic news) – light brown, Sports – olive green, Business – blue, Entertainment – teal, for example. It’s also possible to compare several of Google’s national versions, all of which means that you can use Newsmap to analyse cultural differences in the world’s news media.
And what do you find if you do?
Here are the top three priorities (as of earlier today) for three countries with which I’m familiar:
- Canada: World, Sports, Business
- UK: World, Sports, Business
- US: Sports, World, Nation (domestic news)
A closer examination reveals some even more interesting differences. World news receives two and half times as much coverage in the UK than in the US, and even Canada publishes approximately 30% more World news (proportionally) than the US. Instead of World news the US devotes its attention to Sports (2.5 times more than the UK) and domestic news (Nation).
Domestic news (Nation) is lowest in Canada, which also gives the most space/time to Entertainment. Business and technology are very similar in all three countries. Health is the smallest category everywhere.
So what does this tell us? Well, it would seem that the stereotypical cliches are all true. America is obsessed with itself; nothing much happens in Canada; and Britain still believes it can punch above its weight on the world stage.
Reading One Million Years
Yesterday shortly after leaving the National Portrait Gallery I came across the following scene in Trafalgar Square:
Click the image above for a larger view
Two people sitting in a glass box and alternately reciting dates (years only) to the perplexed crowd passing by.
This mind-numbing activity was explained on the back of a postcard, which someone was handing out, as follows:
On Kawara Reading One Million Years
Presented by the South London Gallery in Trafalgar Square8am 29 March – 8am 5 April 2004
An epic work of conceptual art by the acclaimed Japanese artist, On Kawara, is presented in the UK for the first time in Trafalgar Square. A continuous reading lasting seven days and nights from the artist’s ten-volume work, One Million Years, takes extracts from Past, listing every year from 998,031 BC to 1969 AD, and Future, listing the years 1980 AD to 1,001,980 AD. On Kawara’s work speaks simply and directly about a subject relevant to us all, the passage and marking of time.
Some brief on-line research indicates that the work was reported in the Guardian last week. Performance art that’s defiantly dated, revealed that the recital is to be released as a four-volume limited edition boxed CD set. So if you miss the event itself, you know what to put on your Christmas list.
In the meantime, a selection of the public’s responses can be read in Let us begin. When asked if it made him think about time, John, 26, from Wimbledon, said “Well, I had a look at my watch a minute ago.”
Thursday was April Fool’s Day of course.