The Man in the High Castle

The “hook” of Philip K. Dick’s The Man in the High Castle is the alternative rendering of the pre- and posthistory of World War II, with Germany and Japan winning the war and occupying nearly the entire world. But what’s striking about this imagining is how little it differs from the postwar actuality.

Filed under: Bookshelf, Control, Lines of Flight, Subjectivity, Value

Cage, free

The three movements of John Cage’s Concerto for Prepared Piano and Orchestra (1951) seem to form a kind of dialectic of freedom and order.

Filed under: Lines of Flight, Recordings

Mapping

I’ve uploaded an article I wrote a few months ago on the politics of the 2006 protests in the United States, primarily, after the initial passage of HR 4437, the hardass immigration legislation. It was was not accepted for publication — boo hoo — but reading over it now, I’m not surprised: bad writing and inadequately developed ideas, which befits a piece I basically wrote in a day. But I think I’m interested in reworking it, so any comments or suggestions of outlets that might be interested would be very much appreciated. If you’d rather have a pdf, email me (there’s an address on the right-hand side if you need it) and I’ll happily send you a copy. Again, comments and critiques welcome.

Filed under: Lines of Flight, Subjectivity, Work

Sadness

Unlike some, I’ve never thought of Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are as escapist fare. In fact, it’s always produced quite a bit of anxiety for me: parents who punish for things as harmless as chasing the cat and saying “I’ll eat you up” to your mother; visiting a place where the creatures do exactly what they’re told to do; even the wild rumpus was kind of ambiguous in that its joy was completely confined to the moment of the rumpus and didn’t carry over into the rest of the story. I’ve also never really thought of it as a book about escape, since when Max gets back to his room, everything is the same as when he left, and his food’s still warm — despite his epic journey he has escaped his existence for just a few minutes. The emotional timbre of the story is as muted and melancholic as its accompanying art.

 

The movie provides a contemporary back story but retains the book’s affective register: the compassionate, cool, hip, hot single mother who is too tolerant to actually send Max to his room without supper, and the monsters, who aren’t scary ogres but gloomy characters who openly express their depression and dissatisfaction and who aren’t as quick to capitulate to Max’s commands. While Sendak’s book was written when expressions and feelings were more strictly controlled and authority was rigid, the movie is about a time when everyone talks about their feelings and hierarchies aren’t as sharp. But despite these advances, melancholy pervades. Neither cool moms nor leveled hierarchies nor emotional honesty have been enough to overcome the sadness.

Filed under: Kids, Lines of Flight, Parenting

Spirit of revolt

There are periods in the life of human society when revolution becomes an imperative necessity, when it proclaims itself as inevitable.

Filed under: Democracy, Lines of Flight, Opposition

Girls in revolt

Below is among my favorite of the many insightful, and beautiful, communiques to come out of the actions in Greece over the past month.

Filed under: Control, Lines of Flight, Subjectivity

Progress and resistance

Like all left believers in the essential progressiveness of capitalism, Simon Critchley thinks that the “truth of Marx’s work” lies in its conviction that the “dislocatory power of capitalism must be affirmed.” The alternative, as it’s usually presented is in these stories, is “a retreat into some sort of Rousseauesque and ultimately reactionary romantic anti-capitalism.”

Filed under: Lines of Flight, Opposition, The State

Two Eighteen

In the United States, the third Monday in February is Presidents’ Day. Every few years, like this one, the third Monday in February is also my birthday. So in a nod to a president I actually like and as a reminder to myself, a couple of things:

Filed under: Lines of Flight, Subjectivity

Entrepreneurship/exodus

Paolo Virno’s latest book, Jokes and Innovative Action, has been translated and will be released by trailblazing indie label Semiotext(e) next month. Gerald Raunig has a review.

Filed under: Bookshelf, Lines of Flight

Bix

The jazzist take on the relationship between Bix Beiderbecke’s biography and his music goes something like this: While Bix suffered lots of insecurities, doubts, disappointments, and despair in his life — all of which gave rise to the alcoholism that killed him at the age of 28 — he was able to overcome these once he stepped on stage or into the recording studio.

Filed under: Lines of Flight, Minor, Recordings