Shellshell,
Thanks for the affirmation. Regarding the potentially detrimental effects of many messages from Hollywood; oohhh yyaaa. That is why I used the phrase “in the ideal” about seven times. But, as with any other aspect of life, one must be selective in the information and philosophy that one imbibes.
Thanks for your interest
Non-fiction / Doctor Faustus and Mister Hollywood
You know, I dumped my mother last week. We’ve been involved now for , Christ, it must be forty years, maybe longer. Well, hell, my whole life. Some biology texts claim that it might have started even before birth.
You’re wondering why, right? Dharma. Well, Dharma and Greg. Well, I mean, that’s not the whole reason; but on the other hand, maybe it is. You see, what I am trying to say is that it wasn’t really Dharma that actually caused the breakup. It was more that Dharma pointed out that the breakup might be a good idea. I don’t mean to say that she’s working the Psychic Hotline on the side. It’s more that I came to better understand how Doctor Faustus’ situation translates into the modern age from watching Dharma and Greg. That’s what I am actually trying to say.
I, myself have, from time to time, taken smug comfort in the shallowness of Hollywood, but, when one tears away all the glitz and fluff, what one has in Hollywood is a legitimate industry like any other. And that industry fulfills just as significant a human need as food or shelter. Some would characterize that need as entertainment, but I (on this particular day) would be more generous and say that in the ideal, it is philosophy filtered through comedy or drama.
Philosophy (that is to say, the fundamental laws that govern human behaviour) changes almost not at all from age to age. But, what does change constantly are the particulars of our daily lives. And, in the ideal, it is the job of pop culture to make (on the secular level) philosophical and moral sense of the modern world; to interpret our day to day reality in terms of the classic, timeless truths.
I have made a serious positive decision in my life based partly on an understanding of my life that I gleaned from an interpretation of Faust through the lives of Dharma and Greg, and their relationship to Greg’s parents.
So the upshot of this is that I will allow Hollywood to continue doing what it does for now (until it pisses me off, at which time I will be forced to put the kybosh on it).
The End
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professor_scarl reviewed Version 1 -
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You are a gas, man! I began laughing whilst reading the damned title. Ha, I love the satirical element, the sly wink between the writer and reader, and the good, hearty laugh--at everyone’s expense--about the absurdity of it all (BTW- The antecedent to “it,” in this case, is Hollywood, Faust, mental health, philosophy, the human race, and the list continues to eternity and back.). [Big, thoughtful sigh] I think, perhaps, I should dump MY mother as well. How shall I ever thank Dharma and Greg for this great insight into the essential truths in this life? Certainly, it is quite the conundrum.
I must confess that I enjoyed the reviews and subsequent comments every bit as much as the piece itself. I thought everyone knew the legend of Robert Johnson: ”I went down the Crossroads, fell down on my knees. . .tried to make it right.” Like you, however, I assume too much, but I remain completely unrepentant. Hey, EVERYbody gets the Blues. If they don’t, they got no soul, man. ;)
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Shellshell reviewed Version 1 -
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Yes, I suppose Hollywood does show us, through comedy and drama, philisophical truths about humanity. Hollywood can teach without putting us down personally. There is good and bad that comes with learning from Hollywood though. In your case, I suppose, the self realization you experienced turned out to be a good thing for you. Sometimes, depending on who in Hollywood is doing the teaching, the lessons can be very detrimental. It just depends. Thanks for the read.
safalmk reviewed Version 1 -
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what are you writing about?you start by dumping your mother.the next para was strange but it had some connection at least with the first.then you go reeling off about hollywood and then philosophy and daily lives. they are all interesting things to write about but you have put used them all together and wrote simething which has a beginning and an end, but NO MIDDLE.i started reading the article because the name was interesting and the beginning felt interesting. i think writing one thing at a time would have been better considering you had to finish it off in so few words.
having said all that,you have got a nice style of writing.
Ladyauthor2b reviewed Version 1 -
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ah, you make me wish to catch a rerun of that show! Because I’m sitting here trying to remember who all was in that show, other than Dharma and Greg, who i can visualize quite well. I remember her hippy parents. I remember his uptight mother and airy husband. Now who the heck is Dr. Faustus? Is that your therapist? I had no clue. I was lost and if someone else is out there pondering the same thing, then can you give us a clue. Other than that, you are quite right that a whole lot of us learn our values, adjust our lives to what we see on tv- because we are a generation hooked on that medium- and if hollywood is doing something or knows about a current trend going on, us average folks should take notice, right? I think other than adding a few clues here and there, this piece was great.
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