Stepping Stones

“Leopold!”: Conductor, Orchestra, & Audience

A discussion of the role of the Conductor in both music and society, beginning with my casual impressions (complimented with satirical examples); and followed by critical insights from a socio-musicologist, as well from conductors and composers themselves.

Although I have yet to acquaint myself with orchestral performance, which does interest me; the passive familiarity I have with it has nevertheless left me with a particular impression—specifically, regarding the role of the Conductor, which appears to be strikingly suspect. Upon casual contemplation, I had formed some substantial thoughts about it, from which I felt the subject would be would worthwhile to investigate one day. And due to this question of the Conductor being brought up by someone in a group conversation, that day eventually arrived.

RETROverdose (on Strangely Familiar Things) | Stranger Things & Retromania

An article on Stranger Things (SPOILER: it’s duffing long!)

Retromania: from the 2000s onward, pop culture has lacked the creative, future-oriented, dynamic energy of the previous decades: rather than opening the future, it inaugurated the ‘Re’ era, i.e. dominated by the ‘re-’ prefix – such as in revivals, reissues, remakes, re-enactments – thus representing endless retrospection.
The post-millennium ushered in an era of unoriginality that feeds on its own history, trades in references, and quickly begun to rework material from a past that is increasingly immediate—thus has pop culture turned into an endless act of regurgitation.

What does this have to do with Stranger Things? With the debut of this series in 2016, pop culture has seen a particular development of retromania: from the mania of retro, i.e. the cultural pervasiveness of it; to the intensification of retro, i.e. the artifactual over-dosage of it.

And hence: Retroverdose (on strangely familiar things)…

Transhumanism: Religion in Plain Sight – Part 3

This article features a selection of quotes from the book Homo Deus, each accompanied by my notes, comments, and references to related media.

*Transhumanism: Humanity in ‘Upgrade Mode’*

Part 3 of this article series features my expansion of Ncaps 31-40 for the book Homo Deus (as discussed in the Introduction, which also includes the full list), as a basis for identifying points of significance and referencing a variety of relevant media.

Themes covered in Part 3 include Dialectics of Government, Principles of Revolution, Submission to Authority, Continuity of The Establishment, Emotional Decision-Making, Elite Minority Rule, Conceits of Modernity, Social Instability, Civilized Barbarism, Collectively Believed Fictions, Society as Entrapment, Hindsight via History, Suppression of Awareness, Ideological Bio-Engineering, Prophetic Sci-Fi, Modern Forms of Religion, Rationalized Immorality, Incongruous Speech, Hypocrisy of Civilization.

Transhumanism: Religion in Plain Sight – Part 2

This article features a selection of quotes from the book Homo Deus, each accompanied by my notes, comments, and references to related media.

Part 2 of this article series features my expansion of Ncaps 16-30 for the book Homo Deus (as discussed in the Introduction, which also includes the full list), as a basis for identifying points of significance and referencing a variety of relevant media.

Themes covered in Part 2 include Effects of Specialization, Elitism, Use of History, Strategic Criticism, Confusion-Inducement, ‘Slippery Slope’ Revolution, Biogenetics, Ascent of Algorithms, Scientific Theories, End of Individuality, Demeaning of ‘Consciousness’, Materialism, Convention Creation, Techniques of Ideology, Tailored Terminology, Physics Above All, Professional Prestige.

Transhumanism: Religion in Plain Sight – Part 1

This article features a selection of quotes from the book Homo Deus, each accompanied by my notes, comments, and references to related media.

Part 1 of this article series features my expansion of Ncaps 01-15 for the book Homo Deus (as discussed in the Introduction, which also includes the full list), as a basis for identifying points of significance and referencing a variety of relevant media. Themes covered in Part 1 include Biotechnology, War, Terrorism, Progress, Death, Elixir of Life, Drugs, Pleasure, and Cyborg.

Transhumanism: Religion in Plain Sight – Introduction | Book Notes of Homo Deus by Yuval Noah Harari

This article features a discussion of the book “Homo Deus”, including an explanation of its use in this article Series; followed by the list of points I made from the book, each of which will be expanded on in the subsequent articles.

Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow (2016 Book)

This article series is based upon the book Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow, by Yuval Noah Harari (2016), which I read last year. More specifically, it is based on the notes I made whilst reading the book, in which I encapsulated (in list form) the many substantial points raised and discussed by Harari; and so this series is more of a multi-part ‘study’, as I expand on the various significant themes I took note of.

To concisely state the most significant aspects of Harari’s thesis: Humanity is sleepwalking towards Post-Humanism; and to elaborate, this means that Society—above all its citizens—are blindly following the trends of ‘technological progress’, i.e. without truly examining these trends, in order to question, debate, and then make informed decisions in the direction this technological development should be taken for the betterment of Humanity.

Fiction: Purpose & Form

This Long-Article begins with a brief introduction to the significance of Fiction; followed by a close analysis of a short story; which is then intertwined with interpretation of a related film; finishing with a closing summary; and all the relevant links listed at the end.

Books: Reading for the Plot; Selected Short Stories of Guy de Maupassant

For centuries, literature of fiction—specifically, novels and short stories—has had a major influence upon the thoughts and attitudes of people, and has served as a catalyst for the cultural changes the West has undergone since the invention of the printing press. The social significance of fiction is important to recognize, as its power to influence is much less obvious than the overt, religious indoctrination that it has replaced. The power of fiction is not to indoctrinate, but to seduce: to affect individuals with particular ideas—but without the conscious awareness of having been engaged with an ideological sales pitch.

For this reason, learning about the essential forms and techniques of fiction can be very interesting and rewarding, as one becomes more capable of engaging with fictional works in added dimensions and with new levels of depth.

Allegories of Individuality & Society: Worldview, Opinions & Democracy

This article features an introduction to the concept of ‘Allegory’; followed by a preface to four important ones (two parables, a fable, and a fairy tale), leading to commentary on each one, along with references to films and related media; and concluding with a list of the relevant links.

Book: The Works of Plato; DVD Films: The Matrix; Logan’s Run

Allegory is a technique used by authors to embed a deeper meaning into the surface of a story, which produces two main effects. The primary effect is that it conceals the very fact that it contains an inner meaning at all, from all but those whose mind is critical in observing fictional works; and this makes it an esoteric mode of communication.

Music: Culture & Symbolism

This article features a concise introduction on the significance of music; followed by a succession of interesting books and media relating to its cultural influence; then more media relating to its symbolism; and concluding with a list of the relevant links.

Books: The Rest is Noise; Retromania. DVDs: The Mighty Boosh

Of all the arts, music is the one that has the most influence on society—be it a primitive or a civilized one. Music is intangible: it is not felt, or seen, which makes it a more potent form of subliminal influence than visual and physical forms of entertainment.

Furthermore, rhythms of sounds do seem to affect humans on an intrinsic level. And I find it striking how many songs that sound so impressive (and even profound) suffer from an impoverishment of meaning—if not a subversion of meaning—when one simply reads the lyrics. For these reasons, it can be rewarding to become more conscious of the ways in which music influences society.

Prolepsis: A Rhetorical & Literary Device

This article features a brief introduction to the concept of Prolepsis, along with an expert definition; followed by a succession of examples from film, TV, and literature; then a film & soundtrack set related to a connecting theme; and concluding with a list of the relevant links.

Books: A Dictionary of Literary Devices; Seinfeld and Philosophy; The Second Genesis

Prolepsis is a highly significant device used in literature and rhetoric, as it achieves quite a profound effect on the attitude of the target audience. The essence of prolepsis is to anticipate and effectively neutralize an opponent’s argument (in the mind of the audience), or a listener’s objection (the audience directly).