Rock and Roll

Rock & Roll: pisitoenmadrid / David Alayón

Just let me hear some of that
Rock and roll music,
Any old way you choose it;
It’s got a back beat, you can’t lose it,
Any old time you use it.
It’s gotta be rock and roll music,
If you want to dance with me,
If you want to dance with me.

–Rock and Roll Music, Chuck Berry

Rock and Roll is a form of popular music originally emblematic of the freedoms, joys, challenges, heartaches and rebellion of youth.

Rock and Roll developed in the 1950s as a synthesis of Country-Western and Blues music. Interestingly enough, the accent falls on the back beat which emphasizes the second and fourth beat (ta TA ta TA), the reverse of the military march, which accents the first and third beat (TA ta TA ta).

The biggest stars in early Rock and Roll were figures like Bill Haley (1925-81), Elvis Presley (1935-77), Little Richard (1932- ) and Chuck Berry (1926-).

In the 1960s and 70s the target market of Rock expanded, as did the music. Dianna Ross and The Supremes helped to shape the Motown sound (music from a record company based in the automobile producing city of Detroit), while British groups like the Moody Blues and the perhaps unsurpassable Beatles made Rock accessible to kids from 2 to 102. Meanwhile, American groups like The Doors (with Jim Morrison) and soloists like Jimi Hendrix remained a threat to conservative parents throughout North America and beyond.

At this time Rock branched out into different styles and related marketing categories: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Progressive Rock, Funk, Raggae, Soul, Easy Rock, Disco, Glam Rock, Pop Rock, Bubble Gum Rock, Folk Rock, etc.

Some of the major players in this period were Paul McCartney and Wings, The Rolling Stones, Genesis (with Peter Gabriel), Pink Floyd, Yes, Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, The Who, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, James Taylor, Cat Stevens, Joni Mitchell, Billy Joel, Elton John, David Bowie, Stevie Wonder, Carole King and many more talented outfits. But things needed to change.

The late 1970s brought on reactionary trends such as Punk Rock and New Wave. Johnny Rotten and the Sex Pistols are often credited with spearheading Punk Rock, while innovative groups with a stripped-down sound like Devo, The B-52s and The Talking Heads enjoyed success. The Talking Heads continued to make their mark into the 80s, their apparently postmodern approach being avidly discussed among ivory tower academics.

Rock in 1980s, however, was mostly characterized by increasingly slick studio productions, made possible by the advent of digital recording technology. Duran Duran is a good example of this new lush sound, whereas Depeche Mode used digital sampling to create a more industrial sound. Other important groups such as Soft Cell and The Eurythmics used technology to minimal effect while The Art of Noise used the new digital sampling technique in their own way, often emphasizing the orchestra hit–i.e. having a full-burst orchestral sound at the touch of a finger.

Madonna was a sensation in the 80s, as was Sting and The Police and, of course, Michael Jackson. Meanwhile, the New Age movement and ‘ambient music’ emerged. Ambient music is a diffuse style (some might say spacey) that was pioneered by the respected producer Brian Eno (Eno also made Rock and Roll albums) in the late 70s. Eno’s most important album is probably “Music For Airports” (1978), a soft and repetitive strain of analogue voice and piano loops. The idea and sound carried through into more accessible digital New Age productions with the likes of Enya, Windham Hill records and others. And stars like U2, David Bowie, The Talking Heads, Philip Glass periodically collaborated with Eno.

In 1980 John Lennon and Yoko Ono released the commercially successful album, Double Fantasy. Sadly, Lennon was murdered by a misguided fan in that same year.

You're No Rock N Roll Fun: lism. / Lis Ferla

The 90s saw increasingly lush studio production with the likes of Mariah Carey and Celine Dione. Others like the late Kurt Cobain (Nirvana) and The Smashing Pumpkins kept it straight up and simple. And Radiohead came up with a sound reminiscent of the 70s band Jethro Tull.

Some veteran rockers continued to flourish in the 90s with top-selling albums, such as Elton John and David Bowie. Other stars like Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan released cds but seemed to lose touch with the pulse of the people.

Rap, Hiphop, Dance, Grunge and Techno (now a branch of Electronica) also took off in the 90s.

The new millennium has seen more powerful woman acts like Britney Spears and Avril Lavigne, and it’s fitting that Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones, who’ve billed themselves as the “longest running rock act,” continue to fill large stadiums.

There’s no easy summary of Rock’s meaning today. Some see it as a consumer-driven sellout; others, as a window to artistic and social possibilities.

Ironically, some rock stars are now seen as more socially responsible than many corporate and political leaders. The widely respected granddaddy of Grunge, Neil Young, for instance, has become a prominent spokesperson for the development of Green technologies. And figures like Bob Geldof, Bono and The Rolling Stones (who did a Toronto concert to help that city’s economy after a SARS scare while Billy Joel and Elton John canceled) have virtually inverted the rotten apple image that the moral majority originally imputed to rock stars.

Recently, however, critics have suggested that international simulcast benefit concerts are starting to look more like shallow publicity stunts than effective measures toward global betterment.

And the beat goes on…

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Rishis

Traditionally, rishis are primal Hindu seers mentioned in the Vedas as their authors.

The rishis belonged to an elite class of holy persons said to have received the Veda through revelation. That is, they ‘heard’ and then passed on the sacred Vedic hymns (through oral repetition) to disciples for centuries until the verses were eventually recorded in writing.

For this reason any mention of authorship of the Veda is problematic because no one really knows when the Vedas were orally composed.

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Roberts, Jane (1929-84)

my dad and my mom on a bookshelf: Ari Moore

1970s channeler who wrote the popular Seth Books and several less commercially successful fiction novels before the idea of channeling became a New Age publishing sensation.

Roberts allegedly went into a trance and channeled a spirit entity called ‘Seth’ while her husband Robert Butts transcribed the sessions.

At times Roberts, herself, wondered whether it was just her unconscious speaking but most of the time she writes as if Seth were a separate entity.

Regardless of Seth’s true nature, the worldview advanced by the Seth character is noteworthy.

Seth’s cosmology (i.e. map of the universe) has intersecting parallel universes connecting among themselves backwards and forwards through time. The past and future of all parallel universes – to include our supposed parallel selves – interact with and have an effect on the present as perceived now.

As with other mystical traditions, Seth suggests that part of the self is located in the flesh while other aspects of mind and soul exist beyond the material plane.

The Seth model differs from the belief in reincarnation in three ways:

1. Reincarnation stresses the effects of past lives on our present life, largely ignoring the possible influence of future selves on the present
2. Seth advances the idea of interactive selves existing in parallel universes
3. Not unlike Shakti Gawain, Seth highlights the importance of life in the present, whereas reincarnational theories tend to emphasize an escape from Samsara (the wheel of worldly rebirth)

Science fiction TV shows Sliders and Charlie Jade dramatize some of Seth’s ideas about parallel universes, while many Star Trek scripts deal with a ‘temporal continuum.’

Similarly, respected theorists like C. G. Jung view time, if perhaps not parallel universes, within a holistic framework. And the idea of parallel universes has gained some academic scrutiny through figures like Stephen Hawking and Michio Kaku.

As a final note, the belief in an interactive past, present and future is not necessarily equivalent to the theological idea that God knows the past, present and future. Many traditional theologians become uncomfortable with the idea, for instance, that the future could be seeping into or impinging on the present. They prefer to stick to the old idea that the future just doesn’t exist yet.

This traditional perspective, however, is challenged by the modern physics worldview that space and time are not absolute but rather, relative, multiple and interactive positions.

Perhaps it’s just too challenging for some people to think that far out of the box, and adhering to their cherished old religious and philosophical ideas gives them psychological comfort, much like a baby needs a breast or a bottle before it grows up enough to learn how to walk to the store to buy some milk.

» Leibniz (Gottfried, Wilhelm), Locke (John), Soul

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Reversal

A broader idea than turning against the self, this Freudian defense mechanism occurs when the ego converts an instinctual impulse into its opposite behavior. For instance, the miser becomes a philanthropist and the pervert a prude.

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Ricardo, David (1772-1823)

Image credit: sundancingbliss / Shannon Haugh

Ricardo was an English economist, influenced by Thomas Robert Malthus, who is often credited along with Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill as a founder of the so-called classical school of economics.

By his mid-twenties Ricardo became a wealthy stockbroker. He later joined the British Parliament from 1819-1823.

His main contribution to the history of ideas is found in Principles of Political Economy and Taxation (1817), where he develops innovative theoretical models to account for the distribution of wealth.

Ricardo advocated national specialization and open competition (i.e. free trade). His work on the labor theory of value had an effect on Karl Marx, who adapted some of Ricardo’s ideas in his teleological view of history (now recognized as flawed), his critique of Capitalism and advocacy of worldwide socialism.

Ricardo’s labour theory of value suggests that food prices determine wages. Food prices, themselves, are determined by production costs, which in turn are determined by the degree of labor required for food production.

In short, this theory suggests that value is set by labor.

Ricardo became an MP in 1819, using his status and position to foster the free-trade movement. Since that time the idea of free trade has been critiqued by those believing that some degree of government regulation is necessary.

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Stages of Psychosexual Development

Freud, explícame tú esto: tnarik / Eduardo

Sigmund Freud’s theory outlines four early stages of psycho-sexual development in which the ego and libido are developed:

1. The oral stage of 0-1 years where infant gratification is achieved through sucking the primary object¹ of the mother’s breast (or substitute objects)
2. The anal stage of 1-3, in which sexual gratification is achieved through the child’s control over and actual production of feces. From his or her toilet training the child first learns the reality of restrictions from the external world
3. The latency period – occurring between the phallic stage and adolescence – in which the child pays less attention to the body and more to the acquisition of essential life skills
4. The genital stage at which time the adolescent’s attention is oriented to developing mature, loving human relationships with others

According to Freud’s theory, so-called normal individuals proceed through these stages without major difficulties while some become fixated at a given stage. Fixation in this sense refers to an unconscious attachment to a particular object of libidinal gratification.

For instance, the alcoholic fixated at the oral phase substitutes liquor and the bottle for the mother’s nipple. Whereas those disregarding or, conversely, obsessed with cleanliness, order and regularity would be fixated at the anal stage.

In general, fixation manifests in excessive behavior such as excessive housecleaning and/or extreme emotional states such as depression, fear, anxiety and forced elation.

For Freud, normal human development pretty much ends at the genital phase. Behaviors such as celibacy, fasting and prolonged solitude may be viewed as pathological by Freudians. Other more holistic thinkers, however, see this as a reductive and potentially dangerous approach, one suggesting spiritual ignorance, immaturity and perhaps sin.

The International Institute for the Advanced Studies of Psychotherapy and Applied Mental Health sums up Freud’s theory as follows:

Although Freud’s theory of psychosexual development was extremely influential and continues to be taught in professional psychology programs today, empirical research has failed to generate significant support for these ideas and it is generally not an accepted model among practicing psychologists. Additionally, this theory has drawn criticism for being constructed on sexist ideas. Regardless, terminology associated with the stages of psychosexual development has found wide popular usage in a variety of registers and fields of activity.²

—

¹ Freud’s usage of ‘object’ includes other people.

² http://www.psychotherapy.ro/resources/constructs/psychosexual-development/

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Revealed Knowledge

Revelations: Walt Jabsco / Steve

This is also called ‘revelation,’ an idea found in most religious traditions.

One definition points to knowledge disclosed or uncovered about God’s plan of Salvation or the Divine essence; this knowledge could influence a person’s interpretation of observable events.

General revelation is often differentiated from special revelation.  General revelation asserts that God’s existence and attributes may be partly understood through observation of God’s creation.

Specific revelation points to the belief that individuals receive divine communications.

In Catholicism revelation is understood as a truth communicated to a person by God; this revealed knowledge initially bypasses but does not contradict the intellect and differs from inspiration–although the recipient may subsequently think about and be inspired by a revelation.

From the study of mystics it seems that revealed knowledge is often initially misunderstood. Mystics are only human and seem to interpret revelations according to their limited perspectives. Over time the full meaning of a true communication should become apparent while a false communication – e.g. from the devil -  would prove to be a sham.

This idea is closely linked to the notion of true and false prophets, as we read in the New Testament:

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them (Matthew 15-20, New International Version).

A potential problem arises here, of course, in that some genuine prophets could appear ‘false’ because not enough time has passed to adequately test the revelation given to them by God. And by the same token, some false prophets could be regarded as ‘true’ by believers claiming that more time is needed to verify the revelation apparently given by God.

Clearly, this is not an easy area and many mistakes could be made by overly zealous, wish-fulling individuals and groups.

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Republic, The

plato: denkrahm

Plato’s enduring work in which the philosopher-king is depicted as the best kind of ruler.

Not too many people realize that Plato in his Republic disapproved of democracy (Greek: strength of the people), maintaining that the masses were ill-suited to the task of selecting an adequate ruler.

According to this argument, just as a doctor is specially trained to heal citizens, an enlightened ruler is uniquely endowed to govern subjects.

The Republic groups society into four classes of gold, silver, bronze and iron. Individuals ideally fulfill the duties that nature has allotted to their particular social class.

Plato’s popular ‘cave analogy’ also appears in The Republic. It illustrates his views about the connection between change and eternity. The cave analogy goes as follows:

Prisoners are bound to a chair in a cave that they’ve been imprisoned in since childhood. They face a wall with a fire burning some distance behind them. Their captors come and go, always walking between the fire and the prisoners’ backs. Consequently the captors are always seen by the prisoners as shadows projected on the wall of the cave. The prisoners know of nothing else and assume that the shadows are reality. If a prisoner were to escape up the steep slope leading to the cave entrance, his or her eyes would temporarily be blinded by the bright sunlight. Once their eyes adjusted, however, the free prisoner would realize that a far greater reality exists than the world of shadows. If the prisoner were to reenter the cave, they again would be temporarily blinded, this time by a lack of light. When their eyes readjusted, the shadows would reappear. But the prisoner now knows that they’re just shadows and not reality.

In this analogy, the shadows represent the ever-changing world of daily life. The world above the cave entrance represents an eternal, unchanging reality that Plato calls the realm of the Forms.

For Plato, only the Forms are truly real because the mundane world is in a state of becoming–i.e. subject to change and lacking permanence.

Toward the end of The Republic, “The Myth of Er” outlines Plato’s belief in reincarnation and the immortality of the soul.

The Republic is regarded as a landmark in literature, education, philosophy and political thought. Its influence spread through Europe in the Middles Ages and continues to be felt today.

» Archetype, Archetypal Image, Aristotle, Atlantis, Aurobindo (Sri), Blessed Isles, Boethius, Church Fathers, Dionysius the Areopagite, Gorgias, Meno, Neoplatonism, Plotinus, Proclus, Socrates, Skepticism, Solon, Sophists, Timeus, Universalism

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Repression

The Prison •. by Felipe S. Morin G.

Often called the master defense mechanism in Freudian psychoanalysis, repression is said to occur when anxiety provoking impulses or ideas are banished to the unconscious by the ego or superego.

Freud says primary repression is the blocking of an instinctual impulse before it reaches consciousness.

Secondary repression occurs when camouflaged variants of the initial impulse are kept at bay–that is, when they are relegated to the unconscious.

An example of secondary repression would be a respected religious figure’s inability to remember a dream image of himself as an axe-murderer. The image itself generally would represent thanatos or the death instinct and, more specifically, a desire to depose a threatening object (Freud’s usage of ‘object’ includes other people).

Because this violent desire is inconsistent with the dreamer’s conscious self-image, the dream image is repressed.

Repression can be healthy if it prevents the ego from being overwhelmed with crippling anxiety. But it becomes unhealthy when fears and neuroses are never dealt with and, as a result, a person’s outlook becomes rigid and, in some instances, overall functioning and quality of life are impaired.

On the Web:

• “This video is a demonstration of defense mechanisms and related broad concepts as defined by Freud. Further, the clip illustrates what a healthy therapeutic relationship may look like using a psychoanalytic framework.”

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Representation

Honeybot - A visual representation of port activities (with colormap): adulau / Alexandre Dulaunoy

Representation in both the literary and artistic sense refers to depicting through language, music, visual art or dance some psychological, social, political or spiritual idea or environment.

C. G. Jung believed that representation was essential to the healthy growth of the psyche. He envisioned the conscious ego as a relatively small entity that must, through representation, express and therefore control the immense powers of the archetypes of the collective unconscious.

Postmoderns question to what degree representation actually represents some supposed thing and to what degree the process of representation creates it. Further distinctions are made in anthropology, philosophy and theology between second-order, conceptual realities and first-order sense datum.

In abstract art some believe that the personality and personal message of the artist can be removed from the overall representational message, whereas others say this is impossible–i.e. the artist, artwork and viewer will always exist in some kind of relationship.

In Platonic philosophy and much of the theology of the Middle Ages questions were raised as to the possibility of eternal, unchanging essences or ideas which are imperfectly represented in our world of change and decay.

» Active Imagination, Archetypal Image, Barthes (Roland), Bultmann (Rudolf), Cockburn (Bruce), Durkheim (Emile), Emic-Etic, Icon, Object, Participation Mystique, Surrealism, Wittgenstein, Ludwig (Josef Johann), Yoni

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