Killing Time on You Tube

[shilohmm]

So was anyone else completely blown away by the album Eurythmics did for the movie 1984? Never did see the movie, but loved the album. I'd read the book in Jr. High, and was not really a fan. Hard to have much sympathy for a pathetic middle aged guy with a big time crush on a younger girl who magically has this big crush on him when middle aged

Comments

[elasg]

Those Firefly vids are neat! Though you have to be a fairly well versed fan to catch all of them. Luckily, this I am...

Somehow, I never read 1984 - my high school never required it, but I did read Brave New World on my own and found it quite frightening that a view I totally disagreed with could be explained in such a reasonable and logical way. You knew the guy was all kinds of wrong for the way his society was run, but like the protagonist, on what did you base your argument against it? And yes, I see that happening right now - though the difference between alphas and gammas now is how much money you've got, not the content of your brain (though those 'haves' seem to think that just because you have money, that somehow infers you also have brains - um, not past the first generation, dude, and sometimes not even then.)

[shilohmm]

I read 1984 because it was assigned, and probably never would have otherwise. It was not a pleasant book, but I also didn't find it that interesting. Brave New World I read on my own -- didn't find it as unpleasant and think it's far more compelling. I think I had religious arguments against that society, yeah, in terms of brute logic it's hard to argue against a society where everyone's apparently happy. I do think the culture ignores some facts of biology we now know (bonding chemicals in particular), but OTOH if they could do all the other engineering they could probably work around that as well

[elfdream]

Supposedly the R.E.M. song "Disturbance a the Heron House' was inspired by Animal Farm. I have listened to that song over and over trying to fit it in...but like most R.E.M. songs the lyrics can be very cryptic.

[shilohmm]

I dunno. I guess I can see it.
"They're going wild," the call came in/ At early morning pre-dawn, then / "The followers of chaos out of control" would be the initial rebellion against Farmer Jones.

The call came in to Party Central/"Meeting of the green and simple," would be about the wrestling for power with Snowball and Napoleon.

"They're meeting at the monument,"/The call came in the monument
To liberty and honour under the honour roll would be the various meetings where they set up the Seven Commandments and whatnot.

Cogs and grunts and hirelings/ A meeting of a mean idea to hold/ "When feeding time has come and gone/ They'll lose the heart and head for home how everything fell apart due to corruption at the top.

Everyone allowed is his version of "all animals are equal."

Is that what it really is talking about? Have not the remotest idea. I think the lyrics fit "The Rise of the Planet of the Apes" as much as anything. Not that I've seen the movie anymore than Stipe had when he wrote the song. :D

[shilohmm]

Clearly I should have previewed that, since the formatting is pretty funky. Oh, well.