It's a Mad World
The Many Faces of Madness
"And how do you know that you're mad?" (Carroll 66)
Lewis
Carroll provides insight to the discussion of sanity and insanity with
the conversation between Alice and the Cheshire Cat. The whole idea of
reality versus fantasy comes into play as well. Wonderland is clearly a
figment of Alice's imagination, but to a certain degree fantasy becomes
reality and the fine line between both is lost. when it comes down to
the nitty gritty truth, sanity is a ambiguous term with no set
definition or parameters. My sanity may be your insanity, in essence. To
further the idea of madness, the very backwards logic of the Cheshire
Cat in regards to the dog shows the reverse nature of madness and the
crazy nature of logic. Everything in Alice's fantasy world has no reason
nor rhyme, bringing the reader to contemplate whether Alice is indeed
mad or is the reader? It all comes down to interpretation, and the
surface level text seems to prove utterly wild, but with in depth
analysis, the story seems to ring a mild curiosity with the spark of
madness that we all have.
Perfection of Nature
"The
old earth, in its appearance, shows an eternal share of virtue; it is
only the human element that is faulty; it is man alone that is backward"
(Hopkins 344).
Hopkins
poem highlights the natural beauty of the world, and its untainted
perfection prior to the touch of mankind. The poem proves to be an ode
to the beauty nature provides, so crisp and celestial. The poem reminds
me of the need to focus on the little things, taking note to the beauty
all around us in the every day world. We are surrounded by mystery and
awe all around us, yet very few people have the time or concentration to
realize such. We are always on the go, running from errand to the next,
always thinking of the next step, the next task to be accomplished, the
next challenge ahead. In my opinion, this poem praises the beauty
within the natural world, the need to rejoice in the glory which
surrounds our busy, hustling days, year round. It is mankind that has
destroyed this beauty. It is human nature to pursue the thirst for
progress and knowledge, to strive for more in an ever-changing word.
Construction, progress, technological advancement, etc. have all led to
the destruction of nature's progression. Beautiful rain forests become
wood supplies, waterfalls turn into dams, pollution forces the world
into overdrive, etc. It is mankind that is the error in God's world,
unsuitable to fit in and coincide in harmony with the natural world all
around. Humanity is the flaw that will bring the world's end.
A
connection is found between Alice's discourse on insanity and Hopkin's
poem because both highlight the backward nature of man, and its
subsequent madness. The backwards logic in relation to Alice highlights
madness, and the backwards nature of man has resulted in the destruction
of nature and God's world.
Both
readings reminded me of Gary Jules' song "Mad World". I placed the link
below, seeing I had issues attaching the MPEG file. The lyrics are
below:
Source URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW93CV6m-JU
All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
Their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow
And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world mad world
Children waiting for the day they feel good
Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday
And I feel the way that every child should
Sit and listen, sit and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson
Look right through me, look right through me
And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world ... mad world
Enlarging your world
Mad world
The Many Faces of Madness
"And how do you know that you're mad?" (Carroll 66)
Lewis
Carroll provides insight to the discussion of sanity and insanity with
the conversation between Alice and the Cheshire Cat. The whole idea of
reality versus fantasy comes into play as well. Wonderland is clearly a
figment of Alice's imagination, but to a certain degree fantasy becomes
reality and the fine line between both is lost. when it comes down to
the nitty gritty truth, sanity is a ambiguous term with no set
definition or parameters. My sanity may be your insanity, in essence. To
further the idea of madness, the very backwards logic of the Cheshire
Cat in regards to the dog shows the reverse nature of madness and the
crazy nature of logic. Everything in Alice's fantasy world has no reason
nor rhyme, bringing the reader to contemplate whether Alice is indeed
mad or is the reader? It all comes down to interpretation, and the
surface level text seems to prove utterly wild, but with in depth
analysis, the story seems to ring a mild curiosity with the spark of
madness that we all have.
Perfection of Nature
"The
old earth, in its appearance, shows an eternal share of virtue; it is
only the human element that is faulty; it is man alone that is backward"
(Hopkins 344).
Hopkins
poem highlights the natural beauty of the world, and its untainted
perfection prior to the touch of mankind. The poem proves to be an ode
to the beauty nature provides, so crisp and celestial. The poem reminds
me of the need to focus on the little things, taking note to the beauty
all around us in the every day world. We are surrounded by mystery and
awe all around us, yet very few people have the time or concentration to
realize such. We are always on the go, running from errand to the next,
always thinking of the next step, the next task to be accomplished, the
next challenge ahead. In my opinion, this poem praises the beauty
within the natural world, the need to rejoice in the glory which
surrounds our busy, hustling days, year round. It is mankind that has
destroyed this beauty. It is human nature to pursue the thirst for
progress and knowledge, to strive for more in an ever-changing word.
Construction, progress, technological advancement, etc. have all led to
the destruction of nature's progression. Beautiful rain forests become
wood supplies, waterfalls turn into dams, pollution forces the world
into overdrive, etc. It is mankind that is the error in God's world,
unsuitable to fit in and coincide in harmony with the natural world all
around. Humanity is the flaw that will bring the world's end.
A
connection is found between Alice's discourse on insanity and Hopkin's
poem because both highlight the backward nature of man, and its
subsequent madness. The backwards logic in relation to Alice highlights
madness, and the backwards nature of man has resulted in the destruction
of nature and God's world.
Both
readings reminded me of Gary Jules' song "Mad World". I placed the link
below, seeing I had issues attaching the MPEG file. The lyrics are
below:
Source URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW93CV6m-JU
All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
Their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow
And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world mad world
Children waiting for the day they feel good
Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday
And I feel the way that every child should
Sit and listen, sit and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson
Look right through me, look right through me
And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world ... mad world
Enlarging your world
Mad world
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
Their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow
And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world mad world
Children waiting for the day they feel good
Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday
And I feel the way that every child should
Sit and listen, sit and listen
Went to school and I was very nervous
No one knew me, no one knew me
Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson
Look right through me, look right through me
And I find it kinda funny
I find it kinda sad
The dreams in which I'm dying
Are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It's a very, very mad world ... mad world
Enlarging your world
Mad world
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