Cheever and Dickinson use political context in their works, however, their quality of writing is contradictory. In my opinion, Dickinson writes too little for me to understand the political subject she is trying to get across, and I only understood it when we discussed about her in class.
'One need not be a Chamber - to be haunted -
One need not be a house -
The Brain has Corridors - surpassing
Material Place -'
(extract of poem 670. Dickinson, E (1997: 66) Emily Dickinson. UK. Everyman Paperbacks) From this poem, I didn't know what was going on ... even after reading it several times over again.
In music, social and political subjects maybe ignored by fans, as they maybe more focused on the music than the theme. Because the writing doesn't help, bands may resort to their music videos to get the subject across. The band, Muse, are a great example. Several songs from the albums Resistance (2009) represented political corruption and revolution. 'The Uprising' is a great example.
Quality of writing is essential when talking about a social or/and political subject
I agree that authors have a responsibility to fully understand the political comment they want to portray, otherwise their ignorance could be misleading to others. Great post.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what you say about Dickenson. She is far too vague.
ReplyDeleteIt's good thay you are using a musical example to back up your argument, it shows that you are aware that the issue is relevant to music and other artforms as well.
I think you could expland your argument, though. The last sentince ("quality of writing... essential") is not necessary, as you have already made that point. Could you replace it with an example from another writer (Cheever, maybe? Or George Orwell?) to show how socio-politics can be portrayed well.
I would agree with your view on Dickinson and how it is often difficult to see the social and political messages behind her poetry as they are fairly vague. I also agree that we as writers have a responsibility to get our message across clearly and thoroughly in order to make the reader understand and hopefully make them feel something from what we have to say. An enjoyable post.
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