My Song - "For You"

I know it has been a while since we performed our own songs for the class, but this song assignment made me reflect back on the creative process of writing and singing my song ("For You") for the class.

Writing my own song was a deeply aesthetic and personal experience. I incorporated my idea of beauty into the song. The song was written, despite the title, for not one person in particular, but rather for whoever would be willing to listen to me at the time. My philosophy is very simple: Life is a song, enjoy the melody, do not be afraid of death. It is a beautiful, inevitable phase of living. The beauty of life is the fact that it is finite, but we are unique contributor's to the novel of Earth.

"Let the Sun Shine In"

When I was a little girl, I would lock myself in the basement, turn on the Hair soundtrack, and dance. Just dance. I must have been nine years old. I didn’t know what many of the lyrics meant (which is probably a good thing), but I lived on the music. It was electrifying, especially the last song, the one the ensemble sings after Claude has given himself up to the clutches of Vietnam. “Let the sun shine,” they sing. Claude has died, but on the stage a single spotlight shines down, a beam of light from the heavens onto his earthly grave. At this point in my life, this song represented freedom: the ability to dance shamelessly in the basement. But then I grew up, and as life got in the way, the song disappeared into the recesses of my mind. But, like fate, the song came back to me last summer.

I love this musical. To be honest, I love practically all musicals. I am a show tunes lover, and proud of it. Musicals tell stories through song: powerful, rich, and riveting song. I find this very aesthetic. It combines literature with dance and singing into a powerful and cathartic two to three hour escape from reality. In July I went to see Hair on Broadway. That night was the most vibrant, colorful one of my life; the show danced its way into a niche in my heart. During curtain call, the actors called people on stage. I ran up and joined in song, singing “Let the Sun Shine In,” at the top of my lungs. My nine-year-old self would have been so happy. Gazing into those lights, my legs rooted to the Broadway stage, I began to weep. It was the most transcendent moment of my life. For the next week, I locked myself in my room, blasted the Hair soundtrack, and danced. In a way, nothing had changed. At this point in my life, the song still represented freedom, a way to see the hope and sunshine in life while completely surrendering myself to the music.

"The Long and Winding Road"

Like “Let the Sun Shine In,” “The Long and Winding Road” has been with me for a long time, but unlike Hair, it did not escape and hide from me for years. This is not a song I listened to constantly, but every time I hear it, I come close to tears. I find this song very aesthetic. It is soft and relaxing, the singer accompanied only by a couple instruments. The lyrics are also so moving:

The wild and windy night
That the rain washed away
Has left a pool of tears
Crying for the day.
Why leave me standing here?
Let me know the way

The winding road can be compared to many things, but for me it represents my life. What stage, you may ask? Well, I think all stages. I am a huge Beatles fan and could easily have picked any of their songs, but this one touches me in a way that I almost find indescribable. I have had a lot of dark days in my life, days where Hair’s sunshine could not even brighten them. This is a song that I can play and cry to and feel ok doing it. But I don’t cry because the song is sad; I cry because it has so much hope. The singer is longing to “know the way.” Is that not what we are all doing? We want to know where to go, and in a world that is full of seven billion winding roads intertwining with one another, it can be hard to follow your own path.

“The Long and Winding Road” is a later song of the Beatles, when John, Paul, George, and Ringo’s hair was long and disheveled. In the musical Hair, long locks symbolize rebellion, a deviation from the social norm. It’s a very anthropological musical, bursting with life and love, questions about the meaning of existence and calls for change. Both these artists and these songs have a plea in them, a plea for strength and direction, hope in a place where it’s so easy to get lost.

The Republic

It has been a while since I have blogged, but a lot has happened since the Hegel vs. Marx debate. We started reading The Republic. It is without question the oldest text I have ever read, but still surprisingly relevant to our life today.

Yes, the book has surprised me. It has frustrated and changed the way I view philosophy and government. I am really looking forward to tackling the question of philosophy of art.

Our imperfect society debates ended today. I am very proud of democracy. I feel like we put our best foot forward in a fierce and entertaining five-day debate. I was so nervous before we started, but now, looking back, I am satisfied with my performance.