Aisling got us started on a good foot. Perhaps we should talk about our influences--either literary or not. I'm older than you guys, so for me there's so many, it's difficult to name them all, but I would say that a lot of late 20th Cent postmodern fiction--David Foster Wallace, Don DeLillo, Paul Auster--are big influences. But then also Latin American writers, 19th Century Russian, and Noir. And of course Toni Morrison. And Philip K. Dick. And don't get me started on film directors, song writers, and visual artists. Here's one of the best first lines in literature by Gabriel Garcia Marquez:
"Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano
BuendÃa was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him
to discover ice."
--from One Hundred Years of Solitude
Welcome to the blog for Prof. John Talbird's English 220 class. The purpose of this site is two-fold: 1) to continue the conversations we start in class (or to start conversations before we get to class) and 2) to practice our writing/reading on a weekly basis in an informal forum.
Those are some cool influences Professor Talbird! I spoke about my literary references in my other post, but I am also tremendously interested in and influenced by Salvador Dali and the Surrealist movement. I grew up in the punk scene and loved punk music, but as I get older and softer I find myself putting on jazz or podcasts about the economy more often than I find myself in a mosh pit. I have never been tremendously into film or television, don't get me wrong, I love Wes Anderson and have watched Amelie more times than I can count, but I would much prefer to sit and read a book than watch television or a film.
ReplyDeleteMost of the authors and pieces mentioned I've never even heard of. Although I enjoy reading, I'm much more of a music lover. When I was younger I loved reading books by Jo Knowles, Natasha Friend and Stephenie Meyer. Some big literary influences for me have been Toni Morrison and Mitch Albom. One of my favorite lines from Morrison:
ReplyDelete"Me and you, we've got more yesterday than anybody. We need some sort of tomorrow." -Beloved
I love to write and am also interested in music. I like listening to different genres. Many songs personally speak to me on a creative level. A vast majority of the new musical industry is mostly based on the instrumentals capability of keeping the listener's attention. As for myself I prefer lyrical content over musical notes. One of my favorite artists is Miguel Orlando Collins. He is a reggae musician. His music is very touching and relatable to myself. I like that he expresses himself and the voice of others through his music, that to me is influential because his music can spread the message of love and peace through out the world. As I listen to him sometimes, I can sit there and write away my thoughts, my feelings, and turn it into anything that I want and that's something I enjoy especially if I have something to listen to that motivates me to keep writing.
ReplyDeleteI love to read and write but unfortunately I haven't found that one author that caught my attention, I'm also not a great writer but I love doing it; I feel like I'm releasing all my feelings in writing and its easier then speaking. Like I said in class I'm shy, I try not to but I 'am. Hopefully soon I'll find an author that inspires me and influences me.
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