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November 19, 2005

Disillusioned

I am disillusioned, with many things. With entertainment, with the monotony of life, with pretending to be happy and joyful. Everyone seems to be alive with an illusion of things. Everyone is trying to have "fun" based on a series of pre-defined ways of having fun.

The things we are fans of, books, movies, music, seem all to have fallen prey to repetition, remaking, and repackaging. The "new" version of my favourite comic book, Asterix the Gaul, looks like a collection of clippings from the previous books. My favourite singer seems to think that people liked him only because he could scream ludly. The movies I am watching all could have been generated randomly by a computer programme. The louder and more shiney they are, the better they seem to be.

We are suppose to like these things either because they are "classics" or they are the next big thing. We are contantly fed by the advertisement industry and led to believe that this is how things should be and this is the proper way to enjoy life. The makers of these products seem to have lost vision of what made them attractive originally: the fact that they touched a human nerve. We liked them because we saw ourselves in their mirror. The "new" versions of our old nostalgia are but a repackaging of the old things. I am tired of the cliche.

So, are we having fun yet?

Posted by Khodadad at November 19, 2005 07:07 PM

Comments

Cool. Write. I think sometimes that's a way there out of the eternal recurrence. Affirm life and the will to power. But first enjoy the melancholy.
Enjoyed this post.
Amir

Posted by: Amir at November 19, 2005 08:20 PM

I feel that the pace of life has a lot to do with this. In this age where everything is so fast, artists are supposed to come up with new albums/books/paintings at a stupendous rate. The time from conception to finished product has been reducing, and unless you are a genius, you are forced to repackage/combine old products. As a result, quality suffers. Also in the age of commercialization, you dont have to be really good to make a profit, and it is all about profit.

Posted by: SRay at November 19, 2005 08:45 PM

Hi Khodadad,

Sorry to hear of your disillusionment. I agree that we all live to some extent in an illusionary world. We all perceive reality somewhat differently from how it actually is. We can't help that. Our perceptions are colored by our emotions. When I have been somewhat depressed, I have also become disillusioned in ways similar to what you are describing.

I am currently on a brief vacation visiting a friend. I think that positive social contact can be very helpful in becoming re-illusioned. :) I hope that you will find something that will give you some real happiness and joy soon! Btw, did you see my recent post "Questions and Answers"? Perhaps it would give you a bit of entertainment. :)

Posted by: David at November 21, 2005 10:24 AM

Is that you Cyrous? Ostad, you two having been hanging around together too much - it's rubbing off on you ;-) It was good to see you.

Posted by: Kouros at November 30, 2005 01:33 PM