Why is the need to disappear from society such a common theme in literature after the colonial period? It’s not exclusive to American culture, but I’ve read so much lately about characters rejecting society. From Kerouac to Coupland, it’s such a common theme. Also, Gibson’s Zero History is said to reflect on this as well. It’s as if the more structured our society is, the more reasons people have to reject it. The most recent scenario I’ve seen this is in Coupland’s Miss Wyoming. What’s interesting about this specifically is that his characters have achieved a cultural status; when they leave society, society looks and questions. The other characters surrounding John and Susan can’t understand why they suddenly have these lapses to disappear and reinvent themselves, but what I’m really disappointed is that we don’t really get to see any subconscious agreement from anyone but the two. I prefer Kerouac’s depiction better, because he focused on a group of people who hadn’t become lego blocks in pop culture. Some people are desperate to achieve this cultural Rip Van Winkle. We see this a lot in dystopian literature as well.
I really want to read Eliot’s Waste Land.
I was browsing The Blackstone Valley Tribune to see how their letter to the editor and opinion pages were set up, and I saw one of my old classmate’s names in the police report section. It sucks, but this is like the second blast or irony that’s sprouted from high school friendships.
My computer attracted new spyware overnight? I don’t know how people can live without anti-spyware.
Stage Fright 