2009-05-19, 03:46 PM
Some things about man are eternal, others are transient. Human nature was the same 10,000 years ago, but customs and fashions change. Slowly we become more civilized, but it's an uphill battle against that in us which is inherently barbaric. If you read Homer's epics, the standards for civilization in there are absolutely loathsome next to those we have. But there is genius in his works which is applicable to our times, so it remains relevant.
Entertainment is not just entertainment, it is analysis of human nature. Even someone like Madonna or Britney Spears speak to what we want, at this moment at least. The great artists of the future study the past, borrow from it, and interpret it in a modern manner. Just as fashions are always changing, so are acceptable entertainments always changing. Yet, civilization is always evolving. Our journey of exploration will never end. I think after we've run out of things to do on Earth, (which we've nowhere near close to,) we'll do something like travel to Mars or Alpha Centauri. That might seem like fiction, but remember there was a time when we thought the earth was flat, and the known boundaries of the world were unexplored.
Just as there is a side to man that is barbaric and hideous, so is there one that is beautiful and elegant. I think in the end it will be the elegance that will define us; the tyrants pass and go, but civilization is immortal.
Entertainment is not just entertainment, it is analysis of human nature. Even someone like Madonna or Britney Spears speak to what we want, at this moment at least. The great artists of the future study the past, borrow from it, and interpret it in a modern manner. Just as fashions are always changing, so are acceptable entertainments always changing. Yet, civilization is always evolving. Our journey of exploration will never end. I think after we've run out of things to do on Earth, (which we've nowhere near close to,) we'll do something like travel to Mars or Alpha Centauri. That might seem like fiction, but remember there was a time when we thought the earth was flat, and the known boundaries of the world were unexplored.
Just as there is a side to man that is barbaric and hideous, so is there one that is beautiful and elegant. I think in the end it will be the elegance that will define us; the tyrants pass and go, but civilization is immortal.