I will commend, all summer long, Michael Bérubé’s brilliant and heartfelt exegesis of Yeats’ “Sailing to Byzantium,” the poem from which this blog takes its name.
Michael guesses that I might have something to say about the poem, and he’s right, but he catches me as I’m working against a dissertation-related deadline (don’t worry — I assure you that the dissertation is in its last throes).
Until I’m better able to address his post, I offer you the following take on The Big Lebowski. It’s not quite as eloquent as Yeats’ commentary on the human condition, but it shares a vaguely similar leitmotif. I like to think of it as a gloss on the lines “Caught in that sensual music all neglect / Monuments of unageing intellect.”
The Big Lebowski - F_cking Short Version
(caution: this video contains more profanity than a G8 Summit Meeting, so put on some headphones if you’re at work, and cover the ears of your children if you’re at home)
6 Comments on "Those Dying Generations (and their song)"
Michael Bérubé:
Oh, that’s so fecking weird. I just went out and rented The Big Lebowski two nights ago, and saw it for the first time in nine years. But then where does the Nihilist fit in? Crazy Jane and the Bishop, maybe?
Good luck with that dissertatin’.
paxromano:
Matt, I am not a well read man. So thank you for pointing out the poem by Yeats, I Googled it and have read it three times…my god, what a powerful piece.
Thanks again.
Rod:
The confluence of the Dude, Crazy Jane and the Bishop makes me think that Dylan must not be far from joining this thread, but I can’t quite figure out how he might make his entrance.
Has anyone ever written anything about Yeats and Dylan?
Matt:
Michael:
But then where does the Nihilist fit in?
I’m not sure — perhaps What Then?
Thanks so much for the good wishes.
Pax:
I Googled it and have read it three times…my god, what a powerful piece.
That’s awesome, Pax. The next time someone asks me why I blog, I’ll point them towards your comment.
Rod:
The confluence of the Dude, Crazy Jane and the Bishop makes me think that Dylan must not be far from joining this thread.
Somehow, I could see them all coming together in the grotesque carnival that is Ballad of a Thin Man.
No idea whether anyone has written on Yeats and Dylan, but it’s a provocative idea.
——
I apologize for the lack of updates . . . the blog is likely to remain quiet through the weekend. But I do have good news to report: I’m about to leave for the post office to mail my dissertation to the committee. That, my friends, is teh crazy.
Comandante Agi:
I had to read Yeats’ piece a few times to understand it (I’m pretty daft when it comes to getting poetry). Powerful stuff indeed. I can see his Irish Catholicism seeping through when it comes to the body vs. soul stuff.
Now that you mention that Dylan song I have to go dig out that CD from my closet.
Congrats on the mailing. Have a great weekend, Matt.
Jimmy:
I don’t know from Yeats, but The Big Lebowski is a masterpeice! That mashup is nothing short of sublime! Like a poetic meditation on the loss of language as a viable means of expression, oh the horror, oh the humanity!
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