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You may be wondering just what the hell a zeitgeist is when it's at home. Well, it's the prevailing mood of a given time; you might say that free love captured the zeitgeist of the 1960's. So what's this got to do with anything?
The corporate machine has been so well oiled since yesteryear that the days when people used zeitgeist to describe the mood of a decade are long gone. We now have fads instead. Fads that get bled dry and thrown away before you can say Pop Idol. The zeitgeist is now the defining spirit of a month, or even a day. Warhol's prophecies have come true and we watch on mesmerised as band after star after film after toy after fashion are paraded before us for their 15 minutes of fame and then chucked on the scrap heap of the exploited.
Congratulations and welcome to the world of the 15 minute zeitgeist.
However, what we fail to see is that few things escape the clutches of capitalism. We've all seen on these forums as people insult the latest pop star while lauding Slipknot and Linkin Park to high heaven. Ever thought that the teenybopper queuing with her copy of the latest Britney Spears' single is just as bad (or just as good) as you standing there with your nu-metal cd? The fact is that very, very few things transcend the 15 minute zeitgeist. Do you think people will still buy Britney albums when she's not as pretty, or will they buy the latest single from the latest artist in the latest style of the latest fad? Will Slipknot be remembered for years to come as a seminal band? I think not.
What we have to do is step out of the murky shadows of consumerism and realise that maybe, just maybe, we are all the same and all that matters is what you feel about something, rather than what you're told to feel about something: each to their own. If you like Staind then you shouldn't go and laugh at people who voted for Pop Idol, and if you like Will Young's single then don't stop listening to it because he's come out. Like something for what you perceive it to be. I'm as guilty as anyone of having musical, cinematic and reading prejudices but increasingly I'm coming round to the opinion that I'm typing at the moment: that ultimately we all participate in fads whether we like it or not, and that makes anyone who criticises someone else's tastes a hypocrite.
I'm not saying fads are bad, far from it. If you like Britney Spears' music then so be it, and if you can't stand her you're just as right. The main thing is that we shouldn't pretend to be any better than anyone else because of what we like and what we don't like. We can agree disagree, we can argue until the cows have evolved into intelligent life forms, but we shouldn't criticise where criticism is undue.
Look at the way things develop. Look at the things that have stood the test of time. Sure the Beatles have achieved a transcendental success over many generations but look back to Mozart, born in 1756 and still going strong. Look at Shakespeare whose life might have been like "a poor player who struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more", but his work has lived on for centuries. Look at authors, painters, playwrights who were ignored in their own time but have become legendary posthumously. All of these might put the others into perspective. After all, what was the last modern book you read that you can feel certain will be studied in 200 years' time? There aren't that many, just as there aren't many albums/films/plays/fashions that will achieve any lasting significance.
We live in an age where zeitgeists change every second and it's impossible to keep your finger on the pulse all the time. It's impossible to always be the first with the latest whatever. You may beat them accidentally by discovering something before it hits the big-time but will you still want it when everyone has one? It seems that with every new must-have invention the rate of innovation speeds up; books are fairly timeless; music is becoming increasingly faddish; most films begin to date after a decade; the average console has an active shelf life of between two and three years; and fashions? You'll be lucky if you've managed to buy this season's clothes before next year's are on the catwalk and you are being publicly laughed at for being "so passé".
So let's take our fingers off the pulse and relax a little. Let's stop trying keep up with the Joneses and just be yourself and like what you want and be happy in your own tastes and preferences. And if anyone criticises you for doing it tell them to "Eat my zeitgeist" and watch as the puzzlement spreads across their face...
The corporate machine has been so well oiled since yesteryear that the days when people used zeitgeist to describe the mood of a decade are long gone. We now have fads instead. Fads that get bled dry and thrown away before you can say Pop Idol. The zeitgeist is now the defining spirit of a month, or even a day. Warhol's prophecies have come true and we watch on mesmerised as band after star after film after toy after fashion are paraded before us for their 15 minutes of fame and then chucked on the scrap heap of the exploited.
Congratulations and welcome to the world of the 15 minute zeitgeist.
However, what we fail to see is that few things escape the clutches of capitalism. We've all seen on these forums as people insult the latest pop star while lauding Slipknot and Linkin Park to high heaven. Ever thought that the teenybopper queuing with her copy of the latest Britney Spears' single is just as bad (or just as good) as you standing there with your nu-metal cd? The fact is that very, very few things transcend the 15 minute zeitgeist. Do you think people will still buy Britney albums when she's not as pretty, or will they buy the latest single from the latest artist in the latest style of the latest fad? Will Slipknot be remembered for years to come as a seminal band? I think not.
What we have to do is step out of the murky shadows of consumerism and realise that maybe, just maybe, we are all the same and all that matters is what you feel about something, rather than what you're told to feel about something: each to their own. If you like Staind then you shouldn't go and laugh at people who voted for Pop Idol, and if you like Will Young's single then don't stop listening to it because he's come out. Like something for what you perceive it to be. I'm as guilty as anyone of having musical, cinematic and reading prejudices but increasingly I'm coming round to the opinion that I'm typing at the moment: that ultimately we all participate in fads whether we like it or not, and that makes anyone who criticises someone else's tastes a hypocrite.
I'm not saying fads are bad, far from it. If you like Britney Spears' music then so be it, and if you can't stand her you're just as right. The main thing is that we shouldn't pretend to be any better than anyone else because of what we like and what we don't like. We can agree disagree, we can argue until the cows have evolved into intelligent life forms, but we shouldn't criticise where criticism is undue.
Look at the way things develop. Look at the things that have stood the test of time. Sure the Beatles have achieved a transcendental success over many generations but look back to Mozart, born in 1756 and still going strong. Look at Shakespeare whose life might have been like "a poor player who struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more", but his work has lived on for centuries. Look at authors, painters, playwrights who were ignored in their own time but have become legendary posthumously. All of these might put the others into perspective. After all, what was the last modern book you read that you can feel certain will be studied in 200 years' time? There aren't that many, just as there aren't many albums/films/plays/fashions that will achieve any lasting significance.
We live in an age where zeitgeists change every second and it's impossible to keep your finger on the pulse all the time. It's impossible to always be the first with the latest whatever. You may beat them accidentally by discovering something before it hits the big-time but will you still want it when everyone has one? It seems that with every new must-have invention the rate of innovation speeds up; books are fairly timeless; music is becoming increasingly faddish; most films begin to date after a decade; the average console has an active shelf life of between two and three years; and fashions? You'll be lucky if you've managed to buy this season's clothes before next year's are on the catwalk and you are being publicly laughed at for being "so passé".
So let's take our fingers off the pulse and relax a little. Let's stop trying keep up with the Joneses and just be yourself and like what you want and be happy in your own tastes and preferences. And if anyone criticises you for doing it tell them to "Eat my zeitgeist" and watch as the puzzlement spreads across their face...
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Maybe one day the trend will be to watch Mr Happy's films, play Grix's games, and read my books.
Would I be happy with just 15 minutes, thrown on the scrap heap when the next thing came along?
Probably not, you have a certain level of success, you want to repeat it, better it.
It must be tough when you're not famous anymore, people don't recognise you anymore. No wonder they all say "I used to be famous, y'know..."
Would I be happy with just 15 minutes, thrown on the scrap heap when the next thing came along?
Probably not, you have a certain level of success, you want to repeat it, better it.
It must be tough when you're not famous anymore, people don't recognise you anymore. No wonder they all say "I used to be famous, y'know..."
Mr. Happy wrote:
"I might want to make films but I'm not confident enough in my ability to do that to not do (I know it's a split infinitive but i just spent about 5 minutes trying to think of another way to say it) revision for my exams."
Errm...
"I might want to make films, but I'm not that confident to just give up my A-Levels, so I've got nothing left to fall back on."
Perhaps.
And I reckon you could get into an Lesbian Studies course with 14 Key Skills qualifications. And yes, there is a Lesbian Studies. Or even a "Teaching Key Skills" course. Doubt that one exists, mind.
"I might want to make films but I'm not confident enough in my ability to do that to not do (I know it's a split infinitive but i just spent about 5 minutes trying to think of another way to say it) revision for my exams."
Errm...
"I might want to make films, but I'm not that confident to just give up my A-Levels, so I've got nothing left to fall back on."
Perhaps.
And I reckon you could get into an Lesbian Studies course with 14 Key Skills qualifications. And yes, there is a Lesbian Studies. Or even a "Teaching Key Skills" course. Doubt that one exists, mind.
Grix Thraves wrote:
> Yeah, they might even change back INTO A-Levels so they'll be worth sitting. As
> well as those damn Key Skills.
Collector item exams, as Mr Happy elegantly
> put it.
yesm, that was one of my more coherent moments :-)
Sonicrav actually has more key skills certificates than anyone else, because he got 7 certificates and, to top off the absolute success of the gov't initiative, they had spelt his name wrong. So he now has 14 of the things... any suggestions for what you can do with 14 key skills certificates? Answers on a postcard to the address shown at the end of the show.
I completely agree with you about qualifications though. Most of them are entirely meaningless.. my plans are to go to uni and do law, except I want to make films, not be a lawyer.. so I'm probably going to get as involved as possible with films and cinema at uni, then move on to film school if I have what it takes.
That's just me though. And law should be a fairly reliable back up at any rate. As for you, Grix, if the stuff I've seen you do is anything to go by, it shouldn't take you too much convincing to get hired as a games designer/something design related.
I'm probably going to abstain from the forums for a bit, over Easter so I can get revision done... I might want to make films but I'm not confident enough in my ability to do that to not do (I know it's a split infinitive but i just spent about 5 minutes trying to think of another way to say it) revision for my exams.
> Yeah, they might even change back INTO A-Levels so they'll be worth sitting. As
> well as those damn Key Skills.
Collector item exams, as Mr Happy elegantly
> put it.
yesm, that was one of my more coherent moments :-)
Sonicrav actually has more key skills certificates than anyone else, because he got 7 certificates and, to top off the absolute success of the gov't initiative, they had spelt his name wrong. So he now has 14 of the things... any suggestions for what you can do with 14 key skills certificates? Answers on a postcard to the address shown at the end of the show.
I completely agree with you about qualifications though. Most of them are entirely meaningless.. my plans are to go to uni and do law, except I want to make films, not be a lawyer.. so I'm probably going to get as involved as possible with films and cinema at uni, then move on to film school if I have what it takes.
That's just me though. And law should be a fairly reliable back up at any rate. As for you, Grix, if the stuff I've seen you do is anything to go by, it shouldn't take you too much convincing to get hired as a games designer/something design related.
I'm probably going to abstain from the forums for a bit, over Easter so I can get revision done... I might want to make films but I'm not confident enough in my ability to do that to not do (I know it's a split infinitive but i just spent about 5 minutes trying to think of another way to say it) revision for my exams.
Yeah, they might even change back INTO A-Levels so they'll be worth sitting. As well as those damn Key Skills.
Collector item exams, as Mr Happy elegantly put it.
Collector item exams, as Mr Happy elegantly put it.
You can re-sit A-levels you know...
Ah, but that's where it becomes complicated.
If I take the job, I sacrifice my A-Levels, they won't be finished, but it's not as if I'm going to get really high grades anyway, just passes.
No A-Levels? No Uni.
:0)
If I take the job, I sacrifice my A-Levels, they won't be finished, but it's not as if I'm going to get really high grades anyway, just passes.
No A-Levels? No Uni.
:0)
I know, but it's just: Who's right? Me or them? And what happens if I make the wrong decision?
It's definitely going to make my life worth living, I'm sure. So therefore, I'm right, they're wrong.
Come on... stop being so busy Mr Design Director: Read read read.
It's definitely going to make my life worth living, I'm sure. So therefore, I'm right, they're wrong.
Come on... stop being so busy Mr Design Director: Read read read.
Grix, sod university, do what YOU want.
You go for the interview but either:
A). Don't get the job
B). Get the job but really find you don't like it
Then go to uni afterwards.
LOADS of people go to uni in their mid 20's. They've done a job, they don't like it, or it doesn't like them, so they go back to learn.
Nothing wrong with that at all. At least you tried.
"It's better to regrat something you have done, than to regret something you haven't done."
Go for it, go for the job. Leave uni - maybe 'til later, maybe permanently.
At least you tried, and that's what the world is all about.
When I was little my dad told me that life is life a BIG piece of graph paper. Every time you do something new, a square on the graph paper is filled in.
The aim of life?
To fill in as many squares as possible.
That probably doesn't help you at all, but I feel prfound saying it. :-D
You go for the interview but either:
A). Don't get the job
B). Get the job but really find you don't like it
Then go to uni afterwards.
LOADS of people go to uni in their mid 20's. They've done a job, they don't like it, or it doesn't like them, so they go back to learn.
Nothing wrong with that at all. At least you tried.
"It's better to regrat something you have done, than to regret something you haven't done."
Go for it, go for the job. Leave uni - maybe 'til later, maybe permanently.
At least you tried, and that's what the world is all about.
When I was little my dad told me that life is life a BIG piece of graph paper. Every time you do something new, a square on the graph paper is filled in.
The aim of life?
To fill in as many squares as possible.
That probably doesn't help you at all, but I feel prfound saying it. :-D
It's your life Grix, your running it, your the one who's breathing it, living it so live it to the fullest. Do what you want to do before your old and you regret it.
Keep a positive mind, your on the right track. Keep on that track, you'll achieve.
We all can be who we want to be and what we want to be, no-one can stop that.
Remember.
Keep a positive mind, your on the right track. Keep on that track, you'll achieve.
We all can be who we want to be and what we want to be, no-one can stop that.
Remember.
I've been having a problem with this recently.
Trend: Go to nightclubs, get wasted.
Can't be arsed. Much more fun in a pub, you get a pool table, and you can actually hear what other people are saying. Well, better, anyway. And the music's always better.
Not that I actually got to pubs that often. I'm most comfortable drinking at home and watching a movie before falling asleep on my face. Well, that bit isn't so comfortable, but I'm babbling now.
This is something I've just known and agreed with in my mind, and I don't give a crap what others say. However.
Statement: "You can't decide what you're going to do with the rest of your life when you're so young [17]."
So why the hell are we taken exams and courses and crap?
Sorry, I'll go back a bit. That statement was told to me today after myself stating that "I don't need exams to get where I want to in life."
In my heart, more than anything, I want to create. Not breed, but design and make and think of these wonderful worlds where you can capture someone and tell them a story. I want to do this by making games, because that's what I believe I would excel at.
Lo and beyold, because gaming is such a "you're going to do WHAT?" subject, you don't actually need that many exams and medals across your chest to get in. You just need an imagination and a good seat to wait on.
And a whole lot of luck if you want to get your foot in the door. I got my foot in the door, and I don't really want to pull it out. So I've acted as soon as I can, to try and get a job.
Right, with me so far? Better read it again then, because I can't explain it better. :0)
So, along comes the decision. This place I want to work will not allow people to come to work for them unless they take an interview, and if sucessful, are hired immedietely. There is no waiting, you can't be put "on hold". You get talked to, and you work from then on.
The job I want won't be around for a while. Exams versus life.
I chose life, (Not a widescreen tv, naturally...), and it seems a lot are very unhappy with my decision. So who do I trust?
People tell me "Exams are the most important things in your life, you won't get anywhere without them"... from the comfort of the sofa in front of Emmerdale, or from a job they can't stand in a lonely life. "What if you find out that you don't like the job, and it's not what you expect it to be?"... Yes, maybe, but I HAVE been designing and writing for about three years solidly now and enjoyed every second more than anything else in the world. That's a good experience enough to say I want to design for the rest of my life.
And what, I don't like the job? I can leave and have a HUGE mark on my work experience file. Not a bad mark, a great one.
And then, the only thing really fighting these "you're going to die a failure" is my heart... and of course people on here, who speak wiser words than anyone out in the "REAL" world.
And that's the problem. Suddenly, for the first time in my life, I stand out. All the kids are marching around, revising, checking their grades, their universities... "What uni are you going to?" "I'm not going." "Oh." Wish they'd speak their mind. "You're not going? Ha! Bye bye then, I'll chuck some money in the gutter for you!"
Hell, I'm not paranoid, but I see it in their eyes. It DOES bother me, not because I really care what they want my future to be, but because they've become so blinded by everything around them, they can't see that in order to live life, you don't have to just take exams, and get a 2-2 in the best Uni in South England... but you have to follow your heart, to find something you feel you were born to do. I'm lucky, and I KNOW I've found it already... but why won't anyone believe me?
I'm so tempted to just say "Oh well, yes, you're right, I don't know myself that well after all" and lie down and do exams, go to university and get a desk job doing sums. Hey, they were right all along, I'm not a failure, I can afford that new corner table.
But deep down, I KNOW they're wrong. I am a designer, and I NEED to design games, I NEED to show the world what they could be. I feel this stronger than anything else... but it's degrading to see so many people against me, especially over such strong feelings.
"I want..." "No, you're wrong."
Ah well. I'm obviously immature and unable to think for myself quite yet. I'll wait a few years behind a desk revising, that'll change me for the better.
Trend: Go to nightclubs, get wasted.
Can't be arsed. Much more fun in a pub, you get a pool table, and you can actually hear what other people are saying. Well, better, anyway. And the music's always better.
Not that I actually got to pubs that often. I'm most comfortable drinking at home and watching a movie before falling asleep on my face. Well, that bit isn't so comfortable, but I'm babbling now.
This is something I've just known and agreed with in my mind, and I don't give a crap what others say. However.
Statement: "You can't decide what you're going to do with the rest of your life when you're so young [17]."
So why the hell are we taken exams and courses and crap?
Sorry, I'll go back a bit. That statement was told to me today after myself stating that "I don't need exams to get where I want to in life."
In my heart, more than anything, I want to create. Not breed, but design and make and think of these wonderful worlds where you can capture someone and tell them a story. I want to do this by making games, because that's what I believe I would excel at.
Lo and beyold, because gaming is such a "you're going to do WHAT?" subject, you don't actually need that many exams and medals across your chest to get in. You just need an imagination and a good seat to wait on.
And a whole lot of luck if you want to get your foot in the door. I got my foot in the door, and I don't really want to pull it out. So I've acted as soon as I can, to try and get a job.
Right, with me so far? Better read it again then, because I can't explain it better. :0)
So, along comes the decision. This place I want to work will not allow people to come to work for them unless they take an interview, and if sucessful, are hired immedietely. There is no waiting, you can't be put "on hold". You get talked to, and you work from then on.
The job I want won't be around for a while. Exams versus life.
I chose life, (Not a widescreen tv, naturally...), and it seems a lot are very unhappy with my decision. So who do I trust?
People tell me "Exams are the most important things in your life, you won't get anywhere without them"... from the comfort of the sofa in front of Emmerdale, or from a job they can't stand in a lonely life. "What if you find out that you don't like the job, and it's not what you expect it to be?"... Yes, maybe, but I HAVE been designing and writing for about three years solidly now and enjoyed every second more than anything else in the world. That's a good experience enough to say I want to design for the rest of my life.
And what, I don't like the job? I can leave and have a HUGE mark on my work experience file. Not a bad mark, a great one.
And then, the only thing really fighting these "you're going to die a failure" is my heart... and of course people on here, who speak wiser words than anyone out in the "REAL" world.
And that's the problem. Suddenly, for the first time in my life, I stand out. All the kids are marching around, revising, checking their grades, their universities... "What uni are you going to?" "I'm not going." "Oh." Wish they'd speak their mind. "You're not going? Ha! Bye bye then, I'll chuck some money in the gutter for you!"
Hell, I'm not paranoid, but I see it in their eyes. It DOES bother me, not because I really care what they want my future to be, but because they've become so blinded by everything around them, they can't see that in order to live life, you don't have to just take exams, and get a 2-2 in the best Uni in South England... but you have to follow your heart, to find something you feel you were born to do. I'm lucky, and I KNOW I've found it already... but why won't anyone believe me?
I'm so tempted to just say "Oh well, yes, you're right, I don't know myself that well after all" and lie down and do exams, go to university and get a desk job doing sums. Hey, they were right all along, I'm not a failure, I can afford that new corner table.
But deep down, I KNOW they're wrong. I am a designer, and I NEED to design games, I NEED to show the world what they could be. I feel this stronger than anything else... but it's degrading to see so many people against me, especially over such strong feelings.
"I want..." "No, you're wrong."
Ah well. I'm obviously immature and unable to think for myself quite yet. I'll wait a few years behind a desk revising, that'll change me for the better.
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