Roman Blog
Here I am blogging when I should be working on a research paper for my history class. It's about the three ancient civilizations that have had the greatest impact on our modern society. I'm arguing that Greece, Rome, and ______ are the podium perched trio in this one. If you think it sounds boring, read on, because I won't be writing about it. But it got me thinking about things Roman and how I want my blog to look more Roman. Now, my perception of a Roman blog is probably nothing like the blogs they actually had in 37 B.C., or whatever, but that's okay. My real question that I asked myself was "why do I want a Roman-looking blog?"
The answer delves deep into the essence of human nature and comes disconcertingly close to viewing the nucleus of consciousness. Put on your non mercury-tainted beaver pelt hat, and grab your walking cane, for this may be a long walk down the road of knowledge. It's a rough and dusty road, full of hills and potholes. Do not fret or complain; without bumps and scrapes, hills and mud bogs, taunters and mockery-makers along the side, the nature of the road would be changed along with its name. It would be a road that is unprofitable to travel upon. You simply would want nothing to do with it.
And now for it...
What does it mean to be Roman? Indeed we may say that there is little in our modern world that has not been touched by the bony, rotten flesh-covered fingers of antiquity. Yet it is not the everyday aspects of historical effect that we wish to implement into our lives, but rather the buried mammoth achievements of generations long dead that we desire to resurrect from the dust. It is the mighty architecture of Rome, the unmatched beauty and livelihood of Hellenistic sculpture that seem immune from deaths corruption, unstained by time; it is immortality shaped by hands long dead.
We, like the ancients, - and much do our dismay - are mortal. It is the aim of mankind, and ever has been, to achieve the infinite. The world is full of things that rot and wither away. We have, as a society, traded permanency and quality for the gratification of the instant. What is currently the best will be replaced with the better in but a short time. Quantity, not quality has become the aim of today, and it seems to me that we try to associate ourselves with as much physical matter as we possibly can, as if somehow that will make our importance to the universe a little greater, as if it will make us a little more immortal. All the while, our subconscious knows a little better, but the execution of the ideas it presents becomes a little flawed.
The inconvenience of death ends all property rights, but the influence we have can last generations. Therefore, property and matter (nothing more than quarks and electrons) are of far less import than the effect we have on the intelligent beings that follow us in life. Often, however, the quarks and electrons that generations leave behind become symbols of their influence. When we consider our measly life-span of seventy-five years, then all the old stuff seems like it has always been. We see in the ancient race of man, the infinite. They are immortal to us. Their story will always be told, yet the flaw is in the fact that they are dead. Any immortality that will literally come upon them will be the doing of that Higher Being who created us. So as the subconscious directs our desires to the long lasting, we fulfil those desires with the counterfeit of mimicking the dead ancients - such as creating a Roman blog, or modeling literature after myth, or erecting buildings and statues in ancient fashion... All so we might feel grounded on something more secure than our own insignificant power.
So the question that I would ask is this: is it at the point that our life seems foundationless, that we seek the immortal stone of antiquitous creation, the dust covered simplicity of years past? This is troubling. Do I only want a Roman blog because I am lacking the infinite and the eternal in my life? Let's just say no. That makes me feel better. But I still contend that the world is hungry for things that are not made of plastic. They want the stone; it lasts longer. We create much junk that will never be seen in a millennium. Our creations die. In the past people died; they didn't live too long. They projected themselves into their own creations - creations made of stone - so they wouldn't die. We don't create the immortal, so we seek to associate ourselves with things that are. So instead of hello kitty blogs, or pop culture blogs, sometimes something deep within reaches out to make an immortal Roman blog.
The answer delves deep into the essence of human nature and comes disconcertingly close to viewing the nucleus of consciousness. Put on your non mercury-tainted beaver pelt hat, and grab your walking cane, for this may be a long walk down the road of knowledge. It's a rough and dusty road, full of hills and potholes. Do not fret or complain; without bumps and scrapes, hills and mud bogs, taunters and mockery-makers along the side, the nature of the road would be changed along with its name. It would be a road that is unprofitable to travel upon. You simply would want nothing to do with it.
And now for it...
What does it mean to be Roman? Indeed we may say that there is little in our modern world that has not been touched by the bony, rotten flesh-covered fingers of antiquity. Yet it is not the everyday aspects of historical effect that we wish to implement into our lives, but rather the buried mammoth achievements of generations long dead that we desire to resurrect from the dust. It is the mighty architecture of Rome, the unmatched beauty and livelihood of Hellenistic sculpture that seem immune from deaths corruption, unstained by time; it is immortality shaped by hands long dead.
We, like the ancients, - and much do our dismay - are mortal. It is the aim of mankind, and ever has been, to achieve the infinite. The world is full of things that rot and wither away. We have, as a society, traded permanency and quality for the gratification of the instant. What is currently the best will be replaced with the better in but a short time. Quantity, not quality has become the aim of today, and it seems to me that we try to associate ourselves with as much physical matter as we possibly can, as if somehow that will make our importance to the universe a little greater, as if it will make us a little more immortal. All the while, our subconscious knows a little better, but the execution of the ideas it presents becomes a little flawed.
The inconvenience of death ends all property rights, but the influence we have can last generations. Therefore, property and matter (nothing more than quarks and electrons) are of far less import than the effect we have on the intelligent beings that follow us in life. Often, however, the quarks and electrons that generations leave behind become symbols of their influence. When we consider our measly life-span of seventy-five years, then all the old stuff seems like it has always been. We see in the ancient race of man, the infinite. They are immortal to us. Their story will always be told, yet the flaw is in the fact that they are dead. Any immortality that will literally come upon them will be the doing of that Higher Being who created us. So as the subconscious directs our desires to the long lasting, we fulfil those desires with the counterfeit of mimicking the dead ancients - such as creating a Roman blog, or modeling literature after myth, or erecting buildings and statues in ancient fashion... All so we might feel grounded on something more secure than our own insignificant power.
So the question that I would ask is this: is it at the point that our life seems foundationless, that we seek the immortal stone of antiquitous creation, the dust covered simplicity of years past? This is troubling. Do I only want a Roman blog because I am lacking the infinite and the eternal in my life? Let's just say no. That makes me feel better. But I still contend that the world is hungry for things that are not made of plastic. They want the stone; it lasts longer. We create much junk that will never be seen in a millennium. Our creations die. In the past people died; they didn't live too long. They projected themselves into their own creations - creations made of stone - so they wouldn't die. We don't create the immortal, so we seek to associate ourselves with things that are. So instead of hello kitty blogs, or pop culture blogs, sometimes something deep within reaches out to make an immortal Roman blog.
I already told you, but I really like this entry. By the way, I revamped the other blog that is open to public. I do forewarn you, it isn't very Roman :).
ReplyDeleteHere I am reading your blog more closely when I should be grading essays that are not about the Romans or the Greeks but about the beast within - profound, but not nearly as profound as this entry. Love the reference (and the link) to the mercury laden hats. You posed one of the quintessential questions about what mark are we supposed to leave on the world because most of us want do or be something bigger than our little lives. We'll have to talk about this more later - my mind is all over the place trying to frame my thoughts around the points you made - can't do it after all that nature:).
ReplyDelete