Sunday, February 6, 2011
Response to Pleasure and Community Service Aim
The aim that was most prevalent was the Hindu aim of pleasure. This was evidently more prominent because today's culture is so obsessed with sex,drugs and alcohol which all fall under the pleasure aim. It is much easier to write a song about something that satisfies you then writing about helping others. Artists want to appeal to their audience and their audience wants to hear about sex. Everywhere you look in magazines, TV, billboards the media paints this picture of sexuality and that being associated with glitz and glamour. As a society we want to be fantasized by that idea so that's why we would rather listen to songs about promiscuity that then ones about giving to others. What I was surprised to find while searching for songs for the pleasure aim just how explicit the lyrics were to some of the songs. Although swear words our bleeped out on the radio, when you really listen to the lyrics to some songs they are very descriptive in describing sex. It is truly surprising to see what is socially acceptable now compared to the songs that used to be on the radio. It's amazing what artists get away with when talking about sex in their songs and they gain such popularity. It was very hard to find songs related to community service which was very disappointing because artists have such influence on society and with more songs about giving back and helping others it could really inspire people to do the same. The difference between the pleasure aim and what is discussed in popular music is that Hindu belief states that pleasure should always be done within the realm of dharma. It is not to be done in excess and self pleasure should be done in a virtuous matter. Another big difference is that what is virtuous depends on the person's cast system. Every individual in a society is expected to achieve the four aims in Hinduism and seek fulfillment in his or her life before departing from here. That is very different then what is portrayed in popular music because it seems to focus on one aim more than another without any balance.
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I agree completely with what you had said about how music has changed so much and that artists really could have an influence. I also had a great deal of trouble finding songs about community service, and even with pleasure, it was so hard to find songs about pleasure that did not have anything to do with sex. Like you said, songs about pleasure are so explicit when describing sex, and bleeping out alone does not really do much since most people at some point have heard unedited versions. If artists could take the energy that they put into writing 'pleasure' songs into writing more songs pertaining to community service, one can only imagine the affects it could have on the population. I also chose Heal the World as one of my community service songs, and the song is fairly old. I feel like now, it unlikely to find someone write a song of such nature in this generation!
ReplyDeleteI also agree with your response to the two aims. In today's society, sex sells and artists know this which is why the majority of music being played on the radio pertains to pleasure, especially pleasure pertaining to sex. I wish that there were more artists that would sing lyrics that inspired people to go out and make a difference instead of simply being interested in making money off of music that will not benefit the people who are in need.
ReplyDeleteI agree that as a society we certainly obsess about sex,drugs and money. The media is the biggest culprit in help spreading this obsession. However, I don't think that finding pleasure songs without sex,drugs,or money is that hard. In my opinion pleasure is whatever makes one happy and there are songs lots of songs about the simplicity of life.
ReplyDeleteRachel,
ReplyDeleteI was very intrigued by the point you mentioned regarding how different things are acceptable today in society than they were in the past. Things that were once considered too vulgar to be played in common songs are now easily expressed. Furthermore, many themes, such as sexuality, are expressed very craftily, and many times so subtly that it is very difficult to catch them at first. When I read the lyrics to many songs I was going to post related to pleasure, I was also surprised as to how vulgar many of the themes truly were.
I also agree whole heartedly with you that it is much harder to find songs related to community service than they are to pleasure. The more I realize it the more I question why this is so, and what drives human beings into this dichotomy.
I really liked how you intertwined the idea of pleasure's limits and how they do not ultimately fulfill one's Dharma. Since pleasure is many times a step in the process of ultimate Moksha, or liberation, I wonder how long it takes people and wonder if there is perhaps any way to speed up the process to attain liberation in this life-time.
-Kunal Kapoor
I like your idea that "Every individual in a society is expected to achieve the four aims in Hinduism and seek fulfillment in his or her life."
ReplyDeleteI also completely agree that the difference in what is portrayed in our popular music is unbalanced. I really liked that you used that term because it really drives home the idea of the fact that a person needs to have balance rather than saying the focus on pleasure could be destructive. You put a positive spin on something that is easy to be critical and dismissive about.