From: Megan Hammond (mhammond@andrew.cmu.edu)
Date: Sun Mar 20 2005 - 18:04:16 GMT
The current discussion is exploring the quality of music and its subsequent
effect on society’s behavior. What began as in inquiry into the origins of
morals has turned into a free-for-all on personal preferences of music.
The argument of the degeneracy within music in finding where morals
originate has limits because the deaf have morals too.
Pirsig’s view of the hippies was as an extremist reaction to the extremism
of the Victorians. Pirsig argues that the downfall of the hippies was that
they viewed biological quality and Dynamic Quality as the same, which led
to the practice of degeneracy for degeneracy’s sake. Platt reiterated this
point in his post quoting Pirsig “But when the intellectuals in control of
society take biology’s side against society then society is caught in a
cross fire from which it has no protection.” The intellectuals must uphold
society and let society solve biological problems. Intellectuals can’t
eradicate entire music genres because they’re viewed as inducing degenerate
sexual behavior because biological functions are governed by society’s
rules, not the intellectual’s. Each generation invents their own
expression, for better or for worse (it’s personal preference), in response
to society’s rules. Currently, society’s rules are ambiguous and the
results from such a society is still forthcoming.
In the freedom of today’s society “What looks like hell always turns out to
be something else?It’s the freedom to be awful that gives it the freedom to
be so good.” (Lila p 257). In allowing the absolute best also comes the
absolute worst of everything from songs to books.
Pirsig argues for a society consisting of both static patterns and Dynamic
Quality but that the balance is almost impossible to define since “Radical
idealists and degenerate hooligans sometimes strongly resemble each
other?how do you tell the saviors from the degenerates? Particularly when
they look alike, talk alike, and break the rules alike? Freedoms that save
the saviors also save the degenerates and allow them to tear the whole
society apart. But restrictions that stop the degenerates also stop the
creative Dynamic forces of evolution.” (Lila p 256-257).
Society has been trying to find the balance throughout history. Lawmakers
draw upon their own morals in abolishing or establishing a new rule. The
original question; “Where do morals originate within each individual?” Two
ten year olds can react completely differently to the same sex inducing MTV
music video. Why? Is it nature v nurture (biology v society)? Can we
define the mechanisms by which a society grows and does not degenerate?
Perhaps we must start with the individual.
MJ
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