Summary

Summary

Following the analysis of the previous 11 readings this final text should serve as a summary, linking any parallels, recurring themes or notions between them.

The main themes of the texts have included anti-capitalism, individualism, and the embracement of free thinking and innovation in society. A number of the texts have focused on the outsider’s point of view towards (what they believe) to be a corrupt society. With characters often going against the grain of the socially accepted conventions of modern day living (within the last 100 years in Europe and America). Examples of this can be shown in Allen Ginsberg’s “Howl” or Gary Cooper’s portrayal of Architect Howard Roark in the Fountainhead.

The texts have included readings which I personally might not have read otherwise, however I have (surprisingly to myself) enjoyed the majority of them. Some of the topics explored have certainly made me think about aspects within our society differently, or in some cases, at least made me question these ideas (for example Capitalism, I hadn’t considered there to be an alternative option to this system, or the possibility of a post-capitalist society).

Many of the texts looked at different social classes within our society, none more so than Evelyn Waugh’s novel “Decline and fall”. This witty portrayal of the upper class of society was a much enjoyable read, however the constant way in which the upper-class were able to escape the repercussions of their actions (often due to their social status) was something I found frustratingly applicable to our society today, despite the original publishing of the book in 1928, almost a century ago.

Henri Lefebvre’s book “The Production of Space” explored the notion of categorization between either a “Work” or a “Product”, a very interesting discussion. A subject very applicable to the Model T or “Tin Lizzie” as Henry Ford’s first widely affordable automobile (as discussed in John Dos Passos’s “U.S.A”). By all means I believe people today would consider one of these early automobile models a “work of art” in its preserved state. However, the very process of its assembly line manufacture, with its cheap interchangeable/ easily replaceable parts would no doubt undeniably categorize this as a product at the time of its conception.

Ideas between texts would often interlink with one another to further demonstrate such ideas. The readings as a series of texts have raised some thought provoking discussions on aspects of our society. In a year including Brexit, Trump and the end of Globalism, the selection of readings have indeed felt quite applicable to our current political situation, however ending the series with Howard Roark’s eventual triumph against the system, by sticking to his morals brings an element of hope to an otherwise gloomy outlook.