"Ohhhhh.... Yea... Well, we don't have cable..."
If I had been brilliant enough to come up with the blog Stuff White People Like, I think something I would have tried to wittily capture in an entry is the tendency of white twentysomethings to emphasize how they own a TV but "definitely don't have cable..." Whenever spoken, this proclamation is stated with a mix of airy haughtiness and irresolution.
I don't know why this bothers me so much -- maybe just because I get annoyed by people who state things with feigned ambivalence, even though the decree reeks of "this-is-something-I'm-totally-rocking-as-a-chip-on-my-shoulder." More likely, it's that in theory I never wanted to have cable TV once I got-grown, but now that I do I feel self-conscious and wish I was among the ranks of my seemingly higher, thriftier and more erudite cohorts.
However, I've gotten around to thinking a bit more about television, and more broadly, experiencing art in general. Lately, I've felt compelled to defend the value of "lower art forms" (TV, easy reads like The Hunger Games, movies, etc) and their role/inherent value in our lives.
I've been thinking on this more after watching an episode from Michael Sandel's Justice Course. In one episode he discusses John Stuart Mill's utilitarianism and how he orders "pleasures" as higher or lower. Mill argues that intellectual and moral pleasures are superior to lower, physical forms of pleasure, stating that individuals who have experienced both tend to prefer the higher forms over the lower ones.
Admittedly, I need to read more of Mill's stuff to gain a thorough understanding of his claim. Still, my cursory introduction to his content leaves me feeling skeptical. While I still feel an inner compulsion to defend the worth of watching an hour of Battlestar Galactica when I could have alternatively spent that hour reading Infinite Jest, I'm becoming more and more convinced in the deep worth of striking a balance of consuming both "higher" classics and more widely-consumed "everyday" things. Most importantly, my desire is to focus on looking for deeper value and application from all that I do...in all spheres of life.
I feel like there’s more to be said on this, but for now, I’ll leave you with a {super-riveting} conversation that helped me think through this a bit more...
Initial mind-brewings of this stream of thought:
HH: i hated arrested development the first time i saw it b/c i couldn't stand the characters
HH: i had to really let go in order to enjoy it
HH: (that's right, i had to grow a little in order to enjoy a tv show - i said it)
EM: DUDE
HH: or ungrow a little?
EM: I was just thinking about that
EM: on how, like, things like TV shows and certain music
EM: gets dogged way too much
EM: like, I'm not saying that they're the greatest things since Shakespeare (<--sp?)
EM: but I get really annoyed at people who belittle when I make points or references to shows - especially when they're pertinent.
EM: like, once I referenced the HIMYM point about 'graduation goggles'
HH: what?! i don't know that reference!
EM: oh!
EM: there was a reference to it last season
EM: Robin brought it up, before Ted broke up with that girl who was protesting his building or whatever
EM: but she pointed out how riiiight before you quit something
EM: you get this feeling or perception that everything was so great
EM: like, how you feel at high school graduation
EM: so I brought this up in small group because someone was having a hard time making the final decision about leaving their job and people teased, but it actually ended up being really relevant to a few people in group
EM: I just feel like people tease about like 'lower art forms,' which I guess, I mean it's not classic literature. But I think sometime there's almost something more to be said for looking for the meaning in the smaller things - like taking time to digest and think about all things you watch on TV or listen to in music, as opposed to just checking out every time you sit in front of a tv
EM: end rant!
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