Letter to Charles Bukowski- for 10-28-11

Dear Mr. Bukowski,

Your poem Dinosauria We was very interesting and probably has some truth in it as well. The poem already shows some of the things that have occurred throughout history, especially recently. When you talk about hospitals being so expensive people would rather die than pay for it is becoming true for many people today, especially with the health care costs rising nearly 10% in one year. People are also murdering, emasculating, raping, in a few places eating, and yelling at each other. Political boundaries also shifted with this year's revolutions in the northern Africa region. People are also committing larger scale genocides as time goes by, with Darfur and the Holocaust as obvious examples. Millions of Americans are also in jail, and they are swelling as the days go on. Fools are also elevated by the masses, sometimes merely for looks (Hollywood, anyone?) Humans are born into materialistic, competing, self absorbed societies who trample each other for an elusive thing, be it money, fame, or power. 

You also seem to have a strong view on humans: that they are driven by a bad nature. The Chinese philosopher Sunzi would agree with you, while Mencius (another Chinese Philosopher) would propose "humans are good." I think you are partially right. While humans do possess judgment, survivalist instincts like those witnessed in the road turn them into self important cannibals who may even kill and consume their friends or family (although there are some like the boy in The Road who seem to be an exception). The only thing you failed to mention is that humans also have a capacity to love, to take care of, to create, and to form lasting relationships. 

I think your poem added some bits to my cave reality, and I am grateful to have read it.

From, Danni O.

Father and Son (for 10-20-11)

            In the award-winning post apocalyptic novel The Road, Cormac McCarthy depicts an extremely strong bond between a father and his son. Their relationship is marred by an unspoken of tragic event which annihilated the majority of America's (and perhaps other parts of the world as well) population. Their healthy relationship now has to reckon with bandits, lack of provisions, no real home, and the compromising of principles. Therefore, it is understandable that the circumstances of the times altered many previous definitions, resulting in a skewed relationship based on survival. The boy witnesses events (such as the murder of a man), something that can only be offered in a society bent on survival.

         The relationship between the two is sublime. The father even attempts to show his son glimpses of the previous world he had never seen, such as when he led his boy to the waterfall, or gave him Coca-Cola. The two companions talk to each other freely, both would die for each other, and the father will stop at nothing for his son's safety--even killing a man who attempted to murder the boy. The only tension between the two concern aiding people, where the father leaves them alone for their family to survive, whereas the son prefers to help them, perhaps even at the expense of his family's lives. The father and son juxtapose each other in another way--the father is suspicious of people in general, while his son is trusting nearly to the point of naivety. It is also the boy who constantly call the father's ethics into question, like a policeman. 

          The strong relationship between parent and child is very common. It is also a special bond that can be rarely duplicated; when people are united by blood and intent, sob and chuckle together, exchange information, share memories, and bask in each others presence. It is a special bond that should be cherished in all circumstances.