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Jest in Literature - This one's a Bomb !
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Gunjan Saraf
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May 20, 2002 06:43 PDT
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JEST in LITERATURE
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20th May 2002 # 008
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What arouses the indignation of the honest satirist is not, unless
the man is a prig, the fact that people in positions of power or influence
behave idiotically, or even that they behave wickedly. It is that they
conspire successfully to impose upon the public a picture of themselves
as so very sagacious, honest and well-intentioned.
~ Claud Cockburn
British Author, Journalist
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IN THIS DIGEST :
Opening Comments -
~ Gunjan
Opening Comments
~ The Doc
(The Doc says the same thing in his Concise style! ;-)
I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag
~ Country Joe and the Fish
Explanation to the Song/Poem and
Important Tools of the Poetic Trade
~ The Doc
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====> OPENING COMMENTS
Hi Friends,
The Doc has been itching for sometime to teach us
about satire. He found a novel method, as a Bombshell
of an idea hit him suddenly. Naturally, the result is an
issue that is slightly on the long side. However if you bear
with us, I think you're going to love it.
Best Wishes,
Gunjan
Comments or Questions :
mailto:li-@workinghumor.com?Subject=opener
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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====> OPENING COMMENTS
Serendipity.
Main Entry: serúenúdipúiúty
Pronunciation: -'di-p&-tE
Function: noun
Etymology: from its possession by the heroes of the
Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip
Date: 1754
: the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or
agreeable things not sought for
There is a paradox imbedded in this word, serendipity.
How does one use it to explain a fortunate moment that
occurs when one is looking for one but does not know
what that moment might hold? "A wing and a prayer?"
"Blind-assed luck?" How about "kismet?"
For some reason, I always thought kismet meant a
fortuitous happening; perhaps a serendipitous moment;
or, again, blind-assed luck. Not so, it seems. Kismet is
akin to FATE, not luck, as I soon discovered. I also had
previously presumed kismet to be a beneficial opportunity.
Again, I am incorrect as I discover when I take the time to
challenge these presumptions. FATE bears little resemblance
to an uplifting moment. It is less discrete than that.
Main Entry: fate
Pronunciation: 'fAt
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
1 : the principle or determining cause or will by which things
in general are believed to come to be as they are or events to
happen as they do : DESTINY
2 a : an inevitable and often adverse outcome, condition, or end
b : DISASTER; especially : DEATH
3 a : final outcome
b : the expected result of normal development
<prospective fate of embryonic cells>
4 FATE implies an inevitable and usually an adverse outcome
<the fate of the submarine is unknown>.
DESTINY implies something foreordained and often suggests a
great or noble course or end. LOT and PORTION imply a
distribution by fate or destiny, LOT suggesting blind chance,
PORTION implying the apportioning of good and evil.
DOOM distinctly implies a grim or calamitous fate.
Sometimes, I suppose, the tangled web is woven for us. I found
myself caught up in some sticky threads as I tried to find my way
through a topic I was attempting for this week's issue of
Jest in Literature. I was trying to construct a model of
obedience to the rules of sonnetry, and - being a person who
obeys rules unless requested to do so - I was languishing in my
own mountain of drivel.
With the sounds of the Saraf-monster champing at my heels as
we approach yet another deadline (it seems like barely a week
goes by and there's another one of those damned things), I was
battling my personal demons who get pissy at being pushed, are
terrified at being tardy, laugh at being late, work to perfect
punctuality, respect responsibility, and deride decorum. With
those creatures for comfort, I hardly ever need another person
to instigate a fight.
I opted for some lighthearted music to ease the condition; to calm
the beasts; to drown out my cat who has just been overwhelmed
by her first heat and sounds enough like a manifestation of hell to
make me wish I could go there for some relief.
Spinning the dial from one melody to another, I happen upon a
song that always made me smile. It's what I always presumed to be
a country rag song, light in spirit, comedic, and wrapped up in some
foot-tapping, country hootenany sounds that more people remember
than I would have thought. The song is from the late-sixties, early
seventies. It's called, "I Feel Like I'm Fixing to Die Rag," by Country
Joe and the Fish.
Just like the "serendipity" that perplexed me, and then the "kismet"
that daunted me, everything came together in a single moment. I
suddenly realized that just when I think I've got a grip on a little piece
of this world, that is precisely the time I better duck. Sometimes, I
swear, I'm going to leave this planet just when I find out that whatever
the last presumption is that I hold is exposed to me. For thirty years or
more I've been tapping my toes to that crazy, silly little song every time
I heard it, and then whammo! the blinders get jerked off. Well,
something or somebody does anyway. This time, just because I'm
trying to pacify that Gunjan-growler who is threatening to rend me to
pieces (well, that's absurd), I hear the song differently. Just because I
am momentarily panicked by the thought of having my rear-end ripped
by that saliva drooling hound from hell who's hounding me (he's really
a pacifist who probably would gently pry away the errant hoof of an
elephant that accidentally stepped on him), I've got to redefine my
assumptions, lose my own philosophical footing, admit betrayal
by my obviously erroneous moments of lucidity, and hunker down
to reassess this little musical ditty. I shall never again think that I
truly recall the smell of napalm in the morning. I must remember that
I am smelling illusions and delusions, and not only are things not what
they seem, but nothing seems to be what it might have been when I
thought I knew what it was.
(I have asked Gunjan to just include a sound file with the newsletter
in karaoke fashion with the lyrics flashing underneath a video of a
live rendition of the band doing the tune at some mega-concert. If
you do not receive it that way, don't blame me.)
{If I could do all that Doc, would I be sitting and writing funny
stuff?~ Gunjan}
I hope many, most, all of you recall this song. I would never
before have thought of it in the same breath as poetry, but I
worked myself into a surprise with this one:
Comments or Questions :
mailto:li-@workinghumor.com?Subject=Opener
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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====> I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag
Yeah, come on all of you, big strong men,
Uncle Sam needs your help again.
He's got himself in a terrible jam
Way down yonder in Vietnam
So put down your books and pick up a gun,
We're gonna have a whole lotta fun.
And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.
Well, come on generals, let's move fast;
Your big chance has come at last.
Gotta go out and get those reds -
The only good commie is the one who's dead
And you know that peace can only be won
When we've blown 'em all to kingdom come.
And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.
Huh!
Well, come on Wall Street, don't move slow,
Why man, this is war au-go-go.
There's plenty good money to be made
By supplying the Army with the tools of the trade,
Just hope and pray that if they drop the bomb,
They drop it on the Viet Cong.
And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam.
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.
Well, come on mothers throughout the land,
Pack your boys off to Vietnam.
Come on fathers, don't hesitate,
Send 'em off before it's too late.
Be the first one on your block
To have your boy come home in a box.
And it's one, two, three
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam.
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.
(by Country Joe and the Fish)
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Cartoon Break
Concern
http://jokeworm.com/AToons/Ad181.shtml
Scratch
http://jokeworm.com/AToons/Ad186.shtml
Cheerleaders
http://jokeworm.com/AToons/Ad187.shtml
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====> Explanation to the Song/Poem and
Important Tools of the Poetic Trade
There's so much to like about this song/poem. But, if you like it
too much, you'll miss the point of the satire.
SATIRE: holding something up for ridicule in order to change it.
Satire is more than just finding something to laugh at. It is laughing
at something, but it has the purpose of trying to change that thing,
also. That purpose is usually a serious one, such as the one featured
here: the Viet Nam War.
IRONY is in heavy use as well. (Verbal Irony: the use of words to
express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal
meaning.)
What are some of the clues that this is a satirical work? Relax, and
I'll walk through a few of them for you.
In an order of some type, the clues that this song is a SATIRE move
from the obvious to the more obscure. While not exhaustive, some
of the clues are these:
1. The song is done to a light-hearted, up-beat tune which is a
common tune used for a cheer.
2. In the first verse, the Viet Nam War is called a "terrible jam"
minimizing its true nature and the discord that it initiated in the
United States between the generation that was in political power
and the one that questioned the motives of those in power. This
War represented the first time in the world's history that the youth
of a nation stopped a war begun by the established political powers.
The magnitude of the divisiveness culminated at Kent State in Ohio
when the National Guard troops actually opened fire on the nation's
own citizens - the nation's own children - killing four and wounding
many others. In a shameful and sudden awakening, those people in
charge of the country at that time showed a willful and reckless
disregard for the constitutional rights of those people who lived here.
When put to the test of democracy, including the right to protest the
policies that governed us, we failed the test miserably. From this point
forward, the withdrawal from Viet Nam became an attempt to save
whatever "face" we had left.
While the conflicts may be hard for youngsters today
to understand, the "sixties" were not all "free love" and "hippies."
It was a scary time in this country where speaking out about how
you felt could obviously get you killed. It was a scary time to be a
bearded, long-haired youth, because your appearance alone could
cost you your freedom and your life. Far from being a "jam," those
were very serious times that gnawed away at the fabric that covered
the truth of who we were and who we were to become. The results
of some of that struggle have been passed down to us, today,
and the manner and extent of whatever freedoms we enjoy are
what little remains from that once-momentous and tumultuous time.
Calling the Vietnam War a "jam" uses a poetic device called
"UNDERSTATEMENT." Understatement, or making less of
something than it is in reality, is a common tool of satire.
3. VERBAL IRONY is used to close out the first verse with the
statement that "We're gonna have a whole lotta fun." In reality, again,
war is not usually represented as being fun.
4. The second verse is reminiscent of number 2, above. The "boys"
who represent the thinkers of the young generation (characterized with
"Put down your books....") are shown as having an attitude of "don't
give a damn" about the reasons for the War when, in fact, the opposite
was true. This is DRAMATIC IRONY which means what is occurring
is different than what one might expect.
5. The second half of verse two does the same thing as the first half: it
minimizes the concern of those young men who are being drafted and
makes them appear the opposite of what they were by saying there is
no time to wonder why.
6. The ending of the second verse is high satire. In keeping with the
"cheer" nature of the song, we have the cheer, "Whoopee!" In contrast
to the frivolous tone of that cheer is the VERBAL IRONY that follows
with the HYPERBOLE, "we're all gonna die."
7. In the third verse, the song takes direct aim at the Military/Industrial
Complex. The song uses some of the sayings that were common in the
sixties and uses them in such a way as to turn their meanings back on
themselves. First, the "generals" are taunted to take advantage of their
big chance (killing people gets you promoted). The saying that is the
reference is "The only good Commie is a Dead Commie." Also,
apparently being made fun of, is the saying popular at the time,
"Better Dead than Red."
8. At the end of the third verse, a concept which governed the way
we lived for fifty years, is taken to task by the line, "peace can only
be won When we've blown 'em all to kingdom come." During the
period of time from the end of World War II in 1945, until just a few
years ago, the "PEACE" under which we existed was held in place by
a policy known as MAD. This policy was the way in which the two
major world powers kept each other from assuming control of the planet
by attacking each other. The two major powers were, of course, the
USA and the USSR. The "enemy" was kept faceless by the imposition
of an "Iron Curtain." This would be the curtain that fell recently when the
USSR suddenly ceased to exist. The policy that kept World War III
from happening during these last fifty years is indicated by the acronym
M.A.D. or Mutually Assured Destruction. The peaceful times we
celebrate were held in place by a belief that if either country attacked
the other, each had a nuclear arsenal capable of destroying the other.
Each country had policies and plans to insure that exactly that would
happen in the case of a pre-emptive attack by the other.
The bliss of peace was somewhat undermined by the knowledge that
assured destruction (aka: suicide) was the foundation on which it rode.
At work in this verse also is the OXYMORON that peace is the result
of blowing someone to kingdom come, an idea quite contrary to the
notion of peace.
9. The fourth verse is a refrain of the second verse.
10. Having lampooned the Military, the song now takes on the
Industrial side of the Complex. This is indicated by the
PERSONIFICATION of "Wall Street" as being human. In this
verse, the song makes light of the charges at the time that the
Viet Nam War was nothing more than a ploy by the rich to continue
their wealth. The USA had a war-based economy which meant that
if we were at war, the economy was good. Peaceful times were not
so good for such an economy. Implicit at the end of the verse is the
characterization of Wall Street's attitude as not caring where we
drop the bomb as long as it's dropped somewhere far away from
ourselves.
11. Note the line "au go go." This is a reference to a nightclub
popular in the Sixties called the "Whiskey Au Go Go" which was a
place where women in mini-skirts danced on elevated stages. Using
the line "this is war au go go" makes it seem, again, that this war is just
one big party, and not a thing to be taken seriously. This is
VERBAL IRONY for the fact that war is not a party, but a place
where people die.
12. The fifth verse is a refrain of the second and fourth verses.
13. For a seemingly light-hearted and humorous song, the sixth verse
is a powerful one that takes the ultimate risk of offending. In this verse,
the parents of the young men who are being sent off to this little "jam" in
Viet Nam are characterized in the worst possible fashion. The show of
patriotism which masks the truth of war is rent asunder. The reality of
war is that people die. Further, challenge is made that one of the
people who might die might be your son. Mother and Father are here
represented as people who willfully send their sons off to war so they
might have the reward of having their son die there. This attitude is
characterized as a contest in which the Mother and Father might reap
the rewards of being the first family in the neighborhood to achieve this
claim to fame: a dead son sent home in a coffin ("Be the first on one your
block To have your boy come home in a box.")
14. The seventh verse is a refrain of the others, and it works by way
of REPETITION to drive home the fact that war is anything but frivolous
and that it is being fought for questionable motives.
Because repetition keeps our focus on the issue at hand, it is a
powerful device to use in poetry, and one is ill-advised to ignore it.
15. The "SPEAKER" in this song/poem is probably one of the
young men who might be sent to fight in the Viet Nam War. His
sympathies are obvious, as is his angst.
16. With its attempt to change the way the war is viewed, the song
obviously has a purpose in mind. That purpose is to change the way
those who support the war view it. For this reason, the song can be
classified as SATIRE and the devices used in the service of that satire
are VARIOUS FORMS OF IRONY, HYPERBOLE,
UNDERSTATEMENT, PERSONIFICATION, REPETITION,
TONE (ATTITUDE), OXYMORON, and probably some others
that I missed.
Learning how to read poetry can take a spicy little tune and indicate
how it is a powerful indictment set in a certain period of time that says
more than it seems to say. This is the nature and intent of poetry, and
learning how to read it takes some effort that is well worth the
investment.
I learned a lesson tonight, a critical one for me. As most lessons
seem to go, this one is also humbling. I have been reminded that when
I presume to know something or understand something, and when that
presumption prevents me from thinking further about that thing, then
I am probably underestimating that thing. I am distressed whenever I
find myself doing this, and it is even more important that I remember
this is all too true when I make any of these presumptions about
other people.
There is an old saying that I sometimes hear (and used to use)
when one tries to say "You're Welcome" to someone else's
"Thank You." The saying is, "It was the least I could do."
If there is a god who can grant insight, ability to discriminate,
wisdom, and serenity, then I hope there is also one who will smack
me upside my head whenever I presume to know about something or
somebody if that means I also stop trying to know more about it or
them. And I hope I can learn to not stop when I have done the "least
I could do." There should be no thanks for that.
Kismet.
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Gunjan
gun-@workinghumor.com
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