Manifesto
Dear Jerks of the world:
I just woke up from a horrible dream. I don't usually have these kinds of dreams, and I even seldomer (?) believe in them, but this has prompted me to put you all in your place, because someone has to, damn it!
Whenever you ask a young person what they are going to do when they "grow up" and they answer that they want to be a writer, or an actor, or a dancer, or a musician, or a director, or a poet the correct response is NOT "Oh... there's not much money in that, is there?" However, if you wanted to add insult to injury, you might add a tone of complete disgust to your voice. Dear god, these people are talking about their LIVES here, and too many discouraging words can completely destroy a person's confidence in themselves. And guess what! Chances are that if a person has chosen a career in the arts, they are not in it for the money. It's not as if someone said to you "Oh... there's not much emotional satisfaction is accounting, is there?" Because I could pick on you too if I wasn't the polite young man that I am. Hmmm, could there possibly be a reason I keep telling everyone that I don't know what I want to do with my life, except in the cold impersonal regions of the Inter Net? You know, it's not so hard to fake it and pretend that maybe money and security aren't as important to some people as they are to you. So fuck off and get out of my subconscious, or I swear to god ON HIGH I'll write a book about you assholes.
Sincerely,
A future writer
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A Next-Morning Addendum
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Dear Future Teachers,
Do you really want to be a teacher? Do you like kids? Because if the answer to either of these questions is "no" then maybe, just maybe teaching is not for you. I've heard too many people complaining out loud about how they don't want to be a teacher yet continually taking active steps in that direction. You don't even like kids, but you're choosing a profession in which you'll be around them (more than just around them) for at least six hours a day? For four solid years we read books about people who broke out of their social molds to a better life (or those who were unable to and the resulting downfall and depression), but it seems like these cannot be taken at more than face value. These are more than just stories. They are valuable life lessons. Despite what everyone "out there" says, becoming an English teacher is not the only option for an English major.
Sincerely,
Not a future English teacher.
posted by Phinneas Q Jacksmith @ 1:03 a.m.
5 comments
5 Comments:
damn. i'm speechless. well said.
Well said, Hamlet.
I don't think anyone whose heart is truly set on either studying/promoting/advancing the arts or creating art of their own is in it for the money. They know what kind of bleak financial future they may be up against and go at it anyway. How disheartening to be lectured about it in tones of hushed disappointment.
I personally wouldn't mind being a professor at all, but a high school or elementary teacher...I just don't know how good I'd be. I went into English because I have a passion for reading, writing, and discussing both, not so I could get a piece of paper that says I'm certified to mark grammar worksheets and babysit people who don't want to learn from me.
It's scary stuff to think that the arts are grouped with "entertainment" so often, when some of the most fulfilling parts of my life have been found in them, and when I know I'd be completely lost if I was without music, books, films, a good poem, and/or a working pen. It's not entertainment or a wishy washy career choice if it's something you can't live without.
Kudos for your valiant stand!
"Oh... there's not much emotional satisfaction is accounting, is there?"
thank you. You just made my day.
I assure you that any older individual who has ever had the extraordinary opportunity to experience the rise of emerging young talent never, ever, questions the wisdom of a true artist’s pursuit. Rather they encourage, and if able, provide guidance.
More often than not the money is not the major issue in the early stages of a career; it becomes so after obtaining some level of notoriety. And more often than not, there is some sense of lost creative freedom in financial success. That success creates a financial stake in the game to lose: a nice home, paid professional advisors and other entrapments of status.
Contrary to your dream soliloquy, being young might be the best part of being talented. The playing field is still wide open. To be sure, it is not easy, but well-run firms -particularly in this day and age - are keenly aware of the need for finding and cultivating the young artist without restricting his or her creativity.
I agree about the book threat. Anybody who pisses on your chosen career should be ripped in a future manuscript, with home phone number and email address provided. Nicely written piece Andrew.
Russell
p.s. Your friend, Angelo's, comments are terrific. One small editorial note though: "entertainment" is not always about selling dishwashers to mobile home dwellers. Au contraire, the best entertainment showcases the artist. Granted the bulk of entertainment is a circus wasteland, but I don’t spend my weekends at the garbage dump. Neither do the vast majority of my friends.
R
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