Almost Composed

Meditation and curiosity

The Hero’s Inner Journey

November 14, 2015

This morning I belatedly saw a connection between two ideas I’m interested in: the hero’s journey and attachment theory. The hero’s journey is a fundamental narrative that’s claimed to be at the root of all stories. It was proposed by the mythologist Joseph Campbell in books such as The Hero With a Thousand Faces. The theory goes that […]

categories: essays, journeys, reflections

Takagi Masakatsu, Akira Kosemura and the beauty

April 28, 2015

I love Takagi Masakatsu’s music. I don’t know much about him but, as far as I can tell, he travelled the world asking people to sing or play one melody, ‘The Light Song’. Hopeful piano riffs mix with childrens’ choirs, found sounds and scratchy processes. If I could sum up what I know of his […]

categories: essays, music, reflections

The meaning of Tolkien’s one ring

December 5, 2014

Possessiveness is a recurring theme in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. At the beginning, Bilbo is attached to his quiet way of life. His daily trials are no more strenuous than avoiding the Sackville-Bagginses and no more rewarding than a pint of ale and a hearty repast. He has a quotidian existence and […]

categories: essays, reflections

The Grand Budapest Hotel as allegory

March 21, 2014

I’d recommend watching Wes Anderson’s new film before reading on. I’ve only seen it once but I think The Grand Budapest Hotel is an allegory for the first half of the 20th Century and the fall of the British Empire. A hotel makes a good a metaphor for the world: people are checking in and out […]

categories: reflections
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