I work at the Harold B. Lee Library. I mostly sit at a desk and wait for people to ask me questions. Inquiries range from things that actually have to do with the library to any random topic imaginable. On many occasions, like tonight, students are not in need of assistance so I find myself with a lot of spare time on my hands.
The librarians have caught on. They give us student workers tedious "projects" as they call them to keep us occupied. I got mine several weeks ago. Back the era of the early saints of the LDS church a publication began known as the Relief Society Bulletin (or magazine) a precursor to the Church's modern publications such as the Ensign. The entire collection has been put on an online database which enables people to search specific articles, advertisements, and recpies (of course it has recipes, it's from the Relief Society). My job, is to go through each article, each advertisement, each editorial, and so on to make sure they were entered into the database correctly.
Naturally, as I do this, my eye catches bits and pieces of the text. Today, that happened and unlike other days, a chain of thought was put into effect. Here is the excerpt: "An understanding of art will aid in teaching young people how vulgar and inartistic are rag-time and rag dancing." My initial reaction to such a thought was to giggle. How could anyone think that rag-time is inappropriate? However, as I thought a little longer this became a growing concern. If rag-time was considered vulgar in 1914 and now is not, what from our day that now is offensive will become something to be mocked at in later years because the moral standards of society are dropping or maybe disappearing? Think of something from contemporary society that you find repulsive, crude, and tasteless and imagine your children finding their favorite past-times as engaging in such activities. Where is our world headed?
Maybe that is why Sister Dalton of the General Young Women's Presidency is calling for a "Return to Virtue." We all know that our world is only going to get more wicked, but we don't have to be a part of it.
Anyway, crazy what you can learn from so few words.
5 comments:
That's such a good thought. I had a moment like that a while ago because I heard the song "Sex and Candy" on the radio and realized I didn't think much of it. But like 10 years ago when it came out, I thought that was the worst song I'd ever heard. My age difference has something to do with it as well, but you know. I thought about it the other day at the store too, I saw something about the Naked Brothers Band, which is some Nickelodeon, kids thing, and I was like, "What kind of world do we live in where the word 'naked' as no big deal? For a kids thing?" It's crazy. One more thing: Once when I was like 12, I told my mom that if I had grown up in the 60s I would have been one of those girls crying over the Beatles and chasing them at the airport and stuff, and she was like, "Oh, you wouldn't have been allowed to listen to the Beatles. It was kind of edgy stuff." That floored me. I want to hold your hand? Twist and shout? Anyway, crazy. Sorry this was so long and obnoxious.
Along with the changes for the bad, there are some things that have changed in this aspect for the good. We are more open as a society which is good, but also we can be a little too open, which isn't so good. It's pretty interesting. I fear for my kids though. I don't want the world to corrupt them.
It's true! Things have changed... both for good and bad! And it is scary to think of the kind of world our kids will have to grow up in.
I think that about movies all the time too. Because the other day (well I guess around Halloween or something) someone was saying something about the old Psycho, and how it was rated R and I was like "yeah, but I have seen it and it is like a LOW PG-13 movie at most these days." And I would watch it without thinking twice but back then, it was like B-A-D you know? Crazy. It kind of scares me. I do like the Elaine Dalton comment by the way.
PS Not to be a paparazzi (sp? Erin) but I saw her the other day as I was living the University of Hospital. She wasn't a patient and I have no idea where she was going so I can tell you that I saw her. AND I definitely said, "hi." And she said, "hi" back. I know she doesn't know me, but it felt weird to just pass her and not acknowledge her when I definitely know who she is.
Eh, I don't know if that's entirely fair. Social values may change, but eternal ones do not. Ragtime was never against any law of God, it was just what rag represented at the time, which was something new, fast, and foreign. Not every generation gets looser and wilder and crazier - the twenties and the seventies were pretty wacky times, and there were returns to conservatism afterward. I don't think we can compare our kids' issues to our own generation's. It's going to be an entirely different world, and they'll deal with it because that's all they know.
Hi I'm Summer and I comment on really old blog posts.
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