05/23/07
I've something in my eye.
I just bought Blink by Malcolm Gladwell yesterday. And today I pick up a Time magazine from 2005, and there Gladwell's interviewed, saying the darndest things:
I'd like to make a distinction between change and progress. . . . [T]echnology related to golf has improved and will continue to improve dramatically. Golf clubs are way better today than they were 10 years ago, and will be way better 10 years from now. Golf scores, however, have remained absolutely stable. . . .
The explosion of choices on the internet — the fact that I can get 100,000 songs on iTunes as opposed to 1,000 songs &mdis that progress.
He means the answer as No. I answer Yes.
Gladwell, at the second elipsis, had interuupted an interlocutor expostulating on choice, stating this: But most of this falls into the category of giving me more of things that I don't need.
The iTunes example was inapt, though, no?
When iTunes had only a few thousand songs, I couldn't get Tibor Serly's Rhapsody for Viola and Orhcestra. I could get a bunch of pop songs I didn't want. Now, with thousands upon thousands of downloadable musical works available to me, I have purchased music composed by Martinu, Stravinsky, Benda, Stamitz, Haydn, Griffes, Bolcom, Russo, Gershwin, Schuman (yes with one n
), and many others.
Did I need the music by these composers? Well, I needed them more than I need music I didn't buy, and wouldn't, when iTunes had less music to offer.
Is Gladwell's remark as elitist as it sounds? I don't know if he's attacking our wants in general, or some particular wants. Were we supposed to be content buying stuff we didn't like because there didn't used to be many options? Is he actually denying value pluralism?
I like diversity in society, because then I'm more likely to find people and things to my taste. When we're stuck with only the people at hand, and their limited talents, we're stuck with a lot of substandard people and stuff.
That's just simply the case.
Yes, there's change that's mere change. From my perspective, the move from woman-bashing rap to man-bashing rap is mere change. But change to a greater diversity of options that enables me to find music that bashes
neither women nor men — is just very good music, with or without commentary — is progress.
No winking. I'm serious.
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