In reading Paul Auster's Brooklyn Follies, I came upon a thought-provoking and, according to my students, difficult subject. Auster addresses the concept of a place called The Hotel Existence. It is, in theory, a place in one's imagination that one uses as an escape from life's everyday trials and tribulations. It is a dream-world, a "happy place," the existence of perfection that we find lacking in real life. Auster's original description of this place come from the imagination of a character who has lived a life of extreme highs and lows touching on little to no stable ground in between the two. His first Hotel Existence is one of a safe haven for orphans of war, a place of warmth, comfort, and love. As he grows, however, this vision is replaced by a darker, more seductive fantasy, yet nonetheless inundated with the clear and present desire to be loved.
I find that the imaginary existence of such a place of perfection brings to light many questions rarely addressed in everyday life; until being asked about them directly, we dare not dedicate any semblance of conscious thought to such inner thoughts. I asked my students a number of questions, to which I received mostly vague answers (one cannot expect personal answers from 18 year olds unless they are assured you will not read them), but their reactions to the exercise gave me the impression that they had never encountered such demands of personal reflection. When reading over the questions to myself in their silence (I had given them a few minutes to conjure up some ideas), I found it to be quite a personal challenge. The exercise demands serious contemplation, and in the end, one can learn a great deal about oneself by assessing what one considers ideal or perfect. The greatest question for me was relating to how the dream has developed over the years; where was the imaginary place I frequented as a child, an adolescent, and now and adult? What does that say about what I consider important? After some reflection, how is this surprising? What is not present that I would normally include, and if it is not present, what is the explanation?
Here is the exercise:
1) Why is it important to have a Hotel Existence? What is the importance of dreams?
2) Where is your Hotel Existence? location, qualities, ambiance, your age there, activities? Who else is there with you? What are your needs that are met in this place?
3) How has your Hotel Existence changed over the years? Reflect on what you admired in the past, your hobbies, your likes/dislikes, activities with friends. What were your needs? Where/what did you dream of visiting? Was it set in a fictional place in history (distant past or future)?
4) How and why does the Hotel Existence change/develop over time? What are external forces that drive our dreams, beliefs, needs? How does our perspective/our attitude towards life change over time? How does our concept of time and history change?
5) Why is it important to promote imagination and creativity in children's minds in early years of life? How would that be helpful later in life?
Are you up to the challenge? Where your Hotel Existence?
No comments:
Post a Comment