n o i t i d lo e @) !# #yo g a m g a w #s o l o y # KEEP CALM e #beig AND #po TURN YOUR SWAG ON nie s #YOLOPHON] Index. #Yolophon [FEATURED] Current Events Howto Swag Tequila Suicide Men have it hard, too GoT Exhibition A Lesson in Secession PSY #SWAGula 9/11’s Tabooed Idol #Swag Collage Dublin Life-writing 2 4 5 6 7 8 10 12 13 14 15 20 22 [REVIEWS] Paramore Haal het slechtste uit jezelf Minor Bioshock Infinite Fall Out Boy My Little Pony 24 25 26 28 29 [EXTRA] Poetry Pages Horoscope 30 31 24 12 8 20 [EDITORS] Marnix de Gier [EIC] Berry Giezen [Co-EIC] Michelle Everard [Design] Bianca van der Mark [Editor] Frank van Drunen [Editor] Tim Renes [Design] [CONTRIBUTORS] Irene Theunissen Iris Schouten Patrick Hobbelen [GUESTS] Anouska Kersten J. R. Veenstra Barbara Dauwerse Dries de Groot László Munteán The Board. The Editors. Everybody be cool, this is a robbery! ‘Sup bros? As we posted in our very first GAG_Mag entry, we – the board – are holding the association hostage with the threat of running it into the ground if we do not get our 40% corruption tax. We are close to reaching that percentage, and we would like to present our true faces in typical bad guy fashion to our captives. So yeah... we, the editors, have been duped into thinking a #SWAG_Mag was a good idea, and then convinced everyone else. By now, it is too late to go back, so we’re just going to go ahead with it, because #YOLO. If you want to know how this fantastic idea came to be, well... a certain someone (featured in this mag with a fur coat) made the suggestion during a committee meeting, and then things suddenly became very real. Although #SWAG-related things are also very fake, of course. That could makes for a very interesting discussion, which, for #SWAG reasons, we left out, because serious discussion is for non-tanned losers. Anyway, there is still some stuff in here that is serious and interesting for all you four-eyed dweebs out there. But if you want to be cool, definitely skip those parts. Franny Fierce: the silent hard case of the group. Her menacing stride and massive guns cause a fearful silence among all the personnel when we storm the bank. She has a taste for gold and Fort Knox is her piggy bank. Heavy lock? She has a bigger bomb. EL-J: the one who screams “THIS IS A STICK-UP!” and is the first to unleash a round of bullets into the air upon stepping onto the premises. She means business. She’s clever, has a blueprint of the building, and ultimately the one with the plan that makes it look like we failed at the robbery, but actually succeed. Chuckles: the clown of the bunch. While the other two are working on cracking the vault, he’s rounding up all the hostages and hitting on the good looking ones. Now that we are rich we shall disappear into the night and no one will know what hit them or where to start investigating. You’ll never discover our true identities! HA! Your board, Francis (Franny Fierce), Els (EL-J), Zuva (Chuckles) Have a dope-ass time, yo! Ahem. On behalf of the committee, Godberry, King of the Juice The Manrix, the Grizzly King FEATURED] CURRENT EVENTS Razor Leave This issue’s theme is #$w@g – but where does this term come from? The word ‘‘swagger’’ has been around for centuries. Its etymology is not entirely certain, but it most probably came from Old Norse, when it meant ‘‘swaying manner’’ and did not actually have to do anything with today’s definition (although the #$w@g walk definitely has a sway to it). Gradually, though, it found its way into the English language, then reached the United States and started to live a life of its own. 30 April 2013: After 33 years, William Alexander succeeds his mother, Beatrix of Orange-Nassau, on the Dutch throne. What’s remarkable is that it is been quite a long time since the Netherlands saw a male monarch – the last king, William III (image 1), ruled until his death in 1890, and queens have ruled this country ever since. Seeing that this issue is about #$w@g, we have to think about the quality of a true king, which is naturally the Beard®. Every king, William III and his predecessors, has sported a Beard® during his reign; this begs the question why the current king is still bare-faced – in other words, where is the king’s #$w@g? This question was not lost on the Dutch, some of whom caused an internetsplosion by launching Facebook pages like ‘‘Zonder Baard, Geen koning’’ (‘’No Beard, No King’’) and NRC Handelsblad wrote an article featuring citizens wearing knitted beards in support of this cause (image 2). Alas, all was for naught. Still, maybe in the future the king will see sense, leave the razors, and get his #$w@gg3r on. Iris Schouten How to SWAG: GTL (an outside perspective) These are the important things to remember when you want to live your life #SWAG-style; the three daily routines to keep your #SWAG at irresistible levels for pulling tail and generally being a cool dude. Abide by these three guidelines and you will have all the booty you can count (which could still be very little, since counting math is not #SWAG). [GYM] First things first; you need the right outfit to work out. Weight lifting singlets are the best way to go. Otherwise, just cut up a t-shirt so that the armpits come down to your waist, and there’s only about a half inch of fabric coming up over your deltoids. You want the ladies to see what you got. And you’ll be hitting on everything that moves in there. For a good gym session, you need lots of carbs, so before you go, eat lots of pasta. Then make a protein shake (with oats and banana, you know how we do). You say you don’t to ‘roids, but everyone knows you do. Now first, you start with some squats. If you ain’t pushing 200 pounds, you ain’t nothing. After squats, you do dead lifts, bench press, pull ups, bicep curls and ab crunches. Lots of ab crunches. If you don’t have a sixpack, you don’t get laid. It’s that simple. Remember, cardio is for pussies, and ruins your gains. Shower, and fill up on carbs and protein again. Prepare for step two. [TANNING] So in adoration of the best of fist-pumpers, you then go off to the tanning salon. Tanning is a very important part of your daily routine because without a crisp brown tan there are no, and there will never be, bitches. The colour of the tan must be enough to show that you’re working on it, so don’t be afraid to stay an hour. Mike ‘The Situation’ has an absolutely perfect tan, so take that as example. In the tanning shop you will not only be tanning, but also picking up girls, of course. It is a popular place where all the cool dudes and chicks go to get some colour, so it is a perfect meeting spot. Pro-tip: be shirtless, or at the most have a wife-beater to show off those muscles you got pumped up in the gym. Make sure it’s skin tight, and lift up your shirt every chance you get. Chicks dig lots of tanned skin. [LAUNDRY] Do your own laundry, you lazy bum! You will never be able to show that you’re a cool and independent dude without being able to do your own laundry (even though you still live with your mom). Again, what is the place everyone has to go if not the laundrette? You have to take all your going-out T-shirts of course, because they have to be ready for yet another night of heavy partying. Also, girls do a lot of laundry so they’ll be there in the hundreds. You can show off your tan and muscles. Make sure you look like a rockstar, because you can’t just look awesome only when going out. You have to look awesome all the time so girls can see all the time how cool you are. If you stick with this you’ll never be short of attention from women ever again. The gym for a body the girls want, the tanshop for the skin the girls want, and the laundry for the clothes the girls want. Now, with all you’ve learned, go party like YOLO and party hard. Frank van Drunen & Marnix de Gier How to Make the Most of Your Tequila Suicide; or the Classy Girls’ Clubbin’ Guide When me and my girl #poezenstaartje go out, it all starts with the preparation. Cuz it is essential to look good fo dem fellahz. Who knows what stud ya might wobble into? First, put on your favourite Ke$ha or Lil’ Wayne track to get into the party mood and find your signature move. Remember, practice makes perfect. You might wanna open that bottle of vodka at this point to smoothen things up a bit. Eeeverything goes better with alcohol and if not, at least you won’t be there to notice it. Tips fo tha ladiezz from tha Lster • Tan. Tan, tan, tan. That’s the best advice we have. If you don’t reach Ibiza every other weekend to go partying and sunbathing, use self-tanning powder, spray, or cream! Special gloves and brushes to do this can be found for a good price at Primark. • Short hair? You cray-cray? Them boyz don’t like boyish hair! Use extensions if you don’t have long hair yourself. Never mind that it’s fake: nobody will notice anyway! Just like fake nails, they’re great as well. Don’t cha forget the leopard design nail art! • Next tip for your hair: fuzzy or curly is not so swag. Straighten it every day, your aim is for it to be real smooth, just like a Barbie doll. Keep this in mind, as it will emphasize your inner sweetness. People might warn you that it damages your hair, but who needs healthy hair when you got swag? • Tattoos! Because #YOLO • People really like to know and see all of the awesome things you do, so they might learn how to have as much swag as you. Do this by tweeting about everything you do (and #ofcourse you should #add #hashtags to all of your #tweets) • Best way to look sexy in a photo? Yeah, push your lips together like you’re giving someone a kiss, styll. You’ll look hundo p hot. Get yo swag on! Barbara Dauwerse Men Have it Hard, too Once upon a time, long ago, before anyone knew what feminism was and that homosexuality was not a mental disorder, gender identity was stable. Yeah, right. While the way you were supposed to perform your gender was rather obvious, these straitjackets do not have a whole lot to do with real life. In fact, there were times in history the expectations were set too high or were too rigid to be applicable in reality – and one of these times occurred in the 90s. Feminism changed conventional gender roles. Where before, women were supposed to be the housewives, the mothers, the passive and emotional ones, they now demanded an expansion of said roles and wanted a more active role where they could make money and take care of themselves first. Nothing wrong with that, and it was way overdue anyway. However, it is practically impossible to change femininity without it having an effect on masculinity as well, seeing as how masculinity tends to define itself as ‘not feminine’. If you used to feel masculine because you brought in the money (it’s an example, there are many more factors included of course) and suddenly, your wife wants a job as well, you will have to live with the fact that your family is not solely dependent on you anymore. If your (gender) identity is based on that, it takes time to create a new identity that you are comfortable performing. This is what happened in the 90s. Anything the men defined themselves with, women (and to a certain extent, homosexuals) wanted and were allowed to do too. Not only that, but women demanded their men to change as well; they now had to be in touch with their feelings, communicate, take care of their appearance. This was the opposite of what the straitjacket of masculinity said they had to do, and many men felt stuck between a rock and a hard place. A crisis was born. As is the case with most changes in society the last few decades, this crisis comes back in popular culture. I am currently researching the link between the crisis and Big Time Rush, for instance, and I find that theyreinforce the ‘new man’, who is in touch with his masculine and feminine side, by portraying the one character who is at ease with his identity very positively. When Logan cross-dresses, it is not used jokingly, while when James, the character who tries hard to be a man but fails, does the same thing it is always played as a joke. However, the most masculine character on the show (Kendall) is portrayed as the most stable and in control character, which adheres to the old gender roles. Gender is not who you are, but what you do. We can thank Judith Butler for these words of wisdom. However, when what you are supposed to do is in conflict with what you want to do, or were taught to do, people become unsure of who they are and have to find their own identity again, since not many people have the guts to disregard society’s expectations. There is only one thing that is certain, and that is that masculinity will never be the same again. Irene Theunissen FEATURED] GAME OF THRON Westeros Comes Game of Thrones’ will come alive for fans in an immersive, not-to-be-missed touring exhibition that will transport viewers into the breathtaking and enchanted world of Westeros.” That’s what the official exhibition website (game-of-thrones-exhibition. com) states, anyway. When we heard the exhibition would also be coming to Amsterdam, I have to admit I wasn’t all that enthused about it. I like the series well enough, sure, and I’m sad to say I haven’t had time to read the books yet (but it’s very much on my summer to-do list!), but I wasn’t sure what to expect of a church filled with “more than 70 original artifacts”. Still, we had planned to be in the Amsterdam area for the weekend anyway and it was free. Why not? I have to say, though, it was more impressive than I had expected. It’s pretty awesome to see props and clothes ‘in the flesh’ so to You - to speak. You get a much better idea of their actual size and texture (I nearly subtitled this review ‘wow, so Dany is actually that tiny?!’). It’s nice to see how much detail has been put into costumes and props. Even though almost everything (apart from the clothes) is safely behind glass, it suddenly becomes more real: you can almost imagine picking up these items and weighing them in your hand. And then of course there are the interactive experiences; if you didn’t mind standing in line once more, you could have your picture taken while sitting on a replica of the Iron Throne or be the archer to set off the Wildfire in Blackwater Bay. I suppose, all in all, this was about what I expected of a free exhibition. The big let-down, however, was the waiting. We arrived to stand in line about forty-five minutes after the exhibition had opened and our googlemaps app told us the line was already a 125 metres long by then. Oops. As a result, we #DecapitationRunsInTheFamily NES EXHIBITION But Is It Worth didn’t get to enter the exhibition until one and a half hours later. (My advice? Bring a book or a crossword puzzle.) The worst was yet to come, however. Just as we prepared to finally, finally enter the Posthoornkerk, we were told that we’d only be allowed fifteen minutes (twenty at the most) inside. Granted, the exhibition wasn’t that big, but fifteen minutes meant rushing past the displays and taking quick pictures to look at in detail once back at home, ‘wasting’ five minutes to get an Iron Throne picture, and eventually being asked to leave (friendly but firmly) by one of the security people when we lingered in front of a display on our way to the door. On the whole? It was a nice exhibition and I suppose I shouldn’t complain because it was free, but I wish they’d rented a proper venue with enough space - I wouldn’t have minded paying a small fee if that had meant being able to look at everything at my own pace (which would have been thirty minutes, the Wait? or forty-five tops). It makes you wonder if they didn’t realise just how many people would want to see this. Bianca van der Mark FEATURED] A Lesson in Secession It is always pleasant to read books that refuse to wither with time and that years or even decades after they were published still succeed in shedding a surprising light on current affairs. Pogo is a case in point. Pogo is an American comic strip, a daily, created by Walt Kelly (1913-1973) and featuring Pogo Possum and a host of other animals that inhabit the imaginary yet distinctly southern Okefenokee Swamp. Though the strip came to an end with the death of its author forty years ago and today mainly lives on in reprints for collectors, it still has a huge amount of fans (mainly in the US) and is considered by experts to be the most important political comic strip of the twentieth century. The microcosm of Okefenokee reflected all the main political and social upheavals of the postwar period. Senator MacCarthy’s communist-hunting activities were immortalized in the Jack Acid Society, and during the Cuban missile crisis Khrushchev appeared in the strip as a pig and Castro as a goat. As a moderate liberal Kelly strove for a golden mean in his satire, but still his sharp and critical depictions met with occasional resistance from overly cautious editors. Kelly circumvented the problem by creating back-up strips with cuddly bunnies and non-offensive gags. Editors who applauded Kelly’s critique, however, would move the strip to the editorial page. Some satires ripen with time. In Prisoner of Love (a collection from 1969 with material from the late sixties) there is an episode with Wiley Catt and Deacon Mushrat who discuss a plan with Ol’ Mole to secede and found a new country. The right of secession has haunted the American Republic ever since its inception (reaching a head in 1860 with the southern Confederate States striving for independence), but its manifestation in the 1960s would have been less compelling than its resurgence nowadays. The continuing pressures of American imperial policy, its many overseas wars, its mounting national debt, the persistent complaint about the formation of a surveillance state culminating in the much hated antigun laws, have provoked an avalanche of protest from various quarters – though chiefly from the south – and also the s-word was spoken to counter federal tyranny. Literary historians are usually very conscious of the fact that texts can mean new things in new contexts, but Kelly’s episode on secession (see sample image ) addresses a fundamental issue and vents a universal warning that is as true today as it was in the past. The strip seems admirably adjusted to present-day tensions; its insight that war is a natural consequence of the struggle for independence achieves particular momentum in light of plans for a peaceful yet armed march on Washington DC on the 4th of July this year. Reading Pogo is always a delight, especially when Kelly’s imagination stays ahead of the news. J. R. Veenstra The Understudies present: The War Outside London, 1939. As the European mainland is thrown into chaos through disease and social uprising, England seems to standing strong. This changes when a bomb goes off in central London. The Evans family hide in their cellar, accompanied by their elderly neighbours, and daughter Lucy’s secret lover, Henry. Tensions rise as they’re stuck in the cellar for days on end, and things only get worse when the family’s long-lost father shows up. The War Outside. Wednesday, 26 June 20:30; de Lindenberg. Tickets €5 www.delindenberg.com FEATURED] TA A SS If anyone ever understood that yelling at Asian chicks’ bums and riding ponies are the epitomic acts of #Swagerrific, it is Park JaeSung, otherwise known to the world as PSY. How did this knight of style and substance ever come to rise as he has? Let’s find out! It was the year 1977 when the artist formerly known as Kim Jong-Deux was born to the extravagant and enigmatic great leader Kim Jong-Il, Lord of Korea, Warden of the North and Protector of the Realm. Jong-Deux was taught in the Korean martial art of marching by his father: swinging legs up to one’s face with every step. A hard path to walk, indeed. Soon he discovered that the North Korean march simply didn’t have enough #Swagtacle to it, so he started developing his own style. His father was enraged, and banished his son to the believed to be rotten and degenerate South of Korea. Little did Kim Jong-Il know that his first-born son would become a force to be reckoned with. Skip ahead to 15 July 2012, and Kim JongDeux has grown to become international superstar PSY, after he was taken in by the Park family at age six and re-named Park Jae-Sung and went to the Berklee College of Music to strengthen his dance march with some much needed #swag. The result is the song known as “Oppan Gangnam Style”, literally meaning “Big Brother is Gangnam Style”, emphasizing Deux’ superiority over his little brother Un to his father Kim Jong-Il. Upon realizing his mistake, the great leader Kim fell ill to the incredible amount of #swagga radiation that suddenly covered the entire globe, as every household with a PC, tablet, TV, radio or smartphone was watching and listening to Gangnam Style. The radiation proved to be fatal for the Warden of the North Korea. The radiation was the byproduct of the extra #swag-infusion he learned in Berklee. There, he perfected his self-taught “Zodiac Flaming and Swaggering Pony” marching style that we all know and love. The #swagga rays found amplification through the internet and the satellites in the Earth’s orbit, and #D PSY, LORD OF THE SWAGGERING PONY soon everyone knew about Gangnam Style. It has since been the only Youtube video to surpass the 1 billion views, an astounding feat in and of itself. PSY, Park Jae-Sung, Kim Jong-Deux... Many names for a man of many talents. His conquest of the world has progressed by a bit with his new hit Gentleman, in which his “Zodiac Pelvis Wiggle Dragon” technique captivates the minds of youths worldwide. Will he ever achieve another triumph like Gangnam Style? Who knows... What we do know, is that he is still going strong, and one day he may retake his place as the rightful heir to the Northern throne of Korea. Tim Renes [FEATURED #SWAGula ‘Twas brillig, and SWAGula chortled as he saw the mother leaving the house to get Chinese takeaway; the 14-year old son, Horatio, blasting 50 Cent; the 18-year old brother trying to talk some sense in his little brother, but he soon saw it was of no use, and left the house to go out for a stroll. Huge mistake. SWAGula jumped from the roof of the house across the street, where he had been observing the family. He landed safely without any noise, until he heard a loud crash just behind him. He dropped to the ground, hoping he was still unnoticed. Through the shrubbery SWAGula saw that the boy had resumed walking, apparently ignoring the sound. SWAGula turned around to see what it was, then facepalmed himself. “Dropped the bloody bass AGAIN,” he cursed inwardly. He ran to catch up with his victim. “Hey, dude! What d’you say to some cheap weed?” “You sell cheap weed?” asked the guy. “No, no friend. You’ve got it all wrong. I’m not selling cheap weed. I’m selling good weed for cheap. I just need someone to deliver it for me,” SWAGula told him. “Alright, where do I need to go?” “Come by the Manor House Club tonight. Ask for Brad Quid. And remember, keep this to yourself,” SWAGula said, disappearing into the city. He made preparations for that night, and kept an eye out in the club. The club was, as usual, filled with preps, bragging about their new car or crying how AbErCrOmBiE & FiTcH hadn’t accepted their parents’ credit card. Almost every other day some snob organised a pretentious party at the club, celebrating their phony lives. Now SWAGula blended in with them perfectly, since the media was him. He was in every image, but people didn’t know, because as soon as they looked away, they forgot. Finally the guy showed up, and was immediately sneered at by the beautiful people. The bartender pointed to where SWAGula was sitting, and bingo! “Now, where is it and where do I need to take it?” the guy said as he approached. “Come to the basement. Take it to the underground. I have people there.” “And how am I supposed to recognise them? They wearing sweater vests like these people around here?” You obviously lack originality. No. They have a tennis racket with them.” “Right, okay. Is it dangerous?” “YOLO,” SWAGula replied. “Fine. Will I get a share?” SWAGula coughed. “I swag your pardon. Of course, you’ll get ‘the best time of your life’.” They went into the basement, which appeared to be a storeroom for pallets of money bundles, drug packages, and… “What’s this?” the guy asked, picking up a sex doll. “You’re quite oblivious, eh? What was your name again?” “Yorick.” SWAGula handed him a package, stood right in front of him. “Now… Let’s dance… Kiss.” “Wait, what?” Yorick exclaimed. “Surprised? I said, you’ll get the best time of your life.” Yorick screamed, but no-one heard. His appearance changed, an obnoxious stare gleaming out of his eyes. “Now… Open your package,” SWAGula instructed. Like a puppet Yorick opened the package, revealing a pair of Ralph Lauren shoes, a Lacoste polo shirt, and other articles necessary for the true snob. “He prepped you for this, you know,” SWAGula laughed. “I would like to attend the party,” Yorick said without emotion. “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio.” The little brother smiled. “He has borne me on his back a thousand times – and never got off mine.” SWAGula merely nodded, smiled with him. Then, to Horatio: “What d’you say to some cheap weed?” Patrick Hobbelen 9/11’s tabooed icon All of us are familiar with the photographs of heroism and patriotism that came to dominate the media representations of 9/11 shortly after the attacks. Amid the surge of flag-waving and the celebration of fire fighters, however, certain images suffered immediate censorship. Such was the fate of the so-called ‘jumper-photos’ – photographs of people jumping to their deaths from the upper reaches of the World Trade Center. One of these images is particularly hard to forget. Taken by AP photographer Richard Drew, it depicts a man falling headfirst in a perfectly vertical position, his body aligned with the girders of the buildings behind him, as though he were in full control of his descent. Later dubbed the ‘Falling Man’, the photograph ran in a number of newspapers the day after the tragedy but it did not take long before the editors of these papers found themselves in the crossfire of complaints made by their readers. Drew’s photograph, along with the rest of the jumper photos, was relegated to user-generated Internet sites, never to be published in print. What is it, really, about the ‘Falling Man’ that holds our attention so irresistibly? Our recognition of a ‘still life’ that portends irreversible death? Or the illicit pleasure of recognizing aesthetic qualities in an instance of horror? Or maybe our recognition of the image as a foreboding reminder that we only live once? Perhaps all of these. But inscribed within the man’s acrobatic posture and the perfect alignment of body with building is also the element of agency, which posits death as the result of a voluntary act, investing the man’s fall with the phantasmagoric image of his jump, which remains unseen in the photograph. We are therefore compelled to imagine his ‘sacrilegious’ decision that renders his fall a result of a voluntary act: suicide. As much as this reading is highly problematic within the context of 9/11, the word ‘jumper’ is pregnant with this meaning (Eric Steel’s 2006 documentary The Bridge, a film which portrays the Golden Gate Bridge as the nation’s notorious suicide destination, comes to mind here). If the word ‘fall’ euphemistically blurs the leap that precipitates it and ‘jump’ connotes suicide, the ‘Falling Man’ engenders a crisis of signification, a painful lack of a better word, so to say. If the image of the ‘Falling Man’, along with the other ‘jumper-photos’, creates a blind spot within the trauma of 9/11, it is no surprise that it persists as a specter that refuses to be wrapped up in heroic narratives. A recurring motif in 9/11 art (both visual and textual) and one of the central tropes in the growing genre of the 9/11 novel the repressed memory of the ‘jumpers’ beget alternative techniques of narrating trauma as evidenced by Frédéric Beigbeder’s Windows on the World (2004), Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel In the Shadow of No Towers (2004), Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2005), Michael Cunningham’s Specimen Days (2005), Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country (2006), and Don DeLillo’s Falling Man (2007). While each of these authors wrestles with the task of bearing witness to the unspeakable, the ‘Falling Man’ continues to haunt works that make no explicit reference to 9/11 at all. In James Marsh’s documentary Man on Wire (2008), which tells the story of French tightrope walker Philippe Petit who walked between the Twin Towers in 1974, it is precisely the film’s silence about 9/11 that allows the iconography of the ‘Falling Man’ to uncannily emerge in the film’s rendering of Petit’s performance. Even more conspicuously, the opening sequence of the acclaimed television series Mad Men, and the ‘minimalist’ poster of the show’s fifth season in particular, has raised many eyebrows for its iconographic similarity to the jumper photos. Out of sight but definitely not out of mind, the ‘Falling Man’ thus embodies the paradoxical dialectics of repression and appropriation, an image we may all recognize as 9/11’s tabooed icon. László Munteán L I T S B U D Join the travel committee, they said! It will be fun, they said! Well, they were definitely right, but they failed to inform me it would be damn stressful as well. For about eight months me and my fellow ReisCo-ers (as we began to call ourselves) spent day and night slaving away at making the studytrip to Dublin an unforgettable experience. And I would like to think we succeeded. And if you don’t believe me, I think the pictures speak for themselves. :D Our trip started on a Saturday morning in Nijmegen where thirty-five eager students excitingly awaited the bus to bring us to Schiphol. The bus driver quickly picked up on our excitement and decided to turn up the volume of the radio extensively, resulting in an overwhelming chorus of, amongst others, One Direction and Taylor Swift (Goat sounds included). After admiring the technological marvels of Schiphol (automated baggage check-in FTW), and spending a few hours in its overpriced stores we were finally underway to Dublin. After this long day we were excited to find one of the most bad-ass hostels in the world (pleasing us with vending machines, free Wifi, and Game of Thrones actors) at our disposal and everyone quickly began to claim their beds and prepare to spend their first night exploring the city. Sunday saw creation of many #Swagtastic pictures as the ReisCo had devised a genius scheme of creating a city walk/scavenger hunt in order to let people make fools of themselves. Many pictures and plenty of sore feet later (note to future Reisco: Google Maps is a bloody liar. Do not believe their walking time estimation!) we had a chance to drink our pains away at the Jameson Distillery and during the Literary Pubcrawl, which once agai n featured Game of Thrones actors. Monday was highlighted by horny animals at the zoo, beautiful grand libraries at Trinity College and an evening of drinks and games during the Queen’s Night, a party which continued in many rooms until late in the night. The free day on Tuesday allowed everyone to wear their feet down some more as we strolled around Dublin’s rich shopping streets and its amazing bookstores (Oh, Chapters, you light up my world like nobody else!), as well as enjoy a cultural night at the theater. Wednesday was spent primarily outside of Dublin as we took the train to the picturesque coastal village of Malahide, sporting a castle, and expansive gardens. Thursday was of more educational value, as we were given a workshop by the James Joyce Centre about Araby and could stroll around its museum, where they have amongst I P E TN ( w l a e d # ) t i h t i other things, a very special door! Seriously, it’s like a very big deal for James Joyce fans apparently. If our bodies were not drained of their energy by this point, Friday’s sporty activities made sure they were. On this day we experienced the Gaelic Games and played two of their biggest sports; hurling and Gaelic football. A visit to Croke Park Stadium was also on the agenda and it delivered us the greatest tour guide in existence. As this night was our last night in Dublin, we of course had to hit the city – despite our exhaustion and the fact that most people could barely walk any more (and no, this was not only caused by alcohol). However, every journey has its end and so too did ours. On Saturday we packed our bags, gathered our souvenirs, and prepared ourselves for the trip back home. Although the rest of the ReisCo and I were absolutely exhausted, it was extremely awesome and a memorable experience. I strongly advise anyone thinking about it to join up for the ReisCo next year. After all, you have nothing to lose. I mean #YOLO, right! Dries de Groot FEATURED] Cool or Creepy? Life-writing is hip, biography is booming. The conception of New Biography by modernists such as Virginia Woolf gave life-writing a second wind - it became a twentieth-century phenomenon. It was to last, it seems; these days biography, auto-biography, auto/biography, metabiography, biofiction, biofilm, autobiografiction (et cetera ad nauseam!) is quite the thing. The author is dead? I think not. Even if you’re not one for reading, who can resist a nice, juicy tear jerking film starting with the headline ‘based on a true story’? It is undeniable that we seem to like other people’s lives - and with social media right under our thumbs almost 24/7, we are life-writing on the go. Perhaps we are not so far removed from the Victorians as we think we are. Modernists criticised the Victorian way of life-writing for its tendency to focus on the outer, public life and the achievements of great people (mostly men). It cannot be denied, though, that many of the contemporary social media that can be used for life-writing seem very much focused on the outward and public achievement: photos, videos - all very visual material that captures outer rather than inner life. On the other hand, however, the anonymity of the internet allows for a great openness. There are many websites that allow an alias and where exposing deeply-felt anxieties is encouraged and even welcomed. Tumblr seems to have partly taken on a function as a safety net for people who need emotional support; strangers listening to strangers. Sayings such as “my Tumblr account is my best-kept secret” indicate a sort of liberation, a finally being able to express inner thoughts and feelings openly within a community that allows for such openness. (Which is, of course, not to say that everything is readily accepted - love and hate seem to go around equally.) Is it not all a little vast, though? How should we implement these new media into life-writing? How to preserve data from getting lost in a virtual environment where deletion is only a click away? In fact: is this data even useful? In his book You Are Not A Gadget: A Manifesto Jaron Lanier points out that a human being cannot be made up by a set of data: we ‘reduce’ ourselves. In her essay “Generation Why” Zadie Smith explains that this “life is turned into a database, and this is a degradation” (Smith 9, emphasis mine). Is it, though? How is the way we ‘compress’ ourselves to adhere to a social network any different from other life-writing mediums and templates (novel, film, memoir, diary)? Compression and reduction is the only way to life-write, as it is impossible to encapsule a life in its entirety: a specific angle or theme or form is needed or it simply becomes too vast and overwhelming to process. Human lives are constantly reduced depending on the situation. We often do it instinctively as the situation changes. We portray ourselves differently, we filter our behaviour and looks, depending on the situation - we are not the same around our family as we are around friends or strangers. Maybe an even more pressing question is that of privacy. On the morning of 16 May I saw the presentation of Google Glass on BBC Breakfast. Perhaps it’s a good thing that the product is not ready for the market yet, not for consumers anyway, because it’s raised some important questions. At least with smartphones you can see someone point the camera at you - with Google Glass there is really no telling. When asking a few people on the street about what they thought about Google Glass, Rory CellanJones from BBC News got reactions stating that the new gadget was ‘creepy’ rather than ‘cool’, though that may also have something to do with the voice activation. I suppose seemingly talking to yourself is not something we like to show off. We’ll just have to wait for the legal and social implications before life recording is upped to yet another level. Bianca van der Mark REVIEWS] Paramore: Uninspired Paramore’s fourth studio album, sporting the inspirational title Paramore, proves every bit as inventive as its title. With Josh and Zac Farro (lead guitar and drums) departing in 2010, the band has turned over a new leaf in terms of style. This means that their songs lack the drive the old ones had, and most manage to be about twice as long as they should be. The simple fact that the seventeen-song album has no less than three interludes is an indication that too many of the songs on end would leave a listener looking for their entertainment elsewhere. Not all is bad about this album. The imagery is still there – although not as poignant as it used to be – but some of the lyrics just seem out of place. “We’ve got our riot gear on but we just want to have fun / No we’re not looking for violence”, from the first song “Fast in My Car”, doesn’t fit with the song, or the band. Depression The time of exams is nearly upon us: the perfect time for a nervous breakdown to disrupt your flow. Once you start doubting your ability to finish an essay, why not doubt everything? Your relationship, your significant other’s feelings for you - there are plenty of areas where you can excel in despair. To ‘alleviate’ our anxieties, Fleur van Groningen wrote Haal het Slechtste uit Jezelf. I know: I’m cheating because it’s a Dutch book, but you will have to forgive me. (I’m not giving you a choice.) Imagine: exams make you suffer from an acute case of perfectionism coupled with a crippling fear of failure. There are only so many times someone can tell you to ‘please accept that human life can never be a spotless accumulation of successes’ before you violently want to bash their brains in. Fleur van Groningen suggests another route: ‘show- Some of their innovations definitely paid off though, such as the gospel choir on “Ain’t It Fun”, but a lot of their new sound comes off as unimaginative (although five songs, starting with “Last Hope” and ending with “Proof” are quite nice). And to add insult to injury, the song “Part II” is a reworking of older lyrics from different songs, all mashed together. I imagine it might evoke the same sort of feelings Reanimation did in Linkin Park fans. It seems strange, then, that this is their most critically acclaimed album, lauded for its musical diversity (and I’ll admit, I like the ukulele bits), when only about a third of the album comes close to being interesting, and the rest of the songs are overly long and boring. Marnix de Gier is Hilarious er yourself in a torrent of self-conscious criticism (either for prior or imagined future mistakes), feed your fear by repeating phrases like I can’t do it! as often as possible. Stop taking initiative and watch as your life stagnates, grinding to a painful halt.’ The funny thing is, the more you read these destimulating tips to worsen and ruin your life, the more you’ll realise the only person who’s stopping you.. is you! “Blimey!” you’ll say, “I was afraid to miss my deadline, but I guess I’m being a bit ridiculous.” The result? Shake your head at yourself and finally start on that essay. Fleur van Groningen’s self-help booklet treats a plethora of subjects and is both hilariously phrased and very aptly illustrated. If you feel your suffer from fear (general), fear of commitment, loneliness, fear of failure, the Florence Nightingale Syndrome, frustration, intolerance, jealousy, vulnerability, lovesickness, powerlessness, obsession, unrequited love, dissatisfaction, insecurity, the Peter Pan syndrome, projection, resentment, regret, sadness, paranoia, or anger, you should really consider picking yourself up a copy! Bianca van der Mark Minor Nieuwe Media en Digitale Cultuur When I saw that there was a new minor about social media, I was immediately very enthusiastic. The minor guide told me that I would be taking Philosophy and Ethics of New Media, Social Media in Functional Context, and something called ‘Kunst, Technologie en Lichamelijkheid’. Although I was looking forward to it least, Philosophy became my favourite subject. The course was given by Dr Becker from the Philosophy faculty, and although we had four hours of class every Tuesday, it was finished after eight weeks. I liked the course very much because it used old theories to evaluate new phenomena. For example, we used Aristotle’s friendship theory to discuss online friendship, and we looked at three different philosophers to talk about privacy issues. Also, we discussed open source, authorship and politics. I found it very interesting to look at these subjects from different kinds of philosophical and ethical views. We had an exam, had to write a research paper, and had to do a presentation either on research we had to study, or on our paper. I had very high hopes for Social Media in Functional Context, but the course turned out to be completely different from what I had expected. Half the class was filled with Erasmus students, so our CIW teacher, Loes Janssen, was forced to teach the course in English. Also, the teacher told us that she did not even know how Twitter works, and that the classes were going to be led by the students. Every week we had to read two research papers, and a group of four to six students presented these studies, and led a discussion. The lessons, and the exams, are focused on the results of research, so instead of learning theories and getting information about how to use social media in personal and professional context, we have to study whether the research was representative and what the limitations were. This is definitely not what I wanted to learn. In addition to two exams and leading a discussion, we had to write a research proposal and present this. I was lucky to be in a group with a CIW student because she knew how to write a research proposal and no one else did. Now on to my final course: Kunst, Technlologie en Lichamelijkheid. After eight lessons and four failed bi-weekly assignments I still had not figured out what the course was aiming at, or what I was supposed to do, and I decided to drop it. KT&L was given by two very nice and enthusiastic ACW teachers, Mr. Stevens and Mr. Meelberg, but there was no structure and the book we had to read was full of theories that I was unable to understand. The ACW and Art History students in my class definitely liked the subject, but I prefer 19th-Century British Novel on Film. In my opinion the idea of a minor with subjects from three different fields of study is a very good idea, but this was definitely not a minor about social media as I had expected it to be. - Anouska Kersten REVIEWS] A He of Some of you may know I suck at gaming. If it is not a board game, I generally fail at it. (If I ever talked to you about console games, you probably know the story of how I fell off the sofa while playing MarioKart on the Wii.) I suppose I’m a backseat gamer. I like sitting on the couch next to my fiancé as he plays Borderlands, Skyrim, FallOut, Assassin’s Creed, DragonAge, and other such epicness. Just because I cannot work the controls doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy games. Even though I knew I’d never play it myself, I was as excited about BioShock Infinite as anyone else seemed to be. I adored the previous BioShock games. I love its gruesome details and the back stories, its Alternate Universe underwater city where hubris has wrecked society. BioShock Infinite has not disappointed me in the slightest: sitting next to my fiancé as the game unfolded was like watching a good film (possibly based on a well-written novel). The visuals were awesome (and the loading time in between wasn’t annoyingly long!) and while Menno gathered trophies, the plot points that unfolded made my literature-fetish self squee. As Jared Newman wrote on Time Tech: “It has a reputation for being that kind of game – the one you approach intellectually, despite its grisly facade of smashed skulls, burnt bodies and cartoonish gore. […] BioShock Infinite wants you to have your mindless fun, but it also wants you to ponder.” ero in Search Redemption Contrary to the parts set in the submerged city of Rapture, you don’t enter a post-apocalyptic society. When you arrive in Columbia, which steampunkishly floats in the sky, it seems a pretty okay place to be, if a bit overzealously religious. The beauty is that you then get to see it all falling apart (which feels surprisingly satisfying) as you initially set out to rescue the helpless lady in the tower: Elizabeth. She is not as helpless as she seems, however, and I must say the way she interacts with your character is very cleverly done. Rather than being a bunch of pixels that follows you around and stands in the way 60% of the time, she’s nothing like that. Instead, she interacts with you, finds you supplies and ammo. Granted: she’s probably programmed to give you stuff you need every once in a while, she’s not actually picking things up that you might have missed otherwise - but hey, this whole thing is based on imagination and your willingness to believe in the story! Even though Columbia is different from Rapture, it’s still very much tied to the previous two BioShock games, for instance by the mode of combat. This is again a combination between hacking or shooting at your enemies and using cool genetically modified superpowers. Perhaps it is a bit brutal, perhaps you think the gore is excessive - only violence isn’t the game’s prime objective. The themes and issues, the narrative highlights (within the safe framework if an Alternate Universe, of course!) are like a mingled kaleidoscope of US history and politics: slavery, civil war, class, post-colonialism, the American Dream, gender roles - it’s all there if you want to see it. Even if you’re not the type to go all literaryessay-mode on a console game, you’ll have to agree that the back story balances out the brutality (like in the earlier BioShock parts, the place is conveniently littered with vex-recorders for you to pick up). As straightforward as the initial ‘rescue the damsel’ story seems, trust me that the plot will go batshit crazy from there, not shying away from a MultiVerse narrative. It will make you go ‘wowwhat?!’ every time. By the end of the game, I was actually punching the air (I won’t spoil you guys!). Had BioShock Infinite been a book, it would have been a page turner (and worthy of essays being written about it). Of course it’s all very much a matter of personal preference and BioShock Infinite does have its downsides. You’ll have to spend a lot of time gathering resources off corpses and abandoned crates, for instance, and the further you get on in the game, the less your choices will alter the possible storyline. Still, Menno told me the controls are smooth and easy to work. I suppose I’ll have to trust him on that. Bianca van der Mark The Take Over, The Break’s Over Save Rock and Roll by Fall Out Boy. Out now. Fall Out Boy are back from hiatus! You might remember them from songs like “Thnks Fr Th Mmrs”, or “Dance, Dance”, you might have forgotten them, or you might have never known them. I don’t know in which of these categories you fall, but let me tell you one thing – their new CD, Save Rock and Roll, is definitely the best album they could have made for their comeback. I am here to give you a review of FOB’s new CD, and I won’t keep you in suspense any longer – it rules. The first single, “My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark (Light ‘Em Up)”, already made me ache for more. It sounded very different from Infinity on High and Folie A Deux, mostly because it didn’t have the poppy undertones those two CDs had, but an aggressive tone with a chorus that sticks in your head. Some other songs of the album have the same feel – “The Phoenix”, “The Mighty Fall”, and “Rat a Tat”, for instance – yet there is a set of songs that have a different feel. “Miss Missing You”, “Just One Yesterday” and “Young Volcanoes” are slower, a little romantic, even though the lyrics might not always agree with that feeling. Fall Out Boy has collaborated with other artists before (for instance, listen to “What a Catch, Donnie” for a quick introduction to both the fandom surrounding FOB and a lot of guest singers: hi, Gabe Saporta, Brendon Urie, William Beckett, and others!). On this CD, they take it to the next level by collaborating with Foxes, Big Sean, Courtney Love and Elton John – and it works. All the guests add something to the FOB sound and make it awesome. Naturally, there are some things I could have done without on the album. “Alone Together” and “Death Valley” use the auto tune a bit too much to my liking. Patrick’s voice does not need that much tweaking, and I’m still confused as to why they thought it was a good idea. The title song, “Save Rock and Roll” ft. Elton John, is the one track I always skip because it’s not my taste, although it does have good lyrics. As a final note, I would advise all of you to watch their music videos – unless you’re really squeamish. FOB are going to make a video for all of their new songs, following the adventures of the Young Bloods (Who now?), and the three that are up so far are amazing. There is torture, drugs, kidnapping and heavily implied cannibalism, though, so like I said – these videos not for the faint-hearted. In summary, did FOB save rock and roll? No. Of course not. But did they deliver a good album? That they did. If you’re hesitant about FOB, give it a shot. They won’t disappoint. Irene Theunissen Pony up and feel the friendship There have been few shows that have amassed the amount of popularity, infamy and outright #SWAG like My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. The international rising of the “Bronies” (bros who like ponies) has sparked a polarizing public opinion on the matter. On one side are the aforementioned Bronies, on the other the ones that shun them for watching a cartoon aimed at little girls. But all that aside, is the show itself any good? The story is as follows: Twilight Sparkle is a pony with a gift for magic and does research on it in the castle of Canterlot (ba-dum-tish) for her monarch, Princess Celestia. One day, she is tasked to look up information on the possible resurrection of the evil pony Nightmare Moon (Get it? ‘Cuz she’s a MARE. *cough*) in a town called Ponyville, where she meets six ponies that will aid her in her quest and will prove to be her best friends from that point onward. Their developing friendship appears to be strong and magical enough to take down the evil Nightmare Moon. Celestia tasks Twilight to keep researching this magic of friendship, telling her to write a report on it every week. This narrative device effectively creates a medium through which every episode’s moral can be explicitly explained. Morals can vary from “It’s possible for two vastly different people to be friends” to “You can’t please everyone, so you have to make choices”. The content is very episodic: most episodes stand on their own as narratives and are completely watchable as stand-alone works, making it easy to drop in on any episode. Though episodic, episodes do often have some bearing on the later ones, as characters learn from their mistakes and form new bonds. As such, the overarching story of making and forging friendships is constantly going forward, without going back to square one every weekly episode. Technically, the show is a sight to behold. The animation is Flash-based, making it smooth and dynamic. The palette is vibrant, and the sheer amount of sugary sweet cotton candy colours will have your teeth simply rot away. The voice actors all do great jobs at giving the characters their own unique persona. From introvert to extravert, oblivious to all-knowing, all characters have their special traits: Twilight is the well-meant bookworm out of touch with the real world, Applejack is a warmhearted redneck, Rainbow Dash is a competitive tomboy, Fluttershy is the shy animal-loving hippy and Rarity is an eloquent, though vain fashion designer. The anomaly of the show, however, is Pinkie Pie. She is childish and likes to party, but that is not the full extent of her character. She is generally the vehicle for the more absurd humor present in the show, making this series an entertaining watch for all ages. Firstly, the fourth wall is her bottombitch, as breaking it so often will most likely just wear it out. Secondly, aside from her self-consciousness as a cartoon character, she can BREAK BOTH TIME AND SPACE, illustrated by the way Pinkie Pie uses her hooves to count in the following picture below, which is not photoshopped, I might add.. Spot theanomaly! Poetry. Tertium Comparationis Am I presently perfect or progressive? The apostrophe to your possessive? The locative case or even the cause? Dependent or independent clause? Please have you found my pronoun yet (My antecedent is quite upset)? And it is such a misery To pick the right auxiliary! What mood is my verb in today? (The subjunctive choice is so risqué.) But interjections (bloody hell!) Those never really ended well.. I can’t go on like this much longer Comparing ‘wrong’ just makes it ‘wronger’. Bianca van der Mark The CWW Rhyme From: The Audience Participation Session. All in all, this fourth generation of My Little Pony is by far the most gender neutral of the bunch. That might not be saying much, but it is an interesting phenomenon to see that men like the show as much as girls do. Captivating storytelling, good humor and quality animation defies gender and age, as is visible in the diverse audience the show has been able to garner. It may easily be counted among the present-day greats of TV animation like Adventure Time, Regular Show and Avatar: The Legend of Korra as an example of entertainment for all ages. Tim Renes The bus was late, so I got here on the double I came in and you knew I was _____. Come on fellows, join in with me write and read, have a cup o’ ____. At Creative Writing we make pros outta rookies, I just hope your mouth’s not stuffed with ____. Wrong! I thought you were all wizzkids, those are not cookies, you should call them ____. If you’re not winning, there is no shame, for those out of cooldown, you just lost the ____. Berry Giezen Letz bi frendz cuz #YOLO [EXTRA HOROSCOPES [ARIES] When in doubt, spend more time in the gym. It’s always the right thing to do. #GrowSomeMuscles [TAURUS] Nobody does real tanning anymore. You gotta look good before you go to the beach. #GetOrange [GEMINI] That dude don’t want it, unless it got a permanent duckface. #CosmeticSurgergy #YOLO [CANCER] Those clothes are definitely not revealing enough. #GetClassyGetLaid [LEO] You ain’t been partying hard enough, Broseph. Time to #GetCrunk [VIRGO] That STD collection you been working on ain’t been expanding lately. Lower your standards. #CuzUrWorthIt [LIBRA] That hot piece of ass you saw at the Laundromat? She’s only interested if you wear even more cologne. #Pheromones [SCORPIO] If you think you can do better, don’t dump ‘em. Just have some extra on the side. #WinWIn [SAGITTARIUS] Your BFF was definitely eyeing what was yours. Time to start a fight. #ShowThatBitchWhosBoss [CAPRICORN] If the flow ain’t popping, go to a different club. Life’s too short to not be fistpumping. #AintNobodyGotTimeFoDat [AQUARIUS] Fake tans and sea water don’t mix. Stay on the beach. #KnowYourLimits [PISCES] You can do anything you set your mind to, but if it don’t get you laid, why bother, right? #IDidItAllForTheNookie ULTIMATE #SWAG RIDDLE!!!!1!!!1one Can you guess the name of this rapper? (Answer: The Game)