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Edgar Allan Poe. The 40th anniversary of Woodstock. What do they have in common? Nothing, except that I’m currently researching Poe while also seeing countless articles and documentaries about the mud-drenched rock festival. A deeply spiritual, if cockeyed, connection occurred to me:
One of the last works Poe ever wrote was a book called Eureka, in which he attempted to describe his vision of the creation story, the structure of the universe….and to justify transcendence through, ahem, altered states. You know: achieving an overwhelming, authentic, mystical experience of communion with the infinite, feeling at one with the universe, through artificial means. Poe was a lifelong alcoholic, and may have dabbled in other substances, such as laudanum, a powerful painkiller and tranquilizer in common use in the 19th century. Woodstock…well, among the many things it represents in the popular imagination is spiritual communion, transcendence through altered states, that whole 60s vibe.
I wasn’t at Woodstock (missed it by a few weeks and a few miles). I can only remember, not recreate, how exhilarating it is to be young and have all possibilities before you. I wish people godspeed in trying to achieve this through meditation, yoga, prayer, chanting or whatever.
My own experience with spiritual nothingness is nil, but I have found that moderate alcohol intake can spur creativity. I emphasize moderate. We’re all familiar with the school of doom and booze as creative fuel; alumni go as far back as Coleridge to Dorothy Parker, F. Scott Fitzergald and Charles Bukowski. As an editor I’ve read the feverish scribblings of people convinced of their genius, writing under the influence, and I can tell you, there’s no there there. Hemingway was a drinker, but my understanding is, during his most creative periods he reserved his drinking for afterwards.
What do you think? Does a tipple or two help you in your creative endeavors?
I will only wish Mr. Poe a peaceful eternity, and take exception, from my own experience, to the notion that meaningful transcendence can be reached through abandonment and excess. And I can only celebrate Woodstock in my own way, grateful to have enjoyed the hell out of the 60s and 70s and yet still have most of my brain intact; and happy to have achieved transcendence through family and friends, wine and food, laughter and working hard at what I love—and the slow erasure of the self through good old-fashioned stumblebum forgetfullness.
Filed under: Arts & Entertainment, Health & Diet, Opinions and Commentary
3 Comments
August 14th, 2009 at 2:33:31 PM
Well put, Tim. For me, some close encounters of the vinous kind have served well to relax my mind and let “pour forth” the creative ruminations of my mind, which otherwsie can tend to get shouted down by the raw hustle, bustle and tussle of the day. Think of it as that feeling you get as you slide the keycard on your hotel door after a long day of just getting there.
That being said, it usually takes me a substantial bit of energy (later!) to ferret out the practical application of such creative ponderings, often after some restful distance and common sense perspective. Mr. Poe (or even the fictional Sherlock Holmes) aside, in today’s world, anything inducing new thinking that connects disparate thoughts can be a good thing or very disappointing depending on whether the brain’s task at that moment is about linearity and logic, or whether it’s about random expression. And to be clear and PC: we can exchange the idea of indulgence of spirits for yoga, exercise, a good read, or even a nap…and the same results can unfold. Only we’d miss all that great tradition and flavorful enjoyment, now wouldn’t we.
August 14th, 2009 at 2:50:18 PM
A little gets the creative juices flowing; a lot makes you feel brilliant when you’re really just sloshed.
August 17th, 2009 at 10:14:53 AM
One or two can help but I find there’s a time window that closes when the stimulating effects of alcohol start to subside—i.e. I get really tired and have the urge to either stop writing or just keep drinking.
Also I agree with Dave that it’s important to distinguish between more cerebral creative tasks and the more Dionysiac ones, like certain forms of poetry or songwriting, that are purely about raw, emotive self-expression. For the latter, one or two (or maybe even three or four) can definitely come in handy.