The Random Blog
Follow the Lists?1/8/2016 Disclaimer: I do not endorse the lists linked to in this article, they are used for their appropriate titles. Read and follow at your own risk!
Everyone knows them. The listicles or quizzes or best of’s (all collected as lists for the purpose of this article) that are a constant fixture of social media. Having recently been going through some of those lists posted on Facebook recently, I have to ask a question of my very own. Is it more important to have watched “1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die” or read “200 Amazing Books…How Many Have You Read?” or is it better to have consumed media that you enjoy, regardless of its place on a list? These lists often do contain things that are critically beloved or are adored by the public at large. They’re the things that deserve to be on a list. Is it really that surprising that Charles Dickens or Margaret Atwood ends up on a list any more? Or that Clockwork Orange, 2001, and Star Wars are some of the Sci-Fi Films everyone should watch before they die? These lists, while drivers of traffic to the respective websites, increasing advertisement dollars and allowing for the creation of even more lists, often don’t venture into the territory where most of us live. Let’s talk about books for a second. According to the list I just completed, I have read 14% of these 200 amazing books, or just 27 of them! If I were to tell you this number in isolation, as say a post on my Facebook profile, you may think that I don’t read. You may think that I’m not very cultured or have poor tastes. You may be right; however, I have read exponentially more than 27 books. I have read hundreds of books, many of which you likely have never heard of. I devour books, and have been known to read through them in a single day. As The Random Geek, I am obviously drawn to books that fit into the genres associated with geekiness, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Action-Adventure, Mystery, and Military Thrillers and the like. I like authors that are well known to most people, like Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Tom Clancy, Robert A. Heinlein, and Dan Brown. I like authors that are well known to those who enjoy the genres, like Matthew Reilly, Jack McDevitt, Michael Stackpoole and Timothy Zahn. There are also plenty that most have never heard of. Hundreds of authors, hundreds of books, a thousand planets, millions of characters and all of the stories they inhabit. Are they meaningless because they didn’t end up on a list? This is true for everything that the lists ask of us. The countless hours of movies and television, the videogames, artists, vacation hotspots and all the other things that could be put in its rightful place on a list. Many other things won’t be. Wawa Ontario and Pancake Bay aren’t likely going to be on a list of the top places you’ll visit, but both hold some interest for me personally. Wing Commander (the movie) might end up on a list of bad movies, but its one of my guilty pleasures (I know…I know...). Does this invalidate the worth of our personal lexicon of content? Are we short changing ourselves by not consuming what society has deemed the 20 most important things ever? Personally I have never been compelled to watch or read something just because everyone else has. At the time I was in film school everyone was going on and on about Memento and Requiem for a Dream. Both are fine films I am sure, but I haven’t watched them. Nothing about them interest me, and it offended me that I should watch them “because I HAVE TO!!!”. It often left me feeling like my opinions where less valid because I hadn’t checked these off the list. The reverse was also true, as was the personally infamous time the film school kids tore apart True Lies, a film which I rather enjoyed despite its low brow appeal. Apparently all films should be complex and introspective with moody cinematography…explosions and guys fighting on top of a moving Harrier jet be damned! However, lists do have value, even to someone like me. I often am reminded of that one movie or book that I have forgotten about. They’re awesome for brainstorming, like the 15 Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in Toronto might make you really remember about that restaurant beside the Eaton Centre that makes that great dish you like, or maybe you know nothing about Toronto and want to hit the basics first. Sometimes the lists are just fun, like 7 Weird Things You May Have Missed In The Star Wars Movies. Occasionally lists have things you may not have known, and are informative. We can’t dismiss the list, however the temptation is there to use the list as a validation of our life and the choices we make. “Oh this list says I must read War and Peace, clearly I have made poor life decisions and must go read this right now!” Why make decisions or find those off the beaten path gems when there are all these handy lists to check off? Clearly I come down on living my life how I choose, and not following 101 Ways To Live Your Life To The Fullest. However, lists clearly have some value in modern society. PBS Ideas Channel has a neat video that is worth watching for further insights into the value of lists and their place in modern society, so do check it out if you want to learn more about lists. What do you think though? Are these manufactured lists central to your life, or do you prefer to chart your own course? Take this straw pole and let me know!
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The Random GeekI've been geeking out over things since I can remember. Now is time I share it with the world! Archives
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