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Paul Wallen Eng 101 Victoria Kingsley October 13,2009 Jim Morrison: “The Medium is the Message” Marshal McLuhan once said, “The medium is the message.” This quote seems to go hand in hand with Jim Morrison’s life and work. Morrison expressed his thoughts and ideas through many different mediums. During a time where young people were looking for a voice to their opinion, he became one of those outlets. Jim’s poetic and sometimes disturbing lyrics that included tales about women, drugs and alcohol became an immediate hit during the early 1960’s. Anything that was against what conservative American life, Jim represented. Morrison’s life was an eclectic life that consisted of many drugs (marijuana, psychedelics,cocaine), constant alcoholism and a strange open relationship with long time girlfriend Pamela Courson in which he supposedly had many affairs with other famous women. Although Morrision was deliberate and upfront about his image and who he was as a person that didn’t mean he wanted people to live the life he lived. However, by living this chaotic life, he unknowingly sparked many imitators, all wanting to be the Rock N’ Roll icon that he became. He appeared out of the Los Angeles club scene in the 1960‘s and ended up becoming one of the biggest lead singers of the time. Jim and fellow student Ray Manzarek founded The Doors after meeting eachother on Venice Beach(answers.com). They got their name from Aldous Huxley’s book, //The Doors Of Perception// which was written about the drug mescaline (Brittanica). Not only was he a singer, but a poet, a film maker and he even acted, appearing in a few films. Jim was influential in many ways and his death at age 27 marked the end for a man who was troubled, yet still managed to become one of the most famous artists of the decade. Jim once said, "When I was in high school and college, " he noted, "the kind of protest that's going on now was totally unheard of. At that time, to be a teenager, to be young, was really nothing, it was kind of a limbo state, and I think it's amazing, just in the last five years. What's happened is young people have become increasingly aware of the power and the influence that they have as a group. It's really amazing."(Brainyquote) He embodied this movement of young people fighting for their rights and power over their lives. “ I am interested in anything about revolt, disorder, chaos-especially activity that seems to have no meaning. It seems to me to be the road toward freedom... Rather than starting inside, I start outside and reach the mental through the physical.”(Brainyquote) There are many works that he produced that were influential to social issues. One of the poems that I think pertains to this social issue of young people trying to gain control over their lives and get their own voice is called Power. “I can make the earth stop in its tracks. I made the blue cars go away. I can make myself invisible or small. I can become gigantic & reach the farthest things. I can change the course of nature. I can place myself anywhere in space or time. I can summon the dead. I can perceive events on other worlds, in my deepest inner mind, & in the minds of others. I can I am.” This poem may seem as though it doesn’t have much to do with social issues. However, at this time many young people listened to Jim’s lyrics and read his poetry. Hearing poems such as these influenced many to be independent and find their voice. It seems to me that he felt like he had some sort of special or maybe even god-like powers and maybe he wanted this confident mind-set to influence the younger generation to stand up and find that voice. An example is lines 3 and 4, where he says he can make himself small yet he can also make himself gigantic and reach the farthest things. This quote is important to me because it shows me that he knew he had the power to influence a lot of people and what he said would somehow reach someone and change them. When The Doors started to become popular, the Vietnam War was also happening. Morrison being a part of the hippie culture that started in his hometown of San Francisco, was naturally, against the war. He was from a generation that wanted peace and love in the world. This idea can be seen in many of his lyrics. An example of this can be seen in one of his poems, “People need Connectors. Writers, heroes, stars, leaders.To give life form.A child's sand boat facing the sun.Plastic soldiers in the miniature dirt war. Forts.Garage. Rocket Ships” ( [|__http://www.huddersfield1.co.uk/poetry/morrisonpoetry.__] ) The conservative typical American life that I touched on earlier was a life very different from Jim’s. At that time, it was very common for the average younh man in their early twenties to join the service and fight for America in Vietnam. However, he rejected this idea and many of the Doors’ songs include lyrics pertaining to the war. Another idea that I think made Morrison reject the idea of the military was the fact that his father was a strict military officer and he didn’t neccesarily get along with him to well during his childhood. Some of the most well-known are Peace Frogs and The Unknown Soldier. A quote from The Unknown Soldier, “Wait until the war is over. And we're both a little older. The unknown soldier. Breakfast where the news is read. Television children fed. Unborn living, living, dead. Bullet strikes the helmet's head. And it's all over. For the unknown soldier. It's all over. For the unknown soldier”(alwaysontherun.net). This excerpt from The Unknown Soldier gives good incite into the emotions of people at the time. You can clearly see a sense of hopelessness as he says, “Bullet strikes the helmet’s head.” It makes me think that the soldiers had no hope when they went to war because they knew they were going to die, and in some cases nobody cared that they were gone because they were “unknown soldiers.” This was a very confusing time for America, there were many people that were so against the war yet they still felt that they were obligated to support the their troops. This caused a lot of anger, and what seems to be disillusionment. However, I feel that during a period of turmoil countries seem to have and explosion in art and literature. Some of the best works have come out of times like these. An example of this is the World Wars, many writers and artists were inspired by these times such as Ernest Hemingway or Erich Maria Remarque who wrote the book //All Quiet On The Western Front.// This book is a great example of how bad times can inspire a writer because when someone goes through an experience like war, it changes you. I think that Jim capitalized on this and used it to his advantage. He knew that people wanted to listen to music that they can identify with and represented the same ideas that they had. I feel that the true show of the relevance and influence that his words meant is the fact that he continues to stay popular. Since his death, there have been many books and documentaries made on him, even a movie, The Doors. I once read a quote that, “Jim’s poetry and music was just as popular during the 80’s and 90’s as he was in the 60’s.” Jim’s aim was to bring attention to issues that were occurring in the daily lives of people in American and I think that he achieved this goal. His complicated and even mysterious life was shaped by the ideals that he beleived in, standing up for your rights and being your own individual. Morrison didn’t like the idea that there was a set way of living and that was the only way to live. He wanted to show that people can be who they want to be and not be ashamed of it, but be proud that they are who they are. Unfortunately, his life began to spiral out of control when a spree of alcohol fueld binges create a great strain on the relationships in his life. Including that of his fellow bandmembers. He was found dead on July 3,1971 in a bathtub in Paris, France by long time girlfriend Pamela Courson. Morrison’s untimely and mysterious death reportedly from a heart attack (drug overdose) was kept a secret until after his funeral because his family knew there would have been a myriad of people greatly saddened by this and would have wanted to attend his funeral.(answers.com) Works Cited "The Doors Lyrics." Web. Oct. 2009. <[|__http://www.alwaysontherun.net/doors.htm__]>. Forrest, Bill. "Jim Morrison Poetry." Huddersfield One. Sept. 2009. Web. Oct. 2009. <([|__http://www.huddersfield1.co.uk/poetry/morrisonpoetry__].)>. Hopkins, Jerry. The Lizard King: The Essential Jim Morrison. Collier, 1993. Print. "Jim Morrison Biography." Encyclopaedia Brittanica. Brittanica, 2006. Web. Oct. 2009. <[|__http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/392993/Jim-Morrison__]>. "Jim Morrison Biography." Reference Answers. Web. Oct. 2009. <[|__http://www.answers.com/topic/jim-morrison__]>. "Jim Morrison Quotes." Brainy Quotes. Web. Oct. 2009. < [|__http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/jim_morrison.html__] >. For Images: Picture 1: [|__www.wolfgangsvault.com/images/catalog/detail/SCF680518-01-FP.jpg__] Picture 2: [|__http://www.cinematografo.it/cinematografo/allegati/2431/jim-morrison-230.jpg__] http:// Picture 3: [|__http://i.esmas.com/image/0/000/004/122/NT_jim.jpg__]