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May 13, 1961 - Image 4

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Publication:
The Michigan Daily, 1961-05-13

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Special Movie Award

C 4rg 1Mir1''ax Baily
Seventy-First Yearr
- EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
Opinions Are Free UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS
ii Wil Preval"
WSTUDENT PUBLICATIONS BLDG. * ANN ARBOR, MICH. * Phone NO 2-3241
Wtorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints.

rr>

.. r3

CINEMA GUILD:
'Nights of Cabria'
Iiocit, Tiresome
HE "NIGHTS OF CABRIA" are generally tiresome affairs; hap-
hazard incidents in the aimless life of a prostitute of Rome.
Even knowing this movie was produced several years ago does not
alter the monontonous fact that it was about a prostitute again. Fellini
dwells on these types. This is all right-it almost guarantees some sort
of award.
This one, portrayed by some Giuletta Masina, is not as sexy as
Anita Ekberg, Elizabeth Taylor, or Shirley Jones. In fact Miss Masina
never gets to go to bed throughout the movie. One man shoves her into

Y, MAY 13, 196'

NIGHT EDITOR: PETER STEINBERGER

Spring Rite Fails
To Fulfill Goals

T4

CONTRAST to the University's wanton
ttempts to elicit money from the state
slature or improve its academic position,
erday's rites of spring were a prototype of
athness and efficiency.
>th the Michigamua initiation and the 38th
,ual Honors Convocation are highly struc-
: and formal events in which each involved
ridual performs a well-defined role at an
,lly well assigned time. No one stumbles in
uting his job and, so, another 25 or so
ng. bucks join the tribe and 800 or more
ergradtfates are cited for glistening tran-
its..
ither event, however, reaches its accept..
final state-without planning and finan-
backing. The question is whether or not
expenditure is justified in either case.
)noraries have perennially been the subject
uch 'praise and lamentation, but rarely has
)ne considered the appropriateness or im-
tions of the honors convocation.
itside of the fact that the Hill Auditorium
nonies bring a distinguished (though not
ssarily enlightening or interesting) speaker
ampus, they have little meaning.
gents citations and honorary degrees, used
cogriize outstanding work or improve pub-,
elations, can be handled at commence-
t exercises.
ERE ARE two principal reasons for op-
osing the Honors Convocation: the wrong
le are honored and, more fundameritally,
le out not be honored in such a manner.
nner.
its desire to reaffirmh its dedication to an
emic ideal, the University lavishes con-
ulations on students for receiving signifi-
ly high grade points. Grades may be earned
vast number of ways-proper selection of
ses, long hours of memorizing, cheating,.
erly using the. escape valve of taking
ompletes" and, of course, honest academic
evement.
'ades are not a perfect (nor always the
indicator of' intelligence or achievement,
should not be used in such a way. Desiring
upplement classes with meaningful ac-
es and reading in immediately unrelated
s may cause a student's average to drop.
E HONORS CONV4CATION also fails to
ote the contribution of graduate students
he academic quality of the University.
luates comprise 40 per cent of the student
! and make its most meaningful contri-
)ns.
part of its efforts to honor academic

achievement, the University sponsors an Honors
Edition of The Daily where students are
favorably recognized for contributions to or-
ganizations extra-curricular and often anti-
curricular. Citing these students for member-
ships in groups which run tangent to the basic
purposes of the University is hypocritical and
indefensible.
EVEN IF the University could siphon ,out
those members of its community that de-
serve recognition for academic excellence, an
Honors Convocation is an inappropriate way
of conferring congratulations.
The convocation is a one-shot, two hour,
affair which brings no real gain to the cited
individuals. The lecture is even open to the
public at large. A few moments of glory can
be relished by those honored, a few incentive
initiating thoughts by those not.
The incentive to do better that is engendered
in the "dishonored" is directed toward an
artificial and reprehensible goal. Since selec-
tion is dependent.upon grades, the person who
wants to get the honors will be driven to work
for the grades, not the knowledge. This 'ush
for higher grades is but another reinforcement
of our society's demands of group acceptance
for individuals, acceptance based on non-
inclusive ands arbitrary values.
rPj'H UNIVERSITY could abolish the Honors
Convocation and still honor its outstanding
students through better means that already
exist.
On the undergraduate level, achieving stu-
dents are given the privilege of joining the
Honors Program where work is theoretically'
more challenging and interesting, the teachers
better and provisions made for seminars and
special summer reading projects. Such an
award is much more tangible and beneficial
than the Honors Convocation and is a daily
affirmation of the University's devotion to its
best students.
Graduate students who show potential are
given, one assumes,. special guidance and di-a
rected toward substantive research work in
their particular field of interest.
The Honors Convocation is certainly an im-
pressive and traditional affair which no one
wants to destroy needlessly, but it blearly does
not fulfill to the fullest possible extent any.
of the lofty goals set for it. The false base
of selection, the insignificance of its meaning
and the existence of much better means to
perform the same function all point to an
elimination of the yearly honors ceremonies.
--MICHAEL OLINICK

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the bathroom while he makes out
steal her money, one of them
throwing her into the river in the
process.
- - -
MISS MASINA is not an espe-
cially likeable character; kind of
a runt, in fact. Her personality is
a rather snotty watch-me-I'll-
show-you facade which takes on
all comers. The only time her emo-
tions are genuinely conveyed to
the viewer is in two short scenes;
one when she is hyptonized, the
other when she was foolish enough
to turn her hard-earned posses-
sions into hard cash for a soft-
willed man. The girl's character is
,to Miss Masina's credit, but it's
just too tiresome.
Nevertheless, and unexpectedly,
a moral begins $o emerge toward
the end. There is a buried inno-
cencge in our. heroine' (are not all
movie prostitutes good at heart)
that :shines through the sordid
Italian slumscapes. The hypnoist
tricks her into revealing her in-
curable yearning in a hypnotic
love scene to amuse those unkind-
ly Italian types.
FATE (Fellini uses the word too)
intervenes and one sensitve soul
espies the "innocence and can-
dor." The love affair develops. It
is hard to determine whether she
is in love or not--though she is
happy. Then environment closes in
again when her still innocent lover
sees her roll of bills.
For the sophisticated, irony is
added when the love scene lead-
ing to disaster duplicates the hyp-
notic love scene. This world's op-
pressive reality does not end as
love dreams do.
At times Fellini demonstrates
real power. He is not at all incom-
petent. The cripple's yearning and
despair are very moving. And ac-
tually, the movie is better than
most American portrayals of pros-
enough to say this isn't the best
way to do things,
-Thomas Brien
LETERS
to the
EDITOR

NEW 'GENERATION':
\ Music Segment'Smulin

with his girl friend, and two others
AT THE STATE:
A uthentic
A trocit

A

TODAY AND TOMORRQW
1~.& hePresiden't in Paris
y E
By *VAL*ER LIPPMANN

AS IS BEING SAID, there is 'a crisis in
ATO, the issue is not the Atlantic Alliance
or any movement within NATO to sur-
r Berlin, and Germany, and Europe. The
issues in NATO are strategy and com-
L Can the European members continue to
for their defense upon the American nu-
deterrent under the command of the
'ican President and an American General?
is question can be explored but it cannot
ttled by the NATO foreign ministers at
Unless I am much mistaken, it will be
:entral subject of the serious discussions.
President Kennedy visits President de
e:
ese discussions will not be easy, ' and it
I be a great pity if. the Administration
up any public expectation, which would
st certainly be false, that there.are going
settlements at Paris. The best that anyone
i right to hope for is that the two Presi-
will reach a preliminary understanding
ch other, and can therefore lay the foun-
ns for those changes in the strategy and
bure of NATO which are necessary.
[ understand the problem after a number
reful talks in Paris, it is the consequence"
.e change in the balance of power since
oviet Union achieved nuclear parity. The
D strategical doctrine antedates this his-
change., The NATO military establish-
which was founded under Gen. Eisen-
r and is now commanded by Gen. Nor-
has been regarded as the "shield." It was
ld the Red Army at bay while the United
s wielded the decisive weapon, which was
our monopoly, the "sword" which is the
ar strategic air force.
S STRATEGIC CONCEPTION has been
adically undermined by the Soviet nuclear
le forces. The most authoritative European
is that since the Soviet Union is now cap-
of inflicting prohibitive damage on the
!d States, and absolute' damage on the
European countries; the automatic collec-
efense, which NATO pre-supposes, cannot
unted upon. The French view, which is
y more articulate than that of the other

tend that they can deter attack anywhere ex-
cept against French cities. Rightly or wrongly,"
the French intend to have this nuclear power
under their own command, not under the'
American President's command, the nuclear
power to be able to destroy two or three Soviot
cities if French cities are threatened.
I shall be very astonished if the President
can argue Gen. de Gaulle out of this view, or
that he can induce him to alter it by any de-
vice for a collective control of missiles by NATO.
which leaves the ultimate and fateful decision
in the United States.
IT IS TRUE that in the field of political con-
sultation, the Kennedy Administration has
done better than its predecessor, and that com-
munication between the two governments, both
in Washington and in Paris, is happily, much
more open. But it would be misleading to say
that the atmosphere is as cordial as it needs
to be, or that trust and confidence between the
two governments have not in recent years been
seriously impaired.
Seen from our side, the reason for this has
been, of course, the great disagreement with
Gen. de Gaulle over the military structure of
NATO and over the independent French nuclear
bomb. Seen from the French side, there is not
only a general sense of grievance that France,
as compared with Great Britain, has been ig
nored. There is not only a firm conviction that
President Eisenhower broke his promise to sup-
port France in Algeria, and instructed our dele-
gation to abstain in the United Nations."
There are also uglier irritations of which I
shall with some discretion cite two examples
that I have verified. There is a specific case
where an American manufacturer of missiles
has been allowed to give to the Germans, but
prohibited from giving to the French, highly
secret-although non-nuclear-technical infor-
mation. This kind of thing is poisonous in an
alliance, and there is reason to hope that it
and similar cases are being studied and will be
reformed.
The other case is very delicate because it in-
volves the CIA, which is so generally beleaguer-
ed. But our peonle have a right to know this.

suite for Piano, by Gordon Mumma;
Five Pieces for Solo Violin, by Da-
vid S. Bates; Continuum, for viola
and Cello, by Roger Reynolds.
THE MUSIC SECTION in the
current issue of Generation,
which includes an excellent edi-
torial by Roger Reynolds, and the
three works noted above, makes
an excellent contribution to an
understanding of some of the
problems, successes, and failures
that attend contemporary music.
In its broad gamut, it seems par-
ticularly appropriate to ,its place
and function in an educational
locale. Since this is an educational
locale, however, a few words per-
taning to the role of the reviewer,
of this reviewer in particular, may
be appropriate prior to considera-.
tion of the music in detail.
The role of the music reviewer,
or critic, as apparently suggested
by the wide dissemination of his
words to the public and by the
attendant quality of omniscience
that often emerges, requires of
him the capacity to express him-
self effectively in writing. In the
exercise of that capacity-off the
top of his head, as it were-the
views he expresses concerning the
musical values encountered in
composition, and usually in per-
formance as well, gain a measure
of authority and stature.
Implicit is the reviewer's reason-
ably general and detailed know-
ledge of the sum total of music
literatures of the pastseveral cen-
turies, his knowledge and per-
ception of the arts of composition
and performance and of the in-
strumental skills and potentials to
be encountered, and finally his
capacity for Judgment concern-
ing the degree of success the com-
poser anid performer may have
achieved in their respective uses
of instrument and materials. (It
is somehow irrelevant that the
composer and performer are in
all probability life-time specialists,
each in his own field, and that
the specific work or performance
under consideration may well have
occupied their professional talents
for months on end.) Since this
role, apparent perhaps to me
alone, is obviously a wild and im-
plausible one, the present review is
candidly presented as recording
some facts of reportage, supple-
mented by comments and opinions
highly personal to myself and in-
evitably subject to question as to
their validity.
* * *
MY UNDERSTANDING and
;iews concerning Gordon Mumma's
"Suite for Piano" stem from study
of score and taped performance.
I find the work pleasing, but not
more than that. Changes in mood
and character are nicely comple-
mentary, and textures and sonori-
ites are varied and fairly colorful.
In sum total the work is of rela-
tively brief duration.
My failure to respond .more to
the Suite may be induced in part
by evidences of uncertainty and
ambivalence toward the work that
are suggested by the composer,
himself. For example, his empo
indications are, for the four move-
ments, for the eight note, 76-144;
fnr theniqurter note. 5-644 for

If variance in tempi are implied
as so much free rein for the in-
terpreter in his choice of a basic
tempo for each movement, then
there would be suggested a real un-
certainty on the part of the com->
poser concerning the amount of
time required for communication
of the structure, or content. An
art which uses time for its can-
vas justifies the amount of time
used only by the nature and po-
tential of content, and communi-
cation. Another example of un-
certainty, or possibly ambivalence,
appears in the alternates of struc-
ture (not "execution") offered in
Pieces I and III.,
Of less contradictory import is
the use of the term "Suite", tra-
ditionally used for a succession of
movements, separate and distinct
each from the other in character,
and usually of dance derivation.
In Mumma's Suite, elision of
character and sequence is created
between the first and second moves
ments, and the third and fourth.
Further, I can discover no sug-
gestion of the dance. The point
would be entirely petty were it
not for the fact that it probably
contributes an unnecessary bar-
rier to audience comprehension.
I CAN SAY LITTLE about the
Five Pieces by David Bates, simply
because I have never heard them,
and have a distrust for "paper'
evaluations of music. The Pieces
appear to be well-worked and eco-
nomical, and to use the violin
,well.
A superficial evaluation suggests
the content to be expressive, the
movements well-related, and that
the work will communicate itself
well to the audience. Also sug-
gested, however, is a minimum of
stylistic and constructional origin-
ality. I look forward to hearing
these pieces, and very possibly to
changing my estimate of them.
My previous knowledge of Bates'
work has provided me with a re-
spect for his capacities and ac-
complishments and an interested
anticipation for works to come.
Of the three' works printed, I
am most familiar with the Rey-
nolds' Continuum, having discuss-
ed it at some length with the
composer and heard and consider-
ed it in my capacity as a per-
formance coach. The impressions
gained were subsequently ampli-
fied by additional study of score
and taped performance.
* . *
I AM greatly impressed with
Reyonld's Continuum. Undoubt-
edly the exceptionally perceptive,
exciting, even scintillant perform-
ance provided by Elizabeth Lichty,
violist, and Arthur Follows, cellist,
has sharply influenced my re-
sponse. I think, though, that the
performance actually does serve
to -reveal the work, rather than to
obscure it or cover possible weak-
nesses by diverting attention to
itself.
Instrumentally, the work is a
conceptual hair-raiser. It verges
on an optimum exploitation of the
pitch potential of each string, the
left or fingering hand providen-
tially stopping just short of ac-

that the work will have many per-'
formances, at least for the present.
IT IS IN the actual composi-
tional use of the assumed and
seemingly infinity of technical re-
source that the validity of the
work must rest, and therein rests
my own present conviction that
the Continuum is a work of hon-
esty, power, and contemporary im-
port. Its uses of technical resource
and device seem rooted in and
expressive of a compositional, con-
ceptual need directly relatedand
own time and, I believe, to the
responsive to the climate of its
sume total of direct experience
of the composer himself.
To be more concrete, it appears
to me that his further preoccu-
pation with rhythmical complexi-
ties results in a further consider-
ation and, expanded function of
known bow techniques.
His need for more varied and
expressive textures has induced
an expanded use of register, tim-
bre, and vertical harmony. His
need for a more fluent, perhaps
fluid, use of harmony has moved
him on occasion to the perhaps
questionable length of achieving
major harmonic points of accent
through the device and at the
expense of intervening periods of
harmonic confusion.
In its over-all organization the
Continuum appears to be organic
and responsible. Its rhythmical,
harmonic, textural and melodic
premises are stated early and with
clarity. Their further use and de-
velopment seem reasonable and,
certainly, evoke power,
IF I HAVE any serious doubt as
to the merits of this work, it
would have to do with the intro-
duction of the "Free" sections of
periods of purposeful, contrived,
non-specification of harmony, (in-
itially proposed in the glissandi, I
think) that are meant to sepaate
and give greater impact to stated
points of harmonic intention.
Whatever the arguments for
this device-and I know there ar
some - there also seems good
reason to question its validity. For
it proposes as valid a required,
accidental element in an art work.
By irrational extension, this pro-
posal could lead to a work without
notes or title, a blank page, and
for some occasional, irrational
works, I suppose this might be
the preferable form.
Seriously, I imagine that the
mobile, with its points of acciden-
tal perspective, and hence of ac-
cidental form, might serve as
precedent, and perhaps justifica-
tion. But there seems to me to
be essential differences involved.
The endles, many-faceted varia-
tions possible to the mobile are
inherent to its intent, and hence
to its construction serving to re-
veal its totality.
In the Continuum, the periods
of harmonic non-specification be-
come variable as a consequence,
but specific by accident alone. In
themselves, the variations in har-
mony and harmonic sequence be-
come explicit and unique, one to
a performance, each such variation
being unsusceptible of specific pre-
diction or intention. To tha degree

Morality .
To the Editor:
EARL POLE'S letter to the editor
in defense of Castro's tyranny,
alarms me both for its moral cal-
lousness and its lack of intelli-
gence. As an example of the first,
the totalitarian (a sufficient word
which, for some reason, he turns
into the barbarous ,"totalitarianis-
tic") measures of the Cuban gov-
ernment . are merely directed
"against the Church and the
wealthy bourgeoisies"; in other
words, it is all right to rob, im-
prison, or shoot a man if you can
label hin a "priest" or a "bour-
geois"-the exact equivalent of
Hitler's doctrine that it; is, all
right to rob, imprison, or shoot
a man if you can label him a
"Jew". The idea that all men
have rights does not seem to occur
to Mr. Pole.
As an example of the want of
intelligence, take his statement
that the press has not been "re-
stricted" but merely "nationaliz-
ed". The whole value of a free
press is that it stands outside the
government and so can criticize
it. Can human governments be
trusted adequately to criticize
themselves? Does the Russian
press, also nationalized, attack the
cruelties and oppressions of the
Russian government? Does the
Chinese press criticize the mas-'
sacres in Tibet? A government
press is a kept press by very defi-
nition.
--Prof. Preston Slosson
Department of History
Pink Slip ..
To the Editor:
AM DISTURBED by the lack of
attention shown to the pink
slips of the men's residence halls.
These slips are extremely dan-
gerous for one very important rea-
son: How qualified are the opin-
ions. expressed on the slips?.
For example, there is one ques-
tion which calls for the staff
counselor's opinion about how well
the resident adjusts to his room-
mates. No matter .how well the
staff counselor knows the stu-
dent, his opinion cannot help but
be subjectives. "Adjustment" is a
mere abstraction; there is no real
criterion in this case for what con-
stitutes adjustment, or what does-
n't. In some cases, it may even
be undesirable to be "adjusted"
such as when "adjustment" is

SELDOM does a collected group
of poor quality old-time move.
les and photos merit enough to
become a full-length movie, let
alone an entertaining one.
Even less seldom can a movie
be classed as entertainig -yet
still "educational," a word synon-
omous to "poison" to movie ad-
vertisers. "Mein Kampf," how.'
e 'er, manages to do both,
Reality is the main virtue In
this unusual movie, composed of
authentic 'pictures and fils,
mostly silent taken by;Germnss
and spanning the two world wars.
It has no actual plot, but revolves
around the factual story of Adolf
Hitler and the Nazi rise to power
in Germany.
-IT IS HELPFUL to the film's
impact that the audience knows
the pictures of crumbling build-
ings and starving war prisoners
are neither cardboard sets nor
Hollywood extras well plastered
with make-up.
Only a small percentage of tihme
is spent on a collection of pitiful
pictures of the Jews and concen-
tration camps (a timely 'addition
.to the already overplayed Eiah-
mann trial). More time is given to
showing Hitler presenting his
many excited speeches, and the
increasingly enthusiastic reactions
of the German public to these,
giving only a small idea of how
and why this hatred and desire
for power grew up.
The ideas are held together by
a narrator giving the, historytof
Hitler's life, in almost lecture
form, though far from dry and
dull
BECAUSE of its realistic nature,
the picture sometimes lacks le
smoothness and perfection mod-
emn viewers are accustomed to .
Jumpy, unrelated picture are put
together, subtitles are sloppy and
the photography itself is poor at
times. These minor weaknesses,
however, are overridden Eby the
message which comes through of
the uselessness and destruction of
war.
-Julie Stockwell
DAILY'
OFFICIAL
BULLETIN
The Daily Official Buletin is a
official publication of The Univer-
sity of Michigan for -which The
Michigan Daily assumes no editorial
responsibilty. Notices should be .
sent sinTYPEWRITTEN form to
Room 3519 Administration Building,
before 2 p.m., two days preceding
publication.
SATURDAY, MAY 12
General Notices
President and Mrs. Hatcher will hold
open house for students at their home
The next meeting of the women's
Research club will be the annual din-
ner meeting on Mon., May 15 at 6:30
p.m. in the Vandenberg Room, Michi-
gan League. Dr. Wilma T. Donahue, ln-
stitute of Human Adjustment, will
speak on "Some Gerontoloical Rearch4
at Michigan." Reservations can beMae
with Mrs. Henry K. Townes at 4045
Museum of Zoology.
Events Saturday
Doctoral Examination for John wen-
del' Spalding, Speech; thesis: "An His-
torical and Descriptive Analysis of the
'Voice ,of Firestone' Radio and Televi-
sion Program," Sat., May 13, 2020 Frieze
Bldg., at 10:00 a.m. chairman, S. $.
Willis.
Doctoral Examination for Donald
Pryce Rozenberg, Electrical Engineering;
thesis: "An Investigation ofthe Alge-
brie'Properties of the Residue Number
System," Sat., May 13, 2075 E. Engin.
Bldg.,'at10:00 a.m. Chairman, N. R.
Scott.
Placement
PLACEMENT INJTERVIEWS: -Bureau.+.

of Appointments--5eniors & grad. stu-
dents, please call Ext. 3371 for inter-
view appointments with the following:
TUES., MAY 16-
Apes Investment Co., Jackson, Mich.
-Location: Home office & local of-
fices all over state. Men with degree
in any field for Sales & Supervisory
positions. This is a new life insurance
firm. New firm to be called Jackson
National Life Insurance Co., & will
write only life insurance.
TUES., MAY 16, WED., MAY 17-
Office of theAdjutant General, Dept.
of the Army, Washington, D.C.-Loca-
tion: Foreign Countries where Army
Bases are located. June & Aug. grads
to adninister library & recreation pro-
grams established & maintained tn in-

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