t
Page Twenty-two THE MICHIGAN DAILY Thursday, February 7, 1957
MUSIC REVIEWER: NOT IN TEXTBOOKS:
The Criteria A Look at Politics,_Politicians
not too hard to believe that while
or i sman official is swindling the public est men have avoided the ugli- niving of politics to accomplish
ness of politics, and, as a result, things which, because they are
out of some of its money he is al- know little or nothing about its honest, would be motivated to
myr good so interested in good roads on sealities. What they do know, they ward the general good or at least
And this situation should not be which to drive his Cadillac know only in a vague way. not contrary to legal or moral
the critic's iecd for a command of jallowed to continue unprotested. right,
lassguge. It avails little to hare a in collegiate circumstances, this is CHIS IS all basically why the YET, intelligent and honest men But, unfortunately, the intelli-
phrases to convey these, are lack- e eanil remedied than i pro- democratic system is best. Cor- should go into politics. For, be- gent and honest men who know
ing. Suffice it to say that a fluent esional circles. ruption is an argument for demo- ing intelligent, they would know little or nothing about politics
habit of word usage is essential. If the reader, after a careful cracy, rather than one against it. how to use all the tricks and con- are busy teaching political science.
"Heifitg sure playad swell!" tells ,inalysis (and the word "careful"' Democracy tends to spread the
us nothing. But this point is too s stressed), finds that the critic corruption more evenly and of-
obions foi ftirthci elabosration is misleading, biased, ignorant, or fers to everyone the equal oppor-
What is perhaps overlooked in the like, this should definitely be tmity to reap dishonest harvests.
the minds of many critics is theii brought to the attention of the More important is the system
responsibiity to the reader, to the editars This sill, or should cc- of checks and balanccs. Every car-
perismer, to the composer. Ex- ult in betternist of the critic's rupt politiciani is a check on ev-
actly what is this responsibility? resi , or hosere sang i -ery other corrupt politician. What
It is his obligation to render ans uibofnot vle.r will asty the other gets means less for him:
objective critique of the import- a n .or, the other, invariably being less
ant aspects of a performance. And evuatiynpred letrsmen clever than himself, presents the
equally piejudicial argument. A
why? There may be many reasons, criticism can be shown to be in- dank,'er of attractiig attention to
but par ount is respect to the lid only b ctrary nalis the corruption. There are some in-
reader, is his intention to sharpen not by fiery polemic or stooping stances of cartels and collaboration
the latter's sense of appreciaton t byafie pbetween two or more corrupt poli-
of music. He does this, as was said ticians, but these are not safe
in the beginning, by judgment, A final word to bth critic and from competition either. Another
by pointing out the good and the reader. To the critic: the average check is the ballot box, which may
bad of any concert. reader is not a child. He can be unexpectely break ip such a col-
He. the critic, cannot do this by trusted to have some degree of, laboration by removing a colla- -
mushy adulation for any perform- acuity, hence there is no need to borator from his office. There are
er, noi by vindictive glee of de- write fifth-grade explanations. On argaizatio to prevent this, but
structian. Destruetise criticism the other hand, he is not a mu- they ora the dongr of itinning
only arouses anger, while con- sicologist. up against a stronger organiza-
structive criticism incites thought. To the reader: some critics are tion No one is safe.
In this respect, the critic should better than others. But it would
be chary of superlative criticism be unfair to imagine a critic writ-THIS explains most of the cor-
on either side. Such superlatives ing for his own literary revels of 1rI m
leave room for only unjust con- hateful commentary. It must be rution that make, the paper
parisons. understood that, unless conditions It's next to Impossible for a re-
There is also a responsibility on accurately point to the contrary, porter to dig out corruption by
the part of the reader. Funda- the critic is trying to do a good himself. If he is unable to find
mentally, he must realize that the job of evaluaing what he has seen an enemy of those he wishes to
critic, however objective, is as in- and heard. His reader can judge expose, an enemy who knows
dividual as himself. The reader the result of his labor, but never what's going on and can prove
cannot, just as the critic cannot, his intentions. it, .he will rarely get his story,
feel that his own opinion is the In conclusion, both reader and He must be lucky enough to find
only one possible. He should give critic should realize the other's someone who will talk, which is
the critic the benefit of the doubt attitudes, opinions and require- made possible by the democratic
as to sincerity and ability, at ments. And each should remember system of letting anyone who has
least until this trust is violated. the first purpose of any review or an axe to grind grind It.
criticism of a musical concert, as Even the democratic system, a
JT IS THIS last point which de- was pointed out in the beginning with its checks and balances, can- THE AVERAGE CITIZEN
serves an additional comment. of this essay. Ultimately, it is only iot eliminate corruption from
It comes as no great surprise that that we may all hear better music, politics. Two reasons are that the ...,even he doesn't know
- vast majority of those eligible to ~~~ - -
participate in politics do not, and TW O OPPOSI NG VI EWS:
the power and influence obtain-
able ii politics will always be at-
MjL P E V T M N tractive to the unscrupulous.*
All that the democratic system
caii do is take into account the
with Folic Acid and B-12 selfishness of men and turn some
of it, however, deviously, toward
Ra'Nw mNineicuain ma'nglcandSaints'
the general goad, ad keep car-.
tegnrlgoadkeco-Reg. Now ruption circulating among dif-
100 . . . . . . $3.00 $2.25 ferent individuals for the most
I cnisd 5,0 C~ge h) amouits to expectancy of the in-
part, thereby making it improb---- raulas. No osgansastion Os pat-
200 . . . .y . . . . ., . . . . . . $5.00 $4.00 able for one man or group to e- of lterature.us ri dtoredt-
thegas olis dangerous predaminasncee o-liestusel sections are fsua tnern is supesimposed to the dti-
ra d eu r m n of discoveries, points of edifica- meat of the material, but instead
5 .. ..... . $ .t. the be.t form ofgovern-Ltion and illumination which ur' a form and a design emerge from
i fact, the be t taus a :vein- isp in unexpected places. the sequential studies.
ssent would be democracy in For iistsce, Prof'ssai Worsen
Weaih anly iiteeeiht had honest concludes after his section on the N his immense respect for the
meen ait electd with the checks Puritan poets: "The current the- character of his saints, Potes-
and balances to handle occasional ory that poetry must, at least is sor Warren does not stop our ears
1 101 South Unirsitymoral weaknesses in face of temp- vord order, concur with that cf to the grace notes of wit. The Or-
tastian. a far. intellisent and Ian- prose is only current theory . . . phi Sayings of Bronson Alect h?
--"Dislocation (as wet' as ellipsis: as suggests are the "ntimatio s,
- g' " ,' - J ""' ""' ' 71Mr. Dyger is a former Daily well as the currently outnioded n- vatic utterances, revelations from
'it. Editor. lie is currently the version) is, like alliterative verse the soul to the soul."
editor of a weekly in Belleville, or accented verse, simply a style And when he takes up that lus-
Viehigan. He was graduated to be learned. a taste to be ac- ty, punning preacher, the Protes-
lv L so from the University of Michi- tired." fant Father Taylor, grace notes
Mona"Lisa - a in I957 Throughout, the reader feels in turn to the fortissimo of humor.
j the writer an awareness that The greater the sense of Divinity,
Should have __ _ _ _ _ _Ithe more tolerance is to be found
-._--._-.-.- -1. for the human ity in man.
heThe obligation to jude,no "
shopped here S U E T q( merely to appraise and least of
STUDENTHEADQUARTERS all merely to see, speaks out from
'every page. The subject matter is
011 nnv cr Iknows whherstarkly represented by the snow-
the Mona Lis is happv wFO R Yohite paper jacket of the book,
bearing a railed lesse and hires
or sad. But voki can adways tellatildfnc n-bre
the moodsof osr s oasas. ,,,and tree
teo of csm.rThis is New England from which
hr shave that happy look K both saints and sinners have
Of just liavmsag iounl t SU PL ESsprung; this is the source, the
exactlyasatthewantsss"constancy of the book. But its
xacslc wh'ac they wantauthor has spread over his scene
at the price theywanteds ra revivifying warsmth out of his
to pay! Get the happy habit Shetland skirt and sweater pals own abundant mind. Assuming a
ofsitshspisagIherer aiArgye!kicommon fund of knowledge among
0 Argyle 5OCk its his readers, he has written his
book so that it requires, in places,
! Yarn in all weights and colors .. an automatic translation, an ABC
of the New England character.
Yet readers, themselves not en-
dowed like him with this personals
asnd this spiritu'a1 ancestry, will
discover here the timelessness and
NAIN Ar LR ANN ARnon the regionless-ness of all who, to
WOMAN'S EXCHANGE make them saints, owe their reck-
Onmy the finest (ality at Prices dat are fair Phone NO 2-0303 10 Nickels Arcade less integrity to divine origin and
earthly cultivation.
.._ -~ - Mary C. B o age