What do ya do, with a B.A. in....American Literature and Culture

I have recently become conflicted over the overall practicality of my declared major at UCLA. Through this 'blog' I hope to resolve my recent issues through an in depth dialogue between me and I.

American literature and culture.

It seems funny and almost strange for someone who likes to consider himself a globalist to choose a major so narrowly focused on one nation.... A nation, might I had, that has never really been on my 'top 5'. True, I live here and consider myself lucky to do so, but the US seems...oh i dont know, sub par in comparison. The pyramids of Eqypt....the beauty of Greece...the history of Rome... the unparalleled imagery of New Zealand...
So why would I become so focused on one country (as to major in it) that holds less interest to me so the aforementioned?

Well, I do have to admit I probably would not have choosen this over the general 'English' had it not been for the wonderful and beautiful MEP (my American lit teacher last spring) for in her class I was inspired more than ever (well almost... nothing can top a good lecture on Baroque Italian sculpture and painting) to learn....and write...and be.

Literally chills all over.

I couldnt get enough of Elliot's "Wasteland"....or Henry James and his oh so clever perspective on marriage and the social classes... or Wharton and her fever.

Also, the paper I wrote for that class may very well have been my best.
So when I found out that UCLA had a specific mahor for American lit and culture...I was naturally hooked.

So now I am faced witht he practicality of it. What will having a bachelors degree in this subject get me in life? Aside more the all important feeling of satisfaction in my readings and writings. How will I earn a living...

Well i suppose I could check the college website for the specific major and see if it tells me my options...brb

-taken from the ucla major website-
"Majoring in American Literature and Culture can provide excellent preparation for a variety of careers including law, administration, business, and teaching."

Well that's not really what i want to do.
Aside from teaching...but that job is for later.
What about right out of college? Im really not interested in law or admin.... I just want to write and travel.
Be an author for the UN. Should I jsut get the general degree in english?

Let us test this question...

A.) Interviewer: So...UCLA huh? My son went there....great school. Go Bruins...RAWRR haha...
Me: Uhuh....
Interviewer: So...what did you study there?
Me: Well... I received a Bachelors Degree in English and a Minor in Art History.
Interviewer: Oh, a writer eh? Well we could definitely use one of those around here. Our last columnist just moved to Peru...something about his kids getting married....or maybe he was....either way...we have an opening and with an English Degree from UCLA I cant see why not hire you here and now! When can youstart?
Me: Really?.... Well....now i suppose.
Interviewer: Wonderful. Thats what i like to hear....youd never see that kind of enthusiasm from a trojan...

and so on.

B.) Interviewer: So...UCLA huh? My son went there....great school. Go Bruins...RAWRR haha...
Me: Uhuh....
Interviewer: So...what did you study there?
Me: Well... I received a Bachelors Degree in American Literature and Culture.
Interviewer: American..... Literature and Culture did you say?
Me: That's correct sir.
Interviewer: Him....well what exactly did you study...or do if you dont mind me asking?
Me: Well.... we read a lot of novels and poems and plays writen by American authors. We discussed America's influence on the rest of the world...and why America has attracted people from all over the world for hundreds of years for the so-called American Dream...and-
Interviewer: I see... and what do students in this major usually go into?
Me: Well...according to the college website the major is particularly appropriate for people wanting to go into law or busniess or administration or teaching.
Interviewer: Well, we are looking for someone with a little bit more expeirnce in writing and blogging and such...
Me: Well i did a great deal of writing. I brought a sample of my favorite piece where I examine the complete and total falacy of calling America a meliting pot because if you think about it the image of a melting pot is sort of this colorless, bland goo with no real substance and-
Interviewer: No i hear ya kid. And im sure it's great...but youre just not what we're looking for. Listen, my son graduated from the law school at ucla. Maybe you should talk with him. Here's his card. He can give you some good career advice. Just dont ask him for advice on cleaning your room. Hahaha oh god...well listen kid it was a pleasure and i wish you look. Go bruins huh? U! C! L! A!...

fuck i really hate that guy...and i completely made him up in my mind for a fictional scenario that didn't really work out in my favor.

Practicality...money....competition....
ugh what the fuck am i gonna do with this major?

It would be perfect if i could just fall into a pit of money. a million or two...that's all. Enough to travel and write something amazing. Something earth shattering...something new.


Maybe that's why i am choosing this major...
Maybe i am subconciously picking this major becuase through it i can examine my everlasting desire to leave America and travel and never come back. For as long as i can remember ive been reading travel books and magazines and imagining my life abroad.

Which is so different, i think, then what so many others want. They see America as the land of the free... a land of opportunity where the streets are paved with gold...and there's a palm tree and a sweet little tan honey on every corner.
What problems do we create through this sort of exploitation? What sort of false dreams are we creating?
Are we the land of the free? Or are we all really held captive to the belief and hope that we are?

It is a great place. Full of so much history in so little time. Such a very young country, America.
And the authors and painters have seen this...the intellects have pondered this....and politicians love it and hate it... and i have come to observe all of this in a way that makes me shake with a creative climax that forces me to release a form of creative flow unlike i have ever seen before.

I love it.

I always will.

And that is why I will major in American Literature and Culture...and find someone to pay me for it afterward.

fuck the interviewer and his lawyer son.

The Circle of Life

The G-8 Summit is meeting soon in Japan and in a recent anouncement by the press, President George W. Bush said something that I completely and totally....agree with. In regards to the upcoming meeting of the world's 8 richest countries the US President said that topics such as oil prices, the environment and an overall declining global economy shall be discussed; however the main topic shall be the current state of Africa. He stated "we will discuss the environment - i care about the environment - but what we need to focus on now is helping Africa, the world's poorest continent". If you know me you know that I am a total advocate for sustainability and helping reduce my, as well as others, carbon footprints. Yet, I agree with Mr. W in that what the world needs to focus on first and foremost is Africa.

I say this because I have recently come to realize that we are, in fact, not in a state of total globalization, despite previous debates and discussions on my behalf.

I submit that we have not reached a point of globalization until the rest of the world helps rehabilitate Africa.

Think about it....the very foundation for our very existence lies in Africa. Scientists have been able to trace the whole of human civilization back to tribes and families in our neglected neighbor. We have NOT come full circle to a state of interconnectedness...no...what we have done is travel as far away from our true 'home' as we possibly could. We have left Africa high and dry...depleated many of its resources...and left it to rot. Think of Africa as the home you grew up in. Then you acheive the means to travel abroad...to college...to work....to live. You travel further and further away from it, still dependent on many resources you gained from it...but you go as far away as you possibly can creating a new life for yourself. There will come a point, if you havent died yet, where you will have no where else to go. We only have one planet (so far) and judging by the current state of things, we aren't treating it very fairly.

This all may not make any sense. What I mean to communicate is that we will not live in a globalized world until we help rebuild our home. We simply cannot tackle issues of climate change and global economy on a nationalistic scale. These are issues we must all come together and fix by making a concerted and cohesive effort. We cannot make that effort until we have Africa with us. We all hear about poverty in Ethiopia, or riots in Rwanada, or political upheaval in Zimbabwe...but what are we doing about it? Not much. Not enough.

That is why I agree with the President. Africa must be dealt with and helped before we tackle the rest. We can still take steps to achieve carbon neutraility along the way but until we pump some life into Africa we simply are not as global as we may want to believe.