There are hundreds of lists here, and yet we only have a handful of "desert island" lists (movie, book, music). Weird. Perhaps it's because it's so hard to limit yourself. I must attempt my own. Care to try your hand at it?
About that BBC program: I seem to recall that it was called "Desert Island Discs", which would make it about music. That was the original radio version. The television version, which I never saw, may well have been about books. (Actually I have no memory of having heard the radio show either, though I must have heard it advertised.)
You seem to be saying that you would want your DI items to have more variety (the spice of life) than your Favorites items - no? Interesting idea. Let me suggest, then, that your DI list might include some items that you had not yet experienced (perhaps because you saw them as 'not your cup of tea'), but that had great reputations. What better way to combat boredom than being forced to appreciate something new - new to you, that is. So, by this reasoning, a DI list would ideally be a collaborative product, some items being chosen by you, some by someone with different tastes than you (different, but on the same cultural level, perhaps). For example, I prefer instrumental to vocal music, so I'm not into opera or the mass, and I have neglected some of Bach's best - I have listened to his "Goldberg Variations" much more often than his "St Matthew Passion". What do you think of this idea? Perhaps we could collaborate on our DI lists and choose some of the items for ourselves and some for each other.
You are right, it was music, not books. Music made for a more entertaining programme, especially on the radio.
I hesitate to be positive about your variety point, not having made up either a very extensive group of favorites, or DIL's. But I'm pretty sure that my DIL's would have more variety than my favorites. After all, having favorites doesn't preclude the enjoyment of a wide variety of non-favorites, while a DIL is exclusive.
But, please, let me pick my own DIL. The possible surprise of a undiscovered diamond would almost always be replaced with chagrin that I now really had 9 of mine, and one more that I wouldn't have picked. And think how I would feel, opening up my little chest and drawing out my precious nine companions, and finding that the 10th, selected by another, was American Psycho!
Good point. And to preclude that dire possibilty, I would stipulate that any item chosen for me would have to have passed the test of time, would have to be a long-established classic.
Jim, I think the point of a Desert Island List - as distinct from a Favorites List - is that the number of choices must be strictly limited. This forces you to think about what few items you could bear to see/read/listen to over and over again and never tire of. An easier task with books and music than with movies, don't you think? And this tells us something interesting about movies: they are more fast-food-for-the-mind than books and music.
I agree that that is the purpose of a Desert Island list. But I disagree with what you say about movies. I wouldn't even consider including 95% of recently released movies, but neither would I consider 95% of recently published books or recorded music. I wouldn't take Top Gun, but I wouldn't take (ducking) any Carl Hiassen or (no longer ducking) Spice Girls, either. I would take The Grand Illusion, The King James Bible, and Bach's St. Matthew Passion.
Negative, no: I stand by my comment. Percentages have nothing to do with it. The average person-who-enjoys-movies (as distinct from the movie fanatic) would have, I feel sure, much more difficulty in narrowing down a list of favorite books or music than they would a list of favorite movies. How many movies are not only endlessly re-watchable but also worthy of serious study by someone with very limited cultural resources? - For myself, I can only think of one: CITIZEN KANE.
Btw, I thoroughly approve of your movie and music choices. TGI is one of the greatest of anti-war movies (but is it endlessly re-watchable?), and Bach is The Composer, transcending his religious environment. Which brings us to book choices. I don't now if you chose the KJB for its religious importance, its literary qualities, or both; but, not being a religious person, I would have to sacrifice The Book in favour of Shakespeare - "All of human life is here", as someone once said of The Bard's works.
You have confused me. In your original post you said:
An easier task with books and music than with movies, don't you think?
Now you say picking movies would be easier.
You then ask whether The Grand Illusion is endlessly re-watchable. Perhaps it isn't, perhaps it is, but a DIL isn't just what one item, but what very limited list of items, would one take to a DI. Citizen Kane might be endlessly re-watchable, but I would rather have Top Gun and Citizen Kane than just Citizen Kane.
My point is that while it is true that many movies are, as you said, "fast-food-for-the-mind" (though I disagree with the 'mind' part), so are many books and pieces of music. I don't think there is anything intrinsic about movies, as a form, and as a library, that would make picking a Desert Island List of them harder or easier.
The book, movie and music I gave were examples only- They would be on my DIL, but not necessarily number one.
Finally, I think that The Grand Illusion is one of the greatest movies ever made, despite
the fact that some think that it is an anti-war movie.
You're going to think I'm trying to wriggle out of a self-contradiction, but here's what I had in mind in that first post. I meant that, for the book and music categories, it would be much easier to come up with candidates for such a very short list (we hadn't discussed how short, but you seemed to want to limit it to one item in each category). But when it comes to movies, not so many candidates spring to mind. How many movies might conceivably be ranked alongside Bach, The Bible, and Shakespeare? None, to my mind - not even CITIZEN KANE or THE GRAND ILLUSION. Am I out of jail?
Jail? I thought we were talking about desert islands.
I had originally read your first post as you now explain that you meant it, and continue to disagree.
Assuming that one could take x books, x pieces of music, and x movies, I would have as much difficulty picking movies as books or music.
But comparing movies to books or music is irrelevant, unless one is
only allowed a total of x of the three. In that case, for any x <= 100, I doubt that I would take any movies.
Re. your last sentence. I would say that if our x > 5 then our DI lists will be indistinguishable from a our Favorites lists. My understanding of the DI list idea is that such a list is meant to be an answer to a question like: "If you found yourself in Robinson Crusoe's situation and only one small chest salvaged from the wreck had books, etc., in it, what books, etc., would you like to find in that one small chest?" I would say that the "one small chest" constraint limits x to less than 5. So I'm interested to know how you see a DI list as being different from a Favorites list.
I didn't mean that a DIL should be as long as 100, but that even if it were that long (and combined), I likely wouldn't include any movies. The BBC used to have a radio (then TV, I think) programme that asked celebrities what their DIL (books only, as I recall) would be. I don't remember for sure how many were on the list, but I think it was at least 10. I think the salient difference between a DIL and a favorites list is that a favorites list is created knowing that there are also many many other things to read (view, listen to), while a desert island list must be differently selected because no respite from them would be possible. Given that, I don't think it likely that my top 10 favorites would be the same as my 10 DIL, for books, music or movies. To take music, for example- my favorites might include 5 Bach pieces, but my DIL would probably not be so heavily weighted.
I think it would be near impossible for me to limit myself: partially because I like so many books, partially because I rarely re-read books, and partially because there are so many books I want to read. I'd have to be on a desert island that had internet access and some way of having books delivered from amazon. :)
Over here, no.
About that BBC program: I seem to recall that it was called "Desert Island Discs", which would make it about music. That was the original radio version. The television version, which I never saw, may well have been about books. (Actually I have no memory of having heard the radio show either, though I must have heard it advertised.)
You seem to be saying that you would want your DI items to have more variety (the spice of life) than your Favorites items - no? Interesting idea. Let me suggest, then, that your DI list might include some items that you had not yet experienced (perhaps because you saw them as 'not your cup of tea'), but that had great reputations. What better way to combat boredom than being forced to appreciate something new - new to you, that is. So, by this reasoning, a DI list would ideally be a collaborative product, some items being chosen by you, some by someone with different tastes than you (different, but on the same cultural level, perhaps). For example, I prefer instrumental to vocal music, so I'm not into opera or the mass, and I have neglected some of Bach's best - I have listened to his "Goldberg Variations" much more often than his "St Matthew Passion". What do you think of this idea? Perhaps we could collaborate on our DI lists and choose some of the items for ourselves and some for each other.
You are right, it was music, not books. Music made for a more entertaining programme, especially on the radio.
I hesitate to be positive about your variety point, not having made up either a very extensive group of favorites, or DIL's. But I'm pretty sure that my DIL's would have more variety than my favorites. After all, having favorites doesn't preclude the enjoyment of a wide variety of non-favorites, while a DIL is exclusive.
But, please, let me pick my own DIL. The possible surprise of a undiscovered diamond would almost always be replaced with chagrin that I now really had 9 of mine, and one more that I wouldn't have picked. And think how I would feel, opening up my little chest and drawing out my precious nine companions, and finding that the 10th, selected by another, was American Psycho!
Good point. And to preclude that dire possibilty, I would stipulate that any item chosen for me would have to have passed the test of time, would have to be a long-established classic.
Jim, I think the point of a Desert Island List - as distinct from a Favorites List - is that the number of choices must be strictly limited. This forces you to think about what few items you could bear to see/read/listen to over and over again and never tire of. An easier task with books and music than with movies, don't you think? And this tells us something interesting about movies: they are more fast-food-for-the-mind than books and music.
I agree that that is the purpose of a Desert Island list. But I disagree with what you say about movies. I wouldn't even consider including 95% of recently released movies, but neither would I consider 95% of recently published books or recorded music. I wouldn't take Top Gun, but I wouldn't take (ducking) any Carl Hiassen or (no longer ducking) Spice Girls, either. I would take The Grand Illusion, The King James Bible, and Bach's St. Matthew Passion.
Negative, no: I stand by my comment. Percentages have nothing to do with it. The average person-who-enjoys-movies (as distinct from the movie fanatic) would have, I feel sure, much more difficulty in narrowing down a list of favorite books or music than they would a list of favorite movies. How many movies are not only endlessly re-watchable but also worthy of serious study by someone with very limited cultural resources? - For myself, I can only think of one: CITIZEN KANE.
Btw, I thoroughly approve of your movie and music choices. TGI is one of the greatest of anti-war movies (but is it endlessly re-watchable?), and Bach is The Composer, transcending his religious environment. Which brings us to book choices. I don't now if you chose the KJB for its religious importance, its literary qualities, or both; but, not being a religious person, I would have to sacrifice The Book in favour of Shakespeare - "All of human life is here", as someone once said of The Bard's works.
You have confused me. In your original post you said:
An easier task with books and music than with movies, don't you think?
Now you say picking movies would be easier.
You then ask whether The Grand Illusion is endlessly re-watchable. Perhaps it isn't, perhaps it is, but a DIL isn't just what one item, but what very limited list of items, would one take to a DI. Citizen Kane might be endlessly re-watchable, but I would rather have Top Gun and Citizen Kane than just Citizen Kane.
My point is that while it is true that many movies are, as you said, "fast-food-for-the-mind" (though I disagree with the 'mind' part), so are many books and pieces of music. I don't think there is anything intrinsic about movies, as a form, and as a library, that would make picking a Desert Island List of them harder or easier.
The book, movie and music I gave were examples only- They would be on my DIL, but not necessarily number one.
Finally, I think that The Grand Illusion is one of the greatest movies ever made, despite
the fact that some think that it is an anti-war movie.
You're going to think I'm trying to wriggle out of a self-contradiction, but here's what I had in mind in that first post. I meant that, for the book and music categories, it would be much easier to come up with candidates for such a very short list (we hadn't discussed how short, but you seemed to want to limit it to one item in each category). But when it comes to movies, not so many candidates spring to mind. How many movies might conceivably be ranked alongside Bach, The Bible, and Shakespeare? None, to my mind - not even CITIZEN KANE or THE GRAND ILLUSION. Am I out of jail?
Jail? I thought we were talking about desert islands.
I had originally read your first post as you now explain that you meant it, and continue to disagree.
Assuming that one could take x books, x pieces of music, and x movies, I would have as much difficulty picking movies as books or music.
But comparing movies to books or music is irrelevant, unless one is
only allowed a total of x of the three. In that case, for any x <= 100, I doubt that I would take any movies.
Re. your last sentence. I would say that if our x > 5 then our DI lists will be indistinguishable from a our Favorites lists. My understanding of the DI list idea is that such a list is meant to be an answer to a question like: "If you found yourself in Robinson Crusoe's situation and only one small chest salvaged from the wreck had books, etc., in it, what books, etc., would you like to find in that one small chest?" I would say that the "one small chest" constraint limits x to less than 5. So I'm interested to know how you see a DI list as being different from a Favorites list.
I didn't mean that a DIL should be as long as 100, but that even if it were that long (and combined), I likely wouldn't include any movies. The BBC used to have a radio (then TV, I think) programme that asked celebrities what their DIL (books only, as I recall) would be. I don't remember for sure how many were on the list, but I think it was at least 10. I think the salient difference between a DIL and a favorites list is that a favorites list is created knowing that there are also many many other things to read (view, listen to), while a desert island list must be differently selected because no respite from them would be possible. Given that, I don't think it likely that my top 10 favorites would be the same as my 10 DIL, for books, music or movies. To take music, for example- my favorites might include 5 Bach pieces, but my DIL would probably not be so heavily weighted.
I think it would be near impossible for me to limit myself: partially because I like so many books, partially because I rarely re-read books, and partially because there are so many books I want to read. I'd have to be on a desert island that had internet access and some way of having books delivered from amazon. :)