The idea of a truism is incredibly interesting to me. I found this piece to be intriguing and thoughtful. To me, a truism is more of something that everyone knows is true yet neglects to admit or recognize. I found the piece to be a bit lengthy. I understand why it works as such a long piece, however, I found it hard to keep my attention the whole way through. I think the part that did hold my interest was the fact that the phrases were listed alphabetically. I think this brought unity to a piece that otherwise would have been jumbled.
A couple of the phrases stuck out to me more than others. I think this is why a piece like this would be so successful. Regardless of who comes across this piece, there is a handful of truths that apply to anyone’s background. This makes the piece relatable on any level, therefore, making it much more worthwhile to take the time to enjoy it.
The phrases that stuck out most to me were phrases that either related to my life specifically or to the general public as a whole, yet were feelings that were never put to words. For example, “Humor is a release” stuck out in my mind because I am always laughing having a good time. It is hard to explain why though because its just who I am. However, I think she hit the feeling on the head. I think that is why this phrase was so evident and powerful to me.
The other phrase that stuck out in my mind was, “When something terrible happens people wake up”. We never realize what we have until something happens to jeopardize it. I think now, with the celebration of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, we can truly understand and appreciate the truth behind this phrase. It is sad to think of this, yet through this piece of work, it is put into words so delicately.
Mallory, I was literally about to make the same comment about the 9/11 events, so I'm glad to see someone else was thinking the same thing! To take it further, I think this phrase could even be applied to how the Western hemisphere kept itself exclusive from other governments unlike ours, and what that exclusion caused. Imagine how many Arabic speakers and cultural experts there were employed in our government 15 years ago, and now. America woke up to a reality in the most terrible ways. Looking at that, the phrase becomes more of a cautionary tale..
ReplyDeleteI also appreciated the truism about humor being a release. I think sometimes we all forget how great laughing really is, and having a good time (after getting caught up in our day to day activities).
ReplyDeleteI like how you pointed out how diverse her truisms are about content and how this is how she has the ability to affect each person in the audience differently depending on what strikes home with their own experiences. That is why, while a lot of Holzer's phrases are controversial, you can't argue she targets any sort of group or stereotype more than another. She states truths about as much as she can, which is why so many people can relate to what shes saying.
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