Rush 2: Murnau and Marx

In The Last Laugh, the uniform seems to me to represent working class dignity, agency, and control. When the porter is stripped of his uniform, it is symbolic of capitalism's stripping of these attributes from workers. His demotion is driven by a desire for quicker, more efficient, machine-like work with no respect for the personhood of the worker: in other words, profit. This old man is shown striving to recover his dignity in the metaphor of his uniform. He looks at it longingly as it hangs in the closet. In this light, it is a revolutionary act when he steals it back from its resting place. The bourgeoisie locked away the "fabric" of his rights and freewill, and he has to subversively steal it back. The tragedy is in the irony that even though he steals back the signifier, he has no ability to steal back the real rights that should have been signified by the wearing of it.

Rush 1

1. I am a music major in the jazz program. My instrument is trombone. Last semester I performed my junior recital, playing mostly original combo jazz. At the end of this semester I'll be doing a non-degree recital featuring very short pieces written in the 20th and 21st centuries. Next fall I'll be performing my senior recital and I'll graduate in December. 

2. I work in 4 different bands with a mix of current and former Cornish students, teachers, and Seattle musicians at large. I play other freelance gigs here and there, including brass chamber music, church music, salsa, jazz, etc. I also work about 30 hours a week at a grocery store. I live with one roommate, and spend most of my (rare) free time with my lady friend. 

3. My only background is as a consumer but I've done my best to cultivate an appreciation for good film. My interest is pretty broad. I really love the work of Dario Argento, Richard Linklater, Stanley Kubrick, and Wes Anderson. Overblown horror movies are my guilty pleasure. I haven't been involved in a film production but I would leap at the chance to work on a score in some capacity. I haven't taken any other film courses.

4. I look to your guidance here! Just hoping to learn.