too weird to live, too rare to die
This belongs to Sophie-Mae Brown from York, England.
My tattoo is a quote from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
by Hunter S Thompson. It says "Too weird to live, Too rare to die".
The reason I got this tattoo is because I aspire to be an author and "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" has been a great influence.
So it goes #54, 55, 56
This belongs to Tom Pine.
This belongs to Lauren Mac.
I saw all the pictures of people with tattoos from Slaughterhouse 5 so I decided to read the book and fell in love with it. After reading it, I couldn't not get the tattoo.
This belongs to Lisa, Plymouth, UK.
My Slaughterhouse 5 tribute; not only my favourite book but a philosophy that was strangely helpful when it came to combatting a struggle with depression.
This was posted as a part of “So it Goes” Saturdays. The phrase “so it goes” appears in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five 106 times. Can you help me collect 106 “so it goes” tattoos? 56 down, 50 to go.
Always.
This tattoo belongs to Chelsea.
I absolutely love Harry Potter. I grew up with it as a child, and with this I will hold on to my childhood as I grow older. Not only is this from the book, but it expresses that truly, after all this time, I will always love Harry Potter.
"After all this time?"
"Always," said Snape.
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
The Satanic Verses
This belongs to Addis.
I've had my Salman Rushdie tattoo for 2-3 years now. It's from the front cover of the first edition of The Satanic Verses
.
Rushdie is my favourite author and the TSV is my favourite book - hence me getting the tattoo. But you might be interested in some of the back story of the image. It's from an 17th century Islamic
painting:
The painting is one of many depictions of the 'Shahname' - a set of ancient epic poems. If you're interested in the story, here is another link explaining the scene.
13 hour clock
This belongs to Anthony Tracy.
1984
is one of my favorite novels. The opening line is incredibly significant for me. It was the inspiration for my recent tattoo, a timepiece with the hands striking 13.
I chose the clock because it is the most recognizable symbol from the book and of its theme; that truth is subjective and a product of power. I don't find the 12 hour day to be a particularly significant expression of power, but for me it is an adequate example of the theme. I understand that I could have gone with a 24 hour analog (which some people say is actually what is happening in the novel) but I opted for the 13 hour for its simplicity and its capacity for emphasizing the idea I wanted to express.
I wanted to express the concept of Newspeak, the thirteen hour clock would be category C vocabulary, or scientific and technical language (per the categories administered by the Ministry of Truth). This category is less significant for meeting the ideological needs of the party but is nonetheless an expression of the ability of the party to determine truth. My opinion of most things accepted to be truth is that it is more a constructed product of tradition and reiteration than it is of an objective, pre-existing truth. I know this isn't the case for every thing taken to be true; I am not so naïve to believe that gravity is a social construct, my view on this obviously has its nuances. However, I find myself agreing with the idea in almost all of my studies; from international relations to religious studies. I think Nietzsche said it best:
"All things are subject to interpretation. Whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth."
Following that statement, I think it's fair to say that we have 12 hour clocks for the same reason we use the imperial measurement system instead of metric, the same reason we have the Christian Gregorian Calendar instead of the Mayan, or the same reason that I attended Catholic church growing up; because of tradition and because the people embracing that tradition prevailed over other people embracing alternative interpretations, not because it is the naturally true or correct way. A day can be divided up any way you like, but for historically significant reasons we have settled on this particular interpretation. Aside from the Orwell reference, I would be perfectly fine with just this as my justification.Basically, this is one of my favorite concepts. It summarizes my personal philosophy on everything from politics to religion. Plus, Katie Kroeck of Nectar Tattoo in Excelsior did a brilliant job. I gave her a concept and she turned it into a beautiful piece of art.
The poem underneath is from "my doom smiles at me" by Charles Bukowski.
So it goes #51, 52, 53
This belongs to Chris.
This belongs to Allison.
I got it in June of 2009. It helps to remind me that there is good and bad in all aspects of life and to take them in stride. People can't dwell on just the positive or negative in life. They say life is what you make it, but everyone needs to accept that some things are out of our control.
This belongs to CC Teakell.
This was posted as a part of “So it Goes” Saturdays. The phrase “so it goes” appears in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five 106 times. Can you help me collect 106 “so it goes” tattoos? 53 down, 53 to go.
walk without rhythm
This is Rachel's tattoo.
"Walk without rhythm" is a reference to Dune
by Frank Herbert.
On the desert planet Arrakis any type of rhythmic vibration in the deep desert will attract an immense sandworm which will destroy ie engulf anything it finds (person, spice mine, space ship) in an effort to protect its territory. The desert Fremen have developed a way to walk without any discernible rhythm, only calling the sandworms to them with 'thumpers' when they choose.
Dune is my favorite novel, hence the desire for a Dune tattoo, but choosing a quotation was too hard so I referenced the Fremen, who play a central role in the story arc.
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