Let's get off the Olympic topic for a bit. What can we talk about instead....oh yeah. The idea of spectacle. I mentioned it before once, though I don't remember the context. Anyways, I myself was a spectacle yesterday. I participated in delivering barbershop singing Valentines. In our matching cheesy clothes, (though the cheese did not extend to checkered jackets, I'm glad to say) we went around to people's houses and workplaces, singing songs to them. Let me tell you. I had no idea that so many people kept cameras at work. I've never had my picture taken by so many people in one day before in my life.
So what was the point? Why would somebody want to do that to somebody? We were a spectacle, everywhere we went. And the person we were singing to also became a spectacle. It's interesting to see how people reacted to being a spectacle. I was, but it was sort of my own choice. People who were completely surprised...some liked it. They basked. Some didn't like it at all. They looked at the ceiling, at the floor, at the wall. Anywhere except at us. Or at the other people who were looking at them. There was the woman who during our song, turned to her husband with a murderous look in her eyes and threatened to kill him. There was the woman who had tears in her eyes and said that her husband was finally getting romantic. There was the couple who smooched all through the songs. There was the guy who laughed throughout and at the end boasted to all his co-workers, "beat THAT boys!!". So a variety of attitudes. Some like being in the limelight and others hate it. I don't have any explanation really....I'm stumped. I guess it depends somewhat on who else is there to see them look like a fool. And it depends on whether they.....I don't know. Maybe it's a primary character attribute. Like being a spectacle or not.
No matter who the subject is, the spectators are bound to love it. And why is THAT? One of the best reactions was from a elementary school class. We sang to the teacher. They loved it. Workplaces loved it. The restaurants asked us to stay for the next hour. In the bank, everything was put on hold for five minutes. Everybody likes to see somebody else get embarrassed. Why? I seem to be asking more questions than I'm answering. A sure sign that it's time to shut the hell up.
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