What's Your Intelectual Ancestry
 

Forget DNA teesting, genetics, and your grandparents - what's your intellectual ancestry? What events, movements, and cultures of the past have shaped the way you think? Is it Platonic dialogues? The civil war? Watergate? the outfits of Jackie O?

I claim the caberet culture of Weimar Germany and the expat cafe culture of pre-war Paris. Throw in some 19th century continental romantic idealism and a huge slab ur-existentialst Nietzsche. Add a little post-partition era India/Pakistan for flavor and just a dash of Tao and Buddha. I also claim the expressionists, dadaists, and a few of the surreal. These are my true intellectual progenitors.

Erm, Doctor Demento, Wonderful World of Color, and Match Game?

Catskill Mountains schtick.

Valley Jew by way of Chicago and South Haven Jewish-owned resorts (a.ka., the Catskills of the Midwest). My mom's family owned and operated one of the resorts and my mom submitted a few items that will be on display at that exhibit.

Midwestern farmers -- think Prairie Home Companion.

Classic literature from all ages of man.

A dad who never once treated me like a girl.

I've also got Scottish transplant (thus the tea drinkin') and a healthy dose of public school culture (both as a graduate and offspring of two practitioners).

My highschool honors economics and government class - heavy on the capitalism and huge on the Constitution. This was reinforced by several political science courses with required readings of Locke, Hobbes, Rousseau, Paine, and the like.

Edited to add:
One other "intellectually" shaping moment came at a Ronald Reagan reelection rally in Sacramento in 1984. Truly an inspiring man and speaker.

I'd be the nice, sassy fun girl who sits at Dorothy Parker's circle and sleeps with all the men she's in love with, resulting in her writing some very nasty, caustic poetry about me, to which I respond with more mirth and laughter, though secretly I'd be miserable craving her love and approval. I'd have fabulous clothes. Stimulating conversations. I'd run the gambit from libertine to pristine. I'd convert to Catholocism and lapse back into sin.

And though Muriel Spark came along a little later, in my version of events she wouldn't come along at all, as *I* would be the group's Muriel Spark, and it would have been me who wrote Momento Mori. And Parker would have written me a glowing review. And I would have finally earned her friendship and respect, though I'd still be banging her beloveds behind her back.

Heh.

Pre-Raphaelites, German Expressionists, Dadaist, Voltaire, Kerouc, Punk Rock, Eric Sate, Bach, Symbolists, Kinsey, Dr. Bob and Bill W., Buddah, Woody Allen, Vivian Westwood, Jean-Paul Gaultier and a heavy dose of Meinke. ;)

All this makes me feel like I need to read more...and reread the stuff that I have read.

Jefferson, Paine, et al. Oh to be in on those times...

Hippie Idealism and Aspirations for Humanity. I'd say "from the late 60's" but you can find this kind of movement in any century, many times over. Specifically I'd have to say the movement of the Boomers, simply because it really is my heritage from my parents.

Bradbury, Asimov, and a billion other Sci-Fi writers from the last hundred years that kept me dreaming. Thinking about possibilities, both positive and negative, is important and inspiring to me. I ain't smart enough to say I'd be in on the discussions of real scientists.

The Discordian Church of the 70's for making me think outside the box, even if it is all bull****, which is the point. The "if it feels good, do it" mantra of that era rings very true with me these days.

Ayn Rand from the mid 20th century for forcing me to think inside the box, to accept the box, to really see the box. Equally as important to remember.