Nostalgia On Repeat By Chuck Klosterman

Nostalgia is the feeling of missing the past. In “Grape Sherbet” by Rita Dove, the speaker develops this feeling by using past-tense verbs. The speaker also uses family to show that she misses the past. Furthermore, the speaker indicates the fleeting nature of time by using themes of death. The speaker in “Grape Sherbet” by Rita Dove has an attitude of nostalgia.

Buddha, a man who devoted himself to years of contemplation and self-denial, once said “do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment”. Thinking too much about times gone by typically keeps your mind stuck in neutral. Existing in an earlier life could result in revisiting feelings of anger, guilt, resentment, sorrow, or shame. Obsessing about the people and events precipitating such negative feelings can lead to endless rethinking. Becoming increasingly lifeless, or infatuated, thinking really cannot progress toward any resolution. Ultimately, it is pointless to employ memory to hold onto what may have been lost many years ago. As a result of not letting go of the past, it is possible to be robbed of present opportunities. Often, in many novels the characters are still dwelling on their past in the present. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author demonstrates how George Wilson and Jay Gatsby are held hostage by their pasts with little hope for their futures.

The notion that time will always continue to march forth can be likened to a small and bitter pill:; seemingly plain and amusingly easy to conquer when laid out, yet in actuality shockingly difficult to swallow. Every minute, every hour, every day is insignificant when contrasted against the length of our lives yet we are so wrapped up in our egos that we are too stubborn to accept that, preferring to immerse ourselves in fanciful fantasies of “what if?” in an effort to relive the past rather than look towards the future. Flashes of nostalgia strike us when we come across an old flame or the setting of a fond memory, and we often try to recreate those memories and joy once felt without any consideration for the person we have matured into.

“I didn’t think the Twinkie would thrill the way it used to, and it didn’t. But it tasted like memory” In this quote from “Goodbye to My Twinkie Days”, author Bich Minh Nguyen, is describing a sense of nostalgia. Nostalgia, as defined by the Cambridge English dictionary, is a feeling of pleasure and sometimes slight sadness at the same time as an individual thinks about things that happened in the past. This feeling can be evoked through old photographs, food, music, and even literature. Nostalgia provides a temporary relief of present times, which is why people actively seek a feeling of nostalgia.

Memories are important, they are a personal record of our past experiences, and could be called the history book for our life. In the poem "The Heroes You Had as a Girl", author Bronwen Wallace tells the story of a woman who meets her high school hero later in her life, reflects on her memories of him, and ultimately decides not to talk to him. The effect that this topic has on everyone is the knowledge that we can be captivated and let our memories control us, and by knowing that our memories hold that much power, it may make it more mentally efficient to make accurate, and personal decisions in a fraction of the time. The topic and overall meaning that this idea holds convey a message that resonates with the idea that memories are in fact the central hub of our decision making. People remembering memories can affect their perspective on their lives to such an extent, that they prefer to immerse their mind in their past memories rather than the current reality.

Often times we find ourselves thinking about the past only to try to force the memories away and return to our current delusion. We can never erase the past, but if the past is who we are, then should we just welcome pain back into our lives? Embarrassment, guilt, and pride betray us as we choose to bury our darkest memories in our head and look to a positive future without ever having to readdress them and acknowledge that they had ever happened in the first place. Thinking back now my weakest moment caught me by complete surprise.

In 2000, Thomas Kinkade, the Painter of Light, created Hometown Morning, which is an oil painting on canvas. This painting is part of the Hometown Memories collection as he paints different scenes from his childhood growing up. Hometown Morning is a painting of a street in Placerville, California that is full of life. It is a small community with people walking down the sidewalk and everyone and everything just seems peaceful. Since the original has been sold, the last location of the painting was at The Thomas Kinkade Museum in Monterey, California.

As human beings that regret past moments, we often have the urge to try to reverse our mistakes by reliving the past. Unfortunately, as learned from The Great Gatsby we must leave the past in the past and live in the present, as attempting to relive the past is impossible. Gatsby, a man who hoped to attain his love, Daisy, through fixing the past promises, “I’m going to fix everything just the way it was before” (Fitzgerald 117). This hope of Gatsby’s was impossible, as Daisy had changed and moved on with her life, which resulted in Gatsby’s inability to obtain Daisy. So, remembering to live in the present allows for us to leave behind the moments of regret in the past which allows us to avoid demise similar to

During the Vietnam War, Mexican American soldiers fought bravely to defend the United States. However mainstream historical chronicles are almost silent concerning the contributions of these soldiers in this war. Most literature omits the accomplishments and experiences of Mexican American soldiers. One example is the bestselling book Everything We Had by Al Santoli, which chronicles the oral history of soldiers in the Vietnam War. However not one Mexican American soldier is interviewed . When they are mentioned they are usually described in a stereotypical way for example Gary Hook who describes these soldiers as “ Mexicans” who speak “Mexican” in his book One Day in Vietnam. The brave participation of Mexican American soldiers in the Vietnam War did not improve the marginalized status of their community within the United States. It also failed to advance their civil rights battles and their war against poverty. Even though they fought bravely Mexican Americans faced prejudice before and during the war and received minimum recognition and rewards for their efforts in the War .

The movie Soul Food is a comedy/drama made in 1997 by George Tillman Jr. The movie is centered around a Chicagoan family and their struggles to handle life situations while maintaining the concept of family. Soul Food not only represents the delicious food that has nourished the black body for generations; the movie also represents the concept of preserving family tradition. This film covers the basis of the Great Migration, when people from the south migrated to the north and Midwest in search of work and freedom from southern oppression. George Tillman Jr. does a good job at creating well rounded characters and depicting the positives and the negatives of each character’s role in the movie. Soul Food is a representation of the numerous benefits and the disadvantages of being black in America.

People often become trapped in past memories and devote all their energy to recreating those events. This is true of The Great Gatsby as seen in the quote by F. Scott Fitzgerald, "So we beat on; boats against the current; borne back ceaselessly into the past." Obsession can often evolve into idolization preventing personal growth. Dwelling on the past can adversely impact one's life. Becoming obsessed with, and consistently trying to re-live, the past will stifle one's ability to grow, mature and move on with their life.

Everyone has a favorite memory, an embarrassing memory, a miserable memory, and certainly a few crazy memories. No matter if it is happy or sad, inspiring or depressing, these memories have an undeniable effect on our lives: past, present and future. However, is that effect positive or negative, and can it be changed by the whims of the person who holds those memories? F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon speak to this question, and though both of their main characters meet a similar end, they do so with different understandings and appreciations of their memories and their history. These two novels show the importance of embracing one’s past in its entirety, but not allowing those memories to dominate

Memory provides a sense of personal identity. Memories that were made from the past create the person that they have become today. It helps to ground judgments and with reasoning. As an illustration, one day a young girl was shopping at the mall with a group of friends and they deiced to steal a cute

To relate the topic of nostalgia with food to my life, I recall a cherished memory I have about making enchiladas with my grandma when I was nine. My mom’s father is hispanic, but her mother is not, so she learned how to make hispanic food just for him. I have always admired this, because she learned how to do this just to make my grandpa happy. She made us many hispanic dishes, but my favorite is still her enchiladas. I still remember the smell of the chicken and beef that my grandma had prepared

One of my earliest memories, as a young child growing up in the 1960s and 1970s, was the visits to my Nan’s home in south Ealing, west London.