Why did you pair this poem with this photo/art work and the article? What do the three have in common?

I chose to group the photo, poem and article together because they address the common idea of the modern man, and have the common "train" element. The differences in some of the materials serve to provide a better coverage on this theme.

What made this poem stand out amongst the rest was probably the imagery I got after reading it. Apart from the fact that it completely resonated with me and dragged out tons of past experiences in the MRT, it made me think of the everyday Singaporean in the MRT train. The one who hogs the reserved seat and closes his eyes whenever he sees a pregnant woman or an old man. And even when his eyes are closed, his eyebrows are knitted tightly (knitted so tightly that they could make a sweater if he tried) due to the stress. And somehow, I'd feel a little doubtful if someone else blamed him for being inconsiderate and selfish because he's stressed and I'm stressed. Even though it doesn't really make up for being self-centred. But it does explain why everyone is so "ME ME ME" and anti-social, and completely unable to think or look or talk to someone else at times.

Okay. Word-diarrhea again ):

Examine the two Wordles. What important words, if any, do the poem and article have in common? Does the word cloud make you see the themes, ideas or subjects of each more clearly? How?

The only word both Wordles share is "train" (or "trains"). This must be due to the fact that the article and poem show contrasting scenes, although they convey complimentary messages.

The poem has a more depressing tone due to its despondent and desperate tone caused by consecutive questions. It is somewhat lethargic, due to the usage of long vowels ("look", "slogans", "warping", "sleepy"), hence giving it a draggy sound. The main idea of the poem is the anti-social behavior of the modern man, who chooses to ignore people in favour of less significant objects which do not comfort the human soul like the presence of another being does. Hence, despite being surrounded by others, the modern man is a lonely individual.

The article, on the other hand, is more light-hearted and informal (probably because it was taken from STOMP, a citizen-reporter site that takes material submitted by the public). A footage of the "Kollywood Man" is provided, in which he flamboyantly sings and dances in the MRT train. The author of the article "LOL"s at him, and many commenters praise his efforts to entertain and bring joy to people. However, this article also, perhaps unintentionally, implies that the everyday man needs human interaction, even on a normal impersonal level, in order to achieve some form of joy.

The Wordles do give a reasonably clear idea of what the article/poem is about. Words that are used more often have a larger font ("man", "performance", "singing", "dancing") and therefore, an idea of the event is provided. Smaller words provide the idea of the atmosphere, and the tone of the article/poem instead ("lay", "dying", "arresting", "fatigue", "sleepy", "draining", "hidden").

Which do you like best: the Poem, the Image or the Article? Why?

Personally, I like the image best.

The image, rather simply, sums up the poem in one glance.

The atmosphere of the train is in muted colours, whereas the people in it are brighter, and contrast against the monochromatic background. However, the people are rather distant, and even though none of them are doing anything in particular, they do not seem to be interacting. The fact that they are so close (in an enclosed space) yet so distant should be a bit odd, but it still seems like a rather normal scene. And this, makes it boggle my mind in the most amazing way.

Also, I am very amused that despite the fact that the picture was taken in Istanbul, it compliments a Singapore poem and seems familiar to my Singaporean mind. What does this say? Loneliness and distance caused by modernity is a widespread issue? Should it be of concern?

What does this pairing say about life today? Do you think someone looking at it 25 years from now would “get” the same meaning? What about 100 years from now?

As pointed out before, the entire set of works revolve around the loneliness of the modern man. It is probably something anyone would "get", because anti-social behavior is actually quite obvious to everyone. If we, the modern men, can tell that we are anti-social ourselves, there probably isn't any reason why someone else (from a different era) can't see that either.

Then again, this is a worsening problem. Perhaps people in the future will look at these materials and think, "Oh, wow. People used to be so sociable."

What other photos, art work or ST articles could also have been paired with this poem? Why? What other works of Literature, Film, or Fine Art can you think of that also echo, expand or even challenge the words and ideas of this poem?

Actually, I was reminded of The Man in the Bowler Hat by A.S.J. Tessimond, because it also addresses the idea of the modern man. And also because it has a train. The fact that we ignore and dismiss each other so easily must've been there since the Edwardian times then.

I also thought of train-watching, which I never knew was an activity in Singapore (it was brought to light when a newspaper article on it came out after the Train Vandalism issue). It is a funny thing how trains can bring people together. Even though it's not that relevant to this issue.

Also, I was reading this a few days back:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article7137359.ece
The phrase “I just want to be happy” ignores the obvious — that the human lot is to bumble along in a dissatisfied and acquisitive haze that is occasionally punctuated by great joy or great despair. The land of happy, past or present, is bunkum.

I apologise for the slight brain-diarrhea here.

Taken from:
http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/stomp/sgseen/ugly_commuters/423738/mystery_kollywood_man_reappears_leaving_mrt_commuters.html

On Monday, 16th August 2010

The mysterious Kollywood man seen dancing and singing in MRT trains earlier this year has been sighted again.

As before, he shocked commuters with his loud singing and dancing onboard.Passengers laughed uncontrollably as the man showed them what he's got.

He even introduced himself and thanked his audience after the performance.

STOMPer Chloe managed to capture his performance on video.

She says:"He was happily singing from I don't know which station he started but I got in at Dhoby Ghaut and everyone was already filming him till he alighted at Sembawang."

He said: 'Thank you. See you again and my name is bla bla bla (didn't really catch it). "It was hilarious to the max! LOL!".

Some comments from the readers include:

MathewsLau said
"Send him to IMH"

stephanye said
"Thats so nice, he would have brightened my day or made us all dance along... it good to have a few ppl like him, they are medicine to our bored days!"

Gui.Wang said
"Singapore needs more laughter!"

xdream3rz said
"He is a little too noisy though he was entertaining everyone."