As cultural figures, the late James Earl Jones and Kurt Vonnegut may seem to have very little in common, but both have easily recognizable voices. They may have played Darth Vader, Simba’s father, orThis is CNNVonnegut’s signature voice is evident on every page of his novels, such as: Cat’s Cradle, Breakfast championAnd of course Slaughterhouse Five It’s a voice many of us have known since adolescence. of Letters Live Video above Jones reads Vonnegut’s letters to Mr. Lockwood’s English class at Xavier High School in New York City in 2006.
Vonnegut was writing back to five students who had chosen him for a letter-writing assignment to their favorite author. I previously featured his letter in Open Culture, read by Sir Ian McKellan, but its message is worth repeating to anyone who speaks it, beloved actor or not. “Practice any art, whether good or bad, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpture, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage,” he wrote. The purpose is “not to gain money or fame, but to experience growth, to find what’s within you, to grow your soul.”
The famous novelist even gives his teenage fans a challenge: “Write a six-line poem. Anything you like, but make sure it rhymes. Tennis without a net isn’t fair. Write it as well as you can, but don’t tell anyone what you’re doing. Don’t show anyone or recite it to anyone. Not even your girlfriend or parents or Mrs. Lockwood.” After thoroughly disposing of this entirely personal work of art, know that “you have experienced growth, learned a lot more about what is inside of you, and grown your soul.”
None of this contradicts standard writing advice, which tends to emphasize just starting, working under constraints, and not rushing to publish. But Vonnegut’s recommendations in the final year of his life, and his particular tendency to reach for the heavens while never letting go of the mundane and trivial things of this world, carry a different kind of shock. “Go home after school and dance, sing in the shower, and keep going,” he suggests. “Scratch your face into your mashed potatoes. Pretend you’re Count Dracula.” Here was a great old man in American literature who knew how to communicate across generations.
Related Content:
James Earl Jones (deceased) reads Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” and Walt Whitman’s “A Song of My Own.”
Reading by James Earl Jones Othello At the White House Poetry Jam
Frederick Douglass’ impassioned 1852 speech, “What the Fourth of July Means to the Negro,” read by James Earl Jones
Darth Vader’s voice: Original voice and vocals by James Earl Jones
Kurt Vonnegut urges young people to “grow their souls” by making art
Sir Ian McKellan reads Kurt Vonnegut’s letter to high school students: Make art and ‘grow your soul’
Based in Seoul, Colin MaOnershall Writing and broadcastingHe has written papers on cities, languages, and cultures, and his projects include the Substack newsletter. Books about cities And books A city without a state: Walking through 21st-century Los Angeles. Follow us on Twitter CollinhamOnershall or Facebook.
Source: Open Culture – www.openculture.com
