crowdedloneliness1120

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It is amazing to see how many things have changed and how many have stayed the same in eighty years, and is very easy to notice when shown like this. What are the similarities or differences that stood out most to you?

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“His subject is alienated from the modern city, imprisoned in its mechanization, and unable to flourish as an emotional, meaning-making, and relational individual.” - Hadji Bakara on poet Frederico Garcia Lorca for “American Literature in the World”

This description of all of Lorcas work he wrote experiencing New York City in the 1920′s can resonate loudly with individuals today who may feel that they are a prisoner to the monotonous mechanics that are their lives. The same feelings are shared between the groups of people a hundred years apart.

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“Do not feel lonely, You are not alone. Never apologize for burning too brightly or collapsing into yourself at night. That is how galaxies are made"

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“What thoughts I have of you tonight, Walt Whitman, for I walked down the sidestreets under the trees with a headache self-conscious looking at the full moon.         In my hungry fatigue, and shopping for images, I went into the neon fruit supermarket, dreaming of your enumerations!         What peaches and what penumbras! Whole families shopping at night! Aisles full of husbands! Wives in the avocados, babies in the tomatoes!—and you, Garcia Lorca, what were you doing down by the watermelons?”

A Supermarket in California by Allen Ginsberg, 1956

An interesting aspect of this poem by Ginsberg is that the narrator seems to be providing comfort for themselves and is less lonely since they are able to bring their thoughts of Walt Whitman into the world with them. When you are feeling lonely you can integrate other things that interest you and keep you company, even if they are an imaginary poet grocery shopping with you.

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The Covid-19 Pandemic has put a firm hault on the behaviors and activities of most people and added a new level of loneliness and isolation that we must find out how to cope through. One thing that helps this is the unifying power of knowing so many are going through this, we are not alone.

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“Feast, and your halls are crowded; Fast, and the world goes by. Succeed and give, and it helps you live, But no man can help you die. There is room in the halls of pleasure For a large and lordly train, But one by one we must all file on Through the narrow aisles of pain.”

- Solitude by Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 1883

How we go through a day can be completely changed by our own mood and the mood of those around us. As Wilcox writes, moments can be either shared with others when they are full of happiness or can be lived through by ourselves when full of dread. However, when you understand that many other people are feeling the same as you- it can hopefully make you feel a little better and less alone in your pain and sorrow.

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Here are some helpful things to do to ease and cope with loneliness, no matter where or why you're feeling it. Number 11: “ Make a schedule for yourself and stick to it” is one that I have definitely been working on being better at. What actions do you think could work best for you?

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“The light is buried under chains and noises in the impudent challenge of rootless science. And crowds stagger sleeplessly through the boroughs as if they had just escaped a shipwreck of blood.”

- Dawn by Federico Garcia Lorca, 1920′s / New York City Crowded Subway 2012

Lorca’s description of a crowd in New York City sounds like people who have been through horror, but for some workers that is how they feel as they struggle to get to work through the dirty, loud, and crowded subways.

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Living in a city can come with some amazing perks and benefits, but it is not absolutely perfect. Here are 5 easy ways to help combat extreme loneliness that can be very common when living in a big city. 

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In the span of 72 years, a skyline can dramatically change - but there are still iconic elements that remain. While we may only be able to see the world we experience day to day, we can be comforted to know that there is a rich history full of people who walked the same streets we do now. 

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“Laugh, and the world laughs with you; Weep, and you weep alone; For the sad old earth must borrow its mirth, But has trouble enough of its own. Sing, and the hills will answer; Sigh, it is lost on the air; The echoes bound to a joyful sound, But shrink from voicing care.”

- Solitude by Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 1883

In our current world, feeling alone even when other people are around is not only limited to big cities and crowded sidewalks. Social media often times works in the same way, when sharing happy or joyous news you can feel like a part of a huge community but when sad or depressed you do not have that comfort. Obviously, Wilcox could have never predicted that her words would have that kind of meaning but the feelings she saw were present in her world just the same.

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"Where are we going, Walt Whitman? The doors close in an hour. Which way does your beard point tonight?         (I touch your book and dream of our odyssey in the supermarket and feel absurd.)         Will we walk all night through solitary streets? The trees add shade to shade, lights out in the houses, we'll both be lonely.         Will we stroll dreaming of the lost America of love past blue automobiles in driveways, home to our silent cottage?         Ah, dear father, graybeard, lonely old courage-teacher, what America did you have when Charon quit poling his ferry and you got out on a smoking bank and stood watching the boat disappear on the black waters of Lethe?"

A Supermarket in California by Allen Ginsberg, 1956

In this poem, Ginsberg ponders what famous writer Walt Whitman would think of the modern world around him. He predicts that while there are definitely differences, they may have more shared experiences and feelings than he would first think. When looking at the past, it is easy to forget that these larger than life figures were people just like us.

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While these videos are almost 100 years apart, the fast moving energy and feeling of the city is still very similar. These people are all living their own lives and having experiences that are more similar than one would think not only to the others on the street in their own year, but those almost a hundred years apart. We are more common than we think and share many universal human truths that connect us, and show us that we aren't alone. 

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“Rejoice, and men will seek you; Grieve, and they turn and go; They want full measure of all your pleasure, But they do not need your woe. Be glad, and your friends are many; Be sad, and you lose them all,— There are none to decline your nectared wine, But alone you must drink life’s gall.”

- Solitude by Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 1883

In this poem from the 1800′s, Wilcox was not speaking to how one may feel in a crowded city, but how one may feel in the world at large itself. A big city can make these feelings feel even louder and more prevalent however. A crowded sidewalk can sometimes feel like an absolutely joyous party and other times feel incredibly isolating. 

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This loneliness epidemic is especially prevalent in cities, which isn’t all that surprising because moving to a big city where you don’t know a soul can easily feel isolating.

“5 ways to overcome loneliness when living in a big city,” Theladders.com

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“Those who go out early know in their bones there will be no paradise or loves that bloom and die: they know they will be mired in numbers and laws, in mindless games, in fruitless labors.”

- Dawn by Federico Garcia Lorca, 1920′s / New York City Morning Commute 2019

The melodramatic tone that Lorca uses in his poem about the mornings in New York City can be seen to describe factory workers and other hard laborer's who were especially present and struggling at the time but is also shared sentiments with many who are doing their best with whatever jobs they have now. 

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The streets that were once thought to be busy and crowded are now even more so, full of faster cars and brighter technology based advertisements. The hustle and bustle remains unchanged and the individual experiences are not too different on this city street sixty-some years apart.