Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT: 2440-2444 (6-10 May, 2013) Weekly Comic Discussion Thread
Nepiophage:
I know a man whose life trajectory was like Marten's continued indefinitely. He dropped out of teacher training and spent the next 35 years playing music, occasionally getting a band together which folded after a few gigs, doing odd jobs, smoking weed and living on welfare. It went fine until his late 50s, then he quarrelled with all his friends and became a recluse. I haven't seen him for five years.
You have to grow up sometime.
Delator:
Has Dora ever expressed any sort of goals that weren't related to her business or resolving her emotional issues?
Seems to me you should have goals before ripping on your ex about theirs.
Faye speaks a kernel of truth, but really needs to realize that she's lagging behind Marten in this so-called race.
Tova:
People are arguing over which of Faye and Marten has more direction, but really the point is that there is not much to separate them, and Faye is acting as though that is not the case.
I can easily imagine Marten making the speech that Faye made in panel 3.
So it gets back to the very first question Faye asked: is contentment the same as complacency? Some would argue yes - that simply being happy with where you are is in fact regression.
Having said all that, just one more comment with regards to Marten's band... yes, he spends some amount of time playing, but he doesn't seem to have any goals with regards to that. If he does, he's certainly not working towards them. He just kind of does it, really.
And yes, Dora does have goals, and they are mainly related to her business. Well, running your own business can be pretty all-consuming. I don't see the problem with that. Well, I can see potential problems, but they are a totally different set of problems, not 'Dora is just drifting' problems.
Anyway, it wasn't actually the last panel that bugged me, really. I can easily imagine Dora and Faye convincing each other that Marten is so different from Faye. It was Jeph's editorial 'Oh Marten' comment that annoyed me. He's being kicked and he's not even there. Bleh. Or as Jeph would say, kdkfjdfds.
Edit: 750. Wheeeeeeeeee.
Skewbrow:
Folks, these two are Marten's best friends - and likely the two persons who know him best. Surely they appreciate Marten's friendship and all that. It may appear that they speak like this behind Marten's back, but they would not hesitate to say essentially the same thing in his presence. As Marten's friends they have the right, duty even, to try and give the poor drifter a nudge.
Dora has a career. It may look petty to some, but it keeps her focused. Faye apparently has talent, but is uncertain pursue it. May be she would rather teach sculpting (Sam) than do it herself? For that to happen she needs a college degree, which is tough to do, given that she would probably have to pay for it herself. I don't know whether she will pursue sculpting as a more than a hobby. I don't know whether she should? She might continue trying this low volume thing with the local gallery owner, but probably would need somebody else to notice her work to really spread her wings.
5-year plans? I used to have them. But after finishing up my doctorate I sorta started drifting. Other things took over: family, hobbies. I did earn a couple promotions, but have I really done something I'm proud of in recent years? Career stalled more or less. Warning to young guns: this is how GOMs are made (by failing to make those 5-year plans).
Latias:
--- Quote ---You have to grow up sometime.
--- End quote ---
This comment bothered me, a lot. This is a terribly judgmental view of you to take on a lifestyle that's not yours. I live my day to day life with no long-term goals and as a recluse, and I have for the past six years, happily. What, about goals, is "grown-up"? Who are you to say what the purpose of one's life is? My objective in life is simply to be happy. To me, the point of my life is nothing more than to be happy on a day-to-day basis. How does that make me any less mature, or "grown-up", than someone who chooses to aim for goals? Or Marten? Or that guy you knew?
I didn't realise it until re-reading the comic, but that bothers me about the comic, too. Originally I was just bothered by the hypocrisy of them criticising Marten for "drifting" when Faye is, at least arguably, "drifting" even more than he is. Dora's statement that it's "important to have goals and strive to achieve them", as if it's a hard fact. I don't agree with that at all. It's absolutely a worthy thing to pursue, if that's what floats your boat. But there also isn't anything wrong with taking life easy and just enjoying the present it for what its worth, if that's what floats your boat. To say one or the other is more important than the other is closed-minded. That's a decision that each person makes for themselves.
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