Kiera rests her head against a carelessly framed advertisement as the dying strains of some wistful indie rock song emanate through her earbuds, the singer’s lowly baritone drowning beneath the cacophonous rattling and screeching of the subway car. Through its cracked windows, she stares out mindlessly as the gleam of the evening makes its wayContinue reading “From Here to Forever”
Author Archives: Ansel Tan
American Wasteland
In the final lines of The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald situates the condition of man in a primordial experience of wonder. Imagining the first arrival of European explorers to North America, he writes: “For a transitory, enchanted moment, man must have held his breath in the presence of this continent, compelled into an aestheticContinue reading “American Wasteland”
Borne Back Into The Past
The American Dream in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence and J.D. Salinger’s Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut. Thomas Jefferson and the Founding Fathers of the United States of America were not merely engaged in a project of national liberation. Though their revolution began in precarious rebellion against the tyranny of arbitrary rule, its radical contingency orientedContinue reading “Borne Back Into The Past”
Slouching Towards Bethlehem
Modernity’s Second Coming in Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan and Friedrich Nietzsche’s On the Genealogy of Morals. A cursory examination of the ideas in Thomas Hobbes’ and Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophies leaves one with the impression that they are polar opposites. As the paragon of the modern state, Hobbes positions himself squarely in the crosshairs of Nietzsche’s coruscatingContinue reading “Slouching Towards Bethlehem”
British Columbia Highway One
Sarcastic beams of light reflected in the rearviewImposing intermittent vignettes on sprawling golden fieldsAnd bumpy asphalt (with no hard shoulder)Languidly stretched across the heart of the continentAnd a dark red car with no front plateIts view ever fading beneath the eastern horizoncrying ‘wait for me, I fell behind’ And under condominium lightslay the world inContinue reading “British Columbia Highway One”
Transatlantic; or Seattle When the Sound Kicks Out
We were little paper aeroplanes off across the seaLike fireworks on rooftop ledges when you were here with meWe’re reactionary pyrotechnics, we flutter violently in the wind But at transatlantic distances, we’re practised, permanent, perfect. Love meant mighty airliners bound for far-off destinationsCarmine-kissed promises whispered through telephone receiversAnd thirteen-point Helvetica on instant messenger screensOr hurriedContinue reading “Transatlantic; or Seattle When the Sound Kicks Out”
Watchman, What of the Night?
– I. The Burial of the Dead – And so I asked him:‘Watchman, dear Watchman, what of the Night?What is left of the Light? My sight? I’d rather dreamOf snow-sprinkled dawns and little wooden bridgesOn rickety dashboards against distant Rocky ridgesOr silvery Citibank lights twinkling with Manhattan trepidationOr a glittering London with SkyTrain stations.’ ButContinue reading “Watchman, What of the Night?”
Obstacle 1
A Short Story. It came upon him suddenly, swiftly splitting through his chest and stomach, seemingly in the absence of reason. Its asphyxiating invisible hand dug into his neck and tore him from his blissful rest, prematurely dragging him back into the intoxicating fabric of reality. It implored his heart to pound savagely against hisContinue reading “Obstacle 1”
Inherent Limitations of My Writing
Writing has always been a central aspect of my life. Ever since I acquired even an elementary grasp of the English language, I have felt a constant urge to express my thoughts and feelings through some written medium. My extensive appreciation for a wide range of literature – from Orwell to Dostoyevsky and Hemingway toContinue reading “Inherent Limitations of My Writing”
Stephen Avenue – The Heart of Calgary
What does Calgary have to offer? What value does a tiny, fledgling city in the heart of Alberta bring to a prosperous Canadian nation and a bustling world stage? Many would answer this question with a rather dismissive ‘not much’ – that is if they are even able to point to Calgary on a mapContinue reading “Stephen Avenue – The Heart of Calgary”
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