Annotated Bibliography

Arnold, Matthew. “The Study of Poetry.” Criticism: Major Statements. 4th ed. Ed. Charles
Kaplan and William Davis Anderson. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2000. 333-353. Print. In this essay, Arnold writes a defense of poetry. It responds to previous works by Shelley and Sidney, and as such gives a closer to contemporary look at the import of poetry relevant to my discussion. Most important to my study is his argument that poetry has taken the place of religion in his society. I plan to use his argument to bolster my discussion of the sublimity of Sonic Youth’s music—in essence arguing that their music can function as a “religious” experience.
Azerrad, Michael. Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground
1981-1991. New York: Little, Brown and Co., 2001. Print. This book tells the story of 13 bands from the 1980s, including Sonic Youth. The book details the band’s respective histories while tying them into cultural and artistic movements of the eras in which they first started making music. The author, Michael Azerrad, is a noted music journalist as well as a music critic. I chose this book because it not only discusses Sonic Youth, the band I’m writing about, but also because it discusses them critically. The book presents the band as an artifact, which can be proven as a sublime entity.
Longinus. “On the Sublime.” Criticism: Major Statements. 4th ed. Ed. Charles Kaplan and
William Davis Anderson. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2000. 47-83. Print. In this writing, Longinus sets up criteria for what can be considered sublime. This will probably be the integral text to my discussion as I will use his criteria as a basis for my own discussion of the sublime.
Pitchfork. Ryan Schrieber, 1995. Web. 24 October 2009. This music Web site functions as a
tastemaker site for many contemporary music fans, otherwise known as hipsters. They update daily with highly academic and controversial album reviews and interviews. I plan to use the Web site and their opinions of Sonic Youth’s music to show what contemporary music critics think of their music and their place in history. Additionally, I plan on engaging in some form of dialogue with these critics.
Tolstoy, Leo. “What is art?” Criticism: Major Statements. 4th ed. Ed. Charles Kaplan and
William Davis Anderson. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2000. 382-393. Print. In this article, Tolstoy firmly asserts that good art must be an instrument of progress and change. I’m using this text to help set up a criteria for which to judge the progressiveness and change agency presented to the world by Sonic Youth’s music. Further, I hope incorporate the ideas of progressiveness and change into my own definition of the Sublime, building on Longinus’s definition.