Audio Essay Proposal – The City
In my Audio-Essay, I will be talking about New York City. I came across a quote online one day while procrastinating, apparently from a comic book titled “The New York Five”:
“NY 101: It’ll rob you and cheat you. It’ll take your friends and turn them on you. It’ll kick your ass and break your heart. But then it’ll pick you up again, make you feel so totally alive and untouchable. It’s the center of the world, it’s the best place in the world, and once it’s in your heart, it’ll never leave you.”
Once I saw “The City” under possible topics, I knew that the message from this quote is what I wanted to focus on because it was so true to me. I wanted to record this with me doing the talking about the city life and my experiences with it. I also wanted to broadcast from my dorm room, which happens to be right in the city. I was not planning on interviewing anyone since it is a personal Audio-Essay, however I may end up interviewing my dad. He grew up in the projects to be successful and I think his story could be a perfect fit to what the city can do for someone – a rags to riches story. I think all I will need is an audio recorder and my own experiences for me to make my point. I do need an audio recorder though, unless I can figure out how to do it on my computer or phone.
I want to start by talking about how I see the city in a negative light, such as the pollution, dirt, homeless, difference in wealth and how these are so evident in NYC. How the city has defeated the homeless, the poor and how when they beg, no one pays attention because they are all too much in a hurry. Everyone cares for himself or herself. This will be about half my piece, probably around 1.5 minutes. But then the other half of the piece (2ish minutes) will transition into how NYC is the melting pot of every culture, how people come from all over to make this city home and to look to make their dreams come true. The success stories I see on the streets. The lights, the city that never sleeps, the New York state of mind are all things that revive the spirit when someone is down. Looking out my window and seeing the streets and cars late at night just bring me to life, wow, I am living in the city, the center of the universe. The city becomes home no matter what, it’s like your family and no matter where you go, your experiences here never leave you.
I was also thinking of playing “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z or “New York State of Mind” by Billy Joel under my speaking. But I plan on choosing the song after the story so that it can benefit the mood and tone of my story better. I am going for the message and tone that NYC is awe inspiring and that there is nowhere else in the world like it. One issue for me that may come up is interview or no interview. I also don’t know how to edit sound very well so that may cause some difficulty as well. But for me I think the biggest trouble will be finding a tone that shows how NYC has broken me down hard at times, but that it has picked me up, left me awe inspired, and after 17 years of living here, it will never leave me – a feeling many New Yorkers can realize and relate to.
3 responses so far
I really like the idea of using NYC as your starting point, but I think you have to decide which aspect of it to focus on and what your overall point is. As of now, it just sounds like you’re throwing a bunch of ideas around, which is a good start, but I wonder which direction you’ll choose to take it in. For the record, I like the part where you say how people are too focused on themselves to notice those begging on the streets. I think you can use that part to both illustrate the negative side of the city, and to segue into what people are so busy with.
I also really like your proposal idea. I understand the feeling that you are trying to get across, of total awe and a sort of overwhelm-ment from New York. The only reason i am a little concerned is that not everyone feels the same way. The lights and opportunities are surely plentiful and inspirational, but what about the people who look at the city with contempt? The slums, the crime, the freedom can sometimes become chaotic. I guess what im trying to say is that you are bound to find some people who do not agree with your opinion, but i guess you cant appeal to everyone, either…
Also, sometimes an emotion can be really hard to convey without sounding cheesy.
Just something to think about.
I think this is a very interesting topic and I thought it was great how you want to include both positive and negative aspects of the city and how it is viewed. It is a great way to get across your personal opinion about the city but I also feel you should narrow down your topics a little bit more so that your overall message and feeling about the city can be heard more.