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Did Joshua Bell subway story deserve a Pulitzer?
Earlier this week, Gene Weingarten, a reporter for The Washington Post, won this year's Pulitzer Prize for feature writing with his offbeat story about concert violinist Joshua Bell, playing in a Washington metro stop. Few busy commuters stopped on their way to work to take notice of the Bloomington native, who is one of the world's most successful violinists, although there were exceptions. Maybe this story shows that few Americans recognize genius out of context. But did it deserve the Pulitzer?
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Pulitzer Prize for that!!!! You gotta be kidding! Of course with people nowadays obsessed with Bitney & crew what do you expect?
Here's the link to the article http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html. I'm not as familiar with other stories that have won the Pulitzer, but I really enjoyed this article. I thought it brought up interesting questions to think about. I enjoyed the section where they interviewed the curator of the National Gallery, and their synopsis of Kant's belief that, "that to properly appreciate beauty, the viewing conditions must be optimal."
Anytime someone from the "soft" news side nabs a Pulitzer, it's a victory for all mankind... =)
Absolutely. I hadn't read the article until now. I'd heard about it, but just finished reading it - twice. It reads well, smoothly, not only pays heed to observation and fact but asks "big picture" questions of its readers and draws parallels across music, art, literature, philosophy, et.al. And, let's be specific here - Weingarten won the Pulitzer for Feature Writing... not hard-journ. You can see all of the 2008 award winners here
Because I used to live in Washington, rode the Metro and watched commuters walk by street performers every day, I knew how this story was going to end before I began reading. But I read it anyway because, to me, there are two really interesting elements to it. First, what does it say about Americans that we're too busy to notice an extraordinary artist right in front of us? Second, there's the process of putting the piece together. For instance, why did Bell agree to do the story? And who did stop to listen? One man who recognized Bell's gift once wanted to be a violinist himself. The fact that most people didn't stop does NOT indicate to me that nobody listens to classical music anymore. Far from it. After all, D.C. is the city that has sustained the Kennedy Center for more than 30 years.
I found the Weingarten story fascinating when I first read it, but on further reflection it seemed like a cheap stunt. Imagine expecting busy commuters to stop and listen to some violin music, perhaps missing their train and being late for work! Weingarten, who has an expense account and the freedom to roam the D.C. area to gather material, is probably at odds with the workaday world and naturally looks for chances to wag his finger at people who don't measure up to his standards of sensitivity. Oh, the horror! "Getting and spending we lay waste our powers," etc. What a mess of cliched thinking lay behind this crude trick! It was a well-written "gotcha" exercise and nothing more. It definitely did not deserve a Pulitzer.
I was fascinated. Great story. I'm glad he did it and I'm glad he won.