The Behrend Beacon I 7 Dr. Archie Loss explains the meaning of a cultural classic By Tiffany Mak staff writer/ty msool@psu.edu Archie Loss, professor of English and American Studies at Behrend, gave a talk about the song “American Pie” to the freshmen in Senat Hall on October 4 from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Loss was successful in explaining the American culture and music of the ‘6os and ;70s to the attending students via the song “American Pie.” In order to give the students an awe some opening, Loss played the song “American Pie,” which is sung by Don McLean. This song has long been the hallmark of the fusion of rock n’ roll music and folk music in the countercul ture era. It achieved the number one status on the charts in the U.S. in 1972, but the album containing this song was not released until later. The reason that “American Pie” is so popular among Americans even today is not because of the popularity of Study Abroad: The European experience from a first hand view By Allison Gray copy editor/amg34B@psu.edu This past summer, I took part in a five-week study abroad pro gram from July 8 to August 15, 2005. I took a History of Renaissance Art course at the University College of Northampton in England, located about an hour and a half north of London. The program, available to students every summer, provides an opportu nity to visit not only remarkable and historical sites in England, but Students enjoying a day at Warwick Castle while studying abroad in Furbpe NEW OFF-CAMPUS STUDENT LIVING COMMUNITY Construction Begins this Fall! Located directly across from the entrance to Penn State Behrend The New apartments will also offer: Furnished Bedrooms & Living Room Kitchen, Living Room & 2 Full Baths High Speed Internet in Every Bedroom (814)899-5160 or E-mail: universitygate@jamesproperties.com Call c\r yj _ McLean, but because of the lyrics and the time when the song came out. “It was only the ‘7os when the people started to look back of their fifties and their complexity,” said Loss. “After the Broadway [musical] came out in the seventies, people investigated beneath the surface to get what the song is real ly about.” The entire song was McLean’s trib ute to three prominent rock stars, Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper, who died in the same plane crash in February of 1959. The plane, “Miss American Pie” which took the lives of the rock stars at the time, February 3, 1959, signified “the day the music died”. Since rhythm and blues began to intrude into American music culture in the ‘6os, the counter culture era was hard for rock n’ roll music. While lamenting the death of the three rock stars “he admired the most”, McLean also lamented the swift death of the COMING TO PENN STATE BEHREND UNIVERSITY GATE APARTMENTS Now Pre-Leasing 3 & 4 Bedroom Apartments Featuring ALL PRIVATE BEDROOMS CALL NOW to reserve your apartment for next year I'UDENT LI rock music “that used to make him smile” Other than his view on music, McLean also included his religious and political views in his song. However, some interpretations of his lyrics are still unclear, such as the vague image of “rollin’ stone” and “queen in a coat.” Most of the audience thought that “American Pie” was an interesting song, and Dr. Loss focused well on the details. “We are going to enroll [in] his American Studies class next semester,” said Pat Sharbaugh, a first semester chemestry student, and Ryan Mocniak, who is in his first semester in the Department of Undergraduate Studies. “It is meaningful to leant about the American culture and Dr. Loss did a pretty good job,” said Chad Bosko, CE 01, another audience. Grant Reschcnthaler, the Student Academic Leader, expressed his satis faction towards the program. He was all over Europe. During the five week program, classes take place Monday through Thursday, leaving Friday open. On four of the five avail able Fridays, optional day-trip excursions to places such as Althorp, Oxford, Stonehenge, Bath, Warwick and Stratford-upon-Avon. The third week of the program is devoted to a trip to one of three cities: London, England, Dublin, Ireland or Florence, Italy. I spent the majority of the third week in Florence with my class and instructor. While, I had a once-in-a-lifctime opportunity to view some of the most astonishing artwork in the world. Every day, for five days, I visited a new museum. I got to see Michelangelo’s David, Donatello’s David and Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, among other amazing works of art. 1 ate authentic Italian food and drank authentic Italian wine. The streets of Florence were full of vendors selling leather goods, silk scarves, marble chess sets and souvenirs of all kinds. A group of about five students spent the fifth day in Venice and on the sixth day, we all visited Pisa. Students were encouraged to travel outside of the program’s planned trips as well. I spent my second weekend with a group of nine other students in London. Over the course of a day and a half, I visited the London Tower, London Bridge, Big Ben, St. Paul’s Cathedral, The British Museum, Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery. During the same weekend, another group of students took the train to Paris where they visited the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. FOR FALL 2006 'The three men I admire most: the father, son and holy ghost." Dr. Loss recants a favorite line. happy to see that “American Pic” inter ested a lot of the students. “We hope we can organize a program which is not that academic, but at the same time the students can learn some thing from it,” said Reschcnthaler, Biology, 03. “It works really well.” During the fourth weekend abroad, five students (myself includ ed) visited Brussels. Belgium for a weekend. We stayed in a great hotel within walking distance of the town center. We bought Belgian chocolate and indulged in Belgian waffles. I had mussels in Brussels and bought Belgian lace. The trip was amazing. During the week, when we were in classes, we had local options for entertainment. Across the street from the school is the Sunnyside Pub. Mondays are quiz nights, Wednesdays are karaoke and on Sundays, they serve roasts. Down the road from the town center is the cinema, Sol Central, where a few friends and I watched “Mr. and Mrs. Smith" and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” For students who wanted to stay close to the dorm, there is an on-cam pus library and computer lab. The program is open to students from all over the world and, while I was there, I befriended students from not only the United States, but also Hungary, Russia and Italy. Of course, I also got to know some of the locals quite well and I still keep in touch with all of them via e-mail. I can’t recommend this program enough, as it was the most mem orable experience of my life and one that I’ll cherish for as long as I live. If you’re interested in this program and want more informa tion, contact Dr. Dean Baldwin at dxbll@psu.edu or Dr. Ruth Pflueger at rcpl@psu.edu. ♦ Free Parking ♦ On-site Office & Laundry ♦ Walking Distance to Class Friday, October 7, 2005 ni-ni r 1 _dj Rcschenthalcr expects a similar talk for his Senat freshmen a few weeks later. Jill Forsman, the Coordinator of Housing, will be invited to talk about the “Mid-term Expectation.” It will be held in the lobby of Senat Hall and is open to all of the residents.
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