Obituary Assignment

David Bowie was a legend in every sense of the word. He pushed all sorts of boundaries, not just through his music, but through his many personas and his public image. He challenged gender, sexuality, and art in a way that nobody had done before, at least nobody that was in the public eye as much as he was. Bowie was seen as beyond human, as an alien dropped on Earth to amuse and befuddle the humans, to make us question creativity, art, and social norms, and even make us uncomfortable at times. But the world needed David Bowie. He showed people that there is always the potential to transcend any persona, to become whoever you want to be, all while being entirely yourself. He was Ziggy Stardust, the mystical alien creature, the moon-man, who taught us that people can embrace the glitter and magic in their lives, and that humanity is not is dull as it seems to be. He was also David Jones, the young British boy entranced by Rock n Roll culture, who crooned and grooved with immeasurable passion. He inspired so many, and pushed artists and people everywhere to take risks and push beyond the limits that are presented to them, and to see beyond the boundaries that society imposes on us. We now have a very special star in the sky because of his death, and he will certainly never be forgotten. He couldn't possibly be forgotten if he tried.

I read the obituaries of David Bowie, Alan Rickman, and Amiri Baraka. All of the obituaries took the reader through the life of the deceased, usually going chronologically through their lives in order of their accomplishments and projects throughout the years. They commented on how the world saw the people, and what their impact was on society and culture in general. The main difference I saw in the ones I read was that in Amiri Baraka, there was a lot more criticism than just praise. This was because he was generally seen as a very polarizing figure throughout his life, and it was important to acknowledge what people thought of him, because that was a huge part of his image. The main thing I saw throughout the obituaries was that they didn't focus at all on their actual death, they mostly celebrated their life and talked about their accomplishments and high points rather than their final dying moments. This was important because it shows respect for the artist.