Cage- Flomenbaum

            The main points that Cage makes in these lectures is that there is a clear and underrated connection between silence, sound, and noise as well as the fact that this connection relates closely to that between words and music. Most people assume that silence is the absence of noise but in many ways, noise is the absence of silence and sound is the creation of meaningful noise. Cage makes the argument that silence is underutilized in modern day society and is often seen as a negative, when in reality silence is the way that people make sense of sounds and noise. This relationship is epitomized with the relationship between words and music.
            One interesting way to consider this relationship is in regards to the idea of background noise. While in many cases noise can be very distracting, it can also be seen as the creation of silence. Many people feel uncomfortable in total silence and often need some kind of background noise, such as music, to tune out in order to focus on other thoughts or tasks. While clearly these noises are not silence, they, in a way, create the same essence as a lack of noise (meaning total silence). Noise, according to this idea, is clearly different than sounds, which seem to be more intentional noises created for a specific purpose or meaning.
            Cage also focuses on music verses other sounds and having these concepts play off of each other. For example, the way that he composes this lecture seems like a musical piece both when looked at and when heard out loud. Cage wants the reader to understand that words are music and music is created from words. People tend to feel that music is very intentional and purposeful, while words can be used simply to fill the silence. Throughout this piece, Cage reiterates that his speaking is silence, meaning that it is pointless, as most people believe silence is. Rather than have silence be the absence of noise, Cage is making his voice the absence of silence. Music is similar in the way that many people use it to fill the silence but in many cases, people will spend much of their time and energy solely focusing and listening to music. Hence, music is the quintessential example of the relationship between silence and noise in one.
            It is also important to note the structure of this poem and its relationship to chance. Through this point, he relates back to the relationship between silence and noise as well as that between music and words. Cage writes this poem using chance and luck and sort of with the intention of letting anything happen. Yet, the poem is very structured both in its physical layout and in the words used. Cage is making the point that these two ideas can work together and both be used at the same time. Similarly, regarding the relationship between noise and silence, in many ways these two are not mutually exclusive and can only exist with the other one. If silence existed all of the time, people would become unable to hear it because there would be nothing else. On the other hand, without silence, noise would be the norm. In regards to music and words, these two are very connected because without words, music has little point either based on the fact that the music itself has no words or because the audience would be unable to discuss the music after hearing it. Similarly, words naturally rely on a certain way of speaking them in order to portray meaning, which is a form of musical expression in some ways. The natural inflection placed on words is a form of music.  Ultimately, Cage’s point is that these relationships relay on one another and are not opposites as most people assume they are.