Synopsis, outline & bio into submit webpage

SYNOPSIS: There has been much speculation about Syd Barrett's feelings, but what does Syd himself say about how he feels? In his song "Late Night" he says:


 * Inside me I feel alone and unreal
 * And the way you kiss will always be a very special thing to me

You have to get inside the song: he feels sad and witty at the same time, whether he is with someone or not. From the starting point of this duality, also quoting some of the other songs he wrote, we can set off on a journey to immerse ourselves in the lands Syd evokes in our imagination with "Opel", while he searches for someone or something in his own land.

Reading between the lines of intriguing lyrics, enjoy the evergreen poetry of the past and enrich your personal knowledge of the Australian precious stone, the opal, the Spanish enchanting island Formentera, the terrible Louisiana's First Great Storm, and many other things to add mind-blowing connections to Barrett’s work, like the coincidences, with the film Shine or with the poems by the American poet Mark Bigney, or like the deep connections with the philosophy around Sisyphus, adopted by Albert Camus, in his famous 1942 essay The Myth of Sisyphus, and even by a funny Indian mythological character, Naranath Branthan.

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CHAPTER BY CHAPTER OUTLINE:

NOTE: The subjects of the chapters change as the words in the lyrics change, so the flow may seem, at first blush, weak or disjointed. Of course, who is in love with the song will be happy to find these key words in the chapter headings, and should expect immersive (but plausible) stories. Following the lyrics, there is also a logical progression between the chapters (see the outline below for ch. 2), but inside each chapter there is not a scrupulous compliance with each line of the lyrics.

1. INTRODUCTION I introduce "Opel" with points of comparison in Barrett's work. Having quoted his songs, I write: To discover the origins of "Opel" we need to know that some notes of the intro already existed in a recording dated 4th September 1967, the first session after a holiday on the beaches of Formentera, a controversial period where Syd, it seems, had had a breakdown, rather than a break. An example link [1] to a well-known forum would prove the relevance of the above excerpt, and the importance of accuracy for any relevant information, from the very first chapter (the best possible accuracy was one of my purposes in writing an essay for this song, forgotten for too long). Then I quote some accounts about Syd's breakdown and some introductory opinions about the song. [1] http://www.neptunepinkfloyd.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=17929

2. THE TITLE This chapter might instead prove that creative theories match with Barrett's creative use of any word (and any title) better than trivial theories like the "misspelled title" assumption. Starting with two parallel searches about two possible origins (the hill Opel and Opal Whiteley), then quoting informative references about the gemstone, then Shakespeare and Emily Dickinson, I lead the reader into a 1921 novel entitled The Black Opal. As example of logical flow between the chapters, please note the smooth transition to chapter 3: The theory is that Syd used the single word "Opel" with a word full of secrets in mind, a word which changes its meaning with the simple change of a letter (opa|el) just as the opal is a stone which shines in changing colours with slight movements or by changing the angle of view, a "gem-word" within a range of ancient cultures converging into highly iconic symbols, and then finally a totem.

3. THE TOTEM
 * Totems are a difficult concept to explain …
 * A totem is a spiritual creature, but it is not a god. You do not worship a totem, you follow it. A totem embodies a certain way of life - a representation of a set of ideals.
 * "You do not choose your totem. Your totem chooses you"
 * — Corax, '"Raven as a Totem"

Several ways of interpreting the word "totem" are shown (e.g. as Formentera's Tótems de Piedra). One of them is as a sea stack, and this will lead to know John Ewbank, who climbed the Totem Pole. Another one is as a statue, and this will lead to know the Indian character Naranath Branthan. I say in this chapter: Have we found the meaning yet? No, the elements we have allow us only to say that the totem is something special to be with.

4. THE FAR DISTANT SHORE I delve deeper into the lone literary reference (to Homer's Odyssey) that Palacios wrote in his book. Already introduced in ch. 3 as possible interpretation for "totem", the rock island Es Vedrà is here showed also in the way it would be if the book was a photo-book to be read "between-the-lines". The towers in Formentera and Ibiza (also introduced in ch. 3 as possible "totems") will introduce us to the 1909 novel The Dead Command (by V. Blasco Ibanez) and to some of the Legends of the conquest of Spain. There's even the Harlech Castle in Wales.

5. DRIFTWOOD This central chapter largely contains references about the 1856 Last Island hurricane in Louisiana. Not only it fits with an account that reads «On one night, when a powerful electric storm was raging, the turbulence reflected Syd's inner torment – Juliette's memory is of Syd literally trying to climb the walls», but the lyrics of "Opel" might fit with a story told by a shipwrecked man, and this Great Storm is also a significant literary subject: I had to quote only briefly 2 of the 4 books entirely devoted to it, while, also for space reasons, I've omitted Sothern's and Sallenger's works. Among the other topics in this chapter I would mention the proof that Barrett was keen on gems.

6. DRY TEARS If the word "driftwood", used for the previous chapter, might suggest a sort of anchorage in the search of meanings from Syd Barrett's land (I will write twice "driftwood on the sea of speculation"), the words "dry tears" might suggest a sort of desperation about this search, although the references found for the sad image of the dry tears and for the stark image of the carcass may look satisfactory. In fact, in this chapter there is a mix of references, also summarizing the previous ones, but being careful to avoid nonsensical speculation. Albert Camus's essay The Myth of Sisyphus makes its first appearance, in an excerpt preceded by Lucretius's De Rerum Natura:
 * To seek for power, such an empty thing,
 * And never gain it, suffering all the while,

7. A CIRCLE OF GREY In this chapter there's a subtle background of philosophical thoughts that would prepare us to the last chapter. In the main topic here, the S. T. Coleridge's theme of The Albatross (from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner) with the illustrations by Gustave Doré, this background is, more precisely, "moral" (to use the words from Coleridge's 1962 biographer, Lawrence Hanson, «permeating the whole there is the moral background»): among the various shades of grey treated in the book, the clearest here is the insipidity of some group of people that could be defined as "grey". The theme of regret for the loss of Barrett from Pink Floyd (and vice-versa), even before Shine On You Crazy Diamond, is surely not new (as well as the various recriminations in the discussions between the Pink Floyd fans).

8. TO BE FOUND… The words "to be found" may also refer to the search of meanings told in the outline for ch. 6. As said, the philosophy of Camus is in this ending chapter, although the deep philosophical aspects regarding "Opel" are all but conclusive. Actually, Camus is quoted when he refers to Kafka as briefly as a philosophical quote for "Opel" from a site for poetry reviews. Having used an approach perhaps a bit more pragmatic than the other chapters, the narration ends with some "afterwording" opinions (also from who didn't like the song) and with an open question.

Appendix. INFORMATION PACK It's actually an extended "song-info-sheet", perhaps one of the most extended you can find over the internet for a single song. The name comes from a similar page I once made for "Wolfpack" ([1]), but I think it has a quite general meaning. It contains the classical sections you find in other appendices (bibliography, index, etc.) but also quite unusually bulky things, as shown by this outline: 1st page: "Opel" credits (9 entries) / "Opel" recordings (4 entries) / "Opel" releases (5 entries) 2nd page: "Opel" covers (38 entries) / "Opel" related works (6 entries) 3rd page: "Opel" transcriptions (2 entries) / 4th page: "Opel" translations (6 entries) Bibliography (2 pages) / Quote credits (8 pages) / Image credits (3 pages) Index (7 pages) / "Opel session" photos (8 pages) / Last pages photos (2 pages) / Last page credits (1 page) [1] https://sites.google.com/site/pcmorph72/www-wikifloydproject-com-works-songs-barrett-wolfpack/a-neatly-typed-information-pack

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BIO: I began in publishing in 2012, with articles and contributions on Wikipedia, as PCMorphy72. Before that, I shared pieces of work on socials or Youtube. Tired of Wikipedia restrictions, I started my own MediaWiki websites. In fact, there is also a wiki version of the submitted book at http://opel.shoutwiki.com/wiki/Main_Page. The book and its related website represent my first fully accomplished work.