Are Two Heads Better Than One?

There is a common belief that two heads are better than one-- that multiple perspectives and opinions culminate in something excellent, or at least something better than before. This idea of sharing and forging ideas is nothing new, but as of recently, can be seen in a new application-- mass collaboration on a macro scale and in a virtual world. Men, women, doctors, teachers, students-- anyone with access to a computer-- can share, correlate, and improve existing information and data through online wiki-software. Regardless of the mediocre information that may surface on such forums and outlets, this process, this exchange of information and knowledge, is ultimately a positive and creative force, and one that should perpetuate improvements in fields of science, medicine, and technology.

But what about the arts?

Initially, I was skeptical that such shared artistic collaboration could produce something great. In a world where shared thoughts and ideas can lead to accusations of copyright infringement, plagiarism, and exploitation, it seemed to me that mass collaboration was not meant for writers, musicians, or artists because it might blur the line between "just collaborating" and co-authoring. Shouldn't that matter? To whom does the credit and accolades go?

But lest you forget, art is steeped in the tradition of sharing, borrowing, collaborating, and bending rules. My mind instantly returns to English lectures on Eliot's "The Wasteland." Not only did this poem allude to (or borrow and steam from) the Bible, countless pieces of literature, parables, songs, and history, but without Eliot's international collaboration with his friend and colleague Ezra Pound, this remarkable perspective on modernity would not be the same. No doubt "The Wasteland" would still be incredible (and still as difficult to interpret), but would it be as great?

Of course, this collaboration between literary masters is not the mass collaboration on the macro scale of modern, well post-modern, wikis and online forums-- but it was certainly massive, marking, and perhaps defining, the modernist movement.

And to whom does the credit go? Eliot takes the prize, but Ezra got a pretty awesome inscription at the beginning of the poem: "For Ezra Pound il miglior fabbro." Look it up.

Pound is famously remembered for his thoughts on modernism in the beginning of the 20th century: "Make it new." Make it new, make it better. Isn't that what (mass) collaboration is all about? It should be.