Arcadia
From Libertines Wiki
Arcadia is a fictitious land, The Libertines' private world; a vision of England which has been poetically defined by the band in different ways throughout the years. The basis of it appears to be a libertarian society in which everyone is free to do as they wish, as well as serving as a means of espcaping from the mundane into somethng beautiful and eternal.
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[edit] Origin
Arcadia seems to have originally been Peter Doherty's idea, or at least he was the first to word it, which he shared first with Carl Barat and then with the rest of The Libertines. Doherty has stated that Barat "was the one person who never laughed when I told him about Arcadia." [1] In turn, Barat had said that "Pete’s managed to beautifully illustrate something that’s always been swirling around namelessly within [him]." [2] Doherty illustrated its origin more poetically by saying that "it came from a whisper through the trees. It came from a crack in the pavement. It can also come when you open a bag of crisps, or when you kick a football against a goalpost.[3]"
In 2006, on being asked whether he still believed in Arcadia, Doherty replied, "I still do. It's changed a lot. It started off as something ancient and forgotten; and became something modern and real. I just couldn't swim. The tunnels get narrower and narrower."
[edit] Definition
In a 2002 NME interview, Peter Doherty said that it to be "in there (he points to his head). God knows what's in there, but that's where it is. It's a vision of a better place. Everything there is cool." "It's just about the realm of the infinite, which is just in the mind,and is capable of anything as radical or as beautiful or as sick as you can conjure up," added Barat in the same interview, while John Hassall described it as a place "where cigarettes grow on trees and all benches are made of denim."
In another 2002 interview, Doherty said "You know – Arcadia? The realm of the infinity? It’s a poet’s corner. This is the code by which we live our lives. This is the pact we’ve sworn all those years ago that turned us all from enemies into companions and wayfarers and travellers on the seas of Albion. It’s not a cult or a religion – it’s an awareness of your surroundings; you’re not gonna force yourself on anyone and, equally, no-one’s gonna force themselves on you. And it’s about community and pleasure. It can be as powerful as your imagination can allow it to be. But, it can also be as dark and twisted as your soul… Arcadia encompasses the infinite, and that’s why it comforts me.."
In [[Peter Doherty Interview Sunday Independent 08/05/2005 - Version 2|a 2005 interview," Doherty stated that Arcady was "a realm where no-one tries to hurt you and you don’t try to hurt anyone. But you can’t really control it."
In a 2002 interview, , Doherty mentioned Pitzia as "the Goddess of Arcadia," stating that "there’s no leaders, but Pitzia is in control."
In a 2003 interview, Doherty explained, "Just when you get really wound up, you turn a corner and you're somewhere else completely. You find an Arcadian glade - a glimpse of paradise in the middle of it all. And that's why you persevere. That's why you don't chuck yourself off a building or shoot yourself at the same time as someone else, like he [Carl] wanted us to."
[edit] Use
Arcadia is referenced in the songs Arcady and The Good Old Days. In an interview with the NME following the announcement of Dirty Pretty Things' separation, Carl Barat mentioned composing a song with the working title "Arcadian March On."[4]
[edit] Related Interviews and Articles
Libertines Interview NME 08/06/2002
Peter Doherty Interview Newcomer 2002
Libertines Interview Rockfeedback 2002
Libertines Interview The Guardian 10/01/2003
