28. Literary Criticism

Deweerdo Podcast

In this episode I talk about criticizing art and its use in understanding human existence.

As it is stated in Chapter 2 of Guerin's handbook, I see the value in appreciating literary texts as art. This allows us, not to criticize, but more to analyze their meaning and how that meaning pertains to our life--our existence. Just for clarity: I see criticism as a useless folly, an attempt to elevate ourselves beyond the art that we did not create. If a person finds usefulness in criticism, they are trying to lazily assume that the particular art is of no use to them. This makes sense on a human level, because some works of art do not pertain to life as you now know it. But, that does not mean that it is useless to all. For instance, how a person could dismiss the bible (a literary work of art), is beyond my comprehension. The same would be applied to so many other great works of art.

I digress.

The similarity between the first three books of the bible and the Epic of Gilgamesh, that is most striking to me, is the language of commandment. There is no opinion to be found, yet simply immediate direction that is to be assumed by the admirer. This direct language is good. It is valuable. On a personal level, I understand that many texts come to a person at the wrong time. When you read a book is extremely important. Are you old enough (intellectually advanced enough) to comprehend the art and contextualize it with others that you have read? If not, come back to it at a later date. If so, drive on.

Socrates said that we should not teach dialectic (convincing speech) to those younger than 35! And scientists have known that the pre-frontal cortex (the part of the brain that governs reason) of a human does not reach maturity until roughly the same time. These are clues to the maturity, or rather the ability to understand the value in a work of art. If you are wondering, before this age, it is imperative for the young mind to gather as much information as they can, and avoid criticism at all costs--because criticism and intellectual immaturity do not mix well. They only put out poor, and misleading, information into the zeitgeist; which is an atrocity. This makes the historical period, that we are currently experiencing, weaker. Bad move. As we well know in the Army, "Don't be that guy". Instead, seek enrichment so that you can spread it to others. Be the change that you want to see in the world.

Just my two cents.

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