Naomi, I’m a pretty new subscriber, and I want to give a general compliment to your work. You help cut through the bs of modern discourse and do it with style!
On ugliness in literature - I must recommend “Perfume: Story of a Murderer” by Patrick Suskind. Grenouille (the main character) is the absolute peak of human ugliness, which the author extremely skillfully balances out with one element of beauty: scents. The pursuit of beautiful smell gives the character nobility even as he himself (and the majority of odors) are utterly repulsive. I’ve never read anything like it and I think it does pull off some great depictions of ugliness because it is using one sense (that is not often used in literature) to such an extent.
Interesting Naomi. Not sure I'm with you that Nazi propaganda was more beautiful than the Soviet one, what I've seen is quite vulgar, mean and simply dumb, whereas some Soviet art was quite creative and at times beautiful - but sure, my survey wasn't extensive. There is something fascinating about near-pure evil, a sort of detachment that is not there in petty evil, but I would distinguish that from beautiful.
Your point about beauty as a useful guide to decision did stir me. Not sure I'm fully with you, but certainly is true that at times, one cannot help being sad or dark about things, and some of such times, beauty, either from outside self or self-lived, can give solace. It can give the inspiration to pull oneself out of a hole of darkness and back to joy - which I think has its own kind of beauty, the type I prefer of course.
Naomi, I’m a pretty new subscriber, and I want to give a general compliment to your work. You help cut through the bs of modern discourse and do it with style!
On ugliness in literature - I must recommend “Perfume: Story of a Murderer” by Patrick Suskind. Grenouille (the main character) is the absolute peak of human ugliness, which the author extremely skillfully balances out with one element of beauty: scents. The pursuit of beautiful smell gives the character nobility even as he himself (and the majority of odors) are utterly repulsive. I’ve never read anything like it and I think it does pull off some great depictions of ugliness because it is using one sense (that is not often used in literature) to such an extent.
Interesting Naomi. Not sure I'm with you that Nazi propaganda was more beautiful than the Soviet one, what I've seen is quite vulgar, mean and simply dumb, whereas some Soviet art was quite creative and at times beautiful - but sure, my survey wasn't extensive. There is something fascinating about near-pure evil, a sort of detachment that is not there in petty evil, but I would distinguish that from beautiful.
Your point about beauty as a useful guide to decision did stir me. Not sure I'm fully with you, but certainly is true that at times, one cannot help being sad or dark about things, and some of such times, beauty, either from outside self or self-lived, can give solace. It can give the inspiration to pull oneself out of a hole of darkness and back to joy - which I think has its own kind of beauty, the type I prefer of course.