and thatās the problem, people sometimes lack the nuance thatās essential to well rounded critical thought and engagement. as an hbo prestige television enjoyer, i love a morally gray or even deplorable character as long as the subject material treats the character with the ādonāt condemn OR condoneā mentality. the same goes for literature imo.
its also largely dependent on the context in which the work is being taught (not so much when it was made bc āit was a different timeā usually ends up adding fodder to frustrating arguments). for example, junior year of high school i found it really odd that my white teacher decided to use of mice and men to chastise the use of the n word, to a class of mainly black students. very weird and also not the point of the book (but she got better after this and instilled a lot of good stuff in my brain).
again, not to link this to the arts as a whole, but i feel the separating the art from the artist narrative exacerbates this as well. nothing is wrong with enjoying work from a morally dubious person but i think separating their art from their morals is a weird way of engaging with work. another example: a musician i really loved who was found out to have very off putting (borderline illegal) behavior towards women but from time to time i will play a song for old times sake. however when i listen, oftentimes i realize, yes these ARE the lyrics of a man who does not take rejection well. the work exists in the contexts of the authors morals but you arenāt and donāt need to be waving a flag saying āI CONDONE EVERYTHING IN THIS WORKā.
all in all, a huge key to engaging with classic lit critically is being comfortable with (not sure comfortable is the best term. familiar, maybe?) with gray area and be ready to navigate accordingly.
May 9, 2024
Related Recs
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A brief anecdote to preface this (skip to get straight to the philosophy):
Today a team member and I (building a business) met with an expert in his respective field to ask some questions. After a little explanatory back-and-forth, it was clear he had a complete lack of knowledge of our sector, and had only understood the description of our project on a superficial level. Nonetheless, he proceeded to spend most of the time āpushing backā, and therefore was unable to offer much insight that we could use.
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Critique/judgment without understanding is invalid ā period. This is confusing to some critics/would-be critics/people because they conflate the accumulation of knowledge with the skill of understanding. Letās say youāre a music critic ā you know lots of stuff about many kinds of music, many eras, etc. One day something comes along your desk, you pop it on, and it sounds a bit odd. Youāve never heard of the artist beforeā¦ it sounds vaguely similar to something you know of ā sure, letās compare it to that, I guess. In this moment, you may not realize that you have a blindspot. Maybe you donāt yet understand the cultural or aesthetic movement this piece of music is born from because it doesnāt overlap with your breadth of knowledge (even if itās very wide). Your prior knowledge may inform your ability to understand, but it doesnāt replace it. A real critic will take the time, as their duty, to understand as best they can before they make any critique. Anyone else isnāt a real critic.
This goes for everything and everyone, not just professional or expert criticism. Itās true on an individual level, a social/cultural level, a political level, etc.
Now especially, everyoneās a critic ā and thatās both great and terrible/terrifying. Criticism/judgment are perfectly valid and useful forms of human expression if and only if you seek to understand beforehand.
So, we can think about that from the perspective of giving criticism and, of course, receiving it. Being open to criticism is a massively important quality to develop, but if someone hasnāt made an effort to understand you/your idea, their critiques can go into the trash can. š®
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Jun 4, 2024
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Remember that, smart alecks!
Some more of my core guiding principles around this idea:
Truth and fact are two sides of the same coin.
They are interconnected but not interchangeable.
On a similar note:
Truth is complex and often paradoxical.
If you think you can lay it out in black and white terms, sorry bud ā you donāt have a handle on it. The capacity to hold space for seemingly conflicting ideas is essential. That means letting go of the idea that your truth is the truth.
Critique something/someone only from a place of understanding
^ did a whole rec on this. To add to it: if you spend a lot of time criticizing those who you disagree with, whose benefit is it for? Mainly itās a signifier to those who you do agree with that youāre part of the same in-group. Thatās fine and it has its place, but constructively challenging the views and behaviors of those within your own community (including yourself!) is much more valuable.
And on that note:
Understanding ā condoning
Most people skip the work of trying to truly understand because theyāre afraid theyāll seem complicit. Say someone commits a violent crime. Trying to understand the familial, socioeconomic, and systemic circumstances that factored in ā developing empathy for this person ā does not mean you condone the behavior or that you care any less for the victim of their crime. You are not doing any good to the cause of peace of justice or whatever you claim to stand for by refusing to understand people (however fucked up and misguided they may be).
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Ok thatās long enough, maybe Iāll drop some fun ones in another post lol bye
Jul 17, 2024
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iām sort of anti-cancel culture (not in the obnoxious right wing way, in the āmaybe we should try talking to people first if they arenāt acting in bad faithā way) and at the same time idk i actually donāt think everything should be enjoyed without critique. itās actually not bad to offer legitimate concerns or critiques of things people enjoy if the thing is problematic or harmful. sometimes things other people think are fun or funny are actually kinda mean or fucked up and we donāt have to pretend thatās ok
Oct 5, 2024
Top Recs from @deardoveswings
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liking ur rec = saying hi when we go to get our morning papers from the end of our driveways (picture me doing so tony soprano style)
Aug 12, 2024
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started writing this a few hours ago when i first saw this ask, then decided against posting but i've since changed my mind. there really is no justification for it outside of entitlement. even from a selfish lens, there's no long term benefit to its usage. it harms the world and culture in more ways than one.
a.) the water and energy usage that isn't a secret at this point. "no ethical consumption under capitalism" yadda yadda and yeah corporations are extremely culpable in the state of the environment but there really is no need for chatgpt and the planet is already too delicate at the moment.
b.) the exploitation of workers in the global south. this program is not just a computer figuring it all out, there are in fact humans behind it. it reminds me of the acceptance of fast fashion and how people have the tendency to divorce the idea of the garment worker from the garment they wear when all clothing is handmade in some way, shape or form. you need hands to man a sewing machine, you need human eyes to moderate content. also, content moderation can be a thankless job with psychological repercussions.
c.) the erosion of social skills, humanity and media literacy...this one is very personal. like, you have a cushy email job but can't write an email? you need a computer and a worker in kenya to get paid a dollar an hour to figure out a daily routine for you? i've seen the program churn out blatantly incorrect information. fine tuning a prompt or chat or whatever to give you the exact (possibly incorrect) answer you need isn't really that much less work than sharpening your research skills by cracking open a dictionary or using boolean search keys in google. again, the main issue with this kind of stuff is the entitlement to convenience, with no thought towards the repercussions within and outside of us. we are losing major recipes (critical thinking and media literacy) here, people!
i probably did an iffy job are coherently articulating my thoughts here but i am in fact, human. and thatās the beauty of it all.
Oct 1, 2024
i donāt work w oils often, mainly tempera, collage, and digital but this is the one i'm still most proud of as of late bc itās way bigger (18x24) than i'm used to working <3
Oct 14, 2024