Home For Fiction - Blog - Page 15 of 149

Shame Will Save the World

February 5, 2024

“Shame will save the world” – often translated as “Shame, the feeling that will save mankind” – is what the character of Kris Kelvin utters near the end of Solaris, the film by Andrei Tarkovsky.

Can shame save the world?

For Dostoevsky, it was beauty that would perform that miracle. However, as a Greek blogger has said, beauty will save those who can see it. I tend to agree with this variation much more readily.

In any case, there is a point in selecting shame as the better candidate. I realized it going through a list of freelance jobs with ridiculously underpaid remuneration – think of $5 to produce 1500 words of text. Reading this I said out loud: “I would be embarrassed to offer that”.

And that’s when I realized the role of shame in saving the world.

Shame will save the world - image of Tokyo at night — Our societies are large, faceless, cold… There is no time for shame when there’s money to be made.

(more…)

Misunderstanding a Song – for Twenty Years

January 29, 2024

Experiencing, Society

art, experiencing, meaning, music, society

Certain art forms are easier to “misunderstand” than others. That is, it’s easier for any kind of authorial intention to become something entirely different in the eyes (or ears) of the audience at a social level. Music and poetry are particularly susceptible to this, because of their abstractness. Misunderstanding a song is indeed hilariously likely, as today’s story should indicate.

Of course, the word “misunderstanding” is a little bit misleading: It is the role of art to be misunderstood. As I’ve stated before, to the extent artists have a social responsibility, that is to produce works that are interpretatively fluid.

Indeed, the story I have to share with you today is a marvelous example of a piece of art that escapes the confines – and control – of an entire society with hilarious consequences.

misunderstanding a song - image of a bass guitar — Song lyrics, if they are written competently, are not straightforward. They are highly symbolic and thus easily “misunderstood”. I’d say that misunderstanding a song is a key factor of its artistic capabilities

(more…)

Dealing with Lack of Skills in Writing: a Misleading Premise

January 22, 2024

Writing

art, artist, book, creativity, fiction, literature, writing

Writing, drawing, composing music, and basically every form of art consists of two components: the artistic one and the technical one. That is, to express ourselves artistically we must first and foremost have something to say, but it’s not quite enough. We must also have the skills to do that. So, what happens when we lack the skills?

We’ll talk about all this in more detail – and we’ll have to start with understanding that the term “lack of skills” is somewhat misleading – but first a couple of examples, just to make sure we’re all on the same page.

As a sculptor, I have a great artistic side. I can visualize forms, shapes, flows, colors and textures, and I can see my artistic ideas in material form. Piece of cake.

The thing is, I have precisely zero technical skills when it comes to sculpture.

I don’t even know how to hold a chisel (is that what it’s called?) let alone use it. So, practically, I am not really a sculptor.

On the other hand, though I lack the skills to play guitar like Slash, I’m “good enough” to be able to compose the music I want to compose – the art I want to express. I suppose you can call me a musician.

Writing, however, is a bit different. And this leads to certain misunderstandings and issues, as I’ll show you.

painting of a man; lack of skills — I only started painting very recently, since I always considered myself unable to hold a brush. Maybe I still am, but thank goodness for digital tools…

(more…)