This question haunts me constantly. I think, instinctively, that it should haunt everybody.
And I think this despite the fact that it's hard to make a moral case for this. Banality isn't evil in itself. (Which is, I suppose, why the phrase "the banality of evil" exists. They wouldn't have to be paired if they weren't distinct. Besides, we all know that evil is often cool and stylish-- superficially, at least.)
Life is becoming more homogenized, standardized, rationalized, disenchanted, etc. etc. I'm convinced of this, though it's a hard thing to quantify.
What can we do about it? What can I do about it? I'm not talking about a grand strategy for a transformation of society. What can we do about it in our immediate environment, right now, with our way of life?
What element of eccentricity, colour, romance, contrarianism, visual poetry, and so forth...can we personally inject into our world? How can we re-enchant our immediate environment?
I haven't even found an answer to this myself, but I'm always asking it.
I'm inspired by people such as the Poe Toaster and Ferdinand Cheval. It would be hard to reach the heights of the latter in particular. But we could try!
Of course, you could all be doing this already.
I accidentally stumbled across Poe's grave when I was staying in Baltimore once. I was very pleased, even though I've only read a few of his stories. A haunted man.
ReplyDeleteThat must have been a weird experience! Yes, indeed, a haunted man. I think his poetry is very underrated.
DeleteIt is much the same for me, and has been explicitly since I was aged about 19 when I read Colin WIlson's The Outsider, and discovered that I was not alone. However, I have never known many people who agree with me, or admit to this - so seeking "answers" has been mostly a solo activity - although usually involving other people. I became rather obsessed with "deep" conversations, and would travel the length of the country to visit those rare people (of both sexes) with whom I might expect to have these.
ReplyDeleteBruce
I must read this Outsider! When I was fourteen I was reading The Stranger by Camus, except the edition I was reading had been translated The Outsider. I asked my father about it and he said: "It's books like that one that are responsible for [he named a mutual acquaintance who'd got into cannabis and anti-social tendencies]." I told him it was Camus and he said: "Oh. Well, Camus had his ideas and wrote about them." I doubt my father ever read Wilson.
DeleteI love deep conversations but in terms of re-enchantment I'm more looking for something that will reach "normies"-- so to speak!