For the artist, just as important, if not more so, than mastery of the medium of expression is mastery of the experience, because it is around this that his efforts will be concentrated and according to this that his work will be presented. Before shaping it, he must feel it and grasp it as much as possible, and the result of the effort depends entirely on the intensity with which he carries out these two operations.
Beyond the Unavoidable Damage…
Beyond the unavoidable damage to the reputation of some of the authors analyzed, the thesis that permeates Paul Johnson’s Intellectuals seems to be convincingly justified by the variety of examples offered in the work. Johnson shows that every “intellectual” who believes himself capable and wants to reform the world according to his own ideas ends up, sooner or later, possessed by them, which means worshipping them and holding them above the truth, which means taking sides with them to the detriment of real people. Possessed, he becomes a moral monster, refuting through his conduct any possible nobility contained in the idea that has dominated him. On the other hand, Johnson also shows that the way out of the magnetic attraction of ideas can only be through a sincere appreciation of the truth and the awareness that an idea is not worth a life. It is a work that, like good moralistic treatises, humanizes by exposing dehumanization.
It Would Be Very Amusing to Have a Book…
It would be very amusing to have a book, if it has not already been written, about the financial adventures of intellectuals over the last few centuries, as we often find them very curious in many biographies. It is fascinating to note that the most common type of intellectual, and above all the genius, is absolutely incapable of a prudent, moderate, intelligent financial life. We often see them in difficulties for long periods, most of the time, if not generated, made much worse by themselves; normally, the state they experience is one of dependence, at the mercy of fortune. There are great heirs, and more numerous ones who have piled up debts, loans and extravagances that only absolute irresponsibility or unjustifiable optimism or complete stupidity could allow. But very few are satisfied with a modest life, paid for by their own efforts, in line with their possibilities and, above all, one that improves as time goes on due to sensible behavior and not a sudden stroke of luck. It is certainly impressive.
The 20th Century Does Not Seem…
The 20th century does not seem to have been enough to demonstrate the risk of politicizing philosophy, nor the disasters that result from interpreting the “act” as a political act, or “responsibility” as a principle that claims the individual as a collective agent. The effort to distort thought and use it as a pretext and resource in this modern factory of activism persists, even though it has been proven to produce nothing but destruction. It is unfortunate, but it does not seem to be with less activism that the current activism can be combated.